CHAPTER SIXTY EIGHTAmelia was not blind to the undercurrents running in the room as Liam entered and she could swear she had seen a hint of recognition in Anna’s eyes and even one of shock in Liam’s before he kissed her hand and took a seat beside her.She made a mental note to ask Anna what exactly she had to do with Liam but in the middle of all the eating, curiosity got the best of her and so she leaned forward, pinning her friend with a stare, her eyes sparkling with intrigue."You and Liam seem to have a great rapport, Anna. I could not help but notice how well you both exchanged pleasantries. How and where did you two meet?” she asked, smiling at the glare on her friend’s face.They had come to talk about her relationship with Jackson but it was time to move away from that subject matter all together.Anna's cheeks flushed with a tinge of embarrassment as she glanced towards Liam who was making no disguise at staring at her.She felt flushed and she had been ever since she saw
CHAPTER SIXTY NINE Jackson stirred in his sleep as the shrill ringing of his phone cut through the silence of the night. He and Amelia had talked about so many things through the night which involved them both.Groggily, he fumbled for his phone on the nightstand, his heart pounding slightly in his chest at being woken up in such a manner. With a heavy sigh, he answered the call, his voice still laden with sleep.“Hello” he answered“I am so sorry to disturb you, but I have some devastating news. Your father... he has passed away." the housekeeper’s voice came through.As those words hung in the air, time seemed to stand still for Jackson. Shock and disbelief washed over him, threatening to consume his senses. His mind struggled to process the news, but the weight of sadness soon settled deep within his chest. He sat up abruptly, his eyes welling up with tears as a rush of emotions flooded through him.Jackson knew that this was expected but it still did not stop the sadness from env
CHAPTER SEVENTYJackson could not believe his ears nor his eyes.He was staring at his uncle whom he had never met but had heard so many stories about from his father.According to his father, his uncle had left the family when they were both teenagers and it had been as a result of a woman.The law of their family did not accept a marriage outside the contract and his uncle was so terribly in love with the woman in particular that he had accepted to be disowned instead of part with her.His father had made mention of trying to reach out to him when their father had died and getting no response whatsoever.Jackson could not believe the man standing before him right now and trying to claim what he had called his share of the family’s wealth.Even George was staring at the man in disdain as they both listened to him talk.Jackson had no idea how he had heard about the death of his father but the man claimed that he had had no idea about the death, only about his brain tumor.“You dare c
SEVENTY ONE“You have an uncle that you have only heard about from your father but never seen?” Amelia repeated for the second time since Jackson told her the story.She was yet to assimilate it maybe because he was saying that he thought his mother was in cohorts with the man.“Why would she do that?” She asked him“I have a number of ideas all starting with the fact that she is not part of the will. I am very sure she has something to do with this” he told her“Do you think he has a right to anything? Will he be able to contest the will?”“I don’t think so but he could cause problems that I do not want and I think there is something about him being in my grandfather’s will. He is yet to claim the property but my father has made use of it and he also has a 50% stake on the company.”“That is a lot” Amelia muttered.Jackson had come straight from the meeting to her home and had hugged her immediately. She could tell that he was stressed out and had prepared something for him to eat wh
CHAPTER SEVENTY TWO Jackson rose to his feet as soon as his uncle came in; Amelia followed suit, smiling as the man took her in very suspiciously. She had told Jackson that it would have been better if they met alone but he had insisted on her presence. He wanted her to be a judge of the man in front of them and that is what she was going to be. “Hello uncle… meet Amelia, my girlfriend” Jackson introduced. The man raised an eyebrow slightly but Amelia watched him relax a bit before he smiled in her direction. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Amelia… my name is John” he told her. Amelia smiled, shaking the hand he offered and then taking a seat. They had prepared dishes that she was sure he was going to enjoy and she watched his eyes light up as he picked up the fork in front of him. Jackson on the other hand was watching him like a tiger would watch a prey it was about to make dinner. He did not like the idea of inviting him over for anything but he had to figure out if the man
CHAPTER SEVENTY THREEAmelia left the men to have their discussions, patting herself on the back at preventing a disaster between both of them.She could tell that they would make a great team if they both got of their high horses.She stopped in her tracks when she saw Agatha; Jackson had decided to employ the house keeper in his home instead after she was out of a job because of his father’s death and she had been more than happy to take him up on his offer.Amelia smiled when the judge old lady noticed her presence.“Hi” she muttered, approaching the woman.“Hello miss” the woman responded “Oh please… call me Amelia” she told herShe took a seat in front of the woman wanting to ask what Jackson had been like as a child but not wanting to be too forward.She knew the woman had probably taken care of he and his brother more times than their own mother.“You know… you are the first woman Jackson had brought to introduce to his father since his deal with that witch, Sophia and trust
CHAPTER SEVENTY FOURJackson sat alone in his dimly lit living room after Amelia departure, his mind swirling with conflicting thoughts and emotions. He has not wanted to dwell on what his uncle, John had mentioned about Amelia and the whole concept of their relationship but he could not help thinking about it now that he was alone.The whole idea of marriage to him was a foreign concept and one he did not want to ever get involved in. He like the freedom that came with being single or getting into a contract, knowing fully well that he held all the cards should incase there was something the woman involved wanted that wouldn’t fly.It had gone well for his father and the others before him and it was a family tradition, one that he had been comfortable with following through with in the past but now he was skeptical about it and because he was deeply in love with her.He had to admit to himself that he had come to love her more than anything and he wouldn’t want something like a contr
CHAPTER SEVENTY FIVEThe early morning sun cast a warm glow over the quiet area as Anna stood outside Amelia's door, her hand trembling slightly as she raised it to knock. It had been a restless night for her, filled with swirling thoughts and a kaleidoscope of emotions. She had barely slept, her mind consumed by the unexpected turn her life had taken.Amelia's door swung open, and there stood her friend, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Anna, what on earth are you doing here so early?" she asked, stifling a yawn.Anna blinked, her eyes taking in Amelia’s appearance and realizing that maybe this was a damn bad idea. Sh took a deep breath, her words tumbling out in a rush.“Amelia, I am so sorry for waking you up this early but I really need to talk to someone before my shoot today and honestly you are the only one I know here save for Liam and he is the reason why I am here. It is very confusing and I don’t want to make another mistake so if I could please just hear your take on the
CHAPTER HUNDRED AND TWELVE“He sent an address… we have to go” Jackson declared, reaching for the gun on the table.Liam and Simon got up with him wondering what the fuck he was on about “What are you talking about?” Liam asked“I was on the phone with Damien, he wants us to meet. Just me and I know it is a trap but there is no way I am going to allow him make good on his threat of sending me Amelia in pieces”“We cannot… I understand what you are saying but we cannot go there alone” Simon told himIt was the first time he and Liam were agreeing on anything “You are right, we aren’t going there alone… I am going on my own. I cannot let anything happen to her”“Nothing will but we have to figure this all out , come up with a plan. We are going to his own turf and he might as well kill the both of you.” Simon argued“He is right” Liam muttered. “We are going to go in with a plan, Jackson if we are going to have any chance of reaching the both of you alive.”Liam made a couple of phone
CHAPTER HUNDRED AND ELEVENDamien stared at the television in front of him, his teeth grating against themselves as he watched the news. It would seem that the man he had asked to do a good job of keeping Jackson off his scent was doing a rather poor one because why the hell was his picture in the fucking news.The fucker had put a bounty on my head, Damien thought as he stared incredulously as the voice of the news presenter droned on. He was hot topic at the moment and he did not need that for his business. It would seem that he had underestimated Jackson. He wasn’t going to let him go scot free; it only meant that he had to kill the guy and the one way to do that was to lure him here to his own tuff.It was going to be easy once he dangled Amelia in front of him like a fucking worm on a hook. He knew the man would come running because he loved her.Damien laughed at this; he was going to enjoy killing Jackson and it was one way to take Amelia if he did it in front of her. She had
CHAPTER HUNDRED AND TEN“How could I have let this happen?” Jackson asked for the hundredth time, beating his hand on his thigh.He had contacted the cops about the kidnap and although Liam had spoken to one of them, he had sounded super vague which Jackson found suspicious“You could not have known what kind of asshole he was, Jackson. It is not your fault and the only thing we can do now is figure out a way to make sure we rescue her unharmed.” Liam told himThey were sitting at the table in a bunch with Natalie supplying snacks as they plotted. She had come along with Simon whom Liam still had not taken a shining to but she had said they had been together when he called so she could not refuse when he asked to accompany her.He wasn’t saying anything but he looked contrite as they tried to figure out what was going on and Jackson could not deny that he needed all hands on deck if he was ever going to see Amelia again.“I don’t think the detective is telling us everything we should
CHAPTER HUNDRED AND NINEDamien opened the car door and helped Amelia out who was still unbelievably silent even after all he had told her about Jackson and how he was going to make sure he wiped the bastard from this earth for daring to touch her.She had grown he had to give her that but she had to be aware that he was no longer the man she used to know. The one that tolerated indiscipline and had allowed her enjoy her years while she was running from him.He guessed he had Jackson to thank for making that open proposal. It has made him see his baby again and realized how much he wanted her back for himself.Oh, the things he planned to teach her and make her do to him. By the time he was done, she would never think of fleeing again.He escorted her into the house and straight for the den where he pushed her inside. She collapsed unto the floor, her eyes widening as they happened upon a portrait of her on the wall.He had had it made on the night he had seen the proposal by Jackson
CHAPTER HUNDRED AND EIGHTAmelia remained silent as the car moved, her head buzzing with thoughts and my mind far away. She was unexpectedly calmer than she had thought she would be and she made no move even as Damien touched a hand to her thigh, grinning at her.She had no idea where they were headed and tried to regulate her breathing as much as possible so she did not behind panicking.She knew by now that Jackson would be aware of what had happened and would come for her. She only hoped it wasn’t too late.“You have been specially quiet; aren’t you going to rave and ask me questions?” Damien questioned herHe was surprised at her level of calmness; nay, he was disgusted by it.He wanted her to scream and he wanted to enjoy the terror in her eyes but she wasn’t giving him the satisfaction he craved.She was nothing like the fiery girl he used to know who would scream and curse even as he hit he countlessly.“I promised to do whatever you want; do you want me to ask you questions?”
CHAPTER HUNDRED AND SEVENAnna could the loud screams that was hers as she watched the car drive away with Amelia.Her heart pounded violently against her chest as she clutched the phone, her trembling fingers struggling to dial the numbers. Fear and panic gripped her as she attempted to call Liam. She was finding it hard to breathe and unable to form coherent thoughts as she waited for him to pick up “God please” she muttered to herself.She wasn’t much of a prayer person but at the moment, she hoped Amelia would be safe and they find her before Damien did something to her or worse killed her.The phone rang once, twice, and on the third ring, Liam's voice finally filled the line. "Hey, Anna, what's up?" he asked casually, unaware of the turmoil brewing on the other end.Anna's breath hitched, her voice barely a whisper, "L-Liam, it's Amelia. She's... she has been kidnapped. Damien came and he… oh my God, I am sorry for leaving her all alone in the house but I had to. I don’t know
CHAPTER HUNDRED AND SIX“You don’t have to keep watch over me like a hawk, Anna. I will be fine and you did say that the meeting is quite important for work; do not let me be the one to keep you here” Amelia declared“I know you will be fine on your own but I still think I should stay back and maybe reschedule the meeting for…”“For when? Whenever Damien is not chasing after me? Don’t think about doing that and just go for your meeting. I will be fine and he has absolutely no idea that I am here so what could go wrong” she interrupted“Fine, I will be back in a jiffy so don’t go anywhere” Anna warned, taking the stairs in twos so she could prepare for the meeting.It was impromptu but it was important and although she wanted to stay home to watch over Amelia, she also had to consider her job and it is as Amelia had said. Damien had no idea where she was and even if he was looking for her, he would have eyes on either her house or Jackson’s and definitely not hersShe soon was ready an
CHAPTER HUNDRED AND FIVE“I need all the information you can get on him” Jackson told Liam when they were alone.“I have already done some digging on him. I started looking into his operations, and it wasn't easy. He is elusive, leaving no traces behind, but I managed to uncover some crucial information."Jackson's eyes widened with surprise. "You investigated Damien already? Why didn't you tell me?" he asked“Of course I investigated him; how would you think I would after hearing all he had to say that evening. I needed to know what we were up against and how best to address the situation” Liam told him“So? What are we up against?” Jackson questioned. “What did you find out?” His curiosity now piquedLiam leaned forward, his voice hushed.“His full name is Damien Lodge and he is a well known drug dealer. It wasn’t hard getting information on him because he is wanted in about nineteen states for different crimes and no one has been able to pin him to any of the crimes. His empire is
CHAPTER HUNDRED AND FOUR“You look really sick, Amelia. Is there anything I can get you?” Anna asked as she opened the door to her friend’s room who had not come out in days “I don’t need anything; thank you for asking” Amelia muttered, her eyes drowsing from sleeping too much “I know you don’t but is there not a way or anything I can do to get you out of that bed? You have been like this for days and it is scaring me; when was the last time you had a fucking bath” She questioned, her eyebrows shooting up in concern.Amelia groaned. She did not want to talk about what was bothering her, only that she wanted to be left alone to her misery and fears but if there was one person who would understand seeing as she had accommodated her when she had run out on Damien then it was going to be Anna.Amelia could see that she was waiting for an explanation or a lifeline but she did not know how exactly to begin talking about it without falling apart and she wanted no one to tell her she was e