Rex's Pov:
I watched him as he twitched nervously, his hands trembling slightly, which made me suspect he was hiding something crucial.
"Um...Okay, sir. What is it about?" He asked, trying to cloak his anxiety.
"First, can I get a cold drink?" I asked.
"Sure... of course".
He brought out a drink and poured it into a glass, adding some ice cubes.
"Thanks", I winked at him and drank from the bottle.
"Okay...So, I have a little question," I began.
"And I'd really appreciate it if you tell me the truth because I hate it when people lie to me.
"Why was my brother here? What did you two talk about?"
"Huh?" He paused.
"Your brother?"
He paused and chuckled.
"We didn't talk about anything serious. He just...wanted to ask me a few questions".
"What questions?"
"Well...about my bar, my family. Really, it was nothing serious."
"What questions?" I asked again, picking my words this time around.
"Sir..."
He paused and sighed.
"I'm sorry, but I don't know what else to tell you. I...don't know what you're expecting. But the truth is, we didn't discuss anything serious".
"Really?" I scoffed.
"Yes, sir", he replied sharply, and I laughed and emptied my glass.
"Okay then. For your sake and that of your business, I hope you're telling me the truth" I glared at him and left.
*
*
Next_morning.
Hannah's Pov:
"The boys just called me. Charlene has been found," I told my husband as we stood face to face with each other in the room.
"Really? They found her? Where's she?" He asked curiously.
"She's with them. She's fine".
"Huh? Hold on; how're they sure she isn't gonna be a problem? Did she agree to stay with them or what?"
"Well, Marcus said she won't be a problem anymore and asked us not to worry about her. I guess we should just let them do their thing".
He sighed and sat on the bed.
"Erm... that reminds me; is Maxine still in the room?" He asked.
"Of course! I'm making her stay in there for the rest of the day. That lady's trying to be faster than her shadow," I replied angrily.
"Hannah, please. Since I want to get rid of her, I still don't want her to die under my roof. She hasn't eaten, if I'm not mistaken. So, I want you to let her out - for now"
"Huh?" I asked with a grimace
"I should let her out?"
"Yes - do. I wouldn't want her to die in here and tarnish my name. So, let her out," he said, and I rolled my eyes.
"Fine! But I'm still going to kill her if she does anything stupid again," I blurted angrily and left the room.
*
*
Maxine's Pov:
I lay weakly on the bed, so feeble I couldn't even cry.
I was so hurt and hungry. How do I get out of here? What do I do?
Shortly, the door opened, and I lifted my head to see my aunt coming in
Oh! Please, tell me she's here to let me out.
"Hey, you", she said with rancour, and I managed to sit up.
"You're lucky my husband wants me to free you. Else, I'd have had you locked up for the rest of your miserable life!
"You can leave the room if you want to", she rolled her eyes and left.
Oh, God!
Thank goodness! She let me out!
I gathered enough strength and left the bed immediately.
I opened the door and went out, and the first place I rushed to was the kitchen. I just needed something to eat.
I got into the kitchen and started eating the little I could see.
*
*
Noah's Pov:
"Noah. Noah," Mum called, awakening me from my deep sleep.
I jerked my eyes open and found her sitting on the bed next to me.
"Mum?" I called, surprised she was waking me up herself.
"Good morning, son. How was your night?" She asked, stroking my hair, and I sat up slowly.
"It was fine, Mum," I replied, awaiting her to tell me the reason she woke me up.
'Um...I know you must be pretty surprised. But I just felt really disturbed and wanted to speak to you right away.
"Please, Noah, I don't know what's going on between you and your brother, but it breaks my heart to see you two fighting. Please, I can't stand the sight of my only sons fighting. Please, Noah, stop it," she said in a pained voice, making me feel guilty.
"Mum", I sighed.
"I think you're getting it all wrong. I'm not the problem here, but Rex is. He's too selfish for a brother. What do you want me to do?"
"Still, you're the eldest and should know how to settle such disputes". She said.
"How exactly, mum? To be sincere, I'm sick and tired of trying to pet him. He's too annoying for my liking. I mean, he tried to turn someone into his personal maid to get back at me. Who the hell does that?"
"Noah", she called tenderly.
"I'm begging you. If not for anything, at least do this for me. Please, son".
Gosh! I bent my head and sighed. This woman's really making me feel bad.
"Please?" She said again, and I rolled my eyes.
"Fine! Just because of you, mum. I'll give it one more try," I replied, and she smiled and hugged me.
"Thank you so much. I love you," she cooed.
"Love you too, mum".
And she pecked me and left the room.
Hahhh.
Finally.
I took in a deep breath and was about to lie back on the bed when my phone rang, and I checked and discovered it was the bartender - Pablo.
Oh!
I picked it up without reluctance.
Hello?" I called.
Hello, sir Noah. Good morning.
Yeah - good morning. What's the update?"
Erm...actually, I think we're having a little problem. Maxine hasn't shown up at school, and I have no idea why. Her sisters are here already, but she isn't. I've been trying to call her as well, but her line isn't connecting. I think there might be something wrong".
My eyes dimmed immediately.
What?
Hold on; what do you think could be wrong with her?" I asked, perplexed.
I really don't know, sir. The thing is - she never skips school unless she's having a serious problem at home, and with the look of things, I think there's one".
I huffed and stood up immediately.
Those imbeciles. They may be hurting her right now.
What do we do now, sir? You know what the plan was. But since she's not in school, we..."
Don't worry about it," I cut him off.
I'll do it my way"
And I ended the call.
It's time for an open confrontation because I hate delays.
I went through my logs and dialled another line.
It rang for something but was finally received.
Hello? Noah?" He called on the phone.
Get ready, Dwayne. We have something important to do," I told him.
*
*
Hannah's Pov:
"Where's Maxine?" Richard asked as I helped him knot his tie.
The question made me sick.
"She should be in the kitchen or something. I don't know," I replied repugnantly, and we didn't say anything for a while.
"Richard", I called.
"What if Maxine gets to know the truth one day? About her family and what we did?"
"I'll make sure it doesn't come to that", he touched my hand and said, but I wasn't satisfied.
"How sure are we? What if something makes the secret exposed?"
"Come on, Hannah. We..."
He stopped talking when his eyes caught the window, making him look surprised.
"Are we expecting any visitors?" He asked, and I rushed to have a look and saw about three cars driving in.
Huh? What's going on? Who are they? We weren't expecting any visitors.
Richard walked out of the room immediately, and I followed him.
And by the time we got outside, the cars were already parked.
Who the hell were they?
I stood beside Richard and waited for the drama to unfold; immediately, the doors opened, and boys came out of the car.
Whaaaat?
Noah??
Noah was among them!
I flinched when I saw him and was puzzled over the strange arrival.
"Noah?" Richard called and tried moving closer, but the boys signalled him to stop
What's going on.
"I didn't come here for fun", Noah said icily.
"You have 10 seconds to bring Maxine out of the house". He commanded, and I almost slumped.
Whaaaat??