5 –THREE DAYS IN JAIL

The entire hall was silent and tense as Alex stared at the papers in Melissa’s hands.

“Melissa, let’s go somewhere and talk about this. You cannot be serious.”

Before she could answer, Hunter walked forward, grabbed the paper from her hands and threw them on Alex, the ultimate humiliation.

Gasps of surprise swept through the crowd.

“Didn’t you hear her the first time?” He growled angrily. “A good-for-nothing bastard like you does not deserve to be married to a princess like Melissa. She deserves someone who can provide for all her needs. She deserves a man she can confidently show her off in public and you obviously do not fit into that description.

It would be better for everyone if you just scram and never show your pathetic face here again.”

Alex tried hard to control his anger. He swore that he tried. But it didn’t work.

Two seconds later, he swung his fist in blind rage, connecting with Derek’s cheek and sending him crashing to the floor.

The hall erupted into a flurry of screams and shouts as Alex fell atop a helpless, writhing Derek and punched him over and over.

“Call the police, he’s going to kill my son!” Mrs. Hunter screamed. “Someone, please call the police!”

Alex was too far immersed in his rage to pay any attention to his environment. Seconds later, armed policemen invaded the ballroom and went straight for the wrestling men.

They lifted Alex off of Derek’s bleeding face and he kicked and screamed, asking to be released.

“Let go of me so I can teach this home wrecker a lesson.” He yelled. “Let go!”

Alex refused to calm down despite various pleas from the police… until he noticed the feeling of cold handcuffs against his wrists.

Shocked, he tried to move his hands to no avail. They’d cuffed him while he was acting out.

“Let go of me!” He screamed. “Release me immediately!”

The officers wrestled him into position as Derek slowly staggered to his feet. He limped forward and paused before Alex, his face dripping with blood.

“You’re going to jail today and I want you to understand that this is why you’ll never be the man for Melissa. You’re an uncultured riff-raff, a useless bastard… and that is all you’ll ever be.”

He turned to the officers.

“Take him away!”

“No!” Alex screamed. “Melissa, mother, please do something. You cannot let them take me to jail. My brother…”

Melissa gave him her last words before the police dragged him out of the house, her face cold and stiff with anger.

“You’re nothing but a fool, Alex. A dimwit. This should be the last time I set my eyes on you. Both of us are over.”

***

THREE DAYS LATER

Alex was not sure how long he’d spent in his tiny, stuffy cell. He was starving and thirsty. The only thing he’d eaten since that humiliating night was a bit of crusty, dry bread…and that was last since night.

In addition to his hunger and weakness, he was worried sick about his brother.

Was Jayden okay? Had Dr. Baron thrown him to the streets already?

He leaned against the bars of his cell and shut his eyes, trying to recover his strength.

A few minutes later, his eyes flew open when he heard the sound of a key turning in the lock.

Alex shut to his feet, nearly feeling dizzy with excitement, as he watched the uniformed officer open the cell door.

“It’s your lucky day, Mr. Baron. Some men are here to see you.”

He took one step and froze.

“Hold on. Did you say “men?”

The officer nodded.

“Yes. Now, come on. Don’t lag around and waste my time.”

Alex was still in a state of confusion as the officer led him to some kind of waiting room.

When they arrived, he pushed the door open and stood aside, indicating that he should go in first.

Perplexed and suspicious, Alex slowly obliged.

The moment he stepped foot into the room, he was greeted by a group of four men seated on the round sofa, dressed all in black.

The very second they saw him, all four men rose to their feet, stood in a single line and bowed, chorusing;

“Hello, young master. Please forgive us for coming late.”

Alex had never been so shocked in his life. But he did not realise that his entire life was about to change — for the better.

***

“Y-young master?” He stuttered in surprise. “Who are you guys? What the heck is going on here?”

One of the men whom Alex assumed was their leader stepped forward. All four of them were dressed formally in black trench coats, white shirts and black sacks.

“Young master, my name is Jack Windsworth.

I sincerely apologise but we do not really have the time to answer your questions at the moment. We were instructed to take you away from this filthy place and drive you to your mansion immediately.”

Alex froze, not sure he’d heard right.

“Wait. Did you just say “my mansion?” And who instructed you? Who’s your boss?”

The man bowed again.

“You’re our ultimate boss and young master, sir. One of the Members sent us to bail you out of here.”

Alex shut his eyes for a moment, trying to catch his breath.

Member? Member of what?

When he opened his eyes, he gave all of them suspicious glances.

“This is some kind of setup, am I right? You’re here to deceive and kidnap me. Who the hell sent you? Derek? My mother-in-law?”

The man shook his head and looked straight past Alex at the police at the door.

“We got information that our young master has not been properly fed for the past three days. Do you understand that your actions hold horrible consequences?”

Alex was shocked at his choice of words. He was even more shocked when the officer lowered his head respectfully, his fingers already trembling with fear.

“P-please forgive me.” He stuttered. “I didn’t know he was your leader. Please have mercy.”

“Wait. Hold on. Let’s backtrack a little bit.” Alex muttered.

“Anything you want, young master.”

“What are you guys doing here again?”

“Young master, we’re here to take you back to your mansion.” The man repeated.

“I heard you the first time!” Alex snapped, already becoming frustrated. “I just need a bit more information. Give me something else. Anything.”

The man bowed. Again.

In total, Alex had already counted six bows.

“Forgive me, young master, but that is all the information I’ve been instructed to disclose. The Members will tell you everything you need to know when you meet them.”

Alex shook his head and turned to the other guards who simply stood there stiffly.

“How about you guys, huh? Don’t you have anything to say?”

Much to his annoyance, they all bowed.

“No, young master. Please come with us.”

Without uttering another word, they all marched out of the room in a single file. Perplexed, Alex stepped back.

“I’m not going anywhere with a bunch of black clad strangers. That’s for sure.”

The officer at the door nearly had a heart attack on hearing his declaration.

“Please, sir… I mean, young master. Please, do not make The Conglomerate come here. Just go with them, please.”

“The Conglomerate? Who are they?”

Before the officer could reply, Jack returned.

“This way, young master.”

For the next twenty seconds, Alex remained rooted to the spot as he debated with himself over his current situation.

One half of him was desperately curious and wanted to know what the hell was going on, while the other half screamed at him never to trust these men.

“Young master, we’re waiting for you. Please come this way.”

Finally, he sighed deeply, hoping he wasn’t making the biggest mistake of his life.

“Fine, I’ll come with you. But if you and your men try anything funny, you all will be missing a couple of teeth.”

Jack bowed.

“Feel free to treat us any way you please, young master. We’re only here to serve you.”

Alex scoffed in disbelief.

“What the hell? This is 2023, man. This is New York City. Who the heck still bows every two seconds and calls someone else “young master?”

They advanced towards the prison gates where more surprises awaited Alex.

He watched, as if in a dream, as the front desk officers calmly and respectfully handed him his items as opposed to the rude manner in which they’d treated him when he first arrived.

“Where are we going and how are we getting there?” Alex asked the guard over his shoulder.

“Don’t worry about that, young master. We’ll be using one of your cars.”

Before Alex could properly assess that statement, the gatekeeper pulled the gates open for them and his mouth dropped open at the sight that greeted him.

Spread across the street were more men dressed all in black. Some of them had wires sticking out of their ears and appeared to be patrolling the area.

Meanwhile, a couple of black, shiny bullet proof cars lined the streets.

The moment they walked past the gates, Alex watched in disbelief as every single one of those men, numbering up to ten, formed a straight line before him and bowed deeply.

“Hello, young master. We’re always at your service.”

His heart thumped wildly against his ribcage.

What in the name of Santa Maria’s wig was going on here? Why were all these men bowing to him?

When did he become a young master?