DYLAN'S POV
A man opened the door and placed a plate of plain rice on the floor. Without coming inside, he pushed the plate with his leg. He was about to close the door when I called out, "hallo! Please come in for a short while. Please, it is urgent."
He hesitated for a moment, then pushed the heavy metal door. He was one of the security guards; the one who usually brought the food. He was a very thin tall man, dressed in all black. His clothes looked too big on his skeletal frame. I decided not to waste any time, and I went straight to the point.
"May I talk to you in private, just you and me please?"
The man's eyes widened and he looked around him, "that is dangerous. If Terror or the boss ever get to know about this, then I am dead!"
"Isn't there a secret room or some…"
"No, I can't talk to you in private!" his whisper was very loud.
"You don't want to miss what I have to offer; trust me." I smiled at him.
I made my talk very enticing, pleading in my heart for the man to take the bait. He looked around again, took my hand and pulled me. He closed the door behind him and we were standing in the bigger room.
"My fellow men are standing just behind that door. Be fast!" He pointed at the door with a shaky finger. I went straight to the point.
"Listen, I have a proposal. Let me go, and I will give you any amount of money you say."
The man stared at me for a few seconds and said in a low voice, "we're not allowed to talk to you."
"No-one needs to know that you spoke to me or to any of us." I assured him.
Quickly, I pulled off my wrist watch and handed it over to him.
"Here, let this watch work as my deposit for the job. Get me out of here, and I will give you any amount of money you want."
"And…and the police?" the man fought hard to hide a smile.
"I won't ever tell the police about this. This will stay between us."
The smile that he had fought so hard to hide finally emerged. But it soon ended. He frowned and said, "and the woman? The child, and the old man? I have a feeling that once you leave this place, you will call the police on us."
"I wouldn't dare. Look, I don't even know these guys. This is strictly between you and me. I'm doing this to save myself, and I don't care about these people!" I did my best to sound very convincing.
The man rubbed his eyes and looked around him. The way he did it, it was as if he was sensing some cameras on us. He let out a heavy sigh and seemed to be in deep thought.
"Say yes!" I encouraged him. "Just agree to this deal, and we can make it work! I get my freedom, and you get your millions!"
"Millions! Did you just say million! Will you really give me that much?" he sounded very eager, but he managed to keep his voice low. It was a hushed whisper, full of excitement.
"I said any amount you state. Even if you state millions, you will get them!" I sounded very serious. I had to do and say anything for the man to agree to the deal.
He was in deep thought once again, before slowly shaking his head. Oh, what now? He faced the floor and in a low voice, "I dare not cross the boss's path. He can be ruthless. Once he knows about it, he will make sure that I die."
"He does not need to know about it!" I reminded him.
"My boss has his own ways of finding out anything that he wants to find out."
"Ok let's do it this way, if I am caught, I won't mention your name. Here, take this watch. Keep it. You can choose to wear it or to sell it, whatever is comfortable with you. Help me to escape. Once I am out of here, I will pay you. You must get in touch with me, and I will keep my promise."
"Or you will report me to the police," he said with a scoff.
"We've talked about that. What do I have to gain or lose whether you are arrested or not. If you help me, you're the one who would have saved me from Eden…your boss, whatever his name is!"
"I cannot do this," the man said and did not wait for my response. He quickly walked away and shut the door firmly behind him.
*.*.*.
From the looks, it appeared like we were underground, where the natural light never found its way in. The room was always dimly lit. There were some brighter lights, which they only switched on in the event that I needed to look at Liam.
"We might have to find a way of escape using Liam. It seems like Eden loves Liam a lot," I stated in desperation.
"I've also noticed that he loves Liam a lot, and I cannot understand why." Anisha said in a resigned tone. "Do you think we will ever get out of this place?" it sounded like she was about to cry.
"We have to," I assured her. "I wish we knew why he likes Liam that much, then we could use that against him. He always makes sure that the child is ok, bringing in good food for him, he really wants the child to be well."
"So what do you suggest that we do?" Anisha sighed and shook her head slightly.
"Well at the moment I think I can continue with that man who brings us food. The offer was tempting, he almost took it. I will have to continue persuading him and offering a higher price. He will give in."
Anisha shook her head and stood up. She yawned and looked at me with tearful eyes, "the problem is we don't even know what Eden wants! Eden…Israel, whatever his name is!! Has he asked for a ransom from your parents…would you know?"
"I have no idea, but I don't think so. He clearly stated that he is not after money."
Anisha failed to hold in her tears. She started crying again; the sight that I hated the most. I never wanted to see her crying, yet I had no power at that moment, to help her in any way. I pulled her into my embrace, and allowed her to cry out her pain. My heart felt for her. She was just a lady, a young lady with a small child under her care, locked in some place in an unknown place.
Since we were unable to tell the time using nature, we had to guess. Our lives continued to be miserable, staying in the warehouse, or whatever place it was, in fear and pain. My whole body ached from spending many nights sleeping on the hard cold floor. I even rejoiced that there was no mirror, for I could not imagine seeing my reflection in one.
Anisha and I were seated on the old couch, talking a lot about ourselves, our childhood, our dreams…and before we knew it we had both fallen asleep. I must have been in deep sleep when I heard the sound of door a creaking open. My eyelids felt heavy from sleep, but I told myself that the sound I heard could not have been from a dream. It was happening. I felt a soft touch on my shoulder and, assuming it to be Anisha touching me, I opened my eyes. The thin man was standing next to me, his eyes fixed squarely on me. Having the man's face that close to me got me startled and I moved away slightly.
"Do...do you still have that watch?" he stammered in an extremely low whisper.
Oh! So he actually gave my proposal a thought! I was very happy. I quickly pulled the watch off my wrist and handed it over to him with, "of course."
"Ok, be prepared. I will give you a signal anytime." He whispered.
"Today?" I asked anxiously.
"It might not be today, but anytime. Just be prepared!" and with that he disappeared out of the room.
"What was he saying?" Anisha asked, for she too had woken up. I updated her on what had happened, and we were both very happy with how things were unfolding.
"Don't worry, once I get out I will come back for you. I will make sure you, Liam and pastor Everdeen are all saved."
Anisha sat up and took my hands in hers. She squeezed them tightly and smiled a sad smile, "Dylan please, don't forget us once you're out. I know you come from a rich family and once you're out, no-one will continue to bother about us. We might all be missing. Yes, but the truth is the police are putting more effort in finding you compared to us all. So once they find you, they may relax and end up forgetting about us. Dylan please, come back for us."
"I will definitely come back, Anisha. The moment I get help, I will bring police back to this place." I assured her, meaning every word I spoke, with all my heart. She smiled at me with tearful eyes.