Chapter Ten: No way out

It was half past nine by the time I was finished with all the work I had piled up. Even then, I wasn't still done, largely because of the amount of work I had to cover since both Julia and Ryan are unavailable.

I knew Julia needed the rest, she'd been sick lately. But Ryan leaving without so much as a notice?

Now I had to cover his workload so Dad wouldn't find out he'd slacked off and fired him. I might have broken his heart in cold blood, but I couldn't be an asshole and be the reason he lost his job, too. He had suffered enough.

Letting out a sigh, I gathered my things,deciding to finish the rest of the work at home.

I was pulling the door of the house close, when Ruth the headmaid came to stand in front of me.

“ Your parents are asking for you in the dining room”. Before I could ask her any questions, she started walking away.

I walked towards the dining room, pausing in front of the door. We haven't spoken since the night of the party. I don't know if they are still upset.

I pushed the door open. Dad was sitting at the head of the table and mom was sitting at her usual seat on the left.

I stood at the door for a second, wondering if they would say anything, but they just focused on their food, not minding me.

Taking my seat in my usual chair beside Mom, the maids came in to set my dinner in front of me.

We ate in silence for a while. Not able to bear the silence anymore, I spoke up.

“The head maid, Ruth, said you guys wanted to see me”. They finally paused their eating.

“Yes.” Mom said, picking up the napkin in front of her and dabbing her lip gently, before continuing.“We haven't seen you since you stormed out”.

“About that, I would like to apologize for my behavior that night. It was uncalled for. I really believe that Julia is the best person for the position, especially now that I'm…”

“ Now that you're…” Dad prompted, urging me to continue.

“ You see this brings me back to what I wanted to talk to you—”

“ Iris, that can wait. Your father and I have good news for you”. Her eyes sparkled

She looks over to Dad. He dropped his cutlery and cleared his throat. “Since you were not happy with the marriage, your mom and I have decided the best way for you to fix the mess you caused is by marrying Mark.”

Hearing this, I nearly choked on the glass of water I was drinking. My stomach twisted uncomfortably, struggling to process what I just heard.

“Good thing Mark was able to forgive you for what you did. Turns out he still wants you and would like to marry”. He continued.

I felt my dinner rise to my throat at his words.“That's not possible”. I said in a tiny voice.

Mom's smile faded. “What do you mean, not possible? Mark has agreed to withdraw the Regal stone lawsuit if you marry him.”

“ Well It can't be possible because I already got married.” I said trying to make my voice firm. Why are they doing this?

“To who?” Dad’s jaw clenched. “ Don't tell me you married that idiot Ryan behind our backs”.

“ No it isn't Ryan. We…we already broke up”. Mom cast a look at Dad, before turning back to me.

“ I married Mason Kingston”. I said.

They both fell silent. Then, they broke out in laughter.

“ Oh, Iris, I didn't know you were such a prankster. You almost got me,” mom said, clutching her stomach.

Dad was laughing hard, too. I think this was the first time I had ever seen him laugh at something I said. Normally I would have been happy, but I wasn't trying to be funny.

They caught their breath. “I have been trying to get hold of Mason Kingston for months now to cancel your sister's marriage. So how could you possibly have married him?” Dad snarled at me.

“ You're just saying that to get out of this marriage”. Mom said, shaking her head in disbelief.

Mom came around to my side, placing her hands on my shoulders. “ Iris, dear, this is what's best for you. Mark will take care of you and help our family.”

I shrugged out of her hold. “No,no,no.” my hands trembling at my side. “I'm not marrying Mark.”

“How can you even think of marrying me to a guy like that? He almost assaulted me, for God's sake!” I yelled at her.

“Iris, you would not speak to your mother that way!”. He yelled, and I flinched back at his voice.

He stepped right in front of me “ Anyway, you don't have a say in the matter”.

I stepped back."What?"

My vision began to blur. Everything went dark.

My head was pounding.

I clutched my temples as I rose from a bed covered in red sheets.

I looked around the room. The light was dim, making it look like a hotel room.

Where am I?

“You're awake,” A voice said from beside me, making me jump in fear.

“ Who are you?”

The man stepped towards the light. My eyes widened. It was him— Mark the manager of Regal stone.

“ What am I doing here? What do you want from me?”

“ Calm down, sugar.” He used a finger to trace my cheeks.

I wrenched my face away from.“Don't call me that”.

He smiled, revealing crooked teeth. He brought his face close to mine, his breath smelling heavily of alcohol.“ You have to relax. We are going to have a good time”.

“Stay away from me.I'm leaving”. I moved to stand from the bed, but he grabbed my wrist in a strong hold and pushed me back down.

I felt the crushing weight of his body on top of mine.

“ Get away from me!” I tried to shove him off, but his grip was too tight. I heard the sound of my shirt tearing.

I tried to kick him in the groin, but he trapped my legs tightly between his own.

“Nice try, sugar. After that little stunt you pulled at the club I realized you were a fighter, so I came prepared. Don't worry, I like it.” He snared at me

Tears began to stream down my face. I couldn't fight him anymore, the effects of the drugs made me so weak that I could only lie there stiffly as he trailed wet kisses down my neck.