Chapter 20
Greg
"Hi sweetie" I'm talking to her on my phone
"Hi Greg, are you there?" Her voice sounds a little relaxed, as if she is happy that she will come out of her isolation tonight
"Yes, I am waiting for you at the bottom of the building"
"Give me five minutes and I'll meet you there"
"Ok, I'll be waiting for you" I'm looking at the narcotic that John brought me.
I put the medicine packet in my pocket and leaned my head against the seat, remembering what John had said to me yesterday.
As I recall yesterday night in my office
I was late in my office, not to work, but to complete my plan with John's help.
"My friend Steve will meet you, sir, at the Black Rose restaurant after half past seven. Give him just one pill to put in the drink the girl. Do not give her more than that, sir, as it may lead to coma or death." John said and gave me the pills he was hiding under his jacket
"How does this drug work?" I looked at the pills bottles in my hand, and opening the bottle to see the shape of the pills
"One pill in the victim's drink, and the medicine will kick in after fifteen or twenty minutes and he will lose consciousness"
"Good, here's what I want you to tell your friend Steve, tell him I want a table for two near the exit door, and I'll give him the key to my car to park it as close as possible to the exit door, and tell him to expect a big envelope of cash from me, if it goes as I want" I got up and headed to the big window in my office
"Of course sir"
"And now to the most important part of my plan, listen carefully, John. If you fail at this point, I will cast you behind the sun."
And... What is this part, sir?
"Tomorrow evening, you must make sure that all the cameras that can record my seating are disabled, in addition to disabling the cameras at the exit door to the restaurant." I was speaking in a tone of threat and anger
"Don't worry sir, it's very easy, I'll cut the wires an hour before you come with Steve's help"
My thoughts froze when I saw her walking out the door of the building, a princess in a short purple dress and a black belt , she looks super-hot, like a super model with these black high-heeled shoes...Yeah...Yeah, come closer, sweetie...Tonight is our night. ...and you'll love it blonde...I told you five years ago on the bridge (if you fall in you might never get out) then I got out of my seat and opened the door for her .
"Sorry Greg, I thought my black shoes were in the shoe drawer but I couldn't find them there, after a long search I found them under the bed."
"It's okay my dear, and by the way, you look very beautiful...As usual, of course"
"And when I got in the car and we started moving she said, "I don't want to be mean, Greg, but I just want to remind you, in case you didn't know, that this isn't a date. Okay. It's just a dinner between two friends. I just want to be clear about it."
"Of course, my dear, I know that, I'm just a friend who helps his friend in a time of emotional hardship, I understand how you feel, I've been there before. And believe me, it wasn't easy at first"I turn on the radio and put it on one of a music station.
"Oh thank you Greg I really appreciate it, so ….Which restaurant are we going to?
"To a restaurant near here, maybe only ten minutes away, called Black Rose"
"Have you tried it before?"
"No, but more than one friend recommended it for me, and they say that the food is delicious and it has a beautiful view of the city"
"Sounds fun."
I turned on the radio and put it on one of the music stations. There was a beautiful song. Linka singing in a low voice. She swayed a little to it tunes. I looked at her smiling and raised the volume of the song more.
"I like to see you happy, my dear."
"Believe me I'm just trying, I'm just a mess on the inside." She stopped swaying and started looking through the window sadly
The first song ended, and a second song came after it, after a few seconds I was surprised that Linka turned the volume down very quickly and she didn't look very well and something serious had happened.
"Why did you turn the volume down?"
"It's that song, I don't want to hear it again" She said in a sad voice, as if she was about to cry
"Which song? Why?"
She took a deep breath, but sad, "Well...that was the song...that Wheeler always sang to me when we were together."
"Hmmm... come Linka... maybe he was singing it to you and others at the same time... right? Maybe he's singing it now to some girl too."
"Greg, can we just change the subject, please?"
"Okay fine as you want... Always remember him and cry over the ruins, be weak in front of his memories, run away from any argument that he is the center of it , you know what?... Maybe if he comes back to you crying after being kicked out by another girl, you should forgive him and throw yourself at him" I was a little sharp with her
She didn't answer me, she fell silent and looked through the window, I knew she was crying from the sound of her breath and as I saw her wipe her tears from the edge of her eyes.
"Linka... I'm sorry... I'm so sorry... I just want you to wake up... I want you to face your feelings, be strict about getting over him, and be strong again as I know you. "I put my hand on hers, "I have been there before and I know how you feel. Promise me you will get over him , and I will always be there to help you, whatever you ask, whatever you want, I will always be there for you" I rub her hand with my thumb
"Thanks Greg, you are really a good friend… I will try my best to get over him"
"For sure I'm a good friend... come on let me open the door for you, we've arrived"
When we arrived there was a young man in a suit, I could read his name on his jacket (it's Steve).
"Mr. Steve, I've booked a table for two under the name of Greg Henson"
"Oh Mr. Hanson, yes your table is ready, sir, come with me please"
And as per what I ordered John, there was a table reserved for us near the exit door, window and a plant, Linka's eyes are wandering around
"The place is big and not crowded, why are we sitting here? There are many better seats than this ".
"You think so, my dear, but I find it far away from the crowds and we will feel more comfort talking, I mean if you want to open up and share some things with me, no one will hear us, or even notice our presence. It's quiet"
"You're right, I usually don't open up easily , and if I do, I don't like being in public."
"No pressure sweetheart, I can entertain you and do all the talking, you just listen and have fun"
"I thought you aren't a fan of jokes and fun, I always thought you were the serious guy" She is smiling her beautiful smile, her eyes reflecting the lights in the restaurant and her lips shining, as they are calling for me to taste them.
"You don't know me at all girl, I can be so funny" We laughed a little and then I looked deeply into her eyes, "Lin, I'm confused, sometimes I find your eyes are blue like now, and sometimes I find them green like our first meeting, what is the story of your eyes, do you use any contact lenses?"
"Oh no I don't use any contact lenses, this is their normal color, it's bluish green, or greenish blue I don't know, this color is rare anyway"
"Wow, that's interesting, that makes you EXTRA special" My voice was deep as I spoke and I looked into her eyes, the plan was not to flirt with her today and just look like a friend, but to stay in front of her like this without any movement just impossible, she is very sexy
"Wheeler used to tell me that when I'm angry, my eyes color turn to ... You know, maybe I shouldn't talk about it."
"Here, sir, this is the menus, choose what you want and I will be back in five minutes." Steve's voice interrupted us as he politely placed the menus on the table.
I flipped the menu in a hurry, I know I won't eat almost anything from this menu, I have something on the side tonight
"Steak and baked potato for me "I said as I closed the menu and but it on the table
"But you haven't read the menu yet! How did you choose so quickly?" She said wondering
"Oh, believe me sweetheart, after trying different restaurants around the world, if their steak is good, everything else they serve is good too."
"Hmm, what a theory!" She continued looking at the names of the dishes
It's not a theory it's a fact
"Ok, Mr. Expert. I won't argue with you about that" She's trying to tease me "I think I'd choose grilled salmon with a green salad" as She puts the menu on the table.
"Healthy choice "as I'm referring to Steve to come.
"What about the drink, sir?" Steve said after taking the order
"Iced tea for me," said Linka
"Make them two... and add to that the most expensive bottle of wine for my girl."
I said that while shaking his hand as if I was going to give him the tip in his hand and inside the tip there is a tissue that encases the pill. I looked at Steve with a threatening look, as if I was telling him, "Don't screw up, you idiot, or I'll kill you."
"Of course sir "By looking in his eyes and quickly pulling the tip from my hand, I knew he understood what I meant .When I turned to Linka, I saw a reproachful look in her eyes
"What" I said
"Why did you order wine, Greg? I don't want to get drunk tonight"
"Come on, sweet heart, let me take care of you, you will feel more comfortable sharing your worries with me. You don't have to get drunk at all. One or two glasses. Just to bring happiness to the atmosphere" Then I took my phone out of my pocket when I heard the sound of messages "shit"
"what's wrong?".
"It's Margaret saying I have a five-day business trip out of the country the day after tomorrow. There are important meetings...Oh my God, I hate that." It's my chance to be with Linka in the absence of spud stuffer, and now I have to leave her and go on this stupid trip.
"I've always thought that any job that allows you the opportunity to travel the world is a wonderful job, meeting people from different backgrounds, getting to know different cultures, tasting different dishes. Isn't that great?"
"Oh for sure. Sucks, sucks and sucks"
"Oh boshy moy, no one is ever satisfied, I'm going to the women's rest room, I will be back"
As she stand up, I'm staring at her from behind, her sexy figure, her hot curves, her beautiful blond hair, her hips, her waist, I can't believe I'm finally getting what I wanted for years
After I confirmed that she had gone, I pointed to Steve, who was close to me, waiting for any signal
"Yes, sir," said Steve
"Did you do what I asked of you?"
"Not yet, sir. After I got the iced tea from the kitchen, I'll do everything."
"Good, take this my car key, as soon as I give you the signal you must open the exit door for me and my car too. And you should look normal, do you understand me?"
"Yes sir"
"Now go away and wait for my signal"
When LInka came back from the ladies' rest room she looked sad, actually she is sad all the time, she wasn't smiling, she wasn't talking much, she didn't open up, she didn't share her thoughts with me, and that doesn't matter to me, I only care to implement my plan and get what I want.
Steve brought the drinks smiling,
"To the days without cheaters" I raise my drink and direct it to her glass
"Yes, without the cheaters." Then she sipped some of her drink I watched her all the time drinking slowly until the wine arrived, we made another toast, our order arrived, the I started looking at my watch, it's just a matter of time, sweetheart
"Wow, the portion is big"
"Not for me my dear, I can eat that much three times"
"Wheeler and I used to share when we went to some restaurants that served big portions" She was looking absent-mindedly at her drink
"And we are back to him!"
"I'm sorry Greg... I made your night awful, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have accepted your invitation." She covers her face with her hands to hide her eyes
"Oh don't apologies, my dear, you never spoiled my night, as I told you all I wanted was to get you out of sitting in the house thinking about him. I know it isn't easy, I have been there before, I've been cheated on before" Then I grabbed both of her hands and brought them close to my chest ,looked at her with tears in her eyes "But you'll get over it, don't let him break you, everything will be fine, I promise you "I gave her drink " drink dear, you'll feel better." She took it from me and started drinking
"I've been in love with him for about ten years, he was everything to me, I don't understand how he did this to me, how I didn't notice it, you know? Maybe... Maybe he's honest?.. What if he really didn't cheat on me?.. And everything was fabricated."
"No, my dear, it happened. As for me, I was able to find out that he was a playful young man at first sight. All there was that you were blinded by love, and this state you are going through is called denial, or a state of disbelief."
"Oh really, and how did you not notice that your wives were cheating on you as long as you knew everything at first sight?"
"Because I was blinded by love, just as it happens to you now... After a while, you'll remember the details, and you'll tie things together, and you'll say how stupid I was."
As we went back to eating, I watched her drinking, her drink was about to end, I'm filling her wine glass from time to time. And after a while:
"Greg, aren't you hot... I mean... it's hot... isn't it?" She looked tired, dizzy and started losing her balance in the chair
"No honey, it's cool, maybe you should stop thinking about wheeler and you will feel better again" Excellent... the drink has started to work
"I feel dizzy." She put her elbow on the table and grabbed her head, "I… I can't see things clearly."
"Oh my God, Linka, are you okay?" I put my hand on her shoulder"
She started to stammer, I didn't understand what she said, but it seems that she was saying that she was feeling shudder in her extremities... I looked at Steve... He walked towards us with slow steps.
"Maybe you drank too much, my dear"
"No... I didn't drink that much "...she didn't finish her sentence, closed her eyes and collapsed in my arms. And her glass, which was on the table, fell and broke
To be continue