The Royal Contract

She felt torn between being happy to see Marcus and Jacky, to being anxious about her situation. She would have appreciated it if Mike had given a heads-up, but her friend seemed to be in radio silence. She had not heard from him for a while, which was odd.

She wondered what was happening with him and why her brother suddenly showed up with his pregnant wife. She could only conclude that something was not adding up.

"Trixie, did Mike call you this morning?" Haley inquired as soon as her assistant entered her room.

She thought maybe he called, but she was too busy to notice, and her assistant took the call and forgot to tell her about it.

She had checked her phone on her hand, but upon scanning her phone log, she did not find any unanswered calls. Or any calls coming from Mike, for that matter.

"No, I don't think so," Trixie answered, shrugging her shoulders as she walked further into the room, closing some windows since the breeze could turn chilly at sundown and nightfall.

But she asked her to keep at least two open because she loved the fresh wind coming from the sea. And she also enjoyed hearing the waves as they crashed on the sandy shore.

She remembered counting the splashes as she closed her eyes at night and lingered in a daze until darkness overtook her consciousness. Then, she could not wait for the dream to take over.

"Oh, alright." She guessed Mike must be busy with something else since he could not bother to check on her. However, she still felt something strange about it.

Then, she recalled Jacky was about to tell her something, but her brother had interrupted their conversation. Then, she lost the opportunity as her brother took her away.

Maybe later, when they met for dinner, Jacky could finally tell her whatever she failed to say. And honestly, it had piqued his interest.

"Anyway, Trixie..." She paused, waiting for her assistant to stop whatever it was, and turned to face her.

"What?" Her assistant asked when she withheld her question while formulating her question. Then, she lifted her hand, beckoning her to come closer with her finger.

She did not want to speak loudly, not wanting anyone to eavesdrop on their conversation. Anyone could suddenly walk into her office and overhear what she had to say.

"Come closer." She told her when her assistant still kept her distance.

"What is it?" Trixie finally moved closer, appearing curious, with her eyes narrowing at her. She leaned down so she did not need to stretch too much to reach her.

"I heard that the resort is for sale. Have you heard anything about that?" She asked her assistant, thinking she might have heard something from the grapevine but forgot to mention it.

Sometimes, her assistant heard gossip circulating on the island or at the resort, and she would usually share it with her.

She ordinarily listened with one ear, not particularly interested in her stories since, most of the time, she hardly understood half of what she was talking about.

"Oh, I didn't." Trixie appeared to look genuinely surprised as she thought about what she said.

She guessed the negotiation had been hush-hush. Nobody knew about the sale of the resort. Until now, she still wondered who the resort owner was since she had only met with Mike, the contractors, workers, and the staff at the hotel.

He had never bothered to visit the resort since she had arrived on the island, at least to her knowledge. She only knew him by name, but it never rang a bell.

"Are you saying the resort is for sale?" Her assistant repeated as if she could not believe it herself.

She guessed nothing went by on this island that no one knew about it. Rumors spread in this tiny place like wildfire. Well, that was her observation.

It was a small island with a few populations. Therefore, what would she expect? The only people who added to the number of people in this place were the few tourists.

"That is what I heard," Haley whispered to her assistant. "Can you find out something about that?" She asked, wondering if Trixie would have better luck gathering more information.

She could not believe it was a coincidence that Mike hid her here for her safety. Then, suddenly, her brother was there, buying the place for their friends.

She felt something was missing in the picture. She had no proof, but she could feel it in her guts. There was something they did not want her to know.

At least her brother, since Jacky seemed conflicted about it. One thing she liked about her sister-in-law was her honesty.

"But, you can't tell anyone about it. Not yet. It should be our secret for now." She did not want to mess up with her brother's business.

She still believed there was a tiny possibility that she might be wrong about her assumption. Marcus and his business partners might be on this for a legitimate business venture.

She did not want to ruin their plans and let them lose millions just because she had a hunch. That would just be selfish and irresponsible.

"Please. It is our little secret." She begged her assistant, knowing how quick her mouth was in sharing information.

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Still, she trusted that her assistant would hold her tongue for her. Trixie would not breathe a word of this to anyone, for now.

"Ok. I promise." The woman who had worked for her since she came here agreed with her plan. "I will be discreet and not tell anyone, but I will try to snoop around for information."

She could only assume that her assistant understood her instructions. Now, she just had to wait to determine what Trixie would discover.

"Do you need anything else?" Trixie asked as she moved toward the door.

"No. I am dining out with my friends." She told her assistant.

She had already booked a private area in the newly opened restaurant on the east wing side. Of course, she wanted to have some privacy with her friends.

Besides, she had avoided staying too long in public places for fear that someone might recognize her and blow her cover.

"That is good," Trixie said. "You should go out with friends more. It will be good for you and the baby."

She watched her assistant disappear behind the door, probably already on the way to dig around about the sale.

She knew she would like her assistant from the moment she met her. She was intelligent, diligent, and proactive about her job. But there was another side of her that she liked even more, her free spirit.

"I do miss my life." She mentally spoke to herself. She missed her friends, her work, and the people at her office.

Sadly, as much as she wished to see her father, she knew he was not the father that was waiting for her back home.

She loved the man that showed her how to ride her bike. She missed the first person who believed in her talent and helped her hone it.

"But Alfred is not my father anymore." She whispered disappointingly to herself.

She hardly knew the man who had given her life and raised her to adulthood, making her what she was today.

Or did she know him at all? Was he pretending to be a good man all her life? All the while, his father was living a double life, opposite of what she had witnessed throughout her life.

"Mom, I miss you." Suddenly, she could not stop longing for her mother, feeling the gloominess of facing her future alone.

Yes, her brother was there to protect her. She knew he would stay by her side, with no question asked, as long as she needed him.

Nonetheless, she understood he was also building his family. She could not keep dragging him into her messy life, especially when her brother had kept his distance from their father.

"Now, I understand why Marcus stayed away." She thought that her brother was just proud, but he guessed he saw through their father and his evil ways.

She knew he tried to warn her about him. Their father would try to control her life, but she did not see it coming. She did not listen to him, believing that their father needed her.

Now, she had to learn how manipulative and controlling her father was the hard way. Luckily, she escaped his clutches. She could only dread what he would do to her and her baby.

"Thank your Uncle Mike." She whispered to her baby as her fingers gently massaged her belly on top of her loose dress. "He saved us from your grandfather."

"But I know your father will not let anything happen to us if only..." She would like to say alive, but the tears choked down her words as she thought about him.

She missed him terribly. And she would give anything to have him again, alive, raising their child together. But that was a dream, requiring more than a miracle to become real.

Maybe she should start scouring the shorelines for an empty sealed bottle drifting on the waters. She hoped to find a genie that would suddenly appear when she cleaned and rubbed the glass down.

"Then, the genie will grant me three wishes." She spoke so gently to her unborn child that she barely heard herself as tears still dropped from her eyes.

However, she believed she only needed one favor from the magical creature in the bottle. She would wish for Gerald to come back to life.