Chapter 30: In Came The Knight
George paced the length of his apartment, highly worried about Isla. He could barely hear anything from the other side, and considering how thin the walls were, he had hoped to eavesdrop, but was sorely disappointed. He hoped she was handling the situation well, but recalling how she reacted whenever her family issues came up, he wasn’t so confident.
Her emotions were never as so high and so out of control as when her family was brought up. He could only imagine her as a lost child having to deal with her mother’s disappearance, and then the emergence of a vindictive, aggressive and control freak, Julie. He had grown up without parents; something that he accepted had left something of an unfilled hole in his life, but having a front-row seat to quite a few family dramas, George often wondered if God hadn’t just helped him dodge a bullet. He wondered what horrors Isla had faced and chosen not to tell him about. Having to spend her teenage years with poorly-trained rascals like Richard and Derrick, George wondered if they hadn’t tried to…
He shook his head, pushing away the thought. With the way he felt about Isla, a discovery like that, if made, would certainly lead to him doing things he wasn’t supposed to do. Nasty things. He decided to catch up on some work and find out what the latest was from HQ. He told himself to be calm. She wasn’t in any physical danger after all. He was certain Isla would call out if she needed him, at least he hoped so. He wished more than anything to be the first person she would run to when the need arose, and desperately wanted to earn her complete and unrestrained trust. He knew it would take some time as they were both deeply scarred individuals.
'You want trust when you’ve been lying through your teeth,' a voice mocked. He felt a sharp pang of guilt at the reminder but quickly pushed it away. It was for her own good, he convinced himself. He was lying to protect her. He dug out his work phone – a burner with an encrypted line – and was about to dial HQ when a yell shattered the silence of the apartment building.
“Get your bloody hands off me!”
George sprang into action, reaching his door and yanking it open in two seconds flat. That had been Isla’s voice. Getting to her door in record time, he kicked it open, not bothering to knock. The sight that greeted him was one that made his blood boil. An immaculately-dressed woman he could only assume was Julie, had Isla’s left wrist in her grip. Isla was glaring at the woman, more anger on her face than George had ever seen.
The unexpected intrusion startled Julie.The man glowering at her from the doorway was tall and menacing. His clean-shaven head reflected the light from the bulb and as he stepped into the room, shutting the door firmly behind him, she felt a slight attack of nerves. Had Isla hired personal security to look after her? Or an assassin to kill her? The ease at which Isla let her come here made sense to her now.
His next words answered her unspoken question. “Get your hand off my girlfriend. Now.” The words were softly-spoken yet commanding, with the threat of dire consequences if disobeyed. She felt her hand loosen instintively.
“Boyfriend?” She scoffed, sizing him up. She made sure to remember every detail of the brown eyed hunk before her. It just might come in handy someday. Smiling sweetly at Isla, she mocked. “Well look who went and got herself a boyfriend. A big one too,” she said, sizing him up again. “Scared you might get in trouble and need a protector, Isla?”
George’s eyes narrowed, instincts honed from his training kicking in. There was a threat in there somewhere. He couldn’t quite pin it, but it was there. He looked at Isla, who was rubbing at her wrist and glaring at her stepmother. Beneath the anger, George could sense she was exhausted and he decided she had gone through enough for one day. It was time to put this to a stop. Before he could open his mouth though, Julie faced him squarely, a smirk on her face.
“Did you come in here to beat me up, big man? Show some muscle to retain the love of a billionaire’s daughter? Is that all you are here for?” When he didn’t immediately answer, she carried on, spitting her venom. “Our darling here is heiress to a fortune; billions in dollars. All she has to do is come to Chicago and run the company. Must be such a rush for you, being with a woman with such… potential. Bad news though, she’s chosen to turn it down, let it all go.”
In one moment, George could see all Isla had had to endure from this woman, and his heart bled for her. “I believe you have said your piece and then some,” he stated calmly, firmly. "Its time to leave, ma'am.”
Julie saw the controlled anger in his eyes and decided it would be unwise to antagonize him any further. She turned to Isla. “I’ll be at The Continental hotel if you change your mind. Don’t dally though. My plane will be leaving tommorow.” Blowing a kiss at Isla, she sashayed out the door, her gold bracelets shimmering blindingly as the light reflected off them. It was a lie, but Isla didn't have to know that. Julie wasn't going to leave until she was sure Isla wouldn't be a threat to her sons future.
'Isla, I'm going to give you a fresh nightmare if that's the length I have to go for my boys.'