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“But… but…” Belduk said, his grey eyes bulging in his long face. “She’s unmated! That’s far too much wealth to be left in the hands of a female. According to the records, Sana Vrok is days away from her fiftieth birthday. Her birthing years are fleeting. She must be mated and bred in all haste to ensure an heir to this substantial inheritance. Until then, this estate should be kept safe under the jurisdiction of a capable male.”
“And what male would that be?” Doruk asked. “You?”
Belduk licked his thin lips, greed flashing through his eyes. “Well, I’m not asking for the honor, but I most certainly am highly qualified for the role.”
“And next you’ll ask to court her, too, so that her birthing years don’t go to waste?”
Doruk’s voice oozed with sarcasm. In a different setting, that would have been my kind of response.
The notary’s face heated to be so brutally called out on his obvious plans.
Belduk sputtered. “I… I didn’t—”
“I have no time for this,” Doruk interrupted. “Give Sana Vrok the acceptance form to sign. Then proceed to transfer all the assets to her name and funds to her accounts. I want confirmation before we walk out of this office.”
My heart leapt in my chest. I’d feared an uphill battle and for Belduk to throw countless administrative loopholes devised specifically to delay or thwart my ability to take ownership of my inheritance. With Doruk’s demand, I would be free and clear to leave, especially considering his 24-hour ultimatum.
“Before you leave?” Belduk exclaimed, then shook his head. “That is not possible, Sen Sidik. Transactions of this magnitude take days to make sure they are put in the right accounts. There are tax considerations and—”
“Do not take me for an imbecile, Master Belduk,” Doruk spat in a menacing tone. “I’ve been the right hand to Gruuk Vrok—who ran the biggest slave empire in this Quadrant, if not in the entire known universe. I know how quickly large transactions are completed when processed through legal channels. We’ve bought entire fortresses and fleets of interstellar vessels with full ownership transferred within minutes. So, don’t fuck with me. Now bring up that blasted form.”
Despite biting my cheeks, I miserably failed at hiding my smirk. Belduk glared at both of us in turn and mumbled something under his breath. He tapped a few instructions on his datapad before placing it on the desk in front of me. Doruk reached for the tablet at the same time I did, and snagged it while giving me the ‘hands off’ look. I clasped my hands on my lap, reminding myself to calm down. This would all be over soon enough.
Doruk flipped through the pages of the acceptance form, then demanded to have the appendices it referred to also made available for his review. A smart request, considering the appendices contained the exhaustive list of the assets. Belduk could have kept some items off the list. However, everything turned out to be in order. Despite his greed, the notary had a successful practice that he would be foolish to jeopardize over an attempted con job.
Doruk extended the datapad to me, and I pressed my thumb on the signature box. In spite of his obvious displeasure, Belduk took it from me and proceeded to execute the transfer. It turned out to be the longest hour of my life, where I simply sat in silence, utterly ignored by the two males. However much of a sick bastard Doruk happened to be, my father had chosen well by appointing him as my guardian. He triple-checked every single transaction completed, ensuring I had full ownership, free and clear of any type of hold or claim. No further action would be required on my part to access the assets. Thanks to my father’s foresight, aside from our family’s estate on Guldar, his entire holdings had been placed in intergalactic banks and, therefore, outside of Guldan jurisdiction. Once under my name, Belduk couldn’t revert anything without filing a case with the Financial Court of the Galactic Council.
By the time it was finally over, Belduk no longer made any effort to hide his displeasure. He was as happy to see the back of us as we were to leave his office. On our way to the elevator, Doruk commed the valet to have his hovercar brought out front. It pulled up at the same time we reached the entrance. My guardian’s firm grip on my upper-arm made it clear he wasn’t ready for us to part ways just yet.
The passenger door of the bullet-shaped, silver-colored vehicle slid open. Still holding my arm, Doruk led me to it and, for a second, a sliver of fear coursed through me. Had he been so thorough ensuring I had full ownership of the estate so that he could coerce me into yielding it to him? As my guardian, he fell under the unwritten rule that he couldn’t take me as his mate to prevent abusive appropriation of the ward’s assets. But that rule had been broken a few times before. With him being barely a little over fifteen years my elder, and with significant wealth of his own, he would be deemed a suitable husband.
I entered the vehicle, the door closing almost instantly behind me, and waited for Doruk to get in behind the driver’s seat.
“Destination Vrok Estate,” Doruk said to the vehicle’s artificial intelligence as soon as his door closed.
I breathed a sigh of relief; he wasn’t abducting me to some forsaken place.
“Acknowledged,” the A.I. said.
Our seatbelts automatically wrapped around us and the vehicle lifted off, ascending about fifty meters vertically before flying towards my father’s home on autopilot.
The silence hung heavy between us. I didn’t mind it, not wanting to form any kind of bond with this man. He stared ahead, brooding. My own mind sorted through all that I had to handle before my departure.
The hovercar slowed down as it pulled up to the landing pad of the estate, drawing me out of my musings. I turned to Doruk, who continued to stare ahead. What I wouldn’t give to know what thoughts occupied his mind right now.
“Thank you for everything,” I said, the words somewhat scorching my tongue.
“I didn’t do it for you,” he snarled with a sideways glance.
Oh well, I tried.
I shrugged. “Thanks, anyway.”
The hovercar stopped, and this time, Doruk fully turned towards me, his green eyes boring into me with a cold, hard glint.
“Be gone from my planet by sunrise. And heed my warning well, Ravena Vrok. See that our paths never cross again, for it is not your father’s friend you will meet.”
He waved his hand in front of the control panel of the vehicle and my door slid open.
