Lara
Today is Monday, two days since the day I saw Scott. I already missed him. He didn't call or text on those days, except when he left and told me he liked me. Until now, I still feel giddy and so happy, and I'm so excited when he comes back and, at the same time, nervous.
What should I say once he says that he likes me in person? Should I tell him that I like him too? But isn't it fast? I'm afraid he will think that I am easy to get. But what if I tell him I'll think about it? Then what if he can't wait and gives up? No, I don't want that to happen, but if he likes me, he can wait, right? I sighed and didn't know what to do. I want to ask Ashley, but that girl won't stop teasing me once she knows what happened between me, and Scott and Owen are no different. I sighed once again. At the moment, like this, I wanted to have my mom. Mom always has answers to every question. I sighed sadly, and a lone tear rolled down my right cheek.
"Mom, Dad, I'll find out soon who was behind the ambush, and once I find him, I will kill him myself. I took a deep breath, and my mind returned to Scott. Scott, his name is familiar. I heard it before, but I don't remember where. Other than being the owner of Miller Corporation, I know I heard it somewhere, but I couldn't recall where.
Another sigh escapes my lips, looking at my phone in my hand. I wanted to message or call Scott, but I was too shy. I have never had any relationship with the opposite sex before. The closer I get to a man, being with Owen and Scott is very new to me, and I don't know how to handle it.
I think he is swamped with work or has already forgotten about me because he's meeting many beautiful ladies there. I'm sure women working in the office are his type, not like me in high school and still a kid. I'm sure he forgot me already, because if he doesn't, why doesn't he send even a single message within two days? I sighed sadly, feeling a prick in my heart. The thought of Scott with another girl makes me jealous, even though we are not together. How much more when he's already my boyfriend? But how could it happen when he has already forgotten me? I sighed once again. I can't count how many times I sighed this morning. Shaking my head, I quickly bathed and prepared for school once I noticed I only had half an hour left before class started.
But I'm so happy with the result of my talk to Grandpa. He doesn't freak out or get mad at me about Scott and the marriage contracts. He agreed to set up a meeting with Blade. He didn't comment about Scott. He just said okay. Finally, I will be free from Blade. Even his name fears me. I'll ask Owen or Grandpa to accompany me during my meeting with him. Even when what I expected to happen between Scott and me wouldn't happen, I continued my plan to nullify the marriage contract. I don't want to be with a man I don't love and, at the same time, the man that I fear.
I want to meet him, but I don't want to go alone. I might faint when I see him, but I'll face my greatest fear for Scott and my happiness. I hope Scott returns my feelings, but right now, I'm doubting that.
After wearing my school uniform, I picked up my school bag from my bed and went downstairs. I grabbed a granola bar from the cabinet and went outside. I went to my car and drove off to school.
I saw Owen before I could step out of the car, and he looked worried, looking at me. I stepped out of my car, and he quickly held my wrist and pulled me into one of the vacant rooms.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"One of your guards was missing?"
"What do you mean by one of my guards? You mean Ashley?" I asked worriedly.
"Lara, I'm sorry for keeping you this for a long time, but not only Ashley and I guard you, but there are two others, and one is missing. She's also a student here, staying in a dorm. She's been missing since last night."
"Who is she?" I asked, my fist balled beside me. I wanted to scream at Owen, but it's not the time to get mad right now. We need to find her.
"Cherry Lee."
"What? The nerd Cherry. The one who Scarlette also bullied?" Owen sighs but nods his head.
"It's her cover."
"How did you know that she was missing? Maybe she just went somewhere? Who told you that she was missing?"
"Her things were trashed everywhere when I went to her dorm this morning. She fought, but maybe there's more than one person who took her."
"How could you explain this to the school when they found out she was missing and someone trashed her room?"
"Ashley had already fixed her room and informed the Principal of an emergency. I don't care what the school will think about this, whether they believe the lie or not. What I'm worried about is if she is still alive. Lara, they got her for a reason, and I'm afraid they already knew about you." I grit my teeth. They shouldn't know where I am and what I look like because my freedom depends on it. If the mafia knew how I looked, my peaceful life would turn into chaos instantly.
"You don't have any tracking device planted on her phone or things like you did to me?" I said, glaring at him. He nervously scratched the back of his head. He thought I didn't know about the tracking devices he planted in my car, my phone, my bags, and some of my clothes. I know all that, but I ignored it because I knew it was for my safety.
"Sorry," he whispered.
"It's okay, I understand. So do you?" I asked, hoping. I won't be at peace until I find out she's safe. I will blame myself forever if something happens to her.
I see her every day here at school, wherever I am. I thought it was a coincidence, but now she was clearly following me wherever I went because she was guarding me.
Sometimes I caught her looking at me but quickly looked away when I looked at her. She is always alone, reading or writing something, or sometimes she sits a few meters away from me, looking around. She's always alone like me, without Owen, and the same as me, Scarlette also loves to bully her.
"She has a tracking device on her phone, but it's in her room," Owen answered. I bit my lips and paced back and forth in front of him.
"Did you check the school surveillance cameras? Maybe one of them caught who got her?"
"I already did, but there was a certain time that the camera was off. It was from around 2:00 am to 2:30 am. I'm sure those who got her have something to do about it."
"No one saw the incident? Or any clue that could tell us who got her. Maybe they left a letter. You know what they want or something."
"Nothing, we cannot find anything. No trace, no fingerprints. Who did this is skilled, and only a part of the mafia can do a clean job. The only indication that something happened in her room is her things."
"Did you inform Grandpa about this?"
"I wanted, but I didn't. I want to ask you first if you want me to tell your grandfather or not."
"Tell him. Maybe he can help us find Cherry. I don't want her dead because of me, and as the time ticks on, we don't know what those people are doing to her."
***
Scott
Lara loves me. Lara loves me." The words echoed in my head, and I quickly bolted up.
"Lara loves me!!! I screamed, startling the three people with me. I quickly covered my mouth. I thought I was still screaming in my head without knowing, so I screamed it out loud. I quickly cleared my throat and settled back on my seat as if I had done nothing, but my face turned into a beetroot for the first time when Grandpa burst into laughter, followed by James, and Mark couldn't hold their laughter anymore.
I kicked a chair that quickly silenced Mark and James, but not Grandpa, who kept laughing until tears rolled down his face. I glared at him and stood up, ready to leave, but he quickly held my wrist.
"Wait, we are not done here." He said, still chuckling.
"I'm done here. I have nothing to see." I said, annoyed.
"Lara wants to meet Blade. What do you want me to tell her? Do you want to meet her or not?" I settled back beside him with a frown on my face.
"What do you suggest? I'm afraid that if I meet her, she will recognize me."
"Just call her then, and tell her that you agreed with her to nullify your marriage contract."
"But what if she recognized my voice?"
"There's an app to change your voice over the phone, Boss," Mark said.
"I know that." I glared at him. "But this thing shouldn't talk over the phone."
"Meet her then," Grandpa said, annoyed. "When do you want to meet her?"
"I'll call you when I'm ready to meet her," I said.
"Don't tell me you're scared." He said with a teasing smile on his lips.
"I'm not. What I'm afraid of is the outcome."
"Whatever it is, in the end, she still loves you whether you are Blade or Scott Miller. The only problem is what she will do if she finds out that you lied to her, not only you but everyone around her that knows who you are. I hope that girl will not murder us."
"Don't joke like that, Grandpa," I said, rolling my eyes. Lara is a sweet girl. I'm sure she won't murder someone because they lied to her.
"You don't know that girl well. Lara has a temper that only her father can stop. Maybe you can stop it, too, because she's scared of Blade. Let's see what will happen once she finds out." He smirked.
The ringing of his phone stopped our conversation. He picked it up from the table and looked at who was calling, and he frowned. He shows it to me, and Owen's name blinks on the screen.
He pressed the loudspeaker before he answered it so that all of us could hear their conversation.
"Owen!"
"Sir, we have a problem," Owen answered, and we both tensed up.
"What is it? Is Lara fine?" Grandpa asked in a voice laced with worry.
"Don't worry, sir, she was fine. The problem is one of her guards is missing. I'm afraid someone already knows about Lara."
"Who's the guard?"
"Cherry Lee, sir," Owen answered. I cursed.
"Cherry Lee is Lara's guard?" I was surprised.
"Yes, how did you know her?" Grandpa asked.
"Owen, this is Scott. Contact Aron's number. He got Cherry. I'm the one who ordered it. I don't know that she's Lara's guard. I thought she was after her because my men saw her talking to Homer."
"What? Owen asked and became quiet at the other line and cursed. "Why did you do it without asking me first? If she knows about it, I won't mention her name, because she's near me, she'll be furious, and you won't like it. This girl is scary when she's mad."
"Don't tell her it was me then. Why is Cherry talking to Homer anyway? I've been looking for that man for five years already."
"And why are you looking for my brother? He's part of the guard."
"What?" I looked at Grandpa, frowning. "Owen, I'll talk to you once I'm back. Call Aron and tell him to call me once you meet him."
"Okay, bye, because Lara now throws me a deathly glare."
"Okay, bye."
"Why are you looking for Homer? And why don't I know about it?". He vanished without a trace after what happened to Boss Teddy and his wife. He was present at the incident location, but he went missing.
"I hide him. Homer was guarding my son that day. He was one of his hidden guards. And after the accident, I sent him to guard Lara while he was hiding from the mafia. Because I'm sure whoever did it and saw his face won't stop until they kill all the witnesses." I slumped on the couch, becoming tired instantly. I thought once I found Homer, I could already solve the murder, but sadly, I will be back to square one because I don't have any lead at hand anymore.
"Does he know anything? Does he see who did it?"
"All the people he saw at the crime scenes are already dead, but we haven't got any information from them. They are all hired killers. They communicated via phone, and the people who hired them paid them online." Grandpa told me.
"Boss, those people who tried to kill you a month ago also hired killers, the same ones who killed the previous boss," James said.
"It must be the same people. The people who tried to kill me must be the same people who ordered the murder of t Boss Teddy and his wife."
"Be careful then. Those people are after you now." Grandpa said.
"I will, Grandpa, and you too. We're leaving now, Grandpa. I called you once I decided when to meet Lara, and about Cherry Lee, can you tell Lara that you just asked her to come? I know that girl is sweet and kind, but I don't want Lara to get mad at me while we are still not labeled as girlfriends and boyfriends. She might change her mind once she finds out I kidnapped one of her guards. She might suspect that I know who she is. I'm afraid she'll avoid me, or worse, she will run away."
"Okay, next time, ask Owen if you see suspicious people around Lara because Owen knows all my men."
"Okay, Grandpa." He hugged me and patted Mark and James' shoulders before leading us outside.
***
I had just entered the front door when my phone rang, and Aron's name was blinking on the screen.
I went into the living room, with James and Mark following me. I pressed the answer button, set it to loudspeakers, and leaned back on the couch.
"Aron, did Owen call you already?"
"Boss!!!! Can you come, please? I'm begging you, boss." I straightened up, and even Mark and James got closer because this was the first time Aron pleaded.
"What's the problem, Aron?" I was a bit worried.
"Boss, can you please come? I won't let this girl go until you come. She might listen to you, boss, or fear you if she knows you're the one who ordered the kidnapping. Please, boss, this girl is scary. I'm sure once I let her go, she will murder me, and I won't let it happen. Of course, I will defend myself, and it will only end when one of us is dead." I chuckled, as well as Mark and James.
"Boss, this is not fun. Come here, and you'll know what I'm saying. This girl can knock off five men of her own. She's a skilled boss. She almost killed me before I got her, and in the end, I just let her go. Boss, you should come here. If you don't, I tell Lara. I don't care if you murder me for threatening you, but it is better to die at your hands than this bitch."
"Don't dare, or I'll kill you," I warned.
"You didn't hear me, boss. I said," I'd rather die in your hands than this girl. So better come here before I call Lara." He said and hung up.
"That idiot." I Seethed. "That bastard doesn't dare say a single word to Lara, or I'll beat him until his body turns all blue," I said between gritted teeth.
"I think you should go there, boss. That threat is not empty. He means it, and I want to see this Cherry girl who makes Aron tremble in fear." I chuckled inside. For the first time, Aron feared someone except me.
"I can't even rest." I hissed. "We should replace Aron with Cherry," I said, which caused James and Mark to chuckle. "Prepare the car. We are leaving," I said, sighing. I ran my palm over my face when my phone rang again, but this time Owen.
"Owen!"
"Your men won't let Cherry go. Can you tell them to let her go already? Lara is waiting for us."
"Owen, Aron won't let her go until I'm back. He's afraid that Cherry will murder him."
"Oh, I doubt it, but the longer he keeps her here, the more she wants to kill him, so he had better let her go now."
"Tell him. That idiot threatens me by telling Lara if I don't come. Your girl must be terrifying." I chuckled, and Owen did the same.
"Okay, I will wait for you here. I want to hear how you find Cherry. This girl is terrifying if you don't know her. She's like Lara, looks like an angel, but once you anger her, she's like a devil. Okay, I'll inform Lara that I will be back tomorrow, and Cherry is safe now. Can I sleep in your house?"
"Yes, you can. Just tell Aron. I will be there around five or six in the morning."
"Okay, thanks." He said, and we hung up.
"Why does everyone who knows Lara say that she's scary? She looks like nothing but an innocent angel. Maybe they are just scaring me." I thought and went outside and got in the car, and our journey began back to Lara. I smiled, closing my eyes to take a few hours of sleep before I faced the idiot Aron.