Chapter 1
1127 Words
CARINA
"Carina! Dad has sent for you to meet with him in his study." Audrey blurted, thrusting her head in from the door.
I raised my head slightly to digest what she had said: "Your dad wants to see me?" I questioned.
"Yes! And he asked for you to come now!"
I hurried out of my bed, kicking my legs to the sides and sitting up to put on my in-house slippers.
"Do you have an idea why he wants to see me sis?" I probed while adjusting my night clothes.
"I can't put it off; Although his tone sounded a bit serious. Start going, you know too well not to piss him off.” She snapped
"Hell yeah, you are right."
I rushed out of the room towards the hallway and Audrey trailed behind me. It was still early in the morning, and I wondered why he hadn't left for work yet.
His study is at the end of the hallway and I deliberated on why he wanted to see me. What could be so serious?
I froze entirely as a chilly shudder ran down my throat just as I arrived at the room door. I'd never been in it before, especially not after receiving a sound warning not to get close to the door. Just as I raised my hand to knock on the door, his icy and gruff voice came in.
“Are you just going to stand there or come in?”
My hands shivered as I turned the door knob and pushed it open; did he have cameras around? s**t! I had no idea.
I stood in front of my uncle, who stood by one of the shelves with a book in his hands and he turned to look at me.
My lips twisted as I found a way to grin without appearing frightened.
"Sit!" He ordered.
“W-what? I sh-should”…. I couldn’t complete my statement as my voice cracked. His harsh tone caused me to fidget.
"Are you deaf?" I said, "Sit!" This time, the tone of his voice rose, as though he was furious.
I sat down swiftly to escape additional reprimanding as he proceeded to the other bookshelf. My gaze moved around the room, analyzing the contents as it was filled with books, with shelves on either side and his study chair and desk in the centre. He approached his desk and sat on a chair opposite me.
"I know you're probably wondering why I called you in." He started off.
"I didn't call you in here for one of your designs," he explained.
At this moment, I had no idea what he was going to say. And I wasn't concerned anymore; I prepared myself for whatever he had to say and dared not question him.
"How is Liam doing?"
His question caught me off; why the hell is he asking after Liam? Liam is my boyfriend; we started dating in college. Uncle has never mentioned his name to me, even after seeing us together in a garage down the street. He said nothing to me when I returned. So, why was he inquiring about him now?
"H-he is fine sir, I replied, feeling a lump move down in my throat."
"Are you surprised?" He stipulated.
I shook my head in dissent, having clearly lied about not being surprised.
"I will get right to the point, so pay close attention. We've been suffering from a major set back in the company and will require additional investors. As you already know, he is a shareholder in the corporation. And has refused to invest more in the company out of fear that it will go bankrupt completely."
"Okay, Si...r. I stammered.
“He only agreed on investing if only you’d get married to him, which I agreed on and we concluded on it to be held tomorrow.
“What!” I exclaimed “I d-don’t understand uncle, what do you mean?” My voice croaked as tears were already welling up in my eyes. I wasn’t ready for marriage in any way, at least I haven’t had all the fun I wanted to have and I was not even certain about Liam even if I loved him.
"He outrageously slammed his hands on his study desk so hard.
“Where were your ears? Have you suddenly gone deaf?”
Uncle stood up from his chair and moved towards me, leaning on the desk in front of me.
"I said," he grabbed my chin and jerked it up to face him, his steely eyes meeting mine.
"You will marry Liam; you have no choice and you will do so by tomorrow; your dress and everything else you'll be needing has been prepared. "All you have to do is be in this house, and they will come to you."
"What!" I cried, wiping his hands off my chin. I couldn't believe what he said: "How can you not inform me before doing all of this?" down to preparing my clothing." At the very least, I had the right to wear whatever I chose without you getting involved, I shouted fiercely as he looked at me in amazement. I stood up and kicked against the chair.
"Haven't you done enough yet? Who the heck are you to think you can plan my life like it's yours? You took over my father's business and have treated me like trash ever since I arrived. Now you're pressuring me into marriage; what makes you think I want to marry Liam? Haven't you done enough?" I bawled as hot tears streamed down my cheeks and a heaviness filled my heart.
"As I previously stated, you have no choice, and yes! I own you right now, and you will do everything I tell you”
"And, hey!" He leaped up from the desk and moved closer to me, stopping just as our feet touched. “Don't you dare speak to me in that manner or tone again; now get out of my sight, you failure."
"Failure? If it weren't for my father's wealth, I wonder who the true failure would be." His face turned pale with his mouth wide open and I didn’t seem to care.
I scuffed and walked out of the room, slamming the door harshly behind me.
I ran into Audrey at the entrance, she seemed to have been eavesdropping and had heard all her father said. I paused and stared at her furiously, she was silent and seemed remorseful.
I ignored her and dashed inside my room hopping on my bed and cried my hearts out as memories of my childhood with my parents came flooding in.
I picked up my phone to contact Liam. I couldn't believe he would agree to such.
- Writer
