Chapter 16: Run.
1054 Words
Layla stared at the text in her phone, her heart pounding vigorously in her chest. Her hands shook slightly as she scrolled through the message again —Blurry photos of her and Nicholas exchanging parcels of illegal drugs.
Her anger boiled over. These threatening photos meant only one thing.
Someone with evil intentions knew about her secret business.
She slammed the phone down on the kitchen counter, pacing the room as her mind raced. Her business with Nicholas was supposed to remain hidden and she had taken procedures in carrying out all of their deals in remote locations, so how?
“Adrian…Could he be...?” She whispered, then shook her head fiercely. Just because Adrian messed up her project event didn't mean he knew everything about her. He was no superhero.
It had to be someone else, but who…? Her mind raced. She had spent years building her reputation as a successful business woman, but behind that mask was the reality no one knew about –the offshore accounts, the money laundering schemes, the trading of drugs, the dirty deals…
All of those were what kept her luxurious lifestyle intact, and now she was about to lose everything because a bastard out there was holding a silly grudge against her?
Damn, if that happened!
She poured herself a glass of whiskey and groaned as the alcohol burned in her throat. When did her life start to go wrong? Who was this jerk that dared challenge her.
She grabbed her phone and dialed Nicholas's number. The phone rang for a while, before it connected. “Where the f**k are you?!”
Nicholas’s voice was low as he grunted a reply. “What's with the tone? I thought you were in prison. Did you get released so quickly?”
“f**k you. The police had no concrete evidence to detain me,” She hissed in annoyance. That's not the point. Someone knows about us. I just got some photos anonymously. The drug deal from last week,”
There was a heavy pause on the other end. Then Nicholas spoke, his gone gruff. “I received the same photos too a few minutes ago,” He hesitated. “Do you think it might be Adrian,”
“That bastard tipped the police about the drugs I was planning to introduce to the foreigners. I don't know how he knew about my plans, but he knew," She slammed a hand on the counter. “But how did he find out about our secret points? Why would he take damn photos of us?!”
“To blackmail us, to threaten us. There are several reasons why he would take pictures of us,”
“I've never been so frustrated in my entire life because of a single guy,” Layla gritted, barely containing the anger simmering within her. “Where are you? We have to meet,”
“I should be available in the next two hours,”
“Have you lost it?! Don't you realize the situation we're in? If these photos get published, my life would be completely ruined. Everything I've worked for!”
“Isn't your life ruined already, baby?” Nicholas tsked. It was like he enjoyed pissing Layla off. “The news of your fraud is everywhere on the internet. Those foreigners you tried to scam are already filing suits against you. Your stock prices have plummeted like punctured balloons and to top it all, your company is awfully bankrupt," He exhaled. "This is all because of one man,"
“Shut the hell up!” Layla screamed. “I can't let Adrian win. I won't!”
“I'll handle him. I'll find who is behind him and take care of them too,” Nicholas said in a cold voice and Layla could sense the anger from where she stood.
Nicholas meant his threat. He wasn't just some street thug. He was deep into the underworld with connections so vast that it couldn't be measured. Layla knew he had done so many evil deeds and so taking care of Adrian would be a piece of cake.
“Bring his little sister to our hiding spot in the next one hour. She'll have to pay for her brother's stupidity,”
Nicholas let out a soft, humorless chuckle. “Not only are you pretty, but you're so smart! Such a brilliant idea,"
Layla nodded. “Men like him are so obvious. They pretend to be wise and try to use what they have as an advantage. But they have no idea it'd backfire on them,”
“Don't be late, baby. Your present would be waiting,” Nicholas said.
The line clicked dead and Layla managed a sigh of relief. She just had to relax, everything would be sorted out soon —Adrian would be gone and her life would go back to being perfect.
******
An hour later
Layla stood in front of the familiar uncompleted building. She checked her watch, she wasn't late. Reaching for her scarf, she tied her hair up in a ponytail before walking inside the building.
It was dark inside the large, empty hall, but Layla managed to locate the secret entrance behind the carefully concealed walls. Her eyes scanned around for signs of suspicious movement. There was none, so she let herself through the secret entrance.
“Nicholas…? Where the f**k are you?” She said in noticable excitement, putting on her phone torchlight. “Where's the little b***h? Did she play hard to get at first?”
She waited.
No response.
Silence. Total silence. And for some reasons, the silence creeped her out.
“Nicholas?” She called out again, but the silence that greeted her this time was almost defeaning.
She felt the tension in her muscles as cold fear crawled down her spine. Something felt off.
Then she heard the moans. Moans so low that she almost missed it. Shakily, her eyes drifted to the corner of the room and there he was.
He was bound in tight ropes to the chair. Blood trickled from his forehead and his clothes were torn. Dirty.
“Nicholas!” Layla screamed in horror as she ran towards him. His eyes were swollen and he struggled to keep them open.
“Nicholas…what happened? Who did this to you?!"
“R-u-n-”
- Writer
