Novel-novel oleh Jacy Kyomi

Zayn's Pov (Lengthy chapter) After the call, I could not sit still. Araceli's voice stayed in my head. She was scared. The sound of her yelling replayed in my head on loop. She had scream something along the line of her father before the call ended and that's all the clue I needed. That was it, no more guessing. It was not Freya or Caleb. It was Victor, her father. The one she feared and never wanted to speak about. I can still remember the night she woke up after having a nightmare about him. I left my office and walked fast to the security room. My heart was beating hard, and fast. A lingering feeling of fear tried to crawl up my spine but I pushed it back down. When I got there, three men were watching the cameras. "Pull up all security footage from the last three weeks," I said, walking straight in. They all looked up from their monitors. "Right away, sir," said Jerry, the one with the medicated glasses. He always wore them because he had a bad eye from an ol

Zayn's POV "Sir," my P.A called, stretching my phone out to me. "Your phone has been ringing for over an hour now. I think it's really urgent." I took the phone from her. It was my home line. "How many times do I have to tell you? If there's a call from home, no matter what, give it to me right away." "Sorry, Sir. I didn’t want to interrupt." I clicked on the screen and picked the call. "Yes?" The voice on the other end was shaking. "Mr. Vanderbilt, it's Araceli, Sir. She’s gone." I stood still. My heart dropped. "Gone? What do you mean gone?" "She was kidnapped, Sir. We were knocked out. I just woke up. The kids are here, but she’s not in the house." I didn’t wait for more. I rushed out of the room, ignoring the looks and questions. My driver saw me and didn’t ask questions. "To the airport, now." I said. The ride back felt to the airport was antagonizing. I kept calling Araceli’s phone, but there was no answer. It was switched off. When we got to the airpor

Araceli's Pov I opened my eyes slowly. The sun was just rising, painting the room in a soft orange glow. Zayn’s arm was wrapped around my waist, and I could feel his breath on the back of my neck. I didn’t move. I didn’t want to. This moment felt peaceful, like nothing else in the world mattered. He shifted behind me and kissed my shoulder. “You awake?” “Yeah,” I whispered, smiling. “Mmm. Good. I didn’t want to leave without saying goodbye.” I turned to face him. “You are still going?” He nodded. “Yeah, the flight is in a few hours. I have to be at the airport soon.” I wrapped my arms around his neck. “Can’t you cancel it?” He chuckled. “Business doesn’t wait, baby.” I sighed. “Fine. But let me help you pack.” We both got up slowly. I pulled on a robe and tied it around my waist. He walked to the closet, pulling out a few shirts and slacks. I joined him, folding things into his suitcase on the bed. “How many days will you be gone?” “Just four days, mi amor.” “Four days is

Araceli's Pov I leaned over Zayn, pressing a soft kiss to his cheek. He did not stir. His face looked so peaceful when he slept. I smiled to myself and pulled the covers up around him a little more before tiptoeing out of the room. I checked on the kids first. Kamila was wrapped up in her unicorn blanket, her mouth slightly open as she snored quietly. Kamrin, on the other hand, had kicked his covers off and lay sideways on the bed like he had tossed and turned all night. I shook my head and gently pulled the covers over him. He grumbled a little but settled down. Downstairs, I got started on breakfast. The smell of pancakes and eggs filled the air. "Good morning mummy." I turned to find the twins coming downstairs, sleepy-eyed and smiling. "Good morning my love." I rinsed my hand before drying it with a napkin as I walked toward them. "How did my babies sleep?" "I dreamt of princess Elsa, mummy." Kamila exclaimed, smiling like she was given the biggest candy ever.

Zayn's Pov I stood by my home office window, starring out in the dark. I could see the whole of the estate, the soft glow of the garden lights flickered against the marble pathways, gently lighting up the area. The trees gently swayed as it was not so windy tonight. I ran a hand over my face, exhaling slowly. My jaw clenched as I replayed the conversation from earlier. As much as I would love to turn my back on it, I couldn’t. If that man is serious, Caleb's life might just be hanging on a thin rope. This isn’t the first time I am being dragged into my brother’s mess. It sure as hell wouldn’t be the last. But this time, I was done letting him get it easy. He is a grown up and will be treated as such. A soft knock pulled me from my thoughts. I turned as Araceli stepped inside, already looking at me with that knowing expression. “You are overthinking again,” she murmured, closing the door behind her. You are overthinking again,” she murmured, closing the door behind her. I

Zayn's Pov The day had dragged on longer than I wanted. I was buried in reports, meetings, and a pile of issues I did not give a damn about right now. My mind was elsewhere. It was on the woman and kids I had left at home, on the brother I had spent two weeks trying to ignore, and on the problems that refused to stay buried. Then my phone buzzed. A private number. I frowned, debating whether to answer. I was not in the mood for unknown calls, especially not at this hour. I begrudgingly picked it, muttering something along the line of "this better be important." I exhaled sharply and answered. "Who is this?" A voice came through, steady, cold. "If you care about your brother, meet me at the docks. Warehouse 14. Thirty minutes." I gripped the phone tighter. "Who the hell is this?" I repeated my question. "Someone who knows Caleb better than you do. Someone who knows he is drowning in shit, and if you do not step in, I might be tempted to do something drastic and you will