Chapter 3

“I have a proposition for you.”, he said as he sat back down and crossed his legs.

“And if I don’t want to sign it or have anything to do with you? What then?”, she snapped back. Zoey was the type to always fight back. She was never the type to take a no for an answer.

“Your reputation as a vigilante will be exposed and above all…your father will die at your hands. All because of your stupidity and selfishness of taking up a mask to wear at night yet you don’t even think about the consequences”

“What is the proposition?”, she muttered under her breath gently.

“Oh well, you will stay here with me, in this mansion with me.”

“Why do you want me to stay here?!”, she questioned in confusion.

“Do you remember the night before? On the alleyway, you killed my cousin.”

She choked on her tea as she heard this and tried to hide her laughter.”Oh….I’m sorry…but on a serious note, he was not a nice person. He kidnapped and murdered children.”

He sat next to her and started to talk,” You’re right, he deserved it”, he chuckled.

“Please consider the proposition.”

She stared down at her now-finished black tea and thought of what to do. She felt so sad and contradicted but she knew what she had to do, she had to say yes to Alex to protect her father and friends from her dangerous reputation.

“Okay…I’ll do it.”, she muttered in a quiet and sad voice.

“I’m sorry Miss Zoey Smith but you’ll understand later”, he spoke to her in a sweet and gentle voice. He could visibility see she was sad. ”But you will get used to this life for now and you will be provided with your necessities and I will provide them. You are not allowed to leave the house anymore”

She was shocked by his quick change of attitude towards her.

“Wait!Please!At least….let me see my father for one last time.”, she begged him.

“Fine. But you will tell him nothing of the agreement. Oh-and if you mess the meeting with your father and tell him or even give him a hint, I will kill him by myself.”, he said as he walked away.

“Understood.”

Later on that night 

Later on that night, Alex decided that it was best to go with Zoey but also make sure he doesn’t get seen by her father. Zoey dressed up in a name brand dress and applied lipstick which brightens her face and made her lips look small, plump and cute.

Alex waited at the end of the stairs waiting for her. He could hear the clicking of heels leading to him, as soon as he turned his head he was confused and shocked. She left her hair into natural curls and had a pair of glass slippers with short heels. He held his fists into a tight ball and Damien saw it. Damien has never seen Alex so intense, especially when it came to women.

“How do I look?”, Zoey asked shyly waiting for applause from Alex but he said nothing and just walked away from her.

“You look exquisite Miss Smith…”,Damien complimented.

“Thank you so much!”, she added meekly.

This made Alex so angry that he chased Damien away and grabbed Zoey’s wrist to pull her into his car. The rest of the ride was dead silent and she did not dare to make conversation with Alex, especially seeing him so angry even though she could not understand why. He didn’t even compliment her for crying out loud! It made her furious and she started to pout. Alex kept peeping at her and then saw her pouting, he gulped and then looked away and almost swerved off the road but went back on quickly. She didn’t seem to notice it though.

They soon reached her father’s house and she hesitated to even get out of the car.

“Well, are you going to continue sitting your ass down or are you going to get up from that seat? We don’t have all night.”, Alex grumbled as he started to look at his watch for the time, and it was already past eleven ‘o clock!

“Fine…I’ll go.”, she said in an irritable tone as she slammed the door and walked out of the car.

She started to ring the door bell and waited for someone to open the door. Her father brought her inside the house as they started to talk.

“I’m so sorry dad!”, she yelped as she hugged him tightly.

“So you are the Owl... I should have known…but it makes more sense. All the secrecy and entering the house through the window like a thief.”, he joked as he hugged her back.”I missed you, sweetie…Where have you been?”

“I missed you too dad, I….have to move in with a friend”,she said tearing away from the hug.”I wanted to say that I’ll always miss you and I will visit you sometime soon as soon as the case is over or they drop it.

“Is it Lily?”

“No, it’s a guy friend.”

“What’s his name?”

“I can’t tell you much details about anything in case on of the three of us gets hurt dad.”,she said comforting her father.

“Fine…but tell me if he ever tries to hurt you,I will finish him but make sure he’d stay in hospital.”

She chuckled at this comment and added,”Yes!Sure thing dad.I don’t mind that.”

“Oh yes!Wait!Before you go…I need to give you something that your grand mother gave your mom,I wanted to wait for the right time to give it to you so…I think this is the right time.”,he said as he went upstairs.

“What is it dad?”,she questioned.

He came from behind her and placed a chain around her neck,”It’s this.Whenever your mom felt lost or even sad, she would believe that the chain was meant to protect her and lead her to her destiny.So if you ever feel scared and lost, I’m sure you can count of this chain.”

She teared up as she hugged her father,” Thank you so much, dad. I won’t forget this nor you.”

She went back in the car to Alex who was dead asleep even though she opened the car door. He looked like an angel when he was asleep but acts like a devil when he’s awake, she thought to herself. He felt herself entering a trance-like state as she moved closer to him, so close that their lips were inches away from each other.

“What are you trying to do…?”, she muttered under her breath and she slowly pulled herself back.

He yanked her by the hand and suddenly opened his eyes wide as he said,” What did you say?”

“I-eh-nothing!”, she said as she tried to pull back.

“I did not say that you can move without my permission”, he said and then he started to force a  kiss on her lips roughly.

She stayed in shock for a moment until she tried to push him off her. Zoey managed to push him off but he came at her again. She slapped him so hard that his pale white cheeks were now red as a tomato.

“Wha…what the hell is wrong with you!!!”, she said as she opened the car door.

“If you ever dare to step a foot out of this fricking car, I will barge right into your house and slowly kill your father and I will make you watch it. So unless you don’t want that, sit in this car like a good girl.”, he said with a cold and indifferent expression on his face.

“Go to hell. All you can do is make threats, you’re a goddamn coward!”, she yelled at him.

“Watch it. I’m warning you.”, he said.

“Or what?Hmm?”, she said as she got out of the car.

He got out of the car too and picked her up and threw her in the backseat and locked the doors. He walked up to her father’s doorstep and just before he could ring the bell, she started to sound the hooter, he chuckled and knew that she instantly regretted what she said. He was too prideful and he knew he could get whatever he ever wanted. He walked back to the car and he drove off, as, for the rest of the ride, they sat in dead silence till they finally reached the mansion.

“Hey, have supper-”, Alex's words were cut off before he could continue. She picked up her heels and threw them at his face, but his reaction was quick enough to catch them.

“Stop trying to dominate me! I did what you asked, not more not less. I HATE YOU SO MUCH!!!”, she said as she made a run for it into her room.

Before she could open the room door of the room that she was given, Alex pinned her to the wall as he held both of her wrists tight. 

He kissed her head as he said with a deadly and cold tone, “You will never be able to escape or run away from me.”

She got angry with the tone of his voice and so she hit her head against his face creating an escape for her. She ran inside her new room and locked herself inside, sitting on the floor in a curled-up position right next to the door and trying to hold the tears back. She knew that she was trapped and there was nothing she could do at the moment. She needed to protect her father and friends, but she knew that the only person who could protect her at the moment, was the one and only man leaning on the other side of the door.

A couple of hours later 

Alexander opened Zoey’s room door slowly and silently as he peeked in to see her fast asleep on top of the alcove near the window, as the moonlight laid strokes of light on her face on this dark, cold, and twisting day. So he slowly and gently picked her up and placed her on the bed where he then covered her up with a blanket. He brushed her hair aside and walked out closing the room door slowly.

He met Damionand started to talk to him.

“Don’t tell her that I covered her.”, Alex demanded and walked away in the opposite direction.

“No problem sir.”

“Oh…and is there any word of the wine that we are looking for?”, he asked as he stopped in his tracks.

“About that…the Queen Mary The Third did have a child, that the late Mr. Griffin was looking for…so, therefore, she did have a bloodline, if we could track the bloodline down, we can find the wine. This blood-or wine…is well-known to quench all vampires' thirst for life. She was blessed with a gift, blood that was enchanting. Therefore, she always carried a unique scent that made her smell lovely and enticing, only a few could pick up this scent. In the past, only your father could pick up that scent and…of course her husband.”, he explained as he used his index finger to push his glasses up.

“Alright then, that wraps up everything for tonight. Make sure you take good care of the girl and sure she does not make any efforts to disturb me”, he stated as he started walking again.

“I highly doubt she will, but okay…Where are you going, Mr. Griffin?”, Damion questioned as he turned his body around to face him.

“Trust me, you have no idea how she is. I’m going to the study room, don’t disturb me and cancel all my appointments for the weekend, I want to get to know Zoey more.”, he said as he shut the door silently.