14

Familiar Faces

" Hey! What are you two gossiping about? The man asked from behind.

" Nothing...just getting to know ourselves" Aimee quickly replied as she turned to face the man.

" Whatever...get up, it's time to go clubbing" he said as he gestured for them to stand up.

Standing up was not easy for Aimee and Eve as well as the other girls because their hands and feet were tied. As they stood up, sackclothes were used to cover their faces and they were put in a truck together with some gunmen. Anna was excluded as she was left in the tent because she was still young. The truck left for the Grucs' club immediately the girls were put in.

" Boss! Main Boss has arrived " one of the thugs reported to the middle aged man they called boss and took orders from. The main boss was the leader of the Grucs terrorist group and comes to the camp once in a while to oversee the activities going on in the factory and the hostages that had been brought. He had arrived in Vena with his black SUV and one of the gunmen had seen his car and came to report.

"Where's he?" He asked.

" He's headed for the club" the man said.

" Okay, tell two men to follow me. The rest should stay here and watch over the camp and the other hostages till we get back."

" Okay Boss."

The black SUV was parked close to a tree outside the club premises with other cars as well that were owned by other people that came to waste in the club. The sun was beginning to go down as the music's volume from the club increased.

The journey from the camp in the jungle to the club took about an hour. As they arrived,they were taken to the club through the back door that lead to the dressing room for them to wash up and prepare for the task they were brought to do.

" Hey, put these on" an elderly lady in her late fifties said as she threw skimpy costumes at them after they had washed up.

" Why?? Why should we put these on? They are too revealing" Nora opposed as she looked at the costumes with disgust.

The elderly lady laughed as she puffed out the smoke from her mouth from the cigarettes she had smoked in. The girls wondered what an old lady like her would be doing in a strip club. She looked like someone's Grandma except the fact that her hair was dyed blue and she wore a red matte lipstick with her her styled like Marilyn Monroe.

" Girls,I didn't like questions" she said after repeatedly smoking the cigarettes and puffing it in the air. " If you want to live, you work and if you want to leave, you walk but to work is stripping and to walk away is dying. The choice is yours. When you walk out if that exit door, you get shot but if you follow my orders, we'd be friends." The old lady said as she cut the ropes from their feet as the ropes on their hands were untied when they wanted to wash up.
"You see, I'm not the bad person here...I was just like you in a way and my colleagues were stubborn so they were freed. By freed, I meant killed. So, if you don't want to end up like them, put on those costumes and let's go shake the club" the lady said and wiggled her old body in rhythm to the music playing from inside the club.

" Hey grape" a feminine voice called walking into the room.

"Alicia....so good to see you" the old lady said and hugged the lady that just entered.

The girls started dressing up excluding Aimee as she kept staring at Alicia to figure out were she had seen her before. Her face was so familiar and then it clicked. She was the girl she helped in the bank. The girl who was in the room on the last floor. What was her doing here?

" You?" Aimee said in disbelief as Alicia turned to her direction on hearing Aimee's voice.

" Who? Me?" Alicia said placing her hand in her chest. " We've met before?" "Oh... you" Alicia exclaimed as she finally remembered Aimee. " Wow, what a small world we live in. So you were taken hostage as well?" Alicia smiled. " Well it wasn't my intention for that to happen and I wasn't even aware. I told my boss I had seen you conscious and you were heading for your cellphone. So, I thought they'd just find you and knock you out or something" Alicia explained as she walked towards Aimee. " Soooo, can we be friends?" Alicia said as she brought out her hands for a handshake.

Alicia was in her middle twenties or probably early twenties. She was all dressed up with her short bun with bangs and sweaty as if she just finished running a marathon.

" I don't know...you may too your boss off again if I try something else and something worse might happen to me" Aimee said looking down.
The other girls were done changing to their costumes excluding Aimee.

" At least, put your damn costume on! We are running out of time" Alicia said to Aimee in a hush tune. " We can be friends after work" she added in a calm voice as someone knocked on the door.

" Get the hell out of my door" Alicia roared as she left the inner room where the girls were dressing to the make up room to see who was knocking on the door.
The dressing room had two sections, the inner section where costumes are kept (dressing room) and the make up section. The make up section was the part close to the door.

Alicia opened the door to reveal a huge bald man on black suit.

" Big Boss!" Alicia gasped. " I'm really sorry" Alicia apologized as she avoided looking into the man's eyes. The man just walked past her to move towards Grape, the old lady as she came to the make up section to see who was knocking.

" It's okay Alicia... we'd settle that later" the man's voice was deep but familiar to Aimee as she heard it from the dressing room.
Why does everyone keep sounding familiar? Aimee asked herself.

" Grape...it's so good to see you" the man said as he hugged the old lady.

" Arthur!" The old lady smiled broadly. " The pleasure is all mine"

" So where are our hostages or rather dolls" he chuckled and adjusted himself to seat on the single couch.

" Girls! Time's out " Alicia said as she entered the inner room. All the girls were dressed up in their multicolored outfit excluding Aimee who was still on her towel.
" The rest of you move out " Alicia said as she walked towards Aimee.
The girls moved out immediately in a straight line. Nora was the first to leave to the make up section, while Eve was the last as Aimee was still inside.

" Wow....I never knew we had Asians...I thought seven girls were brought here where's the last one" the man said as the girls raided up their head to see who was talking.

" Guess you have to move out with your towel" Alicia hissed at Aimee.
As Aimee left the dressing room, she couldn't believe her eyes as she saw the man who had been referred to as Big Boss. He looked like her Boss from the bar she used to work at but she didn't want to believe it was him. Was he the one or his look alike? If he was the one, how come he is a leader of a bad gang? Aimee thought.

Arthur saw Aimee walking out of the section room and was surprised,
" Aimee?" he said in astonishment as he gave a delightful smile.

" B- oss??" Aimee responded.

9.