Chapter 5 Who is he

# Kaira

I saw a face I had never seen before. He was dressed in a blue suit and had sharp features... neat and presentable. The seriousness on his face was unmistakable.

A stranger had come to my rescue.

"Who is he?" I pondered

Aunt Martha's wrist snapped back as his fingers closed around it. She yanked against his grip, her face twisting.

"Let go of my hand!"

He released her but didn't step back. Instead, he turned to me, extending his hand.

"Are you okay, Miss Kaira?" My legs trembled as he helped me stand on my feet. His voice was firm but gentle.

Tonia's mouth fell open. She blinked twice, then smoothed her hair and stepped forward, her hips swaying. Her eyelashes were batting like butterfly wings.

Before I could thank him, Aunt Martha's voice struck with annoyance.

"Dressing in a nice outfit doesn't give you the audacity to address an elder rudely!"

"And what you just did was breaking and entering, which won't be taken lightly. Out of my house, now!" She pointed toward the door.

"No, Mom... wait." Tonia covered the distance between them, her voice as sweet as honey. She tilted her head, studying his face like she was solving a puzzle.

"How do you know my sister?" She asked. The word 'sister' dripped with false concern.

"Where do you work? You seem well off..." Her eyes traced his expensive watch, and his Italian leather shoes.

My stomach clenched. Here it was again... Tonia's radar for money. She loved money but never worked for it. All her potential boyfriends were just ATMs to her. She never loved genuinely, only someone she could use.

I once overheard her dumping a guy who'd just spoiled her with gifts. She punched him when he tried to kiss her.

"Let's break up," she'd said, examining her nails.

"Why?!" he'd screamed, confused.

"You didn't say anything before. You said you loved me. We are in love... right?"

"Wait, you believed I loved you?" she'd laughed, cruel and cold.

"I just wanted your money, fool." She scoffed.

She had been using him to drain his money. When he wasn't giving her enough anymore, she dumped him.

## Back to the present.

"You must be Tonia Yaren," The man said, and then reached into his jacket and withdrew a cream-colored business card.

"Yes," Tonia replied quickly, and snatched it before he'd fully extended his arm.

"Tonia..." Aunt Martha's warning died on her lips as she watched her daughter's reaction.

Tonia held up one finger without looking at her mother. Aunt Martha's jaw snapped shut.

He straightened his tie. "I'm Vincent. I work with De&J Enterprise."

She saw it on his card before he announced it himself.

The card slipped from Tonia's fingers and fluttered to the floor like a fallen leaf.

"What!" The word slipped out of her mouth in surprise. Even Aunt Martha's eyes widened until I could see the whites all around her irises.

Tonia's hands shook as she bent to retrieve the card. De&J Enterprise... the company that owned half the skyscrapers downtown, the one whose CEO's face graced magazine covers. The company she'd applied to three times and never even gotten a phone call back.

She looked at me, with a sharp gaze. I pressed myself against the wall, still feeling the sting from the earlier beating received from Aunt Martha. I didn't dare walk away, either; I just stood quietly and was grateful to Vincent for rescuing me.

My own chest tightened also at the revelation. De&J Enterprise might as well have been on Mars for someone like me.

"Why... why is someone like you here?" Tonia asked, with a cracked voice.

Vincent ignored her question; his attention stayed fixed on me.

"I'm sorry for abruptly coming in. I knocked but there was no response, and I needed to act fast when I saw what was happening through the peephole."

"You can file your complaint later, Mrs. Yaren." He looked towards Aunt Martha.

"For now, I'm leaving with Miss Kaira." He turned toward me, his movement was calm. "Please come with me."

He bowed... like I was some kind of royalty instead of the family disappointment.

Tonia and Aunt Martha exchanged glances at his courtesy towards a nobody like me, raising their eyebrows.

I looked between them, waiting for the explosion, the shouting, the accusations. Instead, they were quiet.

"Please come with me," Vincent repeated, his voice unchanged. Still calm and respectful.

Still nothing from them. No grabbing, no threats.

"I will tell you the details outside if you don't mind stepping out with me."

My feet moved before my brain caught up. Each step toward the door felt like walking on ice.

Outside, Vincent's shoes clicked against the pavement in a steady rhythm.

I thought he was going to explain, but he was quiet and walked me toward his parked car.

"Where are we going?" The words tumbled out.

"Please get in ma'am." He opened the passenger door, standing beside it like a chauffeur.

"Ma'am? He's now calling me ma'am?? What the hell am I to this man? He's probably way older than I am but...

Who is he?" I thought to myself.

Then I asked curiously, hoping for a genuine reply this time.

"You said you would explain outside."

He did not say anything and instead, he gestured toward the car's interior leather seats, it has a spotless dashboard. I remained rooted to the sidewalk.

"I know what you are thinking. But it's not that. You are safe."

Something in his tone made me relax.

I slid into the passenger seat. The leather was soft. Through the tinted window, I caught a glimpse of movement near the house.

"Kaira!" The voice was muffled but familiar. I pressed my face to the glass, scanning the street.

"I thought someone called my name," I whispered, brushing it off.

"You speak to me in an honorific manner... why?"

Vincent's hands stilled on the steering wheel.

"Because I do not dare speak down to you."

He took his phone from his pocket and typed rapidly, his thumbs moving over the screen, then slipped it back into his pocket before starting the car.

"Where are we going?" I asked again.

"You will find out soon."

The engine purred to life. Vincent shifted into drive, and...

Suddenly, a figure stepped directly in front of the car, arms spread wide like a shield.

Tony.

His chest rose and fell rapidly. His T-shirt was wrinkled, his hair disheveled like he'd been running.

"My ears weren't wrong; it was Tony who had called my name."

"Move," Vincent said after a beat with a flat voice.

But Tony didn't budge, he planted his feet wider.

"Stop the car, he is my brother."

Vincent's head bowed slightly, and then he killed the engine.

I rushed out, my hands reaching for Tony's shoulders, checking for scrapes, bruises, anything.

"Are you okay?"

Vincent emerged from the driver's side.

"And you must be Tony," he said.

Tony's fingers closed around my wrist. "You followed a stranger? What if he wasn't who he said he was?"

"I..." My mouth opened, then closed. I had no answer.

Then I was about to ask a question when Vincent cut in.

"How did you..."

"She is coming with me," Vincent stated.

"Says who?" Tony stepped forward, his shoulders squaring.

"Look, I do not know who you are or care what you do, but you are going nowhere with her."

"Tony..." His name came out as a whisper.

His jaw was clenched so tight I could see the muscle jumping beneath his skin. He tightened his grip on my wrist.

"My boss," Vincent replied, taking a step closer.

"So do not dare stop me." He added.

"I have already stopped you..."

The air between them crackled. Tony's breath came in short puffs. I wondered what to do in such a situation... two men faced off over me. I stood frozen between them, my heart pounding with uncertainty and fear.

* * *