Alpha Dominic

Dominic's POV

“Do you know who I am, do you know about us?” I asked Graciela as she sat on the couch, feeling weak. She raises her brows in confusion, looking at me curiously.

“What can you tell me about Bethany?” I rephrased my question, looking deep into her eyes, as realization dawned on her. She looks at me suspiciously, I guess she is trying to figure out why I'm asking her about her friend.

“Look here, Graciela, can I call you that, is that your real name?” I asked her in a sarcastic tone, watching as her eyes went as wide as saucers. I guess she wasn't expecting me to call her by her real name. She sat upright in her seat, looking around th room in fear, looking at me with pleading eyes.

“Here's the deal, Graciela, I know the truth already. I've spoken with Bethany, Fiona, and Ciara. You're the only one left. I hav no idea what I'm going to do to you and your sisters, you all deserve to be punished for lying to me, but I'm willing to let it go, I'm willing to sweep all this under the rug, that if you would tell me the truth. Tell me everything about Bethany, I want tc know everything” I told her fiercely, making her shudder in fear.

“Please, my king, spare their lives. It wasn't their fault, I made them come here, they only cane to help me, please spare thei lives." She pleaded pathetically.

“I ain't killing anyone of you, don't you get it?

just need you to tell me all you know about Bethany. Besides, if I wanted to hurt you, I won't lay a finger on you, I'll simply hand you over to Lucas Dorego. That would be a much better punishment, don't you think?” I asked her, making her more scared than she already is. I could see the fear in her eyes, I know she is frightened, my threats were working on her, but she isn't responding the way I want. I guess her loyalty runs deep within her. She wants to save herself but she doesn't want to betray her friend. I don't know if I should admire her courage or give her a smack on the head for being stupid. I kinda admire her courage, it's no wonder that she is friends with Bethany, she is such a loyal friend.

This is going to be an issue, how do I get her to talk if she isn't responding to my threats. I guess I have to try and win her over, I have to make her see that I'm not planning anything funny, she has to see that I want to protect Bethany from danger It’s quite ironic you know. I haven't even won Bethany’s heart yet, now I'm trying to win her friend over. When did I become this weak and spineless king?

“Come on, Graciela, don't make this harder than it already is. Fine, I shouldn't have gone so hard on you, I think we started on the wrong foot, let's try this another way, should we. The thing is, I know all about you and your family but I don't want tc hurt anyone. I don't want to hurt Bethany either, I just want to know everything about her because I'm in love with her. I think she is in trouble too, but she doesn't want me to know. She could be in deep s**t Graciela, she could really need my help. I don't know why she doesn't believe that I want to help.”

“Did you try asking her nicely, or did you try to threaten her also?" She asked sarcastically.

“That's not the point Graciela, just tell me all you know. She could be in more danger than you right now, I think she messed with the wrong people, there is no way for me to know unless you tell me everything I coarse her, urging her to tell me everything.

“Why don't you stop with the comparison already. Bethany is nothing like me. She never uses and she never moves around with the wrong people. I think your suspicion is misplaced, Bethany is not hiding anything from anyone she is just trying to make money from this job She does her job and she stays out of trouble. She has some special fighting skills, I think she least kung-fu or something like that, but that is just to protect her from crazy clients, considering the nature of our job. I've known Bethany for many years now, and she doesn't hide anything from me, well except for her secret phone. That's not even important, Beth is not hiding anything from anyone.” She said with so much conviction.

“Wait, did you say secret phone, have you ever seen her using this secret phone of hers?" I asked curiously as I recalled the night she had shot me. She had dug out a phone from her bag, she was searching for something from her phone, I think she is expecting a message or maybe she is getting orders from someone, I don't really know, but I'm going t find out before the end of the day.

“Thanks, Graciela, you've been of great help. Now let's talk about you. How much do you owe Lucas?" I asked her, surprising her for the second time tonight.

“Yes, I know about Lucas and I know that you're in danger Graciela. You're in more danger than you can ever imagine. So tell me, how much do you owe him?" I asked once more.

“I owed him seven million, but my interest keeps piling up because I'm taking too long to pay. I think it's around ten million now. I've saved up some money, if I get the money you're offering us, I could pay him off the seven million, then he could give me a few months to pay off the interest” She explained calmly. I think she still doesn't know what she got her into. I've heard about these drug lords, I know that nobody ever pays their debt completely because they never stop adding more interest. It would take a miracle to set her free from his hands.

“I can give you twenty million Graciela, but I have to warn you, giving him his complete money does not guarantee that he is going to set you free. You have to outsmart Lucas if you ever want to be set free. He would never set you free unless you break out of his bondage” I told her pointedly.

“How do you mean?" She asked while looking at me in confusion. It's obvious that she has no idea what I'm talking about, she looks lost and confused at the same time.

“Look Graciela, you're a chronic addict. I know that and so does Lucas. When you give that money to him, I'm sure that he would lure you into buying drugs from him, then you get pulled onto his ensconced more, and before you realize what's happening, you're owing him again. Are you ready to give up this addiction before you meet him, can you stay in a room filled with drugs and resist the urge to use?” I asked her.

“I'm never getting out of this, I'm going to die, ain't I2” She let out in a whisper as she sobbed softly.

“Yes Graciela, you're going to die. Get a mirror and take a close look at yourself, you're dying already. As it stands, you have only two options. The first is for you to get cleaned up in the next few days before he starts hurting the people you care about. He told you he was going to hurt your family, right?”

“Yes, he said he'll kill them all" She responded.

“I hope you know that he wasn't joking when he said that. He would come after your family and he'll make you watch while he kills them all. So tell me Graciela, or is it Carol you prefer to be called, can you give up your addiction in the next three days?" I asked smugly, mocking her with the smirk on my face because I'm so sure that she would never be able to break her addiction”

“I can't do it, I need more time, I need to be admitted into a rehabilitation program. I can't do it on my own, I just can't, I've tried it severally, but I wasn't able to. You have to help me, King Dominic, I don't want to die, please help me!" She pleaded with tears flowing down her cheeks.

“That's the problem we both have Graciela, I can't help you, I can't even help myself. I'm also having a bit of a problem with the drug lords. They have an advantage over me, they are being aided by a rival king that seeks my downfall and to top it off he empowered them with weapons that could do severe damage to me and my people. I can't help you, Graciela, I wish to see you through this, but I can't help you because I cannot even help myself. There is only one person that can help us, ther is only one man that can save you from Lucas Dorego and also help me in my war against the drug lords.

Like I said, I can give you the money and I can point you in the right direction. He has refused to see me because my case is too complicated to settle. But I'm sure he would never turn you away. I dont know too much about him, but I know that he never turns his back on helpless women. With his help, you can free yourself from that bastard. He may not ask you for anything in return, but if he does, you must never refuse him because he's is your only hope right now. Trust me, whatever he is going to ask from you would be nothing compared to what Lucas would take from you. But then again, before I help yo with all this, you have to promise never to use it again. You have to promise to check yourself into a rehabilitation facility and you must fight off this addiction and get cleaned. Are you willing to give it a try?" I asked her with a smile, giving her a genuine smile for the first time tonight.

The tears were flowing down her cheeks, I know she needs some time alone to sit down and process all this, so I got up and headed for the door, leaving her to herself. Just before I got to the door, I realized that she had no way of communicating with me to tell me if she has decided on what to do, I pulled out my wallet from my back pocket and I handed her a complimentary card that has my personal number on it. I placed it on the table in front of her,

“You must never lose this card or share my number with anyone, I mean anyone, not even Bethany. I give my number to whomever I choose, and right now, Bethany hasn't earned the right to have this number. I can't you to call me when you make your mind, that is if you chose to follow my instructions. Call me anytime and tell me what you decided, you can leave this Castle whenever you make up your mind, don't forget that you need a few day's headstart to search for him and seek hi help. You can discuss it with your sisters and get their opinions as well, but don't forget, you must never share my number with anyone, especially Bethany, and you must follow all of my instructions if you want to succeed. I you fail to follow my instructions, the deal is off and trust me, you'd never succeed without this guy." I warned her sternly.

“You still don't trust her, do you?"

“I won't trust her until I find out her secrets. I have to know everything she is hiding before I can ever trust her. I have enemies everywhere, they could be using her to get to me. I have to be careful with everyone around me, you can't tell who the enemy might be." I responded with all honesty. For the life of me, I don't even know why I'm trusting her with all this information, but I don't think she would ever betray me. She has no grudges against me, unlike Bethany whose only goal in life is to have my head on a platter of gold.

I left her room and headed down to my office, then I mind linked Carl, Harriet and Dwayne to meet me in my office. It's time to see what Bethany has been up to all these years. I just hope I don't find out something that would force me to do something I'm going to regret later on.