My Father's Friend
My Father’s Friend – Chapter 40

Should she leave with her father? Well, their marriage was only a contract and nothing more. Her father told her that, once it was over, she would be free to stay married to Cauther, but was that what she really wanted? To leave him? What about all those times the two of them were together?

-Come on, Casey, you need to get some rest,” her father squeezes her hand.

-Father, I…” She says without taking her eyes off Cauther.

-It’s not a real marriage, I’m sure my lawyers can sort out the divorce in a matter of days.

-But…

-Daughter, Cauther is not for you.

The man leads his daughter to his car, but she’s still staring at Cauther, who hadn’t noticed her leaving. Casey bites her lips feeling bad, something wasn’t right, it wasn’t right for her to leave without saying goodbye to Cauther, or thanking him for saving her life.

Suddenly she saw herself inside her dad’s car and seconds later they were driving away from the airport…

Cauther was aware of everything, from when Rafael dragged his daughter to the car, to when she stopped, to when he put her in the car and they drove away. For a moment he felt some excitement as soon as Casey stopped, he thought she would stay with him, but the reality was different.

As soon as his arm was bandaged, Cauther retraced his steps to the sports car. Once inside, he let out his breath.

-It was just a damn contract, nothing that happened was real,” she started the car. Well, at least for her.

[…]

Santino opened the door of a huge mansion into which all the girls entered dead from cold, fear and hunger. After the fire, the man told them that he would take them to a safe place before they returned to their families. The girls reluctantly agreed to go with him, but luckily they found a van where they were all crammed together.

As soon as they arrived at the mansion, the girls felt afraid, as they stepped out of one prison and thought they were entering another.

-There aren’t many women’s clothes in this house, so you can have whatever you can replace until I get you something more decent than what you’re wearing,” Santino left them to pretend to leave.

-Wait,” Serena calls after him. Where’s Casey?

-She’ll be fine, there’s food in the kitchen.

-Whose house is this? -Erika asks. Why have you brought us to this place?

-Stay here, don’t go out. I’ll be back soon.

-Hey!” Erika insists, but Serena’s hand stops her.

The blonde watches her with a frown. The door to the house closes and the girls look at each other.

-What do we do now? Are we leaving? -Lucilda asks.

-We should go.

-Let’s stay, I’m sure we’ll be fine in this house.

Serena tells them all and tries to reassure them, she was more or less suspicious of whose house it was. And if she was right, they were all very safe. The only thing the brunette was worried about was Casey, she hoped she was alright.

-And what do you propose Serena? I don’t think we’re very safe in this house, we’re coming out of one lockdown and into another,” the blonde objected.

-Eat, shower and get some sleep. This house is big enough for all of us to be comfortable.

-Fine, but if we get subdued again, it’s all your fault.

All the girls set out to replace the kitchen to get something to eat, as there was no one in the mansion they had to look after themselves. Serena stared at the door, she was so worried about Casey.

-Move Serena, waiting there for the new girl won’t make her come back any faster.

[…]

Cauther got out of his car and immediately spotted Santino who was sitting on the hood of his car.

-So, how did it go with that thing?

-She’ll be fine…” He stops long before he reaches his car.

-It looks like it didn’t go so well for you,” he points to his arm.

-It’s nothing.

-The man gets out of the car. The girls are in one of your mansions, I’ll bring them some clothes later. Do you need anything? That’s what I came for.

-No. Just help those girls and take them home.

Cauther’s right hand man watches him for a moment, then nods and gets into his car. He rolls down the window to look at his boss.

-Call me if you need anything.

And with those words he drives off, Cauther looks at the car and then at his driveway. Knowing it was going to be lonely in there. He thought about Casey, he hoped she would at least say goodbye, but even that he couldn’t do.

[…]

As soon as he spotted the entrance to his father’s house, Casey felt a horrible tightness in his chest. Something wasn’t right, nothing that was happening was right…no longer, as she walked through the front door of the mansion, did she wish she was somewhere else.

-I’ll talk to my lawyers tomorrow so they can expedite the divorce and get you out of it.

But Casey doesn’t answer, she just flattens her lips as she looks around. His dad’s house was different from Cauther’s.

-Why don’t you go upstairs and get some rest,” her father tries to cheer her up a bit.

She obeys and climbs up each step as if asking every foot for permission to do so. The shudder that had settled in her heart was bothering her and wouldn’t let her think, let alone speak.

When she saw her bedroom, she immediately looked at the room of the old Casey. The one who wasn’t married… She sat on the bed and didn’t feel it like before. She felt the sheet with her hand and it was not the same as when she touched Cauther’s.

The young woman let out a sigh…

-Damn it,” She laid her body completely flat on the bed.

In the morning Casey woke up a little late, and was awakened by a knock on her door. She looked at the clock on her nightstand noticing that it was indeed late. She stung her eyes as she heard her father’s voice behind the door.

-Daughter, are you awake?

-Yes, father.

As soon as Rafael enters his daughter’s bedroom, he does so with a huge smile on his lips. She stands up to grab her dressing gown.

-I have good news, my lawyers can annul the marriage today. Everything will be ready by this afternoon.” She opens her eyes, looking at her father with surprise.

-And what does Cauther think about that?

-He will agree, my daughter. Don’t worry about that.

Would he agree to divorce her, those questions were tormenting her so much that she wished she could see Cauther long before she had to meet him to sign.

-Get ready, the lawyers will be in the office in an hour.

The young woman swallows and feels again that pressure in her chest so irritating and, annoyingly…

[…]

The sun that afternoon was a little hot, Cauther got out of his car and adjusted his suit to head inside the building. He decided not to park the car in the car park, as what he would do would be quite fast. For that reason he left his car in front of the company.

Walking straight to the boardroom, Cauther didn’t look anywhere even though he knew all eyes were on him… with a neutral expression, he entered the room which was packed with lawyers, but the only person he looked at that moment was her.

Casey was sitting in one of the chairs, surrounded by many guys in suits, and next to her was Rafael.

-Cauther! -The man stands up to shake her hand. -All right?

-Let’s get this over with, Rafael,” she answers him seriously.

-Of course, everything is ready. All you have to do is sign.

The CEO looks up and looks at Casey, who hadn’t looked at him for a moment. So she had made up her mind about what she was going to do. So she shouldn’t have to hesitate, he was a successful businessman, he hadn’t amassed a fortune because he didn’t know how to make deals. This was no time to hesitate.

-Casey, my daughter… Come on, sign your part.

The lawyer hands her a document that she has already had time to read, gives her a pen to write her name on the paper. She blinked repeatedly at the document in front of her, knowing that Cauther’s eyes were on her. And she was the only one he cared about at the moment.

She swallows as she takes the pen in trembling hands, flattens her lips just as she places the tip of the pen on the paper. A small droplet of ink is captured on the document, causing her to grip the thin metal.