There was a flash of light and distant noises. My head felt like someone was taking an ice pick and pouring heavy chipping on my skull.
I decided that death couldn't be this painful, so I was probably not dead or this was what hell was supposed to feel like. My eyes were pried open, and a light came flashing again. This was followed by a groan, like a bear cub. 'was that me?' I managed to flutter my eyes open without anyone's help. Inches away from my face, someone was holding a pen-sized flashlight. I couldn't focus enough to see him, but I could definitely smell him. Light scent of woodberry and some chemicals I remember enduring the mixing process once I snuck into the chemistry laboratory during practicals that were meant for students offering science courses. The ceiling was swimming. I thought I was going to vomit, and I had to let my eyelids drop to stop the spinning. Slowly, the muffled sounds became words. "What's your name, sweetheart." Asked the man with the flashlight. His voice was raspy, and I could smell the caffeine off his breath. "None of your business," I managed, my voice bouncing like a rock against the walls of my skull. "Call her a sweetheart one fuckin time and you'll see your brains on that wall." An unfamiliar voice threatened in the background. I wanted to look up, to see who it was. But my head was on fire. The man with the pen touch grew mute immediately. I tried to get up again, but barely managed to get my head off the pillow before it fell back with a thump. "Whoa there, swe..." he paused. "Not so fast." He finally said, looking back sharply before turning back to me. "You've got a pretty big bump on your head," said the man. That would explain the blinding pain I was feeling. "You're scared of calling me sweetheart again." I chuckled, beside myself with amusement even with the awful pain, my mouth would rarely shut up. "That's not your name, I believe." He answered, instead. I nodded. "Can you give me a name to work with?" "U, letter U." I answered. "That's great Miss letter U." 'What the hell is Miss letter U'. I thought. I wanted to tell him it wasn't what I meant but I was in too much pain to argue with him on his use of words. "She's probably got a mild concussion," the man assessed. "Just make sure she gets plenty of rest and wake her up every few hours overnight. Give me a call if she gets any worse." "She looks like she's in pain. Can she take anything." The unfamiliar voice asked again. I forced my eyes open. There was a lovely gentleman in a black jean and white Tee and he was standing at the foot of the bed. I recognized his clothes from before I found myself on this bed. He had come into the room I was held in and I requested for a pen which he offered me and motioned that I followed him. We were way across the corridor when I lost sight of him. Then I followed the voices echoing at the other part of the corridor which led me to a slightly open door. I saw Hollis, he was standing with his back toward me. In a flash, he pulled the trigger of a gun and a body came crashing on the floor. When my eyes came to refocus, the man on the floor was not moving. Blood splattered the floor and three other men that were with Hollis had spun round. They looked at me with complete surprise on their faces. Without realizing it, I had been screaming and I was still screaming and shaking and I couldn't stop or move any other part of my body like my legs, to run away from them. The door was now very much open from my hands pushing it in. Hollis turned around and our eyes met again, and his face turned pale while he rubbed his forehead tirelessly. Then I blacked out. I must have fallen or fainted or something, I can't remember any other thing. I watched the young gentleman step closer to me. He looked stressed and tired. "Not for the next twelve hours. But I'll leave you something for tomorrow," replied the man with a pen touch, like he was in a hurry. The doctor's calm voice did match his appearance, he looked like he had just crawled out of a very clean and well equipped laundry home. "Thanks, Doc." The young man furtively glanced in my direction and turned to a man who was standing behind him, in a soldier-like stance. With a nod from the young man, the man standing behind him dug into his pocket and pulled out a wad of rolled-up bills. Not missing a beat, the Doctor grabbed the cash and rushed out of the room without taking one more look at his patient. So much for bedside manners. The man standing behind the gentleman followed the doctor out the door, shooting me a frosty glare on his way out. I ran my fingers through my hair, hitting a bump at the crown of my head. "Ouch," I said in a whisper. But the man heard me and glanced back. As soon as our eyes met, he flashed me a reassuring smile. "I'm Maxine." I tried to read his face, but his expression was blank. "Get some rest, my brother will come see you soon, he's taking care of a few things." He told me as he too walked out, closing the door behind him. I lay there, circling my fingers around my temples and trying hard to remember what happened. The last thing I remembered was Hollis's empty stare after I had watched him kill an innocent man in cold blood. I tried hard to forget this. I was still alive, but everything else was a blur, including where I was and how I had gotten there. I struggled to sit up and flip my legs over the edge of the bed. My eyelids were heavy. All I wanted to do was sleep. My feet hit the cool wooden floors. and I suddenly noticed that I didn't have my sneakers on anymore. Slightly panicked, I looked to see if anything else was missing, or different. I didn't know what I was expecting to find, but whatever it was, I didn't find it. Except for the stains on my knees, the rubber band that was missing from my hair, and the immense throbbing against my skull, everything else on my body was the way I had last left it.With a stiff neck, I scanned my surroundings. there wasn't much to decipher. I was in a small room, lit only by the bedside lamp that was on the table next to the bed. There was an armchair with a rose velvet cushion in one corner. The walls were bland and frameless. After waiting for another bout of nausea to pass, I went to the window, holding on to the small table as support for my shaky frame. Outside, the sunsetting sky was of resilient palettes of shady hues, and I was peering over the shadows of endless rooftops. Wherever I was, it was high above a city, at least twenty stories high. Down below, a yellow cab was waiting at a red light on an otherwise empty street. I couldn't decide if I was still in Lilycity. I thought I had a fair recognition of the clock tower that stood at the center of the city square, but it was too distant and I was too tired to be sure. My hand pressed against the glass. I closed my eyes until the dizziness passed, then slowly and painfully moved to
The next time I woke up, the sun was already setting. I was feeling better, rested, though my joints and muscles ached from the lack of movement. As for the bump on my head, it was only sensitive to touch. there was no more throbbing. My hair on the other hand was a tangled mess. My head felt naked when my hair was down. I searched my pockets and then the barren room for anything that I could use to tie it back. The only thing I found was the glass of water that had been refilled, and that I greedily gulped down. The bedroom door had been left open, and hollowed sounds from a Television could still be heard. As soon as the smell of food tickled my nose, my stomach grumbled. The last meal I had eaten was the vegetable sauce my mother made specially for me. How long ago was that? My brain was still too foggy to count back the hours or the days. The thought of my mother sent chills down my spine. I haven't heard from my parents and I knew they would be worried sick. Letting my sto
Maxine gripped the steering wheel and side-glanced me. "Put your seatbelt on, this is going to be fun." I did as I was told, and he hit the red button on the rearview mirror, which caused the garage door to slide open. We drove out onto the gloomy street. Maxine didn't let go of the gas pedal until we were driving well above the speed limit. Darkened street signs flashed by. He sped through a red light, swerving around a car that was patiently waiting for its turn. 'What was the point of making me wear my seatbelt if he was planning on killing the both of us by crashing the car.' With an extended grin, he weaved us in and out of traffic. Eventually we moved away from the city streets and onto a country road. We picked up more speed, but at least there were no other cars to play chicken with. I was able to unclench my teeth and my stranglehold on the security bar against the door, using my free hand to wipe my newly dampened forehead. The car air-conditioner couldn't do anyt
I was awakened by the distant sound of the television. Immediately I opened my eyes, I saw Maxine cropped up on a chair at the end of the room. "Welcome back to the land of the living," he muttered. "Where are we?" I croaked, sitting up on the bed and surveying the empty room that had only a bed and a television. Maxine stretched his arms, and sighed. "Home, The Garden." "Thank God." I sighed, before realizing what he meant. "You mean your home is referred to as The Garden?" "Mhmm." He hummed. "Gross." I spat out. "It's a good name." He stood up. "Hollis totally owe me for this." He murmured and left the room, not even saying a goodbye or any other word. My throat felt raw, and my body, emotionally exhausted. I could feel dark isolation seeping through the room like deep depression. I just wanted to go home, to go shopping, boat cruises, clubhouses and the courtroom. I wanted my life back. But even I know I couldn't. Not with the continuous attempt on my life and wi
We were now in an open corridor. Rocco stood like a statue at the end of the room, staring into space. Two other guards stood at a reasonable distance, taking the same stance. I snatched my hand back from him, crossing it over my chest. "Good. Then that's settled. But make no mistake, he turned "I'm going to take my pleasure from you, how and when I deem it fit." He threatened. "You dare not!" I challenged, creating a distance between us. "Really," he mused. "Let's see how that goes." "Every single thing about this situation is disappointing," I corrected him, feeling my jaw quiver. I had a temper. So I try so hard to always remain happy and positive. And that was why I surrounded myself with people that really love and care about me. They all knew and understood how bad my temper used to be. As a form of control, I would always remain cold and calm in situations I have no power over. Until I grab a full picture of the situation. But then, in some conditions, I almost alw
"What time do you even plan on getting here? Are you sure you're still coming?" Daisy listened to Ugo whine over the phone."I'm all dressed up already. You'll see me soon, I promise. I just had a really stressful day at work and I had to make a quick stop at home to get into more comfortable footwear." she tried explaining. Pushing the door of her walk-in closet close, she pulled a black leather jacket across her black singlet, sat on the bed and bent low to buckle her sandals when she heard Ugo's next words."You're changing footwear? Don't tell me you plan on wearing any of those boring flat sandals of yours.""Something wrong with my flats?" "Really, you're going to ask me that." Ugo boiled."We're going out to celebrate for crying out loud. You have to look the part. Put on a pair of those gorgeous Louboutins you got there. Why do you splash so much money on exotic footwear when you don't wear them.""Hello, are you forgetting something? You're forgetting that you made me buy the
Daisy's phone lit up just then with a text from Ugo. "My power went out. Where are you?""Ahhh, yes, I just got alerted to that." Daisy told Brett as she held her phone up before she texted Ugo back. "I guess it's the whole hotel, I’m stuck in the elevator with some dude that is providing me with adequate company.""At least that means they were telling the truth," Brett said, interrupting her. "The good news is, they have generators, so the elevators should start moving shortly.""And you know this, how?""Oh!" He stepped away from the telephone. "They told me," he added.Daisy slid down to the floor, placing her purse and paper bag gently beside her, careful not to break the champagne bottle. Since she already informed Ugo about it, she knew how much tragedy it would bring if it ended up broken. Ugo would report her to anybody worth reporting to, including Daisy's parents. Her black heels used to be relatively comfortable for at least an hour or two before the discomfort a
"I've been doing fine for years now. Please just go back to wherever you're coming from and let me be."Brett moved over to her and crotched down opposite her. "Go on a date with me, over the weekend."Daisy burst into laughter. "Is this guy a joke or something?" She asked rhetorically, loud enough to Brett's hearing. "No.""Come on.....""I'm not going on any godforsaken date with you Mr Lexington. Not in your wildest dream.""Okay." he said, pushing two open hands forward to calm her down. "Go to a fundraiser with me then. Technically, I wanted you to be my plus-one at the fundraiser organized by the Mayor over the weekend and maybe we could go on a date afterwards. But since you said no date, let's go to the fundraiser together." He offered."No.""Daiz. I promise you, if after the fundraiser, you decide that you don't want to see me ever again. I won't bother you. Just this once, please?"Daisy became calm for a moment. She looked up at his angelic face and watched him flash a smil