The Royal Contract

"Fuck!" The door was locked as expected.

Mike tried it once. Twice. But no luck.

He put more force to it. Unfortunately, there was no other outcome.

He walked over to the window, but it was a long way down. It did not seem a good idea as an alternative escape route unless he wished to vacate his life.

Nonetheless, he still valued his life. He had no plans of leaving this world just yet. Therefore, he needed a more viable road to their freedom. Besides, Haley could not go with him in that way.

"What do you think are they planning to do with us?" Haley asked as she paced around the room.

He could think of several assorted scenarios at the back of his mind, but nothing was promising. All of them were gruesome, but it was more about him, not Haley.

He could only conclude, learning about Alfred's plans, that Haley would not get hurt as long as she cooperated. But knowing Haley, he doubted she would willingly marry Michael, at least not without a fight.

"Don't worry. I will find a way to get us out of here." Luckily, the men were somewhat in a hurry. They never bothered to tie him up or Haley, leaving them in the room instead, free to move around.

Nevertheless, finding a way out of there was still his priority, but it would not be easy. And he hated it when he was not in control of a situation.

"Do you think Gerald will come to save us?" Haley sat down on one of the chairs and looked at him with worry lines on her face.

He knew she was concerned for her child more than anything else. He knew Haley would risk her life to save her child if needed. But he hoped it would not come to that.

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"I am sure if he is not in this mansion right now. He will be soon." He guaranteed, knowing his friend would never let him down.

He would never back out of this fight, knowing lives were at stake, his, Haley's, and the unborn child. However, he could not discount the possibility that his friend might have walked into a trap.

He knew that Alfred was a cunning man. He would be ready to welcome Gerald if he came. He only hoped that Gerald had a lot of tricks on his sleeve if they would get out of there alive.

"So, what is taking him so long?" Haley seemed more worried than impatient as she stared at her hands.

He watched her twist and clench her fingers as if trying to stay calm. But her face told him that she was anything but relaxed.

He could even see how she was starting to hyperventilate, probably anxious about Gerald's condition. He could not blame her. Her father did swear to put a bullet in Gerald's head as soon as he caught him.

"Don't worry. Gerald knew how to handle this situation." Mike assured her as he looked around the room, hoping to find a secret door.

But, of course, this was not a children's book story. Trap doors and secret passages did not exist in this big house. But still, he had to find their way out.

"How do you know that? My father already put a bullet in him and almost killed him. How can you be sure that he would not do it again?" Haley said as tears began to fall from her eyes.

He could see that she was starting to break down. The stress of this situation must be getting to her. And that was not good for the baby.

"I know because I was the one who shot him the first time. It was all an act to fool them." Mike finally admitted his participation in this charade.

"Gerald knew that there was a plot against him. But we could not figure out who was the mastermind behind it. So, he staged his death, hoping we could get to the bottom of it." Mike explained to her that would at least give her some clarity.

"He was one step ahead of them. He was never in danger. And I am sure that is still the case. Gerald will never come here without a plan." Mike could ensure that.

But still, he could not guarantee that Gerald's plan would still work this time. Only time could tell. All he could do was try to get out of there, put Haley into safety, and help his friend.

"So, tell me the truth." Haley wiped the tears in her eyes as she gazed at him. "Is Gerald the devil that my father said he is?" She used the back of her hand to remove the tears across her cheeks.

"Is he a killer? A cold-hearted murderer?" She continued with a determination to seek the truth.

"You should not be asking me that." Mike did not wish to tell her about Gerald's past. He believed if anyone should reveal the truth, it should be his friend.

"I am sure, once this is over, Gerald will be glad to answer all your questions." He turned away from Haley, afraid he might say something that could worsen their situation.

He believed Haley was already in a fragile state. He did not want to add more to her tension. On the contrary, he wanted her to relax and hopefully calm down.

"But I can't wait for that. Just tell me the truth. I could die here. Or Gerald could, but I think I deserve to know who the father of my child is." Haley insisted, not letting the matter drop.

"Is my father telling me the truth?" She continued as she looked at him with pleading eyes.

"Yes and no." He felt he had no other option but to give her a partial version of what he knew. The rest would have to come from Gerald's lips.

"What do you mean?" Haley looked confused as she held on to her swollen belly.

He only hoped that the baby would not be affected by his revelation. The last thing he wanted was to harm Haley and her child.

"Gerald grew up unconventionally." He wet his lips as if feeling parched before continuing. "You can say the man who raised him was the devil himself."

He could use a glass of water, but sadly, they had none in the room. "Therefore, Gerald knew no other life than what his father had taught him."

He knew that was not an excuse, but he hoped that would explain part of Gerald's character. "So, you can say there was a time that he had lived his young life on the other side of the fence."

"I am not saying this to defend his actions, but that was how I saw it. He became the devil because that was the only thing he knew how to survive.

But things changed when he met you. He found another way. He learned that he could have a second chance in life."

He could see the conflict in her eyes. She was probably trying to weigh in on what he was telling her. But he could not read what she was thinking.

"Are you saying that he had changed because of me?" She finally asked after a considerable silence.

"Yes. And maybe because Gerald also learned that he has another family." He added what he also discovered recently.

"What family?" Haley narrowed her eyes at him, intrigued by this other secret.

"He learned that he was not the son of the man who raised him. The man he called his father had only used him as his puppet.

But his biological father and his other family welcomed him with open arms, including him in their family. He knew then that there was another life other than his life in crimes."

With this knowledge, Mike also realized the same thing. He also could start again. It was the reason Mike had stuck with his friend in this situation. He also wanted a change.

"And more than that, he wanted to give you and your child a better life than he had. It is his reason for going through all this trouble. He wanted out of the organization."

"Moreover, he also wanted to destroy the organization your father, Alfred, coveted." He wanted Haley to understand that Gerald had no more association with her father.

Mike wanted it to be clear to Haley that Gerald had changed. And this was not just another act to get the organization under his control."

He knew that was what Alfred was telling the others. But that was far from the truth. Gerald wanted all of them behind bars, stopping these illegal activities.

"I don't know what to say," Haley said, but he could tell she wanted to believe him.

He could feel it in his heart that Haley wished that he was telling her the truth because she loved Gerald.

She was willing to give him the chance to change.

To him, he guessed that was all that mattered.