C13 Hey baby

Sofia's POV

Tears brimmed in my eyes as I held it to my chest, plopping to the ground.

"I—I miss you, Mom," I muttered, holding the frame tighter to my chest, letting my tears flow freely.

I didn't know how short or long it was until Rae walked Into the room, snapping my attention.

"Mrs. Sofia, are you okay?" She asked, worriedly walking over to me. "Yes, I am, thank you," I replied, holding her hands to get up on my feet.

"The helps are here to move the luggage, should I let them in or do you need some time?"

"Let them in, the earlier the better," I said blankly.

Rae stepped out of the room briefly and returned shortly with the helps behind her.

They gave a curt before moving to pack the luggage out of the room, while I walked to the car outside.

"Mrs. Holmes," the chauffeur called as I stepped closer. "Is there anything I can help you with Francis?" I asked and he shook his head.

"Mr. Alex just put a call through to me, asking where I'd driven you to," Francis explained.

"And what did he do afterward?"

"He didn't say anything, apparently, his right-hand man was the one who didn't relay that you were coming here to him," Francis said, and I nodded wordlessly as the helper filled the car trunk with my things.

"Sofia," My father called, walking close to me. I stared blankly at him, expecting the excuse he was going to give this time around.

"I hope you're fine, and..." He barely said when I stepped into the car, slamming the door shut.

"It's done ma'am," Rae said, while Francis started the car and drove off.

******

The car swerved into the Holmes Mansion, making me jerk awake from my short slumber.

I wiped my hands over my face, wiping off every bit of grogginess before stepping down from the car.

"Sofia," Alex called the second I stepped into the house, his voice heavy and laced with anger.

"Where are you coming from?" He asked, I simply walked past him without a response.

"Sofia!" He growled, making me turn back at him. "Do you have a fetish for my voice Mr Alex or is there something else to what's wrong with you?" I asked, stepping closer.

"I made sure Rae told one of your minions that I'd be stepping out of the house to get some of my things, And why do I have to double the explanation?" I retorted.

"He isn't the one who you got married to, I'm your husband Sofia and anything you do must be reported to me directly!" He snapped, making me scoff at his ridiculous attempt to seize power.

"I'm not sure I need to remind you that you were sold to me by your father Sofia, so you fucking belong to me, dead or alive, I own every single bit of your existence from this moment on," Alex said, and I could feel my stomach gurgle with the sudden urge to retch.

"It's not working Alex, your attempt to scare me into one of those people who seek life at your feet, is not working on me, I've grown up in worse environments than you've Alex, I've seen men smuggle drugs, seen them kill and toss a body like it is nothing," I said with a pause, stepping closer to him.

"I've seen men willing and unwillingly behave in worse ways than you've, my father struggled for every bit of his money, and I was with him through it all, thick and every fucking thin, so you shut your mouth and put your god-damned ego down because it does nothing but make you seem like an idiot in front of these people, frequently at that," I said, not even blinking for once as I put him to his place.

"And just so you know Alex Holmes, your life was a fuckin bed of roses and that's why you grew up to become this egoist son of a bitch, but I need to remind you that, your father, Michael Holmes, brought me to you, why? Because no one would marry his deranged son," I said, heaving heavily as I watched him fume with anger.

"I swear..."

"Ten percent Alex, ten percent of your father's company belongs to me now and every time you raise your hands to me, every 10 percent of what you own belongs to me," I threatened, watching him withdraw his hands in shame.

"You can try me, if it were left to that, I can very well push you to get the remaining eighty percent that's left, you can try me, dear husband," I smiled before walking out of his sight, happy at the misery on his face.

A phone rang and I turned to pick it before realizing that it wasn't mine. It was Alex's.

He picked the phone from his pocket and I turned to see the brightest smile on his face.

Fucking pure, and beautiful, I blinked my eyes to confirm it wasn't a fragment of my imagination, realizing again how similar he was to Zack.

'Hey baby," he called, and it felt like my stomach was being ripped open, at his words. I clutched my purse before walking away to my room with the maids dragging my luggage with them.

I plopped to the bed, watching the maids unpack the bags to arrange the bags.

The maids moved about the room silently, carefully unpacking my belongings and arranging them in their designated places. I lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling, the weight of everything pressing against my chest. Alex’s voice replayed in my head, the sweetness of his tone when he answered that call piercing through me like a jagged blade.

“Hey baby.”

The words rang in my ears, over and over again. It wasn’t jealousy; it was the raw sting of betrayal, the confirmation of what I already knew but had hoped wasn’t true. He wasn’t mine, and he never would be. I had no desire to possess him, but the realization that I was just another pawn in his life—a tool he could use, control, and discard—broke me in ways I couldn’t describe.

"Is there anything else you need, ma’am?” one of the maids asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I sat up slowly, shaking my head. “No, that’ll be all. Thank you.”

They nodded politely and left the room, closing the door softly behind them. Silence enveloped me once more as I let out a shuddering breath, gripping the edge of the bed.

“Sold to him,” I muttered under my breath, the words tasting bitter. My father had done this to me, handed me over like a possession to settle his debts or build his alliances. Yet Alex’s words had cut deeper than any betrayal my father could orchestrate.