AUTHOR'S NOTE: ISAAC MARUDAS' NAME WAS CHANGED TO ELIAS TO AVOID IT OVERLAPING WITH ISAAC, CASSIAN'S SECRETARY.
As the awaited time drew near, guests began arriving, and the servants showed where they could rest before the main event began or were taken to the chairman's study. Among those shown to the study was Mr. Dennis Whyte.
"You have such a lovely granddaughter, Chairman," Mr. Whyte said, more wrinkles appearing on his already wrinkled face as he smiled.
"Mhm," Judas hummed, giving a small nod. He didn't look at Mr Whyte, his eyes still on the documents he brought along with him.
"But I can't help but notice that someone is still absent," he said, and Judas looked at him, their eyes met. "Are you certain you have her under control, Chairman Marudas?"
Judas didn't reply immediately, just stared at him. Then, just before the vein could pop on Mr Whyte's forehead, he said, "She will be here. That's a guarantee."
"And.." Mr Whyte probed.
Judas was starting to get annoyed with him, but he was wise enough to rein in his temper.
The Whytes were not as powerful as the Marudas, but they were still a powerful name abroad. Should the corporation pull through with the marriage between Annabelle and Dennis Whyte, they would have gained a strong foothold there as well.
"You will get your answer when she comes," he said after taking a calming breath.
Mr. Whyte looked at him skeptically but ultimately nodded in acceptance. "I will take your word for it," he said and stood up. "I'll leave you to your work. Later, Chairman."
"The servants will show you to your room. Rest until it is time." said Judas.
Once Mr. Whyte was gone, he brows knitted together and he reached for his phone. He scrolled through his contacts, only when he found the one he was looking for and dialed.
He may have spoken with certainty to Mr. Whyte, but he was not sure Annabelle would come. She was still angry after all, he thought.
He listened and listened, but the number never went through, not even the automated voice note. All he got was a beep.
Judas became restless. He stood and left the study in large, hurried strides.
Nothing could go wrong. He had prepared everything starting from the adoption papers and to the contracts to be signed and, finally, the marriage agreement between Annabelle and Dennis Whyte. He couldn't allow anything to fall out of place. Not now. Not ever.
He reached the door to Samantha and Elias' bedroom and saw them exiting the room, dressed, and ready for the evening.
"Is something wrong?" Elias asked upon seeing the deep frown on Judas' face.
"Call your daughter right now," Judas voiced, anger slowly clouding his mind.
"Lilian?" Samantha asked, frowning. "What did…"
"Not her," Judas cut in before she could even ask. "Annabelle. Call her now," he ordered.
The couple shared a look. Not knowing what was going on and seeing Judas' grim expression, they didn't ask, and Samantha reached for her purse, took out her phone, and made the call. But just as it was with Judas, it did not connect.
"I can't reach her, Father. What's the problem…?" Lilian asked but received only a glare from Judas.
He turned to Elias, "Call her," he ordered again.
Elias frowned, not pleased with the way Judas had spoken and looked at his wife as if she had lost all of her value. "Tell me what's going on first." He demanded. "Annabelle is no longer our daughter," Elias said stiffly. "We are not entitled to know her whereabouts at all times."
Judas could feel his frustration growing along with anger. He wanted to hit that foolish son of his, but he couldn't make a scene. Not when there were already guests present.
So, he bit back the words that he was originally going to say. "Mr. Whyte is here, and he wants to see her before anything else." He said.
"Annabelle's new fiancé is here?" The question didn't come from Elias or Samantha, but from behind Judas.
He turned and found Lilian walking hand in hand with Julian.
"Good evening, grandfather," Lilian greeted after receiving a glare from Judas.
"Good evening, Chairman," Julian greeted, giving a polite bow to the couple.
"We didn't mean to eavesdrop, grandfather. Julian and I were just passing by here when we heard that Annabelle's fiancé is here," Lilian explained but Judas only released a breath and walked away. "Mother…"
"Don't mind your grandfather, he is just stressed because Annabelle has yet to come back even after so long and Mr Whyte is waiting for her," Samantha said, stepping forward as she took Lilian's hand in hers. "Don't worry about it. Your father and I will take care of it."
She looked at Julian and smiled. "Please keep her company, we will join you soon, we can all head out together."
"Yes, of course, Mrs Marudas," Julian said, returning her smile and then led Lilian away.
"What should we do, Elias?" Samantha immediately turned to her husband. "Annabelle might not come here. She hasn't been herself recently and today's party is meant to tell everyone that…"
"I know that," Elias said, cutting her mid-sentence. "Let's just try to get in touch with her," he added.
Time continued to tick by, every second felt like an hour to the older members of the Marudas. Their eyes, always glancing at the front door whenever someone walks in.
The night had grown cold and the party was already in full swing but there was still no Annabelle. Occasionally, Judas' eyes would meet those of Mr. Whyte and he would look away immediately pretending they never locked eyes.
"We need a distraction," Samantha whispered to her husband.
"What distraction? Every guest is already here," he whispered back.
"All except one," Samantha said and Elias frowned. "Mr. Quinn of Colossus," she added.
Elias only stared at his wife, almost arching an eyebrow at her.
"He would make a perfect distraction should he come…" she continued and Elias nearly lost it.
"Have you suddenly lost your mind?" He chided, trying to keep his voice as low as possible.
Just like him, she knew it was easier to have Annabelle walking through that door than it was to get Mr Quinn to think of attending a banquet hosted by his rivals.
"Find a way to contact Annabelle and get her here, else father would lose his mind…" Elias said but his words fell short as the door to the main entrance opened.