Chapter 7 Moves

Present Day

Days passed slowly and she was still locked up at the basement. Olivia kept coming in with food, and Lillian kept refusing it, hoping she would faint and be moved out of the house. Maybe then she could use someone's phone at the hospital. But that didn't work.

The maid stopped coming since she wasn't eating the food. And now, she was too weak to even cry.

When she finally stood, her knees buckled slightly and she had to lean against the wall to stay upright. The thought of leaving the room had never crossed her mind but it did now.

She took one shaky step after another toward door, turned the doorknob and found it unlocked. Her breath caught.

Was this a trick?

She hesitated... then stepped into the hallway. It was dim, narrow and smelled of mildew. She walked slowly, using the wall for support, her legs almost giving up beneath her.

A staircase appeared at the end of the corridor. She gritted her teeth, her head dizzy but she climbed down.

At the bottom, she found a plain wooden door slightly open. Now she was worried, this feels too easy. But still, she pushed it gently and stepped into another space, blinking at the sudden brighter light.

Then her foot slipped.

Her body leaned forward, expecting to hit the hard floor. But only to fall straight into a strong, broad chest. She gasped and looked up slowly with her fuzzy gaze.

Lillian's blurry vision cleared just enough to see a man with a sharp scowl on his face, looking down at her like she was a mistake.

"¿Adónde vas?" He asked sharply, his voice thick with a Spanish accent. His tone held no concern, only irritation.

[Where are you going?]

Lillian's lips parted to answer, but nothing came out. Her head throbbed harder, and before she could try again everything went black.

---

In LA

"The fvck?" Jake snarled, his voice a low growl as he crushed the now-crumpled paper. "Five of my men burned? And the shipment?" His tone was ice, lethal but steady.

Carlos stood to the side, his body tensed with his hands behind him.

"Some were arrested at the scene," he answered evenly. "Others died with the tanker."

Jake closed his eyes, his whole body humming with fury. "He's testing me again," He muttered, opening his eyes.

"Now he drags me to court for embezzlement?" He spat the words like venom. He slammed the file onto his desk and shot up from his seat.

He faced the window with his jaw clenching. His father had pulled the dirtiest card yet again.

The elder Hernandez reported him to court for oil embezzlement, willing to testify against his own son because he had proof that showed his guilt.

His action was also to gain the people's trust and appear righteous because of his upcoming election. And definitely a threat to shove Isabella back into his life, if Jake wills, the old man will drop the case. This was his sick way of snapping the reins tighter.

"What do we do, jefe?" Carlos asked after a long silence. Jake could have easily buried the case but he knew his father won't relent until he gets what he wanted.

Competent lawyers were at his disposal to defend him, but the case was a huge one and his father will see to the person losing their licence.

Jake exhaled and turned back to the room. He rested his hand on the desk, his eyes burning flames on the files.

"Prepare a meeting tomorrow morning for compensation," He said, returning to his seat while grabbing a glass of whiskey that was to his reach, gulping down the whole content.

Carlos gave a slow nod, but in his head, he was calculating their loss. It worth billions of dollars and exactly what his father wanted.

"You're going to court, right?" Carlos said cautiously. It wasn't a question but a statement.

Jake didn't affirm to his words and casually picked up another file.

"The men arrested must be brought to me alive. See to the compensation to the family of the ones who got burnt," He instructed and Carlos shot his brows in confusion.

"You can't give him what he wants,"

"I refuse to be a sh!tty pu$$y and allow him control me as he wants!" Jake snapped his head to him.

"There could be another way, jefe," Carlos proposed. "Mr. Williams sent over a proposal. He's offering a full tanker in exchange for marriage to his daughter. Says once you make her your wife and declare her son with you as your heir, the deal is sealed."

Mr. Williams was just a regular business man that got his hands dirty doing illegal jobs. He's after having power at his side desperately.

Carlos pulled out his phone and slid the latest chart of their supply chain stats across the desk.

"This marriage could help you ditch Ms. Rodriguez. You get the shipment, the men in prison will have to die... unfortunately. A year later, you get a divorce and you're back in control."

Jake leaned back in his chair slowly, a dark look in his eyes. "I won't bring my men to their death,"

"Those men are more than willing to die for you in much as their families will be compensated," Carlos argued.

This way, Jake could avoid appearing in court and the case will be buried. Carlos fears that the elder Hernandez has more up his sleeve if Jake should appear in court.

"I'm done playing the marriage games. Isabella's enough trouble."

"You need a wife, jefe. Sooner or later. You can't avoid that,"

Jake didn't speak until after a few seconds. "After the court issues, I'll see to it,"

Carlos nodded, silence engulfing them the next second before he cleared his throat, looking around, "Efren told me you brought someone to the mansion... the girl. The lawyer."

Jake glanced at him sharply.

"You planning something with her?" He asked.

"That's my business to deal with," Jake said, standing up from his seat. Carlos gazed at his retreating back before speaking;

"You need a lawyer."

He paused in his tracks, turned away again, his voice calm but chilling. "Contact Efren. Tell him we've got a lawyer to contact."

Carlos' expression shifted, "Which one?" He wanted Jake to clarify, "No lawyer will risk their license for this."

"She already did once." He smirked without looking back. And that confirmed Carlos' guess.

This was his idea to make the girl useful without being the one to propose it. But in his own perceptive, killing her would have been best for what she did instead of keeping her closer.

Inhaling and exhaling, Carlos pulled out his phone and dialed Efren.