Chapter 3

Genevieve POV

“I hate you!” My scream echoed through my bedroom as another flower vase crashed against the wall.

The expensive porcelain shattered into dozens of pieces, scattering across the polished floor.

I didn’t care. I grabbed the nearest lamp and threw that too and it smashed against the wardrobe with a loud bang.

My chest rose and fell violently as tears blurred my vision. “I hate all of you!”

No one answered. No one ever did. For two days, I had been locked inside my own bedroom like a prisoner.

The only people allowed to see me were the maids who brought my meals.

The windows were locked and the balcony door was chained. Security guards stood outside my bedroom and around the mansion.

Even if I somehow escaped the room, I might never make it past the front gate.

I kicked the edge of my bed in frustration. “This can’t be happening.”

Two days ago, I was the future owner of Beaumont Holdings. Now I was nothing more than my father’s hostage.

The thought made my blood boil again. I grabbed a pillow and threw it across the room. It hit the wall before dropping uselessly to the floor.

Just then, the bedroom door opened and a young maid entered carefully with a tray of breakfast.

She looked terrified the moment she saw the mess of broken glass, broken decorations, broken furniture and the broken me.

“M-Miss Genevieve…” She carefully placed the tray on the table. “I brought your breakfast.”

“I don’t want breakfast.”

She lowered her head. “I was told to make sure you eat.”

I looked at her desperately as an idea suddenly came to mind.

I walked toward her slowly and she immediately looked nervous. “Don’t be afraid.”

She swallowed hard. “Yes, Miss.”

I grabbed both of her hands. “Please help me.” She blinked in shock. “I just need one chance.”

Her eyes widened as I continued. “Just help me distract the guards.”

“What?”

“Just for a few minutes and I’ll climb out through the balcony.”

She immediately shook her head. “I can’t.”

“Please… If I stay here, my father will force me to marry Patrick Hyde.” Tears gathered in my eyes. “I don’t want that.”

The maid looked heartbroken but fear won. “If Mr. Beaumont finds out, he’ll fire me or hurt me.”

“I’ll pay you.”

“I can’t.”

“I’ll protect you.”

She shook her head even harder. “I don’t want trouble.”

Before I could stop her, she hurried toward the door. “Wait!” I called out but she ran out and the door slammed shut with the lock clicking.

I stared at it for several seconds then I screamed. “Aaaaah!” I swept everything off the nearby table.

The books, the frames and every decoration. Everything crashed onto the floor and I buried my face in my hands.

The room became quiet again as my breathing slowly steadied.

Then another thought entered my mind. The thought of Evelyn.

‘What had happened to her? My stomach tightened immediately.

She was only twenty-two, still in college, still trying to build her own future.

After her parents died in a plane crash ten years ago, my father had taken her into our home because they had once been business partners.

Over time, she became more than a friend. She became my sister,and my only real family.

If Father blamed her for what happened at the banquet… I squeezed my eyes shut.

“No…” I couldn’t even finish the thought.

Hours passed slowly as I sat quietly by the window, staring into the gardens. When footsteps finally approached the door, I assumed lunch had arrived.

The lock turned, the door opened and I looked up as my father walked inside.

He looked around at the destroyed room before looking at me. “What childish behavior.”

I folded my arms. “What have you done with Evelyn?”

He ignored the question. “When you speak to me, show some respect.”

I laughed bitterly. “You lost my respect two days ago.”

His expression darkened. “I am still your father.”

“You’re my jailer and you stole my future!” I snapped at him.

His eyes remained cold. “I made the right decision.”

“You broke your promise!”

“I can change my decision whenever I wish because I made the promise.”

I stared at him in disbelief. “So everything you told me growing up was a lie?”

“I simply found someone more suitable for the position.”

His words pierced straight through my heart. “You’re saying Franklin is better than me?”

“Yes.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “Franklin couldn’t even finish university in one sitting! He failed and repeated classes! I graduated ahead of my entire set!”

“I skipped a year after my second session! I became the first student in my university’s history to receive that promotion!”

“I did everything you asked!” My voice broke. “I sacrificed everything!”

He remained unmoved as he said. “Academic excellence isn’t everything.”

I laughed a cold, painful laugh as I said. “So now it isn’t everything? What mattered was what you needed from me.”

The words came out before I could stop them. “You never loved me, you only loved what I could do for you.”

His jaw tightened as I continued. “When I stopped being useful… You handed me to Patrick Hyde.”

The slap came without warning as my head turned sharply and pain exploded across my cheek.

I slowly looked back at him as his voice became dangerously low. “You will control your mouth.”

I smiled through my tears. “Or what?”

He stepped closer. “Without me, you are nothing! I built you, I educated you, I gave you everything! You will obey me and you will marry Patrick Hyde.”

The disgust inside me returned instantly. “I would rather die.”

“You’ll marry him.”

“Never.” I argued.

“When you give him a son, you’ll receive shares in the merger company we’re currently establishing together.” He said and all I could do was stare at him with disgust.

For several seconds, I couldn’t even speak until I managed to ask. “Did you just sell me?”

His silence answered the question and I shook my head repeatedly. “This is insane but get this into your thick skull , I refuse to marry him”

His hand lifted again. For a second, I thought he would strike me but before he could, someone knocked on the door.

“Sir?” A maid stood outside nervously. “There are government human affairs officers downstairs.”

Father frowned. “What?”

“They insist on seeing you.” The maid said and confusion crossed his face.

He looked at me briefly before walking toward the door and left. The door remained open as he left hurriedly.

I stared after him as realization hit me. The door wasn’t locked. I stood up slowly and checked to discover no guards stood outside as everyone had followed Father downstairs.

My heart pounded wildly as this was my chance. I quickly ran down the hallway and down the staircase straight toward the main living room where voices echoed below.

The moment I entered, my eyes landed on one person. Elijah!

He stood beside several human affairs officers dressed in official uniforms.

The second he saw me, our eyes met. I didn’t think twice as I simply screamed. “He locked me up!”

Every head turned toward me. “I’ve been trapped in my room for two days!”

Father immediately faced me. “Keep quiet.” He screamed at me.

I ignored him completely as I ran straight toward Elijah and without thinking, I grabbed his arm and stood beside him. “He imprisoned me!”

The officers immediately looked toward Father and one of them cleared his throat. “Mr. Beaumont…”

Before he could speak, Elijah calmly interrupted. “I witnessed everything.”

Everyone looked at him. “After the banquet ended, Miss Beaumont was taken away by force. She has been detained ever since.”

Father’s face hardened. “This is a family matter.”

“No,” I snapped. “It became illegal the moment you locked me up.”

I looked at the officers desperately. “He took away my phone, He locked every door and he wants to force me into marriage.”

Silence filled the room as the officers exchanged uneasy looks. Everyone knew who Richard Beaumont was.

One phone call from him could ruin careers but they also knew what I was saying could destroy his public image if it reached the media.

One officer sighed. “Mr. Beaumont…We can settle this quietly.”

Father folded his arms and asked. “How?”

“Allow Miss Genevieve to leave and we’ll consider the matter resolved.”

Father laughed coldly. “And if I refuse?”

Elijah finally stepped forward as his voice remained calm. “Then the entire country learns that Richard Beaumont imprisoned his own daughter.”

The room became silent again as my father stared at Elijah for several long seconds.

The tension was unbearable and finally, Father spoke. “Fine.” His voice was filled with anger. “She can leave.”

Relief flooded through me then his cold eyes landed on mine. “This isn’t over.”

I refused to answer. Instead, I walked toward the entrance.

As I passed him, he looked at Elijah. “You’re brave.” His lips curled slightly. “Even your father never dared enter my house twice.”

Elijah simply looked back without speaking. Minutes later, we were inside his car as silence filled the vehicle.

Neither of us spoke as the city lights passed outside the windows.

Finally, I broke the silence. “What took you so long?”

He kept his eyes on the road. “You think rescuing Richard Beaumont’s daughter is easy?”

“You still took two days.” I said with a roll of my eyes.

He scoffed before saying. “Your father owns half the police force in this state. He also controls most of the human affairs department so I had to contact officers from another state before anyone would agree to come.”

I looked out the window. For some reason, saying thank you to him felt impossible so I kept quiet instead.

Almost an hour later, the car stopped before a towering luxury building. We entered the underground garage before taking a private elevator upstairs.

When the doors opened, I stepped into one of the most luxurious penthouses. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked the city and everything looked modern and expensive.

I slowly turned toward him. “Why are we here?”

He placed his keys on a table. “Because you’ll be staying here.”

My eyes widened. “What?”

“You clearly can’t go back home.”

“I’ll find somewhere else.”I said with a roll of my eyes.

“Where?”

“I…” The words died in my throat because I practically had nowhere. I have no apartment or any properties in my name.

Everything I owned belonged to my father.

Elijah slipped his hands into his pockets. “As far as I know, you’re just a daddy’s girl with nowhere else to stay or anything to her name.”

The words hit me like a slap as anger exploded inside me.

Before thinking, I raised my hand and struck toward his face.