CHAPTER ELEVEN.

In the dead of the night, a silhouette stole out of the room and made his way slowly towards Gerald’s study. The whole house was still illuminated and quiet which made it easy for Alex to find his way around the house.

After using Clarrisa laptop for a while, he decided to walk around and see if he could find something that would help him with his case.

Under the cover of darkness, slowly but steadily he made his way to the Study and when he got there he found it surprisingly open and the light was still on. It seemed someone was inside. Pushing the door open, he entered to see Dylan typing away on the laptop and he looked so serious but the moment he saw Alex enter, Dylan focused his whole attention on him.

“Brother in law” he called out as his lips curved into a smile, “I thought you would be sleeping by now”

“Why are you still awake by this time?”

Alex used the opportunity to look around the study and nodded in approval, it was screaming Gerald all over.

“I just have some pending work from the office so I decided to tidy them up”

Dylan was Alex’s biggest fan, he loved the way Alex carried himself and how he handled his work. After he got engaged to his sister, it was more like paving a path for him. He was not that close to Alex but he didn’t miss any opportunity to spend time with him.

“Do you need something?” He further asked, “I thought you would be asleep by now”

Alex lowered himself on the chair opposite him, “I was also tidying up some work and I came to get water before I saw the light open. I was thinking it was your father so I wanted to have a word with him”

“Oh, I see” Dylan leaned back on his chair and smiled. He was two years younger than Alex but the two of them had the same charm and charisma just that Alex always stole the limelight anywhere he went.

“Clarrisa must be so happy to have you here”

Alex nodded, “she sure is”

His eyes darted across the room again and he caught Gerald’s computer, how he badly wanted to search through it. Maybe he would be able to get something out of it but how could he? Dylan would not just allow him to operate the computer simply because he asked right?

Call it fate or destiny but before he could open his mouth to say something, a video call came in through Dylan’s phone and he immediately excused himself with a gesture and walked over to the balcony. This was his chance, Alex immediately went over to the master’s chair and turned on the laptop but it was locked. He was not surprised, a man like Gerald was as sly as a fox and he would not leave his personal belongings lying around without proper protection.

“Bastard” Alex muttered under his breath, he was racking his brain on how to get the password until his eyes caught the hidden drawer at the bottom of the table. It immediately caught his attention because it was somewhat different from the rest.

But the moment he pulled at it, he discovered it was locked. Gerald was a hell of a sly man.

Alex knew that whatever it was that he was going to find Inside that drawer was something massive.

Looking around for a while, he didn’t find anything to open the drawer with and unluckily for him, Dylan finished his call and was already making his way into the room.

“You need something, brother in law?” Dylan asked when he entered and saw Alex sitting on his father’s reclining chair.

“I just love the view of the room from here” Alex lied before standing up, “I will retire for the night now, I have a lot of work ahead”

Without waiting for Dylan’s response, he slowly strode out of the room but his mind continued to linger on that drawer, he needed the keys no matter what.

*****

The soft knock on the door made Alex open his eyes before climbing out of the bed. He worked for most of the night and only slept when it was almost morning but he wasn’t feeling tired at all.

When he threw the door open, Clarissa was standing there and she had his suit hanger with her.

“Good morning Alex”

“Good morning risa” he opened the door wider and allowed her to enter while raking his hand through his hair.

“I asked Esmeralda to send your clothes so you will be going to the office from here” while talking, she gently placed the clothes on the bed before turning her full attention to the man who was lazily sitting on the dressing table, he looked so uninterested and she couldn’t help but fall for him the more.

“What are you looking at?” Alex inquired when he noticed how she was looking.

“Nothing” Clarrisa quickly declined as color crept up on her face, “ you should wash up and come down for breakfast, you will drop me off at the office”

After talking she scurried out of the room while the man rolled his eyes after her, was he her driver? It was just a matter of time before he put all of them in their places.

After a while, he plodded into the bathroom to have his bath and by the time he got downstairs, the whole family was already seated to breakfast.

“Good morning brother in law” Dylan greeted and he nodded at him.

“I hope you slept well, Alex” Clarissa’s mother asked and he also nodded at the woman.

“It is good to have you seat with us for breakfast” Gerald’s deep husky voice filtered into his ears and that was when Alex’s gaze traveled over to the man and for a moment he froze. He always noticed the necklace on his neck but now he was actually seeing it was a key coated in gold which gerald always had with him no matter what. Now Alex was sure they was a deep secret in that drawer.

“Clarrisa told me the kinds of dishes you eat so I have ordered the helpers to make them” Gwendolyn said.

“You didn’t have to do that ma’am, I am not much of a breakfast person and I have a lot of work pending at the office, I need to get going now”

“Are you sure?” The lady asked again, she knew Alex didn’t like to be pressured.

He faked a smile at her, “of course Mrs Gwen, thanks for your hospitality though”

His eyes were on the necklace that was glittering on Gerald’s neck and how he wanted to get his hands on it.

“Hey, hope i didn’t keep you waiting?” Clarrisa rushed downstairs, she was dressed in the same color of clothes just like Alex’s suit.

“Alex was just about leaving” Dylan chipped in.

She creased her forehead into a frown, “won’t you have breakfast?”

“I am not hungry”

“Have you forgotten you suffer from gastrointestinal problems? You can’t skip your meals”

Alex bit his lips, Bianca didn’t tell him this.

“I will opt for coffee at the office risa, I am really late for my meeting”

She sighed, she couldn’t win against him even if she tried.

“You should hurry then” Gerald finally spoke, “Alex is not someone that jokes with his business”

“You can go ahead, I will take my car to the office”

“Okay”

When no one was expecting it, he gently placed a kiss on her forehead before briskly walking out of the dining room leaving all of them speechless especially Clarrisa. She was seeing more of this man everyday.

“It seems brother in law is changing for the better” Dylan teased her and she blushed.

“You better hold him tight” Gerald warned but Clarissa didn’t care about that, shs was still over the moon that Alex kissed her even if it was on her forehead.

****

The minute Alex entered his car, his countanance changed and his eyes darkened before wiping his mouth. He felt disgusted with the fact that his lips made contact with her powdered forehead.

Angrily picking up his phone, he dialed a number and the latter answered on the first ring.

“Alex” Bianca’s voice resonated in his ears.

“Gastrointestinal problems, really?”

“Opps” a gasp escaped her lips, “I forgot to tell you about that”

The man sighed before speaking again, “i found a strange drawer in Gerald’s study”

“Did you see what was inside?”

“It was locked and he wears the keys on his neck”

“That sly bastard” Bianca cussed.

“I will get a locksmith to make me the exact type of key”

“Did you get a good look at the key type?”

“The exact reason why I will still spend the night in my fiancée’s house tonight”

“They sure will be seeing your face a lot more often”

“Meet me in the office, I have something to discuss with you”

He didn’t bother to wait for her reply and ended the call before zooming out of the house. A tornado was brewing and it’s impact was going to be very bad.