CHAPTER 2

The sound of the phone ringing on the table was what woke Iryna up the next morning.

After a long day that started with waiting for hours and ended with a painful rejection, Iryna Gallagher had walked all the way home and fallen on her bed in tears. She had slept off crying that night and she would have still been sleeping as late as 11am that morning if not for the person that was calling her continuously.

Iryna stood up angrily and took the phone to look at who it was. It was the waiter, Fred Walters. Could the damn old man not leave her alone for just a minute! She cut the call and threw her phone on the table before falling face first on the bed.

She was still on the blue gown she had worn for the engagement party and she didn’t care if she got it rumpled. She was going to do whatever she liked. What’s the worst that could happen anyways?

The phone rang again and Iryna grunted in anger as she stood up to pick the call. It was Fred. She picked the call and started barking into the receiver.

“I swear if you call me again I would…”

Iryna stared at the phone. The call had been cut already. She frowned and just as she was about to drop the phone a text message flashed across the screen.

“Meet me in front of Downtown. It’s urgent. Walters.”

Iryna hissed and put the phone on airplane mode. She was sick and tired of Fred Walters calling her like she had stolen something from him. She sat down on her bed reliving the events of the previous day and something flashed in her head - the second bottle of wine that Fred had brought! That was why he was calling her!

“Oh Gods!” Iryna cursed and picked up her phone quickly. “The old man would think I don’t want to pay and so I’m avoiding him…not like I asked for the drink in the first place.”

She dialed Fred’s line quickly but the call didn’t go through. She called a second and a third time but still the same thing. Iryna frowned. Now she didn’t have a choice. She had to go meet Fred Walters at Downtown.

She washed her face quickly and searched her literally empty wardrobe for something to wear. Most of her clothes were dirty. The only blouse that was there was way too small for her so she decided to just keep wearing the gown.

Iryna cleaned her shoes quickly and walked out of her apartment and into the main road. It was past noon already and the street of New Orleans was buzzing with people. On a regular day, the walk to Downtown was a short one but the throng of people on the streets that afternoon made the walk rather long. She had to navigate her way through elderlies reading papers on the road, teenagers skating around, and children playing in the corners and when she eventually got to the bar, she was sweating profusely.

Iryna looked around quickly. Fred Walters was not there. She ignored the Black Limousine that was parked in front of the building and walked inside the bar.

Bitter memories greeted her as soon as she walked in. She could see a couple making out on the very table she had sat on the previous day.

What a lucky girl! They looked so happy together. She wished she was the one, but sadly, Michael had rejected her.

Iryna walked up to the bar man and waved at him. He didn’t look friendly.

“How can I help you?” the bar man asked and started walking towards a table with a glass of gin in his hand.

“I’m looking for Fred Walters,” Iryna replied. “You know, the old man that works at the bar.”

The bar man dropped the glass of gin and turned to face Iryna . “I don’t know who you’re talking about.”

He started off almost immediately and Iryna had to run to keep up with his pace.

“Come on, everyone knows Fred,” Iryna said. “The jolly old man. He does the night shift.”

“I’m not everyone,” the bar man replied dryly. “Ask everyone.”

He turned around, abandoning Iryna in the middle of the bar and just then, she got another text on her phone.

“Come outside.”

“Seriously?” Iryna frowned. “He’s even watching me.”

Iryna walked out of the bar and turned around in search of Fred but he was nowhere to be found. Her phone beeped again and she stared at the screen.

“Enter the black car.”

Iryna turned to her right. The black limousine was still parked there, but the windows were tinted and she couldn’t see inside. Fred Walters didn’t own a limousine anyways. She turned around looking for any other black car around and as she turned, the door of the limousine clicked open.

Iryna shifted back a little and looked inside. Smoke was coming from the open door and blurring her view of the occupants of the car.

“Is this some sort of joke Fred?”

Iryna heard a light chuckle and as she started to shift away from the car, she felt a heavy hand land on her shoulders. She opened her mouth to scream and another hand landed on her mouth. She was trapped.

Her abductor lifted her up and threw her in the car before anyone around could notice and a familiar smell hit her nostrils. Cocaine.

Iryna’s heart was pounding in her chest as they drove away.

“If it’s about Michael I’m sorry,” Iryna pleaded. “I promise I would never disturb him again. Just let me go free.”

“Shut your trap!” One of them commanded. “We don’t know what the boss wants with you but all I can say is you’re in a lot of trouble girl.”

Iryna closed her eyes whimpering. She didn’t expect that she would ever see a day worse than the previous day when Michael rejected her but she was wrong..

Sitting in the back of the black Limousine flanked by burly and heavily armed men was definitely worse than rejection.

Iryna closed her eyes and prayed silently that she lived to see the next day.