Chapter 66 The voice from the call
CHAPTER 66 :-
THIRD PERSON’S POV.
Damian’s driver, Paul, took her to the Gregory house. He was a quiet man, and in the last few days, he had somehow picked up on her music taste. Whenever he drove her anywhere, he made sure one of her favorite songs was playing softly through the speakers.
When she stepped out of the car in her family’s compound, she turned to him.
“You don’t have to sit in the car until I get back. It’s quite hot today. Go rest at the servants’ quarters. I’ll call you when I’m ready to leave.”
“Okay, ma’am. Thank you.” He bowed slightly and watched her walk toward the house. Only after she was safely inside did he turn and head toward the servants’ quarters.
It didn’t even feel strange walking into her childhood home.
She was married now. She didn’t live here anymore. Yet every other day since she moved out, something always pulled her back.
Almost as if the building itself wanted her inside it.
“Mrs. Serena!” Constance gasped, hurrying down the stairs with a bowl of salad in her hands. “Welcome.”
Serena smiled. “Hi, Constance.” Her eyes dropped to the bowl. “Clara rejected her food again?”
“My day doesn’t fully begin until she sends a plate back,” Constance said flatly.
“You seem used to it now.”
“What other choice is there, Mrs. Serena?”
“Good point,” Serena said with a small laugh.
“I didn’t know you were coming today. I would have made my special pot pie for Miss Trisha.”
“That’s fine, Constance. It’s just a quick visit, something impromptu came up.”
“Alright then.” Constance bowed slightly. “I’ll leave you to it.”
Serena continued down the hallway toward Horace’s study.
Horace’s study.
She hated calling it that.
She knocked once on the wooden door.
A muffled, “Come in,” sounded from inside.
“Serena,” Horace called from behind his desk, “it seems I’m seeing you more these days than I did when you actually lived in this house.”
He took a slow sip of the tea beside him as Serena pulled out one of the chairs opposite the desk.
“Are you unhappy in your new home?” he asked with a mocking smile.
“Ha. Ha. Ha. You are so funny, Father,” Serena replied flatly.
His smile faded. “What do you want?”
“Nothing. I just came to formally inform you that I’ll be going on a trip for a few days.”
“And you want me to connect you with my travel agent?” Horace asked, brows lifting slightly.
“Don’t be coy, Father,” Serena said, rising from her chair. “Aunt Sarah asked me to inform you. She’s very serious about keeping up the image of one big united family.”
“Yes,” Horace murmured thoughtfully. “Pretence has always been your aunt’s forte.”
Serena frowned faintly, not entirely sure what he meant.
“Anyway,” he added, waving a hand dismissively, “enjoy your trip.”
Just then, the door burst open.
“Who’s going on a trip?” Jonathan asked from the entrance.
Horace shot to his feet. “How dare you barge in here like that?”
“I….I didn’t know you had company,” Jonathan stammered.
“And that is an excuse?” Horace asked coldly.
Serena watched the exchange carefully.
No one barged into Horace’s office.
But Jonathan just had.
How familiar had those two gotten over the past few days?
Aloud, she said calmly, “I’m the one traveling.”
Jonathan turned to her. “Really? Did you change your mind about coming with Clara and me?”
Serena rolled her eyes. “No, Jonathan. And you need to stop asking me about that.”
“Then what trip are you going on?”
“I’m going to Morocco with Damian.”
Jonathan scoffed. “All of a sudden Damian is planning trips outside the country?”
“It was an impromptu work thing,” Serena said coolly.
“Funny how he didn’t mention it at dinner yesterday, right?” Jonathan pressed. “He’s obviously trying to take you far away from me.”
Horace spoke before Serena could respond.
“And what exactly is your point, Jonathan?” His voice carried a quiet warning. “Are you not married to my other daughter?”
Jonathan gave a stiff nod.
“Then why,” Horace continued smoothly, “do you care what this one does… or where she goes?”
Silence.
Jonathan had suddenly lost his voice.
Serena cleared her throat. “Well, that’s the only reason I came.”
She picked up her bag and phone from the table. “I’ll see you all in a couple of days.”
She turned and headed for the door.
As she walked down the hallway, she quickly texted Paul to meet her at the front.
But before her message could be sent, another notification slid onto her screen.
UNKNOWN: DO NOT TAKE MY WARNING LIGHTLY. I ASSURE YOU, YOU WILL REGRET IT.
Serena long-pressed the message and deleted it, she was going on this trip and no one would stop her.
After Serena left, Horace and Jonathan remained alone in the study. Normally, Horace would have sent him out immediately but today he felt the need to remind Jonathan what his main purpose for being in the house was.
“Jonathan,” He called out, “do I take it that you were flirting with Serena just now?”
“Of course not,” Jonathan stammered,”I’d never disrespect you like that, sir,”
“No boy,” Horace interrupted, “the one who should never disrespect is my daughter, Clara.”
Jonathan nodded his head, “I wouldn’t dream of it sir,”
“Good, because if you did that, you would be useless to me and I’d be forced to discard you.”
Jonathan’s throat tightened. “Understood sir,” he managed to say out loud.
“Now,” Horace said, draping a hand over Jonathan’s shoulder, “how far along are we on our plans to make her fall in love with you?”
“Are we still doing that?”
“What do you mean?” Horace asked, slowly removing his hand from Jonathan.
“I mean these past days you’ve been forcing me to treat her right and protect her heart, I thought you had developed fatherly instincts.”
Horace laughed, “fath…erly inst…incts, that’s funny.”
In one swift moment, Horace grabbed the back of Jonathan by the back of his neck. “Tell me, are you so stupid that you couldn’t see the reason why I was doing all of that?”
“I figured you had started to love her,” Jonathan choked on his words.
“Love her?” Horace scoffed, “I have been doing all that so she begins to see you as her knight in armor, that’s the only way she will fall inline with you deep enough to sign over her properties to you.”
He finally let Jonathan’s neck go, but almost immediately, he grabbed one of his hands dragging him forward.
“So what are we going to do now?” Jonathan asked, rubbing the sore spot at the back of his neck, and trying to keep up with Horace’s quick steps.
“What YOU are going to do is, you are going to go out there and you are going to be the best husband in the whole world.” Horace said, pushing him out the door and locking it shut.
Now alone, Horace quickly fished out his phone and the number he had been wanting to dial since Serena made an appearance this morning.
One ring.
“Hello, I have an update.”
“Well out with it, came the distorted voice over the phone.
“Serena will be leaving the country for a few weeks.”
“That’s perfect.” The voice over the phone laughed, then turned serious almost immediately. “But we have to move quickly, Horace. We cannot miss this acquisition.”
“I’ll come see you shortly.”
“Good, we need to plan our next move.”
Horace nodded along to every word from the voice on the phone. It was enough to make anyone wonder what kind of power the caller truly possessed.