CHAPTER TWO
1190 Words
Nathaniel Brown sat in one of the seats in a quiet corner of The Koch's restaurant, wearing a leather jacket, baggy jeans, a nose mask and a face cap. Ever since he woke up from a coma three months ago, he had frequently visited the restaurant under a disguise. Seven wasn't there today,only her parents, Elijah and Suzanne, both looking tired. The restaurant had been struggling ever since their son, Six, died in an accident,an accident he was responsible for.
As he waited for his food, four hefty looking men entered, and headed straight for the counter. Nathaniel watched as Elijah and Suzanne confronted them.
“How can I help you?” Elijah asked.
“You haven’t told him?” one of the men asked Suzanne, who stepped back.
“Told me what?” Elijah asked his wife.
One of the gangsters flung a brown envelope onto the counter. “Your wife gambled away the restaurant last night and lost. You’ve got twenty-four hours to vacate, or we’ll take it by force.” They left the restaurant but not without tossing some furniture aside.
Nathaniel watched as fear spread across the restaurant, customers quickly leaving. Elijah stood frozen, shock written all over his face.
“Elijah, I’m so sorry,” Suzanne sobbed. “I was sure I’d win. They cheated,I swear!”
Elijah turned to her, devastation clear in his eyes. “What did you do?”
“I thought—”
“This is my life, Suzanne. What I’ve worked for. How could you?” His voice broke, tears falling.
Nathaniel, unseen in his corner, felt a pang of sympathy. He knew James Brown, his grandfather, had settled them after Six’s death, but clearly, that wasn’t enough. His phone rang,a news headline showing across the screen
NATHANIEL BROWN, HEIR TO THE BROWN CORPORATE GROUP, IS GAY.
The rumors wouldn’t stop. But then, an idea struck. He could shut them up and save the restaurant at the same time.
He stood, approaching the couple. “Excuse me. I know how to save your restaurant.”
Elijah and Suzanne turned to him, surprised.
“I can pay off those men. You won’t lose your restaurant,” he continued.
Elijah frowned. “Why would you do that?”
“Because I want to marry your daughter.”
Elijah blinked,surprised. “What?”
“If you arrange my marriage to Seven, I’ll handle your financial troubles. You’ll never have to worry about money again.”
Elijah stared at him, confused. “Who are you?”
Nathaniel pulled off his cap and mask, revealing his face.
Suzanne gasped. “You—you’re that guy from TV.”
“My name is Nathaniel Brown.”
Elijah's face darkened. “You’re the man from the accident.”
“Yes.”
“You killed my son, and now you want to marry my daughter?”
Nathaniel bowed his head. “I regret what happened. Let me make it up to you. Marry Seven to me, and your worries will disappear.”
Elijah hesitated, He was very angry with his wife and the man standing in front of him but he was desperate. He wanted to save his restaurant too. His legacy.
“Why are you doing this?”
Nathaniel met his gaze. “Six was a good employee. He would have wanted his family to be taken care of. And…” He hesitated before admitting, “I need her in my life.”
“We’ll talk to her,” Suzanne said quickly.
“Suzanne!”
“What? We need to save the restaurant. He’s offering so much.”
Elijah sighed heavily. The restaurant was the only thing he had left. He couldn't throw it all away
“Fine,” he said,defeated. “We’ll talk to her.”
At 9 p.m., Seven walked into the restaurant, surprised to find her parents still there. Her father nursed a drink, while her mother, who was the drunk, wasn't holding a drink.
“Hey, what’s going on?”
“Take a seat,” Elijah said calmly
She sat, brows furrowed as Elijah spoke. “We’re losing the restaurant.”
Her stomach dropped. “What? Why?”
“I made a mistake,” Suzanne admitted. “I gambled with the restaurant and I lost.”
“Mum!” Seven shouted angrily.
“We found a solution,” Elijah said. “Someone offered to pay off the debt…..if only you marry him.”
“What?!” Seven asked surprised.
“It’s the only way to save the restaurant,” Suzanne insisted. “You understand how much this place means to us.”
Seven’s pulse raced. “Who is it?”
“The man who frequents the restaurant in disguise,” Suzanne said.
Elijah added, “Nathaniel Brown.”
Seven went still.
Nathaniel Brown. The man responsible for Six’s death.
She stared at them in disbelief. “You agreed to this?”
Elijah exhaled. “It was an accident, Seven. He regrets it.”
“You don’t know that!”
Her mother’s eyes narrowed. “You’re being selfish. If you don’t marry him, we’ll lose everything. If you refuse, I swear to God, I will kill myself, kill your father, and burn this restaurant down.”
Seven stared at her mother.
“I can’t believe you,” she whispered.
She ran upstairs, locking herself in her room, tears spilling down her face. They had no idea what they were doing. Marrying Nathaniel? The man who killed her brother?
Her eyes fell on her phone. Grabbing it, she scrolled through her voicemail, finding the last message from Six,the one he left the night he died. She hit play.
“Seven, I think I’m in danger,” Six’s voice came through, shaking. “This car won’t stop following me. It’s speeding. I don’t know who—” He paused. “Wait a minute. That’s Mr. Brown’s car.”
Seven’s breath hitched.
“Oh, s**t,” Six whispered. “Seven, I know who it is. It’s Nathaniel Brown, my boss. He must’ve found out I was investigating him. He was embezzling company funds, and I was digging into it. I think he sent someone after me.”
“Oh, Seven. Am I going to die?”
The voicemail ended.
Seven stood, chest heaving. Nathaniel was guilty. Everyone kept calling it an accident,but he knew the truth.
She went into Six’s room, and opened his safe. Inside, she found a picture, Six standing beside a tall, muscular man. Flipping it over, she saw Six handwriting where he wrote Jaime and I at the company's dinner.
Her brother’s last words echoed in her head.
The only person you can trust is Jaime.
Her hands clenched into fists. Nathaniel wanted to marry her? Fine. She would use that marriage to her advantage. She would avenge him for killing her brother. He thought he was keeping her under his thumb?
He had no idea what he was walking into.
Seven wiped away her tears, straightened her shoulders, and walked back downstairs. Her parents turned to h
er, waiting.
She took a deep breath.
“I’ll go ahead with the marriage.”
- Writer
