POV: Raphael
“Are you really sure about the result you sent to my phone, how did you get his DNA, did you break into his apartment?” I asked him on the phone. I had to wait until Victoria fell asleep before I could leave her side and go outside to call Carl.
“I’m sure boss, I picked up his cutlery from the restaurant he visited with Victoria. Actually, I picked up both DNA at the restaurant and it turned out to be a match. What should I do boss, what does this mean for us, is he going to be trouble, should I take him out?” he asked me.
“No, Carl. There will be no need for that, I will handle Miguel myself.” I told him sternly.
“Tonight, I just need you to invade the Kendalls group, I want to know everything that is going on in that company.” I told him sternly. I asked him to investigate the Kendall’s company and tell me if Austin Kendall has collected more loans since the last time he used the company to take loans from the bank. For all I know he could be trying to sell off the company’s under our noses. I can’t let him do that, I won’t allow it.
“Monitor every money leaving Austin Kendalls accounts, I don’t want him moving the company funds before I get to him. Get his accounts frozen, get the company accounts frozen if that’s what it takes.” I told him firmly.
I paced slightly on the porch, with my phone pressed to my ear as he spoke with Carl. Our conversation was urgent, I had to speak with hushed tones so Victoria or the guards wouldn’t hear me. Our words could reveal secrets that could cause impending doom.
“Just keep an eye on Victoria’s father. We can’t let him sell off her inheritance and disappear. It’s crucial. Monitor Vera’s accounts as well, she could be swindling the company as well.” I instructed him, glancing up at the house every often to be sure there was no movement in our room. I don’t know what I’ll do if eavesdrops on my conversation and hears me speaking about her family like this.
As I spoke, a flicker of movement caught my eye. The curtain in the upstairs window fluttered, revealing a shadow. For a brief moment, my heart raced as I thought it was Victoria by the window. Then I recognized the room, it belonged to Eloise, Victoria’s mother. She was watching me, her presence a silent reminder of the truth that loomed over us all. I looked in her direction a couple of times to confirm if she was still there. She hid behind the curtain, thinking she was hiding in a perfect spot.
I smiled and shook my head at her desperation. Obviously she has been watching me for a while now, monitoring my movement. I know she has been living in fear since I had last confronted her about the truth of Victoria’s origins. It’s true that our first confrontation had been born from my desperation to be left alone. The last time I had wanted nothing more than to spend time with Victoria, but Eloise’s refusal to let me near her had forced my hand.
Yes, I had promised her that I wouldn’t reveal the secret, but with Victoria’s twin brother Miguel back in town, the stakes had changed. I knew I had to speak to Eloise again before the truth unfolded in ways that could destroy her family. I need to give her a chance to come clean and save her ass before the girls find out the truth from another person.
I finished my call with Carl, my mind racing as I kept looking up at the shadow hiding behind the curtain and at my bedroom window. I’m keeping an eye on Eloise and at the same time looking out for Victoria to make sure she is not awake and searching for me. I took a deep breath, steeling myself as I headed inside to confront Eloise before going back to cuddle with my woman.
I found her in her room, right by the window where she had been standing and looking at me. She didn’t know I was coming and she wasn’t fast enough either. I pushed the door open so suddenly, I didn’t give her the chance to leave that position or hide what she was doing. I noticed that she was holding a burner phone, but I decided to ignore it because her phone or whatever gadgets she was using was totally none of my business right now.
“You know what is coming, don’t you?” I asked her, a mischievous smile playing on my lips as I stepped into her room and shut the door. Eloise looked startled, her hands freezing mid-motion as she pretended to be folding the clothes that were laid on the little couch in her room.
“Get the hell out of my room, Raphael. I do not know what you are talking about, and I am certainly not in the mood to play mind games with you,” she snapped at me, her voice laced with irritation and anger. I leaned against the wall, unfazed by her outburst. If she thinks she can get rid of me so easily, then she has to think again.
“I will leave, ma’am Eloise. But before I do, I just want you to answer one question. Give me a honest answer to one of these questions and I promise I’ll get out of this room and never come back. Hell, I’ll never get involved in this matter again, I promise.” I told her, earning a glare that looked like a warning for me to back off. I scoffed at her dangerous glare and I decided to ignore her attitude and tell her everything I came up here to say to her.
“How did you come to be Victoria’s mother?
Did you steal her or adopt her from the hospital?
Oh, wait!
What is the name of the hospital, and who helped you get Victoria away from her real family?
Did you get legal documents that show that Victoria is your daughter, how the hell did you get them when it is said that she was stolen from a hospital?” I asked her, glaring at her as I did. As I asked her these questions, I could feel myself getting angry at her for all the nasty things she had done. To think that she is even furious at me for asking her about this. I did not let her stare me down, I met her glare with one of my own, unyielding. She abandoned her fake task of folding clothes, her expression shifting from surprise to anger.