*Present Day*
Blood dripped down the left side of Arianna's perfectly shaped face from the crack in her forehead, her hands tied with chains behind the steel chair, while her feet and chest were both tied to chair.
"P...please President Clair," her fair face, now stained with, dirt, blood and tears. "What... What have I done?"
"What have you done?" His hard, rough palm met her face with such force, leaving a red handprint and split her lip open. "That's a good question, what did you and your loathsome mother, do to my son?" Her face and arms were covered in cuts and bruises, she'd cried out in pain, so many times.
"Nothing! I... I have done nothing to your son." Her voice trembled from the pain. Once upon a time she would have been able to bare with this kind of pain, but not any more. "Please... just let me go. I have done nothing but simply love your son."
"NOT WORTHY!" He screamed in anger as he hit the other side of her face. "You're not worthy of my son's affection. You're not worthy of my approval!"
"Please if you truly care for your son... you will let me leave here alive." She tried to stay strong, holding back her tears.
"Let you leave here alive? I'm doing this for the sake of my beloved son!" His green eyes and deep voice filled with murderous intent as he raised the knife in his hand up to her throat, the blade was already covered with her blood. Less than 5 inches from her face, the man's monstrous smile sent shivers down her spine. "Any last words? I won't tell him, but at least you'll have said them."
She couldn't hold back her tears, but she refused to sob, taking a deep breath it was time to use her trump card. "What... what about for the sake of your grandchild?"
The sharp edge of the blade that had been slightly pressed against her neck, pulled away vaguely. The man's murderous eyes changed to shock, while his expression didn't soften, he seemed stunned.
He had a grandchild? Despite his murderous actions family had always been the most important thing, the only people he believed you could truly rely on. However, his son and Arianna had only meet each other about 6 months ago.
Arianna's eyes followed President Clair's gaze as they fell to her stomach.
"You're pregnant?" The knife in his hand was shaken loose and fell to the floor with a piercing clink sound. Arianna didn't say anything, she simply nodded.
~ ~ ~
*12 years before*
Joan was not use to the hot weather of February in Australia, while she had come prepared, the heat had still taken a lot out of her. As she walked through Quibaree Park, looking out to the view of Sydney Harbour, she watched peacefully as at the other end of the park a wedding ceremony had just finished. At 46 she had never been married and didn't have a family, she felt quite lonely when she saw these events. While enjoying her peaceful walk through the park, the way she couldn't back home in France, she saw a young girl about 16 being harassed by three, solid and tough looking men. For any other person there would be two options; walk away and pretend they didn't see anything or interfere and try to help. While Joan was about to choose to ignore and walk away, something about the girl's charisma urged her to stay and watch, so discreetly hiding behind a tree, she watched as the girl's confident and arrogant smile as the grown men tried to intimidate her with their size.
"Do you really want to do that Jay?" The young brunette's haughty stare met by the man in the middle.
"What you going to do about it, Ari?" Jay met the girl's arrogance with his own cheap imitation. "You know I run things 'round here."
"Yes, but how would everyone feel if they knew the big bad Jay Blackwood was actually Jay Williams and was the son of such a proper and successful business man such as Bruce Williams?" She folded her arms, looking directly at him with all seriousness. "Because if Josh doesn't hear from me by 3pm he will release that notorious gang leader Jay Blackwood actually has daddy protecting him and all the evidence that I have collected over the years of the crimes you've committed and what daddy has covered up." Smiling mischievously Ari looked at the gang leader.
Joan smiled satisfied, even though this technically wouldn't affect the gang, it would affect his father's company, she knew that Williams Industry was a transport company and probably help smuggle drugs into the country while also helping to cover up other things. This girl, she's interesting.
"Why you little brat!" Jay was furious, but what could he do. "What do you want?" He finally grunted.
"I want my freedom, my parents and brother have always been loyal to you, but I have different goals. I promise I'll stay out of your way and won't get involved, I just want you to grant me my freedom and never bother me again. That's all I want." She stared at the man she'd known her whole life with all certainty. He looked in thought for a moment.
"That's all you want?" He looked like he was about to laugh. "Arianna you're the daughter of my right-hand man, you know far more than you should, do you think I'll just let you walk around the city with that kind of knowledge." The malicious look in his eyes was filled with a murderous intent, sent shivers down Arianna's spine.
"What if she doesn't stay in the city?" The men turned to see a tall slender middle-aged woman who'd walked out from behind a tree.
"Get lost lady this has nothing to do with you!" One of Jay's goons grunted.
"I said, what if she doesn't stay in the city?" Her casual tone and aura had been swapped out for her overbearing CEO mien, sending shivers down their spines.
"Well I suppose that would be okay, as long as she agrees to never return and destroys all the evidence, she has on us." Jay looked at the woman, who was she, from her accent she sounded French, Arianna's family didn't have any connections in France, so why'd this lady stick up for her? "So what do you say Ari?"
"I…" She hesitated, but then straightened up, looking at both the adults confidently, "I'm not stupid, I'm not going to agree to leave the city without simply knowing anything. I will ring Josh and tell him to destroy the evidence I gave him, I will give you my answer by dusk."
"Fine, but you ring your little boyfriend right now!" Jay wasn't going to accept it any other way. Pulling out an old flip phone, that looked as if it had been scratched and worn to pieces, dialled a number.
"It's done, destroy it all." She spoke, eyes still locked at Jay's. "Done."
"I will ring you at dusk, if you don't have an answer than you will be mine forever." He stomped off followed by the two men he'd been with. Arianna's eyes left the back of their heads and looked right at the lady who'd stuck up for her.
"What do you want?" Folding her arms and shifting her weight onto her right leg, the arrogance flowed off her.
"Is that how you thank someone who just saved your life?" The woman walked slowly towards her.
"It depends, are you here to sell me off to a brothel or just the black market?" She spoke with such certainty, made Joan realise just how damaged this young girl really was and how intelligent.
"A normal girl of your age wouldn't even consider those to be possibilities." She sounded impressed and concerned, "No, I'm not here to do either, I'm here to offer you a job that is perfectly legal."
"Oh yeah and where is this job?" the scepticism in her voice was expected.
"In Paris." Joan smiled. "My name is Joan Richard I am the CEO of RF and I would like to offer you a job as my personal assistant."
Arianna looked at the lady in shock, then reached for a small black backpack at her feet, she silently dug through the bag, until she pulled out a copy of last month's issue of Successful Women, on the front cover was a picture Joan had posed for. Arianna looked at the woman in front of her and her idol on the front cover.
"Oh my gosh…" She was struggling to breathe, when Joan realised what was happening, she walked up to the girl, gently rubbing her hand up and down Arianna's back. It turned out that not only did the girl know who she was, she was a bit of a fan. "Oh my gosh... it's really you... I mean you're really her!" The woman laughed, when Joan looked at Arianna, she saw a lot of herself in the girl.
"So what do you say? Will you come back to Paris with me?" She smiled at the ambitious girl standing before her.
"Yes!" Without hesitation. Then suddenly a worried look flashed across Joan's face. "What's wrong?"
"Well you're still a child, we will need to talk to your parents, even if they agree, you'll need to finish school."
"I'm an independent child, I haven't even seen my parents in 3 years. And as for school I'll go and I promise I'll try really hard, I'll do whatever you want me to. I even have a passport." Joan couldn't help but smile, the tragedy this child must have gone through.
~ ~ ~
Arianna called Jay and agreed to his terms and destroyed all the evidence she had on him. So Joan took Arianna back to Paris, where she enrolled her into an international school and gave her a room in her mansion. While Arianna worked under Joan, they started to understand they had a lot more in common than just family background.