Chapter 25

Hawaii

Amazing waterfront view, white sandy beach that takes only a minute to walk to, palm trees everywhere, bedroom size that can fit 2 king size beds, everyday would be a beautiful day, they said. Yea right. Not everyday. (sigh) It's only a little rain though. Should clear up by tomorrow. No blue moon today.

Last night was the first time she saw it. It was rare. Once in a blue moon, they called it. It was beautiful. It was romantic.

Wish you were here. (sigh) As nice as this place is, it's still hard to get used to. How do rich people get used to living like this? Do they have their own refrigerator in their bedroom? Just getting from the bedroom to the kitchen feels like a long walk. 8400 square feet? Why on earth does anyone need this much space? Especially for someone who has no one. Too much money; nowhere to spend it. I guess. Just like every rich folk out there, 99% of them…and 99% of them are weird. And then there are these folks, they're pretty weird too. How on earth can they do this? Day after day, doing nothing except walk around.

"Faith"

Looks like he can't sleep too. That's odd. What's he smiling about? He wasn't 2 hours ago. He was really upset, more than he needed to be.

"You're right. It's just diarrhea. They're feeling much better."

"oh…good" Too much noni would do that. Guess they have the muscles but not enough common sense to know that eating too much of anything has side effects. "What are you doing?" He already threw all the nonis out. He's not throwing out the pineapples too, is he? "That is so wasteful."

"When you see Alana, tell her not to buy this anymore."

This house may be comfortable but this is getting ridiculous. "No pineapples, no noni, no pets. Who's allergic to roses?"

"me"

He's joking, right? Can't tell from his smile.

"Good night"

"good night" It is almost midnight. Guess the job as head of security can be stressful. Not only does he have to worry about the outside of the house, he has to worry about everyone's health including mine. In this current environment, guess it would be difficult to hire security guards. The bigger the house is, the more he needs. Rich folks are crazy. So crazy, there's a brand new piano in one of the rooms that looks like no one has ever touched. It's very late. Why isn't he sleeping? Can't sleep? Why? It's only light rain. Too much rest maybe? He must be feeling better then since he's playing the piano. Huh, interesting "You're a fan of hers?" Oh, looks like he wasn't aware. Should've knocked first. That's one hard note. "Sorry" Apology shouldn't even be necessary since he shouldn't even be playing at this time of the night. Doesn't he know it could be heard even if this is a big house, even if the bedroom doors are closed? It's not that loud but still. Guess he can do whatever he wants whenever he wants.

"Are you?"

Oh. Sounds like his laryngitis has completely cleared up. "No, but I do like some of her songs." A casual listener isn't a fan. The definition of a fan these days is more than just admiration. Most likely, he just like the song like millions do. "That's impressive." What? Rich folks don't like compliments? "I meant it, I didn't think you'd know how." Again, what's that look for? He should know why. He doesn't even look like that type who's into music let alone knows how to play a piano. Most rich folks have it just to make the room look more elegant, 98% of them.

"You play?"

"I…no."

"Show me."

"what?"

"Show me what I did wrong."

Oh. No wonder he didn't like the compliment. He thinks I'm mocking him. Who told him? Kamea? Alana? Well, they never said I couldn't touch this so it's their fault. It was too tempting not to. He doesn't seem to mind. He seems serious too, wiping off the keys with sanitizing wipes and the seat, then stepping away. Okay. Why not? Here goes. This piece is slow but some sections can be difficult for beginners. Combined with the lyrics, it's very sad. Why on earth would he want to learn how to play this? Did his lover pass away too? As nice as this piece is, listening to this isn't healthy for anyone who still hasn't fully recovered. What he needs is this. Surprised? His face might be half covered but his eyes showed what he's thinking. "Nice beat, right?" It's faster but it's a happier tune. Any more, the guys would definitely yell at me tomorrow since this has a lot of high pitch notes.

"Thought you said you're not a fan."

"ever heard of play by ear?" Oh, now he looks shocked.

"You can?"

Would I be doing this if I can? God, he's not too bright. "I'm kidding. It's just a catchy tune. It's not difficult." It would be for someone who has no musical bone in his body like him. "Keep practicing, you're doing good…but um, not now okay, I…we…we can hear you." That needs to be said even if he is the boss. Most likely, others don't have the guts too.

The room is cool. The bed is comfortable. No sound could be heard from the light rain hitting the windows but falling asleep is still difficult when the mind is not at peace and when the mind can't sleep at the time when it's supposed to. Energy is used up more quickly and the tummy needs to be refilled. Stomach is growling again. "2:50 am?" Eating at this hour is not a good idea but it needs to. (sigh)

Never one to take food into the bedroom, now she wished she had. Living in this big house, there's a need to. She puts on a robe before heading out, immediately hating the idea since the hallway is long and creepy especially when there are no lights. Blown circuit? Could be since it requires a lot of electricity to cool this big house. There's no sound but there's a sudden cool draft. Why? It's humid out. There are no windows here. What's that? Could be nothing but seemed like something just moved over there. A mouse?...maybe. I hope. Stop it. There's no such thing as gho…"mmm"

With her mouth and nose suddenly covered, her upper body grabbed onto from behind after she turned the corner, she regretted coming out. Multiple kicks along with rapid arm movement were able to force the one behind her to let go but his face still can't be seen even with the small amount of light from her cell phone that is now on the floor. One thing is certain though, this isn't a prank because today isn't Halloween. Yesterday is so there's no reason for him to be wearing a full face ski mask and definitely no reason to be up at this hour.

"ughh"

One kick to his groin worked but it would be better to run rather than try to knock him out since he's too tall and strong.

"Jaake!"

Screaming for help seemed logical until another guy can be seen from the staircase. Don't scream. Don't move. No, bad idea. He saw me. Run! One advantage of this big house is that there are lots of room to run and running blindly thru the darkness might be the only way to get away but for how long? Hide. I need to "ow"

Without the phone, it might be too dark to tell but this time, there's no need to kick the one whom she bumped into.

"There are"

"ssshh"

Right. It's stupid to be talking. Being pulled by the hand, she quickly followed into the room. The sound of the door being locked could be heard but a locked door isn't going to prevent whoever those guys are from kicking it down.

"We need something to block it. They have guns."

"ssshh"

Is that necessary at this point? Did he not see the guy? "He's coming." What is he doing? Without lights and all of the curtains closed, it may be hard to see but his movement can still be seen since it's not completely dark. "We can't hide in here. They'll know." This walk-in closet is not going to do anything unless that door is made of steel. Oh no. "He's outside." Not outside of the closet but noises can be heard so most likely, he's trying to get into the room. No sound of gunshots yet but that doesn't mean

"c'mon"

How did... Now is not the time to ask why there's a door inside behind a wooden closet. It's time to follow into the unknown. It's spooky but it would be a lot safer than outside. Another door? Not just a door, it's a long staircase down. Ohh…woww. It's not as big as his bedroom but it's bigger than my apartment. Is this sound proof? It's so quiet, I can hear my own heartbeat. Lights are working. That's odd since none did outside. That's good but lights aren't as useful as getting a signal which seems to be a problem here since he's walking around the room from corner to corner with his phone. "Please tell me you already called for help?"

"Don't worry. They're not going to get in here."

What? Why is he acting so calm? "What about Alana and Jake and Myca and " For whatever reason, he now looks normal like the way a normal person would be in this situation. It's normal for anyone to ask how many there are? What do they look like? Did they say anything? But a normal person would also be frightened after getting answers that don't help so why does he look like that? That's not a look of fear. He's looking like he's thinking. That's not normal unless "They're here for you?" I knew I shouldn't have taken this job. It's too late to regret it now. It's time to do something. "Don't just sit there. Go back up there. See if you can get a signal."

"Don't worry. There's no electricity. That means they cut off the power. No power, no security system. Security company will call. They will know something is wrong."

That's good to know but is he you feeling all right? He looks better than weeks ago but it seems that weeks of illness did something to his brain because why would he still think there's nothing to worry about? "What about Alana? Jake and…oh God, they must have killed Kai and Evan." There's no way for intruders to get in here without them knowing.

"No" Anthony said, quickly following after failing to grab hold of her but realized his legs aren't as quick they used to be. It didn't take long to catch up though but long enough to realize the mistake he made after the phone rang. "Don't" It's too late since she already picked up the call but not too late to grab the phone back and shut it off before she could say anything else. "If they're here to steal, they'll take what they need and leave. If they're not, they're going to use Alana to threaten me. As long as they can't get in touch with me, they can't. You understand? They're not going to kill them because they want me, not them." Anthony said, realizing he may have used too much force in holding her wrist since she's leaning backwards against the handrail. "sorry" It's not her fault. None of this is.

His apology sounds genuine but what is he doing? It seems that he's no different from other rich folks because how else could he be so calm at a moment like this? No caring person would even if he has been in this situation before. How could he walk away when all he had to do is to make a call to confirm the police are coming? How could he hung up the call without making sure who was calling? Only someone who only thinks about himself would. "You selfish son of a bitch." That's inappropriate but it got him to stop taking another step down. "You don't know what they're thinking. You don't know what they'll do. You don't know who they are. Even if you do, what makes you think they're not going to do anything to Alana? That...could be Alana." It might not be since it wasn't clear but it is a female voice.

Anthony quickly looks at the phone, then takes several steps up the stairs to get a stronger signal before calling back since the message said it's urgent. What the hell is wrong now? Something must be wrong since it's almost 3AM here. "hello?" That's necessary in case it's not Lucy. Just because the message said it's her, it might not be. "Can't hear you. Say again." It is her but why is she asking about Jake? "Which Jake? gay Jake?" That's odd. Letting her know of the situation is now necessary since she wants to talk to him. "hello?" Did it get disconnected? It didn't. The moment of silence is short. It's because Lucy is shocked. She wouldn't be able to help but her explanation did. "Are you sure?" Saying it louder than before can't be controlled. It's because Lucy's assumption is ridiculous but as ridiculous as it sounds, it doesn't sound impossible since Jake is very likeable and has a way of making people laugh like a comedian. Maybe Brooke did give him something in return for his service but the key? "What's it for?" Don't know? Can't say or really don't know? "Is it for that thing? You know they're going to start drilling into it." Now is obvious she's not alone. She's asking the same question. There's no point in looking for the key if that's what it's for. "I don't know when. That's what I heard." Whoever just asked sounds like she doesn't know anything. "Where are you? Are you still in New York?" Don't know? Lucy might not know but she sounds okay since she's talking casually. No signal is given that would indicate otherwise but what the hell is she talking about? Why does she want to know if she had ever treated any of her girlfriends badly? "Is this really the time to ask about that right now?" Oh shit. Looks like Faith has had it. "call you back." It's too late to prevent her from opening the door. Thank goodness she's not that dumb to open the other. "Don't" He whispered. "They're not here for me. They're here for you."