The car was filled with a heavy silence that neither Dana nor Roland wanted to break. Although a few sniffles and hush tones could be heard as a means to comfort Dana who has never experienced such a thing in her life, their capturers thought nothing of the gestures for they knew Roland all too well to even stop him when it came to someone crying.
An hour had passed since the start of their drive and the car finally came to a stop in front of an abandoned-looking warehouse. It was far from it though.
Their capturers grabbed both by the arm, yet they had to make sure more eyes were on Roland who basically grew up in the space.
“I don’t need to be told where my father is. So can’t you guys just leave me alone?”
A jab to the side was what answered his request. And with that, he fell to the ground with a pained groan. None came to his aid, and the only one that wanted to was frozen in place when cold metal prodded her back
“Make one move and I shoot. Rollie will be fine. Now walk”
Her breath hitched and cold sweat started dripping down her forehead with each step. She could feel her heart race as soon as steel doors came into view. Every now and then she would look back to see if Roland was still alright but each time she would, the gun that was fixed on her back just buried itself more into the fabric of her clothes.
With a bit of effort, the men that captured them had the door open. Once inside the room, they were greeted with a hall filled with doors. Doors Dana was sure she didn’t want to see the inside of. At the end of the hall stood the most ornate one. Beyond it was a man somewhere in his late 50s, seated over his desk whilst he looked occupied scanning some documents.
“Sir, we have them”
The old man raised his gaze enough that his cold blue eyes could eye both her and Roland. He placed the documents on his desk and heaved a heavy sigh at the sight before him.
“It took you idiots this long? And what? Did my idiot son find a toy to use?” With a gesture of his hand, the men brought Roland forward. “Why did you have to go into hiding when you were just days away from the succession ceremony? Thanks to you, I had to re-coordinate everything from scratch. Did you know how hard it was doing everything alone?”
Roland simply looked away. Just that small gesture seemed to irritate the old man even more than it should have. It caused the old man to stand from his desk and reach across just to grab Roland's face, to which he directed so that they came face to face with each other.
“Enough nonsense of not wanting to inherit the family anymore. I don’t have enough years to teach you and we don’t have other candidates that are well versed enough in business to make the businesses prosper like what we’ve been doing” The man’s hold on Roland grew tighter yet Roland still avoided his gaze.
“Look, dad… I just don’t want to do this anymore… You don’t see what these guys do. You’re just cooped up in this office… I’ve had enough blood on my hands. You’ve forced me into this life ever since mom die-”
Before he could say more, Roland’s face was released and one could clearly see the red markings that were spread across his face
“Enough of this! You weren’t a child anymore when that happened! You needed to learn eventually” His father all but slammed the desk with frustrations. From an outsider’s view, it already seemed like this has happened on for far longer than it should have
“What more do I need to do to make you inherit the family. You could get the money, the merchandise, the women. What, do you want that woman?”
Dana’s eyes widened as soon as she was referred to as “That woman” and it seemed like a lump had formed in her throat when she was brought forward.
“She has nothing to do with all of this so I would appreciate it if you could let her go back to her old life” Roland moved closer to her, almost blocking her from his father’s sight.
“She’s seen enough” His father moved around and basically pushed Roland aside, causing him to fall to the floor “She’s pretty” He said simply as he placed a hand on Dana’s waist, feeling her up and down as he would to the women who were offered to him as the prostitutes that worked under him. Of course, touching was as far as he went yet Roland just couldn’t keep his rage confined when he could see her eyes, pleading for someone to stop his father.
“Stop- don’t touch her like that” As much as he struggled to stand with the aching on his side, he managed to stand in between his father and her “She isn’t a prostitute. She’s someone important to me”
“Oh? All the more reason to destroy her then”
Roland all but lunged forward and tried knocking his father down. Had his side not been aching, he could have done so with ease but just a light jab was enough to send him on his knees
“I would be willing to keep her safe for now… If you proceed with the inheritance ceremony”
As much as he wanted to just run away right then and there but he knew his father all too well. When his father says something, he knows that he would follow through with his words
“Only if she stays in my chambers. She goes wherever I go. These idiots aren’t allowed to so much as lay a finger on her and that includes you” One could hear the growl in Roland’s voice as he again stood protectively over Dana.
“You both could get married right here and now for all I care. Just keep the family running and I don’t care what you do with your life after” With the end of that discussion, his father gestured for all of them out of his office whilst he reached for his cellphone to start a few calls. Probably to make a few calls regarding the ceremony.
After such an eventful conclusion, the two were led back to the car where they were driven to an apartment complex nearby. It was amongst the grandest ones in the city. Quite fitting for one who would soon be the head of one of the biggest mafia organizations in the country.
“I take it you know the protocols, old Rollie. You have privacy in your apartment but take a step out this door and we’re calling the boss.”
“Yeah, yeah, see you when I feel like seeing your face, Dave” The door was shut rather loudly and as soon as the restraints were off, Roland just plopped on the couch while Dana just settled herself on one side of the room, still obviously trying to get a hold of what had just happened. “Hey, you okay?”
No response came so he opted to stand in her line of sight, that to which she only emitted a soft sigh before leaning her frame against his
“That was exhausting…” Her arms wrapped around his frame as she rested her head on his shoulder
“It always is… Don’t worry, It’s my turn to protect you now” In turn, he wrapped his arms around her slender figure. She tensed up a bit from the gesture, probably still remembering how his father had done the same earlier “I won’t let anyone else touch you like that from now on”
He was only answered with a nod before she nuzzled herself more in his hold
“Bed?”
“Sleep in bed with me tonight”
I missed reading your stories. But i guess i need to start from chapter 1 😅🤣