Wrong Direction

Chapter 3: Who?

Shit! I looked at Tia. We had no other choice.

“Run!” I yelled as we both legged it past him. He tried to grab us, arms out wide but we ducked under and sprinted down the hallway. We were fast with our shoes in hand, our bare feet gripping the marble floors. We rounded another corner, opening into a similar lobby just like the one we left. Tia continued to run through the lobby and to God knows where - why was she so goddamn fast!

I instinctively grabbed the nearest doorknob and slammed the door behind me. I heard the guards tiring footsteps pass by only seconds after. It was pitch black and I had no idea where I was.

“What the hell!”

I jumped sideways at the sound of a voice only inches from me. I slammed into the wall to my right, which was followed by what sounded like brooms crashing to the floor.

“Shhh!” The male voice shushed with frustration. “Shut up would you!”

Something was wrong with his voice, he wasn’t Australian. But it was to be expected, we were in a hotel swarming with tourists.

“What the hell are you doing in here?” I asked in a loud whisper.

“I was here first!” The funny sounding whisper shot back, a tad bit annoyed.

“And where exactly is that?” I tried to feel around. When I felt the back of the room, I realised that it wasn’t actually a room at all. It would of been only big enough to be a cupboard.

“You’re in the cleaner’s storage room,” he whispered back, impatient. “What the hell are you doing in here?”

The way he said ‘here’ made me assume that he was Irish, or maybe English. Oh whatever, they were the same country to me.

“I’m… Erm…” I was so glad it was dark as my desperate lying face would have given everything away. “I’m playing hide-and-seek with my sister.”

I could only just see him raise his eyebrows at me through the darkness.

Yes, I knew that it was a pathetic lie, but I couldn’t think of anything else. Oh God! A mute person could have voiced a better excuse! My subconscious shook her head at me and rolled her eyes. I slapped her down.

A small glow suddenly lit up the small space that we were standing in. He held out his phone, the glow only slightly making out his figure. I narrowed my eyes to try and make out his face a little better, but all I could see was that he had dark hair and the normal facial features of a human - well go figure.

“I’m Candice by the way.” I smiled at him, realising then that he probably couldn’t see my smile. There was a pause, and I could have sworn that he was eying me with caution.

“Harold,” he finally replied. I saw him flash his white teeth back at me through the glow of his phone.

"Harold?" I tried not to laugh. Seriously, who called their child Harold?

Suddenly, another loud male voice came from the other side of the door.

“Samson, come in.” The man’s voice was deep and very serious. Harold lifted the glow to his face. He pressed a finger to his lips, telling me not to make a sound. His eyes were suddenly full of excitement as we listened to the voice. I could make out strikingly green eyes, or maybe that was because of the phone’s glow.

“No sign of him, he’s snuck past us again. What the hell do we do?” The man spoke in the same accent as this Harold guy, maybe they were related?

There was a short pause before the deep voice continued.

“Roger that Samson. Weldon out.”

As the footsteps faded, Harold increased the glow on his phone. It lit up the cupboard further. I was a little shocked at how young he was, and at how familiar he looked. He smiled warmly now that we could see each other a little better. But, before he could say anything, my curiosity got the better of me.