Chapter 2

Chapter 002

As soon as I stepped into the restaurant, I offered quick greetings to each employee as I passed by.

"Hey, Lena!"

Noortje was my colleague and probably the only real friend I had in this country.

Hey Noortje. How are things? I gave him a quick fist bump.

"Hm. You seem tired," I observed. "Didn't get much rest?"

"I'm fine," I responded in my best effort to appear as though there weren't dark circles under my eyes.

"That isn't who you are." He frowned.

Noortje was not convinced but let it slide. Noortje could be too perceptive at times and was also ridiculously handsome; people often turned around just to look at him wherever we went, with his curly brown hair, broad frame, and deep brown eyes drawing gazes in every direction.

"Bebita, don't lose sleep for no apparent reason!" He insisted.

"Let it go," I begged my daughter.

He raised his hands in surrender while watching closely as I made my way toward the changing room.

As I entered, Lieke was already there adjusting her apron before the mirror.

"Hey, Lena!" We exchanged small talk while I changed into my uniform. However, as soon as we returned outside, she became instantly uncomfortable and stopped talking altogether.

Noortje stood behind the manager's desk in deep conversation. Her attention lingered on Noortje for some time.

"Go say hi. Say hello." I smiled to myself.

She went pale. "No.Nott."

"Come, Lieke." She exclaimed. She needed to check on something in the kitchen! Before making her escape.

Noortje had no idea she liked him.

My morning was ordinary—until a delivery arrived during my shift.

"Lena van Dijk?"

As soon as I heard these words from the restaurant's message boy, my eyes fell upon a bouquet of deep red roses being held out to her.

My eyebrows knit together. "Uh—yeah?"

"These are for you," they told me tentatively, yet again reminding me to remain cautious as this wasn't my birthday or I hadn't gone out with anyone recently—who were they for?

Before I had time to mull over what to say next, Lieke exclaimed in surprise, "Oh Lena! How romantic!"

Noortje entered just in time to hear her, his eyes quickly moving toward the flowers on the table. "Did someone send you roses?"

"Why would anyone send you roses?" he inquired.

I nodded in agreement. Mess" From whom?"

"No idea."

Then Lieke suddenly exclaimed in excitement, "Check if there's a card!"

As I turned over each petal, I discovered a thick, high-quality card bearing my name written elegantly in gold letters.

As I read aloud, my gaze moved towards the initials at the bottom—"C.V."

"Who is C.V.?" asked Lieke.

"I don't understand." I shook my head.

Noortje crossed his arms carefully as he observed me.

I quickly cleared my throat and set the flowers aside as though they didn't exist.

But that night when I got home, I put them in the vase Noortje had given me for Christmas.

An alarmingly loud ringtone woke me up hours later.

As soon as I opened my eyes in the morning, my fingers automatically reached for my phone, to which an unknown number had been dialed.

"Hello?"

I immediately sat up straight as soon as the voice approached; its deep, smooth tone made an impressively first impression.

"Who are you?" A vehicle will pick you up at work at 10 in the morning for your flight to Amsterdam, and once there, I will provide an escorted tour directly to my office—please prepare accordingly."

"Oh," I replied in confusion, "what happened here?" I quickly responded, "I apologize, what?"

"Who do you think you are, ordering me around?" My voice rose in anger as my questioning continued. "And why on Earth would I even consider--?"

Would you want your father to go to jail for unpaid debts?

Silence. My arms ached as I gripped tighter around my phone.

"No, you wouldn't." My voice came out shaky.

"Please follow these instructions."

My stomach twisted. "Fine," I replied.

As soon as my phone's line was dead, my heart raced wildly with confusion at what had just transpired. What had I just agreed to?

The next morning, it was difficult for me to concentrate on work; every time the restaurant doors opened, my heart would beat fast.

Noortje was aware, of course.

"What's wrong, Beti?" He gently brushed away a loose lock of hair from behind my ear.

"Nothing," I replied in my defense. When his eyes narrowed again, "That bad, is it?" I smiled weakly in answer.

"I need to leave for a bit; can you cover for me?"

"Yes, of course, I do—just when are you coming back?"

"Tomorrow," I replied uncertainly.

A sleek black Volvo XC90 was seen parked outside.

"I promise I will make up for it," I promised before gathering my things and heading for the door.

As soon as I stepped onto Rotterdam's busy streets, I headed straight for my car—its driver's window being down.

"Miss Lena van Dijk?"

"Yes..." "Please come right in, ma'am; your flight leaves in an hour."

I hesitated, then quickly slipped into the backseat.

As soon as we pulled away, I dialed my father's number; directly into voicemail.

"He, my Dad... just checking in to make sure everything's alright. Uh, I'm on my way over now—no idea when I'll be back—take care, and I love you," I left a message.

I laid down my phone and gazed out of the window as the city slowly passed by.

The flight felt like a dream: first class with comfortable seats and the low hum of an aircraft overhead.

My thoughts raced throughout.

Six hours later, I arrived in Amsterdam without knowing what lay ahead. I quickly took an Uber taxi ride downtown with no idea of what awaited me there.

As soon as I reached the airport's main entrance, I saw my name written out in rose-gold letters on an attractive sign.

The man holding it wore an immaculate black suit; his expression remained unknown.

"Let me guess: Are we taking me to him?" I asked.

"Please follow me."

He took me outside, where we both got into another black Volvo without exchanging a word and we drove off without further discussion.

As we neared North Holland's core, city lights passed us by as we weaved our way toward its core.

An immense glass skyscraper suddenly materialized before us.

Inside, the lobby was stunning—huge glass walls, high ceilings, people bustling around everywhere—a real wonderland.

My driver led me past the busy elevators to a private one.

At first, it felt as if our ride would never end; eventually, though, the doors swung open with a satisfying click and opened easily.

As I took a step, my breath caught up with me.

Black and gold colors. Sleek furniture. Soft lighting—everything about this office was indicative of power.

At that moment I saw him. At once I knew who it was, seated behind a massive desk with cold gray eyes staring directly back at me as though studying me for its next victim.

"Good evening, Lena."

His voice remained as peaceful and authoritative as on the phone.

Something told me this journey wouldn't be easy.