Work was different that day; it was Monday.
Will sat on the edge of his bed and stared at the empty space that Hope's body had been not ten minutes ago.
His heart fluttered a bit just thinking about her. Yesterday had felt so surreal. It had been just the two of them talking about their time together before everything.
It'd been bliss.
And also, eating her food the other night had been great, it'd been better than anything he could have made.
She'd left quite in a hurry and hadn't had breakfast.
She'd left early to prepare for work. She'd been so flustered waking up.
Will smiled a bit remembering the sight of her in the morning light.
She was still so breathtaking.
He still couldn't believe that the woman he'd been missing, the woman that hunted his dreams had been there by his side all these years.
It felt like a dream. He wanted to know why she had kept it from him.
Why would she knowingly pretend? It was so strange.
Everything was strange. He didn't know how he was still sane.
He stood up from the bed and had a shower. The water cascaded down his body.
A lot was on his mind.
He could still remember the encounter with the shadow last night.
Things were already getting too complicated. What could it possibly want with him?
How was a shadow able to talk in the first place? None of it made sense.
He stared at his hand. There was nothing on it to even indicate the existence of a burn, to begin with even though his hand had been entirely seared.
But somehow his whole hand had been restored.
Hope's smile flashed across his mind.
Who exactly was she?
She definitely wasn't ordinary.
And the pastor must know something.
It seemed he'd even prepared the room they'd taken him to beforehand.
It was obvious some people knew what was going on. But what did it have to do with him?
Why was he at the center of it?
He clenched his hand into a fist at a loss of what else to do.
Hope had said something about a concession.
He'd consented to something, but to what?
What on earth had he agreed to?
'He's coming for what's his.' The creature from his dreams had shrieked.
What was that creature?
He sighed, turning the knob to the shower to cut the water flow.
He got dressed and got ready for work.
His memories we're returning way too slow for his liking.
Thankfully he'd had no nightmares and he was sure Hope had had something to do with that.
She had a calming effect on him without her even knowing.
Will had observed something strange last night.
She'd been talking in her sleep as though she was conversing with someone -it was almost as though he heard her call 'brother' and 'sister'.
Will sighed.
He toweled himself dry. He got dressed in his shirt and pants and wore his contacts.
He was about knotting his tie when he glanced at the Bible opened on his bed. He raised an eyebrow. Had he left it opened?
Hope must have read it. He was surprised to discover that it was the same place he'd been reading.
He walked closer to it and continued the verse:
'...in the abundance of your trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned;
'So I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God, and the guardian cherub drove you out from among the stones of fire.'
'Your heart was proud because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendour...'
A shiver immediately ran up Will's body and he had no clue why.
Those words-It was a sentence, judgment.
Will felt a foreboding, as though something in him knew what those words meant and it had reacted to it like a taboo.
Something was definitely going on, he could sense it in the air.
Whatever it was it was bigger than him.
He felt anxious all of a sudden. What was going on, what exactly was he up against?
Just then, something stirred deep inside of him.
He glanced down at his stomach. It was rumbling. His body felt an intense urge to run.
The air cracked in front of him and like a nightmare, he saw the space before his shift and open up into a realm.
His eyes were wide as his mind tried comprehending what he was seeing.
"What is this?" Will whispered. He was transfixed.
He'd seen it before, in one of his dreams.
A fire burned relentlessly, crackling as it turned and curved; but as if someone were calling him, he took a step forward then another till he was right at the entrance of the void that had magically appeared in the middle of his room.
William.
William...
I've been waiting.
He's heard the voice before. It was of the creature that had pointed towards the horizon in his dream.
Transfixed, he walked in and continued on the crooked path laid with blood and sulfur.
The void closed.
Everything was still except for his dog that was huddled by the side of his bed, whimpering.
{¶{¶{¶{¶{¶}
Hope was in the CEO's office. She'd been a personal assistant to the founder's son for four years now. Her office was connected to his and she'd been at his every beck and call for the past four years.
She'd opened the door to his office holding the files he'd asked. Will hadn't come to work yet and she was already worried.
Just thinking about him made her heart ache. The office the CEO resided in was quiet. It was bare. It had nothing personal that would make it lively or cozy. It was cold just like its the owner.
"Sir, I have your files." She walked on over.
As usual, he was quiet. At the moment Mr. Bennett was attending some papers that regarded the administrative department. He was reviewing their efficiency and output.
Hope walked over to where he was sitting at his desk.
Me. Bennett was dressed formally as usual in a black suit, though his suit jacket had been hung over the chair he was sitting on. He looked very focused on what he was doing. He was a very thorough man.
His blond hair was done in a moderate quiff that gave his features just the right accentuation hinting that he was a very attractive man. His eyes were blue and pure electricity.
Hope stood in front of him, eyes downcast. She made sure she avoided eye contact with him as much as possible.
You could easy drown in them.
Hope was a soft and even delicate-looking woman and she'd withstood the maltreatment from the workers there over the years, but she was in no way weak though she'd been often belittled, mostly she paid them no mind.
Hope was only bounded by the real reason she was here.
She'd agreed to work with him but it had been no easy task. She'd only agreed because of Will.
Or rather, she'd had no choice.
"Your papers are ready, sir." He finally looked up from his desk and locked eyes with hers.
Rats!
She shouldn't have met his eye. Their grasp on her was alarming.
His blue eyes were startling and her grip on the files tightened to keep her hands from trembling.
This man—
"Thank you, Miss Roosevelt." He said in his deep calm voice.
"Yes sir." She answered and was about to leave when his voice stopped her,
"It seems Mr. Robert has been...compromised." Hope heard his calm voice behind her.
Hope froze. Her mind was running a million miles a minute—
Did he know already?
"What? What are you talking about sir?" she managed to stall.
And that was when it hit her—he may have had something to do with his absence.
Behind her, she heard the chair he was sitting on shift backwards as he stood.
Barely audible footsteps made its way to the middle of the office where she stood.
Hope bit the inside of her cheek in anxiety. When he was right behind her, he stopped.
She waited in dread.
She closed her eyes berating herself-she wasn't supposed to be afraid of him. But she'd seen up close just what kind of monster he truly was.
"Relax, I'm not going to harm you." he said.
She gulped. She knew exactly what he was capable of. He was ruthless. Several of his victims now laid in the shades of deep darkness.
"Remember the deal Hope, I would hold back as long as he didn't remember," He began, whispering into her ear,
"but now he's regained his repressed memories and even the surgery hadn't been able to stop them from coming back..."
"I think you know."
That had been the deal, she stayed and looked over him, keeping him safe; as long as he never remembered, they would stand back.
Hope turned around to look him in the eye.
"It wouldn't have mattered anyway. You still would have gone through with it, wouldn't you? When has the devil ever been true to his promises?" She sneered.
A knowing grin spread out over his face completely transforming his face to a sinister one.
"You're right. How does it feel to be the reason he's going to die?" He asked so patronizingly that her hands clenched beside her simultaneously as electricity flickered across her chest.
"It's a shame. You hid your true identity from him all these years to keep him safe from me, well now he knows," he said,
"He'd seen me at the church. He knows who I am." He said stalking around her like she was some caged animal.
Hope's eyes widened the size of saucers. She'd arrived at the church much later after the pastor had called her. They'd been able to stabilize him enough till she came.
The whole place would have burned down had he lost control.
So, he'd been there?
"He's a special kid, that is why the master wants him. Once you consent, there's no going back, Hope. He did it for you." He smiled.
"How does it feel Hope," he taunted, "knowing the cherished failed?"
{¶{¶{¶{¶}
Hope was back in her office. Her right foot was tapping nervously at the marble floor.
Her office was clean with not one file out of place. The office was rather big for a Personal Assistant but she wasn't complaining.
Hope was worried and very much so. Everything was happening so fast.
Will had recollected some things but not everything.
He remembered her, he also remembers when they'd met for the first time, years ago, but what he didn't know was why they'd met.
The coffee spill hadn't been an accident.
She'd been sent into his life to protect him from the darkness that wanted his soul. Apparently, the kingdom of darkness had had their eyes on him for years.
Though he'd lived an ordinary life till now, things would never remain the same again. He'd been chosen.
He was the key to everything.
Christ was 'the cherished' rock, specially sanctified and chosen soldiers for God, given diverse auctions of the spirit.
She was part of the nine Cherished.
She was the first 'E' and she'd been sent to Will four years ago. When they'd met he'd looked so wide-eyed, so innocent. In short, he'd been the epitome of purity.
Hope acknowledged—Will was special, he was different from everyone. She just had this light in him that was so radiant. And the powers of darkness had meant to corrupt that light.
There was still a lot Will didn't know about the hierarchy of power that ruled the earth but she knew it was only a matter of time before he did.
He was a special piece in the events that were to take place.
She got to know more about Will and though he hadn't known Christ when they'd met, at the time, she'd tried showing him the way, and she'd fallen in love with him.
It shouldn't have happened. Hope clenched her fists. Love had only put him in danger. It should have never allowed him to make that deal. She'd been too weak.
He was a vessel that shouldn't have been bargained for.
Now the darkness wanted him.
He'd consented and that was enough legal ground.
Making up her mind, Hope got up and packed her bags.
Staying at Monosoft was no longer going to be a necessity.
She had to tell Will everything.
She was about leaving her office when she was stopped-
A voice...
'Hope, they have him but we'll get him back. Go to his house and pack his bags. Bring him here.'
Seth.
'Understood.'
Hope closed her eyes and prayed under her breath.
She opened the door, knowing Will wouldn't be there and proceeded in heading for the elevator.
The elevator dinged open. A woman spoke-
"Where do you think you're going, Hope?"
Hope narrowed her eyes at the woman's sly smirk which was on full display.
"Betty."
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A/N: Sooo, I hope you're enjoying The Concession so far. I so much love writing this book and I hope you enjoy reading it as well.
So a lot was revealed this chappie, and I hope a lot of things were brought to light and made clear.
So, Mr. Bennett and Becky.😌
Some of my readers called it already but how do you feel seeing now that it is true and,
Who is Seth?
And who are the cherished and what exactly do they have to do with Will?
Let's hear your wildest guesses!!☺☺
And please vote if you enjoyed it!❤❤
Taiwolilly, out👌