Submitting to My Best Friend's Dad by Scarlett Rossi
Chapter 215 -

Весса.

"I wish I knew what was wrong," I muttered, staring Madeline down, who was still a bit concerned. She'd just put the kids to bed and was heading that way herself. She'd come to check on me after I'd gotten sick.

"I do too, darling," Madeline said softly. "Best to get some sleep, alright? James got in a few minutes ago. I told him you went to the bathroom because you weren't feeling well. Get one of the cooks to make you some soup if you think that will help."

I smiled at her, wishing soup would fix whatever was going on. "Thanks, Madeline," I said softly. She went off to her room. We would get paperwork situated tomorrow, and all, but for now, I needed to take her advice.

I wandered off into my bedroom, where James was getting ready for bed. He looked up from his book and gave a concerned smile. "Becca? Are you doing alright, baby?" He hesitantly approached me, and I nodded, opening my arms for a

hug.

Said hug was light and cautious, which was understandable, but something that still made my heart lurch a bit. I hated how whatever was going on may keep us apart a bit. I said, "Hopefully just a stomach bug. I threw up, but I feel okay now." My stomach twisted and turned, but not as bad as before. I just couldn't pinpoint what it could be. James said, "Hopefully not food poisoning. Go ahead and lay down, I can take care of you tomorrow if you need me to." I smiled at his offer, then nodded.

Climbing into bed, I let out a melancholic sigh. James went to the bathroom for a shower before bed, then joined me. I said to him, "Dahlia said 'mama' today. Made my heart sing. I got sick shortly after that, but still."

James beamed at me, reaching over to rub my shoulder. My body relaxed, and he said, "That's wonderful, Becca. She's growing up fast, isn't she?" I nodded, and after a pause, James asked, "Would you like a massage? A gentle one, before bed."

"Yes please, as long as there isn't any pressure on my stomach," I replied in a whisper. James obliged, placing his hands on my shoulders and working downward. That felt so wonderful, and soon enough, my eyelids began to droop. I sat there for a few minutes more, but then shifted to a lying position. Bidding James a big thank you, and goodnight, I let myself drift off to sleep. I could ignore my stomach pains for a while, thankfully, but that didn't last long. My eyes opened, woken up by just how queasy I was. After a groan, my hands encircled my stomach, and those horrible feelings were back all over again. I rolled out of bed and made my way to the bathroom, just in time once again to throw up.

Holding my forehead, I let out a sigh, cleaning up and returning to bed. This was so frustrating, I had no idea why I was dealing with this nonsense. I was shaking a bit as I lay there, as getting sick was never pleasant. BANG!

I jumped, putting my hands over my mouth as I realized a noise came from downstairs. James jolted awake, sitting up, rubbing his eyes, and looking with alarm toward the door. "What the hell was that?!" he growled, getting to his feet and stumbling a bit.

He'd been woken up from deep sleep, no doubt, and was confused. "I don't know," I replied, my tone dripping with confusion and fear. I swallowed, staring toward the door and wondering if we should go down and check or lock it. James grabbed his phone, contacting security and trying to figure out what was going on. A minute later, he said, "They're checking out something in the backyard, but I want to check for myself."

He walked over to his gun vault and entered the code, opening it to grab his handgun. Then, he said, "Stay here, I'm going to go check for myself what's going on." I nodded, swallowing and staring at the wall in concern as James left for downstairs.

I should stay put, but I wanted to know what was going on. The anticipation was killing me, and I sincerely didn't want to just sit here and wait. Maybe I should close the bedroom door and lock it, or go check on the kid, but my morbid curiosity got the better of me.

Walking out of the bedroom and through the rest of the family compound, I kept my eyes peeled. Something was happening in the kitchen downstairs, I realized. There was a lot of banging and slamming, for what reason, I had no idea. At the moment, I felt as though I was in a horror movie. I reached the parlor and looked around for something I may be able to use to help. The kids could be in danger, especially if whatever happened got past security.

By the sound of James on the phone, they had no idea what was going on. Their focus was on the backyard, yet there was a commotion in the kitchen. If there were multiple people currently trying to hurt us, I needed to make sure the children were okay.

I heard shouting from the kitchen. James's voice. "F*CK OFF! GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE! I'M NOT AFRAID TO SHOOT!" BANG! The scream of a male from the other room nearly had me jumping out of my skin. Thankfully, I could tell it wasn't James.

Tears of anxiety began to streak down my cheeks, but I stayed focused. I'd need a weapon too, to defend the kids in case there was something going on. At this point, I was running on adrenaline. There was a poker by the fireplace, something that would be good enough.

That in hand, I made my way toward the kids' bedroom, nearly slamming into someone on my way there. Instinctively, I made to stab forward with the poker but stopped at the last second as the tip landed on Madeline's chest. She had yelped midway through my attack.

"Madeline!" I breathed, my heart pounding in my ears. I'd forgotten she'd agreed to spend the night. I was expecting her to start later in the week, but then I'd gotten sick. "I'm sorry. I wanted to come check on the kids, I don't know what's going on, but it's big. Someone or many people got past security, James is in the kitchen looking into it, there's commotion in the backyard, too..."

"It's alright, darling," Madeline said, her voice dripping with fear. She spoke in a whisper, her eyes wide. That was all I could tell about her right now, it was so dark. I should have turned the light on, but in my panic, I forgot. Thankfully, I recognized her voice.

"Go back to your bedroom, I don't want you in danger. I'll make sure the kids are safe," I said, also not wanting her to get in the way in case I needed to take drastic measures. I'd feel terrible if she were hurt, too.

She obliged my request, scurrying off to go hide in her room. From there, I reached the kids' bedroom, flicking the light on and peering inside. All was well. Dahlia was sitting up and looking around in confusion. When Alessandro saw me, he waved. "Mama!"

"Sorry," I said to them, giving them a smile. "Mommy's here, it's okay." Hearing another bang, I jumped, and Dahlia began to cry a bit. I put the poker to the side for a moment, rushing over to my daughter and picking her up out of her crib. I began to rock her in my arms, cooing softly and wiggling my finger in front of her face. "It'll be alright," I whispered, leaning down to plant a soft kiss on her forehead. She sniffled and began to calm down, though I could tell she was freaked out.

After a few minutes of silence, I put her back into her crib and went to check on Alessandro. The little boy was frightened, too, and was clutching his blanket as though it was his lifeline. He calmed down after a hug and some soft words from

me.

When the children were situated, I locked and closed the nursery door and began patrolling down the hallway, poker in hand. There was still commotion in the kitchen, of what, I didn't know. A feeling of dread overcame me as I swallowed, feeling my stomach lurch yet again.

This was no time for my mysterious sickness to act up. I kept telling myself the kids were safe and that James would take care of whatever was going on in the kitchen. That said, the hairs on the back of my neck began to stand up. Someone was watching me.

I was certain of it. I refused to stray far from the kids' room. They were vulnerable, and I would rather die than have them hurt or in danger. I narrowed my eyes, feeling along the wall for the light switch. I flicked it on, but nothing happened. Part of the compound's power had been messed with. Either that or the lights in this area had been put out. I bit my lip, unhappy with either possibility. This was really starting to feel like a horror movie.

"OUCH!" I screamed suddenly, looking down at the ground. I'd stepped on glass. The sharp bite of pain in my foot told me as much, and I stumbled back, my chest heaving. There was my answer. I looked up, noting the shattered lightbulb as my eyes focused in the dark. Someone was in this area right now.

My heart pounded harder as adrenaline rushed through me. I shook my head, taking a deep breath and telling myself to calm down. The slamming and banging noises continued in the kitchen, along with James shouting at the perpetrator. I couldn't call for his help despite my revelation. He and security were likely all tied up. Security itself was preoccupied with the issue in the backyard, otherwise, they'd be rushing in to help us with whatever was going on.

The pain from the cut on my foot caused me to limp, but I needed to make my way back to the nursery. Something was very wrong, and I needed to be with them. I didn't realize someone would be deeper in the compound, and nor did James. "What the hell is going on?" I whispered to myself, hot tears streaming down my cheeks as my stomach once again lurched. This time it was anxiety, and I wasn't about to start rushing toward the bathroom.

I was slower, but effective, and eventually made it to the door of the nursery. Breathing a sigh of relief, I found the hidden key, unlocked the door, and wrapped my hand around the handle, ready to reassure the kids once again. Unfortunately, I never had a chance to.

Right at that moment, arms wrapped around me from behind.