Old Master Garcia stared at Sasha. Sasha lowered her head; her expression was full of remorse.
“I’m… I’m sorry, Dad. My obsession got the better of me!”
The old master, however, was not angry. It was clear that his daughter had been upset about something.
“That’s enough. We will talk when we get home.”
He used the bed’s edge to support himself as he stood up, then he stared at Ava.
“I will not sign the agreement. You have pretended to be our family’s granddaughter. For Elena’s sake, I will not pursue this matter further.”
All he could think about then was to head home to see his real granddaughter quickly.
He longed for Elena to address him as her grandfather; to truly and utterly acknowledge him as her grandfather!
“Do you think you can leave here without signing this agreement, old man?”
” Ava, what on earth do you think you are doing? Even if this agreement is signed, it would be signed under duress. We can still get our lawyers to challenge you!”
Sasha really wanted to tear that horrible woman to shreds! Her influence and coercion had momentarily clouded her judgment!
Ava shrugged and stared at her as if she was a joke.
“Sasha, you were the one who lured your father out here to international waters. Now you want to plead innocence?”
International waters!
Sasha and Old Master Garcia exchanged glances, and their heart suddenly sank.
Sasha only just recalled that they were in international waters. They would be done if they were to encounter pirates out there.
What could they do?
Sasha looked at Old Master Garcia.
Old Master Garcia stared at Ava with a firm expression. “I will not sign the agreement. Even if you kill me, I will not sign it!”
“Kill you? No. Why would I want to leave empty-handed?”
Ava was not so stupid. She covered her mouth and laughed gleefully.
“However, there is one person here that is of no value whatsoever.”
One of the two henchmen in front of Sasha suddenly turned and landed a kick on Sasha’s abdomen.
Sasha doubled over in pain and fell onto the floor with a loud thud. It was so painful that she was unable to utter a sound.
“Sasha!” The old master’s heart raced. He attempted to rush to her, but one of the men pushed him back onto the bed.
He glared at Ava. “How dare you!”
Who would dare to treat the Garcia family like that?
Even though Ava had victory within her grasp, his fierce glare still caused her to take a step back.
There was no doubt that he was a force to reckon with after so many years in the business world. Although retired, he still carried an imposing aura.
Nevertheless, Ava quickly regained her composure.
They were on international waters, and the entire crew consisted of her men. Why would she be afraid?
“You will sign it today—by hook or by crook!”
Ava straightened her posture. She had observed the family for a whole month, and she knew how much the old master loved his family.
He had a very simple philosophy.
He could always earn more money. His family members, however, would not return if any accident were to befall them.
She knew that he felt remorseful about Harley’s death.
She went to stand in front of the pale-faced Sasha and gave her another swift kick.
Sasha gritted her teeth to bear with the pain, but she still broke out in cold sweat.
“Grandfather, why don’t you sign the agreement now? If you don’t, I will carve this woman like a turkey.”
As soon as she completed her sentence, one of the men brought out a knife and handed it to her.
They had lived together for a month. None of them could have imagined that the woman could be so heinous!
Ava acted as if that were the most natural thing in the world for her. She took the knife and looked at the old master.
“How about now? Will you sign now?”
…
Half an hour later, Old Master Garcia and Sasha were thrown back onto the smaller boat that they arrived in.
Ava stood atop the yacht and looked down at them from above.
“Don’t say that I am merciless and did not give you a chance to live. That boat is filled with supplies and is fully functional. However, you’ll have to find your own way back.”
With a wave of her hand, the henchmen pushed the boat away.
“As you can see, when we left you, you were alive and well. Our men did not harm you.”
If they were to be so unlucky as to perish out at sea, well, it was none of her concern.
“Goodbye, Grandfather, Younger Aunt!”
Ava waved joyously at them from the yacht.
Sasha wanted to curse at her; however, she knew that there was no use.
Ava’s yacht quickly sailed away. They had a small boat with an inner cabin and a kitchen, too; the refrigerator even contained water and food.
The bridge and controls were fully functional. If they could operate it, they would not have any problem if they wanted to head back.
However, who would drive the boat?
Sasha looked at her father, who snorted, “It’s just like any other yacht, how hard could it be? I drove one of these quite often during my younger days!”
He headed to the bridge and stared at the controls for a long while. He realized it was completely different from what he was used to when he was younger.
He was unfamiliar with the high-tech gears and controls. He did not even know how to navigate.
If one could not get their bearings right in the open seas, one would never reach the shore.
“Dad, what do we do now?”
She started to get uneasy when she realized that her father did not know what to do when he stared at the boat’s controls.
She was terrified that they would be adrift on the open sea!
It was as if they were left for a slow death!
That was not even the worst-case scenario. What if they were to encounter pirates?
“Dad!” Just the thought of those savage and barbaric pirates caused Sasha to break out in cold sweat.
“Don’t worry. I’ll try again. Don’t panic.”
The old master had started to sweat profusely. His face turned even paler.
Sasha started to panic when she noticed how her father had looked.
“Dad, stop worrying about it for a moment and take a rest. Let me… Let me have a go.”
Her father had heart problems. He had been upset when he discovered the truth about Ava. He had experienced so much that his heart might not be able to take more of the stress!
“Dad, please sit down and rest for a while.”
“It’s okay. I’m still strong despite my age. It’s alright.”
Even as he said he was okay, the color on the old master’s face got even worse.
His hands shook.
He tried to suppress it, but it was almost impossible to control it.
“Dad… Dad! Are you alright? Don’t scare me!”
There was no reply from the old master. Two seconds later, his body tilted to the side, and he fell over.
Sasha panicked and rushed over to support him.
The old master’s eyes were closed; he had blacked out.
“Dad! Dad, wake up! Don’t scare me! Don’t scare me!”
They did not have any doctor or his medication with them. What could she do? What could she do?
It was all her fault. Why must she be greedy? Why did she allow Ava to manipulate her?
They had been a great family; would they be broken then?
“Dad…”
Suddenly, a sound on the radar caught her attention.
Could there be another yacht nearby?
Could it be pirates?
Sasha was scared out of her mind. She laid the old master on the couch and then rushed toward the window.
A medium-sized yacht approached them.
The man on the deck…was him?