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YOU DON’T NEED TO BE AFRAID
KARINA
Ihadn’t seen Nathan anywhere since the cab driver incident the day before. It was as if he vanished from the mansion. I expected him to be right outside my door as I tiptoed out of my room, but I was met with an empty space and a strange sense of loneliness knowing he wasn’t nearby.
Deciding to search around the house, I wandered down the empty hall alone adorned with silver picture frames of the family; from my father and mother on their wedding day to my birth, my brother, his company, and the last photo we ever took together.
My mother sat on one of the floral-patterned seats below the staircase dressed in white. On her lap was my brother, dressed in a tiny suit. He was only two at the time, but he cried his way out of a blazer and hadn’t been forced to wear one since. Behind my mother, my father held on to the head of the chair. No smile, no sign of happiness. He was angry that day, something about the company. And then there was me, on the other side of my mother. A fake smile plastered on my lips, waiting for the cameraman to be finished.
Someone came up beside me, pulling my attention from the photo. I didn’t bother to look. He was quiet, doing his job as usual. “You shouldn’t sneak up on people like that.”
“My apologies, Miss Karina.” Came an unexpected voice. I glanced over, seeing Adam Prince’s tall frame standing next to me. He didn’t make eye contact.
“I’m sorry, I thought you were Mr. James,” I said.
“He’s attending to his own matters at the moment.” He told me, still not meeting my gaze.
“How was the meeting with my father?”
He cleared his throat and finally turned to me. “It went rather well, considering my concerns about your well-being.”
I looked back at the picture in front of us. “There’s no need for you to be worried about me.”
“James may be fit to care for your father, but to place an incompetent, ill-mannered—”
“I admit, he is difficult,” I interrupted, “but I am confident I can handle him.” From what I gathered so far, Nathan was unquestionably the latter. But he kept my father safe for all these years. He must have been good at his job, regardless of his manners.
Adam hummed, turning back to the picture. “This was the day we danced under the stars.”
“For my fifteenth birthday.”
That day, my father was too busy preparing for one of his new hotel buildings to show up and sing Happy Birthday in the backyard with everyone else. Later that evening, Adam caught me alone under the gazebo. He took my hand in his, and we danced. It was a sweet moment. Romantic even in the eyes of someone else. But I had seen my father look over, nodding at Adam. I never questioned it, nor did I ever ask Adam why, because he was just a friend who took the opportunity to impress my father.
“I remember. You were happy that day.”
I wasn’t. Even throughout all the years we’ve known one another, Adam never could tell what was real. “It was the same year you started working for my father.”
“Skillfully trained to protect your family.”
“And now a right-hand man.” I glanced at him. He held his head high. His fingers wrapped around his blazer, holding it down, proud of his accomplishments. He was boastful even. I couldn’t even blame him. He had every right to be. It wasn’t every day my father plucked a bodyguard to become one of his partners.
“Hopefully one day, something more.” Adam’s eyes drifted to me, glimmering with something I couldn’t read. He took my hand and pressed his lips gently against it, sending an unsettling feeling into the pit of my stomach.
“I must get back to your father, but if you would like, we can continue this conversation later?”
“Maybe another time.” My hand slipped from his grasp as he took a step back before heading into my father’s office two feet away. The second the door close, I let out a breath of relief I didn’t even know I was holding.
I wasn’t sure what was going on, but maybe my bodyguard did.
I continued down the opposite direction of the hall, searching for any signs of Nathan, but there were none. Downstairs was my only option; I made my way to the first level. I searched through the living room and the second living room on the opposite side of where the glass doors to the back resided. Still nothing. I walked further through the mansion, reaching the kitchen, the place that separated one side of the mansion from the other. I slid my fingers over the countertop, the one my mother and I used to steal charcuterie boards off of during my father’s meetings.
Suddenly, I heard a grunt from the door behind me, leading to what I used to call the dungeon.
The closer I got, the clearer the voices became. I opened the door quietly and tiptoed down.
I felt like a kid again. All those years ago, sneaking down the steps one by one to listen in on whatever was going on down there. I remembered it all so vividly as I sat down on the top step, my elbows folded on my knees. It was like summer vacation all over again.
“I’m only going to ask you one more time. Who sent you?” Nathan’s voice was low, darker than I was used to. It was as if he was a different person. Not the carefree, laid-back Nathan I knew since the moment I met him. Was he someone different all along?
“N-n-no one,” the man stuttered.
I leaned forward. The room was dark, but there was a small light over the man, dangling from the ceiling right above his head. It swung, making it hard to get a good glance at man tied to a wooden chair. I made out his hair, matted sloppily on his forehead from sweat, but that was about it.
“How do you know about the kidnapping?” Nathan asked.
“He told me.”
“Who. Is. He?” He interrogated once more.
“I’m not supposed to say,” the man’s voice shook. “He’ll kill me. He’ll kill my baby boy.”
A grunt escaped Nathan’s lips as the chair tipped to the side. “And if I let you go, how will I know you won’t go running back and tell everyone she’s here?”
“It doesn’t matter what I say. He already knows.”
“Again, who is he?”
“He’s one of the men in a partnership… and he doesn’t just want the company,” the man spoke as if he was in a rush and didn’t want to get caught. His voice lowered, far too low for me to understand, but he soon spoke up once more. “He’ll do anything to get both.”
What did he want?
Nathan stepped into the light of the lamp. His elbow raised, coming down with a thud.
I gasped, and his attention instantly flew to the staircase. He disappeared into the darkness, and I could hear his footsteps. Shuffling to my feet, I turned, running back up the cold steps. My palm pushed the door open, but his large hand circled my wrist before I could fully step out.
I glanced behind me, meeting his steely gaze. My body stiffened and my heart pounded against my chest.
He let out a breath, loosening his grip. “It’s just you.” Nathan climbed up the last step, holding the door with his other hand. “You shouldn’t be here.”
“I-I was looking for you.” My voice shook.
“Well, you found me.” He raised an eyebrow. “What’d you want?”
“I… wanted to ask you something.”
Nathan didn’t move. Instead, he scanned my face as if he was looking for some explanation as to why I was searching for him. I lowered my gaze.
“You don’t need to be afraid of me, Karina,” he spoke in a hushed tone.
“Huh?” Glancing back up at him, I caught a smirk tug at the corner of his lips.
“Your wide pupils, inability to speak normally. Plus, I can feel your heart rate.”
My eyes followed his, down to my wrist. I pulled away, crossing my arms over my chest. How could he realize my feelings before I could? “I should go. You’re busy.”
He nodded, flashing that carefree smile he’d given me since I arrived. “Once I’m done here, I’ll come find you.”
“Take your time.” I took a step back, watching as the door closed, separating us.
