The Wrong Answer
656 Words
CADEN'S POV
Arthur leaned back in his chair, a dark smile playing on his lips. "Put the phone on speaker, boy," he commanded.
I cleared my throat, trying to keep my voice from showing any emotion. "Alisa?"
"Ca... Caden? What’s going on?" Her voice was so low and shaky. I was used to her barking at me or snapping back, but now she sounded terrified.
"It’s fine. They aren't going to hurt you," I said, trying to reassure her.
"Now, you don't know that yet, little boy," Arthur interrupted, stretching out his hand for the phone. I handed it over.
"Alisa, you have a beautiful name," Arthur said, his eyes locked on mine.
"Thank you," she replied. She sounded a bit more confident this time. Good. She needed to act the part perfectly, or both our heads would end up in the river.
"Your fiancé is right here with me," Arthur said, chuckling darkly. "And my men are right there with you. Isn’t that interesting? Now, I just have a few questions for you. If I'm not satisfied with your answers then you and your precious boyfriend here can both join my son in heaven."
His voice went dead serious. On cue, the two guards stepped closer, c*****g their guns and pointing them directly at my skull. I didn't blink.
Arthur smirked. "Alisa? Are you ready?"
"Yes, I am."
"Don’t be scared, sweetie. It’s just—"
"I said I’m ready. Ask your questions," she said, cutting him off.
I almost closed my eyes. I should have warned him she was feisty, but with a gun to my head, I stayed silent. Arthur didn't look like he liked her tone, but he took a slow puff of his cigar anyway.
"Alright then," he said. "How long have you and Williams been together?"
"About six months," she said. There was a tiny bit of hesitation in her voice.
"Hmm. That’s not what your fiancé here said."
My heart hammered. He was messing with her. I hadn't actually mentioned a specific number of months to him yet. He was testing her.
She paused for a second before responding. "He’s a dickhead. He tends to forget the little romantic details like that."
Arthur let out a loud, dark laugh. He looked at me and smiled. "I see. You know, my wife says the exact same thing about me."
He leaned forward, the smoke from his cigar swirling between us. "Alright, Alisa. For how long was Tristan coming to see you after work?"
"It was for about three weeks," she said.
"Did he ever confess he had feelings for you?"
"He never said that. I think he just found me attractive and wanted to have a bit of fun."
"And you didn't tell him you were with Caden because...?"
I felt my heart racing. This was the moment.
"Because it was a private affair," she said firmly. "No one was supposed to know about us until we got married."
"And when would that be?" Arthur paused. "Wait. Hold on."
He ended the call abruptly. The room went silent except for the clicking of the guards' guns.
"When would that be, Williams?" he asked me. An evil smirk grew on his face.
"Two weeks from now," I said. I prayed Alisa would remember the timeline I’d mentioned at the office.
Arthur picked up the phone and hit redial. "Alright, darling. We got cut off. When exactly is this wedding happening?"
He watched me closely, the gun still aimed at my head.
"Three weeks from now," Alisa said on the other end.
The silence that followed was deafening. Arthur slowly picked up his gun from the desk, the metal glinting under the office lights.
"Three weeks, you say?" Arthur whispered into the phone. "Well... is that so?"
He looked at me, the madness finally showing in his eyes. We were one week apart. One week was enough to get us both killed.
- Writer
