The Tangled Web

Chapter 46

I did my best to slow my breathing, focusing on the rising and falling of my chest as James led us down a dimly lit hallway. Billy was following close behind, his steps echoing on the tile floor with an even-paced beat, marching me to my demise.

The boss- the man who ran the show. The man in charge of James and all his doings. Who is he? What does he want with me?

"Not much farther," James insisted, calling over his shoulder to where I followed.

I was growing dizzy with all the twists and turns inside the abandoned building. It felt like they were purposefully leading me into a maze so that I wouldn't know where we were meeting. I did my best to keep my wits about me, but the panic was starting to take over, making it impossible to do anything other than follow James.

We neared a long hallway with several overhead lights swaying, creating moving shadows along the walls. There was a faded green door at the end of the hallway and a few old newspapers scattered across the floor. James stepped over them as he led us forward, not once glancing back my way. Billy continued with his steady pace, not allowing an escape route, as if I'd be dumb enough to attempt to flee.

James stopped in front of the door and pulled out a key. He gripped the metal handle of the door, entered the key into the slot, and turned, releasing the lock. He twisted the handle and paused, looking over his shoulder at me. "Word to the wise," he murmured, "Watch that mouth of yours. My employer tends to have a...lack of patience when it comes to satirical limericks."

"Noted," I whispered, nodding my head once. I quickly glanced up over my shoulder at Billy, who was standing stone-faced in the room ahead.

James took a sharp inhale, smirked, and opened the door. He gestured for me to enter ahead of him into the dark room.

It took my eyes a moment to adjust as I stepped into the darkness. In the middle of the large, empty room, there was a single fluorescent light shining over a table and chairs. There were two men in the room, both bald and wearing suits. One large man, in both stature and weight, was sitting in a chair, staring intently as I approached. The second bald man was shorter, nowhere near as large as the other one, yet still intimidating in the way he commanded the room. He was pacing impatiently behind the seated man.

"You're late, Wesley," the large man stated matter-of-factly. "I was worried something delayed the arrival of our guest," he added, glaring at me for no more than a second. The words sounded like they caused him pain as they left his mouth.

"Apologies, Mr. Fisk," James cooed as he approached the table, standing to my right. "Our guest," he snapped, side-eying me, "was running behind. Caught up at breakfast, I presume."

"I see," the man named Fisk nodded attentively before turning to ask me, "What did you have to eat?"

Startled by the sudden questioning, I jumped slightly at the sound of his quiet, yet stern voice. "Um, waffles," I swallowed, clasping my shaky hands behind my back in an attempt to calm my nerves, "and, um, some eggs, and bacon."

"An acceptable choice," Fisk nodded again, forcing a smile on his face. "I too enjoy a good breakfast, though I'm more of an omelet man myself," he stated as his eyes filled with a pained expression. He quickly breathed in and looked away, his features hardening while he thought.

"Yeah, whatever, who cares about breakfast," the other bald man mumbled while rolling his eyes. "Can we get to the point of why we're here?"

Fisk's hand balled into a fist on the table, knuckles popping as he took another slow breath. "Of course," he rasped, forcing another smile onto his face. He glanced at Wesley with furrowed eyebrows.