RIVALS AND REVENGE

VANYA'S POV 

The smell of antiseptic always made me nauseous but today it made me rather anxious. I sat on the examination table of grandpa Mario's private clinic staring at the monitor waiting for the doctor to say something at least.

"You're still in your second month, Vanya and the baby is barely visible." He pointed to the screen. I could see a tiny dot moving, though I have no idea how this works.

"But you are seriously underweight, Vanya. And undernourished." He looked at me with pitiful eyes. Dr Damien has been our family doctor for years and I have known the greying man for more than half of my life.

"I know the emotional trauma you’ve endured... It's taking a toll. And if you don't start eating and sleeping well, this child will pay the price for Dario Blackwood’s cruelty."

 I looked at the screen. I looked at that tiny dot, it was my only hope. This was all I had left. Dario thought he had left me with nothing, but I was carrying his greatest legacy, and he would never even know its name.

"I’ll do whatever it takes to protect my child, Doctor," I whispered, pulling my shirt down. "Nothing is going to happen to my baby. I won't let Dario hurt me twice."

"Then you need to be strong," Damien warned. "The West family is a nest of vipers and you know that that baby right there is your biggest weakness now. They will try to use it against you if they ever find out. Protect yourself well."

I smiled. I knew that I could always count on Damien. He had watched me go through a lot of sickness as a child and he was here when I lost my parents and here again after I lost my marriage. 

I nodded. "I will be careful, Damien."

-----

Twenty minutes later, I stood in Grandpa Mario’s study. The tension in the room was thick enough to cut with a knife. Uncle Marcus was there, his face flushed with anger, while Bianca stood by the window, picking at her manicured nails.

"You can't be serious, Father!" Marcus barked. "Giving Blue Horizon Logistics to her? She has been a housewife for three good years. How did you expect her to manage the company?" He fumed.

Blue Horizon Logistics was my mother's company and grandpa had been managing it since her death. 

"Grandpa, that's such a funny decision to make. The company is already dying off. It has gone bankrupt and all the investors have withdrawn their investments, what is she going to do with that? I mean she doesn't even know how to keep a husband and you want her to revive a company?" She let out a loud cackling laughter. 

Grandpa turned sharply, giving her an angry look. She shut up immediately but she had not been lying. 

"The Blackwoods are interested in the company, Father. Why not give it up and get the money instead of allowing her to waste our time?" Marcus was being desperate. I know he didn't want Grandpa to give the company to me and it was obvious. 

"My mother's company?" I exclaimed. "You want him to sell out my late mother's company to the same family that has been treating me badly these past few years?"

"Vanya, if you can stop Dario from taking this company, if you can make it profitable again, I will give you my full backing for the board of directors. If you fail, you will retire to the countryside and never mention the West name again."

"Father!" Uncle Marcus roared. "This is madness. You can't do it. It's going to be a great loss to us."

"I accept," I picked up the folders from the table without giving my uncle a glance. My eyes were on the folders as I picked them up. 

"How are you going to do it?" Bianca mockingly asked.

"I will find a way." 

"I will suggest prayers too. You will need it in addition to finding a way." 

"I don't need a prayer. I need action." I smiled knowingly.

------

The midnight lounge is a club where most elites in the city go to hide in the darkness. It was where most of their dirty underground business went on.

I had on a black leather jacket with tight jeans of the same colour. I had taken the clothes from my old wardrobe. Funny how they still fit me even after five years. My hair was pulled back in a ponytail and I had a facecap on to conceal my identity.

I knew who I was there to see. Bastian Thorne. He was considered to be the shadow king. The only person in the whole of New York whose wealth exceeded that of the Blackwoods and who had a long history of rivalry with Dario Blackwood.

I flashed my Grandpa's membership card that I had stolen in front of the security and they immediately allowed me in.

I proceeded to the VIP booth of the club. I was stopped at the entrance of the booth by two massive guards. 

"I am here to see Bastian Thorne." I said, keeping my voice steady and calm. 

"Who are you?"

"Vanya West. Tell him I have a gift for him."

One guard whispered into a radio. A moment later, the velvet curtain was pulled back.

Bastian Thorne sat in the corner, a glass of crystal-clear gin in his hand. He was younger than I expected, with hair as black as sin and eyes that looked like they had seen the end of the world. He didn't look at me; he looked at the city lights through the floor-to-ceiling window.

"Vanya Blackwood." He smirked. His voice was smooth and had a dangerous baritone to the edge. "Or Vanya West, I would be lying if I say that I wasn't expecting you." He turned to look at me.

"You were expecting me?" I was quite surprised. I had never met him before. It was my first time seeing him up close although I had always heard a lot of stories about him.

"Are you surprised? Don't be. You are a West and your grandfather wouldn't let you sleep until you have taken revenge on Dario Blackwood."

It made sense to me. Grandpa has always been known to be a ruthless business man. "He gave me Blue Horizon. The Blackwoods have their eyes on it. I need your help."

"And why should I help you?"

"Because Dario doesn't want Blue Horizon for the ships," I said, leaning in. "He wants it for the deep-water port rights. If he gets them, he controls the entry for your tech shipments from the East. He’s planning to choke your supply chain, Bastian. He thinks you're too distracted by your European mergers to notice."

Bastian finally turned his head. His eyes raked all over me, not with lust, but with a cold, analytical curiosity. He saw the bruises under my eyes, but he also saw the way I held my ground.

"I know that but what makes you think I will help you with revenge?" Bastian mused, a small, dark smile playing on his lips.

"I’m suggesting you invest in the only person who knows exactly how Dario Blackwood thinks," I countered. "And I'm the perfect person. I am the enemy of your enemy and that makes me your friend. I just want to see him lose everything."

Bastian smiled.