Chapter 1

Annelise's POV

The tension in the car was so thick that I felt like I could cut it with a knife. I looked beside me to my father, who had been silent since we got into the car.

He refused to tell me where we were headed to, and it was killing me. It annoyed the hell out of me to be ignored, but there was nothing I could do right now than to be patient. I dragged down the almost naked dress I was forced to wear by my stepmother.

The car finally stopped in front of a huge house like a mansion, and my father stepped outside. I knew I couldn’t stay back in the car, so I got out and was hit by the cold evening air of New York.

The area was a place I was not familiar with, and with the houses lined up, one could easily tell that only rich folks live in the neighborhood. I wondered why I was here since my father had made sure I was useless when it comes to the family’s company or, should I say, my mother’s company?

I followed my dad as the car was taken away by the valet. The giant oak door opened, and we were ushered in. As soon as we walked in, all eyes were on us.

These were the gazes of the wealthy brat. I could feel the weight of their gazes on me like a physical force.

Waiters circulated with trays of hors d'oeuvres, and the music from the live band was so infectious that even the most reserved guests couldn't resist tapping their feet.

It was a scene straight out of a Hollywood movie!

My dad stopped at the waiting area, which looks so big. I knew it was all for show.

"Behave yourself tonight; the company depends on it," my father said, finally turning to me and drawing me back from my chain of thought.

"Why am I here?" I asked again.

"All you need to do is nothing, follow what I say, and don’t question my authority."

"But Dad."

"Shut up," he snapped. "You are here to meet your future husband, so behave," he said.

"What? Never!" I retorted, and it was a bad idea because the slap across my cheeks called me back to my reality. My hand went to my right cheek, and I stared at my dad in shock.

He quickly looked around and saw that we had not drawn any attention to ourselves. "Find the restroom and fix your makeup, meet me at the top steps," he said and turned to leave but stopped. "Your mother’s life depends on the success of tonight’s mission," and he left.

I stared at my dad as he walked off; tears threatened to fall, but I held it back. It would be a bad idea to cry right now. I have to get through tonight.

So I went in search of the restroom, fixed my makeup, and left in search of my dad. I saw him talking to a group of men his age; he saw me and waved me over. He met me halfway and turned in another direction; I followed him without a word.

"Wait here; I will get you a drink," my dad told me, which was strange. Him offering to fetch a drink for me, but I did not complain. He came back and handed me a glass of red wine, and because my throat felt dry, I drank the whole content in the cup.

My vision blurred, but I shook my head to remain focused; this was not the right time to feel sleepy. It would only get me on the bad side of my dad.

"Come," my dad said, taking my hand, as he led me away. If I was not too tired, I would have tried to think about the reason why my dad was suddenly helping me; he was behaving too strangely this evening. But thinking alone felt like a bad thing at the moment, so I only made sure I don’t fall down in my heels.

My dad must have led me into a room because I heard the door opened and closed. "Rest here; I will come for you when I am ready to leave," my dad's voice sounded from afar. I could rest; I easily located the bed and got in, while my eyes closed immediately.

___

I had a terrible dream: the crash, the terrible screams of my mother. As I stood from where I was, I watched as her car flipped twice before crashing into a pole. The driver from the other car drove off without turning back.

I could not move; my body was covered in sweat as I watched on. I picked my cell phone from my bag and called 911. Before I could run towards my mum's car that was upside down, I cried out scared when I saw the blood and my mum laying there helpless, her eyes were closed.

“No. No, mum,” I shouted at her. She can’t be dead. No! “No!” I screamed again and bolted up in bed.

“Be silent, will you,” a voice said beside me, and I let out another scream as I fell over my side of the bed.

What the hell was going on? Where was I? I quickly looked around the room; it was not familiar to me. How the hell did I get here, on a bed with a stranger?

“What the hell, bitch!” the voice said again from the bed. It was a deep voice that was filled with an evil sneer.

I looked down at my body and let out another scream when I saw that I was only in a male's T-shirt. What have I done?

“Shut the hell up, will you?” Angry now, the owner of the voice looked down at me. He rubbed his face once and looked at me in confusion. “Who the hell are you?” He asked. “What are you doing here?”

Exactly, I needed an answer to the same question. But before I could ask him what was going on, the door opened, and an elderly lady walked into the room. She took one look at me then turned to the guy.

“You are getting married this time around; you are not escaping this,” she said.

“What?” 

“Enough of your games,” she responded 

“Excuse me, who are you?” I asked with dread in my voice as my cheeks flushed with total embarrassment.