Chapter 55
Close Call With Death
The atmosphere in the office was cold and forbidding, Luther shifted uncomfortably in his seat and he wiped off the thin layer of sweat on his brows.
Frightened, spooked, and terrified.
Luther was all of this and more, his eyes were white from excessive shock and he kept glancing at his cell phone, half expecting a call to clarify that what he'd heard hadn't happened.
He'd just received word that Jansen, one of the directors, had been killed in a car crash, normally such an incident wouldn't have raised Luther's alarm but this wasn't the first.
Three out of the five directors who'd betrayed Damien with him were dead, all accidental deaths. But were those accidents truly accidental? Luther would've been dumb to believe that.
Who wanted them dead? Who would stand to benefit? Luther found the issue increasingly becoming more dangerous. Damien or Victoria were his prime suspects, no one else would benefit from the deaths of a few ex-directors.
"Damn that witch!" Luther hissed under his breath, shaking his head. Victoria hadn't reached out to him in weeks, he'd been pressured by the other directors and some had even resorted to threats.
Out of options Luther even went to meet the directors in Victoria's company but they'd taken a sudden U-turn on their words and Luther was left in the dark.
Nothing felt right.
Luther had ended up better than the other Directors who'd mostly remained unemployed, the AC might've been shitty but at least he had an office.
The silence was broken by a knock on the door. Luther flinched, his hand already reaching into his drawer. He had a revolver there.
"Who's there?" He asked, breathing slowly, his entire back was slick with sweat and he could feel his hair sticking to his back.
"It's me," Luther recognized the voice of his secretary, Laura.
"Come in," Luther exhaled slowly, and he felt the tension ease from his body. However, the next moment he tensed up when he saw the disturbed look on Laura's face.
"Wha—what's going on?" Luther's voice was sharper than he intended.
"Someone's here to see you," Laura announced. "He says he's an old colleague of yours."
"Me?" Luther was startled but he eventually nodded his head. "Let him in," whoever it was, he couldn't shy away from seeing him. He assumed that whoever wanted him dead wouldn't walk through the front door.
The door opened and a beefy man walked in, he was wearing a wrinkled suit.
"Henry," Luther forced a smile. "You're here," he got to his feet and extended his hands to him.
"Hmph!" Henry snorted, completely ignoring Luther's outstretched hand. "You damn scoundrel! You're aware of everything that's going on," he jabbed a finger at Luther's face, his fingers just coming short of poking Luther's eyes.
"I'm aware," Luther sighed, "Someone's taken action against us."
"Against us?" Henry thundered and his voice echoed in the small office, he looked on the verge of bursting out. "You're the one who got us into this mess. Now Conrad, he, he…" Henry trailed off and his lips trembled with unspoken words.
Luther's heart skipped a beat. "What happened?" He stuttered, feeling a heavy weight settle above his chest. "What happened to Conrad?" He pressed, his mind a mess of thoughts.
"He's dead," Henry snapped, his eyes glaring with intense light and he glared at Luther viciously. "You're the cause of it, you—" he poured out a wave of vicious words and insults.
"What!" Luther froze, his mouth agape and for a long moment he couldn't even speak. Conrad was dead? How? The thought left him petrified and his breaths became uneven.
First Ben, then Benjamin… Jansen, now Conrad. Who was next? Goosebumps broke out all over Luther and he shivered uncontrollably, he didn't dare complete the thought.
"What…" he took a deep breath. "How did it happen?" He managed to speak, his tone incredulous.
"He was found dead in his swimming pool," Henry's voice was shaky as he explained. "No signs of struggle and his wife didn't see anyone come in or out…" Henry looked incredulous the more he spoke. "And the CCTV cameras didn't capture anyone coming in or out."
"What!" The more Henry spoke the more Luther's eyes widened in shock, he looked like he might have been suffering a nervous breakdown.
"We have to do something, anything," Henry paced back and forth, unable to sit still. "Perhaps we should talk to Victoria," he suggested, glimmers of hope in his eyes.
Victoria? Luther's eyes revealed a trace of hope but it was very quickly quashed. Calling Victoria could very easily lead to quicker deaths for both of them.
"No," Luther shook his head resolutely. He wasn't so dumb as to trust Victoria with his life.
"Then what are we going to do?" Henry snapped, his eyes spitting fire. "You're turning down everything I'm suggesting, what good are you anyway?"
Luther was about to speak but his cell phone rang, breaking the silence. He was surprised to see a strange number on the screen, he exchanged glances with Henry before he picked up the cell phone.
"Hello?"
"You have two choices Luther," a female voice echoed over the line. "I can save you, but on one condition."
"What!" Luther's expression changed. "Who's this? What's going on?" He demanded, his heart beat erratically. Henry beside him looked curious and pale, and he looked skeptically at Luther.
"Are you interested or not?" The woman asked impatiently, "Your time is running out."
"I'm interested," Luther's face bleached and he waved at Henry that it was okay.
"You're out of time," the woman spoke quickly. "Walk out of your office and take the left, there's an open storeroom there. Walk into it."
What! Luther became hesitant, his eyes flickering with uncertainties. "Tell me who you are first before I'll leave," he whispered, walking away from Henry.
"Hmmmm," the lady scoffed but she remained silent, not wasting her breath on Luther, the line suddenly went dead.
Luther froze, his mind filled with thoughts as he tried to come to terms with what he'd heard, but the more he thought about it he became scared.
"Give me a moment," Luther decided to risk it. He ignored Henry's puzzled expression and walked out, immediately taking a left as instructed. Strangely the corridor was empty, Luther couldn't resist sneaking glances behind him.
He reached the storeroom, and he was relieved to find it empty but his confusion deepened. He was just to take out his cell phone to call back that number when the sound of a gunshot rang out, piercing the air.
Luther froze, the next second he dived behind a pile of dusty boxes, all the while his teeth were chattering in fright.
That sound had come from the direction of his office. Something was wrong, something was awfully wrong.