Chapter 101

Diane

“Take your eyes off those, Diane,” Dad sneered, smacking my hands lightly, pulling me to the side.

“Ouch, Dad, you're hurting me,” I whined, twisting my face in a scowl as his grip tightened against my flesh, sending burning and hurtful chills down my spine.

“What did I tell you about interfering in my fcking business, Diane?” he retorted, his voice laced with venom as he stared daggers into my eyes. “What are you doing here?” He fired at home.

I snapped my hands from his, standing defiantly before him with ragged breaths. “I want my freedom, Daddy. I want to stop being treated like a puppet – I want to get back to doing my own business without your interference.” I shot back at him.

He arched his back a bit, staring at me in disbelief. “Trust me, Diane, this stubbornness won't lead you anywhere…” he began, biting his lower lip as he stared at me, letting out an audible sigh.

“Well, guess who I took it from, FATHER?” I shot back at him, my gaze unwavering.

“I hate…” he tried to speak, but he quickly refrained from completing his words.

“Say the words, Daddy, say the fking words!!!” I sneered.

“You have to leave now, Diane. You've been blinded so much by your lust that you can’t even think straight any longer,” he fired at me.

“Yeah… I think that must be the case, you know, Daddy,” I said, placing my hands lightly on my chin sarcastically, “but tell me something, isn't that the same way you married my mother? You know, the RUTHLESS DEADLY DOG-HEADED DON DAMIEN.” I sneered, but before I could utter another word, I received a hot, resounding slap on my cheeks, which left a burning sensation on them, making me pause for a while as this was the second time he’d raised his hands on me.

But this time, his actions stung me like a death sentence as the gasps from his business associates and guard present echoed in my ears.

“One more word from you, Diane, one more word and I'd have no choice but to take you to rehab,” he spat out sternly, making me snap my head in his direction, shock evident in my eyes.

“What?” I exclaimed softly.

“I didn't stutter, Diane. It obviously looks like I've pampered you and spoiled you too much… your mom was right - I never should have introduced you to this world, but then again, I was still - stubborn,” he added.

Just then, he turned his gaze away from me, facing the men seated in the room. "I'm so sorry for the interruption, but like I said earlier, I've got it under control,” he said assuringly. “Guards!! Please escort my daughter outside and make sure she's unarmed; she was just about to leave anyway,” he added.

In a matter of seconds, the guards in the room stood on their feet at his command as they began to close in on me. I gulped down the anxiety, tension, pain, and fury boiling inside me as I took a step backward, bringing out my pistol and pointing it at them, making them all pause in their tracks.

“The first to make another move dies,” I said in a stern voice.

Just then, they all pulled out their guns, pointing them at me. “Don?” one of them asked.

“Cease fire!!” he growled, making them all drop their weapons. He walked past them as he moved in my direction. “Diane, put the gun down,” he said, his voice firm but soft.

I just stood there, unyieldingly staring at him defiantly. “No, Father. I want my father back, and I’m not leaving here without him!” I spat back.

“I want the man who never leaves me in the dark. I want the man who trusts me and always waits with a smile on his lips and a welcoming embrace each time I do something that pleases him. I want my Don back,” I added.

“You will get that man back once you start acting right again and not out of impulse because of your emotions and stubbornness. You’re letting this get into your head too much, Diane; just let me handle it… I promise you I'm working on it,” he replied.

“This is the fifth time you're saying the same thing, Father. I don't want it your way anymore; I want it my way. I want power; I want EVERYTHING!” I blurted out, my voice shaky as I spoke.

“Dia…” he tried to speak, but before he could finish, a guard attacked me from behind, and without thinking, I pulled the trigger in anger, kicking the person behind me in his groin, making him yelp in pain. But the sounds of gasping and wailing from the others got my attention, making me turn my gaze in their direction, locking eyes with the shock of my life.

“Fa… fa.. father…” I mumbled under my breath, staring at my dad as he lay weakly in a pool of his own blood, just a thin line away from life and death.

“Get the car!!!! Now!!” one of the guards yelled, clutching his hands against my dad's chest, putting pressure on the spot while my mind ran a million miles in a split second.

Just then, with the rage and weight of what that guard had caused, I turned to him, leaving a bullet in his head as tears rolled down my cheeks.

“Somebody stop her!!” one of his business associates yelled, making me leave another bullet in his head.

I turned to the guy holding my father, and with a cold voice, I said, “Take him to the hospital,” and with that, my dad was rushed out.

“Do you know what you've just done, girl?!!” the other man yelled at the top of his lungs, but the only reason I didn't pass a bullet through his head was that he is Don Chris.

“She just struck a war between us, Don Chris,” the guard behind him spoke.

“The others are definitely not going to like this,” he said, shifting his gaze to the lifeless colleague lying on the ground. “I knew you'd end up being the cause of your father’s downfall. Such a great family bond you all have!” he spat sternly before storming out of the room.

The minute he left, my legs became shaky, my heart pounding loudly against my chest as I fell to the ground. Just then, my phone buzzed. I stared at the screen blankly, and as expected, it was from my mom; she must have gotten the news of what had happened to her precious husband.

I pressed the green button, placing the phone to my ear and staring blankly into thin air.

“What have you done, Diane!! Why him!! Of all the enemies you claim to have, why your own father?” she wailed, but I just let the phone drop from my already shaky hands as the weight of my actions fell on me heavily.

“The city hospital, now!!!” she yelled, her voice sounding like a muffled sound through the phone, and with that, I managed to pick myself up as I headed out. The growls and wails from the locked-up creatures echoed sickening sounds in my ears as I managed to pull my way through.

I got to my car and immediately headed to the city hospital where my father was.

When I arrived, I was welcomed by the numerous lights that felt blinding from the paparazzi as they began bombarding me with their questions, but I ignored them all while forcing my way through the crowd. The minute I got in, without any questioning from the nurses or doctors, I was led straight to the room my father was in, but unfortunately, he was in the ICU, so I only met my mom sitting and waiting patiently in the hallway with puffy eyes.

“You wretched child!!!” she sneered the minute she locked eyes with me. “I'm going to kill you!! I'll kill you!!!” she yelled at the top of her lungs, grabbing me by the collar while the guards around tried to separate me from her grip.

“Get off me!! Get off me and let me deal with her!!” she kept yelling, but I just ignored her as I walked slowly to the room where my dad was kept, as he was connected to several tubes and machines fighting for his life as more tears flowed down my cheeks.

“I'm sorry, Father. I'm so sorry,” I muttered under my breath.

Just then, a machine beside him began beeping loudly, making him jerk profusely. At this point, I needed no magician to tell me he was undergoing a crisis.

“Call the doctor, now!!!” I yelled at the top of my lungs, making all the guards present run into a frenzy.

“What have you done to him? Huh?!! What did you do to him?” Mom lunged at me again.

In a matter of minutes, a number of doctors and nurses arrived as they rushed into the room, immediately grabbing a defibrillator and connecting it to his chest, trying to get a rhythm. They stayed there for quite some minutes, and after countless trials, the doctor came out with a sad face, head down as he stared at me.

For a moment, it felt like I could already tell what he wanted to say, and like a bombshell, he dropped the news.

“I'm so sorry, ma’am, but we lost him,” he blurted out.