Clock Is Ticking

Layla took a deep breath after a successful blackmail. She felt her heart clench and slam harder and harder against her chest, protesting as she blackmailed Harrison. She found her way to the bar to try to calm her nerves.

“Scotch, on the rocks,” she ordered and turned around to watch the unfolding party, trying to find something to distract her from the judgment of her heart.

“He was sleeping with his stepmother for Christ’s sake. How am I the one restless about this?”

“Maybe because I blackmailed him.”

“Ugh… why am I so soft? I needed this. I wouldn’t have done this if I didn’t need the money for granddad’s surgery.”

She battled in her head with her conscience. 

The bartender served her drink and she was about to take it when someone snatched it away from her.

“A lady drinking this early at a birthday party?” the young man laughed. 

“Felix?” Layla squinted as she recognized him. He was like Luke, tall, dark and handsome. Only difference was that he was a multimillionaire owning three of the major upcoming companies in the city.

“Hello, Lilian,” he greeted her. “Trouble in paradise?” he asked and looked at Harison.

“Him? Oh, no. We are no more an item,” Layla shook her head.

“You break his heart?” Felix laughed and sat next to her.

“No,” she shook her head. “It was much like what you did to my best friend Vivian, you know, the way you cheated on her, left her for another chick when things got a little sour for her and her family,” Layla’s friendly look suddenly turned into hate just as he was starting to get comfortable.

“Layla, please, let’s not do that here,” Felix begged looking around.

“Oh, I am willing to do it anywhere, and here is as perfect a place as anywhere else,” Layla fired on.

“Please Layla, stop it.”

“I am pretty sure she begged you too, but no… you were too focused on your career, you didn’t want someone’s family issues to pull you down,” Layla hissed. “You know why Haris is better than you? He at least started with me even when it was bad. He didn’t run from my family.”

“Layla, please. I just need your help.”

“Of course, you do,” Layla rolled her eyes. “All you men are the same, always wanting something. Let’s hear what you want.”

Felix took in a deep breath before looking at Layla. “I heard about what happened with your family and the current situation with your grandfather. It is a really sad thing, I can relate.”

“Get to the point, pretty face,” Layla wasn’t in the mood to play. She still needed to get to the hospital to pay for the surgery. 

“Layla, please don’t hate me for this, I am a businessman and I know the best time to go for what you want is when the person who has it is vulnerable, and I am sorry if I come off as a monster for this, but… I will handle the whole issue with your Grandfather, I will take care of your debts, I’d even handle Harison for you if you want, all in exchange for Vivian’s location,” Felix offered.

Layla was shocked and didn’t realize when she let out a loud burst of laughter. “Are you kidding me?” she laughed. “This week must have been drugged or something.”

“What’s wrong?” Felix asked.

“Would you believe me if I told you that this is actually the second time this week I am getting this exact offer?” she laughed. “You know what I told him? No,” Layla suddenly said with a serious tone. “My answer to you is still no. I mean; I don’t even know where she is. You broke her heart and since then she has just gone dark, no calls, no social media presence… one or two comments at the end of the year to let me know she is alive and that’s it. 

“Besides, if I did know where Vivian was, why would I tell you?” she asked with a perplexed look. “So, you can go and shatter what is left of her heart with your useless little girlfriend? Where is she though? I haven’t seen her or have you left her too?”

“Layla please…” he had barely started speaking when she snatched her drink out of his hands and gulped it down.

“Look here Felix, if you want Vivian, find her yourself, and tell her I said hi if you do,” Layla said and walked away from the party. 

Outside, she was about to text the host to tell him to cancel the fundraiser when she received a call from the house-help, Miranda.

“Hello ma’am, we have a problem.”

“What? Is my granddad okay?” Layla panicked.

“For now, ma’am, but the hospital just came under new management and they said all our debts to the hospital must be paid by midnight tonight else your grandfather will be evicted from the hospital.”

“What?” Layla exclaimed. “But they promised us we can pay the other bills slowly, what changed?” She was confused.

“Administration changed ma’am. Apparently, the hospital was bought out tonight,” Miranda explained.

“What the…” Layla exclaimed. “How much is our total debt to the hospital?”

“Well, that is around five hundred thousand, including the surgery for your granddad, but the hospital was acquired by Fesser Bank. We owe Fesser around thirty million ma’am. That is the debt they said requires payment.”

Layla felt her head spin. 

“What kind of game is life playing on me?” she cried in her head. “I can’t blackmail Harison for thirty million dollars, it’ll be no different from robbery. If I were to accept Felix’s offer, I would be breaking Vivian’s trust. All that is left is Ryan… he could… he could…” she suddenly paused as she realized something.

“Those bastards,” she snarled. “Miranda, be calm, I will call you back,” she said and cut the call.

“One of them bought the Hospital through the bank,” she muttered and stormed back into the party. “Haris, Ryan and Felix, they are all major shareholders at Fesser Bank, that’s why they know so much about my family’s bankruptcy.”

As she walked back in, she took a deep breath and composed herself. She wanted to find out who it was without causing a scene.

As she walked down, back towards the bar where she last saw Felix, everyone began staring at her weird. 

“What is going on?” she muttered under her breath until she heard someone whisper something.

“She is such a copycat, wearing the exact thing Denise wore,” the lady whispered.

“Copycat?” Layla was surprised. She didn’t understand until she saw Felix with his girlfriend, Denise. 

Denise was wearing the exact same dress, same accessory color, everything. 

“Ugh,” Layla rolled her eyes the moment she saw it. She hated wearing the same clothes with anyone, especially now, because she was no longer among the high class folk, everyone would assume she was the copy cat and would assume hers were cheaper, but since they were purchased by Ryan, she knew they were at the very least the same quality as Denise’s.

“If only I had agreed to date Ryan, Denise would have been seen as the copycat here,” she sighed and was about to approach and confront Felix when Ryan showed up.

“It looks better on you than it does on her,” Ryan complimented and gave her a glass of champagne.

Layla looked at the drink then stared him in the eyes. “Did you do it?”

“Do what?” Ryan asked.

“The hospital. It was you wasn’t it? Harrison doesn’t have enough shares to make such a decision overnight, Feix is not one to go that far, he isn’t desperate enough, but you… I don’t know you well enough to exempt you.”

“So you blame me?”

“Because you are the only one that can privately fund it without needing consent from other shareholders,” she drew her conclusion.

“Well, maybe I am, maybe I am not, it doesn’t matter, your clock is ticking,” Ryan said and left.