5:59 - 57 seconds,58 seconds….59,6:00 pmShit!Sweat trickled down Alan Grayson’s face as he took a glance at the wall clock. Mr. Billing was clear - return with the crates of wine for the party before 6 pm or you would regret the day you were born.After making a mess of Mr. Billing's travel plans a day before, he knew that trouble was looming around his neck.“Two more crates please, I am in a hurry. I can only imagine that losing my job is the least that could happen to me and even that would render me finished,” Alan politely encouraged the wine retailer to fasten up the large-scale delivery.In a strange turn of events, wine had finished at Mr. Billing’s 60th birthday anniversary and quite a few elite families had attended the event. Mr. Billing had always known how to attract the elites to his events but this time he couldn't afford to organise a wine-less party. His counterparts would definitely mock him inwardly - some could even leave angrily.Only a few bottles were lef
Alan could feel the pressure building as he tossed the crates over to the waiters as quickly as he could before anyone else found him.“You are lucky you came just right on time. The guests were just about to leave embarrassed,” one of the waiters told him.He didn't feel lucky though. Why would he feel lucky when had just been told that he wouldn't come out of the building alive? He was done for.A deep threatening voice loomed over the subtle darkness in the alley prompting the waiters to scamper like cockroaches at the smell of insecticides. “Hahaha, here you are. You bastard! How dare you disobey father’s instructions”.Alan turned around slowly - it was Lesley Billing; the first son of the Billing family.“I should test how firm these bottles are by slamming them on your head. I am sure Rose would feel sad for a day or two and after that, she will be back to her senses.”“Mr. Lesley, I understand that you are pissed off but it is not my fault I promise, I was stuck in traffic, an
Mr. Billing was referring to Bingo, Tobiat, and Bertrand. They were three of Mr. Billing’s former security detail who betrayed him by taking a bribe from a business rival who wanted to block a large-scale delivery of Mr. Billing’s products. Mr. Billing saw the trio as nothing but traitors so he instructed that they should be beaten and locked up. They had been locked up for 3 years until today.“Hahaha! It's good to see that the three of you still have a lot of muscles after all these years,” Mr. Billing’s mouth widened into a cruel laughter.“We are going to play a game. Something like the semi-final of the World Cup you know?” he said, making funny gestures - he was clearly excited. “But this time, it will be a wrestle. Mr. Greyson would fight Tobiat while Bingo would fight Bertrand in a no-one-comes-out-alive fight. The overall winner would then receive a sum of 50 million dollars. I am sure that is more than what you would ever make even if you could live a thousand years.”Lesl
“Divorce him?” Rose asked as if she didn't hear clearly what he said.“Yes, daughter. I want to make it as peaceful as it can be and I don't want him to cause any grudges between us. Although he is going to die in this ring any moment from now, we will need his signature for the divorce. I don't want to have his name associated with my family even if he is dead.”“So you are certain you want me to divorce him?” Rose asked again, this time pondering whether it was finally time to succumb to the pressure. She would be saving his life if she agreed just right there and then. Alan couldn't possibly blame her for saving his life, would he? Perhaps she would just prank her father so that he would call off the fight. Anything to save Alan’s life which could be no more any second - a hard punch could be all it took.Just then, Rose’s attention caught something. There was a loud uproar in the hall so she angled her gaze properly to get a good sight of how Alan was faring.With a few more shar
“I have to go now,” Alan responded and hung up the phone before Ms. Daniels could say anything further.Rose was still beside him and he didn’t want her to start getting any ideas. In any case, that was not the most important thing to him - the most important quest was how he would convince his wife not to divorce him.Ever since he got married to her, she was one of his major motivations in life. If she went through with the divorce, he would never get attached to another lady not to talk of marrying her.But why the weird accusation? He never stole a dime in his life before so why would Rose accuse him of stealing a pendant?At that moment, a memory flashed through his mind. “Wait a minute, darling. Are you talking about the golden pendant? The same one that your family accused me of stealing a few years ago?”“Oh! So you remember? You remember that you stole the pendant. Do you even know what that pendant means to this family? Apart from its financial value, It is basically our go
“Hey, look. I have somewhere I need to be urgently,” Alan Greyson told the nurse, writhing out of the bed and stretching his muscles. It was 5:30 am and he remembered that he had to visit Ms. Daniels at her law office. He was excited for what the day had in store for him - a chance for him to flip the pages in the story of his life. Maybe this life of poverty and humiliation wasn't something he could cope with after all, he thought.“Sir, but you still look badly injured. You received quite some dangerous punches in there and, surprisingly, you are still conscious. Not everyone would have survived that but you did. Why don't you stay and get yourself treated?” The nurse uttered, trying to persuade Alan who didn't look like someone in the state to do any active duty.Alan Greyson moved a few steps toward the nurse, his bruised face looking as persuasive as ever. “Listen, it is more important that I carry out the assignment I have at hand. These are just bruises that would disappear wi
Alan knew in his mind that there was no way he could accept such a hug. It was like a mockery to him.“Come on you both,” a voice uttered, breaking the awkward moment - it was Ms. Daniels, their lawyer. “Court is about to sit. You need to be in the courtroom now. There would be no delays.”Alan and Mr. Billing both walked into the courtroom in different directions.The courtroom was as hushed as the scratching of the Judge’s pen was gradually filling the air. Lawyers filled the courtroom, their faces stern and concentrated.Bank officials were also present in court. It was a big day for them because they wanted to know if they were allowed to unfreeze the voluminous amount of money that they had frozen many years ago as directed by the court.Alan had expertly answered all the questions he was asked by the opposing counsel during the deposition and the jury had given their stance.“Let's hope that the assets can be unfrozen now. The jury seems to be cooperative. The best years of my l
Alan craned his neck as he searched through the court premises, peering his head over the crowd and scanning the faces of every man who had the posture of his father.There was no progress. He was getting frustrated - was his father trying to pull a stunt? If he was truly happy about seeing him after a long time like his previous attempt to embrace him suggested, would it not make sense that he started building back the trust they once had? Alan wondered why he even cared in the first place - this was a man who wanted him as the fall guy for very serious offences. He started to doubt Ms. Daniels’ statement about his father's willingness to transfer ownership of all his assets to him. He would just check a few of the empty courtrooms and after that, he would go on his way. The amount he had just received was already more than enough to build a life of his own.At last, he found Mr. Greyson in one of the courtrooms on the utmost floor of the premises. He wasn't alone as another man we