Chapter 8

Eleanor took a detour from the place where the van was last seen. However, there wasn’t any secret passage or any other linked road. She took another three rounds to confirm, but there wasn’t any clue where the van might have gone. Eleanor stopped the car far from the tunnel. It was almost getting dark. The sky was filled with bright stars and birds were returning to their nests. The view made Eleanor more depressed thinking about the uncertainty that she could find her father. 

Eleanor finally realised that Roveign city was far bigger than she had imagined. She didn’t know a thing about that place even though she had been living there for twenty-two years. It was a jungle and if you weren’t strong, you wouldn’t survive there. The anxiety and fear Eleanor was feeling, was sign of facing a beast. Or more probably facing a certain someone.

Eleanor sighed while looking at the night sky. It was cold. She rubbed her arms to keep herself warm. Yet she couldn’t tolerate the cold wind that was brushing her cheeks. It felt sharp like a knife. Eleanor hurriedly got inside the car accepting defeat. She was clueless. She didn’t know what to do or where to go. But one thing Eleanor knew for good was that she couldn’t enter the house without her father.

“It’s...getting late now.”, Eleanor looked at her phone and put it aside. She was just about to start it when the phone vibrated. She was surprised by seeing an unknown number on the screen. 

Eleanor barely picked up unknown numbers since some of them were scammers. But that time she instantly received the call, “Hello?.. Who is it?”

“ Ya know well. Come out now. Ain’t don’t have that much time for ya!”, saying that the unknown person with a manly voice ended the call. Eleanor was kinda confused because...she didn’t know where that guy called from! She didn’t even know who he was and why he called her. She hit the wheel hard and swore! “Shit! Just another scammer!” 

Eleanor kept hitting her head on the wheel while murmuring the words. Not so much time went by that her phone again started ringing. This time the number was well known to her. She instantly answered it with her shaking hands, “Did you find it?!”

“Yes, ma’am! It’s in front of your house!”

“What? The car is in front of Anderson Mansion?!”

“Yes, we’ve been tracking it for a while now. It’s been on move all this time. But now it’s just parked in front of your house.”

Eleanor was speechless. She couldn’t think straight and her mind was giving abrupt readings! She was silent like the dead of night. Hearing no reply from the other side,  the Officer didn’t know what to say. He kept asking if Eleanor was okay, but there wasn’t any answer in return. Eleanor dropped the phone in the case and started the car. The worried voice of the Officer was circling inside the car. But Eleanor had no attention to that at the moment. Her intense eyes were solely focused on the road. She murmured, “Finally!” as if she was waiting for it. 

Without wasting any time, Eleanor hit the road. There was a man standing in front of her house when she reached there. Hopefully, there wasn’t anybody else. Eleanor saw their driver standing beside the man. He was looking tired and seemed to be reluctant. Getting out of the car, Eleanor slowly walked toward the suspicious man. He was wearing a hoodie, but his face was visible as the night light fell on his face. 

The man had a rough face to look at and a murderous aura around him. He was well built and tall. Seeing Eleanor walking forward, he also took some steps toward her. 

"Ya sure took ya'r time!", with a growling voice, the man made his first encounter with Eleanor. 

"I didn't know it was you…."

"Yah! Me didn't know ya weren't inside that big building!"

"Where's my dad?", Eleanor was trying to be as calm as possible since she didn't know if the man was armed or not. And he was still holding the driver in his captivity! So one wrong move might cause an innocent life.

"Aye! Ya don't need to worry bout that! Only think about the money you need to pay.", the man was smirking as he spoke about the money. His devilish grin sent a shiver down Eleanor's spine.

"Wha-what money?"

"Look missy, ya'r daddy owes our boss a huge amount of HONEY and as per the signed documents, ya are the surety! So ya better pay up soon!!"

"Honey?!"

The man swore as he clicked his tongue and pushed the driver to Eleanor. Hopefully, Eleanor caught him before he fell. She cleaned his clothes and looked at his face. That young boy was beaten to a pulp.

"Ya rich peeps don't have any humour?! Money is honey!!"

Eleanor glared at the man. She was tense all day and he was thinking about jokes! The kind of man Eleanor used to despise, was standing right in front of her: Those who ignored the feelings of other people.

Gritting her teeth to control her inner urge of hitting the man in front of her, she asked, "How much?"

"Thirty million."

"What?!!", Eleanor was shocked. She never knew that her father was gambling and taking drugs behind her back that owed them such an amount!

"Ya have only two days to get the money!"

"IT'S IMPOSSIBLE!! I need more time.", Eleanor cried out. Her heart was beating faster and blood rushed backwards!

"If ya don't pay up, then we will send ya'r daddy back."

"Send...as if…"

"Me don't think me need to tell ya that."

The man walked back to the car. He waved to Eleanor and the car keys were jiggling on his fingers as he played with them. "Cya then!"

The man got inside the car and was just about to drive it away when Eleanor stopped him, "But...but whom do I pay?!!"

"Ouch! Almost forgot!!", the man handed Eleanor a card. " Ya see this number here? Call this man. If he asks ya 'Under' or 'Up', then answer Under. A guy will surely come to fetch ya in half an hour. He will take ya to the man ya need to meet! Gotcha?"

Eleanor nodded her head as a yes. 

"Thanks for the ride then. Cya again!", the man drove the car away. 

Eleanor had no choice but to look in that man's way as he drove by. She stared at the road until he vanished in the darkness. The driver was burning with a fever because of the pain he was dealing with. Eleanor held him perfectly as his body was giving up.

"Hang on there! I'm calling for help.", Eleanor went inside and brought Nina and some other servants to help the young driver boy inside the mansion. She also gave them a hand in that. But she didn't know that her bad day had yet to end!

Eleanor was going to her room after settling the boy in a perfect place to rest. She told the servants to take proper care of him. They had an annoying look on their faces, but it didn't bother Eleanor at all since it was a common treatment for her to receive in that house. It was the same for years and it didn't bother her at all as she got immune to such behaviours! All she craved was a certain someone's attention and that person behaving rudely to her, hurt her the most!!

"ELEANOR!!"A husky voice called out to Eleanor from the study room of her grandmother. Eleanor knew who it was and that's why she was fidgeting to go inside. Yet she had no other choice. Because it was Miranda who called out to her.

The door to her study room was still half-opened. A faint sound of melodious music was coming out of that room. Eleanor slowly entered. She saw an old woman standing facing her back towards her. 

The old lady had ash-coloured bob-cut hair. She was wearing a red nightgown. While squeezing her fingers behind her back, the old lady asked, "Where's your dad?!"

That angry tone scared Eleanor. She was shaking standing in that room alone. More than that she was confused about what to say. Only one answer was circling her head, "I don't know…."

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T KNOW?!!"

Eleanor knew that the old lady was furious. But she also knew that it was about to come anyway. So she decided to face ahead, "I really don't know where he is right now."

"Do you even realise how embarrassing it was for the whole family since he didn't attend the party????!!!"

"I...I'm sorry, grandmother…"

"Mrs Anderson!!! Not GRANDMOTHER.."

Eleanor kept quiet for a moment and then replied, "Yes...Mrs Anderson…"

She could hear chuckling sounds out of the room. But she was far embarrassed to see her grandmother facing the wall this whole time. That reminded Eleanor that she was sticking to the order she gave her. 

"Get out!!"

Eleanor looked at her grandmother. Her eyes were filled with water and she was on the verge of crying. 

"I said GET OUT!!!", Miranda shouted again, which made Eleanor terrified of her. She kept shaking on the spot until she dashed out of the room. She saw her cousins out of the study room, but she had no more strength left in her body to face them. 

Eleanor straight went to her room and landed on the bed. She burst into crying. Hearing her crying out loudly, Nina rushed into her room. She had a sick look on her face as she watched Eleanor break down again.

"How many times has it been like this?", Nina went to Eleanor and embraced her. She kept patting her back to comfort her a bit…

"Don't cry, ma'am! All will be okay. Just have faith."

Eleanor didn't answer. But she surely returned Nina's hug and wetted Nina's dress with her tear duct and runny nose. However, she could feel the comfort of her warmth as she hugged Nina. And the rhythm of her patting was soothing also. Later….Eleanor forgot for how long she stayed like that. But it was surely more comfy than her bed!