Lennox's Point of View...
"Where in the hell is she?" I cursed as I paced back and forth in a fury.
"Sir, her phone is off, and Jo hasn't returned to her dorm room. She wasn't observed attending her classes yesterday either," Wesley stated grimly.
"Do you think she's gone off the grid again to protest, or has something happened to Jo?" I asked the head of my security detail.
"Honestly, sir, I'd be more inclined to think it relates to a protest. A small group of students was removed earlier today from the latest development area, and Jo was quite vocal with you about her disapproval of that land being developed. She wasn't part of the group detained by the company's security, but that doesn't mean your daughter wasn't there," Wesley responded.
"When will that girl learn?" I groaned, pinching the bridge of my nose.
My adopted daughter was my greatest joy but also the bane of my existence.
"Send a team to check the area and ensure that her phone continues being monitored. When my daughter turns on her device, we can determine her location. If this is related to another protest, Jo will be punished accordingly. But, to ensure there have been no accidents or nefarious incidents in the last twenty-four hours, please check in with our local law enforcement. We haven't received any ransom demands, so I doubt anyone has taken her to get to me," I said.
"Right away, Sir," Wesley answered, quickly leaving the room to follow my orders.
Wesley was a loyal, competent employee. Indeed, he would find Jo and bring her to me to be dealt with accordingly.
But how would I punish her this time if she had done something wrong?
It was becoming more difficult to punish my daughter. Jo had learned the hard way that it would not just be she who was punished for her mistakes. Reputations were ruined, jobs lost, relationships destroyed, injuries inflicted, and properties ruined beyond repair. It depended on the infraction and its cost as to who would suffer the consequences of her actions and how. Jo was horrified the first few times I sought retribution. Then, my brilliant daughter began to accept that disappointing and disobeying me equated to losing whatever she held dear. So, she closed her heart to anyone or anything and learned to obey or face her father's wrath. She no longer had any close friends, or friends at all for that matter.
It was for her own good. It would ensure that Bridget Josephine Armstrong would never know her true parentage or the circumstances behind it.
I picked up the photograph on my desk and fixed my eyes upon the captured moment within the frame. The picture depicted a younger version of myself, a smile etched across my face, radiating warmth and pride. Beside me stood Jo, her eyes reflecting a mixture of innocence and adoration. As I gazed at the image, a flood of memories surged through me. In that quiet moment, the room seemed to echo with the laughter and shared moments of the past. The framed photograph became a portal to a time when my daughter's hand fit snugly in my own, and the world held the promise of endless possibilities. It seemed like a lifetime ago that Jo had been that little and grateful that I'd adopted her. The photograph, a bittersweet relic, captured a moment when laughter flowed freely, and the connection between father and daughter was unbroken.
I placed the frame back on my sprawling mahogany desk and opened the drawer to remove the small, expensive bottle of Crown Royal. It was aged for three decades and had a full-flavored spice with hints of ripe orchard fruit, toasted oak, and delicate vanilla. Made in Quebec, it was one of my favorite spirits. I filled the Glencairn glass and sat heavily in my leather office chair. I closed my eyes as I savored the spirit in hand and allowed myself to remember how I met Jo's mother.
***
I stared at the beautiful woman across the crowded bar. She stood like an ethereal figure, bathed in the warm glow of ambient lighting, creating an aura of allure and mystery. A cascade of chestnut curls framed her face, and her hazel eyes sparkled as she conversed with those around her. Bethany had a magnetic charm, and I was drawn to her like a moth to a flame. There was a spark between us, and we connected over drinks and intense conversation.
Bethany was from a prestigious family where family legacies and financial dealings intertwined. Her impending union with a man selected by her family was a carefully orchestrated merger of wealth and lineage designed to fortify alliances between the two families. She didn't love this man and had come out tonight for one last night of freedom and fun. I was happy to be her escape as Bethany had enchanted me the moment I'd seen her. I wished I'd met her sooner. I could have convinced her family to consider me, the orphaned son of a wealthy family who was now a billionaire CEO of one of the most prestigious companies in the country.
Bethany and I left the bar together, my driver bringing us back to my mansion, where we made love until the early morning hours. The connection we felt was real and intense. I'd never experienced anything like what I'd shared with her and had not since. Bethany fell asleep in my arms, and it was, in all honesty, the best night of my life. My heart broke when I woke to find her gone without a trace. I only knew her first name and had no way to contact her. Bethany had left me to honor a union forged not solely in the name of love but one intricately woven with the threads of wealth, power, and familial duty.
***
Years passed, and I put all my time and energy into my company. I honored the alliances with the Hunter Foundation my family had made. I was uniquely positioned to assist their goal of removing the supernatural threat, being the CEO of a mining and logging company. The Hunter Foundation had discovered that many magical creatures made their homes amid protected areas. I could negotiate with and bribe government officials to permit the development of these lands. Doing so often flushed out these abominations and gave the Hunter Foundation a means to exterminate them.
I was curious about their operations, and the CEO of the Hunter Foundation, Achan Mardochaios, invited me to accompany him on one of their hunting expeditions. I joined them on one such excursion and was surprised to see a village of sorts that they referred to as a pack. Achan and his operatives were after the Alpha and Luna of the pack, which he insisted were evil abominations threatening nearby local communities. I learned these creatures were werewolves as we approached a large residence called a packhouse. I felt empowered knowing we kept the human population safe from these creatures. Achan handed me a gun containing silver bullets for protection but assured me not to worry, that I was safe and his operatives would eliminate any of these creatures.
It was a m******e, bullets flying and large, fierce wolves attacking us. Achan insisted that I find a safe room, barricade myself in it, and wait until he came for me. The CEO apologized, claiming that he was under the impression that there wouldn't have been much resistance at this location or he would not have invited me to attend. I was scared and no longer foolishly thought that these creatures did not pose a threat to me. I quickly ran into what appeared to be an empty room, locked the door, and hid.
When I calmed down enough to inspect my surroundings, I realized it was a child's room. I could hear whimpering from the closet and opened the door, gun raised, to examine who was in the room with me. To my horror and dismay, I came face to face with Bethany and a young child cowering in her arms.
"Lennox, what are you doing here?" Bethany gasped.
"Bethany?" I whispered.
The beautiful, captivating woman who had haunted my dreams and stolen my heart on our one-night stand was bleeding out on the closet floor. I dropped the gun and ran to her, gently cradling her and the child in my arms. I sobbed as I held her, knowing that she was drawing her final breaths.
"Were you captured? Why are you hiding in the closet of a packhouse during an attack? Are the hunters here to rescue you?" I asked.
Bethany shook her head sadly as I held her close to me.
"This is my home. Why are you here? Why are these men attacking us?" Bethany cried
"There are werewolves here, Bethany. Achan has told me that they've been threatening nearby local communities. What are you doing here?" I shrieked as the blood continued to drain from her body.
"Lennox, I am a werewolf. If you ever cared about me, protect my daughter from the hunters. Find a way," Bethany cried as the light disappeared from her eyes.
I cradled Bethany's body, devastated. Jo broke away from me and sobbed uncontrollably in the closet. I gently placed Bethany's body on the ground and tried to make sense of the situation I was in. Bethany was a werewolf? How had I not known that the beautiful woman I'd fallen in love with after our one-night stand was a creature of this sort?
I quickly called the head of my security team, Wesley, and we carefully planned a discrete extraction of the young girl. I adopted her and created a cover story for the rationale behind it. I never bothered to find out the child's real name. I preferred not to know. I didn't want my memory of her mother tainted with the discovery that she'd been a werewolf. To honor Bethany and my late mother, I christened her Bridget Josephine Armstrong. I called the little girl Jo as an endearment.
I never feared Jo revealing the events that led to her becoming an Armstrong because she'd been so young when I adopted her. I carefully controlled who Jo interacted with growing up. My daughter had a private tutor at home until she attended a private school with those enrolled from wealthy, affluent families when she was ten. Jo was a happy child, and she lavished me with love and adoration because I was all she had known growing up. She knew nothing of her heritage or what my business entailed.
Jo loved the outdoors and would relish any opportunity to be surrounded by nature. I often wondered if that was because of her mother's lineage. I knew very little about Bethany and feared researching werewolves after my experience with the Hunter Foundation and the m******e of Jo's pack. I provided my daughter with every luxury that money could buy. It never made her happy, though.
As my daughter grew older, she needed to be controlled even more. Her love for nature and the stewardship of the environment was at odds with what my empire was built upon. I became more firm and eventually cruel towards my daughter to try and mold her into who I needed her to become. The Hunter Foundation remained a real threat to my adopted daughter, even though I had succeeded in keeping her origins a secret. I distanced myself from Achan Mardochaios and his associates, although I continued to support them. Achan always assumed it was because I had been traumatized from the hunt he'd invited me to. He was right. But the trauma wasn't for the reasons Achan believed.
I spent my time racing cars, golfing, and traveling the world to find happiness as Jo became a rebellious teenager. Love remained elusive despite my efforts to find a suitable wife and mother for my adopted daughter. I strived to establish fame and fortune for my company and build a legacy for Jo to inherit. I continued assisting the Hunter Foundation in removing the supernatural threat and took measures to ensure Jo would never discover what her mother was. I convinced myself that if I did these things, my daughter would be safe. No one would make the connection between my beautiful Jo and the pack I had found her in. I had promised her mother I would keep her safe. I did that regardless of what it cost me. And it cost me dearly.
Aksara