ISRAEL'S POV
Standing in front of me, he seemed a bit scared and worried. I looked at him.
"It's really you, my boss." He forced a smile.
I picked a beer bottle and took two sips before lighting my cigarette.
"Did you bring the staff?" I asked Toast.
"I brought everything, boss. I've got you, and I'll facilitate everything."
"So, what do we have?" I asked.
Toast pulled his bag from the back seat and dumped it on his laps. Carefully he pulled out all the items and placed them on the dashboard.
"All in order. You can go now." I ordered. I turned aside to pull in my cigarette, but he remained seated.
"What now? I said you can go."
"B…boss. You haven't paid me in a long while", he spoke with great fear.
"Oh that, I will pay you as soon as this big shark pays. I told you we're doing a job for a very big person. She will pay handsomely."
"She? It's a woman?" Toast sounded surprised.
I remained silent. I pulled in the cigarette smoke and puffed it wildly into the air, clouding the whole car with thick white smoke. I took in three or four more puffs, and turned to face him.
"Well, you can go now. Let's meet here tomorrow evening. We are meeting the client at night."
"Yes boss."
"Toast, I can't afford to have any errors. I'm checking into a hotel tomorrow morning, isn't it? Is everything sorted?" I asked him with a stern voice.
"Everything is sorted, boss."
***
After Toast was done fixing me up, I looked in the mirror and could not help but laugh out loud.
"You're good at this, aren't you? I wouldn't even recognise myself!"
"You look good," Toast smiled; then ""boss, will…will you remember to pay me?"
"Of course! I'll pay you in cash this time! Let's go and get this job done!"
SHIMMER'S POV
Iris was preparing the shopping list; she lifted her head and smiled slightly at me.
"Take me somewhere tonight. I need someone to drive me" I said without any hesitation. I had dreaded how I was going to ask her, for in all the years that Iris had worked for me, I had never asked her to drive me anywhere.
"A driver, ma'am? Should I get one of the drivers for you?" she asked, sounding slightly confused.
"No. Today I want you to drive me. I'm meeting a client and you can just wait for me in the hotel foyer."
"Oh, OK ma'am", she smiled.
Seated in the car, Iris drove slowly while she chatted a bit. It was very dark outside, but the numerous lights from the cars moving up and down the roads brought a bit of light to the pitch black night.
"Sir de Milo is not coming with you for this meeting?", Iris asked.
"He's working tonight", I answered curtly.
The car continued down the straight road, until it finally came to a stop in front of the gigantic hotel.
"We're here, ma'am."
"OK. So listen. You will wait here for me. No… I mean, you will wait in the hotel foyer. As you wait, you hold your phone with you. After every five minutes, you send me an emoji. Send the smiley face. I will reply by sending back the same. If you send, and I don't respond in less than a minute, you call. If I do not answer, you immediately call Roderick and tell him that I am in the hotel and I need help. Now if I answer, here is the code. I say hello; and you must say 'are you well tonight?'. My answers; listen carefully, Iris. If I answer by 'of course I am well', it means that I am truly well, and you must not worry about me. But if I say, "sorry, who is this?' it means I am in danger. Do you get it?" I asked sternly.
"You're scaring me ma'am. Who are you meeting with? I'm getting very scared." Iris' eyes widened in great fear.
"What's scary? Just follow the instructions."
"Who are you meeting with, ma'am? Please? I have to know! if anything happens to you, how will I explain myself to sir de Milo? What about Miss Ciera and Miss Arianna? And sir Dylan? The whole family will hate me."
"Stop whining! Listen to the instructions! I said if I say 'of course I am well' it means I am well. If I say 'sorry, who is this?' then you should know I am in danger." I repeated my instruction.
"Who are you meeting with? At least let me know that," Iris pleaded.
"It's a client. They want to invest a lot of money, but part of my heart doesn't trust them at all." I lied with a straight face.
"If you don't trust them that much, ma'am, was it not better for you to bring along the accountant or the head of finance; or better still you could have come along with sir de Milo." She sounded like she was going to cry.
"Roderick is working tonight; I already told you that! Just do as I am telling you! I said if I am fine, what will I say?"
"You will say 'of course I am well'".
"Good", I smiled. "And if I am not well?"
"You will say 'sorry, who is this?'"
"Good. Now let's go inside. Wait for me by the foyer. Follow my instructions."
"yes ma'am de Milo", Iris nodded her head, with eyes full of tears.
Confidently I walked towards the reception.
"Oh Mrs de Milo! It's a pleasure to have you with us today!" the receptionist smiled widely.
"I booked the Wetland Private Lounge."
"Wetland Private Lounge…Wetland…Wetland. de Milo! Yes! Please follow me."
I gave Iris a reassuring look, winked at her and quickly followed the man who led me to Wetland Private Lounge.