The Devil's Bargain

LAURA

I stormed into my adoptive father's office the next morning without knocking. Alex looked up from his desk, startled. Esther sat across from him with Jennifer beside her. This was good, I wanted all of them here so they could hear what I had to say.

"Is it true?" I demanded. "Did you offer Jennifer to the Blackwells as payment for your debt?"

Alex and Esther didn't look shocked much to my surprise, they only shared annoyed glances. Jennifer just rolled her eyes at me.

"You were never supposed to know that. How did you find out about that?" Alex stood up slowly.

"Well, answer the question."

He walked around his desk and leaned it. "Yes. It's true. I borrowed three million dollars from Daniel Blackwell five years ago. The business was failing and I was desperate. I went to Daniel and he offered me a deal. I could pay him back in installments or I could offer Jennifer's hand in marriage to his son when she turned twenty two."

My stomach dropped. "You sold your own daughter."

"I did what I had to do to save this family," Alex snapped. "You wouldn't understand. You've never had to make hard decisions."

"Jennifer was seventeen when you made that deal."

"And now she's twenty one. The arrangement was set. Xavier was supposed to marry her next year. But then his mother died and left that ridiculous clause in her will." He glared at me. "But you're marrying him instead. You've always been nothing but trouble, Laura. At least Jennifer would have done it right."

The words hit me like a slap. "Done it right? What does that even mean?"

"It means she knows how to handle men like Xavier Blackwell," Esther said. Her voice was cold. She stood up and walked toward me. "Jennifer was raised for this. She knows how to be a proper wife to someone of his status. But you? You're just a nurse. A nobody from an orphanage."

"I didn't ask for this," I said. My voice cracked. "Grace asked me to marry him. I didn't want any of this."

"Liar," Jennifer screamed. She jumped up from her chair. "You've always been jealous of me and always trying to take what's mine. First it was Mom and Dad's attention. Now it's Xavier, he was supposed to be mine."

"I don't want him." I yelled back.

"Then why did you say yes?" Jennifer's face was red. Tears streamed down her cheeks. "Why did you agree to marry him if you don't want him?"

"I need his help. Someone is stalking me and I'm scared. I know that if I get married to someone as powerful as Xavier the person will become scared and back off." I blurted.

Esther cackled harshly. "So you're using him, just like you used us."

The force of her words made me take several steps back. "What do you mean used you? You adopted me when I was five years old. How could I have used you?"

"We took you in when no one else wanted you," Esther snarled as she stepped closer. "We fed you and gave you a home when your parents abandoned you and no one wanted you. And this is how you repay us? By stealing your sister's future husband?"

"You're wrong. He was never hers to begin with, you just imposed her on him."

I didn't even get to complete the statement before my head spun sideways, the sound of a slap echoing throughout the room. My cheek burned and I stumbled back, holding my face. 

"Mom," Jennifer said quietly.

"Be quiet, Jennifer." Esther's eyes never left mine. "You've always been ungrateful. We gave you everything and you gave us nothing in return. Do you know why we adopted you?"

I couldn't speak. My cheek throbbed.

"The doctors said it was impossible for us to have children so that's why we adopted you. We loved you, until Jennifer came along." Esther's voice softened when she said Jennifer's name. "We didn't need you anymore. But we kept you anyway. We let you stay even though you were just a reminder of our failure."

I felt like I was stabbed with a Cutlass. I looked at Alex and Jennifer but they just glared at me with stony eyes. 

"So that's it?" My heart broke. "I'm nobody to you?"

"Don't be dramatic," Esther clicked her tongue as she turned away from me. "Sign the contract and marry Xavier. At least that way you'll finally be useful to this family. The debt will be forgiven once you're his wife."

I backed toward the door. "I'm not part of this family. I never was."

"Finally," Alex muttered. "She gets it."

I ran out of the office, my eyes wet. I drove home with tears blurring my vision. When I got to my apartment building, I wiped my face and took the elevator up.

The door to my apartment was open, which wasn't supposed to be because I locked the door before I left.

I stopped in the hallway. My heart pounded in my chest as I pushed the door open slowly.

Everything was destroyed. The couch was slashed with it's stuffing spilled out onto the floor. The coffee table was flipped over. Picture frames were smashed. The kitchen was worse. Every cabinet was open and all my dishes were broken on the floor. The black roses were scattered everywhere.

I walked through the apartment with my mouth open. My bedroom was ransacked as well, my clothes thrown everywhere. My mattress was slashed just like the couch in the living room. On my mirror, written in red lipstick, were the words: YOU CAN'T HIDE FROM ME.

My legs gave out. This was Richard. It had to be Richard.

I grabbed my phone with shaking hands. I scrolled through my contacts. I didn't know who to call. The police wouldn't help. They'd proven that already. My adoptive family didn't care. I had no friends, I'd pushed them all away when Richard started stalking me because I didn't want to put them in danger.

Xavier's number was at the bottom of my recent calls. He'd called me yesterday to confirm the funeral arrangements.

I hit dial before I could change my mind.

He answered on the second ring. "What."

"Xavier." My voice broke. "I need help. Please. I need help."

"Laura? What happened?"

"My apartment, someone broke in. Everything is destroyed and I don't know what to do. I'm scared. I'm so scared."

"Where are you right now?"

"At my apartment."

"Get out now. Go downstairs and wait in the lobby. I'll be there in fifteen minutes." He hung up.

I stood up on shaking legs. I grabbed my purse and ran out of the apartment. I didn't lock the door. There was nothing left worth stealing. I took the elevator down to the lobby and sat on a bench near the entrance. The security guard looked at me.

"You okay, miss?"

I nodded. 

Xavier arrived in twelve minutes. Two men followed him, the same ones from the funeral. He saw me and his expression changed. 

"Which apartment?" he asked.

"Third floor. Number 67."

He turned to the two men. "Check it out and take pictures. I want to know everything."

They headed for the elevator. Xavier sat down beside me on the bench. He didn't touch me but I felt his presence like heat.

"Are you hurt?"

I shook my head. "I wasn't here when it happened. I was at my father's office."

"Ok, so you came back and then what happened?" He pulled out his phone. 

I told him everything.e

"Who did this?" Xavier's jaw was clenched. 

"Richard Donovan," I whispered. "He won't leave me alone. He's everywhere. He's a stalker from a former patient."

Xavier stood up. He dialed a number and put the phone to his ear. "I need a complete background on Richard Donovan. Everything. I want to know where he works, where he lives, his bank accounts and his daily schedule." A pause. "And when you're done with that, I want him to be dealt with, permanently."

My blood went cold at that word. I knew what that meant.

Xavier ended the call. He turned to me. "Pack a bag. You're coming home with me tonight."

"But the contract says we live separately."

"The contract didn't account for someone threatening what's mine." He stepped closer. His dark eyes bored into me. "You're going to be my wife, Laura. That means you're under my protection. No one touches what's mine."