Connected

Betrayal

We drove for what felt like an hour and by the time the van stopped, my neck was stiff and my wrists were raw from where I had struggled to get them out of the binding. The two men in the front had carried on a light conversation that made it obvious that they hadn't worked together for very long.

Chan, on the other hand, had stayed quiet, eyes trained out the front windshield the entire time. He wouldn't be in this mess if it wasn't for me. No doubt he was mad at me about it. He could have been rid of me by now, but now here we both were.

The two men got out of the front, slamming the doors behind them. Their voices carried on outside, getting more raised as they decided their next move.

"Captain?" He shook his head.

My head turned as the second man slid the side door to the van open. He motioned with the gun for me to climb out. "Ride's over, let's go."

I slid on my butt over to the edge until my feet reached the edge and hit the ground. I stood up slowly.

The man motioned again with the gun, "Over there." His attention turned back to the interior of the van.

I took several steps back and the first man's hand clamped onto my arm. My eyes widened in surprise as I took in the scenery.

"Alright Captain. Your turn." I heard some shuffling as the Captain shifted out of the van in a similar fashion. His feet emerged and he stood in the doorway to the van.

"Take her inside to the office. Boss wants to talk to the Captain alone."

The Captain made a slight move in my direction, but was stopped when the second man tapped his chest with his gun. "Uh uh."

He tapped again, a grin growing on his face. "That vest can only take so much before it stops working."

The first man began leading me back to the country house we had stopped by but before I was out of earshot I heard the second man say, "Should we see how many bullets it takes?"

Once we had entered through the front door, I wrenched my arm out of the man's hand. He reached his hand back out to grab my arm but I backed up, "I can walk myself just fine."

I had only been here once before, but I knew the way to the office like the back of my hand. I began walking down the hallway to the right and realized that each little thing placed in the hallway hadn't changed in all of these years.

My eyes trailed along the different pictures and paintings that had collected dust. The seaside, the ocean at midnight, the country road that had reminded me of home, they all hung in the exact same spots welcoming me back after all of this time. At the end of the hallway stood the door that I feared opening the most. It would haunt my dreams and hang just at the edge of my consciousness ever since I had left.

I knocked hesitantly on the door, knowing who was already sitting in there behind the desk. "Come in."

The knob turned easily in my hand and I slowly opened the door holding my breath. My eyes met with those of the owner of the room and a coy smile danced across his face. "There's my girl."

He nodded at the man who had come with me and I felt my hands being released. A wave of nausea rolled through my body as I realized that this was all a part of the original plan. A part that I hadn't known about. A part that hadn't been shared with me.

I began to rub my wrists where the rope had rubbed them raw. "What's going on Lee Know?"

He stayed seated. Instead of answering he just tilted his head. I sighed and took a seat on the loveseat across the room. I didn't realize that that had been the wrong choice.