Melissa took some days off work to celebrate Tommy's birthday. Arranged her aunt's transport and security before leaving for the beach house.
Sitting under the umbrella, Melissa's eyes sparkled. Her lips curved up watching Tommy play on the sandy beach. Running away whenever the water touched his feet. Giggling and screaming his father lifted him, walking him into the calm blue waters.
"Hey, room for one more?" Joining them she fitted Tommy with a floater to him learn how to swim.
"This is the best birthday ever." Tommy shouted wiping water from his face.
His father taught him how to swim for the better part of the day, played around, running after each other. They built a sand castle and raced his toy cars on the sand.
"Has he fallen asleep?" Mark asked standing behind the wheel sailing to the open sea for a fishing expedition.
"Yes, he was so exhausted he fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow." She said standing at the rail. Spreading her arms she tilted back her head feeling the breeze looking up at the bright stars adorning the night sky.
Docking the boat, Mark stood behind her. Holding Melissa by the waist, he twirled her around.
Leaned his head on her shoulder smelling her sweet lavender scent placing her on her feet, running his hands around her waist facing the open sea.
"This is beautiful." She said lying her back on his chest.
"Not as beautiful as you are." He responded kissing her head.
Turning her around he kissed her neck and shoulder, making her giggle.
They slept spooning on deck. Enjoying the warm morning sun and breeze, Melissa opened her eyes when a shadow fell on them.
"Wake up, you said we are going to fish today, right dad?" Beaming Tommy shouted shaking his parents several times to wake them.
After breakfast Mark taught them how to hook the rods with bate and cast them into the water. A few minutes later Tommy's rod got heavy. Pulling it out of the water, he screamed looking at the fish dangling from the hook. His dad put the fish in a bucket of water letting him play with it for a while. When he insisted on taking it home, he promised to buy him an aquatic since they had to eat that fish for lunch.
They spent the days exploring the island, diving and swimming in the open waters.
Before going back home to the city, Mark flew his wife and son to meet his parents.
The helicopter landed at the small airport miles from the farmhouse where the driver was waiting to pick them up.
After stepping down from managing the family company, Mark's dad turned his grandfather's launch into a dairy farm and established a milk processing factory, which he managed with his wife. Their home was a fortress with a gorgeous fountain and beautiful flower gardens along the pavements. Alighting from the car, Melissa stopped to admire and smell the lovely roses blooming in different shades of colors as they went to the house.
"Mark planted those." A slender, slim lady with hair flying around her face stood before them smiling. She was way more beautiful in person with a slight resemblance to Mark.
"Mother!" He walked to her with open arms. "This is my wife Melissa and Tommy my son." Mark formally introduced them after hugging his mother. Though they had spoken several times on video Melissa felt a little nervous meeting for the first time.
She hugged Melissa then took Tommy in her arms kissing his chubby cheeks inviting them to the big house. The house was a three story building with several rooms and a vast dining area. The maids welcomed them to the garden sitting area and served milk tea, bread, cakes, and biscuits to snack with.
"This place is so beautiful." Tommy complimented staffing his mouth with cake.
"My grandson is so smart and handsome." Mrs. Johnson smiled wiping his mouth.
After an hour of talking with his mother and getting to know each other, Mark took them to the stables full of beautiful horses. They took two saddled horses to the factory. Riding with his father, watching the cattle grazing freely in the field, Tommy giggled excitedly as his father charged the horse to run wildly to the factory.
Melissa beside them saw herself years ago riding with Diana. Competing as they rode on the horses when her mother took them to the launch on holidays. It was the first place her mother worked as a horse riding trainer before going to college and whenever the launch owner was short of trainers, he called her.
The sound in the factory was inviting. The manager welcomed them and gave a tour of the whole factory from the pasteurizing area to several processing points and the packing area.
After the tour, they sat at the cafeteria where most of the employees sat for tea and lunch breaks. Enjoying yogurt and fermented milk from the factory, they waited to meet Mark's dad who was in the garage repairing the truck.
Contrary to what Melissa expected, Mr. Johnson was humble and friendly to his employees. Reminding her of her dad.
Whenever the workers stood to greet him, he respectively asked them to sit and how they enjoyed the meals provided. Joining them at the table, Melissa watched him keenly. He looked exactly as she remembered him from the one time she went to the Johnson company building.
At the farm and factory, everyone was family, welcoming and loving towards Melissa. For the two days spent, she helped Mrs. Johnson concoct a new flavor for the yogurt she was working on as Mark took Tommy to the factory to learn how it operated and how they cared for the cattle.
...
Sitting in the office working on her desk, Melissa got a phone call from an unknown number. After answering the call, she looked around. She murmured an excuse, took her bag and ran out.
"Melissa! What's wrong with her?" Nancy asked as they watched her leave in a hurry.
Checking her wristwatch, she took the stairs since the elevator seemed to take forever and she couldn't wait any longer. Running down the fleet of stairs, she supported herself on the rail.
Getting her phone from the bag, she called to inform Mark.
He asked her to wait for the driver to pick her up, but she was too impatient and stubborn to listen. The security Mark hired to secretly protect her drove after the taxi she took. Stopping at a small shopping center miles from the city, Melissa stepped out of the car. Scanning the area, she walked into the hotel but didn't find him.
Mr. Crack had called her, asking to meet in a hotel on the outskirts of the city.
He planned on leaving the country but he had to give her information about her father's company after his niece finally managed to convince him. He gave Melissa a few minutes to meet up or she would miss the chance to find out what really happened to the company. Now she stood at the hotel ten minutes late and he was gone.
Standing outside looking at the shops around, she got a call from Mr. Crack's niece asking if they had met. She was worried when the call to her uncle went silent and his phone didn't go through. When Melissa and her security asked around the shops and in the hotel if they saw any suspicious activities, one waiter told them she had seen two men force an older man into a taxi.
The lady in charge of her security walked beside her as the hotel manager led them to the office to look at the surveillance footage.
Melissa sat on the chair hands shaking watching what had happened a few minutes before she got there. While on phone stepping out of his car, two men approached Mr. Crack from behind. Covered his mouth with a cloth and forced him into a taxi. The hotel manager informed the police. Though they surrounded the place and closed all exits, they couldn't find them.
They were long gone.
"They took him, Mark, the Stevens got to him first." She hugged Mark when he joined them at the police station. "This is all my fault. If I didn't insist so much, this wouldn't have happened."
"Don't be so hard on yourself. The police will do everything they can to find him." He held her tight, consoling her, but he very well knew what would happen if they didn't find him soon.
They trailed the taxi only to find it abandoned on the busy highway out of the city.
...
"Daddy, are you involved in this?" Diana barged into her father's home office.
"What are you talking about?" Mr. Stevens inquired sitting up.
"You got Mr. Crack, didn't you?" She asked folding her arms over her chest while tapping her foot on the ground.
"I do not know what you're talking about. Mr. Crack asked for some days off work to sort out some personal matters he has." Mr. Stevens said, getting a glass of water.
"That's not what happened earlier. He was going to meet with Melissa so I asked my men to get rid of him. When my men got there, someone took him. If it's not you, then who did?" Taking a seat, she looked at Mr Steven with raised eyebrows.
"Someone took Mr. Crack? Where? When did this happen?" He inquired raising from his chair.
"An hour ago in some market out of town. Someone grabbed him, but unfortunately they got away." She explained slagging back on the chair.
Mr. Stevens knew Diana would not rest easy. He asked Mr. Crack to leave the country with his family until they sorted everything out but didn't expect him to plan a meeting with his goddaughter. Seeing her would not only endanger his life, but he would also put Melissa at risk. Luckily the men he hired got him to the plane on time.
Now he sat back at ease looking at his enraged daughter, wondering how she will take what he was planning to do.