CHAPTER TWO

She was quite aware that her father had bad habit of gambling, there was a time it caused a big misunderstanding between her father and late mother, she remembered him begging and promising never to gamble again but here he was repeating the same act. Her mother would be rolling in her grave, everything this man did and said were all lies.

Fred Dwayne, her father was a prominent man in his early fifties, compared to his mates he looked younger and could pass for a thirty year old. He was known for his amazing business ideas and strategies that helped accumulate so much wealth that was until he started gambling, now he was in debt. Her mother has used her family's influence to pay off the first debt that accumulated but with her mother dead he was helpless. The trashing sound she heard from their room indicated her stepmother wasn't taking the information well.

Elena paced in the room she shared with her husband, this was not part of the plan, when she moved into the house she expected to live like a queen and couldn't hide her irritation when she discovered his daughter was going to be staying in the house. She shoved the items on her table in annoyance, he had accumulated another debt , so that was the reason he no longer visited as often as before.

" Don't you dare touch me?". She warned shoving his hands away

She stared at him in disbelief. What was going to happen to her when people hear, she would loose her status, the chances of her daughter marrying into a more prominent home will be ruined, there was no way she would accept it .

" When did it happen?" She asked him.

Fred stared at her unsure if she would like his response. He glanced around their room it was a mess , the only thing that escaped her outburst was the bed. The mirror, her dressing table and side stool were broken. He took in a deep breath, if he didn't explain well he might end up like the mirror, shattered into pieces.

" My love, why not we sit down and discuss this maybe over a cup of coffee"

Her laugh was hysterical.

" Don't play games with me" She stated as she threw a broken stool at him.

Fred reacted quickly, causing him to stumble. There was no way her was going to escape her wrath this night. She had every right to be angry, after his wife his first wife died two years ago she had helped clear his debt and now here he was in another ocean of debt.

" When did it happen?". She asked again.

" Eight months ago". Fred muttered.

" Eight months!!!". She exclaimed." You piled up debts for eight months".

" I swear I did not know it would be this bad, believe me". Fred pleaded.

" So what happened to the loan you took for the business?" She asked crossing her arms.

Fred shut his eyes. " That's the money I gambled and lost"

Elena sat on the bed, her head was beginning to ache her, she was irritated and upset at the same time. He used the pain to gamble, how could someone be so foolish.

" And the money Samantha inherited from her mother?". She enquired.

" It won't be able to clear the debt and I need Samantha's signature to access the funds".

" Christ, Fred just how much are you owing?"

" Seventeen billion dollars". He answered quietly.

Elena eyes widened in disbelief , she tried to find words but could not. But that was not even all, the next words that came out of her husband's mouth almost made her pass out. She felt her fingers trembling, of all the people in the world, her husband chose to get involved with Kane Empire.

Kane Empire was the biggest company in their city Mackview, they were involved in a lot of things from food , to fashion .. name it and it was a family business that was passed down from generation to generation and it was currently headed by Marcel Kane. Everyone knew who Marcel Kane was ,if there was an award category for the most cruel person he would emerge as a winner, as terrified as everyone was of him they could all agree that he knew his onion, ever since he started heading the company, their profit tripled, he had clients all over the world, he made the Kane Empire irresistible but they had an old dark tradition, they exchanged children for debt. Whenever someone owed them alot of money, they married their children and turned them into slaves.

" Did they ask for anything?". She wanted to confirm.

Fred nodded. " Marcel wants to marry Olivia".

"No , I'm not agreeing to that, I would not allow my daughter be married off to that beast ". Elena cried. " Why Olivia? , why not Samantha?".

Fred shook his head. "I used both our names to apply for the loan so it's the child of the debtors".

Elena slid to the ground, this was a nightmare. There was no way she was going to allow her daughter to be sold off , there must a way out of this, she thought as she lay down to sleep

The ray of the morning sun peeled through the window of her room, Samantha's eyes fluttered open. She stretched and got out of bed, today was going to be extra hectic, Olivia had mentioned that her friends were coming over for a breakfast get together and the last thing she wanted was Olivia coming to wake her up personally. With a resigned sigh she made her way downstairs into the kitchen to prepare for their arrival. There was no need to prepare breakfast ever since her father returned, he usually left very early in the morning together with her stepmother to an unknown destination and wouldn't return till late at night, it meant that she did not have to answer to anyone except olivia during the day and that gave her time to rest.

" Samantha", Olivia called out from the living room. " What is taking so long?"

Samantha hands trembled from the weight of the tray of tea and freshly baked bread in her hands, she walked carefully down the hallway leading to their living room.

" Finally" Olivia rolled her eyes." Place it here". She pointed at the table in front of her.

Samantha placed the tray down with extra caution, she couldn't afford to let anything spill and risk Olivia lashing out. As she turned to leave, one of Olivia's friends whispered something into her ears and both of them burst into laughter.

" Samantha, the curtains in hall way are dirty, didn't I tell you to wash them?. Olivia asked with a mischievous look on her face.

" I did... I washed them all yesterday" Samantha answered quietly.

" Well you didn't wash it properly, it still looks dirty". Olivia insisted.

Samantha stared at her in disbelief, she spent the previous day washing the curtains thoroughly, her palms were fresh with blisters.

" I'm so..." Samantha started but Olivia cut her off.

" You will have them washed again and I will come and inspect it myself ". Olivia ordered.

Samantha nodded and left to the hallway, as she left she heard them laughing, they were mocking her. Those people used to be her friends but now they laughed at her misery. Her hands shook as she struggled to remove the curtains, there was a washing machine in the house but Olivia had insisted that she used her hands.

Olivia sauntered into the hallway, her heels clicking against the marble tiles, she was still dressed in the outfit she used to host her friends. Samantha recognized the dress, it was hers , the gown was the last gift she received from her mother before she died. Olivia glanced around, her eyes narrowed as she inspected every inch of the curtains, she seemed satisfied.

" There living room is messed up, make sure everything is in order before I'm back from shopping"

" Yes Olivia ".

" And my room too , I want the floors sparkling " Olivia added.

Samantha nodded, " yes Olivia".

Olivia smiled satisfied with Samantha's compliance. " Don't both about dinner, I won't be returning tonight".

Samantha watched her leave the hall way, tears fell freely from her eyes. She walked slowly towards the living room, her body limp from exhaustion. There was no escaping this torture, she didn't even have friends, it was just her alone in a world of torment.

That night Elena and her father returned with long faces, they refused dinner and each slept in separate rooms. She crawled into her bed, her body ached from the ton of chores she had to perform during the day, as she slept she dreamt of being rescued by a prince charming.