Chapter 5: The Blood Debt

I found Darlington in the garden behind the club. He was standing over a man he had pinned to the wall. Darlingtons knuckles were bleeding over the place. When he saw me he let the man go and ran to me fast.

"Vivian what happened to you?" he said. He sounded really worried about me. "I saw someone following you " he said.

"The car is not safe " I said. I grabbed his coat tightly. "Do not get in the car. They cut the brakes. Maurice is trying to kill me. Like before when I died."

Darlingtons face turned into stone. He pulled me into his SUV car. His own security guard was driving the car. "Get us to the estate now!" he ordered the driver.

As we drove away from the club I sat in the seat. My hands were shaking really bad. Maurice, Stacy and Lis were all working together just to hurt me. They were not just trying to shame me, they were trying to finish what they started in my life back when I was alive.

"Vivian look at me " Darlington said. He took my hands in his hands. His hands were warm and nice. "I will not let Maurice touch you. I have guards at the house now. You are safe at the estate."

"Safe?" I whispered. "How can I be safe in a house built on my familys land?"

Darlington went very still. "What did you just say?" he asked me.

"I know, Darlington. I went to Town Shanghaii. I saw the records. Your father cheated my family. He took the Thorne land. He destroyed my family just  to build your familys empire. The 'Blood Debt' is real is it not?"

Darlington looked away from me. His jaw was tight. "I found out a month ago " he said softly. "I wanted to tell you. I was trying to find a way to fix it without me losing you Vivian."

"Fix it?" I felt angry. "You can not fix a life that was stolen from me! My father died thinking he was a total failure because of your family, the Darlington family!"

"I know that!" Darlington shouted. He looked at me with a lot of pain in his eyes. "Why do you think I signed that contract? I am helping you destroy Maurice for a reason. I wanted to give it all to you Vivian. Every cent.Every penny.  Every brick of this house, the Darlington estate."

I wanted to hate him. I could not. He was not his father. He was a man caught in a situation just like me, Vivian.

When we reached the estate the big gates opened. The guards were everywhere. Darlington led me inside to the library, a room with a lot of books.

"We stay here tonight " he said. "Tomorrow we take the papers to the police. Maurice is finished. Stacy is finished too they will go to jail."

We sat in the library room. Darlington sat on the floor by my chair. He rested his head against my knee. He looked very tired. I touched his hair with my fingers. For a second I forgot about revenge against Maurice and the others.

"Vivian " he said, looking up at me. "When this is over... I do not want you to leave me Vivian."

I did not have time to answer him.

A loud crashing sound came from the door. We heard people fighting and shouting. The library doors burst open. Clinton ran in with  his shirt torn.

"Sir they are inside the estate!" he yelled loudly.

Behind him Maurice walked in he did not look like a businessman anymore. His hair was messy, His eyes looked crazy, and He was holding a gun. Stacy was behind him she was holding a can of gasoline, and her face was full of hate.

"You thought you could take everything from me Maurices things?" Maurice hissed and pointed the gun at Darlington. "You thought you could take my things, my money?"

"She was never yours Maurice " Darlington said, stepping in front of Vivian. "She was your victim you hurt her. She is done with you Maurice, she does not want you."

"Move, Darlington get out of my way!" Maurice screamed loudly. "She knows so many things she isn’t suppose not know about me!"

"I know you are a coward, Maurice " I said, I stepped out from behind Darlington. "I know you killed me once but I came back, and I am not dying tonight! not again."

Stacy stepped forward her hands were shaking. She started to open the gasoline can it made a lot of noise. "If we can not have the Thorne money nobody can we will burn this house down with you inside Vivian and Darlington!"

Maurice pulled the trigger the sound was very loud it hurt my ears. The bullet hit the big glass light above us it fell down like rain, the room went dark it was very scary. I felt a hand grab my arm and pull me toward a door it was hidden behind a bookshelf. But I looked back and I saw Darlington jumping on Maurice they both fell into the dark it was very hard to see. Then Stacy dropped a match, and the curtains caught fire immediately that they start to burn

I screamed for Darlington but the heavy stone door shut very loud. I was locked in the dark and the man I loved, Darlington was trapped in the fire that I was very scared, for him.