The Billionaire Throuple

Samuel the Third [Simulation Reaper]

I'm terribly anxious. It has taken entirely too long for Nehemiah to leave. I anticipated him going to Glory Hill for lifting after I satisfied him, but he chose to workout at my gym instead. Granted, there is no delay more arousing than gazing at his bulging muscles as he lifted naked, but it was a delay nonetheless.

Afterward, he showered and now, I'm walking him out of my front door, over to his Buick. He wraps his big, strong arms around me. I groan and pull away as quickly as I can without seeming eager for him to leave. I exaggerate shivering and bounce around on my toes a bit.

"I'm sorry, it's so cold out," I say, reaching to open his door, "When will I see you next?"

He grimaces. "You holding doors now?"

I smile as I step away from his car. "I took you last night. Isn't this the sort of thing tops do?"

"Oh, you're a comedian now?" He laughs and shakes a finger at me as he climbs in. "Probably this weekend, but it could be sooner. I gotta see to some payback."

My phone vibrates in my pocket, but I ignore it. "Payback? You're still up from last night."

Nehemiah already saw me looking at messages once. I don't want him to get suspicious or think there's someone else. Besides, I know it's Gregor, confirming that he's turned onto my road. There's absolutely nothing I can do about it now, not more than I'm doing.

I kiss Nehemiah and close his door. I stand by his Buick, looking as cold as possible to hurry him along. He knows I won't go inside until he's left the gate. I told him I'd rather suffer the cold than miss seeing him for a single second, which is true enough, except for today. I wave to him until his car turns onto the road, then sprint inside through the front door.

Andreas was sound asleep in the upstairs bedroom last I checked. After contacting Gregor last night, I strategically chose that room with the morning in mind. It's imperative that I've the song of the Honduras Rosewoods to warn me when he is on the move.

I take out my phone and pull up the screen for surveillance near the game room. There hasn't been motion since Nehemiah and I left for his morning lift. The room has it's own bathroom, so Andreas won't have cause to leave for the next few hours, at least.

I jog through the foyer and the gallery, into the study. It's been months since I thought of the hidden armory. The last time was the first and only time I met Cameron. How queer? And to think I considered revealing it to Andreas. That would've been an insufferable inconvenience.

I walk over to the fireplace in the study. It shares a chimney with the sunken living room on the other side of the wall. I open the fencing and squeeze into the chute, reaching for the crank knob up along the left side of it. I turn the reel clockwise until I feel the rope catch. The lever is powered electronically, but can also be operated manually in case of power outage or loss of power to the generators.

It is, first and foremost, a panic room.

I crouch out of the fireplace and return everything as it was while I watch the floor open below the spiral staircase. It continues down into the armory below. The space is perfectly hidden. Two seams are underneath walls of the study, the third aligns perfectly with the next floorboard and the fourth is hidden by an area rug that is now slightly overhanging. I walk down to the armory and close the secret passageway behind me by using a lever at the bottom of the steps.

The armory is the first room. It consists of glass cases filled with expensive swords, each with their own history on one wall. Firearms on another, armor on a third and miscellaneous equipment on the wall to the next room.

The second room is a warehouse filled with canned goods and all the other non-perishable items one could possibly need to survive down here for months. The third and final room is a bedroom that would be more accurately called a cell. It's nothing more than bunk beds, a sink, a shower head, a toilet and empty space.