Chapter five

The dress was too long and too damn tight. 

It clung to my skin, covering everything that needed to be covered from my ankles to my wrists. Only my neck was exposed. 

Logan arrived before I did, I spotted him through the glass doors, not among the guests, not giving speeches or shaking hands like a good little host. No, Logan was at the far end of the ballroom next to Helen; he wasn’t talking. Just sitting there with that same smug expression. And Keith came out of a room to join them, he had a black suit on. No tie. The top button of his shirt was undone. How could he still look so hot? I mean, he looked different, different as in mature. I needed to take my eyes off him, he wasn't on my agenda tonight and will never be. 

Raymond tugged my arm. "Don't embarrass me, don't cause any trouble, and lastly don't faint, or I'll be having second thoughts." He muttered through clenched teeth. 

I didn’t answer. I yanked my arm away and walked off.

I made a straight line toward Helen Grey, whose face lit up when she noticed me. 

"Oh my, the dress is so beautiful and modest." Yeah, modest cause I made sure the dress covered every scar I inflicted on my body. 

"Thank you." I forced a smile. 

"Logan, Liana is here." She held my hand as we moved closer to him and Keith. They both were engrossed in a conversation that they didn't notice me, or maybe they didn't want to. 

"Yes, I need you to take care of it," Logan said to Keith, still not noticing me. 

"Logan," Helen called a little louder, her voice topping the background music. 

They both finally looked at us. 

"Liana is here," Helen said with a smile, pulling both my shoulders close.

"Good for her," Logan said dryly. 

"Logan," Helen called, her tone more serious. It was the first time I heard a change in her voice.

"What, Mom? You want me to stand up and hug her, well, as you can see, I'm not in the state to do that, so if you will excuse me, my best man and I want to start the event." Best man? Keith will be his best man? 

Without another word from the three of them, Logan rolled himself away, and Keith followed, gulping down his glass of champagne. 

"I'm sorry, he's not always like that. Let him have a pass tonight." Helen said. 

I forced a smile and nodded at Helen. "It's okay, I understand." That was a lie.  The music stopped, and Logan's voice came through the microphone.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome. Let's get started, shall we?" 

The room erupted with applause. 

Keith. He was the only person I could see on the stage. 

I couldn't help but notice how his eyes sparkled under the stage lights. But I pushed those thoughts away. I was here for a reason, and it wasn't to admire Keith. Logan's eyes met mine, and for a moment, we just stared at each other. Then he looked away. Helen nudged me, and I realized I was supposed to smile.

I plastered a fake smile on my face.

"Before we begin the event, I would like to make an announcement." Logan’s voice came through the mic again.

“In case you are wondering,” Helen leaned close, whispering. “Keith is Logan’s cousin, and he’ll be his best man.”

Cousin? How? I’d known Keith almost my entire life. He never once mentioned his cousin. Then again, he never mentioned a lot of things.

"Before I make the announcement, I would like to call someone very special to the stage.”

He looked directly at me, and I already knew what he was about to say.  “Please welcome… the daughter of the well-known Mr. Raymond Dakota… Liana Dakota.”

The crowd erupted in applause.

Helen gently nudged me. “Go on, dear,” she whispered.

I walked slowly to the stage, the dress suddenly heavier with every step. 

As soon as I moved closer to Logan, his fingers wrapped around mine. And suddenly, a shock ran through me, not from warmth or intimacy. It was pure surprise. For a man who seemed to despise me for absolutely no reason, I didn't think he would want to touch me. 

“We’ve been dating for a few months now,” Logan continued, still holding my hand. “And tonight, I’d like to formally introduce her… as my fiancée.”

A few claps, some murmurs, and I swore someone dropped a glass.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, smiled wider, and nodded as if I wasn’t dying inside. Then, without another word, Logan let go and rolled back, giving me a clear path off the stage.

I walked straight back to Helen.

She reached for my hand, smiling. “You were wonderful,” she whispered. Wonderful? I felt like a prop in a cruel performance.

Logan disappeared behind the curtain while Keith took the mic. His voice filled the room, smooth and deep, like silk brushing over skin. I couldn't make out the words, they were just noise. Beautiful noise.

My heart was racing. I hated that it was racing.

It was only natural that my heart still beat faster than usual every time I saw him. He was the only man I've ever...loved. My phone vibrated, jarring me out of my thoughts.

I blinked, looked down at my purse, and reached for it, grateful for any reason to look away from Keith.

Unknown number. Who could this be? 

"Excuse me, I need to take this call," I said to Helen, and she nodded.

I noticed a room not far from where I stood and made my way inside it. There was nobody inside. 

I answered the call. "Hello." 

"Listen carefully to what I'm about to tell you." The voice didn't sound natural rather, it sounded like it had been modulated. 

I checked the number again and put the phone back to my ear. It was probably someone who wanted money. 

"If you are looking to get money from me, sorry to disappoint you. You won't get a dime." I was about to hang up, then came the voice again. 

"I'm not a petty thief, I have your daughter with me, so you better listen." Shivers immediately ran down my spine. What? That can't be, my daughter was with Raymond. I slowly opened the door, searching for Raymond to confirm if this wasn't one of his games. 

I saw him, still talking and laughing with some other men. It wasn't Raymond. My legs buckled, and I fell to the floor. No, it can't be.

"You liar." The person couldn't possibly have my daughter, it was probably a scheme to get money from me.

My phone beeped. 

"Check the message I sent." I checked, it was a video. I took a deep breath, and my hands started to shake. It can't be. I clicked on the video, and I saw her; she was sleeping peacefully on what looked like a small bed, maybe a couch.

The walls around me crumbled, and it felt like air was being snorted out of me.

This couldn’t be real. It couldn’t.

The voice came through the phone again.

"Now that I have your attention, you’ll do exactly what I say. No police. No telling your father. If you try to be smart, I’ll make sure you regret it."

I couldn’t speak. I didn’t even know if I could breathe. My hands were shaking so badly that I almost dropped the phone.

"If you do as I say, nothing will happen to your daughter, and if you don't, I'd rather we don't talk about what will happen to her." I clutched my chest as tears streamed down my face. 

"Please, don't do anything to her. It's me you want, not her. Please." 

"Listen to me. Go ahead with the wedding. I'll call again soon." 

Then the line went dead.

My daughter. Someone else had my daughter. My daughter being with Raymond felt much safer cause I know him but my daughter with a stranger?

I needed to move, to do something, but my body wasn’t listening.