Bound by the Past, Locked by the Heart novel Chapter 17

He was leaning lazily against the doorframe. Hearing her footsteps, he looked up. "Where did you go?"

She stopped a few feet away, answering flatly, "Work."

He straightened up and slowly closed the distance, a cold smirk playing on his lips. "Oh? Why didn't I see you? I just came from your magazine."

Wow, busted.

But she didn't care.

"Oh," she replied expressionlessly, too exhausted to offer a single excuse.

"I was over there discussing the draft," Randal continued smoothly.

The absurdity of it was too much, and Willa couldn't help but laugh out loud. "Did you hit your head, Randal? Didn't you personally kill that piece?"

"I changed my mind." His lips parted, his tone irritatingly breezy. "There are some parts of the draft that need a rewrite. I decided it's best if you revise it yourself."

"I don't think that's a good idea," Willa rejected him bluntly. "I already quit. You can hire someone else, Mr. Yates."

"Excuse me, I need to unlock my door." She tried to step around him to reach the keypad.

Randal shifted his weight, perfectly blocking her path. "Go back to the magazine. Or, I can get you an even better job."

The sheer audacity of his comment pushed Willa over the edge. She raised an eyebrow, her voice sharp with venom. "Are you seriously out of your mind, Randal?"

Randal frowned slightly. That phrase seemed to irritate him even more than being called a psycho. "You..."

She didn't give him a chance to speak. All the rage she had bottled up at the old house finally found its target.

"Break my legs and then offer me a crutch? Is this how you get your kicks, Mr. Yates?" She scoffed coldly. "Too bad I don't have the time to play your twisted games. If you're that bored, go find some other women to entertain you, and stop playing bouncer at my door."

She shoved him hard, stepped up to the lock, and furiously punched in the passcode.

With a sharp click, the lock disengaged, but it was dead silent behind her.

She glanced back warily.

Randal hadn't stormed off in a rage like she expected. He just stood right behind her, smiling silently.

It felt as though a massive lump was lodged firmly in her throat. She choked up, forcing a strained smile onto her face.

The moment Arthur Vance saw her, his eyes turned completely red.

Trembling, Willa picked up the receiver.

"Willa," Arthur's voice filtered through the phone, slightly distorted. "Why did you come back? What if they..."

Willa offered a bitter smile. "Dad, you've been in prison for five years. Everything is set in stone. They aren't going to come looking for trouble anymore."

Arthur nodded, letting out a heavy, guilt-ridden sigh. "I dragged you down with me."

He hesitated for a long time before nervously asking, "Since you've been back, have you seen your mom?"

Willa frowned, her tone instinctively dropping a few degrees. "Why are you asking about her?"

"She had no choice but to do what she did. Otherwise, all our assets would have been frozen."