The Billionaire Throuple

Nehemiah Jones

I park the Buick on the side of the road and walk the rest of the way to Samuel's manor. I sneak through the gate Andreas left open for me and creep the rest of the way up the driveway. I don't want Samuel to know I'm here. I just wanna get Andreas and go.

When I fell out with Samuel last week, I assumed Andreas was on his side since I didn't hear from him, but his call got me thinking that he needs help. Since the police won't come through without a warrant, I gotta show up for him. I'm probably the only one who can. I won't make the same mistake I did with CW. I was the only one he thought he could turn to, but I blew him off and he disappeared the next day. He's been missing for over a month with no leads, so he's probably dead and I'm gonna have to live with that for the rest of my life.

I walk in through the front door. It's always unlocked. The only thing weird is that no one's standing here to meet me. I tense up, worried that Andreas could be in more trouble than I thought. Samuel could've given everyone the day off, so there wouldn't be any witnesses.

I cut right and rush through the foyer, all the way to the guestroom. The door is open and I see Andreas right away, but he's laid up in bed. I know his ankle ain't healed yet. He broke it back when he and Samuel were wall climbing while I was stuck at the police station.

As I move in closer, I can see his eyes are still closed. He has oxygen tubes up his nose and his mouth is hanging wide open. He looks rough as hell. He's always been a bit of a dramatic, but this is way too far for a broken ankle. Doctors typically put a boot on it and call it good.

I'm starting to get nervous 'cause this doesn't make sense. I don't wanna think the worst since Samuel has always been good to us, but I gotta wonder if he's been drugging him up to keep him here. I walk right up to Andreas and he doesn't move. I snap my fingers in front of his face, still nothing. His eyes open up real slow when I shake him, then widen.

"Nemo, you came."

His tone is excited, but his voice is low and hoarse like he lost it yelling. His lips move like they wanna smile, but don't quite get there. It's heartbreaking to see him like this.

"Don't worry, I'm gonna get you up outta here."

I scan the room until I find his wheelchair. It's folded up next to the door. I grab it, get it all set up and roll it on over to the bed. I put my arms around Andreas to lift him, but he pulls me in.

"I don't want to leave. I want you to stay." His voice is so meek that it takes me a minute to understand. Even then, I'm not sure he means what he's saying. I pull away to look at his face. I can see the muscles working in his neck as he fights to catch his breath.

He's reaching out, expending all his energy to make sure I don't leave. It's killing me to watch. I dunno what's going on, but there ain't no way I'm leaving without him. I gently push his arms down to the bed and sit on the edge to hear what he has to say. "Sam has been hiding something, but he's been doing it for me."

I look down at him, appalled at first. Then, I shake my head, feeling stupid. "Nah, that's all Samuel. There ain't no way you had anything to do with CW going missing."

His face scrunches up like we ain't speaking the same language. "Wasn't it a corrupt PO?"

"That's what I thought, up until I heard the news last week," I say, "Turns out, the dude was posing as a PO, but he knew CW was at the liquor store the night before. I only told you and Samuel that." I lean in with my hands cupped together, waiting for him to simply agree.

"While he was waiting for you, tons of people could've seen him." Andreas blinks really hard and slow, then shakes his head at me. "Did they even mention Bart's?"