Chapter 6 : The Last Sacrifice
1037 Words
The room fell into a heavy silence—no more shouting, no more arrogance. Rossi leaned forward and rested her head on her father’s shoulder, her eyes closed in exhaustion.
Harrison raised his trembling hand and stroked Rossi’s hair with a gentle, fatherly touch. In that moment, his love for her was finally clear and visible, stripped of all lies.
When Rossi felt her father’s touch, her eyes snapped open. "Please, clear one thing for me," Rossi whispered, her voice barely audible. "Did Leonard force you to play that game? Did he leave you with no other choice?”
Harrison took a deep breath and closed his eyes as the confession finally escaped his lips. "I played that game with Leonard Russell because I had no other choice," he said. His voice was finally calm, as if the heavy burden on his heart was finally lifting.
"I thought that if I didn't play, our whole business would be destroyed. But even more, I feared that Leonard would take you away from me regardless."
Harrison paused, a pained look crossing his face. "I decided to play because I truly believed that if I won, I could secure the loan and force Leonard to leave you alone forever. I thought a man like him would have the dignity to back down if he lost in front of his peers."
Rossi lifted her head from Harrison’s shoulder. "Why didn't you tell me about this from the start?" her voice now carried the warmth of a daughter who loved her father more than anyone in the world. "I understand your situation now... how foolish I was. I didn't realize my father was going through the most difficult stage of his life."
The atmosphere in the room was now filled with an unbelievable bond of father-daughter love; all the confusion had finally cleared.
Harrison looked at Rossi, pulled her closer into his arms, and kissed her forehead. "You don't need to blame yourself, my child." Harrison’s voice was like a sweet, gentle breeze, bringing a sense of peace to Rossi’s aching heart.
"So, what happens next? He won and you lost," Rossi said, her voice finally firm and filled with a newfound calm. "But I no longer have any bitterness toward you, Father. I know you did everything you could for me."
After saying this, Rossi tightly hugged her father, clinging to him as if she feared this might be the last time they would ever be together.
"I did my best to beat him, but that day just wasn't mine," Harrison whispered, his voice cracking with the pain of a father who wanted to save his daughter but remained utterly helpless.
"The moment I lost that gambling game, my entire world shattered. From that day on, I became the worst kind of father for my daughter.”
The misunderstandings between Rossi and Harrison were finally gone, but this happiness was short-lived. Leonard Russell’s gaze was still fixed on them; a man like him did not easily let go of his winning prize.
Suddenly, a sound shattered the moment like an atomic bomb. It was Harrison’s phone—the screen lit up with Leonard Russell’s name.
Both Rossi and Harrison froze, paralyzed by the ringing. It wasn't just a normal ringtone anymore; to their ears, it sounded like a final warning from the devil himself.
When Harrison’s eyes fell on the name Leonard Russell, his hands shook with uncontrollable fear. He felt like he no longer had the strength to face Leonard, even through a phone call.
Harrison looked at Rossi, his eyes pleading, and then glanced back at the vibrating phone.
It became almost impossible for Harrison to pick up the call. But then, Rossi’s voice broke the tension
.
"Father, pick up the call," Rossi said. Her voice was now filled with an unbelievable confidence that wasn't there before. "We no longer need to fear this man. I have decided what I have to do.”
Rossi’s words infused a sudden surge of energy into Harrison’s body. With trembling fingers, he pressed the accept button and switched the phone to loudspeaker.
A cold, ruthless laugh echoed through the room. "I hope by now you, father and daughter, have cleared all your confusion," Leonard’s voice rasped. He sounded like a hungry wolf ready to devour its prey.
"You both have very little time left. The deadline I gave you expires tomorrow. This is your last night with your daughter, Harrison... so celebrate these final moments with joy."
His tone carried no trace of kindness; it was the voice of a man who lived only to hunt and destroy others.
Before Harrison or Rossi could utter another word, Leonard cut the call with a final, deadly laugh. The atmosphere in the room, which had just been filled with the warmth of father-daughter love, suddenly transformed into the cold silence of a funeral.
"I will not repeat my mistake. You must leave, Rossi... before the morning comes," Harrison vowed, his voice sounding like a protector ready to sacrifice everything to save his child.
"There is no need for that, Father," Rossi interrupted, her tone making the scene even more critical. "I have decided what I must do. It is better for both of us... I am ready to hand myself over to Leonard Russell."
Rossi’s words hit Harrison’s heart like a thunderbolt. "No! I cannot let you do this! It’s like you are committing suicide!" Harrison cried out, his voice trembling with terror as his eyes turned cold with the realization of what was coming.
"You already said it, Father—he will never leave us alone. He is like a predator that kills its target if it cannot capture it," Rossi said, her voice now sounding like it came from the very depths of her soul.
She spoke as if she knew there was no other choice left. "If fate has decided this future for me, then I am ready. I am ready to make this 'suicide attempt' for us."
Rossi released her father’s hand and turned toward the door. She did not look back, but her eyes were no longer filled with tears. Instead, they glowed with a dark, deadly purpose.
- Writer
