Chapter 6 : How Did I Get Here ?

“On a second thought, you go I need to go to Junior's school "

Sophia tried to get Breanna's excuse on her drive to Anthony's residence.

But each way she tries thinking about it, it still doesn't make sense.

Meanwhile down in the village, pain sheeted through Blade with a terrible intensity as he regained consciousness.

Blade grunted as he shifted , trying to keep his arm from hurting him,

He made a low growl ,straining to stand up against the pain

"Hey Hermano...no te muevas "

(Hey Brother....don't move). The teenager daughter of Liza Minnelli (Maya) said hastily stopping Blade from getting up.

Slowly Blade's sense started to send report back to his brain, he remembered his close to death encounter with Vincenzo ,

He slowly opened his eyes and, there was bruises, cuts and scrapes and maybe some broken bones ,

Blade absorbed the pain and tried to move assuring himself that the pain was just an illusory sensation.

With each jostle, it sends ripples of pain through his shoulder, back and neck.

His strength failed him and he tumbled to the floor with a grunt, Liza Minnelli pushed the door open and rushed in

“Buen señor ... .que paso aqui ?”

(Good lord…. What happened here?) Liza Minnelli exclaimed, taking in the sight before her,

“I tried to stop him but he was adamant” Maya replied to her mother.

Liza Minnelli crouched down beside Anthony and helped him up,

With collective efforts from Maya and Liza, Anthony (Blade) was able sit on a chair ,

“Here!, drink this” , Liza Minnelli passed Blade a green liquid in a yellow faded cup,

"What is this ..? " Blade asked in ragged breathing, staring at the liquid with a mix of suspicion & disgust.

“Son!, you are not pain resistant, It's just a natural remedy, it will help reduce the ache and pain”, Liza replied with a courteous smile.

Anthony's gaze lingered on Liza, searching for any sign of deception. But Liza's expression remained calm and sincere.

He had trust issues, and this situation wasn't helping.

As if she knew what was going on in his head, Liza added,

"You've been here for two days. If I wanted to harm you, I could have done it while you were unconscious."

Anthony's eyes flashed with understanding, Liza was right. If she had wanted to kill him, she would have done it already.

With a deep breath, Anthony raised the cup to his lips.

He closed his eyes, tilted his head back, and drank the liquid in one swift gulp.

The bitter taste hit his tongue, and he grimaced, his eyes snapping open.

“Holy sh*t!”, Anthony spat in disgust squeezing his face. “What the fuck was that ?”

Liza's eyes sparkled with a knowing glint as she collected the cup from him.

“We don't use foul words here” Liza's smile was warm and approving.

“You need to rest’’ she said, her voice soft.

True to what Liza Minnelli said, the medicine took effect.

Ten minutes passed, and the pain started to pull back like a tide going out, it left his fingers first and then slowly worked its way up to his arm,

Blade took a couple of deep breaths and this time he was able to stand up.

He slowly walked to the window, supporting his weight by holding the window.

He inhaled the fresh fragrance of nature, which was devoid of city pollution.

“How did I get here?”, Blade asked without looking at them.

Maya stepped closer and explained everything without exempting a single detail.

Blade turned to face Liza, with a groovy face.

“I apologize for any inconveniences my presence might have cost you, calculate the loss you suffered and I will repay you”, Anthony proposed.

“Not everything necessarily has a price tag, the world hasn't been drained totally of humanity” Liza scolded him, brushing a motherly knock on his head.

Blade exhaled deeply, “Okay then I will take my leave”

“No son, I won't let you go , you are still very weak , wait a day or two more” Liza objected.

“No ma'am, I am perfectly fin__’’. Blade tried to decline her request.

But a sneeze suddenly began to form under the splint of his nose and for a moment he didn't dare breathe.

Liza moves closer and caresses his bare back slowly, reducing the sneeze tension.

“See what I told you , you need to rest”, Liza turned to Maya. ‘‘Make sure he's comfortable, I need to go and pick herbs’’

“Yes Mom” Maya replied and Liza Minnelli darted out of the door.

**

**

Immediately Sophia entered the road leading to Anthony's residence, the alarm went off at the mansion.

Since Blade’s (Anthony) absence, the security at his residence was at its peak

Grinch and the other boys geared up for defence seeing that it was a police truck.

Nevena was at the balcony unsure of what the blaring alarm meant.

But she noticed that the men take positions with utmost skepticism.

“Ma'am who are you ?” The lead security officer asked Sophia immediately as she pulled up at the gate.

“Police !” she replied.

Sophia pulled out her ID from her wallet and showed him, though she felt awkward because she was always the one asking for ID.

The security scanned the ID and sent Grinch the feedback before opening the Gate.

Once inside the compound, they made Sophia walk through a narrow Booth which identifies bugs ‘camera and microphone’

Sophia emerged bug free, but instead of her car, she boarded a Golf cart and it took her further inside to the main building.

"Holly molly" !... Sophia exclaimed dumbstrpuckly at the magnificent mansion in front of her.

The expansive mansion was a sight to behold with its towering columns, sweeping stairs and numerous balconies overlooking the rolling hills.

When compared to other sleek and sophisticated mansions on the street this one stood out ostentatiously ,

Sophia looked up and saw a familiar face , It was Nevena Bachvarov.

“Hey Miss Nevena ” , Sophia waved at her with the most innocent smile on her face.

Nevena returned the gesture, waving back unsure of where she had met Sophia.

Grinch opened the front door from the inside, he was slightly taken aback at the sight of the woman before him.

She looked more innocent than how her ID photo portrayed her.

“Miss! Can we get down to business” Grinch's gruff voice interrupted Sophia's distant imagination.

“Sorry Sir !” she apologized with a slight bow while fiddling with her work jacket, searching for something.

“Oh..there you are.” she said, pulling out her phone.

“Sir!” Sophia paused talking in the facial expression of Grinch.

“I hope you wouldn't mind, if I take a few shots, I don't always come across this magnificent artwork everyday” Sophia asked politely handing her phone to Grinch

“What are you going to do with them?” Grinch asked, eyeing her suspiciously.

“Once I upload it on my Social Media accounts, it will generate reactions” Sophia replied innocently

“Okay” Grinch replied in a gruff voice, accepting to take shots of her.

“Slay shamus” The boys muffled their giggles and laughter as they watched Grinch turn into a camera man.

Sophia tried many poses , while the boys exchanged knowing glances and code words with Grinch.

“Miss Sophia Kendrick!,” Grinch read from the ID on her shirt.

“Yes’’, Sophia answered, drooling over the shots on her phone.

“You look more like a Social Media Slay queen than a police” Grinch said in a dreaded tone.

Sophia immediately composed herself by putting away her phone.

“Thank you for the shot, now time for business” Sophia cleared her throat and scrutinized their faces.

It was then that she noticed the ones with piercings and tattoos.

“I'm here for Anthony Hunt, I want to talk to him’’, Sophia said professionally.

They boys maintained a steady expression, in other not to generate suspicion,

“Anthony is on a Business Trip, Is there any problem ?”, Grinch questioned in a composed manner.

“No!, is not much of a problem, just normal police routine of asking questions”, Sophia said, though a pang of disappointment strained in her voice.

“I'm his aide l can fill in for him”, Grinch proposed with incredulity.

“No, I can always come back for that, but I request to take Nevena Bachvarov with me for interrogation”

“Pardon? Who is Nevena Bachvarov ?” Grinch asked in confusion.

“The lady upstairs” Sophia affirmed looking up at the balcony.

Grinch immediately understood what Sophia's visit was about.

Releasing Nevena to the police for interrogation will put many things at stake.

“Please call her, she needs to come to the station with me” Sophia pestered the hesitant Grinch.

Meanwhile, Breanna Stewart went back to the crime scene at Vincenzo's house.

She widened her search by trailing blood prints,

She got to the place where Anthony had passed out , a sizable amount of dry blood was there.

She looked around because the blood trial stopped there.

She looked down the hill and noticed a remote village nestled in the hilly terrain.

“I bet I will find something there”, Breanna chuckled mischievously, fitting the village in a photo grid she made with her fingers.