“Brooks, someone is asking about you at table 50,” said Carmen, giving Brooklyn Davis a look of dread. Both of them were waitresses at The Chicago Lunchbox which was a glitzy and upscale restaurant in the poshest area of downtown Chicago. Brooklyn's eyes widened with apprehension. She hardly knew anyone in Chicago. Who could be asking for her?
“Who? Brandon?” Asked Brooklyn hesitantly. Brandon Davis was her twin and he was the only one she knew here. Carmen knew her brother very well since he came by many times to collect Brooklyn after late hours of work.
“No, no, a rude and arrogant as*h*le. Why don’t you find out for yourself?” said Carmen, getting back to work. Brooklyn sighed, not wanting to find out at all! Who could be the rude and arrogant a*sh*le who was looking for her? Her heart started dreading going over to table 50 but she knew that there was no escape. She hated this job but this was her only source of income.
At nineteen she would rather go to college than wait tables at the Chicago Lunchbox but luck didn’t favor her at all especially after her mom’s death, a year ago. She had just graduated from school when had to take up a job to run the house as well as her mom’s medical costs. Her mom had been diagnosed with leukemia two years ago and despite trying their level best, they couldn’t save her. However, she wasn’t alone in this. Her twin, Brandon too was in the same boat as her although he continued his studies by earning enough money for evening college. Brooklyn had no idea where he worked, he was always the reserved one of the two. He was elusive and preferred to keep to himself, sometimes staying away from home for days. Brooklyn had become used to his ways and stopped asking. Brooklyn had never seen her dad. He had abandoned their mom while she was pregnant with them! A cowardly brute! They hated him and had never asked their mom anything about him. For them, he was non-existent and inconsequential.
“Brooks, attend table 50. The man will drive us crazy,” said Mia, another waitress at the restaurant. It brought Brooklyn out of her reverie and she rushed towards table 50. What did the man want? However, she was held up at table 40, where a huge family had turned up for lunch. After attending to them, when she walked over to table 50, she found it vacant. Looking around in confusion, she was at her wit’s end. Where did the man, go? Mia stopped by seeing her lost look.
“He asked for you, then watched you and then downed three cups of coffee and then again asked for you. Then he watched you till he finished his coffee and then just walked out, leaving me a 100 dollar tip,” said an excited Mia, waving the money in the air like a prized possession. Brooklyn gaped at her with horror. Was the man watching her all this while? This sure was getting creepy!
“Oh, are you joking, Mia? Why would someone do that? I don’t know anyone,” said Brooklyn, flailing her arms in the air.
“Nope, I’m serious as ever. He was so hot! His eyes would drive anyone crazy!” said Mia, clutching at her heart. Brooklyn rolled her eyes at her friend as a feeling of dread clutched at her heart. Why would a hot guy ask for her out of all the hottest girls on the planet?
“I hope you haven’t given away anything about me?” asked Brooklyn with concern.
“No, he knew everything about you, your full name, your age, your brother, your address, everything,” said Mia with a shrug, walking away to attend to a table. Brooklyn stood dazed at the new found information. How did the hot man know everything about her?
“Brooks, stop daydreaming and start working. Mr. Foster has his eyes on you, girl,” said Carmen, making her come out of her reverie and rush to attend to the tables under her responsibility. She didn’t want a blast from the scary Mr. Foster who was their Manager. The rest of the day, she was too busy to even give the incident another thought.
“Brooks, can you please cover for me tonight? I have a date with my boyfriend and Foster isn’t giving me leave. He said to arrange for my own backup if I need to go,” said Claudia, another waitress she was close to. Brooklyn nodded, agreeing immediately. Of course, she would. She needed money and any sort of extra pay was most welcome.
“Sure, I will, go and enjoy yourself, Claudi,” she assured her. Brooklyn was a sweet and easy-going girl whom everyone liked. She was the youngest staff around the place and despite all hardships in her life, she was kind-hearted and went out of her way to help everyone. Her colleagues loved her and they were like a family to her.
“Thanks a lot, dear. I’ll make it up to you tomorrow. Lunch is on me,” said Claudia, blowing her a kiss and walking away to change out of her uniform and get ready for her date. Brooklyn smiled at her offer and went about her work. She was already exhausted but now with Claudia’s duty, she would have to pull another five hours. She rushed around, pushing herself to the limit. Just a few minutes more and she could go home. It was about to be eleven o’clock in the night and she just couldn’t wait to drag herself home to her bed.
Finally after fifteen minutes, she was done for the day and rushed over to the staff washroom to change out of her uniform. All her friends had left except Mia and Seth, who was the cashier. They were dating and would return home together like every night. “Do you want me to drop you home, Brooks?” yelled Seth as he wrapped his work for the day.
“No, I’ll reach home by the time you’re done here,” said Brooklyn. She just couldn’t wait for another minute more. Seth gave her a salute and continued with his job. Brooklyn rushed out and looked around the place. It was dark and deserted mostly with dogs barking in the distance and the sound of cars rushing down the roads. Pulling her cardigan close around her, Brooklyn started walking briskly down the road as far as her legs could carry her. Her small one-bedroom rented apartment was a twenty minutes walk away and she always walked down. It saved her hard-earned money. It wasn’t much of a problem when she got over early but on the days when she got late, she literally had to run all the way.
However, tonight from the moment she started walking, she had the eerie feeling of being watched. The hair at the nape of her neck stood up and she just turned around to check. The streets were deserted and except for a few people returning home, or a drunkard staggering around the corner, there was no one. A few cars were there too which was nothing unusual. So Brooklyn rushed ahead, eager to reach home as fast as she could. However, after a few steps again she had the uncanny feeling of being stalked. Turning to look behind her shoulders, she found no one. Sighing she was about to continue walking when she froze. Was that the same black Porsche that was there when she left the restaurant? Alert and panicking at the thought, her eyes widened seeing the black Porsche stopping at a distance. She didn’t waste any more time. She ran down the road, as fast as her legs could carry her. Why was the black Porsche following her?
However, as bad luck never left her side, she collided with a wall in her haste. Looking properly, she froze with horror as the wall was none other than a sinister-looking, bald man with a golden tooth. He grinned at her maliciously and Brooklyn came to her senses. She struggled against his hold but he gripped her arms tightly.
“Where are you going, bi*ch? I’m here just for you,” he grinned at her, flashing his yellow teeth at her. Brooklyn could smell the alcohol on his breath and she felt like throwing up.
“Let me go,” she yelled, panicking instantly. This was the worst night of her life. The man laughed at her, a loud, sinister laugh that made her blood curdle with fear. Tears fell from her eyes as she tried to break free. “Please let me go,” she pleaded but the man laughed more, dragging her along with him. “Noo, leave me. Please,” Brooklyn wailed, her voice echoing in the night.
“Trust me bi*ch, it’ll be fun,” laughed the man. Brooklyn tried to kick him but instead, he got furious and picked her up on his shoulders. Brooklyn started beating him but it didn’t affect him one bit and he strode forward as if she didn’t weigh a thing.
“Help, please help me,” cried Brooklyn, her voice echoing in the darkness. The man laughed more at her helplessness knowing that no one was around to help her.
“Leave the girl!” said a deep, cold voice that was enough to send a chill down anyone’s body. The bald man turned around and placed Brooklyn down. Brooklyn looked at her savior. Even from a distance, her eyes connected with the most beautiful pair of hazel eyes she’d ever seen. They gazed back at her, his eyes sparkling like hazel-hued amethysts. She had never seen the man before but his piercing eyes sent a shiver down her spine. She could make out the black Porsche parked beside him as he strode closer to them, his eyes fixed upon her, Brooklyn realized who he was. Her stalker in the black Porsche! Brooklyn panicked and yanked her hand away from the bald man's hold and ran as fast as her legs could carry her. She had no wish to witness a fight between her stalker and her abductor!
Brooklyn entered her shabby, rickety building and looked over her shoulder with relief. She had somehow managed to escape them. Clutching at her rapidly heaving chest, Brooklyn climbed the dimly lit stairs to her apartment on the second floor. If Brandon had been at home, she would have asked him to pick her up from work but Brandon hadn’t returned home for two days. She knew that he never missed his evening classes despite everything. If she needed to see him, she knew where to go but that was the last option, an emergency situation. She was used to him being absent for days, with his phone switched off. It wasn’t a big deal at all.She unlocked the door to her apartment and walked inside. Switching on the night lights, she quickly locked the door back. Not hungry at all, she changed and took a quick shower to get rid of the bald man’s touch. It nauseated her to even think about it. Brooklyn shuddered to even think of what would ha
Brooklyn unlocked her door and rushed inside. For the last two days, her already hopeless life had turned into a worse nightmare. She collapsed on the floor, drenched, hungry and tired. The tears fell incessantly from her eyes and she just broke down completely. Why couldn’t her troubles lessen? It would have been so much better if she had died instead of her mom. Her teeth started clattering from the cold, thoroughly drenched clothes that she needed to get out of. Getting up, she walked over to her room to change. After ten minutes, she drank water and curled up on her bed, covering herself well. Her stomach grumbled relentlessly but she had nothing to eat apart from water. Exhausted, broken, and hungry, she might have dozed off to sleep when the sound of the doorbell woke her up.Who could it be? Fear gripped over her. She remembered the cold angry face of her stalker. She remembered her outburst a few minutes ago in front of him. Did he real
Brooklyn walked backward with fright, her face paling considerably as she stared with horror at her stalker standing at her doorstep. Petrified, she lost her ability to speak while he watched her like a hawk as if about to pounce upon his prey.“Please don’t kill me. I haven’t done anything to you,” she squeaked with terror, words failing her as panic gripped her body. His hazel eyes widened a little but nevertheless, he started approaching her without paying any heed to her words. The stout man along with other men, all clad in black suits stood to attention at her doorstep, waiting for their boss’s instructions. Were they all members of MC Black Devils? Brooklyn looked around to pick up something to throw at him, to ward him off but sadly there was nothing in the shabby apartment. In her indecisive state, she made a dash for her bedroom, to lock herself inside but her stalker was quicker. He reached her in two strides and ca
Brooklyn gazed at him with a shocked expression on her face. She slowly shook her head. She had no idea who Nikolas Ardolf was! She had never heard of him. She felt a little relieved that he wasn’t a criminal, that he wasn’t Jimmy Black. But the question that was utmost on her mind was why was he after her?“I f*cking don’t believe this! Haven’t you heard of me?” He asked with a scowl that denoted how angry he was. If he was angry before, the fact that the girl didn’t know him, made him angrier. Brooklyn’s eyes widened with fear.“No, I haven’t. So, why are you after my life? What did I ever do to you?” She asked, still at the far end of the room, her back flat against the wall behind her. Nikolas gave her a look of contempt and then slowly walked towards her, wanting nothing more tha
Brooklyn was shocked beyond words. “How do you know my brother?” She asked the uncomfortable woman who was ready to flee now after that slip of the tongue.“I’m not in a position to tell you anything, Brooklyn. I’m sure sir will tell you everything himself,” said Kathy. She quickly left her room, locking the door from outside after her. Brooklyn sat dazed at the new piece of information that she had just gained. Everything was a mystery, her abductor, the cause of her misery, her brother, everything and she had no answers to them. She felt trapped and claustrophobic in the room with the door and windows all locked up. She wanted to escape, she wanted to run far away from all this. Needing a shower, she looked around for her stuff. Did they just abduct her or did they bring her suitcases too along with her? She walked over to the small walk-in closet and
Nikolas rushed out of his room and down the staircase in a flash as if chased by some unknown power. He wanted to get to her before she disappeared. However, when he walked towards the koi pond, he didn’t see her anywhere. Was she even there or was he hallucinating? He looked all around the place but didn’t find her at all. Where could she have gone within such a short span of time? He was about to return when something white caught his eye. He walked over to the swing hidden by a canopy of bougainvillea trees but stopped in his tracks seeing Brooklyn on the swing. She was happily swaying gently to and fro, her hair blown off the face, her eyes closed as if she was in heaven! Nikolas was thunderstruck by the beautiful vision in front of him. He was dumbfounded, gazing at her from a few feet away. For the first time, his cold heart didn’t spew venom, his anger dissipated completely and he felt a strange flutter in the pit of his stoma
Brooklyn felt much better the next morning. Although the garden door was locked, there were other windows that weren’t and the view outside was beautiful. She didn’t feel claustrophobic anymore but she was tired of being locked up in a single room. She was bored. All her life she had worked extremely hard and now it seemed as if she was on a forced vacation, with nothing to do. She knew that she had bills to pay, rent accumulating, and no money at all with her. She couldn’t afford to stay idle.After freshening up, she waited for Sally to unlock her door. She could coax her to allow her in the kitchen. At least she would have something to do. After ten minutes, Sally unlocked her door and came in with her breakfast.“Good morning, Brooklyn. Your food is here. Eat up in ten minutes. Sir wants to talk to you,” said Sally.
Brooklyn looked at him with surprise. How did he agree to her offer so quickly? Would it mean that she wouldn’t be a prisoner here anymore? Would it mean that she would be free? Would it mean that she wouldn’t be locked up in a room any longer?“Thank you, Mr. Ardolf. I’ll do any work that you assign to me,” she said, looking up at him expectantly. However, all her hopes were dashed when he hardly looked at her and kept on working at his laptop. She waited eagerly for him to say something but he didn’t. After waiting for five minutes, she got up to leave. Maybe he had forgotten about her.“Be ready in ten minutes. I want you to accompany me to my office,” he said in a tone devoid of any expression. Brooklyn nodded and got up to leave. As she walked over towards the door, she could feel the hair at the