It was already past five in the evening when Natasha left and picked up Sasha from the Blue View Hotel where she was done her shift for the day. They headed to Extravagant Club, which they could now afford since Natasha was well paid.
"Gosh girl! Look at this ride!" Sasha was very excited to be carried by just a large car. "So, he just… gave it to you?" She asked as she felt the texture of the seats. She saw Natasha nod at her and she giggled. "You know, if I knew him better, I would say that he really likes you. He actually fancies you!"
Natasha looked at her friend for a brief second and smiled. 'Could it be? No way.' She thought to herself and shrugged. She knew that he could not like her. He hardly knew her. But what if…
They arrived at the club and immediately headed in after parking the car in the parking area. Sasha was so excited as this was the first time she was going to a high end club. They were shown to seats at the corner of the room and ordered soft beers and a bottle of for themselves.
"I think he likes you, girlfriend." Sasha said to her friend.
"I think he is just nice."
"Yes, maybe. But he likes you. And I am never wrong in this matters." Sasha said as she had a sip of the wine in her hand. "How is William?" Sasha suddenly asked in disgust. She never liked him at all.
"Same old. Always drunk." Natasha responded casually as she took a sip of wine and was slightly saying to the music. Sasha sneered at her and rolled her eyes. Natasha ignored her and just smiled.
"Why did you agree to have him as a roommate in the first place? You always knew how he was, since campus. Rowdy, care free… a drunk." Sasha added rolling her eyes and gulping the remainder of her drink down her throat.
"You know why. Neither of us could go home and neither of us could afford our own house so we decided to cost share. It was cheaper and he was not as far-gone as he is now. If I would have known that things would turn out so…" Natasha paused and shook her head. She looked at her friend and forced a smile. "Anyway, it does not matter. I shall find him gone and from tomorrow the house shall be only mine!" She suddenly lit up upon saying this and took another sip of the wine. It was beginning to get to her head.
At the VIP room in the same club upstairs, a group of stinking rich men were having their moment. They had on their table the most expensive drinks in the club which complemented the very expensive watches on each of their wrists and leather shoes on their feet. Each had put on their own custom made suits but with different colors. One in all white, the other in brown and a white shirt and brown tie, the other in a navy blue suit and a dark floral-like shirt and the last one in an all-black suit. They were bubbling on about business.
"It has been a while since we have seen you around. Where have you been?" The man in the floral shirt asked looking at the man in an all-black suit. The other three agreed while having sips of their whisky.
"Business." The man answered briefly and crossed his legs, looking at the glass window in front of him. He was known for his short answers and the others just looked at him and nodded their heads.
"Come on man! We looked for you so that we can hang out but your assistant told us you have been out of town. Did you find yourself a lady? Ms. Julie, perhaps." The man in an all-white shirt answered making the others burst out in laughter. The man in the all-black suit looked at the others and smiled.
"Mr. Fred, how would you like it if I came over and said hello to your girlfriend and maybe tell her of your life abroad?" He asked looking at the man in the all-white suit. Turning to the one in the floral shirt, "Mr. Jacob, what do you think would happen if called your parents and tell them that you having a girlfriend has been a ruse all along?" He smiled sarcastically and looked at the one dressed in a brown suit and said: "And you, Mr. Edward, do you think at this rate you will find a girlfriend at all or should I call your ex, Ms. Clara, right? To come and rekindle the happiness you two had together? Oh, it was a thrill! What do you think she'll do next when she finds you? Set you on fire? She was a crazy one. I liked her!" He said and took a sip of his whiskey and focused back on the glass, leaving his friends speechless.
"You are such an evil man Mr. Brandon Joseph!" Edward snapped and the other men in the room agreed. Brandon ignored them and continued to drink his whiskey. "If you do that, then we shall tell your mother. Yes, we shall tell Mrs. Joseph." He added. All the men knew that Brandon only listened to his mother. His love for her was unwavering and the respect he had toward her was to be compared to none.
"All right brothers! Calm down. I was only teasing you. And besides, you teased me first when you mentioned the name of that woman." Brandon said looking at his brothers. They had been his good friends since high school. Fred studied engineering abroad and had his own construction firm which Brandon had given him responsibility to construct the new company in DD City. Edward had studied architecture in the same university abroad that Fred was in, which was also the same university Jacob had studied law and Brandon economics. All of them were from very powerful families and their parents were also good friends thus their friendship was like family. But all of them knew which family among them was most powerful and they knew it was by far; the Joseph's.
"But seriously, brother, how have you been? Since, you know." Fred asked after they had settled down from the threats. Everyone looked at him then at Brandon, who was looking at the glass window again. They all knew what he meant, they were there when Brandon was fighting for his life against alcohol. Everyone was concerned. Brandon looked at them with no emotion and took a gulped down his whiskey clearing the glass then stood up and walked to the glass window. Looking through it, he could see the people on the floor below dancing hard to the song being played. The room they were in was soundproof and only had soft slow music playing in it.
"I am doing fine. Don't worry about me." He said affirmatively, his eyes scanning through the people having fun below. The men behind him looked at each other then looked at Jacob. He was the one who had seen Brandon lately so they wanted him to confirm what had been said. He nodded his head at them in disagreement. Then the three just looked at the man standing at the end of the room. He seemed so lost in thought and they decided not to disturb him. In his train of thoughts, Brandon seemed to notice someone seated at the corner of the club on the floor right below him. 'Could that be…' He thought to himself as he looked closer through the glass. It was her! What an unbelievable coincidence. He wanted to go back to his seat, he could feel the drink working its way to his head, but he could not move. He just looked at the woman laughing and sipping wine. Who was she with? A man? The men seated behind him saw Brandon was distracted by something and they all stood and went up behind him to see what had caught his attention. Two men did not know what to look for, but as soon as Jacob saw her, he knew. He had met her just the previous day when he had gone to deliver his plan on the land BESMA Group wanted to acquire in DD City and she had taken over since Brandon was at the hospital checking up on Watson. Jacob looked at the other two confused guys and whispered, "Far left corner, dark green dress."
Brandon was too distracted to know his friends were standing right behind him. She was very beautiful and he knew it.
"What are you looking at, Bran?" Edward teased, snapping Brandon back to reality. Brandon looked back and found his friends pretending to look around trying to find what he was looking at. "Have you seen something that has caught your attention?" Edward added sarcastically. Brandon ignored them and went back to his seat and added a quarter glass of whiskey to his glass. Jacob and Edward followed, leaving Fred at the window, looking at the young lady and around. Fred was always known by his friends for having the sharpest eye amongst them. He always said "One fault in my work, one mistake and people could die. There is never any room in my career for mistakes." Brandon was known for his power, valor and deep connection all around the world. Edward was known for his creativity in all angles. Jacob was known for being quick-witted. The four were already a complete gang.
"What is it brother, have you also seen something you like?" Edward asked Fred, who had been staring through the glass for a while now. Fred nodded his head and looked at Brandon. Brandon understood and stood up and walked towards him. Edward and Jacob were left confused.
"Look. That man, seated at the right hand corner. He has not touched his drink for a while now. He keeps staring at her." Fred said softly, pointing at the man dressed in a white shirt and a pair of black jeans trousers then at the woman in a dark green dress. Brandon looked at the man and almost asked Fred whether the two people he was pointing at had anything to do with him but when he opened his mouth, the words that came out perplexed everyone in the room, including him.
"Ed, get me two bouncers." He said to Edward but looking at Fred. The owner of the club they were in was a good friend of the four as Edward and Fred had helped him build up the club, Brandon was their biggest sponsor and Jacob had assisted him get the right legal paperwork in order. The owner of the club was known as Mr. Patrick Marvin. As soon as Edward rang the phone to the boss, he had showed up in thirty seconds.
"Get your men ready. We might have a problem shortly." Brandon ordered as soon as Patrick got in to the room.