I picked up my bag, about to hoist it over my shoulder but Sally stopped me.She snapped her fingers twice and a stoic-looking guard rushed up to her, his hands behind his back with his shoulders ramrod straight as he adopted the military style.“Ma'am?” He's spoken directly to Sally not offering me a glance.“You're to help him with his luggage and show him to his room. It's on the first floor, so ring ahead and get everything ready for his arrival. “Thank you.” She said dismissing him soon after so I tend to other customers. The man finally my way stretching his hands forward. “This way sir,” he took the lead, with me with me walking close to him. He would glance back from time to time as we walked down the hallway to ensure I was following him.We arrived at an elevator and he stopped, pressing a button for the first floor which was where the suite was located.He stared directly in front of him, not bothering to communicate or even start up a small conversation. I kept myself to
Donald's POVThat night, I slept like a baby making sure to switch my phone off so I wasn't interacted by any calls or messages from anybody asking for my whereabouts.For the first time in a long while, I slept in the next morning, waking up a couple of minutes past 10 am.Thanks to the luxurious suites I was in, I had a floor-to-ceiling window in the bedroom which offered me a view of the nighttime and in the evening and also a beautiful view of the clouds and birds chirping in the morning.I sat up on the bed, stretching my hands above my head while I let out a yawn. The nap in the bed was the best one I had in years, the bed feeling like a soft cloud not to mention the sheets made of soft, Egyptian cotton.Now I could see why the rich always wanted to get richer, this kind of lifestyle was easily addictive.I'm sure if I spent a month in this suite, then I would be motivated to work harder than I ever had.I didn't feel like getting up yet so I spent a couple more minutes in bed s
I took a quick power nap to recover some of my strength after the extensive swimming session. Did I forget that the hotel had an executive swimming for VIP guests?I had quickly grown bored after binging on a couple of TV shows and I decided to call up, asking for a list of things to do.That was when they gave me an extensive offer of various activities such as Touring the City for newbies and swimming sessions, fencing lessons, private fine dining, and a cinema…they had a downtown cinema.My mind was blown at the prospect of these amazing options so I picked swimming first.They provided a lifeguard and swimming instructor. To top it off, they made available loads of finger food to sate the hunger and restore our energy.All in all, I had fun.Currently, I was the only one in the lounge and I chose to take full advantage of it by spreading my legs on the chair, a dark sunglasses perched up on my face while I stared out in the distance watching the scenery.My phone buzzed with an in
Donald's POV A couple of hours later the hottie was coming to a close. Arnold introduced me to many of the guests, taking me around the room in a mini tour.There were so many people in attendance and as we went, each person got more influential than the last. So much so that it was hard to keep my shock under wraps as we walked around the room. Finally, we retired to a section of the building that was away from the party.“So, what now?” I asked, taking the seat that Arnold offered me.“Whiskey or vodka?” He asked instead.I shook my head refusing both, not sure that I had any space in my stomach for more alcohol. Already I was feeling a bit tipsy and light-headed from all the ones that I had consumed. “None for me, thank you.” He shrugged, pouring whiskey into a cup. “How did you see the party? Pretty dope right?”I nodded in agreement. “The best. I have never seen that many powerful people packed into any room. What's the event for by the way?”“Oh, just having a fundraiser for
Donald POVKnowing that I would be up early tomorrow when I went back home, I woke up early at night to iron my clothes and I did a little bit of meditating before I went back to bed.My father was currently in the hospital, in a section of the building where he had nurses and matrons who looked after him, making sure he took his medications. He was generally fit and healthy before he was discharged. He has been in and out of the hospital for some years now due to his condition.Unfortunately, the last time you had a minor issue, the doctor did a botched job which escalated into a severe ailment, requiring several surgeries.The drive down to the hospital was only thirty minutes, plus the Uber driver was quite adept at navigating traffic. When they arrived, just in time for the visiting hour, he tipped off the driver and walked inside.As soon as I walked into the ER several nurses began waving at me while some greeted him as he walked past. I was quite popular around here because of
The nurses stayed for a little while and we all chatted, catching up with each other before they had to go back to their respective posts. “You should come by more often, George misses you a lot.” One of the nurses told me on my way out.“Will do,” I threw her a two-finger salute her way, mustering up a smile. Grandpa and I then settled down to the main gist, enthralling each other with exciting stories of what happened while we were absent. I made sure to leave out any bad news like me and Rose getting divorced or me being broke and his upcoming surgeries.“Remember that time I told you that me and Carl were going to Sacramento?” George leaned back, a wide smile on his face. Carl was his long-time friend who traveled abroad for a long time making them disconnect but they reconnected again in the hospital when he came back for more surgeries and found the hospice.“Yeah, I do. What happened? Did you guys not make it to Sacramento again?” I replied, munching on pieces of fruit that s
Donald's POV“I won't tell anyone,” I promised, foregoing the part where I had no one to actually tell. “What's the big deal about this card anyways?”George blew out a harsh look, exhausted simply by the thought of telling me about this huge secret. “I told your father that this was a bad idea but they insisted that you grew up humble and what notes so that's why you might be hearing this for the first time…Do you ever wonder why I get such special treatment from the staff?”I shook my head, no because it has never occurred to me. Generally, I thought that my grandfather had such a likable personality and he grew up on the waitstaff which was why they were always nice and attended to him but I'm finding out that maybe there could be another reason.“I suppose it's because I paid them handsomely to attend to you?” I say tentatively.“Really?” George shook his head. “Did you also ever wonder why they gave me a private suite instead of sharing the other bunks like other patients do?”I
Donald's POVI rushed off of the hospital like a man whose pants were on fire. My head was overfilled with various thoughts, both good and bad.Everything was clicking into place now, those times when it seemed like his parents had a fountain of money stashed somewhere. The impromptu trips out of the countries, first-class ‘sudden’ tickets, meetings with celebrities, and the endless parties around the house…It was making sense now.How did I not know I was being lied to?Undoubtedly, it was an incredibly skilled and well-guarded lie which makes me wonder…why was Gramps telling me the truth now?Surely, it can't be because of my discovery with the guard.Or was it …?I stifled a frustrated grunt, raking my fingers through my hair in agitation as I stomped through the wards, eager to get the hell out of here. I could still hear George call out for me distantly but I was too hurt to go back.I trusted him! I loved him more than anyone else and he still betrayed me…it makes one wonder if
Donald's POV The ‘beep beep’ of the monitors woke me up from my deep slumber.I open my eyes slowly to meet the white, sterile ceiling of a hospital. I knew it was a hospital because it had that familiar disinfectant smell to it…also because it makes sense, given the fact that I was shot at three times a couple of hours before and yeah, I remember every bit of that story.It was like a clip of a very bad movie except this happened to me, the distant yet eerily familiar feeling of being shot invaded my senses and I had to inch my hand up to see if I could check out the wound. “I wouldn't advise you to do that.” A pretty blond nurse wearing scrubs walked in, a clipboard in her hand.“Hel…Hello..” I croaked out, realizing that my throat was as dry as a desert.She must have come to the same realization because she walked over to my bedside, reaching for a cup of water and she handed it over to me.I greedily slurped it down like a greedy man dying of thirst, only stopping when I emptie
David's POV Just like I expected, the media circus around Donald's death blew out of proportion.As I'm packing my bags, the entire area in which Donald was shot had been taped off by the police.Apparently they were opening a case into the incident, searching for who shot him.I would like to feel relaxed on that point but it's just my luck that the homeless guy I usye turned out to be something else.For the rest of the day, I kept on trying his number but he never picked up soon enough, the number became unavailable which I took to mean that he had either discarded of it or he doesn't want anything to do with me anymore. When Boone asked me about the progress report, I lied to him stating that I had taken care of the homeless guy but I knew it was just a matter of time before the police found him and he blurted out the truth…which was why I was booking the next available flight and getting the hell out of this cursed city.The moment I left the borders of the city and I was on my
RoseTo think that it was Donald's death that brought me and my family together, it was mind boggling to say the least.I received the call from my sister early the next morning and to say I was surprised, is an understatement.“Hello, Tanya. Wh-hat's going on?”She was breathing heavily which made me worried. “Have you seen the news, Rose?” She asked.My brows furrowed in confusion. “The news?” I repeated. “No. What news? I'm just waking up!” I say, flipping the covers away from my body so I reach for my laptop.Suddenly the speaker went mute as I could only hear muffled words float through. it seems like she was talking to someone else.I ignored her, checking up on the latest news.I quickly scanned through a number of them, realizing that no one stood out to me. “Tanya, I don't know what I'm supposed to be looking at here but nothing is making sense to me. Can you talk to me and tell me what happened? Is it Mom or Dad? Are they okay?”Immediately, my mind jumped into the worst sce
RoseI knew the exact moment I fell for David all over again was when I heard the words, ‘you’re free to go’.That faithful Tuesday morning, I was laying face up on my cot, thinking of new ways to distract myself from a boring and predictable day when the buzzer sounded.Unlike the last time when I ignored the guard, I turned around to look at him but this time he wasn't holding a tray of food in his hands.He had the bunch of keys in his hands and he was walking slowly towards my room, an unpleasant in his eyes.“Hey, you. Get up!” He boomed loudly, startling me.“I was already up…” I grumbled, flipping my legs around the tiny cot. “Where's my food?”He didn't respond, only grunted and shoved me not too gently toward the bars, handcuffing me. “Move!” He ordered and I obeyed, shuffling my feet.We did the same walk routine, similar to when I visited Donald but this time…it seemed different.“Where are we going?” I twisted my head around to ask him but he just shoved my head forward.W
David's POV Contrary to what Donald thought, I was right there behind him the whole time.He was so easy and gullible. Just one mention of Rose and he came running exactly like I thought.All I needed to do was play the pity card and he sucked it up like a starving man drinking water.It was quite hilarious if I was being honest.I wanted the first location, simply because it would be easier to dispose of him when the homeless guy was done with the job but Donald being a hard ass…he insisted we change it, probably suspicious of my actions. Well, at least he was smart… just not too smart to avoid dying though.My phone buzzed with a text.Donald: Where are you?Me: I'm right behind you. I'll be there soon.When I sent the text, I burst into laughter, muffling the sound.I kept checking my watch, waiting for the homeless guy to show up. This was not the agreement. He was supposed to be here a couple of minutes ago, do the job the moment Donald showed up and get out of here.I gritted
Donald's POV I was woken up by my phone buzzing needlessly.Groaning, I twisted around in bed to reach for the phone only to see a name I never thought I'd see flash across my screen.Immediately my eyes flew open, sleep deserting my mind and I nearly jumped out of bed.Wait, why the hell was David calling me?To make matters worse, shortly after the call ended he dropped the text followed by another.David: Hi, I know I'm the last person you want to talk to right now but I need your help. David: Please respond, it's urgent.I debated, responding, wanting to shrug it off but I sat up on the bed so I could think logically.From the little I've known and observed about David, I know that he's a snake and he's very cunning, always thinking three steps ahead of everyone else which is why it bothers me so much that he's texting me.What the hell does he want from me?While I was contemplating on whether to pick up or respond to his text messages, he sent another.David: Please.Because I
David's POV “Hey guys, do you have any news yet?” I asked barging into the basement. All through the night, I could barely sleep a wink as I tossed and turned, my brain producing new ways on how to help Rose.After I went to visit her, I became spurred on to double down on my efforts and for the past two days, my team and I have been up through out the night, working tirelessly on breaking into David firewalls.At this points, I didn't care about whether it was illegal or not, all you wanted to do is to get Rose out of that filthy place.“We don't have any leads yet.” Shawn spoke up. “We still haven't gotten those parts that we needed and decrypting the messages by hand is taking us way longer than it should. At this point, we'll probably get done by the end of the year.”Groaning, I slapped my hands over my face. “That's not going to work. You're sure there's no other way to get this going faster?”If I could get my hands on some incriminating messages that David exchanged with his
David's POV Popping a chewing gum, I sucked it back in, tapping my feet impatiently on the brakes.I decided to make use of Boone's advice, doing the extra work to cement the plan that I have already started and that begins with…A loud honk from a passing car jolted me out of my thoughts and I popped my head out, raising my middle finger as a response.“Fucking asshole!” I muttered under my breath, stealing a glance at my watch. It's been over an hour and this guy is nowhere to be found.He's got to know that he's playing with his life.I am a gentle and mannered man until I was pushed to the wall forced, to do certain things…one of which is to make good on the threats I told him.A couple of days before I decided to meet with the homeless man who placed the tip in the police station for the cops to find, I spent some hours out of my day to watch him and like clockwork he always appeared at the same time every day.It was tad boring and predictable but it saved me time to look for h
RoseThe minutes turned into hours and the hours into days, each day more horrible than the last.My nightmare of being trapped in here was slowly coming to pass and I was too helpless to do anything to stop it.Reaching out to my family wasn't an option and none of the guards agreed to let me use their phone to make one more call to Donald, leaving me stranded.The food was probably the good thing about the place.I don't know who the chef is but he's doing a really good job of keeping me happy…temporarily though.I sighed for probably the hundredth time, staring vacantly at the ceiling.You know, when you first have your freedom taken away from you, you think that the first few hours or days at the worst but it's not. It's actually quite easy because there is a list of ways you can distract yourself but as the day grows longer, that's when reality sets in and the sadness begins.The possibility that this could become your new normal starts to haunt you and in as much as your mind w