20 hours

~Celine~

I could hear the thumping and pounding of their feet on the earth drawing closer and closer, the wind blowing against my face violently as I dashed through the woods.

And just when I thought I was going to lose them because of Kiara, my wolf’s commendable running skills, my ears caught the roars of power bikes behind me.

“Sh*t! Is this man going to ever let me be?!”

Bursting out of the moist, cold woods, I met the tarred, long, and quiet road. It was 3 a.m.… of course, it was going to be quiet.

Looking back to see how great I was doing, I found out the bikes were just behind me. I couldn’t count how many they were because they had their headlights so bright, I could hardly see anything behind them.

All of a sudden, just at the perfect time, I saw someone walking out of the midnight bar a few meters away from me, heading to his car.

Just then, an idea struck in my head. I knew I was going to get caught if I just kept running.

“Hey! Help me! Please help me!” I cried out as I drew closer to his car.

“What?!” The man asked, and without wasting any time, I opened his car door and jumped into the front seat.

“Get in right now and drive! If we don’t go now, you’ll get killed!” I yelled in terror, and in a twinkle of an eye, he was in the car already.

Just like I wanted, without hesitation, he pressed the accelerator so hard and we dashed off with maximum speed.

I kept my eyes on the road through the front mirror watching how these bikes weren’t relenting either.

“Who the hell are they? What do they want with you? Who are you?!” The driver asked, panting and driving as fast as he could.

“Trust me, you don’t want to know. Get us off the road. Take any route that would make them lose us.” I answered as I began to get rid of the black hoodie I had on.

Taking a turn to the right, we drove down an old path, going into the darkness of the morning even more.

I looked back to check if we were still being followed, and to my surprise, they were gone!

“Damn! You drive pretty fast! How could you lose the bikes?” I asked with a chuckle, repacking my hair in a ponytail that fell loose when I was running.

“You told me I’d be killed if I was caught, and I’m still young! And I have a family waiting for me at home!” He retorted in frustration.

“Well, I wasn’t lying,” I answered, heaving a deep sigh. And for the first time since the beginning of our ride, he got the chance to see my face.

Something surprised me though… I didn’t get the same expression I always got from anyone who saw me. I mean, everyone in New Orleans knows me.

“Are you new here?” I asked with furrowed brows.

“Why does everyone keep asking me that? Yes, I am new here! Is it that obvious?!” He muttered as we busted out from the narrow path onto the tarred road again.

“I mean, you don’t know me. So it’s pretty obvious.” I answered, shrugging.

“I asked you before. Who the hell are you?”

Well, I am Celine Gomez, the first daughter and only child of the great Alpha Darius Gomez. I want to believe you’re trembling right now. Well, you are not alone.

I have been living in fear of that name since I was a child. I was seven when I first witnessed one of my father’s brutal killings, and this wasn’t just anyone he killed, but my mother. My biological mother!

He snapped her neck in rage like she was some dry stick. I cried myself to sleep so many nights after this awful day because of how traumatized I was. He didn’t even care that I was right there in the room with her.

When I became older, I found out that she cheated on him with his butler. But is that enough reason to kill her in such an inhumane way?

I had always dreamt of escaping this cursed man I had as a father, but it had been extremely difficult. Even when I ran far away, he would always find me and bring me back to him.

Not because he loves me… of course not! But because he wants me to marry his friend! Why would a father want his twenty-three-year-old daughter to settle with a man of his age?

He always told me he was taking care of me for his friend, Alpha Marcus, and I will never know why because I don’t care.

I ran away from my father’s house again today because I am supposed to be betrothed to Alpha Marcus in two days. A man who isn’t even my mate!

Trust me, this time, he will never find me. I will never marry who isn’t my mate because of some stupid friendship promise or contract they have. I want to live my life… far away from such a controlling monster.

“Why do you keep ignoring that question?!” He asked in frustration.

“Because it’s best if you have no clue who I am,” I answered, looking out of the window. “Let’s strike a deal,” I added, causing him to scoff unbelievably.

“No! I’m not striking a deal with a strange woman that put my life in danger!” He answered with a final tone.

“$500,000! To get me out of New Orleans tonight.” I uttered with a grin.

“$500,000?!” His eyes popped wide open.

Yes! I must have skipped the ‘My father isn’t only powerful and gruesome, but also the richest Alpha in New Orleans’ part. I have enough money to last me a lifetime.

“Deal or no deal? This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! No one would offer you such an amount of money for a little favor. So are we leaving New Orleans or not?” I asked, still keeping my smile.

He heaved a sigh and nodded. “Where do you want to go?” He asked, and I punched the air in excitement.

“New York! It’s a 20 hour drive from New Orleans.”

“What? 20 hours?! How is this a little favor? Why don’t you just fly a f**king plane if you have so much money?!”

“Because my father will track me down, okay? So are you in or not?!” I asked as I sat back and buckled the seatbelt.

I wanted and needed to start a life in a place where I knew my father had no influence. Where people didn’t know the name Gomez. This was the only way to keep me safe from him.

“This is going to be a long ride, and I’m ready for it.”

***

After spending a day on the road with a total stranger, we finally got to New York City. I breathed her air deeply as I began to anticipate living the life I’ve always wanted for myself.

“Let’s secure my apartment first, then I’ll send you your money,” I uttered.

“No! We are not doing that. The deal was to bring you to New York and here we are. Don’t waste any more time, okay? Let me have my money.” He responded coldly and tiredly.

Who wouldn’t be tired after driving nonstop for a whole day?

“Fine. I’ll transfer your money to you.” I muttered, pulling out my phone from my pocket so I could transfer the money.

Part of the benefits of being famous and wealthy is that I don’t have to go to the bank before I can transfer a huge amount of money.

“Done,” I uttered, and almost immediately, a message popped into his phone. “That is it, right?” I asked, and he nodded, checking his phone screen.

Suddenly, he parked his car at the roadside and switched off its engine.

“We are done. It’s time for you to leave.” He uttered.

“What? I haven’t gotten an apartment yet. I still need you to take me around so I can find the perfect house.”

“No, you don’t need me, okay? You’re rich! You can always hire another driver. I need to go back to my family.” He uttered.

Though I felt heartbroken he wanted to get rid of me as fast as he could, I understood him. He had his life to live too.

“Okay. It was nice riding with you.” I answered, unlocking the seatbelt and stepping out of his car.

Stepping away from the road, I heard him zoom off before I could wave him goodbye.

“He does hate me.”

I stared at my phone in my hand, knowing fully well it was time to get rid of it too. I wasn’t going to underestimate my father’s ability to find me.

If he’s tracking my phone, then I better lose it somewhere I’ll never be again.

Without further delay, I smashed the phone on the ground. Its crashing sound drew the attention of those who walked by me, but I care less.

I began to crush it with my boots until I was fully satisfied.

“Let’s do this, Celine,” I said to myself as I began to walk away. I still had my credit card, and I needed to withdraw some money, if not all from my account before he could trace my bank activities too.

I found an ATM as I kept walking down the road, and I decided to stop and withdraw some money.

Slotting my card in, I got the most shocking message of my life.

“Dear Celine, your account has been frozen?! What the hell?!”