Freda sprang up from her seat and stretched to Bryan, snatching the phone from him before he could even process it. "Give that to me!" She snapped. Bryan looked at her and couldn't struggle with the cell phone with her. "Is she speaking? Someone used her line to call me the other time and it wasn't her, it was.." he began to explain so he wouldn't raise their hopes when it was just another stranger speaking. After the first time, he was getting more and more sure that she had to be in danger. How else could he explain the fact that someone was speaking on her phone? "It's her!" Freda shrieked, "Why did you keep us all waiting? Do you know how pissed off grandfather is? How could you be so selfish, Claire?" Freda snapped at her. Bryan was very shocked to hear her say something like that to her own daughter who had been missing for hours. She would think that she would be more considerate and try to find out where she was but clearly, she was still being venomous. "Get back here rig
It was a few days after Claire had been found. His security men were being tripled as grandfather Maxwell had ordered to make sure that it never happened again. Bryan Shill didn't know what had happened to her in those hours but he decided to let it slide. It was just one of the many layers that his wife had and he swore to uncover. Claire had also been a lot more quiet and she didn't want to see her mother for some reason. Bryan could not help but think it was a good improvement - although experience taught him that it would only last for a few days. "Are you ready to go, sir?" Bryan's new driver, Robson, who was newly hired by the family, called out to Bryan. He nodded and walked into the vehicle. It was a cold and dewy morning and he would rather think of a warm breakfast with his wife or perhaps some cup of coffee with Benjamin, but no, he was out to look for Peterson. Every attempt at finding Ramirez, Jacob, and Nate didn't look fruitful at all. All week had been an intense
Bryan was already at the door before the man could stand up to hurry after him. The last thing he wanted was to let loose his anger, who knew what he would do then? "Supreme master, you are angry over a lie!" Peterson said as he rushed to him by the door. "A lie?" Bryan asked and turned to face him, "A lie? Are you saying that my wife is lying?" He asked again. Peterson realized the gravity of what he'd just said and he blinked, shaking his head, "That's not what I said at all. Look, I never even knew you had a wife until a few weeks ago when we met in front of the hotel, I didn't know what to do with you then," he replied. "You met me and you met Claire, at no point did you think it would be ideal to tell me about what happened?" He asked. Peterson sighed, he sat back down on the couch that was very close to the door. It was a single-seater and he fit right into it without struggle, his legs stuck at the bottom while his whole body was snug in-between. He looked like someone who
Bryan didn’t find Freda at home. He was almost accosted by the new guard but the older man arrived and warned him about who Bryan was and why he shouldn’t dare treat him like that. “He is the husband of the director, how dare you speak to him like that?” Ghw older guard said. But this only pissed him off the most. He cocked a brow at him and asked him if that’s all he knew about him. The guard shrugged and nodded. Bryan tried to hide his displeasure as he walked back to his car. Right inside was his driver, Robson and he had a frown on his face. “Boss, did they give you any trouble?” He asked as he saw Bryan’s face. Bryan shook his head, he was not going to be a crybaby and lamented to his driver that some guard had just made a careless statement in an attempt to dissuade his mate. “And if they did, what would you do about it?” Bryan asked sarcastically, raising his brows. The driver turned sharply to look at him. “I could make them apologize, teach them a lesson,” he replied wi
Benjamin still hadn't moved after Bryan said the last word. He seemed to be frozen in place. He looked at Bryan intently but from all indications, it wasn't really Bryan that he was looking at but through him. "You're beginning to look creepy, just say it already," Bryan said, breaking the silence. Benjamin jumped and asked what he meant, scratching his head. "What do you mean?" He asked. "Come on, I know that you have something on your mind and you just don't want to say it, I'm waiting," he insisted. Ben stood up from the chair and paced the length of the room, then he settled on beside Bryan and looked him straight in the eyes. "I think your condition has something to do with the emperor," he said. Bryan looked at him and shook his head, "Come on, you shouldn't let anyone hear you say that, it's crazy talk," he stated. "Crazy talk? This is the only logical explanation. If the emperor is begging mixed up in your business then maybe he knows something that you don't. Maybe he i
The sun hung lowly on the horizon. It was almost dark and the weather was misty. The cloud gray overhead and the air promised rain. The food stall by the side of the bank was filled up by eager patrons who chattered loudly and placed orders of eggs and toast and everything else that the cheap food truck offered. Inside the shed just across the street was Bryan, he was seated on a park bench, under where a bus stop once was but it had been moved to another location and all that was left there was the shed. Beside him was an old lady who was flipping through a newspaper and didn't even bother with his presence. Bryan could sense that was was actually pissed off at something. She had been mumbling something under her breath all through and although he couldn't clearly hear her, he could guess from the phone call that she had made a few minutes ago that she was upset with her niece. "She'll come around, I'm sure she's just going through the adult phase," he offered to her kindly as s
Bryan got in the car and told Robson to step down. "I can't leave this to chance, I have to be sure that he doesn't get out of sight," he stated. Robson looked at him from the rearview mirror and nodded. "I would be perfect for this drive. I know the city and the mistress, Mrs Claire told me that you haven't been around much since...since you recovered. I think my knowledge and muscle memory of the city would do great," he said, "I also haven't taken a break from driving since I started twenty-three years ago," he reminded him. Bryan sighed, he had a split second to decide if he should take over the wheels or let the man do it. He was right that he hadn't been driving for a very long time and he also didn't know the layout of the city as much as someone who had been living there for the past years and had a better knowledge of the nooks and crannies of the city. "Fine, make sure you don't lose sight of him!" Bryan snapped and Robson nodded as he pulled the car into reverse and sped
Right in front of Bryan was Nate and he looked like he hadn’t aged a day since he last saw him – and that of course was normal seeing as it was barely a year since the last time they saw each other. “Supreme master,” Nate replied, but there was an edge to his voice, almost like he didn’t care that Bryan had just seen him. Peterson walked out and closed the door behind him, looking across the street as if he was trying to spot someone – or something. “You followed me here?” He suddenly asked. Bryan sneered at him and angrily clenched his fist. What sort of foolish question could that possibly be? How could he ask if he had followed him as if that was the most important thing they should have discussed? “I think you did,” Peterson responded. “You’ve been meeting with Nate?” Bryan spat through gritted teeth. “Hey, calm down, you just saw us together for the first time. How can you just assume we’ve always been meeting?” Peterson asked. Bryan cocked a brow at him. “Really? Are you
When he arrived at Freda's house, he could hear raised voices from inside. He stormed in to find Claire and Freda in a heated argument."Get out of here, Bryan," Freda snapped. "This is between me and my daughter."Bryan stood his ground. "I know everything, Freda. There's no need to hide it anymore."Claire turned to him, eyes wide with shock and fear. "Bryan, please don't bring it up. If Grandfather Maxwell finds out what I've done..."Bryan took a deep breath, his resolve strengthening. "I'll confront the situation, Claire."Freda laughed derisively, her voice dripping with contempt. "You think you can convince Maxwell to forgive her? She’ll always be under my control."Bryan's eyes blazed with determination. "We'll see about that at the family gathering this weekend."Freda's expression turned from contempt to anger. "You have no idea what you're dealing with, Bryan. Claire made her choices, and now she has to live with them."Bryan stepped closer, his voice low and fierce. "She m
That night, Bryan woke up with a jerk. The cold sweat on his forehead same as the ice creeping down his spine. He had just had the weirdest dream. Or was it a dream? He couldn't tell. He swung his legs over the side of the bed, feeling the cool wooden floor beneath his feet. He needed water, something to qunwch his dry throat that felt like parchment paper. Yawning, he padded softly with bare feet to the kitchen, he moved through the darkened hallway, the silence of the night making his soft footfalls resound. The house was as dark as his thoughts. Speaking of thoughts, Bryan hadn't been able to keep his mind blank since the incident with Jenkins. Neither had he been able to wrap his head around all that the old man had told him. But somehow it made perfect sense. The odd stares, the way his aunt hated him but somehow loved his brother, it all made sense somehow. As he reached the kitchen, he flipped on the light and blinked against the sudden brightness. He headed for the cabinet
Bryan drove like the devil was on his tail, arriving at the classic bar Jenkins had picked out for their meeting. It was a beautiful garden bar just outside of town. As Bryan killed the engine, he pulled on his coat and baseball cap, trying his best at disguise before stepping into the place.**The garden bar was indeed a fitting spot for Jenkins, considering his love for flowers. Just as Bryan looked to the left, he saw the old man's hand guiding him to a corner table. Bryan walked over and shook his head in disbelief."I was hoping you only sounded different, but you look different too," Bryan said.Jenkins was dressed in a thick fur coat and a hat. He nursed a cup of coffee with his gloved hands."Sit down, boy. I have to be quick," Jenkins said.Bryan noticed that gone was Jenkins' stammering and broken words. He spoke fluently now, almost as if nothing had ever been wrong with him. Bryan sat down, looking at him curiously."You're running out of time. Your brother and uncle have
Bryan staggered back a little, struggling to process the jarring change in Jenkins’ voice. The old man he had known was frail, his voice barely rising above a whisper. Yet, the voice on the phone now was strong and assertive, unrecognizable as Jenkins'. He glanced around, half-expecting to see the old man materialize in front of him, but there was nothing—just the lingering sound of his own breathing and the hum of the city around him."Jenkins?" Bryan asked again, his voice edged with uncertainty. He wanted to be sure he wasn’t speaking to someone else, someone who had somehow gotten hold of Jenkins’ phone. His skepticism was palpable, though he hoped it wasn’t the case.“It’s me, Bryan. You said I should call you right? You did give me your card,” the voice on the line said. Bryan could almost hear the confidence emanating from the speaker. It was a tone of authority that starkly contrasted with the frailty he had grown accustomed to.“You sound different,” Bryan said, his laugh com
After a few minutes of driving through the busy streets of the city, he went easy on the brakes as he turned to the quiet suburban area. Peterson was always one for his space and privacy and perhaps one could say that he was the most secretive member of the team. When he arrived at Peterson's place, he met with his son, Chad just as he rang the doorbell and the maid allowed him in. “Hey, boy." Bryan said as he stepped into the house. Chad looked at him oddly and then for a second, recognition flashed in his eyes and he stepped aside. “Mr Bryan," he said with a thin voice. Bryan gave him a slight nod and moved into the living room, taking the plush seat that he was offered. “We weren't expecting such an important guest," Chad said with a smile that was obviously as fake as the Picasso painting on the wall. “I never planned to pay the visit either,” Bryan replied. Chad was eager to show him around and also asked to serve him breakfast and a cup of coffee. But Bryan was already gett
Bryan quickly tried to regain composure from the information that had just shaken him. If someone else was the supreme warlord, then it meant that the council had convened to terminate his own title and somehow found someone else worthy of such ordination. "Last time I checked, there was no one who could even compete with me. No one was worth being the supreme master, talk more of the supreme warlord. Had they suddenly dropped their standard?" He asked out loud but to no one in particular.He couldn't believe it. He was the best, the greatest, the supreme. No one could match his skills, his strategy, his leadership. He was the one who had been chosen, who had been destined for greatness.Who could even replace him? Who was worthy of such a title, the supreme warlord? Bryan snickered, wondering who could even stand behind him, he was second to none. There was no one he could think of that was even half the man he was. All his generals needed a lesson on night and courage. They couldn't
Bryan was already seething with hot wrath. How could his general even think that he'd want to hear about any territory and political bullshit when all he was trying to do was aimed at giving his life meaning? For a second, he felt stupid for even picking the call in the first place. It didn't make any sense to talk about the territory when his mind kept playing back to Uncle William's words and that of Josiah. “Hello, are you there?" Ben's voice came through the speaker, dragging him from his intense thoughts. “Stop!" He snapped suddenly, without any warning. “I've had enough of this bullshit!" He said with a fierce look. "Come up, what are you talking about!” Ben asked as his voice rose. Bryan told him that he had no interest in talking politics. He was sick and tired or running in circles. “What I need right now is a fucking compass! I need someone, something, anything, to take me to where my past is. I want to know what I am, who I am, what went wrong,” he bit out, "Not some pol
The next day, Benjamin called Bryan as early as daybreak. Bryan was still sleepy when he heard his phone ring and he rolled out of bed to grab it. "Hey, Ben, you're waking me up rather early, what's up?" He asked, his voice groggy with sleep.Benjamin first apologized for calling him up so early and asked how his previous day had gone. Bryan sighed, wondering how he could possibly recount his day to his friend. It was one hell of a year and it left him sour. "That's a long story, Ben. I don't think I want to talk about it," he replied, rubbing his eyes.Ben laughed and told him that he knew he'd gone home and he could guess that it wasn't such an easy day since his brother wasn't the most friendly person. Bryan scoffed, calling his brother unfriendly and was just trying to coat it up. Josiah was outrightly harsh, he was everything that someone would never want his own brother to do. "That's falling far from the mark," Bryan said, his voice laced with sarcasm.Ben sighed, telling him he
Jenkins laughed again, the sound a little too shrill and mechanical. "You can't choose your family, Bryan. They're stuck with you, no matter what."Bryan's eyes narrowed, his patience wearing thin. "I don't want to talk about my family, Jenkins. Can you let it go?!” He asked with a harsh tone. But for a second, he couldn't help feeling pity for him. Once again, he was clearly not mentally well and it showed. "Have you been taking your medications?" He asked with a low tone, his worry evident.Jenkins scratched his head, his eyes clouding over. "Yeah, they said life can't be the same again. I guess this is what they mean. Everyone thinks I'm insane," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.Bryan's eyes bulged, he couldn't believe that he'd just made the man feel bad. "I didn't mean that at all, I was just trying to make sure that you're fine," he said, his voice softening.The old man smiled and waved him off. "Yeah, you don't have to say it, I can see it in your eyes," he replied,