Perfect Revenge (Revenge Series Book 1)

by Catherine Edward

  Alicia took her time to untangle the knots in her golden hair and brushed it until the strands were smooth once again. After a quick wash and towel drying her hair, she carefully took the hair mask and started applying it to her scalp, gently massaging it with her fingertips from root to the tip before covering it with a hot towel.

  She would go to a spa once they reached Mexico, Alicia thought merrily as she applied the face mask next.

  Once done, she climbed into the tub and settled with a contented sigh. With the calming aroma of Lavender lulling her to the sleep, her eyes drooped and Alicia fell asleep without realizing her impending doom.

  ∞ ∞ ∞

  The Sinclair family and the Finlayson family lounged in the living room after dinner.

  Narmadha distributed the second round of desserts to everyone before sitting down on one of the couches. Samantha and Sasha sat on the floor next to their grandmother, who was staying with them until the wedding.

  “I miss Sylvia and Marina,” Sasha pouted as she lay on her grandmother’s lap.

  “I miss them too,” Samantha sighed. They had so much fun with the girls around. Only Gracie stayed with them as Antonio had to leave for Spain for an urgent meeting.

  Andrea and the girls left after their engagement party and will be joining them for the wedding. Andrea was also busy with planning a wedding a week before Samantha’s.

  Though Samantha offered to help out, Andrea brushed her off saying that she had hired a wedding planner and Samantha should only concentrate on resting before her own wedding. Eric, Gregory, Axel, and Henry were talking seriously about the wedding venue and Samantha stared at the television with a bored look on her face.

  It became a regular routine for Axel to drop her at home and stay for dinner. Sara and Henry joined them most of the night. They all would talk for hours before Axel drove home with his parents.

  Her mother, Sara, Amelia, and Gracie were on the same couch browsing through catalogs, trying to decide what kind of set up they wanted for the wedding. Ryan was nowhere to be seen, probably out with Julius again.

  Samantha helped her grandmother up and led her to her room as the others retired to their rooms for the night. Now that she was getting married, she couldn’t help the excitement that bubbled within her.

  “Do you know that you’re already glowing like a bride?” Her grandmother asked distracting Samantha from her thoughts.

  “Grandma!” Samantha whined.

  “Oh, yes. I can see the happiness and your eyes show how much you love Axel. He’s a good man for you, Samantha. I am so happy for you both.”

  “Thank you, grandma. I am so happy that you’re here for my special day.”

  “My blessings will always be with you, my dear.”

  Samantha nodded as she helped her grandma climb the bed and pulled the covers over her.

  "Good night, grandma," she whispered.

  "Good night, my child."

  Axel was waiting for her at her doorstep when she arrived.

  "Hey, what are you doing here?" Samantha asked softly.

  "I didn't get to say a proper good night. So I thought I'd pay you a visit," he smiled as he pulled her into his embrace.

  "Mhmm... is that the only reason you're here?" Samantha teased.

  "No, I thought maybe I would be lucky enough to get a good night kiss," he added with a mischievous grin making her giggle.

  "Good night, Axel."

  "Not that fast," he said capturing her lips in a soft kiss. His lips felt like a brush of a feather against hers and when he released her lips, he cupped her cheeks and looked deeply into her eyes.

  "What I'd do without you?" He whispered with so much love that Samantha felt her heart swell.

  "Nothing," she teased, earning a chuckle from him.

  “That’s probably true. See you tomorrow at work,” Axel winked, his lips twisted up forming a mischievous grin.

  "Okay. I'll be continuing to work until a week before the wedding. I am not staying home like mom suggested."

  Axel chuckled. "You can work as long as you please. Besides, I can only have you all for myself in the office."

  "Axel!" Samantha slapped at his chest playfully as his eyes crinkled with laughter.

  "Good night, my love. I'll see you tomorrow morning."

  "Good night," she whispered and sighed in content as he kissed her forehead.

  Gregory, who happened to cross the threshold to go to his room, happened to hear their conversation and he couldn't help but grin. His elder daughter found a good man and he wished his other two children found a better match for themselves when it was time.

  ∞ ∞ ∞

  Nothing had prepared Alicia for this.

  When she woke up from her relaxed slumber, she washed off her face mask and cursed internally when it burned. She blamed herself for leaving the product so long.

  The real shocker was when she removed the now cold towel that she wrapped on her head. She didn't notice the several strands of her once beautiful hair sticking to the towel as she hummed her favorite song and closed her eyes, standing directly under the hot stream of water.

  Alicia massaged her head gently and frowned when her hand came in touch with more of her scalp.

  Scalp?

  Why there is so much gap?

  Just then her eyes shot open with a wave of panic setting in. She looked down to notice her hair floating on the water and a few even sticking to her body.

  Alicia's hands reached for her bald head.

  She was definitely hallucinating. This couldn't be happening.

  "Wake up, wake up, wake up... This is horrible," she spoke to herself as she hoped for everything to change.

  When nothing seemed to happen, she climbed out of the tub and rushed to the mirror. A scream tore through her throat as her eyes popped out, her heart almost stopped for a few seconds.

  Her head was bald. The front side of her head missed several chunks of hair while a few chunks stuck to the back of her head. Her face was a totally another story altogether.

  Her skin was no longer silky smooth. Rashes and blemishes covered her face. No one could recognize her now. Her surroundings seemed to blur as her breathing quickened.

  Alicia screamed again.

  Chapter – 41

  Valtini entered the dark alley, his dark eyes scanning the area for any suspicious activity.

  He was waiting for almost seven hours for the area to be clear so he could get in and meet this guy, who would get him across the borders safely.

  He held the small suitcase in his tight grip. Donatello was a strict businessman and expected payment on the spot. He ran this business for years and even the Interpol couldn't track him down yet. This wasn't the first time Valtini doing business with Donatello. He'd contacted him a handful of times before when he needed favors.

  Valtini reached a rundown building and knocked twice. When he heard a bird sing somewhere, he knocked seven times. Each knock timed precisely after two seconds. Valtini thought this security shit was useless, anyone could use it to infiltrate the place. The code was always the same.

  The door opened after fifteen seconds, revealing a bulky man covered in tattoos. Valentine removed his guns, and hidden weapons and placed it in the box next to the guard. There was no point in carrying them in and Donatello's men were dangerous. If he did try to sneak the weapons, they wouldn't hesitate to kill him without a second thought.

  The same guard led him through dimly lit corridors before showing him to Donatello's office. Donatello looked up from the new gun he was inspecting and gave him a crooked smile. They had nothing in common, except for being Italians. Donatello was in his early fifties with a bald head and sharp nose, that stood out from all the other features.

  His deep green eyes regarded Valtini like a hawk watching its prey.

  "Welcome back, Valtini. I thought you'd never come back."

  "I’ll always come back."

  Donatello shrugged. "The price is indeed higher
this time and as I said earlier, I don't give any discounts."

  Valtini let out an exasperated sigh. The amount Donatello asked was no small amount. He had to liquidate some of his hidden assets and empty several secret stashes to bring the amount he'd asked for.

  "Here is your money, Donatello. Now, I need you to get me and my girlfriend out of this country."

  "Hmm... Good," Donatello mused as he inspected the contents. "Take this away," he ordered one of his men and turned his attention to Valtini.

  "You do realize that once you exited this country, there is no way you could come back," Donatello asked.

  Valtini thought about it for a moment. The US government and the Interpol had a bounty on his head already. He'd overstayed this time and it was the time he left this country for good. He will have figure out some other way to carry out his business.

  "Yes. I am ready to leave."

  "Good."

  Donatello leaned back in his chair and clicked a button that was on the side of his table. Not a second later, Valtini stiffened when he felt a cold edge of the gun pressed into the back of his head.

  "Donatello!"

  Valtini yelled with wide eyes as more men wearing dark suits and masks started pouring in. Two of them cuffed his hands behind his back.

  "Here is your reward, Donatello. We appreciate your cooperation."

  A man in a tailored suit announced in a thick voice.

  "Cooperation! Donatello, what is he talking about?" Valtini asked unable to digest the betrayal.

  "Oh, this is special agent Briggs from the Interpol. We kind of struck a deal a few days ago and I am now keeping my end of the bargain," Donatello informed.

  "This is against our code. You cannot do this!"

  "You should've known by now that I don't work with any particular code, Valtini. I work for money. You gave me ten million dollars and they offered an attractive package to sell you out," Donatello replied.

  "You won't be coming back to America, which means I have no use for you anymore."

  Donatello turned to the Interpol Agent.

  "Agent Briggs, can you please remove Valtini from my office? I have an important appointment later this evening."

  "Sure thing. We'll be in touch," Briggs winked at Donatello as his men dragged a very pissed Valtini away. Donatello casually sipped his whiskey as he watched the Interpol team drag the screaming Valtini away. He'd been doing this for a long time now and no one knew about his association with the Interpol.

  He would strike a deal with the most wanted criminals, gain their trust and would relay the details to the Interpol in secret. He was an ex-seal and this was his lifelong mission.

  Most of his men worked here in the underground were all recruited for this purpose and were even paid well. They operated as a special unit of the government and they were free to share the rewards they earned.

  He used the extra money to pay his men so they would keep their mouth shut. Donatello smirked when his bulky right-hand man entered, announcing the arrival of his next prey.

  "Let him in," he grinned, putting on his professional mask.

  ∞ ∞ ∞

  "Samantha!"

  Samantha looked up from her file to see Axel entering her office with an excited look.

  "What is it?"

  "Interpol has Valtini. The tape Daniel sent them helped," he announced.

  "That's a great news!"

  "Yes, it is."

  "I wonder what happened to Alicia," Samantha mused.

  "Not sure. But, that isn't our problem anymore."

  "Yeah, you're right. But, I have an update on Xander though."

  "What is it?"

  "Xander and Naina decided to get married in Vegas this weekend."

  "That’s great! When are we leaving?”

  "We'll be leaving this evening together with our families. I've made all the necessary arrangements."

  “Okay. What would I've done without you?” Axel pulled her into his embrace, burying his face in the crook of her shoulders.

  "Hmm... let me guess," Samantha pulled away and tapped her chin thoughtfully. "You would've to lead that old grumpy lifestyle, married to your work."

  Axel chuckled as he pulled her close again. Samantha stood on her tip toes as Axel leaned down to capture her lips in a soft kiss.

  "I love you, Sam," he whispered against her lips.

  "I love you too, Axel."

  Axel smiled down at her with his eyes filled with love, only for her.

  ∞ ∞ ∞

  Alicia was a mess. It had been several hours and she didn't know how to rectify the situation.

  She'd destroyed the little space she stayed in. She thought the horrific dream would be over after a while, she even tried sleeping, but nothing worked. Her half bald head and the blemished face stayed. She tried applying more cream on her face, but it only seemed to worsen her case.

  What would she do now?

  Maybe she should just contact her mother. She might know what to do.

  She quickly turned her mobile on and dialed her mother's number.

  "Alicia!"

  "Mom!"

  "What the hell is going on? Where the hell are you?"

  "I am safe, but I need you to come here."

  "Didn't you see the news? You are a wanted fugitive now. Who is this Valtini guy? They say that he is mafia!" Alana exclaimed.

  "Mom, I'll explain. It's an emergency," Alicia said exasperatedly.

  "Okay. Send me your address. I'll meet you shortly."

  Alicia quickly disconnected the call and typed a message to her mother.

  Unknown to her, a team, who were tracking her mobile perked up as her mobile turned on. If the call she made to her mother was not enough, the message with her current address was just an added bonus to them.

  Alicia anxiously waited for her mother's arrival and when someone knocked at the secret door, she didn't think of anything and quickly opened it.

  Alana, who finally saw her daughter's face screamed bloody murder.

  "What the hell just happened to you?"

  "I don't know, mom. I was having my spa time and fell asleep. When I woke up, I was like this. Tell me that this is all a dream. That I'll be okay when I wake up," Alicia said in exasperation.

  "This isn't a fucking dream. You look ridiculous!"

  "Mom!"

  "Ugh! Stop calling me that. You look hideous."

  "Help me!"

  "How am I supposed to help you? I am broke. Seemus filed for divorce and blocked all my cards. I don't even have a place to stay."

  "What?"

  Alicia felt like the world slipping away from under her feet.

  What was happening?

  Her current state had rendered her useless. She couldn't think clearly. Alicia couldn't even move when the cops entered her apartment.

  Alana screamed for her daughter and when Alicia did look up, she was being loaded into the back of a cop car with multiple cameras flashing at her.

  ∞ ∞ ∞

  Alicia McKenna was arrested this evening for her association with a most wanted criminal, Valtini. She had been added as a prime suspect in Kaufman’s case after the audio of her conversation with Valtini leaked earlier this month.

  Alicia had shaved her hair and tried to change her appearance in order to escape the cops when they found and arrested her from her secret hideout earlier this evening. The tapes we received earlier tied her to the Kaufman case and the cops are suspecting that she might be involved in more illegal activities along with Lorenzo Valtini.

  The Interpol arrested Valtini this morning. Lorenzo Valtini is an Italian drug dealer, who has been linked to several murders over the decade in The United States and Europe. He-

  Axel switched off the flat screen television and kissed Samantha's hand before exiting her room with her. The Sinclairs were waiting for them outside their mansion with huge grins on their faces. This is his life now.

  Axel looked down at Samantha with so much love as h
e opened the door of the car for her to enter before climbing in beside her.

  Their car drove off and he looked forward to all the happy memories that awaited them.

  Chapter - 42

  Axel couldn't believe that it was their big day, finally. He adjusted his necktie and took a deep breath, practicing his vows. Past two months had been a blur of activities.

  Naina and Xander's wedding was perfect in every sense.

  Then, Andrea and Sebastian's wedding brought the families together once again. His grandfather had officially retired and since merged the Del Campo group with Finlayson Corp. Sebastian had taken over the operations in Spain while Axel handled their business in the United States. Axel had equally divided the shares among his cousins, so they all received a certain amount from the company profits every year.

  The past two and a half months had changed his life considerably for better. The time he'd spend with Samantha had been great and he never once looked back at his past. Samantha surprised him at every turn and he found himself falling deeper and deeper in love as he learned more about her.

  "Ready!"

  Xander's cheerful voice distracted him from his thoughts.

  "I am," Axel answered with a full-blown smile that lit up his face.

  Axel chose Xander as his best man. Their friendship had come a long way and he was glad that everything finally worked out for them.

  "I can't believe that my baby is finally getting married," his mother gushed with happy tears. "I was almost convinced that this day would never come," she sniffled.

  "Sara, don't ruin the makeup. Andrea would go ballistic if she finds anything out-of-place," Henry chastised in a playful tone.

  "Quiet Henry!" Sara slapped at his chest playfully. "It's our son's wedding and it’s okay to get emotional."

  Axel hugged his parents one last time before they rushed out to take their seats. Xander helped him with the coat as Axel's chest bubbled with joy.

  Soon, he'd be a married man.

  ∞ ∞ ∞