Sarima's POV
Waking up to gunshots isn't a new thing to me. In the home of the Vixens, it is a daily routine. I'm finally beginning to adjust to my family's crazy norms and actions early in the mornings and late at night.
I thought the reason I was adopted was probably because they didn't have a child but surprisingly, they had three boys waiting at the door when we arrived and I was adopted because my mom was craving a daughter and she didn't want to go through labour stress again.
Growing older, I realized that the reason my father accepted me in the first place was because he needed an exchange material when the time comes and now the time has come. Sitting on my queen sized bed, I stare at the thorn bangle, sticking out of a letter..."This guy is crazy" I say as I stand up and throw the letter and the bangle in my waste bin. He's been doing it for two years now and he has no plans of stopping it. "Infact how does he keep sneaking in and out of the master property, the most guarded place in this manor" I sigh as I walk into my bathroom....I'm to prepare for a dinner to sign me off to a man I know nothing about while I have a stalker who has killed eight of those I was meant to marry. I don't know if it's ignorance or my Father's hastiness to sell me off to make a done deal, that no one has really put into consideration the evil that happened to the other men.
I take my bath hastily and I get into my black dinner dress, do some makeup, dress my hair and get into my parents Mercedes Benz v car. normally I would have driven in my own car to the place but my father gave me a stern warning that I should always follow them in their car on days like these to make the other families think we're one lovey dovey family. And now I'm sitted facing my parents, waiting for their usual courtesy advice for when we arrive. "Sarima!" my dad calls....."yes dad" I reply "We're going to have dinner at the Houston's and I expect that you behave..... ladylike....at least for the meantime until u're married and this deal gets sealed" I look at him with slight hurt but I'm already used to this so I just nod and look out the window and soon we arrive at the huge compound.
"it looks so white on the outside and in the inside" I murmur to myself as we walk in and the butler leads us to a sparkling white dinning room, with a custom, intricately carved white dinner table underneath a large white chandelier. "Mr Vixen..... welcome to our abode" Mr Houston says as he shakes hands with my dad. "The pleasure is ours Mr Houston" dad replies with a fake smile which serves as a reminder that I should keep a smiling face. "Please have a seat" Mrs Vixen says as she signals the line of staff to draw out the seat for us. We seat down and almost immediately they start talking about the merging of the company profits and slowly enter into the venue of my wedding.
"Kendra" Mrs Houston calls with a smile and an elderly lady walks forward and leans down at her. "Serve the dishes" Mrs Houston tells her and Kendra walks out of a door that surprisingly I'm just noticing is at the far end of the room. "so....." Mrs Houston points lazily at me . "Sarima" I reply."I heard that You're in the third year in your uni, almost graduating....would you have the time, you know, for all these marriage plans and the rest" Mrs Houston says and looks at me like as though she's waiting for me to drop dead before I say I do on the wedding day. "She'll handle everything effectively, I mean, afterall she's a Vixen and we Vixens handle any hard task we see as we live this life of ours" Mum backs me up and stares directly into her eyes then Mrs Houston turns her attention to her and I breathe out that sigh I've been unconsciously holding.
I could feel the tension in the room...it was that of business, corporation and hate. I just feel used, like the ram that it's master has been fattening just to slaughter it and now I'm at the slaughter stage. The line of servants begins to serve the dishes and creatively, they all have masks on like there is a theme for the dinner. I turn and look at the guy I'm supposed to be marrying, the one who hasn't said anything and is normally supposed to be toasting me indirectly but.....he's already staring at me????...*Echhhh Echhhh* i choke on my spit and one of the servants holds out a glass of water for me. I stretch my hand to take it from his hand but I freeze.....my brain thinking in different directions and going haywire just because of that spicy cologne....HIS COLOGNE..... before I know it, the glass of water falls to the floor and smashes.
Everyone turns and looks at me as I jerk out of my trans and get up from my seat. The servant goes out of the room, I guess to bring a brush and a dust pan but that cologne.....the one I've perceived for two years now, I can never mistake it for any other cologne...a cologne that has dominated my room because of an unseen presence. He's here and he'll wipe them out this night after dinner or tomorrow, but he will. The servant comes back and begins to sweep the glass pieces out. I look down at the servant and almost as if he was waiting for me to do so, he raises his head and stares at me like his eyes could eat me up there. I try to talk but my mouth goes mute out of shock then he smirks.