I was fidgeting with my fingers as I sat alone in the dark room. The images of Josh's bleeding body wouldn't leave my mind, and there was nothing I could do to help him or save him. I had ran the scenes over and over again through my mind, trying to figure out what happened, and where and how, but it all lead back to Josh's bleeding body. Now, I'm pretty sure that I was on the verge of going crazy. This room had no windows, no doors, except for the one in the corner, but it had no doorknob, so it didn't count as a door. It was also dead silent. I don't know if this was the only room on this side of the building, or if no one else was here anymore, and I was left to die, but I needed to know something, anything about Josh's health.
I gave out a loud huff, the only light in here was a stupid light bulb that was hanging from the celling in the middle of the room. The stupid thing had been flickering since the moment I got here, so it wasn't helping me calm down at all. The only thing in this room was a chair. I didn't even know for how long I had been in here for.
"Hello?" I called out when there was knocking on the door. I quickly stood up and ran over to it. "There's someone in here, please." I hit the door with my palm and tried to jam it open by pressing my body against it.
"Stop pushing against the door." A man's low voice called out and I backed away. "You've been surprisingly calm these past few hours." He said, entering the room.
As soon as he was in the room, I could see he was just like the other men that had captured us. He was wearing a sharp suit, his blonde hair slicked back, his black-rimmed glasses fit perfectly on the straight bridge of his nose. He stood tall too, in a threatening kind of way.
Swallowing my fear, I spoke up. "Where's my brother?"
"Your brother?" He frowned in confusion. I didn't know if he was faking his confusion, or if he really didn't know.
"Yes, Josh." I answered, standing tall too. He wasn't the only one with balls. Well, technically, he was, but figuratively, I had some too.
"He's being," he paused and breathed in, staring me down. "Taken care of." He finished, thoughts of what he meant running through my mind.
"I need to see him." I said. He merely stared at me and I knew that I wasn't going to get anywhere by just demanding things like these men were doing. "Please." I begged as he looked back at the door.
"Fine, you have five minutes." He opened the door, walking out, and I followed him quietly. "The second door on your left. Don't try anything funny." He warned as he snapped his fingers so the guard at Josh's door could open it. I slipped in quietly and felt relieved to find him lying in bed and breathing. The room had more space and better lighting, seeing as the lightbulb wasn't flickering like my own. I quickly kneeled beside him and pushed his sticky hair off his forehead. "You're burning up." I whispered and fought back the tears as I pushed up his teeshirt and saw that his wound had been treated. "Oh, thank goodness." I gasped and smiled, taking his rough hand in mine and kissing his knuckles. I looked beside me and saw a bottle of water that was half full. Taking it, I reached for my flimsy white tee shirt and unknotted it. Afterwards, I quickly and effectively ripped off a piece, soaking it with the warm water. "It's warm, but it's better than nothing." I whispered to no one in particular, and then placed the wet rag to Josh's forehead.
I ran my fingers through his sticky hair and blew on his head to see if he would cool down. The door then banged open, and the man that had been standing outside came in. "Times up, dolly." He announced, snapping his fingers at me.
"Alright," I nodded and flipped the rag on the cooler side before pressing it again to his forehead. I placed a small kiss on his hand again before walking out. I ignored the look the guard gave me when he saw my torn tee shirt. "When can I see him again?" I followed him back to my room.
"I dont decide that." He responded gruffly. I didn't speak again and focused on tying another knot at the bottom of my shirt to make it less noticeable. He opened a door, but it wasn't my room. This one had a long couch on the end, with windows, and lights that actually worked. It also contained a large conference room table in the middle.
I turned to the man, "this isn't my room."
"Niether was the last one." He replied and pushed me inside before shutting the door. I stepped farther inside, and saw that the large windows were overlooking the view of Chicago. Whoever these men were, they knew how to handle their business discreetly because there was not a building in sight that was near this one.
The conversation with my mom popped my head. She knew what she was talking about when she said that this was not a place to visit. So did Josh, he knew right from the beginning, yet he never told me directly. If only he would've just said something. All of this could've been prevented. He wouldn't be lying on his death bed, and I wouldn't have to be worried about my life being at risk as well as his.
Hearing the door open behind me, I quickly turned around and waiting for whoever it was to enter. A dark colored man entered and closed the door behind him. "Well," he smiled, moving over to pull out a seat. "Why don't we take a seat, Ms. Collins?" He suggested, and I stared at him.
"I feel more comfortable standing up." I shook my head, placing my hands to my sides.
He nodded, walking over to the head of the table, and sitting down, I then noticed a folder in his hand. "Very well, suit yourself." He opened the folder, and cleared his throat. "Why don't we start by asking you if you know why you're here." He looked up at me, and I quickly looked away from his demanding eyes.
"I'm afraid not." I responded, staring at the door. This one had a doorknob.
"Well, let me tell you." He raised his voice, "you're here because your big brother, Joshua, broke his agreement with us." He stood up, and walked towards me, I could hear his loud footsteps. "Not to mention, he did the unacceptable." He growled lowly, and took my chin in his hand, making me look at him. I grimaced at the proximity, and closed my eyes, ignoring the shakiness of my lips that were threatening to cry out in fear. "He killed a very good friend of mine, know who he is?" He questioned, and I shook my head, keeping my eyes closed, despite the fact that tears were now falling down. "Do you know who he is?!" He yelled in my face, and I flinched back.
"No," I whispered, opening my eyes to see his furious eyes.
He backed away, and gave me a cynical smile. "Well," he held his hands behind his back and walked back to his seat. "Let me tell you his name, Moretti." He paused, and I carefully looked at him, nodding in understanding, afraid that he would return to yell at me again. "Yes," he nodded, chuckling. "He was one good son of a bitch." He flipped over a piece of paper, staying quiet for a minute. "Now, what do you know of this? Why did we bring you guys here?" He looked up at me.
I didn't want to say it, but I also didn't want him near me again. "To kill us." I faintly whispered.
"To what?" He demanded to know.
"To kill us." I raised my voice to answer him, earning another chuckle.
"Well, you're not far from the truth." He stopped talking again, and went to another sheet of paper. "Now," he stood up, and slid a sheet of paper to the seat beside him. "I want you to come here and read this paper, then, tell me what you think of it." He demanded, looking back down to his stack of papers.
I swiftly walked over, and quietly sat down to read the paper. "Wait," I paused and lifted the paper, "this is a binding contract." I stood up, walking away.
"What's the matter with it?" He stared at me, and I scoffed, gaining back my backbone.
"You're going to hold me hostage for as long as my brother lives?!" I implored. "Why not just kill me already?"
He laughed out loud. "I'm not going to torture you. I'm not going to treat you as a princess, but I'm not going to kill you." He stood up and buttoned up his suit. "Look over it, and think about it. The only thing I will say," he picked up his folder of papers, "is that I know your whole life, and backstory. Every place you've visited, every family member you have, I know everything. You agree with the contract, and all you will do is live in this building until you're brother gives me what I want, or until he dies." He then walked away, shutting the door behind him.
This was ridiculous. He couldn't possibly expect me to say yes! He was asking me to torture my brother while he tortured me. Josh may be a jerk, and a bully to me at times, but he had never been a bad brother. He was always caring for his family, despite the decisions he had made. Not to mention the trouble he would get into if he told our parents what happened to me.
I looked down at the paper, and saw a line at the very bottom waiting for me to write down my signature. I read over the terms and conditions again, and sighed, looking at the table again, I saw a pen where he had been previously sitting. I knew that if I didn't sign this, he would just hold me hostage while going after my family. I didn't want to be here, but if I had to choose between ending my life, or ending my family's life, I'd choose my own over and over again.