Chapter 65 - Help From A Stranger

The lynx said the words that the beast was trying so hard to suppress inside for so long. He didn't want to feel happy at her words but god, he was beyond soaring with unwanted emotions. It hurt that he had to leave her behind but it would hurt him even further if he let her blindly come along to face danger.

This was for the best. Even though it was for the best, he did find himself missing her endearing petite form. He already wanted to turn the yacht around and go back to his lynx. But, he was determined to win fair and square.

For her sake and most of all, for his own sake to prove his worth as a man in front of her father.

Now, the first thing he had to do was to look for the yacht's control room. His father taught him all the basics like cars, fishing, hunting, and this list included steering an engine moving along water. Dane was no expert like his father but he idolized him and considered himself a diligent student. All he had to do was find the yacht's control room and—

Dane accidentally bumped into a man, out of his blind resolve to find his sole goal. He knocked off the man's glasses onto the ground. Out of apology, Dane leaned down to grab the elderly man's glasses.

"Pardon me sir, I'm in a rush."

The elderly man with bright ash blond hair and eyes as azure as the sky squinted at him, "No worries. I'm also at fault for not paying attention to you coming my way."

He accepted the glasses and put it on, his eyes widening as they fell on Dane but he was in a rush and paid it no mind. There were more important matters he had to tend to, like securing victory in hopes of obtaining his lynx's freedom once and for all.

It was a few moments before footsteps travelled after him.

"Wait! Your name..." he whispered. "What is your name?"

Dane paused and impatiently swiveled his head around to the man.

"Elias Blackwell. I'm sure you've heard the gossip from the media and whatnot. Do you have business with me? I'm in a hurry so..."

Those deep azure eyes of his temporarily searched Dane's as though there were a string of secrets untold. Yet, they thinned to realization.

"You remind me of a man I once knew but it's clear now, I do remember seeing your face on the news. A pleasure meeting you, Mr. Blackwell. My name is Reed Blair and I'm on the senator's council. If you win the elections which I am sure of that you may, I'm sure we will be seeing a lot of each other from now on."

Dane slowly nodded and regarded him with a mutual feeling of interest, "The feeling is mutual Mr. Blair. Thank you for your kind words."

A nagging feeling prompted him to pause and look at the back of the elderly man as he walked away. He shook it off as nothing when he finally stopped in front of what looked to be like the yacht's control room.

He barged in, "Sir, allow me to take over."

"What the hell..."

The pilot turned around with his mouth open agape as Dane threw money at him like early Christmas snowing dollar bills of fifties and hundreds. The pilot immediately looked over at the pile of money piled onto the floor and panned over to Dane, as realization dawned over him. His eyeballs began to look like money sockets themselves.

"CEO of silver linings, Elias Blackwell. We can do this the easy way, or the hard way. Entrust this ship to me and you can have everything worth a few thousand or you can suffer from your refusal. I'm not the most patient man today so it's best if you make the easy decision."

"O-Okay!" he shouted, as he scurried to collect the money on the ground.

After the pilot left with his riches and Dane was finally left to his own devices, he spent time becoming familiar with the controls. Dane reminisced to his father's basic teachings and whatever bluffing brains he could muster to steer the yacht. Moments went by and before he knew it, the yacht was actually on par with the senator's yacht.

He paused deep in his cautious thoughts however, when he heard a soft creak to the door slightly open behind him.

"Who's there!" he shouted, shoving the chair to the intruder.

The intruder in black resembled one of the senator's men that had been protecting him upon his grand entrance and arrival. The chair that Dane pushed knocked the man off balance and Dane used that chance to walk over in two easy strides. He towered over the smaller built man like a tall statue and found pleading eyes of mercy.

Mercy didn't find the beast as he quickly knocked the man out in one single blow with the strike of his hand against the man in black's neck. The man in black never got to lay a hand on him and eventually grunted. He fell onto the ground. Some small object fell along with him, tumbling out of his hand.

A phone.

It must be what the treacherous senator was using to communicate with his men.

Dane reached out to grab the phone and leveled it to his ear.

"Nice try but I'm still going to win by my own hands. I knocked your man out. Tell the senator that these nasty little tricks won't work on me," Dane hissed.

There was a slight heavy sigh on the other end, "I'm glad that you're okay."

His heart stammered and his hard features softened. It was none other than his dearest wife and lynx.

"...Prisana. It's you. How..."

No sooner than when he had heard her endearing voice, did it leave him.

Unexpectedly, the next voice caused him to shake with worry, "It's me. Lose or I'll hurt the girl you love."

His heart all but stopped. The senator. Would he truly hurt his own flesh and blood? There wasn't a clear answer on how serious the senator was when it came to his own daughter. He couldn't bear to risk anything else as he looked to the controls and debated letting everything go so his lynx could be spared.

Hope was lost but it reappeared at the last moment.

"Dane, I know you're his son," came a familiar voice that prompted him to turn to the door.

Dane looked into that same elderly man with ash blond hair and azure eyes, who began raking over the situation with ease.

"I can offer a helping hand because I owe your father for an old favor."