"Wake up!"
Damon vigorously shook his brother to wakefulness.
Nate's eyes fluttered open as he gaped at him in confusion.
He had no idea what was going on with Damon, who was pacing back and forth in the room searching for whatever.
"What are you looking for?"
Damon stopped and paid Nate some attention.
"We need to leave... now!"
Nate stretched his arms on his mobile chair, the satisfaction of a good stretch reaching his spirit, as he yawned.
"Now? Why? What's going on?"
"So Lucia, you know, Lucia from Beth's—"
"Yeah, yeah. I know Lucia, Damon."
"So she called me and said that Beth was in trouble and she thinks the same trouble is coming for the both of us."
Nate shot up, adjusting to a sitting posture.
"What the hell! Beth's in trouble?"
"Look, man. I don't know the details either but she said we need to get out of this house... like right now or we are done for."
Nate tapped a round button on the lower side of his refined energy-powered wheelchair.
"Where exactly are we heading?" Nate asked.
Damon was more concerned about his disabled brother.
Nate has not been able to use his legs like before since his accident.
The doctors said there was hope for reinvigorating his legs but they needed a good amount of money for his surgery.
Unfortunately, they did not have that good amount.
Beth, Nate and Damon were barely getting two good meals in a day but always tried to get by with whatever life handed them.
As such, Nate had to manage the hand-me-down electric wheelchair that Eve had taken, from her side hustle as a mechanic, and modified to suit him better.
"We have to go upstairs," Damon replied.
Nate repulsed his reply with a raised brow.
"The old lady's floor? Hell no, Damon. You know what happened the last time we messed with her."
Nate raised his sleeves and showed Damon the scar that was just above his elbow.
"In case you have forgotten, here it is."
"Look. We don't have a choice. It's possible whoever it is that's looking for us... it's possible they are already here in the building. We can't go downstairs.
"The only way is up!"
.
.
.
Thirty minutes later, at the current moment.
Stutter scoffed at the old lady before turning away along with Scarface.
She slowly waddled herself back into her apartment and let the door close itself.
"Have they gone?" Nate whispered.
"Ya two owe me a few bucks, ya know... and I intend to collect."
She made her declaration and stamped her cane hard on the floor with spasms of pain travelling up to her lower back from the recoil.
"Ooowww!" she wailed in agony.
"Sure, old lady. We intend to pay too," Damon replied to her.
The brothers heaved deep sighs of relief and Damon sank into the elder's couch, picking up her remote control to continue what was playing on the television.
"You were right, Damon. They are really aft—"
The old lady's door was suddenly flung open, having not closed in the first place.
"Tch! I must commend you two for making this hard for us," Scarface applauded them before turning to Stutter.
"Don't you think so?"
His voice sent cold sweats trickling down their spines.
"Y-ye-ye… yes."
"But, boys... this our little game of hide and seek is over now."
Ring. Ring.
Scarface's phone rang in his pocket.
"Hello."
[Hello, it's Matt]
"And you don't think I know that?"
[You never can tell. Anyways, how are things on your end?]
"Moving forward. We're with them as I speak. How is your end?"
[Mission accomplished. I've done just as the boss wanted it to be done.]
"That's good then."
Scarface, without speaking any further, ended the call.
"What you do want!" Damon barked. "And where is Beth!"
Scarface sighed, he thought about the stress of having to explain everything afresh but still decided to do it anyway.
"She's gone. Poof! Just like she never existed. As for you two, well, it's game over. It's nothing personal, believe me."
Scarface lightly tapped his head with the handle of his gun and clicked his tongue.
"This is just our boss covering his tracks, so people like you don't come biting him in the ass later."
Scarface's gun was very similar to the one that Matt had.
It was a black pistol and upon its body was the impression of the word "NERVE".
Their presence begged so many questions.
First of all, who were these two men?
Then, what were they after?