CHAPTER TWO

Maya's pov

"No," I whispered again.

I could feel the color draining from my face as I stared at him, my mouth slightly opened in shock. He had a grim expression on his face, like he was forced to perform an arduous task he could do without.

"Don't act surprised, it is either this or all of us will be out of the streets and your mom would have a lawsuit hanging around her neck" he replied sounding annoyed.

'mom is in the hospital fighting for her life,' I tried to retort, but I could not get the words out. Instead, it felt like the walls around me were closing in, I clawed my fingers at my throat and tried to take in huge bouts of air but it wasn't helping. My vision became blurry, but I was determined not to lose consciousness, I could wake up and find myself shackled in marriage to a man I did not know.

Willing my shaky legs, I grabbed my purse and raced out of the restaurant. He caught up with me at the curb, just at the front of the restaurant. He grabbed my hands and pulled me towards his side then he snaked his right hand around my waist. I prepared my lungs to scream, when his cold voice stopped.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, just smile and keep walking. We don't want anyone to think that something is wrong, especially that waiter, I can see him watching from the window" he whispered against my hair. My body shivered in disgust, but I did as he said. There was something in his voice that made me cooperate, I could hear the desperation seeping through his underlying threat. I plastered a fake smile on my face, so wide that my cheeks hurt from the effort. He led me towards an outdoor cafe which was at the other side of the restaurant. Sitting me at one of the booths, he went towards the counter where he ordered two cups of coffee. He placed one in front of me and took the seat which was opposite me.

I stared up at him with tear filled eyes, I could not understand how he could use me as a collateral damage. I wasn't the one who made the mistake, he did and the company was not even his. The Alexander I knew was comfortable letting others take the fall for his wrongdoings, so him taking extra lengths to 'protect my mother's company' was out of character.

"Now don't look at me like that" he paused and took a sip of his coffee. "It's not a bad deal if you think about it, you will be getting married to one of the richest men in Town. Many girls would kill to be in your shoes" he continued. He took another long sip of coffee before he placed the cup on the table.

"They can have my shoes," I replied having found my voice, the anger which was swirling in my stomach leaked into my tone.

"But they are not you" he replied, sucking on his upper teeth to produce a clicking sound. "I know about your student loan debts, it's such a shame though but I can make those bills disappear like they never existed. You will never be able to pay them off, especially with your job in that rundown shack"

Of course he knew, he smiled at me with a knowing gaze that said he had me cornered . I could feel color rising to my cheeks as I clenched my fingers beneath the table. I knew the game he was playing, he was trying to make me lose my composure so that he could then hammer on that weakness and bend me to his will. I took a sip of my coffee, it tasted bitter with hints of cinnamon and allspice, black coffee, his favorite.

Taking a longer sip, I placed coffee back on the table. Giving him a wide smile, I leaned my body over the table using my palms as support.

"You are in trouble aren't you?" I watched as his smile dissolved, my smile grew wider because I knew that I was on the right path.

"He is suing you and not Lima, I mean Lima is going to take a major hit but it is not going to fall, nothing I can't fix when I get it back while you rot in jail," I could see the taut veins which had formed around his forehead, his hands were clenched into a tight fist while his lips were pursed into a flat line, he looked cornered so I went in for the kill.

"I won't get married to a man I don't know even if you drag me to the altar in chains" l leaned back into my chair and crossed my hands against my chest.

He looked ready to explode, then nothing. A sly smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

"You have always been a smart girl, which is why I think you will understand this" he mimicked my earlier position, dropping his voice to an audible whisper, he continued "if you do not get married to Amari Remington, I will pull the plug off Isabella's life support"

My eyes widened in shock as I stared at him dumbfounded, he was threatening to kill my mom, not exactly kill but I had hope that she was going to wake up. This hope had kept me going for three years and now he was threatening to take it away.

"You can't," I replied, struggling to keep my voice even.

"I can and I will" he sounded smug as he leaned back.

"You can't, I am registered as her family, you can't pull her plug without my permission" I replied evenly.

" Oh yes I can, you were barely eighteen when she fell, so I am legal guardian therefore I have the power of attorney to make decisions on her behalf" I could hear the smile in his words, he had me cornered and he knew that.

I believed him, I don't know why but I believed him. I couldn't let him hurt my mother, marrying him was the only wrong choice she made and I could not fault her for it. Before they had gotten married, he was sweet and thoughtful but I could see that it was only a facade. I tried warning my mother but she pushed them aside, calling them childish concerns. I hated him, he tried to control me, to bend and shape to his will, I rebelled , he pushed back. Mother had always acted as the drawbridge between us, she was always in the middle of our fights placating us when none of us refused to move an inch. Now he was threatening her, my mother, his wife.

Drawing in a deep breath, I felt all the fight I had in me dissipate, I could risk anything but not my mother's life.

"I will marry him, I will get married to Amari Remington but if you harm my mom I promise that would be the last thing you will ever do" I conceded, anger blazing in the depths of my heart. He may have won this fight but not the war. The war that started the day I packed my bags and left home. I was still going to fulfill my promise, I was going to ruin him even if it took my last breath.

&&

I stared at my reflection, her eyeliner was smeared and her mascara formed tear tracks along her cheeks. Her lips were in no better condition, her pink gloss was also smeared, she looked like a clown, a tired and drained clown. Her shoulders were sagged and tendrils of her hair had pulled out of her messy bun, but that was not what scared me, it was her eyes, her green eyes looked dead as they stared back at me. Her expression was grim and slack like a zombie, I had a hard time believing that she was me, so I pinched my cheeks and she did the same, yes she was me.

The moments after I agreed to Alexander's demands passed like blurry images, but I could faintly recall him saying that Amari would be coming to the cafe to meet me before I fled to the restroom where I stayed and cried my eyes out. My phone has been blaring up with messages from Alexander, I didn't bother to read them. I wished that I could stay here until I was sure that I was ready to face the rest of the world which was never but I knew that I did not have that luxury. Alexander would hurt my mom if I tried to hide.

So with that thought in mind, I stood up from the backroom floor where I sat for the past hour with the intention to look presentable, but the reflection which stared at me from the mirror stopped me. I looked dead, maybe that was a good thing, no groom wanted a dead bride anyway and I already looked the part so maybe Amari would run for the hills as soon as he sighted me. I smiled softly as I exited the restroom ready to face my fate.

&&

I got to the booth and found only Alexander sitting there, he was agitated and upset about something as he typed aggressively into his phone. He looked up as I slid into the chair I had vacated earlier.

"Where have you been" he asked angrily

"The restroom, I had to relieve myself" I replied coldly

His gaze slid over my face in disgust, "You will need to touch your makeup before we meet Amari, you look horrible"

"Didn't come out with my supplies, I didn't expect to meet a billionaire today" that was a lie, my mini makeup kit was inside my purse but I couldn't tell him that I intended to scare my future husband away.

He grunted in response before turning his attention back to his phone. I took in the view around me, the streets were bustling with activity and the little cafe where we sat gradually became filled up. My mind wandered, thoughts about being Mrs Remington filled my head. I didn't know much about Amira Remington apart from what I gleaned from gossip magazines. I could faintly recall an interview where he was featured on Forbes, he was described to be as deadly as he was beautiful.

A light touch on my arm pulled me out of my reverie. Alexander stood beside seemingly impatient.

"Let's go, he wants to meet you at his penthouse," he said, offering me his hand.

"Why?" I asked, unconsciously taking his hand as I stood up. Once on my feet, I tried to remove my hand from his but he clutched it tightly and pulled me into his side. He wrapped his left hand around my waist while using the other to maneuver so that I stood directly in front of him. I struggled to free myself from his hold but he did not budge.

"Let me go" I hissed under my breath.

He didn't, instead he pulled me in so that my head was resting against his chest, then he leaned down and whispered against my ear

"He has to get a taste first doesn't he?" He pressed his nose against my and took in a deep breath before he conti

nued "some of us are unlucky as we never got the chance".