The senator pinched his forehead, gritting his teeth.
"Send him in." He dropped the intercom.
A few seconds later, the doorknob turned and it was pushed open by one of the senator's security guards in front of his door.
A middle-aged stout man, with silver-grey hair and neatly trimd beard made his way into the office, a captivating smile lining his mature face.
"Gregory!"
"Hey, Van!" The senator stood up, extending his right hand forward, forcing a smile. "It has been a while."
"Precisely, a month and a few days since after my goddaughter's last marriage."
"That long, huh!"
They both shook hands warmly, laughing before they took their seats opposite each other.
"When did you co into town?" The senator asked, dialling his secretary again and ordering her to get his guest so snacks and drink.
"About three days ago."
"Yet you didn't bother to check up on ." The senator accused.
"It's not like that Greg. I've been very busy."
"Aren't we all?"
Van chuckled. "You rember that contract I was biding for?"
"The second bridge contract project?"
"The sa one." Van confird.
"What about it? Don't tell it was finally awarded to you after everything." Senator Gregory's eyes lit up with excitent.
"I got it."
"Wow! Congratulations brother. This is good news." The senator clasped his hands joyfully.
"Thanks. But that is not the reason why I ca here. I'm not happy, Greg." Van sat up, leaning his hands on the well-polished mahogany table.
"Please don't tell is about, Alia." A crease lined Greg's forehead.
"It has got everything to do with her. What is happening, brother? I haven't even gotten over the shock that the person I saw getting married to Jerry was Gwen. Neither have I gotten over her divorce and now she's married to Blaze Anderson. Tell what is happening in your ho." Van demanded, his expression stern and void of humour.
Senator Gregory let out a long and depressing sigh, lowering his face and massaging his aching forehead.
"Is it that bad?" Van was troubled to see his friend acting all hopeless all of a sudden, the wrinkles on his face, making him look ten years older.
"Everything is falling apart Van." The senator tried to hold his emotions together even though it felt like a boulder hanging around his neck. "My family is falling apart and I feel completely at a loss."
The door was pushed open and the secretary walked in, holding a tray of snacks, a bottle of red wine and two glasses. She dropped this on the desk and was about to serve the wine. But Van stopped her, asking her to excuse them.
When the secretary closed the door behind her, the senator continued with his heartbreaking story.
"Everyone is out there congratulating for my first daughter's marriage to a man I do not approve of and I can't say a damn thing about it because I don't want to ruin her image."
"Wait a minute? You are not aware of the marriage?" Van was stunned.
"No! I didn't know she remarried, neither did I get the chance to hand her over to her new husband. I was left completely in the dark about everything until she had already done it."
"My goodness! My goddaughter did that to you?"
"That is not the most painful part. If Alia had chosen any other man in this entire world aside from that ruthless son of Presley Anderson, I wouldn't have been this upset. I would have even given her my blessing to carry on. But the man she chose is bad news. You won't believe he ca down to my own house during a my surprise birthday party had , my wife, my brother and even son-in-law beaten and shot."
"What!" Van blinked twice, not believing what his ears were hearing. "Impossible!"
"Believe it alright. I've been bedridden for days after that trauma. If it hadn't been for my wife and Matt, I don't know what would have happened to . And to think my beloved daughter brought all of this injustice to my ho is breaking my heart apart."
Van leaned back on his chair, his face a little pale from shock and his interwoven hands resting on his chest.
"Have you made any arrest or taken this young man to court for assault?" Van asked after a brief mont of silence.
"I wanted to but Matt thinks taking the matter to court would impact negatively on our family image since Alia is involved. He promised to handle it his own way."
"No!" Van shook his head. "I think taking the matter up with the law enforcent agency is the best. Adopting other ans might spiral into sothing ugly."
"How ugly can it get when that psychopath has already taken my daughter from and turned her against her family." Senator Gregory banged his clenched fist on his desk in frustration. "That young man has crossed every line by poisoning Alia's heart against her family. You won't believe Alia watched this monster torture her youngest sister and Jerry, making them spend a horrific night behind bars for a cri they did they did not commit."
"She did what!" Van's jaws dropped.
"Now you are beginning to understand my pain. Alia is the only key to my happiness. The only reason I recovered after Fiona's death was because of her. And now, this psychopath dares to steal my princess, making a caricature of my family." The senator stood up, clenching and unclenching his fist as he walked to his floor-to-ceiling window.
"I will destroy him. I will make him pay for this insult and I will take my daughter back, no matter the consequences." Senator Gregory vowed.
Van stared at his friend's backside in silence, processing everything he had heard. He shook his head after a while.
"No. This is all wrong. This doesn't sound like the Alia I know. Sothing is off sowhere and we need to get to the root of the matter before we take drastic actions. Does Alia still use her old contact?"
"No, why?" The senator turned to look at him.
"I need to speak with her. I believe I can reason with her."
"It's a waste of ti. She won't listen to you. If she can watch that rascal, shoot her uncles, and her ex-husband and almost break her stepmother's neck, including hitting hard on the head and still do nothing, you can't change her mind."
"But I can try." Van insisted.
"Suit yourself." The senator returned to his table and sat down. He picked up his phone and searched for Alia's number. "Here." He gave his phone to Van to copy the number.
"Judith is planning to set up a eting between Alia and at her ho. Maybe you can tag along and help talk so senses into her."
"When?"
"This Saturday, by 4:00 PM."
"I'll be more than happy to accompany you."
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