AUTHOR'S NOTES:

Here's another short fan fiction tale that should be on my Tumblr page rather than on here. But, due to the site's new ground rules, I cannot post long-written posts that contain more than 100 paragraphs... Or something of that nature.

How did my creative writing project that was supposed to be about smut ended up turning into a 'two-chapter' story? Blame my brain and my need for details.

This particular fan fic is inspired by an indie film that comes from Germany, called "Bogat". Why did I choose to write a short fic, which was inspired by an indie film? Well, if you've read my stories "Refuge" and "Round After Round," then you'll get a sense that I am currently crushing on actor/Fitness model, Florian Munteanu (don't judge me). Well, Florian was also featured in this movie, as well. So, this fic does involve his character from the film. So this is the inspiration!

Now, if you've read a story of mine, then you"ll know "italics = flashbacks/memories," so don't be alarmed.

Not in this chapter, but in the next one, there will be some statements in German/Romanian. I don't speak both languages, so I will use the Google translator. Any German or Romanian-speaking readers want to give me any pointers, then I am all ears.

This here chapter is an appetizer. Something to wet your chops for a bit.

Let's get to it, shall we?

RATING: 'M' for MATURE. This story contains adult language, mentions of violence and graphic depictions of sex. Minors under the age of 17 shouldn't read this.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own the characters or the rights to the film, "Bogat". I just own the original characters.

"Vannie… I need your help…"

And, this was all it took for Savannah to make her decision.

Elias, albeit the 'risk-taker' and the precocious one out of her biological siblings, was never the type of person that would ask for help. So, when she heard the statement for help and the fear in his trembling voice, she knew that her baby brother was into some serious trouble.

But the accountant and mother-of-three didn't expect for her hand-at-helping to come in the form of traveling from New York City to Berlin, Germany. And to do all of this traveling with fifty-three, thousand euros secured in a well-concealed, money belt.

It was close to 2:30am, in German time, when Savannah arrived to the Berlin Tegel Airport, courtesy of a flight through the Deutsche Lufthansa airline. She desired a seat in their Business Class, but had to settle for an Economy seat, ever since she bought a ticket at the last minute. Once on the plane, she discovered that her chair was going to be surrounded by a physically-active family of eight. Forced to sit in an 'aisle seat,' which was next to two high-school aged kids, Savannah tried to make the best of the following eight hours. She made attempts at combating away her prolonging case of insomnia, caused by stress. She tried to pass some hours by watching the films that played on the plane. She tried to keep her brain busy by reading a romance novel from off of her Kindle. Then, she spent the remaining three hours taking a 'cat nap,' but would wake up as soon as one of her traveling-mates would make a move. When she emerged from Gate 19, she was tired and needing a good night's rest. Fortunately, she was safe and she didn't face any proverbial hang-ups, ever since she was carrying enough money for TSA agents to believe that she was a drug trafficker. After fetching her suitcase from the baggage claim, she made her way to the nearest women's restroom.

"—nna…I… I-I-I've fucked up. I completely fucked up! I can't believe—I did some… Things and I—

"Like, what, E.? Tell me. Is… Does it involve anything illegal like drugs or something? Is it drugs? Like… What… What did you—?

"Vannie… I… Gambled. I gambled, Van. I—

"God… Damn it, E. Got-damnit! You—I thought that you've stopped!"

"I know! I know, Vannie! I'm… I'm sorry. I know I said that I was getting help with it. I know. I know…"
"Flight 11-19…"

Savannah was pulled from her stream of memories by the sound of the airport's public announcement system.

"…Gate 23…" Then, the atmosphere became decorated with German from a professional, feminine-sounding voice.

A weary moan floated from her mouth. A wet, right hand found its way to her face. It returned to the flowing faucet, so it gather more cold water. Her left hand pretended to rest against her abdomen. It really was taking inventory of the thick leather pouch that was strapped to her midsection.

Savannah connected the call. "Hey, E., right now, I am at work. Call me on my off—

"Vannie…"

The way he said her name. Her brother, with his normal baritone voice, sounded broken. It caused her words to come to a halt and disintegrate in her throat. The fine hairs that graced her forearms rose and a cold shiver slithered down her back. Shock and concern hit her like it was a punch to the gut. In fact, her stomach tightened up. "E…" she breathed into her cell phone's mouthpiece. She took note of the tightness in her jaw. "…What's wrong—?

"I don't know what I'm gonna…I…I-I-I've fucked up. I completely fucked up! I can't believe—I did some… Things and I—

"E.?"

"I need your help, Van," continued Elias. "I need your help—I fucked up. I…" His voice trailed off and a soft sob took its place.

"Like, what, E.? Tell me… Does it involve anything illegal like drugs or something? Is it drugs?" she sputtered into the phone.

"…I fucked up," Elias lowly cried into his phone.

"E!" Savannah spoke sharply into her phone. She shot out of her rolling chair. The action didn't go unnoticed by her co-workers. However, the young woman didn't notice. "E…" Savannah proceeded to walk away from her desk and then leave her cubicle. Her dark brown eyes were glaring at the office's exit and the long corridor that was connected.

"…I fucked up," cried Elias.

As she listened to her baby brother's cries from her phone's ear-piece, she carried the image of an empty conference room and a plan, in the back of her mind. "E… Tell me what's going on? I can't help you, if you're unwilling to tell me," she explained.

There were more soft sobs floating into her ear. Her stiletto heels managed to make their own song as they walked across the polished, marble that aligned the corridor's floor. She reached the conference room's entrance rather quickly. She peered into the large and confined space and found the room to be empty. "E…" she spoke as she tested the door's lock. "…Tell me what's going on?" The door was pulled open. A shot of relief filled her. "Did you get into it with Samuel and Claudia?"

"I fucked up, Vannie," Elias reiterated.

"How?" she questioned as she entered the room. Once she locked the door, she felt that it was safe to speak more freely. "Okay, E… Now, what-in-the-hell happened to you?"

"I fucked—

"Yes, I know this. Now, my question to you is 'How? How did you managed to fuck-up?' What happened? Tell me, now," she ordered, with authority.

There was an understated shudder and then an audible swallow. "I…" he croaked. "…I, um… I had…" He released a harsh breath.

"Elias, come on, now. You…" She peered across the conference room, at the opposing wall, as she attempted to keep her tears at bay. "…know that I will try to help you with any problem that you have…" Her brain reminded her of the last time that she had spoken those words to him. Old wounds reopened and soon streaks of moisture coated her cheeks. "But…" her voice groaned, "…I need to know what…"

As she spoke, her hearing picked up his voice as he spoke. She didn't catch what he said to her.

"…is going—Wait— what did you say, Elias?"

"I said…" He took a breath. "I gambled," he admitted in a small voice that was packed with shame.

It took Savannah a solid second to understand his admission. Once she understood the implication, she felt her anger bloom. 'You—

She grunted, "You, what?!" A veil of heat covered her face. "E…" She took steps away from the room's door. "…Tell me that you didn't just say what I think you have just said—

"I did," her brother confirmed. "I did, Vannie… I'd gambled—Actually, I've been gambling. For a while, now," he confessed. He released a loud exhale. "I… I gambled and now I have to pay some people back and they want their money back, now."

"Who are they? Bookies?" Savannah inquired. In the back of her mind, a flurry of memories, which ranged from scary to traumatic, plagued her mind. Memories about Elias and the effects that his gambling addiction. She began a slow pace around the banquet-sized, circular table.

"Something like that," he told her. He sniffled. "I… I didn't plan on relapsing, Vannie. I swear! I—a friend of mine had told me about a hang-out spot that we could kick it in. I had gone and it was a gambling spot. It was an illegal spot, but it looked like a casino. I… I started," he confessed. "And I was winning… At first…When I ran out of money, I was offered a loan—

"By who?"

"By a guy," he simply stated.

"What guy? Do you know him?" she asked.

"Well… I… Kinda… I know of him, but we've never got together and have a full-on conversation," he stammered.

"So… Would you say that you know of him well enough to take money from him? Can you say that?"

"I… He could—I…He…" he continued to stammer. He spoke for a streak before he settled for an "I think so".

Savannah scoffed in annoyance. She rolled her eyes as she stated, "How much?"

"How much?" he spoke, feeling genuinely confused by her question.

She sneered. "How…much…money…do you owe, E.?" she elaborated. Her listening ear was gifted with a stream of awkward silence, in response. She was patient, however. But she couldn't say that her anger managed to dim down. It was quite the opposite. It was rising with every passing millisecond.

"Forty-thousand euros."

Savannah's traveling feet came to a clumsy halt as shock punched her right in the gut again. 'Four…Four… Forty-thou… Forty-thou—

"Four…" She couldn't get the amount out. The tightness in her jaw wouldn't allow her to speak. She unleashed a wavering exhale. 'Forty-thousand…Forty-thousand… FORTY-THOUSAND?! FORTY-THOUSAND! FORTY-FUCKIN'! THOUSAND! DOLL—

"It's a lot," he interjected.

"No. Shit," she wheezed into the phone, through her clenched teeth. She blew another breath. "How? How, E.?! How-in-the-fuck did you manage to rack up a forty-thousand dollar debt?!" she shrilled into the phone.

"It… It wasn't originally—

"It 'wasn't originally,' what, Elias?!"

"I originally owed twenty-thousand euros, but Dumitru decided to tack on an interest," her brother explained.

Savannah scoffed in disgust. A hand reached up to the river of straighten strands of hair and her fingers ran through, out of frustration. She really wanted to punch something. The "something," being her brother. But, she would settle for this violent finger-combing. 'I can't fuckin' believe this!' She resumed her pacing. "Have you bother to ask Claudia or Samuel for—?

"No," Elias sharply announced into the phone. "No, Vannie. I can't go to them. I don't want…"

'Of course not…' she internally groaned. '…can't have your parents think too negatively about you, Elias. That would mean that there's another fuck-up in the family.'

"…them to find out about this! They think that I am doing well, here in Berlin with my business and with the photography."

Savannah found a seat at the table. As soon as her bottom touched the chair, she leaned all-the-way back. Her right hand ran across her face, totally forgetting about her makeup. When she pulled her hand away, her sight caught the streaks of smeared lipstick on her palm. 'FFFF-uck! Just great… Just great.'

"Savannah… I need your help," Elias pleaded. "I thought that I could have handled this on my own. But they have taken my passport and—

This bit of a tongue-slip from her brother caught her attention. "So… You were planning on leaving the country?" she asked him.

"Fucking, of course!" he blatantly boasted. "I don't have forty-thousand euros to give them! I barely have five-hundred euros within a month!" he joked, with a bitterness. "I was planning on coming back to the States and crash with some friends until I could get back on my feet. But I needed money to buy a plane ticket. In the meantime, I was keeping low. Well… I thought that I was keeping a low-profile. I thought that I had everything set after I got a job to photograph a wedding. Once I got my money, I made my way back to my place."

"What happened?"

"Dumitru—that's the guy who I owe—he has been keeping tabs on me, this entire time. He had people tailing me. He must be a fucking psychic because he had some guys show up to my apartment and—

Suddenly, Elias had fallen silent.

Savannah sensed there was more to this story. "What happened next, E.?"

Elias huffed, which sounded as if he was hyping himself to delve deeper. "They, uh, they roughed me up a bit…"

She sat up in her chair. "E—

"I'm fine, Vannie," he quickly pointed out. "I'm fine, Van. Just bruised and sore," he clarified.

A slow and guttural groan rose from her throat. 'Jeez…'

"I am alright. They… Beat me up. Took whatever stuff that was expensive in my apartment, including my cameras…" Then he muttered, "Them dickheads". He took a measured breath. "That's when they had taken my passport and Dumitru told me that I owe him the forty-thousand."

Another wave of silence had fallen between the siblings.

"Vannie… I wouldn't have called you, if I…" A heart-thumping, wet gasp fell from him. "But, I can't think of another person, who can help me right now."

'Lawd…' Savannah attempted to blink away her tears. "Alright," she moaned. "Alright…" now in a firmer voice. "I said that I would help you out." She glanced down at her thighs and pleated skirt. Her right hand reached down and smoothed out the non-existent wrinkles in the skirt's fabric. "Now, I have to figure out how I am going to get that money to this 'Dumitru' guy."

"You… Y-You could, like, FED-Ex that over here, you know," suggested Elias.

'FED—

Savannah's sense of irritation caused a monotone groan to escape her. A hard grimace touched her face. She took a slow and deep breath before she spoke up again. "Elias… You can't mail… FED-EX… UPS… Currency. It's illegal," she explained. "Plus, there's the risk that someone will steal your package and then you'll be back to 'square one'. Think of another plan."

'Besides, he'll probably take the money and bail.' Her feet began to make the revolving chair spin. "I can send the money to the guy through a wire transfer," she pondered.

"Vannie… I don't he's the type that wants this kind of money to have a paper trail," Elias pointed out. "It's best to just transfer that money into my bank—

"No," she announced in a firm voice.

"Why not? Van, listen… I need this money, like, now. I can't wait until—

"I am not transferring that amount of money to you."

"Why not—

"Because I am concern that you will take that money and hightail it out of Germany, that's why!" she groaned into the phone. "E… You managed to gamble away a stranger's forty-thousand dollar loan, without even thinking about the consequences. You didn't even consider if this dude was scamming you. You were just thinking about yourself. There's no way in hell that…"

'Go to Berlin. Give money.'

"…I am going to give you that money, E. I don't trust…"

'Go to Berlin. Go to Ber—I am going to Berlin...' Savannah's head mulled the plan over. After milliseconds of contemplating, her plan was confirmed. '...I am going to Berlin…'

"…you," she revealed to him. She took a deep exhale before resuming. "But that doesn't matter, now. Cos, I am coming to Berlin—

"What?! No! Vannie, no," her brother shouted into his phone.

"Yes! I am going, E. I am coming to Berlin. I am going to give this 'Dumitru' cat his forty-thousand euros."

"Vannie, just listen to me! Transfer the money to my account and I will make sure that I will give it to Dumitru…"

As Elias spoke, Savannah subtly shook her head.

"…and everything will be fine. Trust me."

"No," she declared. "I am coming to Berlin…" She heard him groan. "…Just give me a day—No, give me two days—and I will be there."

'I am going to Berlin… Lord help me.'