Murder, Inc.

Chapter 4

We sat in the closet in silence for what seemed like an eternity.

After about thirty minutes of waiting in the closet, Mrs. Franklinton returns, and we exit the closet. Immediately, Daniel begins to drill her with questions. "Was the man caught?" He asked, his jaw clenched tightly while he waits for a response.

"Unfortunately, No Mr. Reeds."

"God Dammit!" He yelled, sending his fist into the wall, making me jump. "How many fucking times is this guy gonna come here and walk away unharmed?! It's like the cops aren't doing a damn thing to catch this guy!"

I stay quiet, not wanting his anger directed at me.

An awkward silence fills the room, and after a couple of minutes he plops down into his chair behind his desk.

"Are you going to just stand there?" He looks at me.

I sit down on the leather couch on the other side of the room, not saying a word.

"Who exactly was shot and are they okay?" He asks Mrs. Franklinton.

"Paul, the first floor, front door guard. He was shot in the shoulder. He's in pretty bad shape. Apparently the bullet hit one of his blood vessels and he bled out quite a bit. But the ambulance arrived in enough time to stabilize him and get him to the hospital. He is in ICU, waiting to undergo surgery to remove the bullet and repair the vessel."

Mr. Reeds nods his head and says nothing. He looks over to me.

"Is the building secure?" He asks her, never taking his eyes off of me.

"Yes, sir. We aren't on lockdown anymore. The police have cleared the building and are posted outside the front door." She responds.

"Give Mrs. White and I a moment please." He asks her kindly.

"Of course, sir." She looks to me and smiles softly, then exits the room.

I notice that Mr. Reeds is still looking at me. I shift uncomfortably in my seat.

After a moment he turns his gaze away from me and presses a button on his desk. "Y-yes Mr. Reeds?" Kaitlyn answers, obviously shaken from today's events.

"Send everyone home please. Have security escort everyone from the building."

"Yes sir, right away sir." She responds and moments later she gives the announcement.

I stand up and begin to leave but my wrist is caught by Daniel's hand. "Where are you going?" He asks, his eyebrows furrowed together in confusion.

I look at him and pull my arm away from him. "Home. I'm tired and I just want to forget that today ever happened." I turn to leave and he stops me again. "You can't." He says calmly.

"And why the hell not?" I ask, my hand on my hip.

He looks around the room and then back to me. "Let me take you home." He grabs his keys off the desk and grabs my arm, pulling me towards the elevator.

"Let go of me! Daniel, I said let me go!" I struggle to free my arm, but he's too strong. He pulls me by my arm all the way through the building and to his car. He unlocks it and pushes me inside. "Daniel what the hell are you doing?!"

"I'm taking you home." He replies. He starts the car and drives off.

"I could've managed on my own. I live right around the corner."

"It's not safe." He says, turning on his blinker and exiting the car garage.

"What do you mean 'not safe?'" I ask him.

"I'll tell you more when we get there. But for now, please just trust me."

I watch as we pass my house and I slump back in my seat, buckling my seat belt. "Where are we going, then?" I ask, turning to look at him.

He says nothing but keeps his eyes focused on the road and speeds up, occasionally looking into the rearview mirror. He keeps speeding up. Passing traffic as we go. Eventually he's doing 70 mph in a 40 mph zone.

"Daniel, please slow down. You're going to kill us!" I slump further down into my seat.

He slows down to about 50 mph. I exhale heavily, not noticing I was holding my breath, and scoot back up in my seat. He looks over to me and smirks. "Sorry, I got distracted. I was thinking." He apologizes.

"About what?" I ask.

He looks at me, smirks and then looks back to the road. "It's been a long time since I've brought a beautiful woman back to my house."