**Avenged His Mother**
“Your daughter is with us. Bring £100,000, and she stays alive. Ill send the meeting point later,” said a heavily distorted male voice.
“You littledont you dare tell me what to do!” Michael snapped, but the caller had already hung up.
Michael was known as a thorough, cautious, and ruthless man. Only with his beloved wife, Claire, and adored daughter, Emily, did he softenand even then, not always. The slightest disobedience, and hed put everyone in their place:
“Im the master of this house! I provide for all of you!”
And it was truehed bought the house in the upmarket Surrey suburbs, his wife only worked to flaunt her dresses, and Emily drove to university in a brand-new car, a gift from her father. But sometimes, his family forgot that.
Hed had to “remind them who was in charge” when he found out Emily was seeing a promising violinist named Oliver.
“Hes not good enough for you! You wont see him again!” Michael barked. “What kind of man plays the violin for a living?”
And the boy was scrawnysome pretentious artist.
“Im going to marry him! Thats my choice!” Emily had her mothers stubbornness.
“I raised you, so I decide!”
“Im 18, Dad, in case you forgot. Im an adult and”
“Enough! Ive spoken! As long as I support you, I call the shots.”
Emily stormed off in tears. Claire sulked for days, refusing to speak to him, but Michael didnt carehed made his point.
Besides, he had real problemsunlike his daughters tantrums. His childhood friend, Dave, with whom hed built a concrete block business nearly a decade ago, was at it again.
Theyd only just paid off their loans, built a solid team, greased the right palms, and started making real profit. But noDave couldnt leave well enough alone. Always pushing for expansion, whining about stagnation.
Their arguments were usually short, but this time, Dave dug his heels in. “Then we split the business. I wont rot in this swamp!”
Of course! All ideas, no responsibilityMichael was the one who handled everything.
For a couple of weeks, things settled. Dave dropped his nonsense, Emily went to uni and stayed home most eveningsno more talk of Oliver. Then Michael spotted her with some bloke, practically clinging to him.
“Emily! What are you doing out at night?” he roared, slamming his car to a stop beside them. “And whos this?”
In the dim light, it took him a second to recognise the lad. And when he did, he was even more stunned.
“Couldnt find a bigger loser? Trying to spite me? Get in the carnow!”
Emily scowled but didnt argue, glancing briefly at the boya silent pleabefore sliding into the passenger seat.
Thats more like it! Who did this nobody think he was?
Then Michael rememberedthe boy worked in their warehouse. Cheeky little sod. Well, hed dealt with worse.
Order restoredwith Dave, with his family. Until a week later, he saw Emily again with that same ex-warehouse worker, Liam.
They vanished before he could confront them, but at home, Emily faced a blistering row. To his shock, Claire took her side. They called him a tyrant, said living with him was unbearable.
“Fine, the doors open!” he snarled.
And they leftbags in hand, faces a mix of grief and disgust. Let them try surviving without him.
He was certain theyd come crawling back. So when Claire called a week later, he wasnt surprised.
“Michael, Emilys gone missing!” she gasped. “Two days, no word, her phones off! Were losing our mindsshould we call the police?”
So theyd moved in with a friend.
“No police! Come homeIll find her myself.”
He had no plan, but he sure as hell wasnt involving the authorities.
As he weighed his options, his phone rang again.
“Your daughters with us. Bring £100,000, and she stays alive. Coordinates coming.”
“You absolute!” But the line went dead.
A video link followedEmily, dishevelled, teary-eyed, hands bound, but alive. Silent. Staring into the camera.
Hed bury them all. But he needed help. Despite their feud, Dave agreed to assist with the drop.
“Shouldnt we call the police?” Dave hesitated. “Thats a lot of cash…”
“No. Ill deal with this rat myself. And dont worrywere keeping the money.”
Michael was confidenteven more so when they arrived at the derelict factory and out stepped… Liam.
“You little!” Michael lunged, but Dave yanked him back. “Stop! We dont know where Emily is.”
Liam stood on a ledge ten feet away, smirking.
“Drop the bag there.” He nodded at a sewer grate.
Michael glared but obeyed.
“Perfect,” Liam scoffed, turning to leave.
“You think youll get away with this?! Wheres Emily?!”
“Shes fine. Shell contact you soon. If she wants to.”
“Youre insane!” Michaels voice dropped to a growl. “Ill find you, and”
“I dont care,” Liam cut in. “I did what I had toavenged my mother.”
“Your mother?!”
“Sarah. She worked as your cleaner for seven years,” Liams jaw clenched. “Caught your wife in bed with another man. Auntie Claire sacked her on the spotsaid shed been stealing.”
“Because she was!”
“Sure. Just wanted her gone. Mum had no proofjust her word. Would you have believed her?”
Liam swallowed hard.
“She had a weak heartraised me alone, worked herself to the bone for peanuts. Next day, she collapsed in the street. No one helped. Doctors said it was a heart attack.”
His voice cracked.
“If not for your family… Shed be alive. I wouldnt have gone into care.”
“And now youre going to prison,” Michael said coldly. “Howd you even rope Emily into this? Shed never let herself be used.”
Liam wiped his eyes, smirking. “She wasnt. We planned it together. Shes probably already moved the money. Youll have to arrest your own daughter.”
“Liar! My girl wouldnt!”
“Shouldnt have meddled in her life,” Liam spat. “She loves Oliver. But you wouldnt know about love.”
“You little!” Michael charged, but Liam was already on a motorbike hidden nearby.
“Ask your mate Dave about love!” Liam revved the engine. “Hes the one shagging your wife!”
And he was gone.
Michael punched Dave. For the betrayal, for everything. Dave didnt fight back.
He divorced Claire, leaving her a one-bed flat. The business stayed hished paid enough for her sins. She begged him not to press charges against Emily.
But he wasnt a complete monsterno police. Emily never showed her face again, dropped out of uni.
Rumour had it she and Oliver moved abroad. Maybe shed return one day. Who knew?
