12. Olive Branch>When I get out of the lobby to get into my Uber ride, I notice the car assigned by Mikolaj is still waiting for me. A middle-aged man gets out and walks towards me.“Ms. Riley,” He says and I instantly feel bad about the man.“I had told Mikołaj I won’t need your car,” I justify myself. Why is he even waiting?He smiles and nods.“I wanted to inform you that I have been instructed to escort your ride till you reach home.“Oh. His loud voice clarifies that he wanted the cab driver to hear this. I don’t protest and get inside my ride. It doesn’t make me feel great. But Mikolaj was right. Accepting his help in the middle of night would have been a better idea. But after what he did, I am not willing to accept any olive branch from him.I fall asleep in the cab and the fact that someone is escorting this car makes me feel a little safe. …I reach my room after an hour, then slump into my bed. The room is empty. Looks like Ira and Natalie didn’t come back.
13. Compensation > A door knock brings me out of my slumber and I realize I dozed off. I close the yearbook in my lap, then drag myself out of bed while rubbing my eyes. “Coming… Give me a minute…” This room is a mess. Ira will be pissed when she realizes I didn’t do shit the whole day. I throw the year book inside the luggage bag, then zip and push it underneath the bed. I could still make it to the last two lectures. I must. I open the door, expecting Ira or some girl, instead I see a man in a crisp gray suit standing in front of me. I blink in confusion. “Yes?” “Miss Riley. I am James Patterson.” He forwards his hand and my mind screams not to shake it. His expensive tailored suit, trimmed gray hair and neatly shaved face gives me a sense of foreboding. It’s all too familiar. Just like Mikolaj fuckin Josef, this man is scary. Not in looks, but in personality. Also, I can tell he is an attorney. My dad is one, so I know when I see one. “How can I help you?”
Now you know. > Next morning I wake up early with Jessica crying. I get out of my bed half asleep and walk towards her room and see her nanny, Hazel, trying to calm her down. “Oh my girl…“ I call her out and she opens her arms towards me. Her face is smeared with tears. Just like me, she looks tired, and is half asleep. I take her in my lap and pat her back, trying to soothe her down. “She slept very late last night and kept looking for you.” Hazel tells me and my heart clenches. “Why didn’t you call me?” She gives me a sympathetic smile. “It’s my job. Just when I thought I would call you, she fell asleep. But kids this age have significant memories… She also has bad separation anxiety due to-” I give her a hard look, and she stops herself. I know what she was about to say. ‘Because of her mom,’—Bullshit. Rose had hired her. So I understand Hazel has a soft spot for Rose on this whole matter. I wipe tears from Jessie’s face and murmur, “It won’t happen again..
15. A Kiss>“I wish you had told me earlier.”“Well… Now you know.” I give Jonas some time to contain himself. To understand the stakes. Meanwhile, I try to evaluate.I had skimmed Riley’s phone last night. It seems she does not know about the fucked up history of our families. It is a genuine surprise.Is she pretending to be clueless? Her tears.. Her rage… Was it all fake? There is no way she could have predicted last evening’s events. Unless it was an elaborate scheme. Until I get my hands on Emma, I cannot say for sure.“You have spent quite some time with Riley in the past few weeks. Right?” I ask, and he nods.“Do you think she knows about us?”Jonas scratches his stubble and shakes his head.“Mikolaj, she is so... I never felt she was vicious or vile..”I quirk my brow at him. “Has she wrapped you around her fingers already? I absolutely cannot afford that, Jonas.”He frowns and looks at me.“Don’t worry, I will handle her. Now that I know who she is… I won’t le
16. Standoff>Girls stare at me, and I know it’s a stupid plan.“Is it too dumb?” I ask.There is a moment of silence, and I want to hide under my sheets.“It is… bold,” Ira says, finally.“I don’t know how businesses work…. But can we even ask that much?” Natalie questions.My shoulders slump. With girls being skeptical, I am not sure anymore if I can follow through. I need someone in support. The fact that I cannot discuss it with dad, makes it worse. He would have known what to do. I plan to demand for a part-time job with full-time pay and benefits.“What if they offer you some low grade job?”I shake my head. “I will ask for a level 4 or above pay grade that starts from 100k a year.”“But what kind of work will they offer you?”I shrug. “Any internship is fine… It will give me job experience so I can apply at some better place after graduation.” It would be a fucking win-win if I manage to convince the lawyer. To be honest, anything that spares me from a minimum w
17. Neon Oasis>The bus pulls to a stop in front of the Dorm building. I grab my bag and make my way down the narrow aisle. I need to take a bath as soon as I reach my room. It’s Friday evening, and I babysat a 4-year-old who literally peed on my clothes.Yikes.Why do such things happen to me? Not even once, Natalie complained about anything like this. He told me a little too late while we were watching tv. I rushed him to the bathroom and… it happened.The bus leaves and neon lights casting a harsh glow around me slowly fade away. It’s barely six, and it’s dark already. Can you imagine that? This is why I like the long simmer days better.I walk towards my room with useless thoughts looming over my head. I take out my key to unlock the door, but I can hear the music blaring out of my room. Someone is in a good mood today. When I swing the door open, I see Natalie in a sexy and shiny dress with her makeup half done. Ira is carefully applying a coat of lip gloss, and I si
18. Too many drinks>As we walk through the doors of the club, a loud thump of music and energy of crowd welcomes us. The interior of the club is dark, with flashing blue lights. Dance floor is packed with people moving to the beat.Oh yes. Totally worth it.“Mr. Josef would like to have a word with you. If you would please follow me,” the bouncer says, and I realize he hasn’t left us alone. Not yet.I look at him perplexed and then at the girls, only to figure out Ira and Liam have vanished in the sea of crowds. Natalie is a few steps away, trying to find a sweet spot for us to take.“But why?” I ask and he sighs.“I have other things to take care of,” He mutters, but I hear him over the music, anyway. “I don’t know why. He knows you, Right? Please make it quick.”He tries to stay impassive, but I can tell he is annoyed. It must be hard for people like him to deal with stupidity of party-goers all night long.But do I care?Not much.“Please tell him I am not intereste
19. Inappropriate>When I picked up Jessie from her daycare and headed home, I planned to spend my time in peace. Little did I realize it would turn out to be an adventurous evening with a little sprinkle of annoyance. I am busy in the kitchen when I get a call from Jonas.“Can you meet me at Neon Oasis?”“No, I have a child to take care of, Jonas.” I sneer at him.“I have a lead that can help us with our meeting with Callum tomorrow,” he says in exasperation.His statement makes me pause and I glance back at Jessie. She is immersed in playing with her train set.“How did you manage that?” Sometimes Jonas pulls off the unexpected.“No time to ask. I am going there with Patterson. Can you come?”“Fuck,” I mutter. “Are you sure it’s good enough?”“Believe me for once, Uncle!” He stresses at the last word and I shake my head. He does that when he thinks I am treating him like a child.“Alright Big boy. I will be there in an hour.”I shoot a text to Camilla and get back t
. - Riley - .“Lie down with me?”Mikolaj nods and pulls out his phone, typing a quick message. I watch him, feeling an odd tightness in my chest that I can’t quite understand. When he finally tucks his phone away and lies beside me, I turn onto my side to face him. It’s then I notice the slight hitch in his breathing, each breath rough and uneven, his face etched with lines of pain.“How bad are your injuries? Your liver?”“It’s fine. She was creating a fuss for no reason,” he says with an air of annoyance towards the stern lady. “My ribs are still a mystery. We will know more after x-ray.” His voice trails off, and I glance up at him, raising a brow.“And…?”“Nothing serious. I’m hoping it’s just a hairline fracture, not a full break…”“Sounds awful.”“Not that bad, trust me. I am just worried about how I will handle Jessie jumping around in bed.”I go quiet when I hear Jessie’s name. How things will be when I get back to my life. West could try to kidnap me again, or Maxim. Would I
. - Riley - .As they wheel through a dimly lit hallway, lethargy and dull pain wash over me like a heavy blanket. My back aches, my left arm throbs, and there’s something digging into my neck that’s becoming increasingly annoying.The stretcher carrying Miko pulls away from me and he protests, “Take us to the same room!”“No…” the medic who tended to us in the chopper says pointedly.“Oh, for fuck’s sake, it’s not a hospital!” Mikolaj snaps at her.“Our commitment to our work rivals that of an emergency room.” She claps back in a mockingly professional tone and I am wondering if I should laugh or be wary of her statement. “Plus, do you want to die of internal injuries?”“Yeah man… We need to make sure the person paying us doesn’t drop dead,” the guy with the dislocated shoulder croaks, eliciting a round of chuckles from the others. “I feel fine,” Miko mutters, sulking.“She needs some privacy, and you need an ultrasound.” With that, she rushes into a room with the man who has a bull
Ride. - Mikolaj - .“All clear.” The Merce ahead of me says after a quick sweep of the room. A brief glance behind tells me the man limping along with me is losing his strength. “Stay here and make sure no one comes from behind,” I tell him. We both know it’s unlikely—everyone in this building is either dead or incapacitated. Still, I would rather he conserve his energy than exhaust himself before the mission is over. We’re not safe until we’re out.“How is it going?” Raylan asks over my ear piece and I grunt.“Not sure if she is here,” I reply, keeping my focus on the bodies lying down. My urge to drill another bullet in each of their heads is strong, but there’s no point in disrespecting the dead, especially when it would invite more legal complications than we already have.“Fuck.”My heart hammers in my chest as I ask, “What?”“Yours is the only team having some action. Rest of the sites were… Not the one,” he says with a slight pause.Based on the analysis of the sunlight and
110. Rescue . - Riley - . My hands tremble as I grab the door handle and pull. It doesn’t budge. Did West come back, or is it just the seven of us under attack? A small part of me wonders if it's the police. I have no choice but to wait and watch my luck unfold. So I do that. I sink in a corner and flinch with each gunshot. Rapid sharp cracks make my heart jump as I realize someone is firing an automatic rifle. This can't be a rescue mission. Considering the chaos outside I will definitely die before the night ends. Chewing on my lips, I glance towards the bathroom and consider. I should try 911 again. My legs are weak beneath me as I tiptoe inside and lift the lid off the toilet tank. I reach in and feel the cold plastic of the phone. Next, I go to the mattress and lift the edge just enough to grab the folded piece of tissue that hides the unused pregnancy test. I shove the test into my pocket, promising myself If I survive this night, first thing I will do is take the test. My
. - Riley - .Thankfully, I am already on the move to put the toilet tank lid back on when Scarlett slams the door open.“What did you do?” she demands.“One of them grabbed me… I- I just reacted,” I say, reaching to flush, praying that the flimsy plastic bag somehow saves the phone.She nods, her expression unreadable as she turns on her heel. “Come with me.”Her silence makes my heart thump and I follow her down the hallway, my mind racing. “Scar?” I ask in a small voice.“You could have come to me!” she snaps. “Reed is trying to seal a deal with them, and the man you attacked is someone important.” She is quiet for a moment, breathing hard as she asks, “Seriously, tell me, are you seeking trouble for no reason?”“I am NOT!” I defend myself, my anger rising. How could she say that to me? “He was groping me. What am I supposed to do? Let him feel me?” “As long as he is not screwing you without payment, I don’t see a problem. Get down on your high horse and focus on keeping your head
. - Riley - .As West locks the door from outside, I turn and my eyes meet the stare of security camera, its red blinking light taunting me. Is Mikolaj really watching or is West just playing mind games? Doesn’t matter. I am pissed at both of them. West kidnapped me, but Mikolaj... He literally forced me to live with him so I would be miserable.“Does my misery make you delighted, Mr. Josef?” Slight shake of my head I add, “I fucking hate you… Hate that you used me to get your stupid revenge.” I know he cannot hear me, but if he could, would he even care? Turning on my heel, I stroll into the bathroom. As my hand grips the cold knob, the rage drains away, leaving the hollow ache. My emotions are a chaotic mess, bouncing between hurt and fury. I should blame the sex party West forced me to stay in. The atmosphere of lust and excess made my eyes bleed. Figuratively. Then he had the nerve to ask for a kiss. And the worst part… First thought that crossed my mind was how Mikolaj would re
Deal. - Mikolaj - .“They will try to squeeze you dry, Miko. This 10k stunt was just to put you at ease with the idea of spending money. I know you’re stressed, and this is why you need to consult others before spending any more money,” Raylan says as he pulls over in front of Camilla’s house. Apparently, paparazzi are still lingering around my house, hence Camilla brought her here.“I will also look for an expert who can advise us on negotiations. If they contact during the night—which we both know is highly unlikely—ask me or Camilla first. Don’t decide anything alone.”I’m too exhausted to show my annoyance. So I simply nod and grab my bag to walk inside. House is dark with a dim glow pouring from the laptop on dining table. Camilla is sitting there, clenching a tissue in her fist.“Camilla?” She closes the laptop and straightens her back.“Took you a while…” she asks in a strange voice.“Yea,” I reply, my eyes searching her face. She seems somewhere between upset and composed.“I
Ping. - . Mikolaj . - .Raylan kicks on the door, and with a loud thud it slams against the wall. I stroll inside and look around for the occupants. Then I see him. Victor glued to the couch, startled. “About time,” I say as he gets up and takes a run towards the door.Raylan blocks his way, pushing him back inside.“Wh- What do you want this time?” Victor asks as Raylan nudges him one more time as he stumbles onto the carpet.“Camilla told me about your polite comment a few hours ago,” I sneer at him. “We were curious what it meant.”After my meeting with Jacob and Natalie, I got an interesting call from Camilla and I took flight back here immediately. Since the website Jacob told me about is inaccessible, I am hoping to find some answers here. “I-I meant no offense.”The door knocks and Camilla’s voice comes through. “Are you guys in there?” Raylan lets her in and her eyes widen, seeing Victor. “Where the fuck are your clothes?” Then she frowns, her eyes searching for something. “
Party of sorts - 2. - . Riley . - .I had asked West last night if he had contacted anyone, but he didn’t spit out a word either.“Why are you here, Tank? Do you need something?” Scar says as before I can ask Tank anything.“A blow job,” he says with a twinkle in his eyes. I know he is talking to Scarlet, but his fixed gaze at me pisses me off beyond no explanation.“Try that and I will bite it off. Then maybe shove it in your mouth,” I grit through my teeth.His face contorts with anger as he strides towards me. Scarlett rushes between us, creating a barrier while my fingers twitch to grab the knife on the counter behind me.“West won’t be happy if you create a mess in here.”“He isn’t my fuckin boss.” He snarls.“Even others won’t be happy. This is an important meeting, Tank. Please… Calm down.”With a jerk, he grabs Scarlet’s hand and backs away. “Join us for the party or die in the kitchen, but you cannot leave this area until the party is over.”“I was looking forward to attend