CAUGHT BETWEEN THE MIKEALSONS

CHAPTER TWO

LIYAH’S POV

I stared at my mother, waiting for her to say something. She was still holding my hand tightly.

“Mom, you’re scaring me.”

She finally let go and looked towards the door again. The knocking had stopped.

“Who was that?” I asked.

“Nobody.”

I frowned.

“Nobody doesn’t knock on the door.”

She didn’t answer me.

I walked towards the door, but she quickly stood up.

“Liyah, please.”

I stopped.

“What?”

“Just leave it.”

I looked at her. She looked scared.

I had never seen my mother like that before.

“Mom, what is going on?”

She sat down again and took a deep breath.

“I told you not to worry about these things.”

“But that man was here because of the debt.”

She looked away.

“And now you’re telling me not to worry?”

“I’ll handle it.”

“You’ve been saying that for months.”

She became quiet.

I immediately regretted saying it because I knew she was already going through a lot.

“I’m sorry,” I said softly.

She shook her head.

“It’s okay.”

I sat beside her.

“Just tell me the truth.”

She looked at me for a while.

“The debt is worse than I told you.”

I swallowed.

“How bad?”

She didn’t answer.

“Mom.”

“I don’t know what to do anymore.”

Her voice broke.

I felt tears forming in my eyes too. I reached for her hand.

“We’ll find a way.”

She looked at me and smiled sadly.

“You don’t understand.”

“Then make me understand.”

She opened her mouth but stopped.

For some reason, she looked like she wanted to say something but was afraid.

“There’s something I need you to do.”

I frowned.

“What?”

She looked down.

“Nothing.”

I shook my head.

“No. You were about to say something.”

“It’s not important.”

“Mom.”

She stood up suddenly.

“I need to make dinner.”

I watched her walk away.

Something was definitely wrong.

But I didn’t know what she was hiding from me.

That night, I couldn’t sleep.

I kept thinking about the man who came to our house. I had never seen him before, but the way he spoke to my mother made it obvious that they had known each other for a while.

And there was something about the way my mother looked at him.

Fear.

I picked up my phone and checked the time.

12:43 a.m.

I opened Daniel’s chat. I wanted to tell him everything, but I didn’t know where to start.

I finally typed:

“Are you awake?”

He replied almost immediately.

“Yes. What’s wrong?”

I stared at the message.

Then I called him.

“Hey,” he said.

“Daniel.”

“What’s wrong?”

I could hear the concern in his voice.

I told him about the man who came to the house and everything that happened.

He was quiet for a moment.

“Did he threaten you?”

“No.”

“But he said something about your mother having only one way to settle the debt?”

“Yes.”

“Did your mother tell you what he meant?”

“No.”

I sighed.

“I don’t know what is happening anymore.”

“You should be careful, Liyah.”

“I know.”

“And don’t let anyone pressure you into doing something you don’t want.”

I became quiet.

“Why would you say that?”

“I don’t know. I just have a bad feeling about all this.”

His words made me nervous. But I didn’t want him to worry.

“Everything will be fine.”

“You promise?”

I smiled a little.

“I promise.”

We stayed on the phone for a while before finally saying goodnight.

After the call ended, I put my phone beside me.

I tried to sleep again.

But just as I was about to close my eyes, I heard my mother’s voice from the living room.

I sat up.

It was almost two in the morning.

Who was she talking to this time?

I quietly opened my bedroom door and walked towards the living room.

I could hear her speaking softly.

“I understand.”

There was a pause.

“Yes, I’ll tell her.”

I stopped.

Tell her what?

I moved closer.

“I just need a little more time.”

Another pause.

Then she said something that I couldn’t hear clearly.

I leaned closer to the wall.

Suddenly, the floor made a small sound beneath my feet.

My mother stopped talking.

I quickly stepped back.

A few seconds later, her bedroom door opened.

I ran back to my room and got into bed. I closed my eyes and pretended to be asleep.

My mother walked past my room.

She stopped at my door.

For a few seconds, she didn’t move.

Then she continued walking.

I opened my eyes slowly.

My heart was beating fast.

Whatever she was hiding, I knew it wasn’t going to stay hidden for long.

The next morning, I woke up to find my mother already dressed.

She was standing beside my bed.

“Liyah.”

I sat up.

“Yes?”

“We need to talk.”

My heart immediately started beating faster.

“About what?”

She looked at me.

“About your future.”

I stared at her.

“My future?”

She nodded.

“There’s something I need to tell you.”

I waited.

She sat down beside me.

For a moment, she didn’t say anything.

Then she took my hand.

“I want you to listen to me before you say anything.”

I frowned.

“Mom, what is it?”

She took a deep breath.

And just as she was about to speak, her phone rang.

She looked at the screen.

The expression on her face changed immediately.

She stood up.

“Who is it?” I asked.

She didn’t answer.

She simply walked out of the room to take the call.

I watched her leave.

Something told me that whatever she was about to tell me was going to change everything.