The Golden Couple (The Samantha Project Series, # 2)

by Karpinske, Stephanie

  He paused as if running through a checklist in his head. “Oh yes, your clothing. It’s all in the armoire and the closet.” He walked briskly to the closet and opened the doors. “Everything is the proper size for you both. I think that’s it. Any questions?” He paused. “Let me clarify. Any hospitality-related questions?”

  “How long are you keeping us here?” Erik asked.

  “Perhaps you didn’t hear me, young man. I said hospitality questions only. Your length of stay is not my decision. But with a room like this, who would ever want to leave?”

  “Where’s my sister?” I knew he wouldn’t tell me but I had to ask. “Why isn’t she staying with us?”

  Walter glared at me. “People like her have separate quarters. They don’t allow her kind on this floor.”

  Rage overtook me and I lunged at the old man but Erik held me back as Walter pointed at the ceiling again.

  “It’s quite toxic,” he said with a sickly grin. “I’ll let you two get settled. Why don’t you freshen up before heading to bed? I know it’s late but I took the liberty of ordering you a light snack. I wasn’t sure if you would have eaten already.”

  There was a knock on the door. “Oh, there it is now.” Walter opened the door, then rolled in a cart that had a tray of fresh fruit and a carafe of water on it. “Just a light snack. One shouldn’t have a heavy meal before bed, you know. Goodnight, then. Pleasant dreams.”

  Walter left, closing the door behind him. Erik immediately ran up to it, trying to make it open. Then he ran to the drapes, desperate to find a window. But the drapes hid a solid wall.

  “Erik, you heard him. It’s a waste of time. The place is built like a prison. I guess that confirms where we are.”

  Erik collapsed on the bed. “GlobalLife. Must be another one of their genetic research facilities.”

  “Why does it look like an office out there and a hotel in here?” I scanned the room again. “This is so freaky, Erik. I feel like I’m in some alternate universe. This is nothing like the facility in Minnesota. There, they locked me up in an all white concrete room and strapped me to a metal bed. This doesn’t make any sense.”

  “It’s probably just one of their psychotic mind games. Put us in some fancy room tonight and then tomorrow they’ll lock us up in a room like you described and torture us.”

  “Great, now I’ll be worrying about that all night. Thanks, Erik.” I sat on the bed with him. “But why would they put us together in the same room?”

  “I don’t know. But I’m sure they’re listening to everything we’re saying!” He yelled it at the ceiling. “Go to hell! All of you!”

  I leaned over to Erik and whispered. “We have to get out of here. They have Colin and Jack. We have to try and save them.”

  Erik didn’t believe it. He was convinced Colin and Jack had met a far worse fate. I could see it on his face.

  “I’m sure they weren’t in there when it happened, Erik,” I said, trying to reassure him as well as me. “The explosion didn’t even take out the whole building. Just part of it. GlobalLife probably used it as a distraction to get to us. That was probably their original plan. Brittany running into the limo just changed the plan.”

  “Sam, the explosion was meant to kill Colin and my dad. To get them out of the way.” Erik tried to keep his voice down but couldn’t. He was too angry. “They don’t need them. They need us. They killed them, Sam!”

  “No! I won’t believe it! I refuse to! They can’t take anyone else from me. I won’t let them.”

  “It’s too late. There’s no way my dad and Colin got out of there.”

  “Why are you saying that? I don’t know why you’re acting like this.”

  “Because it’s over, Sam!” he shouted at the ceiling. “Those bastards have us locked up in some foreign country in the middle of the freakin’ ocean! Well, GlobalLife? You win!”

  “Stop it!” I lowered my voice. “Do you really wanna just give up like that, Erik? Because I refuse to. I got out of that prison they held me in before and I’ll get out of this one, too.”

  Erik finally quieted down. “Don’t you get it, Sam? They had this whole thing planned. That letter from Dave. The private plane. The guy at the airport. And we fell for it! All of it! How could we be so stupid?!”

  “You mean how could I be so stupid! That’s what you meant to say, isn’t it Erik?” My temper flared and I struggled not to scream at him. “You’re blaming me for this, aren’t you? Sam and her stupid dreams, right? I know that’s what you’re thinking. I brought everyone up here and now we’re all gonna die. Just say it!”

  “I’m just trying to understand this, Sam. Let’s say your instincts were right and that letter was from Dave. Why would Dave lure us up here to get caught?” He paused. “Are you sure you can trust Dave? Maybe he’s not as—”

  “Stop! Don’t you dare say anything bad about him! He’s the closest thing to family I have left. I’ve grown up with him. He treats me like a daughter. He would never betray me like this!”

  “Dammit, Sam! He’s not even your real uncle! And the guy works for GlobalLife! He’s worked there for years. You don’t even think it’s a possibility? Why the hell else would he send us to Iceland?”

  I shoved Erik hard. “Dave did NOT do this! And he only works at GlobalLife because they threaten him whenever he tries to leave.”

  “So if you’re not blaming Dave for this, then are you saying that someone else wrote that letter? So you’re saying you were wrong about your dream?”

  I got off the bed. “Yeah, I guess I was! Are you happy now?”

  “No. Because we’re still stuck here and we’re never getting out.”

  I stormed into the bathroom, slamming the door shut. Once inside, I wanted to cry but I wouldn’t let myself do it. I had to be strong. And I couldn’t let Erik give up so easily. I needed him to believe that we could escape. Erik hadn’t been in this situation before. I had. When I was held prisoner in Minnesota, I, too, thought I’d never get out. But I did. And I had to help Erik see that it was possible.

  I needed time alone so I took a long shower. Afterward, I put on a robe that I found in the bathroom. It wasn’t a comfy, thick robe like you get at hotels. Instead, it was short, silky lingerie-type robe that offered no warmth at all. To kill more time, I went through all the drawers on my side of the sink. They were full of expensive brands of makeup, perfume, and lotion. As I brushed out my hair, I realized that I didn’t have any clothes to change into. I went back out into the room. Erik was sitting in one of the leather chairs.

  “I forgot to get clothes,” I mumbled as I opened the armoire searching for underwear. In the bottom drawer I found silk and lace bikinis and bras, not at all what I would normally wear. I searched the other drawers looking for pajamas but the only thing I could find was more lingerie. No shorts, no tshirts, no pajama pants. Just lingerie like you would pack for a honeymoon. Hanging from the top of the armoire were some women’s skirts and silk blouses. Erik’s side had men’s dress shirts and ties.

  I went over to the closet. Again, there was nothing I would normally wear. Just dresses and an assortment of high heeled shoes. On Erik’s side, there were dark suits, more dress shirts, and more ties. Not even a pair of jeans. For either of us.

  “Can’t find anything to wear?” Erik asked from across the room. He seemed to have calmed down.

  “It’s a very limited selection.” I went back to the armoire and looked on Erik’s side. He had men’s pajama pants but no pajama tops. I held up the pants but they were way too big for me to wear. In his other drawer, there were socks and boxer briefs. “Do you care if I wear some of your stuff?”

  “Why? They didn’t give you pajamas?”

  I held up a short, black, slip-like dress, one of my only “pajama” options. “They gave me this. I think it’s called a chemise. My mom had some of these.”

  He eyed the lingerie. “What’s wrong with that?”

  I rolled my eyes at him. “Are you kidding?
There’s nothing to this thing! And they’re all like that.” I pulled a few more of them out. “Some are even worse.”

  “So what do you wanna wear?”

  “Maybe one of your shirts?” I held up a men’s button up shirt that was so long it covered my knees. “And look what they gave me for underwear. I don’t wear stuff like this!” I dangled the silk bikinis in the air.

  “Those are nice,” he said, smiling.

  I shook my head, taking his shirt and a pair of bikinis into the bathroom. I came out looking and feeling ridiculous in the oversized shirt.

  “Okay. Bathroom’s yours. You’ve got pajama pants in the drawer over there. For some reason they only gave you the pants. No shirts. Not even a t-shirt.”

  He shrugged. “I usually don’t wear anything.”

  I glared at him. “Well, you’re wearing something tonight!”

  “I didn’t say I wasn’t. I was just saying that—never mind. I’m gonna take a shower.”

  The bed was so high that there was a step stool next to it. I pushed it aside and crawled into the huge bed. The sheets were luxurious. The softest I’d ever felt. I stared up at the ceiling and around the room looking for the cameras Walter talked about. I couldn’t find them anywhere.

  While Erik was gone I wondered where he was going to sleep. I looked over at the velvet sofa. It was super small. A guy Erik’s size would never be able to sleep on it. I couldn’t even sleep on it.

  Erik came out of the bathroom in his pajama pants and no shirt. “So, I guess I’ll take the floor.” He looked around for a blanket.

  “Here, take one of these blankets.” I lifted the comforter but there were no blankets. Just the sheets and the comforter. “Sorry, they don’t have one.”

  “Great. So I guess I’ll just take a pillow.”

  The thought of Erik sleeping blanket-less on the cold, hard floor didn’t seem right. “Just sleep in here. It’s a king size bed. There’s plenty of room for both of us.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes. Come on.”

  Erik got into bed, turning his back to me. I shut off the light but the fireplace remained on. Since we couldn’t turn it off, the light of the fire lit the room.

  “Hey,” Erik said from the other side of the bed. “Sorry about what I said earlier. I shouldn’t have said that stuff about Dave. And I don’t blame you for this. I was just really pissed off. Still am. Because I don’t know how to get us out of this.”

  “I’m sorry, too. Let’s just forget about it. Goodnight, Erik.”

  An hour later, the fire went out and the room got very cold. I buried myself under the comforter but was still chilled. I wanted to huddle next to Erik for warmth but didn’t want to give him the wrong idea.

  Another hour passed and I started shivering. The movement must have woke Erik up. “Sam, are you cold or what’s going on over there? The whole bed is moving.”

  “Um, yeah, I’m a little cold,” I whispered back.

  “Come here.” Erik turned onto his back and laid his arm out.

  “No, I don’t think so.”

  “I’m not gonna try anything, Sam. I’m just trying to get you to stop shivering and shaking the whole bed so I can sleep.”

  I moved over and nestled in his arm, resting my head on his chest. Even shirtless, he was warmer than me. Getting warm again made me sleepy. I fell asleep and didn’t awake until morning.

  “Sam.” Erik nudged me. “I think someone’s at the door.”

  I sat up and pulled the covers over me. We waited as the door unlocked. I could hear a woman’s voice saying something to the guard.

  And then the woman entered the room. She had beautiful shiny black hair. A tailored tweed suit. Crisp white dress shirt. And diamond earrings. I instantly recognized her. Mrs. Taylor. Allie’s mom.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Interviews

  “Well, don’t you two look cozy.” Mrs. Taylor walked toward us as the door closed behind her. “Samantha, it’s nice to see you again.”

  I was so shocked I couldn’t speak. I was convinced the whole scene wasn’t real. But it was. Allie’s mom was standing right there in front of me. In the room that was now my prison. In Iceland!

  “Do you know her?” Erik asked me, keeping his eyes on Mrs. Taylor.

  “Yes, she knows me quite well,” Mrs. Taylor answered. “She’s friends with my daughter. They grew up together.”

  “Is that true, Sam?” Erik looked at me. “Sam?” He elbowed me to wake me from my shock.

  “She’s just surprised to see me, aren’t you, Samantha?”

  I didn’t answer.

  She came closer to the bed. “So tell me, are you enjoying your stay so far?”

  “What are you doing here, Mrs. Taylor?” I asked, finally able to speak.

  “There’s no need to be so formal, Samantha. You’ve known me forever. Just call me Eve. And to answer your question, I’m here on business. I work for GBL Capital Management.”

  Erik sat up straighter and crossed his arms. “And what is that?”

  “It’s a worldwide investment firm. A division of GlobalLife International. GBL is short for GlobalLife. We tend not to promote that, so the connection isn’t widely known. Surprisingly, not everyone appreciates all the wonderful advancements GlobalLife brings to the world.”

  “So why would an investment firm hold us prisoner?” he asked.

  “The building you’re in actually belongs to GlobalLife Genetics. It was built about a year ago. It’s a beautiful building. And the labs are incredible. You’ll see them later. Anyway, I’m here to meet with some people about financing the project you’re involved in. Thanks to the two of you, we have people lining up to invest. Or at least they will be after the big event we’re holding this weekend. And to address your earlier wording, Erik, you are not a prisoner here. Look at this place. Does it look like a prison?” Eve turned around, showing off the room.

  I glared at her. “You’re holding us captive. You won’t let us leave. It’s no different than what GlobalLife did to me in Minnesota.”

  “It’s completely different, Samantha. That old, run-down lab in Minnesota was deplorable. And I’m sorry you had to suffer there. Worthings was incompetent. To think that he would put someone like you in those conditions. It’s horrid! We’re all glad to be rid of him. This time around, we want you to be comfortable. You’ll receive the very best care. And your every need will be attended to.”

  I pointed to the ceiling. “Comfortable? You have toxins ready to be released on us! You have cameras watching us! You’re listening to our every word.”

  Eve laughed. “What? No, no. None of that is true. Who told you that? Walter? Oh, he’s always telling tales like that. Silly old man. Just look around. Do you see any cameras? Listening devices?”

  “I know they’re hidden in here,” I snapped.

  “Who are you going to believe, Samantha? A senile old man you just met? Or me, the mother of your closest friend?”

  Her question made me wonder about Allie. “Does Allie know where you are? Does she know about any of this?”

  “She’s my daughter, Samantha. Of course she knows.”

  “You’re lying. If she knew she would have told me. ”

  “I’m afraid not, Samantha. The truth is that Allie has known about you since she was a young girl. You see, my daughter has never been your friend. She was simply playing the role all those years so we could keep an eye on you. In fact, the whole reason we live in Minnesota is because of you. I would never choose to live there. It’s a flyover state. An agricultural wasteland. Now that you’re here, my husband and I can finally pack up and leave.”

  As she spoke, I tried to imagine Allie faking our friendship all those years. I couldn’t. It wasn’t possible. We’d been friends since kindergarten.

  “Allie would never pretend to be my friend,” I fumed.

  “Think about it, Samantha. My daughter has nothing in common with you. She has no interest in science. S
he’s a writer. She wants to be a journalist. And she’s obsessed with fashion, just like me. If she could have chosen her friend, she would have picked someone with similar interests who was popular and beautiful, like her.”

  She looked at me for a response, but I had none. “She betrayed you, Samantha. Isn’t that proof that she was never your friend?”

  “What are you talking about? She didn’t betray me.”

  “How do you think you ended up here? How did we know where you were going?” She smiled. “We were so fortunate to have you land on our doorstep yesterday. Not the smartest move on your part coming back to Minnesota like that, but—”

  “I don’t understand. Are you saying Allie put some type of tracking device on me? No. She wouldn’t do that.”

  “That was a beautiful leather bag my daughter gave you, wasn’t it?” She sneered.

  I ignored her smug response. “If you wanted me, why didn’t you just take me when I was at your house?”

  “We have a protocol to follow, Samantha. Anyway, that’s all in the past. You’re here now. That’s all that matters.”

  I could feel Erik’s temper rising. “Just get to the point. What are they gonna do to us here?”

  “Mr. Chamberlin, the man who has replaced Dr. Worthings as head of GlobalLife Genetics, will answer your questions later.” She smiled. “For now, enjoy the facility. Relax. Have some breakfast.”

  We heard the door unlocking again. A man rolled in a cart filled with pastries, juices, and fresh fruit. Dome covers seemed to hide plates of hot food.

  “I’ll let you be. So good to see you again, Samantha.” Eve walked to the door.

  “Wait,” I called after her. “What about Brittany? My sister. When can I see her?”

  She turned around, a sick grin on her face. “It’s sweet that you’re still so naive, Samantha.” She left, locking the door behind her.