Bonds

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Chapter 70

-Maya’s POV-

I could count the number of times I had seen my father laugh throughout my life. The numbers were very limited, yet here he was, Daniel Stone himself, perched on his throne–like chair–the one that always seemed to inflate his already gargantuan ego – his coming laughter echoing through his office. My gaze bounced between him and Natalia, whose glare could make someone melt ice.

Seriously, what the heck was so funny?

We’d managed to finagle our way into his company headquarters – the same one that had been teetering on the brink of collapse just weeks. ago after the whole investigation and money laundering fiasco. I had to give it to him. My father got back on his feet fast. In fact, his recovery was so swift it felt like the whole ordeal had been a bad dream.

He had almost bitten his secretary’s head off when she let me and as he called her, ‘my nuisance friend‘ in unannounced. Me, his own daughter and then with a single withering glare in my direction growled at me to ‘get on with whatever this was

So, here we were, the somewhat threatening text messages displayed prominently on his sleek desk, and instead of the expected outrage or concern, my father was doubled over, his laughter bordering on hysteria.

Natalia finally snapped. “Alright, enough! What on earth is so side–splittingly hilarious?”

Her words hung heavy in the air, momentarily silencing the room. My father wiped a tear from his eye, his chest heaving with exertion. A slow, mischievous grin spread acroos hos face. It was a look I didn’t recognize – a glint of something akin to… enjoyment? Maybe even a hint of respect flickering in those cold, calculating eyes.

The booming laughter that had filled the room moments ago died down abruptly, replaced by an unnerving silence. My father’s sharp gaze snapped to me, his lips curling into a humorless smirk. “So, you finally decided to follow in my footsteps, did you?” he drawled, his voice laced with a hint of amusement. “Stole something from the bastard?”

Before I could even formulate a response, Natalia jumped in, her voice sharp with indignation. “Seriously? That’s what you find so amusing? The fact that Maya took something from Alex?”

The amusement vanished from my father’s face like a flame doused with water. His eyes narrowed into icy slits, and a vein throbbed prominently on his temple. “Do not,” he growled, his voice dropping to a dangerous low, “utter his name in this office. Do it again, and I swear I’ll rip your tongue out myself.”

I have to give Natalia credit; even faced with that kind of chilling threat, she didn’t so much as flinch. Her glare remained unwavering, a silent challenge to his bluster. I knew Natalia couldn’t stand my father, and judging by the look on her face, she was about to unleash a verbal tirade that would make a sailor blush. Before things escalated any further, I stepped forward, placing a calming hand on Natalia’s shoulder.

issue at hand?”

the issue, Amaya?” he inquired, his tone clipped. “The messages,” I stated, hoping to cut through the

steepling his fingers in a gesture that spoke volumes about his arrogance. “And why, pray tell,” he drawled,

jaw nearly

Chapter 70

into anger. “Are you serious right now?” I exclaimed, my voice rising in pitch. “Someone is

and teach you how to show respect,” he warned, his voice laced

I silenced her with a reassuring smile. Taking a deep breath to steady myself,

back to face

ever get tired of this? Every single time we even try to have a conversation, it ends up with us screaming at each other. With threats. With you trying to

father?”

to annoyance pass through

my voice gaining strength. “I didn’t ask for any of this. I didn’t ask to be born into a rivalry, or to be treated like a ghost all my life and I will not apologize for it because I never

ever experienced–It wasn’t just quiet, it was a thick, suffocating blanket that choked the air out of the room. Everything seemed to fade away, the office furnishings, the glint of the city

was the raw, naked

lodged themselves in my throat like lead. Regret, sharp and bitter, flooded my system. I hadn’t meant to say them, hadn’t meant to rip open the old

already shattered heart. Finally, my father spoke, his voice so low and rough it was

so low that I barely heard it then he repeated, “Who told

I stammered out a

gaze locking onto mine with an intensity that sent shivers down my spine. It was as if he was seeing me for the

a

he was trying so desperately to suppress. “He was everything. Everything. And then he was taken away from me. And then what did you do? You chose the

I hadn’t realized I’d started crying, but now the sobs wracked my body with a force I couldn’t control. The pain I’d felt all these years, the sting of rejection, the constant feeling of being an unwelcome shadow – it all paled in comparison to the crushing weight of his

soul–sucking emptiness that threatened to swallow me whole. The

Sat, 22 Jun