CHAPTER 70: FAMILY SECRET

"You know, you keep saying that the Hayes Corporation needs your family’s support..." I said before trailing off as I waited for her to enlighten me on what exactly she meant.

"I was right to think that they wouldn’t tell you anything. Well, listen to this carefully because I’m only going to explain it once," she said as she leaned even closer to me across the table, her voice dropping to just above a whisper.

Although we were very close, and I was certain that I would be able to hear everything she said, I found myself focusing on her lips and straining my ears as I prepared myself to take in whatever it was that she wanted to tell me.

"You are well aware of the saying that people say that this world isn’t just black and white and that it’s filled with shades of gray, right?" Rosabella asked before her lips curved up into a knowing smirk.

"I guess," I replied softly.

"Everything in this world is gray. The truth is, Raphael’s family business is just a cover-up for something dark and sinister. If I were to put it in more common terms that more common people like you would understand, I would say that his family business is running a mafia syndicate," she said softly yet slowly enough for me to hear her clearly.

Of course, I had an extremely hard time believing what she had just said. Rosabella looked at me with certainty in her eyes as she slowly nodded her head a couple of times while she waited for her words to finally sink into my skull.

"No. Sorry, but I don’t know what you’re saying," I said as I tried to convince myself that she was out of her mind.

"I know that it’s hard to believe, but don’t tell me that you’ve never heard the rumors before. Well, I’ve just confirmed that the rumors are true for you," she said before winking at me.

"You can’t be serious about this. I mean, this just can’t be true," I stammered because I didn’t know how to take this new piece of information. Rosabella didn’t look like she was joking. If anything, it looked like she had lifted a huge burden off her chest by revealing to me the secret, and it also looked like she was willing to tell me even more.

"Just think about it, why do you think Bennett is so hell-bent on making his only son marry me, the daughter of this country’s chief of police?" Rosabella asked before smiling her sweet and knowing smile at me. I pressed my lips into a thin line as I found it hard to deny that I couldn’t connect the dots. It felt like I could hear and feel the gears inside of my brain turning until everything clicked and fell into place.

I had always wondered what kind of business the chief of police could be involved in considering his position and how he could be connected to the Hayes Corporation’s business. Nothing in this world is black or white. The mafia isn’t purely black, and the police that are supposed to catch them isn’t purely white either. Everything is mixed up into gray.

"You see, we help each other out to keep each other safe while also sharing the benefits. The left hand and the right hand must work together to line our pockets," Rosabella said without any sense of shame.

My hands finally felt very cold, and I had to bite down on my lower lip to keep it from quivering. Even though there was a chance that Rosabella was just fooling around with me, I couldn’t find any reason why she would go out of her way to do something like this. If she wanted my help with Raphael, there was no reason for her to lie to me about something like this. Rosabella let out a small laugh at my stunned reaction. I fell into silence because I couldn’t come up with anything to say in response.

"Well, now that you know the truth, I guess it makes things a lot easier between us. Anyways, since you’re going to be my future sister-in-law, I would appreciate it if you could help set me up with Raphael," Rosabella said, and once again, there was a pleading sweetness in her voice.

"Even if I want to help you, I’m not sure how I’m going to be able to do it," I finally found my voice again and managed to reply.

"Don’t worry about that. All you have to do is do as I say. Everything is going to work out. After all, I’m not asking you to do much, I’m just asking you to provide me with more opportunity to spend time with Raphael," Rosabella replied with confidence.

"And how exactly am I supposed to do that?" I asked in a small voice. Her request made me feel uncomfortable, and I didn’t want to get involved in this.

"Just think of it as doing your future sister-in-law a favor. Also, I hope that you don’t forget that this is also for the sake of the future of our families," Rosabella reminded me tactfully.

"I will try my best," I replied because I had no other choice.

"Thank you so much! I knew that you would help me. You’re such a sweetheart, and I look forward to having you as my sister. I also think that we’re going to be such great friends," Rosabella said as she reached out to take my hands into hers.

...

I would be lying if I said that the things that Rosabella told me about the Hayes family business didn’t bother me at all because I couldn’t quite get everything that she said to me out of my head. My mind kept repeating her words over and over again inside my head, and it felt like I was about to lose my mind completely. Although I tried telling myself countless times that there was no way that the Hayes Corporation would be a front for a mafia syndicate and that there was no way that Bennett and Raphael were the heads of a mafia gang, I couldn’t completely ignore the possibility of it being true.

–To be continued...