A Million Reasons

Chapter Nineteen: Blood Thirst

"Nathaniel, where is my precious little boy?" her voice called to him softly as he hid behind the sheer curtains in his parent's room.

Trying his best to bridle his laughter, he covered his mouth with his little hand and close his eyes—as if that would make him invisible.

He loved having his mother all to himself. While his father and Caroline collected seashells down by the beach, he and his mother would often spend the time playing his favorite game.

"Nathaniel." Her voice grew closer, causing him to release a series of muffled giggles.

"I hear you, my sweet little boy. Are you hiding in my room again?" She laughed as the sound of the tapping at the front door drew her away.

As her footsteps grew distant and the strangled voice of a stranger filled the air, Nate's little heart began to race.

"Wait. You can't do this! Get your hands off me!" His mother's voice sounded alarmed causing him to emerge from his hiding place.

"Mommy," he called as he made his way down the long hall of their beach house—his eyes locked on his mother and the panicked expression on her face.

The front door was ajar but all he could see of the stranger was his hand, strong and weathered as it held onto his mother's wrist, causing her to wince in pain.

"Mommy!" he cried out.

As she turned to him, the fear in her eyes caused his heart to race.

"Nate! Nate, wake up!"

Aaliyah's voice called, ripping from the past.

When his eyes finally opened and he saw her beautiful face, he exhaled. "Liya."

"Are you alright? You were screaming."

"God, I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to..." He ran his hand through his hair and rested his elbows on his knees. Where were these dreams coming from? He wrestled with his thoughts. He knew he was anxious about his meeting today but he thought he'd gotten over all this shit. That's why he spent countless hours and thousands of dollars on that goddammed shrink.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Liya stared at him, all doe-eyed and innocent.

Caressing her cheek, his heart broke. He wished he could share this with her but he couldn't. He wouldn't know where to start. How do you explain to the woman you love that you're the reason for your mother's death?

"No. I'm alright." He pulled away, throwing the covers back and heading toward the bathroom; anything to avoid having to discuss his past.

"Nate, please. Talk to me." She followed him. "I love you. I just want to help."

"It's nothing, Aaliyah! Just let it go!" He yelled, regretting it the moment that look appeared on her face—the one that left no doubt that he had hurt her, deeply.

"I'm sorry. I just have to get to the office early, and..."

"It's ok." She walked away slowly, taking his heart with her.

Consumed by guilt, he sighed. A part of him wanted to go to her, hold her, and tell her everything but he saw no point. His childhood was fucked up—plain and simple. Rehashing the past wouldn't change a thing. All it did was get inside his head; make him feel like the scared little boy his father had complete control over. But he wasn't that boy anymore, and he sure as hell wasn't going to give control back to that son of a bitch—especially now that he had him right where he wanted.

Turning the shower on, he submerged himself in the hot water and forced himself to move on. Tilting his head back, he let the waterfall wash away his worries in the wavy strands of his chestnut hair. 'Liya would just have to understand.'; there were some things he would never share with her, no matter how much she pled.

No. He had to stay focused.

Today was an important day, probably one of the most important in his career. Today was the day all the plans he set in motion came to fruition.

When he first learned that his father's company was having financial problems and selling some of its assets to build equity, he jumped at the chance—buying up stock under the names of various private companies until he owned a majority share. By the end of this day, Thaedyn Greyson would be forced to resign as C.E.O of the company he spent his entire life building and Nate would finally satisfy his bloodthirst for revenge.