‘I am trying my best.’
‘You are constantly late, you leave early and some days you don’t even turn up.’
‘I-I...’ she went to protest, but he cut her off.
‘Chelsea, I like you. I enjoy working with you. You were our best escort before you had the baby, but things have changed since Riley died. You cannot live off of his legacy. When he was alive, you could get away with this poor attendance, but things are different now.’
‘I am sorry. I will make sure my attendance and punctuality improve.’
‘Chelsea, complaints have been made.’
‘What?’
She couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
Who had complained?
Why had they complained?
‘Some members of our staff feel like there is favouritism.’
‘Are you kidding me?’
‘I’m sorry, but I have to act on complaints and investigate.’
‘Are you firing me?’ She cut straight to the point.
‘Well...’ he paused for a moment, whilst his eyes looked her up and down. ‘I don’t want it to come to that, but you haven’t helped yourself, Chelsea. There might be a way I can be persuaded to help you.’ Unconsciously, he licked his lips in that lecherous way that all perverted men do. It took a moment to register in her mind. Had she just seen that?
‘What are you asking?’
Mr Daniels shrugged his chubby shoulders.
‘There are ways for you to sway my decision.’
‘You want me to fuck you?’ she asked, calmly.
He smiled, slightly.
Chelsea moved with frightening speed. She was out of her chair in half a heartbeat. A hand shot forward like a striking snake. She grabbed his collar and yanked his head down. Mr Daniels made an odd nervous scream, as her free hand pressed down on the back of her fat head. His face bounced off the hard surface of the desk. It bounced off a second time, a third, and then a fourth. He pulled back. His nose was oozing with blood, as tears fell from his eyes.
‘Keep your fucking job, you fat fucking cunt. I QUIT!’
***
‘One more step,’ said Anne, as she guided her sister into the house. She knew Travis was here because the house was already warm and his car was outside. It was a welcomed relief from the bitter weather outside. The puppy bounced down the corridor and into the living room. Anne could hear the excited voice of a young girl. Had he brought her here?
‘Who is that?’ asked Hazel.
‘I think it might be Travis’s daughter.’
The two of them began to remove their clothes, hats, boots and thick winter gloves. Travis stepped out into the corridor and greeted them with a big smile. Anne could feel her heart melting. There was something about the man that had that effect on her. He approached, swiftly, and planted a sweet kiss on her lips.
‘Is that who I think it is?’ asked Anne.
‘It is,’ he confirmed.
She could see from the uncertainty on his face that bringing Samantha here was a big thing for him.
‘Does she know about us?’ Anne whispered this part.
‘Yes.’
‘You told her?’
‘I did. Do you want to meet her?’
‘I do.’
Anne started to feel pretty nervous herself. She had to make a good impression.
***
River and Kerry walked down the centre aisle of the store. Kerry was pushing a small flatbed trolley loaded up with stock. She seemed in good spirits today, but that is why River liked her. Kerry always appeared to be in a good mood, even on the bad days.
‘You sure it’s okay?’ she asked, for the umpteenth time.
‘Yes,’ he laughed.
‘Ariel isn’t mad?’
‘I think she might enjoy some time alone. I think I could do with the breakup of my routine, too. It will be nice to be in a place that isn’t work or my home.’
‘I know what you mean. A change of environment is always pleasant.’
‘And so is good company,’ he replied.
Kerry thought it was sweet.
There was no undertone to those words. He actually meant that in the kindest way. It made her feel sick. This man was so kind and friendly, but she was going to take advantage of that kindness and use it against him. She wished she didn’t have to do it, but what other options did she have? Kerry needed the transfer.
‘We will have a fun night,’ she reassured him.
If only he knew.
***
Her fist thumped off the front door. She had never felt so angry. She didn’t know if she should laugh or cry. Had he really tried to blackmail her into sex? Thoughts of going back to the hotel and putting a bullet in that fat fuck’s face came to mind. Riley would have killed him. Riley wanted only pure people in this world. That was all he ever wanted. If he was here, he would have killed him.
The door opened.
A tall, scruffy looking man was stood there.
He was in his early twenties and smoking a cigarette.
Chelsea could see the babysitter in the kitchen, laughing hysterically.
This woman was supposed to be caring for her child.
This is the woman she is meant to be trusting.
Something snapped in the back of Chelsea’s mind.
This world was rotten.
These people were rotten.
‘GIVE ME MY FUCKING BABY!’
***
Wide eyes searched the darkness, as the car bumped and bounced across the uneven ground. Fiona swallowed hard. Her heart was threatening to break through her ribcage it was beating so hard. The Riggs Crew hotel could be seen across the river. It was the border between the territories. The magnificent manmade structure of the black bridge was directly above. The size of the bridge was incredible. It didn’t seem feasible that people could build something so grand. Within the shadows of the black bridge was a car. He had said not to turn the lights on, but fear won the battle. Fiona switched on the main beam, momentarily blinding Danny. He was stood next to Elizabeth’s car with a petrol can in one hand and a lighter in the other.
It was time to get rid of any evidence that tied them to the abduction.
***
‘Are you sure about this?’ asked Travis.
‘She will be fine,’ Anne reassured him.
‘Fucking, Jasmine,’ he cursed, but quickly pulled himself back together. ‘Thank you for this.’
‘Don’t mention it.’
They shared a rushed kiss and then he disappeared out the front door. Anne took a deep breath and headed back into the sitting room. A big smile was thrown Samantha’s way. The young girl was more than happy to reply with a smile of her own. It was a beautiful smile but looked nothing like the smile Travis had. It must have been something the girl got from her mother. In fact, Samantha didn’t look like Travis that much. She had the same eyes, but the facial features were different. The girl was gorgeous, but she must have looked a lot like her mother.
‘Can I ask you a question?’ asked Sam.
‘Of course,’ said Anne, as she sat down on the edge of the couch.
Her sister was playing with the puppy on the floor.
‘What does my dad do?’
‘Um...’ Anne paused for a brief moment. ‘He is a security guard, of sorts.’
‘What does he really do?’
Anne shrugged her shoulders. She wasn’t one to dance around things.
‘I don’t think it is my place to say.’
‘That’s what my mum always says. Nobody tells me anything.’
The girl looked disheartened.
‘Well, I work for your father and he works for a woman named Jasmine Murdock.’
‘I have heard about her on the news. Isn’t she a bad guy?’
‘That is all perspective,’ countered Anne. ‘I think she is a bad guy. Yes.’
‘Why does he work for her?’
‘A job is a job.’
‘Why do you work for my dad?’
‘He gave me a good job when I didn’t have one. I owe him everything. If it wasn’t for your father, I wouldn’t have this house. Hazel and I wouldn’t have clothes on are back or food in our bellies. It is because of your father. I work for him because he has changed my life.’
‘So, he is a good guy?’
‘The best guy,’ said Anne, and she meant every word.
Samantha seemed to like this statement. Anne could see that the young girl was itching for information on her father. It didn’t matter if he was a bin man or a cleaner of toilets. She loved him. She was in awe of him. She just wanted to know as much as possible about the man that was her father. And so the long conversation about Travis began.
***
It was the smile of a demon. Fear rippled through the crowd of hostages like some kind of terror induced Mexican wave. JR stood in the centre of the large waiting area. Jillian was stood to her right, trying to look invisible, as his remaining two stooges stood off to different sides like sheep dogs ready to round up any loose stragglers.
‘After much deliberation I have decided to extend a gracious offer your way,’ announced JR. ‘This applies only to those of you with families in the room. You see Rob and the very helpful Laura here are working very hard and deserve a reward of some kind. I was thinking, what could I possibly offer them? It isn’t like I can pop to the shop and buy them a present.’
He approached the crowd of forty or so men, women and children.
‘How many of you have children here?’
The group looked between themselves. Nobody appeared like they wanted to answer.
‘Fuck sake, we are not kiddie fiddlers. It is an honest question.’
A few hands were raised.
‘The men can lower their hands unless you want a man?’ He directed this to Laura.
She replied with a shake of the head.
‘How many women here have children?’
Five hands remained in the air.
‘Here is the deal. We will allow you, your families and your partner to walk free from this situation. It is that easy. All you have to do is take my Rob and Laura out the back and give them a good time.’
Gasps and voices filled the air.
One of those voices was Jillian.
A silent gunshot silenced the whole fucking lot of them. JR seemed quite pleased by the general reaction. He holstered his gun.
‘We are not monsters. We are not going to force you. We do not rape women. What type of people do you take us for? It is your decision, but you must decide now. If you want to save your family then go have a little fun, but if you want to stay here and learn firsthand how this situation is going to turn out then by all means lower your hands.’
Two of the hands were lowered.
‘What are you doing?’ asked a man.
‘No, Mummy,’ cried a little girl.
Three women stood from the cowering crowd.
Determination was etched onto their face, as hate boiled away in their eyes.
JR laughed. ‘It looks like you get three girls to play with. Have fun.’
***
She rocked her baby in her arms, as she sat in the darkness of her home. Tears fell from Chelsea’s eyes. Her heart was broken. All sorts of horrible thoughts bounced around the inside of her mind. How could Mr Daniels do such a thing? Why was this world so hard? Why had Riley been snatched away from her so cruelly?
‘It is their fault,’ she growled through clenched teeth. ‘This all happened because of the Murdock crew. If it wasn’t for them, none of this would have happened. They will pay. They will pay. They will pay. I will kill every last fucking one of them, starting with Travis.’
Travis would be the first to feel the wrath of the new Hand of God.
***
Marcus sat at the head of the table. Melissa was positioned to his right-hand side, whilst Axel and Captain Abraham were awaiting his instructions to the left. The doors to the grand function room had been locked. Nobody would be allowed to ease drop on this private meeting. Nobody would be able to. Security in the hotel was on a level five alert status. You wouldn’t be able to go to the toilet without someone asking for your identification.
‘We need to deal with the situation swiftly,’ said Marcus.
‘The whole world is watching the airport siege,’ explained Melissa.
‘This has to be handled delicately.’
‘We have to show the world we can deal with this event in a professional manner.’
Axel and Abraham listened and nodded.
‘We don’t want any hostages harmed,’ said Marcus.
‘We need the news cameras to see us rescuing the hostages, whilst dealing with this terrorist threat,’ continued Melissa.
‘Stop,’ interrupted Axel, as he held up a gloved hand.
All eyes turned on the red-haired swordsman.
‘You want JR dead, right?’
‘Yes,’ replied Marcus, flatly.
‘You want the hostages alive?’
‘Yes.’
‘And we want the plane coming into the city stopped,’ said Melissa. ‘We have word that a flight from the United Islands is scheduled to land in North City on Friday morning.’
‘Okay,’ said Abraham, nodding his head as if it can be done.
‘We will deal with the situation,’ said Axel.
‘I cannot stress...’ Marcus began, but they both cut him off.
‘You hired us to deal with things like this.’
‘Fair enough, but I want it resolved quickly and calmly.’
‘He is already dead,’ said Abraham.
‘He just doesn’t know it yet,’ grinned Axel.
***
‘You have to do this,’ said Steven, in a hushed whisper.
‘Shut up,’ replied Jane.
‘They will kill us.’
‘I’m not doing it. How can you ask such a thing?’
‘I don’t want to die here.’
‘You fucking bastard.’
Jane watched as the terrorists unclipped the handcuffs and escorted the women away from the crowd. The leader of the terrorist gang was sitting in one of the red cushioned chairs in the holding area, facing the hostages. He had a large machine gun resting on his lap. The man wasn’t really paying them much attention, but it wasn’t like anyone was trying to escape.
‘Please, Jane.’
‘Fuck you,’ she whispered back, angrily.
‘I want to go home.’
‘We will get out of here alive,’ she replied. ‘And then I want a divorce.’
‘But...’
‘You actually want me to sleep with them so you can escape?’
‘So we can escape,’ he corrected.
‘I hope you burn in hell,’ she countered. ‘I hate you.’
***
Fiona led Travis into the main throne room. Jasmine was pacing back and forth in front of the full-length window that overlooked her territory. Danny was off to one side with a frown etched into his brow. A few of the other main players in the organisation were stood waiting like obedient dogs. His good friend, Leon, was one of them.
‘You’re late,’ growled Jasmine.
She sounded pissed off.
It had been a long time since she last spoke to him like that.
‘I had...’ Travis began, but she cut him off.
‘I don’t care. We have a problem,’ explained Jasmine. Travis looked at the group and noticed that a key figure was missing. ‘Nobody has seen Elizabeth in nearly twenty-four hours.’
‘You think the Riggs Crew...?’ asked one of the other men.
Jasmine’s glare shut him up.
‘I want all of you on the street. I don’t care what you do, who you ask or how you get the answers. I want Elizabeth found.’ Travis could understand Jasmine’s fear. Elizabeth was her one and only loyal soldier. Jasmine had pulled her from the gutter and gave her everything. Elizabeth was the perfect soldier,
but she was also her only friend. ‘Travis, go to her house. I need you to find her, do you understand?’
‘I will find her,’ he replied.
‘Go, you fucking idiots. Find her,’ demanded Jasmine, annoyed that the others were still stood waiting. Travis headed for the door, but he already knew the result of this search. Elizabeth was dead. There would be no possible way for anyone to flip her. It was either the Riggs Crew or one of the eleven families; someone was starting to make a move against the Murdock Empire. Elizabeth was the first to go, but who would be next?
***
Doubt was being a major pain in the arse. Kerry smiled, nervously, as River started the engine. The store was locked up, and everyone was heading home. This was the moment of truth. River was actually coming home with her. Could she go through with the plan? It is one thing planning something, but could she actually do it? The thought of seducing the kind young man was making her feel physically sick. Ariel was her friend. River had a child. Kerry’s actions threatened to destroy a family. River waffled on about something. She nodded politely and pretended to listen, but how could she listen? How could she pretend to be his friend with what she had planned? Kerry swallowed down the doubts. The voice was still there, but she had to ignore it. Ariel and River were her friends, but Samantha was her daughter. She would do anything for that girl. There was no price too high. She had to get her out of the city. The plan would go ahead.
***
‘You sicken me,’ said Jillian, her voice was full of disgust.
JR didn’t even gift her with a response. He was too busy watching the news coverage of the hostage release. A pretty blonde woman in a smart suit, standing in front of a police cordon, was delivering the breaking news to North City.
‘The hostage takers have released eleven hostages earlier today.’
Her image was replaced by video footage of a group of people running across the airport tarmac. They had been forced to go to longest possible route from the airport to the police barricade. The image was of three small groups of families. The footage replayed on some kind of loop, as the reporter continued to give her report. A yellow banner at the bottom said there was a statement from Marcus Riggs coming up shortly.
‘I bet there is,’ grinned JR.
It was time to wait and see what happened.
What would Marcus do now?
How could he justify an assault now that they had released some of the hostages?
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