Stolen Identity: Mute Heiress

Chapter 335: I’ll Be Waiting

Mari woke up as her father was trying to lift her off the couch. The first thing she saw was her father’s face.

"Dad...?" she whispered, wondering if she was dreaming or seeing things.

His eyes softened. "Yes, sweetheart. It’s me."

"Dad!" she cried and threw her arms around him. She sobbed into his chest. "You’re here. You’re really okay."

"I’m fine," he said as he stroked her hair. "I missed you so much."

She pulled back fast, eyes wide. "Mom! Where’s Mom? Is she with you? Is she okay?"

"She’s fine. She’s at the hotel," he said gently. "I didn’t want her in danger. We’ll go join her."

Mari nodded quickly, then suddenly gasped as memories rushed back.

"Chad, Jax, there was blood. Where are they?! Are they fine? When did you get here?"

"They’re in Chad’s room," her father said. "The doctor is attending to Chad."

Mari stood at once. "I need to go see—"

"No," her father said firmly. "We’re leaving now. You can see them another time."

"I can’t leave just like that. Chad is my friend and if he’s hurt I should see him," she protested.

"You’ll see him another time. We need to move now. I have to take you to your mom and go handle some other things before we go home," Alex insisted.

"Home? We can finally go home?" She asked, and he smiled and nodded.

"How? What happened? How did you handle everything?" Mari asked, excited at the thought of going home to her friends.

"I’ll tell you all about it when we get out of here," he said, then glanced at his phone when it started ringing. "It’s your mom," he said as he received the call.

"Everything is okay over here, Andy. Mari is safe. We will be on our way now," he said the moment he received the call then hung up.

Mari took a slow breath. "But I need to tell Jax I’m leaving—"

"He has too much to deal with right now," her father said softly but sternly. "Let him focus. He will come to you when he’s done."

Mari’s shoulders fell. Her eyes watered. "Just one minute. At least to thank him," she whispered.

Her father sighed but nodded. "He’s in the second room on the left side. When you’re done, pack up your stuff. I’ll be waiting for you outside."

Mari hurried to the room and stopped at the door. She knocked twice.

Jax opened it. His shirt was stained with blood. His hands were still red. His face was tired and tight.

When Mari saw him, she stepped forward, wanting to wrap her arms around him, but Jax stepped back before she could do so.

"Are you okay?" she whispered. "Please tell me you’re okay."

He shook his head. "I’m not okay. But I will be," he said quietly, his eyes moving over her face. "I’m glad you’re okay. You should leave with your Dad."

Mari’s eyes flickered with hurt.

Jax saw it and quickly added, "Not because I want you gone. Don’t think that I’m tired of your company. I need to be here with Chad. I just... I need to handle some stuff. Family stuff. And I don’t want you in the middle of it. I’ll focus more without you here."

"What about Venita? Were you able to rescue her? Is she okay?"

"Yes. She’s fine. I promise I’ll come see you when I’m done."

Though she was sad to leave him this way, she nodded slowly. "Give my love to Chad. Tell him I’m sorry he got hurt because of me, and I couldn’t stick around to see him."

He swallowed. "He didn’t get hurt because of you."

Mari looked at him for a long second. "Can I hug you?"

"I have blood all over..." she stepped forward and kissed him deeply, cutting off his protest.

"I love you, Jax," she whispered as she pulled back. "I’ll be waiting for you. You better come to me when you’re done, else I’ll be the one you’ll be hiding from not the cartel," she threatened.

Jax’s lips twitched despite himself. "Says the one who fainted at... ouch!" He groaned when she kicked his leg.

"You better don’t repeat that anywhere to anyone." With that, she turned and left.

Jax watched her go. Though there was a grin on his face, inside, he broke a little.

As much as he wanted her close, he didn’t want her to ever know what his own family had done to her.

He felt sick with guilt.

A lot could have happened, and she could have gotten really hurt or been killed had he not figured out what was happening.

He returned inside and closed the door.

As Mari stepped outside, she saw her father standing by her car, and she smiled, happy to see her car.

As she got into the car with her father, she looked back at the building and felt a throbbing ache in her heart.

Although she had hoped for everything to be resolved, when she woke up that morning, she hadn’t imagined that she’d leave so soon or even leave in such a manner.

"What happened, Dad?" She asked, wanting to distract herself. "How come you’re here? I thought you were far away and in hiding. When did you get here? Did Jax inform you of the attack?"

"No," her father said as he started the car. "I did not come exactly because of the attack today. We came to surprise you and take you home, but then I got wind of the attack, and I had to move faster. I guess you took Jamal’s call?"

"Jamal?" Mari asked with a frown, wondering what he had to do with anything. "He called, but I didn’t pick because I was busy, and then I got distracted. You asked him to call me?"

The car rolled forward, leaving the quiet yard behind them. Mari didn’t miss the fact that two cars were driving with them, one in front and one behind.

"Not me. I believe Harry asked him to call you the moment they got wind of the attack..."

Mari’s frown deepened. "How did they get wind of the attack?"

"We have someone on the inside thanks to Harry. That was how we’ve been able to stay a step ahead of them until now."

"So, what’s the plan now? Have you handled it? Are we safe now?" Mari asked in a small voice.

Her father let out a long breath. He did not rush. He picked his words with care. "We are safe. Yes. But it’s not completely handled yet."

"Then how can you be so sure we are safe?"

Alex’s lips curved just a little. "Because the cartel will be too busy to worry about me. I’m the least of their problems now," he chuckled. "Tom, that genius, made sure of it. Harry too. Those two are a good pair."

Hearing the obvious respect in her father’s voice, Mari leaned forward. "How? What did they do?"

"I’m afraid that’s not something for your ears. Even his wife and the rest of the family can’t find out about it," her father said, keeping his eyes on the road.

Alex had always known that Tom and Harry were dangerous men with lots of resources, but they’d proved it when they finally decided to step in and help him handle things.

They were the sort of men he never wanted to make his enemies. While Tom came up with the craziest of ideas, Harry executed them to perfection.

It was little wonder they ran I-Global company so well.

Tom had suggested they start by crippling the cartel’s finances. This part was easy enough thanks to their inside man and the joint effort of Barry and Alex’s men. They successfully cleared the cartel’s accounts within days, causing a commotion and leaving cracks and trust issues within the organisation.

Next, Tom suggested they attack the cartel’s supplies. Thanks to their inside man’s intel and Jade’s connections as a lawyer, the police intercepted the cartel’s drug deals, leaving a bigger crack.

Just when the final phase of their plans to finally destroy the cartel was set in motion, they’d received information that morning that Venita and her best friend had made a deal with the cartel.

Alex had no doubt that this was the end of the cartel. He had no compunction about setting them up or handing them to enemies bigger than them. Enemies who would wipe them out.

They had attacked the warehouses of three major cartels, carted off drugs and money, killed a couple of the men stationed at the warehouses, and left enough evidence to point the attack back to the Legion cartel.

The plan was simple. News about the Legion cartel’s bankruptcy and their failed deal was out on the streets. No one would doubt their motive for carrying out the attack, and now they’d have bigger cartels hunting them.

When Mari saw the smile on her father’s face, she relaxed a little. He looked relaxed now compared to how scared he’d seemed weeks ago.

"Can you at least give me an idea of what you plan to do? A clue?" She asked hopefully.

Her father let out a soft, humourless huff. "Let’s just say the Legion are in trouble. They’ve made enemies thanks to us. Powerful enemies who would stop at nothing to wipe them out. I won’t have to lift a finger again. They will tear the Legion apart."

Mari stared at her father as the car rolled through the road. "So now the hunter is being hunted?"

"Yes," Alex said.

Mari nodded slowly and let out a long breath she didn’t even know she was holding.

"So we can really go home," she said softly.

"Yes," her father said with a warm smile. "You can go back to your life. Back to your friends. Your old phone is in the glove compartment."

Mari smiled as she took out her phone and turned it on. The moment she did, messages flooded in, and when she saw messages from the Soul Sisters group chat, she giggled happily.

She’d wait for Jax. Until then, she’d catch up with her family and friends.