CHAPTER THREE

There was no way this was happening to her, she did not deserve it. They had ruined her life completely already but this was too extreme. It was impossible, there was no way her father consented to this, it was far worse than betrayal, she was his flesh and blood or had he forgotten".

" You can't do this to me". She begged. "Please for the sake of mum, don't do this". She pleaded as she was dragged into the car by the strange men.

" It's my birthday". She cried.

As the car approached their destination, she closed her eyes recalling her final moments in her father's house.

( Two weeks ago.)

" Where is Olivia?" Her father asked her as she served them breakfast.

" She is in her room". Samantha replied.

Whatever had transpired between them last night must have been really serious, Olivia was not one to miss breakfast especially when it was toast bread.

" I will take her food to her". Samantha offered.

Elena stopped her," I will take it myself". She eyed her husband maliciously as she took the tray and headed towards her daughters room. Samantha eyes trailed after her, she didn't know what happened but whatever it was she prayed it continued because they seemed to be angry at themselves to notice her.

" What are staring at, clear the table and get out of my sight". Her father ordered.

She muttered an apology and retreated to the kitchen. Some strange people had been visiting the house recently. Not that it bothered her but her father seemed terrified of them and her stepmother was extra furious after their departure, also Olivia was hardly home these days. She was about to enter her room when she overheard the sobs coming from Olivia's room .

" What could possibly upset her stepsister to the extent she shed tears". She wondered.

Curiosity got the best of her as she tiptoed to the door and leaned in , she could overhear their conversation clearly.

" I don't want to marry him". Olivia cried.

" Marry?" Samantha asked herself.

" He is a handsome man, Olivia, every girl would pay to be in your shoes." Elena tried to console her.

" Have you seen him before, he sent his men to our agency once when we had a fashion show, it was terrible mum , he is terrible ". Olivia stated as she continued sobbing.

Samantha had heard enough, she did not care to know who Olivia was being asked to marry but as long as it took her out of the house she was satisfied. But she couldn't shake how nervous she felt when Olivia described her supposed suitor, for Olivia to be this terrified it has to be something very serious.

Elena swung the door open , she was sure she heard a sound. She stared down the corridor but there was no one. She returned to her daughters side on the bed. Olivia was still crying refusing to be comforted. It hurt her that she couldn't do anything about the situation, she too was terrified of the Kane family. They had frequented the houses of all the their business partners but everyone refused to help as soon as the Kane Empire was mentioned. This situation was out of her control, she hated it, being in control was her thing, like how she controlled her husband Fred, how she controlled the house or how she controlled his daughter. At the thought of Samantha, she smirked, she just had a brilliant idea.

" Wipe your tears my princess, mummy just got an idea". Elena smiled at her daughter.

Samantha was very much surprised when she saw Olivia in the afternoon after lunch. She looked radiant, her hair was even styled differently maybe her mother was finally able to convince her, marriage was not such a bad idea . She too had dreamed severally of getting married but that's all it was now, a dream. There was no way in the world someone like her would ever get married.

As the water ran through her skin, she flinched, the wound on her back was yet to heal, she had fallen in attempt to dodge her stepmothers heels, her fall made Elena stop, she gave a satisfactory smile as her fall had inflicted more damage than her heels could have done. Samantha stared at herself in the broken mirror, the bathroom she used was the one that the housekeepers used so it was in good shape. Her reflection made her pity herself, she looked frail and hungry, her long hair was now just slightly passed her neck, Olivia had cut it during one of her outburst. Her skin used to be spotless but now it looks so dry, she cried when stared at her back, it was covered with scars , the scars from the wounds inflicted on her, the freshest one located just slightly below her shoulder blade. The antiseptic created a burning sensation, she squeezed her eyes shut in response to the pain, the wound should be healed within a week. She stepped out of the bathroom quietly and moved towards her room, the slightest noise would cause Elena to wake up, the woman does not joke with her siesta. As she struggled to comb her hair, she heard some voices downstairs, the voices were unfamiliar, she stared outside the window curiously, her stepmom was engrossed in a deep conversation after which they exchanged envelopes, her envelope was bigger probably it was money. Samantha shook her head, she did not care about what her stepmother was up to. She stared at the calendar on the wall and crossed out the current date , it was a week to her birthday.

Samantha used to anticipate her birthdays , her parents were the master of surprises. On her last birthday her father had gotten her a car, it was the latest model of her favourite brand, the same car that her stepmother now paraded on the streets of the city. This her birthday was not going to be different from last year's , she spent the whole day cleaning the house so dhe ews very surprised when her father asked what she wanted for her birthday during dinner the next day".

" What do you want for your birthday this year?". Her father asked as he chewed noisily.

She didn't reply.

"Samantha isn't your birthday coming up in a week ?" . He asked again.

She only nodded, completely unsure of where the conversation was headed. She stole a quick glance at her stepmother and Olivia they were focused on their meal.

"Can we discuss elsewhere?". He asked rather politely.

Samantha stared at him like a statue, "why was the man being polite?, he's supposed to be barking orders at her or is he drunk?". All these questions ran through her mind as she followed her father to the living room.

" Please sit".

It was not a request. She quickly sat down and faced him in akward silence.

" I know I have been unfair to you..." . He started. " And asking for your forgiveness is going to be asking for much but I will like to make it up to you"

Samantha could hide the shock on her face, where was all this coming from ,she glanced around wondering if maybe there was someone else he was talking to . She heard her father chuckle.

" I owe it to your mother, she told me on her death bed to make all your birthdays memorable and ever since she died I have never been around during your birthday so please allow me to honour your mother this once".

" Why now?". Samantha dared ask. " You had her pictures removed as soon as she was buried, everyday you try to erase her memory from the house and now you want to honour her, so I'm asking you father, why now?".

"Samantha look at me". Her father pleaded. " I loved her too much to be reminded that she was no longer with me , with us , seeing you reminded me of her and I couldn't bear it so I stayed away and ignored you.

Samantha shook her head, " How can you say that?". She cried. " For two years I have passed through the most unimaginable kind of suffering, I have cleaned, cooked , I was turned into a slave in the very house I was birthed, the day mum died you stopped looking at me , you stopped seeing me , you blinded myself to my existence, you were cruel to me , leaving me at the mercy of your mistress and your bastard of a child ....". Samantha couldn't take it anymore, she never knew she had so much on her chest , somehow saying it all made her a bit relieved.

" I am sorry".

Samantha broke down in tears , she had longed to hear those words, her cries echoed through the walls of the house, she could not resist when her father pulled her in for a hug".

I'm sorry he kept murmuring only to her hearing until she slept off.

She was surprised to see her father by her side when she woke up. The room was different, this was her mother's room.

" What am I doing here?". She asked confused.

" When you were younger, you wouldn't stop crying until your mother held you in her arms, I felt maybe if you lie on her bed you would feel closer to her".

Samantha went mute. She dreamt her father had apologized to her but now she just realized that it actually happened.

" So it wasn't a dream". She muttered.

The days before her birthday were the best she had lived since her mother died, she had requested that all her mother's pictures be hung back on the walls of the living room and her father complied readily, he even scolded Olivia for being harsh to her and ordered that they apologized to her. She was moved to tears when her stepmother and stepsister cried and begged her for forgiveness and to prove her repentance Olivia and her mother returned all her belongings to her, her father even had all the housekeepers brought back and named her new lady of the house. The process of handover required her signing a lot of documents inorder for her to legally take her mother's place.

Her birthday arrived faster than she imagined, probably because she was having the time of her life. On that day she was dressed beautifully in one of her mother's dress. It was a little celebration, she insisted they kept the celebration to themselves since they were in a process of healing. She wanted them to their time and properly repair their relationship. The food was splendid, she never knew Elena knew her way around the kitchen, she cried when her mother's tribute video was replayed. It was relieving to hear her voice again, her smile was forever infectious. The knock on the door made her father stand up. She became disturbed when her father stayed too long at the door.

" Is she the one?". The scary looking man pointed at her.

" Yes". Her father answered.

" Take her". The man ordered.

" Wait, what is happening?, she asked in total confusion.

" Happy married life". Olivia sneered.

" No this was not right, Olivia is supposed to be the one getting married not her".

Elena scoffed." The document here clearly states you agree to marry into the Kane family, you even signed it ". Elena declared shoving one of the many documents she had signed into her face.

" You can't do this to me". She begged. "Please for the sake mum, don't do this". She pleaded as she was dragged into the car by the strange men.

" It's my birthday". She cried.

The car suddenly came to a halt, she stared through the window. They had arrived at the Kane mansion.