Chapter Two The Devil’s Message
1003 Words
“The cruelest thing about time is that it never waits for anyone.”
“Some promises are made with hope. Others are made because there is no other choice.”
The door creaked open.
A cold breeze slipped into the apartment before the men did.
Five men in perfectly tailored black suits stepped inside as though they owned the building.
They weren’t loud.
They didn’t need to be.
Power walked quietly.
The man in front removed his leather gloves one finger at a time.
He looked no older than thirty.
Tall.
Broad-shouldered.
Sharp jawline.
Dark hair brushed neatly away from his face.
A faint scar rested beside his left eyebrow, making his calm smile look even more dangerous.
His gray eyes swept across the room until they landed on Adrian Hart.
“You’ve gotten older.”
His voice was smooth.
Too smooth.
Adrian lowered his head.
“…Mr. Volkov.”
Selene frowned.
She had never heard her father speak to anyone with such fear.
The stranger’s gaze slowly shifted toward her.
For a brief moment…
He smiled.
“So…”
“You must be Selene.”
Something about the way he said her name sent a chill down her spine.
“And you are?” she asked, trying to sound braver than she felt.
The man inclined his head slightly.
“Adrian Volkov.”
He glanced around the apartment before adding,
“I represent the First Seat.”
“The First Seat?” Selene repeated.
Adrian Hart closed his eyes.
“Please…”
Volkov ignored him.
“My employer has waited long enough.”
He accepted a black leather folder from one of the men behind him and placed it on the dining table.
The sound echoed through the silent apartment.
“Three years.”
“Five million dollars.”
“The deadline expired months ago.”
Selene stared at the folder.
“My father doesn’t owe anyone five million dollars.”
Volkov looked at her almost sympathetically.
“He does.”
“My father isn’t a criminal.”
“No.”
“He simply made a promise he couldn’t keep.”
Selene looked at her father.
“Dad…”
“What is he talking about?”
Adrian couldn’t answer.
His silence terrified her more than Volkov’s words.
Volkov folded his hands behind his back.
“My employer sent me to collect what belongs to him.”
“What belongs to him?” Selene asked.
“The debt.”
“And if we can’t pay?”
Volkov’s expression remained calm.
“Then payment will be collected another way.”
Selene instinctively stepped closer to her father.
“What does that mean?”
Volkov looked directly into her eyes.
“It means the First Seat always collects.”
Before another word could be spoken, Adrian Hart suddenly dropped to his knees.
“Please…”
“I’ve served faithfully.”
“I just need more time.”
“I swear I’ll repay every cent.”
Selene gasped.
“Dad, get up!”
He didn’t move.
He kept begging.
Volkov watched him in silence.
Finally, he sighed.
“You were loyal once.”
He glanced at one of his men before speaking again.
“I’ll ask the First Seat to honor that loyalty.”
“Twenty-nine more days.”
“On the thirtieth…”
His eyes drifted back to Selene.
“…there will be no second chance.”
Without another word, he turned and walked out.
The other men followed.
After Adrian Volkov Leaves
The apartment falls into complete silence.
Selene slowly helps her father to his feet.
She has never seen him kneel before anyone.
“Dad…”
“Who are those people?”
Adrian forces a smile.
“They’re just men from my past.”
“What kind of past?”
“The kind I hoped you’d never know.”
She asks more questions.
He refuses to answer.
Instead, he gently pats her head and says,
“Everything will be alright.”
But for the first time in her life…
Selene doesn’t believe him.
The Days Pass
Life continues.
Or at least…
It pretends to.
Selene goes to university every morning.
She laughs with her best friend.
She attends lectures.
She submits assignments.
She smiles when people speak to her.
But every evening she returns home…
She finds her father making another phone call.
Borrowing money.
Meeting strangers.
Selling old possessions.
Searching desperately for a way out.
The countdown quietly continues.
Twenty-eight days…
Twenty-five days…
Twenty-one days…
The hope in Adrian’s eyes slowly fades.
Adrian’s Struggle
He visits old friends.
Former business partners.
People who once owed him favors.
Every answer is the same.
“No.”
Some are afraid.
Some simply don’t have the money.
Others don’t even want to mention the name Lucien Devereaux.
That name alone closes doors.
Selene Notices
One evening she finds her father sitting alone in the dark.
No lights.
No television.
Just silence.
She quietly sits beside him.
“You don’t have to carry everything by yourself.”
He looks at her.
For a brief second…
He almost tells her the truth.
Instead he smiles.
“I promised your mother I’d protect you.”
“And I intend to keep that promise.”
The Twenty-Ninth Day
The morning feels strangely peaceful.
Too peaceful.
Adrian wakes early.
He makes Selene breakfast.
Her favorite pancakes.
They laugh together for the first time in weeks.
It feels…
Normal.
Almost like old times.
As he puts on his jacket, he looks at her for a long moment.
Longer than usual.
“I have one last place to try.”
She smiles.
“Then we’ll celebrate when you come back.”
He nods.
“I’ll be back before dinner.”
Those are the last words she hears him say before he walks out the front door.
Selene stood by the window until his figure disappeared around the corner.
She smiled to herself, believing everything would finally be okay.
She had no idea that fate had already begun rewriting her life.
- Writer
