I get through the glass doors in front and the office is the busiest I have ever seen it since I started here. Everybody is in a frenzy.
I notice the red head, whose name I figured is Bella, at her usual spot behind the front desk and walk up to her since, first she's the only person I talk to here and second she's my work bestie or what do you guys call it?
She hurries out from behind her desk and pulls me away from the crowd towards the elevators.
"What's going on?" I ask her already getting irritated.
"Karmen was in an accident." She blurts.
"Huh?" I ask in confusion because I didn't get the idea of the office being in absolute chaos for an accident.
"Karmen was in an accident." She repeats.
"Uhh Karmen who?" I ask her again.
She face palms before screaming in my face, "Mr. Lords. Karmen Lords. Your freaking boss idiot!"
She's the only person who would call me an idiot and get the fuck away with it. "Ohh," I exclaim. "What happened?
"Nobody knows. He just got out of his car this morning outside the office and was run over by a random car."
"Who ran him over?" I ask and she gives me a weird look like I'm sick in the head.
"How would I know?" she asks me. "It was a freaking 'hit and run' situation"
"Can I see the camera's"
"Are you a detective or what?" She gives me a look.
"Can I see it or not?" We walk down to the tech area of the office and Cam, an absolute sweetheart, gets us into the cameras outside the office building. Growing up with my dad I know my fair share about hit and run cases and this was definitely one in a way. The hit was deliberate but the driver didn't exactly run, he waited and made sure he was down before he drove off.
Why would anyone want to harm Mr. Lord? He's such a nice person. Boris tells everyone to have the rest of the week off. I feel bad for him but boy am I glad I don't have to work.
Two weeks later and there still isn't any news concerning Mr. Lord's health. Work resumed, everything went back to normal and it's like the accident never even happened to everyone but me though because he's my boss and now I don't have anyone to work for or so I thought living in delusion. I had to see to his meetings so I could 'keep him updated' when he got back although I knew he wasn't coming back soon because I overheard someone say he's in a coma which means it's a 50/50 chance he makes it out of there alive.
I walk through the elevator doors to go meet Bella for lunch when suddenly everyone goes silent
"What's " I try to ask but she shushes me pulling me to the side , covering my mouth with the palm of her hand. My eyes widen in 'what the hell is wrong with you?' and she gestures to the door with her eyes and head. Following her gaze my eyes land on a man who is as old as my father but that isn't who caught my eye… it's the man beside him, the person everyone is so frightened of. They look like they've just seen a ghost. He has the exact features as Mr. Lords and I think they've seen an actual ghost until I notice his eyes. Those green eyes that have haunted my dreams for the past three years. There's nothing anyone was going to tell me to make me believe otherwise, this was deliberately done and dad knew about this all along. Everything was now falling into place, the sudden urgency for me to come home, the new job I had no idea of and who I was working for, and finally Mr. Lord's accident. EVERYTHING. I was too stunned to move or even speak. I just stand there in utter shock and watch everything that was going on.
Boris came in from wherever, "Charles," he addressed the older man.
"My office," the man said, moving towards the elevator with the green eyed alien following closely behind and Boris pulling me with them.
"Now that was weird" Charles sighs as the elevator doors close shut, he and Boris bursting into a fit of laughter.
"Never gets old," Boris concurs. "Especially with you bringing Mr. Stiff face here," he gestures to the Alien.
"Ahhhh," Charles exclaims. "Long time my friend." He says to Boris pulling him into a hug as we get into an office I only assume is his. "Sit" he gestures to the chairs and I take a seat as far away from the alien as I can.
"Miss Crest," Boris says to me. "This is Charles Lords and Khalil Lords." Gesturing to the two men who nod in response. And to them he says, "This is Anna Crest, Karmen's assistant."
"Now Khalil's assistant." Charles says.
"What?!" I exclaim before I can control myself drawing all three pairs of eyes to me. "Sorry," I clear my throat. "What I meant to say is what about Mr. Lords?" I ask. "Karmen?" I add when I remember that there's three Mr. Lords now.
"He would not be available for a while." Boris says.
"My son Karmen is in the ICU in a coma but work has to go on regardless and he wouldn't want it any other way so Khalil has to fill in for him for the time being." Charles explains answering my question.
"Look," Alien says. "I've had it with the explanations. My brother is not coming, I am. So if you're not okay with that you might as well quit."
RUDE!!!
"Excuse you?" I say to him,
"I'm sure you heard me the first time." He responds.
"Now you look, I don't know what crawled up your ass but you don't get to come in here and talk to me disrespectfully. I don't care if you're my boss or whatever you had better get it together."
I have had enough with stuck up trust fund assholes. Dad better have a good reason for this one.
"Excuse me Mr. Lords, Boris," I say to them.
"Call me Charles." He says and with that I make my way to the door and outside the office. "I like her already" someone says from inside the room. I don't care what time work closes I leave at my own time today. I am pissed as hell and daddy dearest has some questions to give answers to and he has to do them now.
Fifteen minutes later and I'm barging through my apartment door. The housekeeper Nana and the dog almost get a heart attack. I can tell from the look on their faces. I pay them no heed making my way down the hall straight to my bedroom… "Nobody disturb me." I yell closing the door behind me. I don't waste a second more and dial Daddy's number immediately.
"Hello," someone who isn't him picks up on the third ring.
"Give him the phone… Now!" I yell.
"Yes ma'am" he says. There's some shuffling on the other side before I hear muffled talking and then "How's daddy's girl doing?'
"Don't you dare.'
"Is that any way to greet your old man?" He asks and I just keep quiet waiting for him to get over his stalling. "Okay fine. Took you long enough though."
"So?" I prod.
"Are you alone?"
"I guess." I reply. "I'm in my room and the nanny is in the kitchen with your dog."
"Alright." He sighs. "Ever heard of the shadow Lords?"
"I'm not sure."
"Charles Lords is the new head of the gang after his mother fell ill three years ago. We'd been trying to track them down for a long time and three years ago is the closest we'd gotten but at the last minute we lost them. Remember the Berlin trip for your mum's birthday."
"Hold up." I tell him. "You were working on mum's birthday trip. Wait till she finds out."
"Annaaaaaaa…" he warns, drawing my name.
"Daaaaaaaadd…" I warn back a small smile playing on my lips. I love the man but sometimes he gets on my nerves a lot.
"So what's the deal?" I ask him.
"What deal are we talking about?"
"Why didn't you send D or Baya?"
"I was going to but then at the last minute I realized his son is that guy," He laughs. "And then I thought 'Why not send Anna instead?' and I did just that." he says matter of factly.
"Really Dad?" I sigh in disbelief. I mean I could believe it but still.
"Now this should be fun." He continues laughing. "Quit the pouting "
"I can't with you." I roll my eyes even though he couldn't see it.
"Anyway, the files will be sent to your home computer later in the day. Trust you see it."
"I hate you."
"Love you too darling." He says and the line goes dead.
I don't even have a home computer to begin with. Who even uses computers anymore, he probably meant laptop so I open my laptop and go through my email but there's nothing. And then I remember 'Trust you see it' what does that even mean? Definitely code talk. Why didn't I just get a normal family? I sit on my bed thinking long and hard trying to figure out what he said and then I lay back on my bed and notice the painting above my head… The sea? See. And then it hits me… Trust I SEA it. I shake my head, Dad and his silly word play. I look around the painting and find a button, pushing it opens a passage in my closet. Typical dad.
I settle on the rotary chair turning on the computer. I look around the room and there's everything I could need for any job. Nice. Dad always comes through when it gets to this. The computer screen lights up and I open the email. There's an encrypted folder from an unknown sender and I have to decode it. Having a father like mine you would learn to do a lot of things at a very young age. It didn't help that he had just daughter's because we were used to do his dirty work, seducing clients being at the top of the list. There's always one costume or the other and a new identity but for some reason this time everything was different. Going through my folder the face is exactly mine, the only difference being my glasses. I always hated wearing glasses so I used contacts instead and my hair is a natural blonde but it's ginger now because I love ginger and I've always wanted to try it.
I go on to open the next folder. It is about a Mafia group called The Shadow Lords and Charles is the Leader.