Just The Way You Like It - Under Construction

Chapter Sixty-Five

Chapter Sixty-Five

Sam sat and waited in the one room in the warehouse that he had never been in. The place actually looked nice, compared at least to the rest of the building. The cement walls had been covered with drywall and painted a soft shade of tan. A lamp in the corner cast an almost warm glow about the room, leaving it's shadows streaked across the many pieces of furniture. One desk sat in the middle of the room, a leather chair behind it. Where Sam sat, he knew The Chairman took pride in this room. But still, it hadn't been anything like he expected. It almost gave The Chairman a soul; only someone with a heart would take the time to make their work environment this nice and cozy.

The sound of the door opening drew Sam away from his thoughts. He turned slowly, anxious to find out the identity of The Chairman and get the hell out, but not wanting to raise alarm. Sam had to grit his teeth together to keep his eyes from rolling as he noticed the cliche mask The Chairman was wearing. Obviously, this wasn't going to be as easy as Sam originally thought.

Still, Sam took in as much information as he could. Average height and weight, maybe a little on the skinny side. Five foot ten, Caucasian, male, early to mid thirties. No obvious deformities, tattoos, birth marks, moles, nothing. No limp, good posture, strong but not built. He could easily be anyone, but something was better than nothing. The Chairman walked slowly around to his desk and sat down. Resting his arms on his desk, Sam could feel The Chairman's eyes watching him, taking him in as they both sat in silence.

Finally, The Chairman sat back in his chair, and gestured towards a small table tucked neatly in the corner of the room. “Care for a drink, Sam?” No lisp, no apparent slurring, no obvious drawl. This mystery man was going to be a tough one to crack.

“Thank you no, I just had my fill during dinner. Thank you though, Sir. I appreciate it.” It was important to show The Chairman courtesy, and Sam knew his place on the food chain.

“Alright then, we shall get straight to business then.” The Chairman said, not seeming to mind Sam's refusal. “I have been told that you have been overstepping your bounds as one of my Council members.” Sam wasn't prepared for The Chairman's statement, but now that he had said it, things started to fall into place. As much as he hated to react on the fly, Sam had no choice but to quickly respond.

“I'm sorry, Sir. I'm afraid I don't follow.” A reasonable enough answer, and a good way to get more time to think.

“Explain then to me why Alice has informed me that you told her to run.”

Shit, this was bad. Stupid, stupid girl. She had talked. How much The Chairman knew, Sam didn't know. But now he had to tread lightly, and make sure to not say too much. “I don't recall saying that to Alice, Sir. I'm not sure how she came about that story.”

“She had no reason to lie. You told her to run, and I know it. Now, I only want an answer as to why.”

“Did she say when I told her to do this? Maybe in context I could remember better.”

“All she said, was that you told her to stay away from Blake. Which, was what I told you to do, so that is not my concern. Then she said that you told her to leave New Coven as soon as possible. And that, Sam, was not on the agenda.”

Sam sat back, taking his time before responding. Alice had put him in quite a pickle now, and Sam wasn't sure if he'd be able to get himself out of this one. Finally, he chose his words carefully, and spoke with as much confidence as he could muster. “She must have mistaken my words, Sir. I do remember telling her to stay away from Dr. Hansen. It was the night you called and I broke into the Nurse's house to scare her. I remember too telling her to leave, but I meant for her to leave the Nurse's house, not New Coven. I thought maybe she'd move to a shelter instead, and it would be easier for us to bring her back here, should the need arise. I apologize if there was some sort of communication error, and I take full responsibility.”