The Highest Bidder

❊ Cʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ Fɪғᴛʏ﹣Eɪɢʜᴛ ❊

My parents still hadn't touched their food by the time I was done. Even Enzo didn't eat, which I guessed was because my parents weren't eating. Everything was silent as I ate and I made sure to keep my eyes downcast, not wanting to see my mother and father watch me, even though I knew they were.

I looked up finally, wiping my lips.

"I want you to come home," my father finally said. "You don't need to be with this man anymore. He's done enough."

I pursed my lips behind the napkin before lowering it to the table. "I'm twenty-four, dad. I can make my own decisions."

Enzo cleared his throat. "I don't want her as my employee anymore."

I leaned back in my chair and glanced at him from the corner of my eye. I wasn't sure where he was getting at with that statement, but it would only reinforce my father's plea for me to go back home. There really was no need for me to stay in Enzo's house with Maverick being out of the picture.

"Then what do you want her for?" My mom narrowed her eyes.

Enzo shrugged one shoulder. "It's her decision whether or not she wants to, obviously. But I'd like it if she'd stay here."

"For what reason?" My dad's face was getting red again.

I knew where I got my anger from, although my dad has always been easier to tick off than me. And then there was my mother, who had a sarcastic streak five times worse than my own when she wanted. But she was too stuck on what happened to me for her to be sarcastic. My father, on the other hand, had a reason to be furious.

Enzo's guard rose, shielding himself for what my parents would say after they heard his explanation. "Because I love her and I'd like it if she'd live here with me."

My mother's mouth dropped open in shock. The silence in the room was so sudden that it was almost deafening. Both of my parents stared at Enzo like he grew two heads, then at me like I was the one who cast the spell that gave him the two heads.

My dad stood up so abruptly that his chair scraped noisily across the floor before falling. "You love her? You love her? What kind of sick joke is this?"

"Honey." My mother put her hand on his arm, trying to calm him down. She was the only one who could calm my father down when he got that angry. Many times I was the object of his anger, doing something that he told me not to do. But he never hit me. So why was I so afraid that he would kill Enzo?

I bit my lip. "Dad...I love Enzo as well. I think he's telling you this to get your blessing."

"Well he isn't fucking getting it," my dad roared, slamming his fists down onto the wood table with so much force that I flinched. He didn't seem to see it, because he punched the table again.

My mother saw it, though. She stood and grabbed my father's wrists in her hands and made him look at her. She spoke low to him, probably telling him that he was scaring me because he soon turned and looked at me with wide eyes. I guessed the look in my eyes was enough to tell him, because he apologized quietly.

"Do you have a room that we can speak in?" My mom still held onto my father's wrists. "I want to speak with Roy in private."

Sophia walked in and motioned for them to follow her out. When they disappeared behind the doors, Enzo turned and looked at me. "Are you okay?"

I smiled and rested my elbows on the table. "I know my parents. Everything will be fine when they get back. My dad's just protective. When he found out that Vince got me pregnant, I was sure that he would slaughter him. But everything worked out just fine. Well, as fine as it could be."

He tilted his head when I looked over at him. There was a question within his eyes that I couldn't quite read. I wondered if he was worried that I was wrong. Or maybe he didn't know whether or not to believe everything would be fine when they finally came back in.

Five minutes passed and they walked back in, following behind Sophia. She walked over and picked up the plates, her eyes narrowing slightly at the fact that no one touched their food except for me. Then she shrugged and took the dishes back into the kitchen.

My dad sat down, eyeing Enzo with both anger and confusion. It was an odd look on his face, which was usually relatively calm unless someone set him off.

My mom looked at me, then at the man seated beside me. "I hope you realize that Roy was only angry because he wants the best for Eva. Learning everything that happened with her, then hearing you say you loved her was just a lot to take in at one time. In a way, we do blame you for what happened to her."

Enzo nodded once - just a lowering of his head then raising it back up to face them again.

"But we're also thankful to you for saving her," she finally said. "Eva is so important to both of us. I don't know what we would have done if she would have been sold to someone other than you. Nor do I know what we'd do if she would have died at Maverick's."

"I'm not giving you my blessing." My dad spoke up. "At least, not yet. She is an adult and can make her own decisions, but you need to understand that she is all we have. That girl you say you're in love with is still my little girl. If she is still in danger while living in this house, you can guarantee that you will never get a blessing from me. And if anything happens to her, you better learn to live without needing sleep."

Enzo didn't laugh like he did when I made threats. It was probably because what my father said wasn't a threat. It was a promise. He would kill Enzo without considering the consequences and my mother would let him. I was all they had.

"I understand," was all he said.

My dad looked at me then, his eyes warm. He always looked at me like that, but this time it seemed so much like an apology. No, maybe not an apology. He was looking at me like it would be the last time he would ever see me. Like he expected someone to come and kill me right before his very eyes.

"Dad." I stood and walked over to him. When I reached him, I knelt down and wrapped my arms around his shoulders. "I'm okay. I will never have to go through that again. You taught me to be a fighter. To be strong through everything. Maverick and Vince are both being sentenced. Enzo is a good man. Give him a chance, okay?"

He nodded reluctantly, wanting to take my word for it but just not quite being able to.

"How long are you two staying," I asked, moving away from my father.

"Just for the weekend." My mom smiled and held out her hands to wrap me in an embrace. I went willingly, not realizing how much I longed for her hug until that moment.

A tear slid down my cheek and landed softly on her shoulder. One hand ran up and down my spine while the other pulled me tighter against her. I didn't want to cry, I really didn't. But within her embrace, everything came crashing down around me. The betrayals. The pain. The torture. The fear.

I cried. Hard.

The Whelan family were fighters until the end, never showing an ounce of fear or sadness in front of others. My crying in front of both of my parents, Sophia, and Enzo was a sign of weakness in my mind. But I didn't care. I needed to be held by my mother.

I was on my knees, being rocked back and forth by my mom, who knelt just to be able to hold me. She was whispering words of encouragement in my ear, telling me that I was strong for making it through so much. Telling me how much she loved me. How much she missed me.

And I allowed myself to be comforted in front of the people I wanted to believe I was strong.