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INDEBTED
Wanted
By: Scarlett Romance
Chapter 1
Liza ran through trees as the crooked branches that were protruding from almost everywhere scratched her knees and ripped her dress from many places. The three rugged looking men had been on her toes till she ditched them by taking a swift turn from around the river and making it appear like she had jumped into the water by throwing a huge rock in to the water, to create the splashing sound. She hid behind a large tree trunk when she heard footsteps approaching and the men did as she had assumed as she listened to the sound of their feet then going farther away towards the edge of the river.
When one of them was already in the water, trying to locate her to no avail, she quietly made the rest of the way out of the wooded area and onto a trail. Though she had known it wasn’t safe to be out there alone, she was stranded and there was no place she had that she could go to. The men would still be waiting outside her house in case she made the stupid mistake of making a trip back into the premise and she marveled at the thought of how her own home had become the most unsafe place for her.
Her father had been indebted a great deal of money to some really powerful and dangerous men who had tried numerous unethical ways to pressure Liza for the money ever since her father’s untimely death. They had come to the house several times before that day when they finally raided it, and tried to look for any valuables they could find. When they didn’t find anything of extravagant means or value they had insisted she go with them to the ‘bosses’, to which she had refused. After a cat and mouse chase within the premises, Liza had managed to sneak herself out through the back door and break into a run towards the thick woods that covered many miles ahead.
She could not recollect how long it had been since she had been running and trying to dodge her perpetrators and then after that, how many hours had she spent walking parallel to the trail, she had no clue. She dearly hoped that someone would come along and offer her some help. She was in a terrible condition; her clothes had been torn from several areas and were exposing a lot of skin, and her hair had been all messed up. Her boots were smudged with mud and gravel but she walked on, as the endless line of trees that seemed to be walking right beside her refused to end.
After about almost an hour she reached a familiar looking corner of an enclosed street which wasn’t very crowded and as soon as she was spotted, the few eyes that were present immediately turned their attention to her. She walked timidly into a small shop where she had seen some scarves on display, and requested the man to give her something to cover herself up, promising to return it to him when she can. The man had already begun to shuffle through a stall for a scarf after hearing the first few sentences that she uttered. She had no idea how she had managed to find her way back into the city, but she was grateful that she had. She also knew that she was a long way from home.
Wrapping the scarf around herself the best she could, she left the shop humbly thanking the man and made her way down the street. She couldn’t think of a place where she could go and stay for only a few days except for one friend’s house, who lived at a good distance from where she had been walking.
She decided that was her best option and tried to remember her address when she suddenly recognized another street and turned to walk towards it. After making a few wrong turns and mostly right ones, she found the place.
Reluctantly, she knocked at the door as she thought about whether she would be putting her friend in a dangerous situation by asking for her refuge, and just as the guilt of that thought started to take over, Janet opened the door.
She had been smiling when she came to the door but the minute she had laid her eyes upon Liza, her smile had abruptly dissolved into a questioning and worried expression.
“What happened?” she asked, as she hurriedly asked her to come in and shut the door behind her.
“I am sorry to have disturbed you like this Janet, I had nowhere else to go,” she said as her cheeks started to blush with embarrassment.
“Liza, would you tell me what happened? Who did this to you? Why are your clothes so ragged?” She started to shower her with questions and Liza could see how alarmed she was, which she didn’t blame her for after looking at her reflection in the mirror.
She started to explain “Ever since father’s funeral these people… These men, they come to ask for the money my father owed them. They had come several times before but this time, they just started to strip search the entire house and then asked me to come along with them. I managed to escape into the small woods where I tricked them, and walked all the way into the city, and then to your home”
“You circled almost halfway round town? Why? Where were they taking you? Don’t you know anything? Nothing even your father ever told you?” She had been visibly overtaken by what she was hearing and clearly concerned.
“I… uh… I don’t know Janet, father was a private man, and when was I ever even around to able to even remember anything? They ask much more than I will have in years through my job and I, I really don’t have anywhere else to go,” she started to feel her voice getting caught in her throat and then the warm tears starting to trickle down her face. Life had been very hard ever since she lost her father, who was the last living family she had. His troubles had come to haunt her after merely weeks of his demise and these men had started to chase her. It had been three months now and she had begun to feel like her life and safety was in danger. She wiped the falling tear as Janet noticed it and spoke up “You don’t even need to say a word! You will be alright here, this locale is much safer and I’ll see to it that nobody finds out where you are,”
“Thank you Janet, you…” she wiped her fake and started to fake a smile “Thank you so much,”
“Oh get up will you? You don’t want my husband to see you in these rags… He has a thing you know, with ‘staying clean’ and everything” she motioned for her to get up and directed her towards a guest room.
“You can stay here, I’ll bring you some fresh towels and what size are you dear?” she asked as she turned around to look at Liza who was lost in her thoughts. She was standing by the window, looking out and when Janet came up to her from behind she saw a tear roll down her fair cheek. She paused and then reached out her hand to touch Liza’s shoulder.
“Are you alright, dear?” she asked as she walked in a circle and came to stand right in front of Liza, who looked up to reveal her teary eyes. Janet looked at her; surprised and worried at the same time and then she hugged her old friend as Liza broke down into desperate sobs.
“Hush… There, there… What’s wrong Lizzy? Why are you crying like that honey?” she tried to com
fort her by rubbing back her lightly as she waited for her crying to slow down and then die out, which it eventually did.
When Liza was in better control of herself she suddenly, but politely backed up and straightened down her torn skirt. When she had wiped her tears dry and collected back her emotions she started to speak “I don’t…” she stuttered for a mere second and looked into Janet’s eyes, then she looked down at her feet and continued “I don’t think father loved me Jane… I was his only child, and he didn’t love me,” she said as she looked like she was talking more to herself than to Janet.
“Of course he loved you! Why would you even say that?” Janet asked and Liza could tell by her tone how she intended to give her a good pep talk.
“Why would he leave these animals at my tail if he ever loved me,” said Liza, uttering each word slowly, and with a lot of emphasis.
“He didn’t want to leave you Liz, you are only tired sweetheart, why don’t you freshen up while I bring you something to eat?” Janet asked cheerfully as Liz nodded and started to turn around. Janet left her in her room to go into the kitchen and see what she could prepare on such short notice.
Chapter 2
Liza sat in her room trying to get a splinter out of her heel; she must’ve run into it during her wild goose chase in the woods and was surprised at how she didn’t feel any pain until she took the splinter out. She thought about the men who had come to apprehend her earlier that day and how horrid their faces were. She had instantly been jolted out of her demeanor by the look those men had on their faces.
She felt like they wanted to hurt her and she had never felt so threatened and scared in her entire life. Her friend had been hospitable for now, but she didn’t want to burden her for long. She had to find a way to deal with these people without having them kill her or rape her first.
She was still lost in her thoughts when Janet came back with the fresh towels and paused to look at her. Liza still stood in front of the window staring outside, and when she felt Janet’s gaze at the back of her neck she turned and looked at her side.
“Do you know anybody who could help me with these people?” she uttered slowly but with intent.
“I uh… No, Liza… Why? What are you thinking about? I am getting worried,” Janet’s tone was concerned and she walked up to the bed to place the towels on top of it and turned to face her friend.
“I have to get back to my house Jane, I know they’re there but I can’t just leave everything!” she started to get louder and frantic with each sentence.
“Liz, it’s not safe!!! You can’t go! Not yet at least!” Janet tried to talk some sense into her friend.
“I have to save what’s left of my family Jane, I have to…” her voice was adamant and distant but Janet could see that she meant every word in her burning eyes.
“Yes! And you will!” she walked up to Liza and she took a step back “You will save everything! Just not by giving up your own life, do you understand?” she was stern and Liza’s expression showed she had heard Janet loud and clear.
Liza let out a breath and tried to calm her nerves as Janet handed her the clean towels and shut the door behind her when she left. She stepped into the bathroom and the cold tiles made her jump a little at first which made her stop and consider how old the water would be. To her fortune, the water was warm enough for a nice steamy shower, and as the warm water started to cleanse her body, she felt her senses starting to relax.
After what seemed close to an hour, she came out of the shower fresh and alive and saw a simple, lacy blue dress waiting for her on her bed.
She slipped into the soft fabric and noticed herself in the mirror and noticed how weak she had become. She must have lost over 5kgs of weight after her father had passed and something like eating, which was her favorite thing to do before, had only become an occasional enjoyment. She felt emptier inside than ever before and the fact that her father left her alone to deal with his hypocritical friends made her all the more nervous.
She went downstairs to find Janet preparing the breakfast table.
“I am not very hungry you know,” she said as she descended the staircase and went up to the small table which was covered with a light pink lacy table cover and charming little chairs to accommodate four people.
“Good, because I didn’t make much! Come sit, have some pancakes, Derrick loves them!” she hurried around the table as she started to set up a healthy serving of pancakes and syrup for Liza and she smiled at her old friend and went up to take her seat.
“I didn’t know your husband’s name was Derrick, wasn’t it Edward? Edward Wilson or… Walter” she asked Janet as she let out a chuckle and sat across her on the small table.
“Waltham, and yes my husband’s name is Edward Waltham dear… Derrick is my son, don’t tell me you’ve forgotten?” she eyed Liza as her memory suddenly gave way and she started to blush with embarrassment.
“Oh, forgive me… I completely forgot little Derrick, I even met him, I remember, didn’t I? I am so sorry, I don’t know how I could even forget,” she looked at her friend as she returned a humble smile.
“It’s alright dear, he remembers you… he used to ask me when aunt Liza would visit next, he loved the toys you brought him when he was four when you accidentally showed up on his birthday? Do you remember?” she spoke slowly as her friend listened to very word she said intently and a smile slowly crept up and spread across her lips.
“I remember,” she said softly.
“I must say you have a greedy nephew!” she joked and they both broke into a chuckle. They exchanged many memories over tea and pancakes for almost two hours and Liza felt foolish to not have visited Janet more often. It had been five years since they had met and she still welcomed her with open arms when she showed up on her doorstep with nothing but a scarf to keep her warm.
When they were done with tea, Liza decided to help Janet with dinner and Janet gratefully accepted.
“You don’t understand sweetie,” she said as she bent down to take out a large pot from the lower cabinet “how mundane it can get when you’re cooking two meals a day, every day of your life!” she put down the pot on the slope and let out a sarcastic sigh.
“That’s why all the greatest chefs in the world are men you know, women just go like been there, done that!” remarked Liza, and both of them started to laugh.
Janet’s husband came home with her son shortly after dinner was done, he had picked him up from his tutor’s on his way back home from work and both of them were delighted to see Liza. Janet told Liza over dinner how Edward was a man of strong influence, and as long as she was staying with them she was completely safe, after which Edward concluded with how Liza was welcome to everything they had, for as long as she needed.
Chapter 3
The lovely dinner made her forget about what had happed earlier that day for a while and she enjoyed being calm and just letting go of all her worries.
Ever since her father had died eight months ago, life had been terribly unfair to her. She had to leave her studies and move back to her father’s house. Her grandmother had died the previous year and she had been living in her apartment in the city when she heard of her father’s untimely demise.
They said he was found in his kitchen and there were no signs of homicide or suicide. His heart had apparently simply stopped beating while he was in his kitchen pouring himself a drink from the counter.
Liza had been away a lot lately; even when she used to live with her father she never stuck around a lot. That made it difficult for her to imagine what her father must’ve gone through in his final moments. It seemed unnatural Liza, but she was yet to find out the missing details.
She yearned for a better life, and was unsatisfied with everything she had before she decided she needed a purpose and moved to the city with her grandmother to pursue a career in something meaningful. She hadn’t looked back often and when she had, she had only indulged in surface encoun
ters with what was left of her family.
How have you been? Are you taking your medicine properly? How are your studies going dear? You haven’t started smoking again have you Dad?
She wished dearly now she could have asked him more, and spent more time with him. That night she tried to make herself sleep but her mind kept racing.
She thought about every way she could get back at her perpetrators, she had to save her family’s last assets and memories and no smug crooks were going to snatch them away from her. She entertained a million possibilities and considered her odds; she kept picturing the men who had chased her into the woods when they said the word ‘bosses’.
It signified there wasn’t one person she had to defend herself against, it was either two or maybe even more. She realized after a while how helpless she was in this situation, and turned inside the covers uncomfortably. She closed her eyes and started to think about her mother, who was killed during a burglary when she was only seven. She tried to picture her face and struggled to remember little details about her. The way her lips curved when she smiled and the way her eyes grew watery when she would laugh. Slowly, thinking about a million things she remembered and a million things that she had forgotten, Liza drifted off into an uneasy but highly mandatory, dreamless sleep.
Chapter 4
When Janet knocked on Liza’s door the next morning and called her name, she was surprised to hear her friend answer from the kitchen.
She walked out the kitchen door and Janet smiled when she saw her wearing her apron.
“I see someone woke up at the right side of the bed” she commented as she slowly started walk towards the kitchen when Liza blocked her way.
Romantic Suspense: Indebted: Wanted (Dark Contemporary Romance) (Romance Series) (Indebted Romantic Suspense Contemporary Romance Series Book 1) Page 1
