Chapter 5: The Negotiation

Lydia had rejected Jayden White's offer earlier because she believed she would somehow find her way out of this situation. Even if help would come another way, there was no guarantee she would live to see it, not with the turn of things. She had two choices: accept his offer or return to face the two monsters in her cell, called women. She had to swallow her pride and worth; this was now a matter of life and death. Yes, she didn't know the stranger well, but from what she observed about him earlier, she knew he had enough money and could use a little of that.

Lydia picked up the telephone, and her still-trembling hand dialled the numbers in shame. She held the phone to her ear and waited as it rang three times before being picked up.

"Miss Mars." Jayden White's voice was calm and collected as always, sending chills through her.

He knew she would call; he knew she would reach out. It felt almost like he had planned it all out, but it didn't matter; she needed this.

"I agree to your offer on one condition."

"You are not in the place to negotiate; that chance went away after you walked out on me." He replied, emphasising on the walk.

A lump grew in her throat, and she was fighting to keep herself from breaking down while still on the phone with him. "I think you want to marry me just as much as I want to get out of here." She bargained, forcing her voice to stay formal and cooperate with her.

He stayed silent, thinking over her words, and then he spoke. "What is it, then?" he demanded.

His reply told Lydia he desperately wanted to marry her, but she couldn't think of the reason; she had a bargain to make.

Her hands tightened around the telephone. "A settlement. When the one-year elapses, you pay me. Five hundred thousand dollars," she answered.

Lydia didn't know what he hoped to achieve in the one year of their union, but at least she could walk away with half a million dollars in the end. Half a million was a reasonable price for her pride and dignity—maybe more than good.

The line went dead, and the silence lasted too long, making her wonder if she had gone too far with her negotiation. Mister White was already dropping the charges and saving her from a year in prison; that was a lot for many people.

Lydia's heart hammered so loudly that she feared he might hear it too, and she opened her mouth to tell him he didn't have to if he didn't want to, but he spoke. "Fine, but if you had gone through the document I handed you this morning, you would have seen that the settlement f*e was a million dollars. That's twice as much of what you're asking for, but since I already stipulated it, I won't change it," he said.

Lydia felt relieved that he had accepted to pay the settlement f*e but also terrified. He wanted to pay her one million dollars. Either he was incredibly generous, or there was more to this than she knew.

What exactly did he want from her?

"Anything else?" His voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

She shook her head before realising he couldn't see her. "No."

"Alright then, my driver will be at the station in thirty minutes to bring you out and get you a dress change. Once decent, he will bring you to the marriage registry, where you will sign the documents and marry me." He said and ended the call.

Just as he said, his driver, a middle-aged man with grey hair named Adam West, arrived thirty minutes later. He didn't say much to her; he had only introduced himself to her and already seemed to know who she was. After settling and signing the needed documents, Officer Jackson, who was still on duty, returned her items, which the police had confiscated yesterday. Adam took the items from Lydia's hands and walked her out of the station and towards the Rolls-Royce parked nearby.

He opened the door to her, and she entered in silence. He drove her to a motel, where she would shower and change into the dress Mister White wanted her to wear to the marriage registry. Lydia did just that. After bathing and washing away the filth that had clung to her body since yesterday, she brought out the orange sundress, and the sight took her back to the day she couldn't forget. It was the memory of the day she took a stand to testify against the man being tried for drug trafficking, and this was what she wore.

She brushed the feeling off as mere coincidence, reminding herself she did the right thing and wore the dress. If she was honest, this dress was way simpler than expected in the dress case. Jayden White may not have his head completely stuck in the cloud after all.

Lydia stepped out of the motel and found Adam standing there, waiting for her. He walked over to the car and silently opened it. She walked there, only for her stomach to rumble loudly. She placed her hand on it, unsure if the older man heard it too, but the look on his face told her he did.

Lydia entered the car, and Adam drove them off in silence. After driving for a while, Adam pulled up in front of an eatery and told her to wait. He came out and entered the building, and he walked out three minutes later with a brown box and a bottle of water. He handed them to her, entered the car, and drove off. All this he did in silence.

Lydia opened the box and found a plate of chips and ketchup. The smell engulfed her nostrils, and her mouth immediately watered. She quickly ate through, stuffing her mouth up and not caring how rushing through the meal made her look at Adam through the rare view mirror. She didn't know how long she had before they arrived at the marriage registry, and she wanted to fill her stomach up.

She finished and opened the bottle of water to take a quick gulp, but as Adam took a sharp turn that led to the registrar's office, the water splashed on her dress collar, and she gasped out.

"Are you okay?" Adam asked, staring at her through the rare-view mirror.

She nodded and rubbed at her now-wet collar. "I am fine." She replied, drank the water, and covered the bottle before placing it on the seat beside her.

Adam parked the car after they arrived at the marriage registry, got down, and opened the door to Lydia. She got out and thanked him, not just for opening the door but for getting her something to eat. A small smile came onto his face in response, and he shut the car door and led her into the building.

Lydia silently followed him into the elevator with her head bowed like an obedient lamb to the slaughter. They stepped out on the third floor, and Adam took the lead like earlier, but he slowed down after a minute of walking, and she almost ran into him.

"Mister White." He said in acknowledgement of his boss.

"Thank you, Adam; I will take it from here," Jayden said in a relatively respectable tone to the older man.

Adam took his leave. Now out of her view, she saw Jayden White, the man who was about to become her husband, in the same grey three-piece suit he wore to the station this morning, although it was a bit rough now. His curly hair was slightly messy, and his eyes looked worn. She had to stop herself from asking if his day had been terrible because he would probably not answer her.

"What happened to your dress?" his hoarse voice called her out of her thoughts.

She snapped and shook her head, then noticed his intense gaze on her collar while fighting to control his rage.

"It's water; it's just water," she replied, brushing at it.

"How did water get there?" he demanded with a frown.

"I was hungry, and Mister Adam was kind enough to get me something to eat. I splashed the water on my collar. It was a mistake," she replied, staring down at the rest of her dress because she couldn't see how bad the collar looked without a mirror. Adam didn't notice anything different with it; if he had, Lydia believed he would have told her about it. Jayden noticed the difference, though. How keen on perfection was he? Lydia wondered.

"What are you?" he asked, not downplaying his irritation. "A child that cannot feed themselves without making a mess?"

Lydia took offence at his words and insults. He didn't know the entire story. The mess wasn't intentional, but she let it be. Mister West might land in a bad light if she explained what had happened.

"I am sorry." She mumbled.

"Put this on your ring finger and follow me." He said, handed her a diamond ring, and walked away.

Lydia slid the ring onto the finger where Anthony's ring had stayed for two years, and it fit perfectly, almost as if he knew her size. She didn't think too far because Jayden had instructed her to follow him, so she did.