Vlad: "Alessa? She's one of our top girls here."
Mike: "Can you take us to her? We need to talk to her."
Vlad: "You guys want to talk with her?"
Mike: "Yeah."
Vlad: "You guys don't want to do anything else?"
Mike: " ... Like what?"
Vlad: "You know, having fun."
Mike: "We're not as wild as you think man."
Vlad: "What do you guys want to talk about with her?"
Mike: "We want to find out about his brother's death."
Vlad: "Oh, so you want to know about that?"
Mike: "You guys already know about it?"
Vlad: "Well, the only person who really knows about it is the Kapitan. I only know a glimpse of that information."
Mike: "can you tell me what you know?"
Vlad: "I know that her brother was killed by some people and that's it."
Mike: "That's it? You didn't try to find out more?"
Vlad: "I already tried to ask the girl about it, but she kept her mouth shut. I can't really push her to talk since the Kapitan told everyone not to bother her."
Mike: "Huh, I never knew that scary old lady could be considerate to other people."
Vlad: "It's to be expected since the Kapitan herself who brought that girl here."
Mike: "That lady brought her in here? that's also new, I never thought she's the kind of person who likes to pick random people to work for her."
Vlad: "She has her own reason, I heard It's because the girl owes her a lot of money."
Mike: "The girl's in debt?"
Vlad: "Yes, I don't really know about it too much. I suggest you ask the Kapitan if you want to know more."
Mike: "Nah, I would rather ask the girl herself."
Vlad: "Let me ask her first if she's free, she usually still serves some guests at this hour." Vlad walked to the phone inside the room on the desk at the corner of the room.
Vlad: "Hello, Alessa, have you finished serving our guest?"
Alessa: "What is it, Vlad?"
Vlad: "There are 2 young men who have come to visit you."
Alessa: "Customers?"
Vlad: "No, they are my friends. They want to meet you."
Alessa: "What do they want from me?"
Vlad: "They say they want to talk about your brother."
Alessa: " ... Tell them to leave and don't ever come again." klek* she hung up the phone.
Mike: "What did she say?" I ask Vlad.
Vlad: "She told me to tell you two to leave her."
Mike: "Huh, can you call her again? Let me talk to her directly."
Vlad: "Here." Vlad gave me the phone.
Mike: "Hello? Alessa, my name is Michael, can I have your time for a-" klek. She closes the phone again.
Mike: "Hello? Hellooo. The heck is wrong with her?"
Vlad: "I guess she really doesn't want to talk."
Mike: "Damn ... Vlad, can't you just take us to her directly?"
Vlad: "I'm sorry my friend, I can't do that without the girl's permission. The Kapitan told me that."
Mike: "Please Vlad, I really need to talk to her."
Vlad: "I am truly sorry my friend, I don't want to get into trouble with the Kapitan."
Mike: "Sigh*..."
I'm starting to run out of my cards. How do I make her willing to talk to me? I just wish there's something that I can use to make her talk to me. I then remember the envelope that Ma'am Glavy gave me.
Mike: "Hey Vlad? Could you call her again just one more time? But, tell her we'll pay her if she let us meet and talk to her." I said to Vlad.
Vlad: " ... ok." Vlad called her again.
Vlad: "Hello, Alessa? This is Vlad."
Mike: "Have you already told them to leave?"
Vlad: "No, not yet, these guys told me they'll pay you if you let them meet you and talk."
Mike: " ... How much will they pay me?"
Vlad: "She asked me how much you will pay her." Vlad told me.
Mike: "Is 100 dollars enough?"
Vlad: "They'll pay you 100 dollars." Vlad said to Alessa.
Alessa: "That's too low."
Vlad: "She said it's too low."
Mike: "Well, how much does she want?"
Vlad: "They ask you how much do you want?"
Alessa: "I want them to pay me with my rate."
Vlad: "She wants you to pay her with her rate"
Mike: "How much is her rate?"
Vlad: "1000 dollars per hour."
Mike: "WHAT? Is she a prostitute or a fucking lawyer?"
Vlad: "Are you going to pay her or not?" Vlad asked.
Mike: "Wait a sec-" I quickly checked the money that Miss Glavy gave me. There's probably a couple of grand here. After checking the money, I decided to pay her.
Mike: "Yeah-yeah, I'll pay her."
Vlad: "Alright. Alessa, they told me that they're going to pay you according to your rate."
Alessa: "They'll have to pay me twice the price if both of them want to go."
Vlad: "You have to pay her twice the price if both of you want to go." Vlad told us. I and Jack looked at each other. Jack just nodded at me.
Mike: "I'll go." I said.
Vlad: "Alessa, they said only one of them will go."
Alessa: "... I'll be waiting." Klek* Alessa closes the phone.
Vlad: "She'll be waiting for you." Vlad said to me.
Mike: "Awright."
Vlad: "How do you know that would make her talk?"
Mike: "Money solves problems, Vlad. You know that shit applies on every single corner of the world."
Vlad: "Heh, can't really disagree with that. Alright my friend, let me take you to her floor." All of us got out of the room and walked to the elevator.
Mike: "Hey Jack, Here's money to buy some food and drinks from the bar. Be sure not to spend this money on liquor alright?"
Jack nods
Ding*
Vlad: "Here is her floor. Her room number is 146. I'll be at the receptionist if you need anything."
Mike: "Thanks Vlad, See you guys in the lobby."
Vlad: "Be sure to knock first before you enter the room, my friend! Oh yeah, and have a great time!" Vlad said to me as I walked out of the elevator."
Mike: " ... uh, ok" I replied.
The stench smell of cigarettes envelops the corridor hotel as I walk searching for room number 146. I count the room numbers in my head as I walk past them. 138, 140, 142. A man comes out of a room ahead of me. I see that his face is red and sweaty. He just looked like someone who's just been working out. The man hastily walked towards the elevator after he saw me looking at him. He's looking away from me when he walks past me while tidying up his suit. I look at him for a moment and turn my attention to the room that the man just walked out of. It's room 146.
I knock at the room. Shortly after, a short red-haired girl opens the room door. I'm surprised, I never thought the guy's sister would be this ... young. I thought I was going to meet someone who's older than me. Well, she is probably older than me. From her looks, she's more like the same age as his brother. Holy smokes man, this girl is freaking hot. No, not just hot. She's also very beautiful. I guess it wasn't surprising if her rate is that high. I wonder if she's really the same age as his brother because if she's actually younger, then I'm going to have a problem with ma'am Glavy. I realized that this girl had just taken a shower. Her hair is still wet, a towel can be seen on her neck and the only thing that covers her body is a bathrobe.
"uh, are you Alessa? I'm Mike, nice to meet you ... " I held out my hand, only to be left hanging. Not cool.
She stares at me for a couple of seconds before letting me in. She told me to sit on the couch beside the door. From the couch, I could see the whole room and a sliding window door that connects the room to a balcony. The smell of the room is kinda wack. It's a mix of cigarettes, perfume, and-wait, do I smell cement? And what is this sour smell? Oh well, I guess these smells are to be expected from a room with this kind of purpose. In front of me, there's a small table, similar to the one that is in ma'am Glavy's office'. I see a lot of cigarettes on the ashtray on the table. not just cigarettes, I also see a fraction of white powder. Cocaine? I asked myself. Hmmm, the existence of cocaine in this room is bugging me. Does this girl use the stuff that I deliver to this place? As I was about to ask her about the cocaine, she instead went to the bathroom to dry her hair. Her hairdryer is so loud, it made me think twice to ask her about the cocaine. She doesn't close the bathroom door, leaving it wide open for me to see inside. I see that she has 3 yellow duck toys right beside the bath. I used to have those exact same toys back when I was a kid, that is until my mom throws it all out because some of them are starting to get old and moldy. Alessa looked at me thinking that I'm staring at something that is not meant to be stared at. She quickly closes the bathroom door and continues to dry her hair. I turn my attention back to the room. A piece of underwear catches my eye as I look towards the messy bed. Beside it, there's a trash can that is filled with something that looks like used condoms. I lean a little bit from the couch to confirm the item that I saw. Yep, it's definitely used condoms, and there's a heck of lot of it. I wonder how many people this girl serves in a single night. The hairdryer sounds stop. Shortly after, Alessa gets out of the bathroom and walks to a vanity mirror desk where she picks up a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. She then sits on a couch in front of me. She picks one of the cigarettes and tries to light it with her lighter. It looks like her lighter is already running out of gas. Seeing her struggling to light her cigarette, I pulled a zippo lighter from inside my Jacket and helped her to light his cigarette. I've been accustomed to carrying my dad's zippo lighter even though I don't smoke. It's just a habit that I developed from having a lot of smoker friends. I mean, I've ended up in a lot of awkward situations just because people forgot to refill their lighter. It's also just kinda sad to see your friend being all grumpy and bummed because they can't enjoy their cigarettes. After taking a sip from her cigarette, She offers me one. I refuse politely.