His Beloved Mate novel Chapter 3

Cassie furrowed her eyebrows and stared into space. "No. How is that possible? She was fine when I left!"

Sean sighed. Cassie could hear that her father was trembling at the other end of the line. "The debt collectors were coming. After you left, she acted very strangely. She said that she wanted to go out and buy some vegetables...but she never came back. Last night, the police reported that they'd found a corpse in an abandoned area. Rita was the one who had informed me that it was your mother."

Although he said the facts as slowly as possible, it still didn't seem to register in her mind. Suicide. It wasn't possible. No matter how much Cassie thought about it, she just couldn't imagine that her mother would commit such a thing. 'Why would she do that? Hasn't she already paid off all her debts?' Cassie gritted her teeth.

"No. That isn't possible! When I finished the book, I wired all the money to their account. She's practically debt-free! Why would Mom do that?" she asked him a series of questions, failing to comprehend the depth of the scenario. After everything that had happened this morning, it would be an understatement to say that she was drained from the events.

"There are three more creditors. Your mother owes five million in total," he reiterated.

Cassie's mind was already buzzing as different thoughts went through her mind. Her hands were trembling at the thought of her mother owing this much money.

Before she could ask anything more, a deep voice took over the phone. "It's either you pay your money back or consider your home destroyed."

Cassie almost dropped her phone from the shock. She closed her eyes, wanting this nightmare to end. "What are you doing with my father's phone? Who are you?" she yelled.

"Cassie, right? Listen, I'll give you a week to raise that five million. Generous, right? Now, if you don't get that money wired to me by the end of the week, then don't expect to see your father again!"

Her father screamed at the background and she stiffened.

"My father is sick! What the hell are you doing to him?" she demanded hoarsely. Cassie could barely string her words together as she shook in fear. It was as if her world was falling apart right in front of her. "What you're doing is illegal!"

A scream came from the other end of the line.

Without adding anything more, the man hung up.

Cassie finally broke down.

Tears streamed down her face as she threw her phone at the edge of the bed. She gritted her teeth.

Everything was out of control. It was as if Alice herself planned her whole life to crash at this very moment.

Cassie breathed shakily, and her body couldn't stop itself from trembling. "Calm down," she whispered. "Calm down."

She gradually steadied herself. Grabbing her phone, she stared at all the missed calls, seeing that Sean had called her countless of times before this.

Cassie wanted to pick up her dress and put it on again, but she found that the fabric had already been torn to pieces.

A sense of helplessness overwhelmed her.

Although the warm sun shone through the windowpane, Cassie still felt as if she was trapped in an area of winter and despair.

What the hell was she going to do now?

Her father was the only family she had left. How was she going to raise 5 million dollars to save him?

The reporters followed Dylan all the way into the hall, pointing their cameras towards his face.

"Mr. Dylan, could you explain the photos that were taken of you and that mysterious woman last night?"

"Is the woman your girlfriend?"

The reporters squeezed all the way from the hall to the private elevator. Although some of them tried to sneak in, the bodyguards caught up to them and pulled them out of the tight space. Soon enough, the elevator closed, keeping the noise outside.

In the aisle outside the presidential suite, Dylan pulled his tie irritably.

'How did the woman get in that night? How was I drugged by that glass of wine?' he thought.

With a click, the bedroom door swung open.

Cassie was still sobbing at the edge of the bed. It was obvious that the man didn't expect her to be here at this time.

Dylan strode over to the side of the bed and wrenched her face to look at him in the eyes.

"Woman," he snarled. "Were you the one who sent the photos to the press? Do you want to blackmail me? Huh? Let me tell you that you're not the first woman who wanted to hook up with me. You're not getting anything from me. You got that?"

The tears in her eyes still hadn't faded. She stared up at him, wincing in pain.

Glancing at his expensive clothing choices, Cassie was reminded of how the kidnapper had threatened her. Her father's scream echoed in her mind.

A glimmer of hope rose in her heart.