Chapter 4

Caden Lockwood sat in his office, staring out the window at the breathtaking view beyond. When you looked at Firebend, there was a sea of green, and it was comforting to the eyes. Over the last several months, he has had to rely on his own strength and tenacity. The Kensingtons, particularly the silver-haired gentleman called Sebastian, were something he loathed hearing about on a daily basis. The guy had been a pain in the ass, and he had run out of ideas on how to reduce the number of victims in Stonewick as low as possible, while still keeping the secret!

Sebastian Kensington, as predicted, refused to drink the blood from the animals they had taken from Firebend, and he insisted on receiving fresh human blood once a week. They were successful in persuading the guy to refrain from killing any innocent people in Stonewick, instead promising to furnish him with one man every week.

In order to defend the inhabitants of Stonewick, he was forced to sacrifice the lives of the captives held in the town of Stonewick. Those serving a life sentence would be the first to depart, and they did so in secrecy. After Sebastian Kensington requested that more than one guy be brought in every week, everything was good until there were no more prisoners in Stonewick. The bastard said that the blood of those individuals was insufficient to satiate his hunger, and he thus wanted the blood of every virgin lady in the town. He went on to say that the blood of the virgin would stay a month in his system and that he would need fewer transfusions as a result.

In response to his notification to the council, it was unanimously decided to transfer their unfavored daughters to the vampire. It was the only way to rescue as many people as possible from imminent danger. The fact that Caden Lockwood believed it was still cruel didn't matter since he needed to buy more time until a solution to permanently destroy Sebastian Kensington was found. In the meanwhile, he had to concede to his requests in order to serve the interests of the majority in Stonewick, which he did reluctantly.

In the last three months, three young ladies have perished at the hands of Sebastian, and the numbers are expected to climb in the future unless a miracle occurs that saves them all! He couldn't fathom the anguish of his men, who had sent their girls to Sebastian in the first place. Another sigh came from his lips as he wished for a miracle to happen once again. Actually, a member of his council advised him to seek assistance from a rival clan, but asking Black Shadow for assistance was akin to asking for the devil's aid. There was a specific clan that was very difficult to work with, and they were notorious for being traitors. As it turns out, Black Shadow was the Carpe Nortem's number one adversary, and their enmity was the catalyst for the Great War!

When Caden's thoughts about Black Shadow were dismissed with a shake of his head, he went to his workstation to check his email. Because there was nothing to eat, he opted to eat at the cafeteria on the ground level of the city hall, which was conveniently placed.

Caden was walking smoothly towards the canteen when he recognized a familiar figure at the information desk. He tucked his hands into the pockets of his slacks and smiled at the sight. For a brief while, he came to a complete halt and focused his gaze towards the lady, before shaking his head in astonishment.

He may be hallucinating since he's been thinking about her for the last several days, or he could simply be having a bad dream. After dismissing the chance that it was the same lady he had met a few years earlier, he kept walking towards the cafeteria with his head held high. When he was going to open the door, his hands were already on the handle, and he was seized by the wrist by someone. 

He came to a complete stop as soon as he saw her up close, and his eyes widened in surprise. Her charming face was almost completely hidden by her blonde, short hair, and her expressive black eyes were enchanting as always! It was the woman's beautiful skin that enhanced the alluring beauty of her eyes and lips. Those freckles strewed throughout her face, to put it kindly, added cuteness to her appearance.

“Yes? What can I do to assist you? " He inquired, but the lady was unable to react at the time of the inquiry. She didn't say anything, just glanced at him and raised an eyebrow. Was it meant to be an insult? He was somehow aware of how Sebastian Kensington had insulted him in the past!

“Daddy!” 

Caden Lockwood squinted at the mad lady with his glowering gaze! She couldn't possibly refer to him as 'Daddy' in public. He was ready to express his displeasure and reprimand her for being so brave when the lady moved astonishingly quickly and wrapped her arms around him securely. When he turned back, he saw that several people from the cafeteria and others who were in the waiting room were staring at them, which made him feel humiliated! Everyone in Stonewick was well aware of the fact that he had never been married and had never had children in his previous life. His breath caught in his throat as he realized that they may be thinking he was a sugar daddy!

Caden carefully pulled the lady away and attempted to bring her to a corner where they could have a quiet conversation in the privacy of their home. His beard was inadvertently stroked when the lady chose to be obstinate and continued inside the cafeteria instead of leaving the building. He worried as he followed her inside the building, and when he turned to look at his colleagues, they instantly returned their attention to their plates! Unbelievable! In a fraction of a second, the lady has managed to tarnish his reputation in the town of Stonewick!

"Excuse me, Miss!” He addressed the lady who was in the process of placing an order for lunch! When she didn't react, Caden opted to take up a position next to her while she ordered her lunch from the menu. He followed suit in order to keep the shame to a minimum.

Immediately after telling the cashier, Caden's phony grin vanished. "My father will be paying for the meals," she said.

When the clerk asked whether she could help, she said, "Sure, Miss."

"My name is Scarlet Morgan, and I'm sure you're surprised to see me here right now," she said, and the lady just smiled at her. Then she walked over to an empty table near the window, where she placed her tray of food. It wasn't long before the guy joined her; she rolled her eyes at him as she took her seat. Taking aim at his facial hair, she said, "You look silly with that beard."

"Can you tell me who you are?” His second question prompted the lady to drop her silverware, resulting in an uninvited commotion in the cafeteria.

"I've just told the woman over there that my name is Scarlet Morgan," says Scarlet Morgan. “Do you have a hearing impairment?”

As soon as she ventured to reprimand him, Caden Lockwood's mouth fell open in surprise. In spite of the fact that you look exactly like your mother, you are not my daughter, understand?" she says. "He informed her in hushed tones, but the lady smashed the table in his face, forcing several of the other diners to turn their heads in their way.

"So you're familiar with her," she said.

"I do," he said, his eyes fixed on the strange lady who had dared to question his sanity in the middle of the day at his job.

"But you never attempted to find her, or me for that matter," she said when he was challenged.

"She dumped me in favour of another guy!"

It was impossible not to answer in a shouting voice. "No, she didn't do that! She felt compelled to marry that guy for reasons that remain a mystery!” She responded, and everyone in the cafeteria appeared to be paying attention to what they were saying about each other.

Caden groaned in front of Scarlet Morgan because she was being so defiant in her refusal to listen to him. “Look! Please understand that you are not my daughter. ”

"I am," she affirmed emphatically. "I have evidence that you are my father," she said as she unlocked her knapsack to extract a bag that belonged to her mother. "I have proof that you are my father," she added. "Take a look at this!" While pushing it towards him, she murmured something.

With everyone's attention focused on them, he had no option but to go for the bag. Slowly, he loosened the knot, and his fingers shook as he opened the letter that had been attached to the string. While reading it, his tears welled up as he realized he was about to write his last love letter to the lady he had actually fallen in love with. After that, he placed it back inside the bag. She had written him a message to set her free, and he had assumed she had not received the letter. "However, she sent me a note to set her free," he told the lady. "At the time, Miss Morgan, she was not yet pregnant with her first child. She was instructed to "go and swindle another guy, but not me," he said.

"Did you have a sexual encounter with her?"

Initially, he thought about avoiding the question, but the wench repeated it in a much louder voice, causing him to reconsider his decision to do so. He was completely taken by surprise when she raised her voice at him! "Yes, I did have a sexual relationship with her!”

Scarlet sighed as she removed the chain from her neck and opened the locket in her hand. Then she brought out a photograph with some inscription on the reverse and showed it to me. "I'm certain that it will alter your thinking," she assured him.

Caden Lockwood was reading the words on the back of the photographs when he took a deep breath, which could be heard across the restaurant. He, on the other hand, continued to dispute her allegations. In response, he said, "This in no way establishes that I am your father."

Scarlet pushed the table into the wall before rising to her feet. The guy responded with a laugh, indicating that he thought she was finished. He was in for a major surprise, to say the least! "What do you think about getting our DNA tested?" Her proposal was heard loud and clear by those who were paying attention, and she could sense some approval from them.