GARY HUTCHINSON LOOKED round his office with tired eyes and stifled a yawn. It was 8:37PM on a Thursday night and he was beyond exhausted. On some days, being a private investigator left you with some time on your hands.. On other days.. It didn't.
Absentmindedly, he reached for the tumbler sitting beside his open laptop, swirling the yellowish liquid inside as he studied the picture of the young woman in front of him.
Sreya Dronian.
The Kirkgardes were willing to pay triple the price he'd normally charge if he could find her presto. The relationship between the doctor and the only heir to the Kirkgarde family fortune and business was roaringly overt and owing to this, their desperation failed to spark his surprise.
Also, he wanted that money as much as he wanted to visit one of the best brothels in Verum City and soak himself inside a warm, willing body. Normally, Gary schedules his vis
Abused*:*Three weeks... It's been three weeks. Sreya's been counting. Every part of her exposed flesh was submerged in excruciating pain, so much so that it hurt to breathe. She felt weak and terribly drowsy.. As though, with each day that passed, she drew closer and closer to the stygian, dark gates of death. On some days, she came so close she could smell the rusty metal and taste it if she dared stick out her tongue.. But on days like this.. She realized that as much as she'd love to ecstaticly welcome her demise and surcease her suffering, she still had memories of Xaver, the girls and her family to keep her strong. She missed them so much and there was literally nothing she won't give to be with them at this moment. In the silence, the shrill
IN THE IMMURING darkness, the private detective took an incredibly long drag of his cigar, upper eyelids drifting close as he felt the smoke heat his lungs and sheath his whole body in a buzzing satisfactory warmth.Sitting in his aweary Toyota, Gary ignored the harsh bite of the incredibly cold air on his nose and cheeks as he warmed his body from within. Gazing outside his window, he let his eyes roam the abandoned, crumbling building that had once been a mental asylum.The towering, desolate edifice illuminated by the faint, silver beams of the moon seemed ghostlier and more haunting than Gary remembered. As a long trail of dark smoke from his cigar ascended towards the pitch-black sky, he recalled the little he'd read about the deinstitutionalization of the yawning, tardily disintegrating building before him.Years ago, on a date that eluded him—Gary wasn't good with dates—th
{Freedom}XAVER'S CARE FOR speed limits flew out the window as he sped down tarred road, wheels racing towards John Bernards Hospital.He'd been working up a sweat in the gym when he'd gotten a call that Sreya was in the hospital, alive but unconcious. A humongous wave of icy relief had washed over him from head to toe, cooling his agitated mind and frantic nerves. He hadn't even bothered to take a shower, he'd only pulled a black shirt over his head and threw on jeans before running to his car. At least she was alive, she was all right... But was her mind okay? Would she be strong enough to pull through the trauma a second time? Will her heart be brave enough to heal like it'd done once?
"HOW MANY TIMES a day do pregnant women have mood swings?" Xaver inquired as he loosened the death grip his black tie had on his windpipes. Currently, he was seated in his car, outside his residence. The golden face that filled his screen frowned, "A gazillion times, why?" Xaver ignored her question, "Causes?" She lifted her thumb as she began to count, "Fatigue, anxiety, little to no sleep, hormones, et cetera" Xaver frowned. His wife wasn't anxious or sleep deprived so it must be the hormones? Or fatigue because she's always tired these days. "Any remedies for fast results?" Dinah wasted no time, "Exercise. Sweets. Stifling attention. Amazing foot rubs and body massages" Exercise. Check. Stifling attention. Check. Amazing foot rubs and body massages. Check. Sweets... Sounded like a bad idea. He's actually been m
SHE HAD A WALK like water but she was fire and she was gold. Fire was strong and tough. It hardly forgave and when it did it never forgot. Unforgiving and relentless, fire was.Gold was innocent and child-like. Gold seduced you. Sometimes, on purpose. Most times, ignorantly. She was bronze too; Indecisive and troubled. Insecure.Fire and gold overshadowed bronze with their fierceness and charisma but as Xaver's Cyan eyes followed the six inch stilettos treading on the tiles, he saw bronze. He saw fire in her demeanor, gold in the brightness of her eyes and bronze beneath her facade. His eyes still stalking her, he thought of water as she moved. Her steps were deliberate and smooth. Almost crystalline. Everything about her was a contrast and damn him if it wasn't sexy as hell.She walked swiftly through rows of desks stacked with papers and chairs occupied by employees that all stared at her like she was Athena
THE ACHINGLY ARISTROCRATIC Kirkgarde Manor, located at 1813 Hill View, E.A in Verum City, Casterton State, was eleven thousand square feet of magnificence. Grandeur. Right before the massive oak doors leading to the interior of the aesthetic mansion lay a long rectangular shaped fountain, smooth and well sculpted with fine hands. The tiled four corners were lined with a train of low well trimmed grass that could easily be mistaken for a green carpet. Crystalline water spurted upwards into the blue sky and downward into the hollow space in fours in a straight line.Behind, there was an outdoor fire pit with unblemished white cushioned chairs for recreation as borders. In the fire pit, the Kirkgardes traded tired looking fire logs, lava rocks or wood with elegant well-polished reflective gray fireglass. Fireglasses are recycled glass polished to sin. They sparkle like soft diamonds as yellow flames stained with blue dance
She was a queen in every way. And she knew it. At least, a part of her did. Or maybe that part just liked to think so. Walking down the quiet streets of Harlington—SREYA SLAMMED THE book shut with a sigh as her soft chocolate brown orbs scanned The Kofièn.Twenty years ago, the prestigious Persian Magazine had noted this as the best Café in Tales, but as she watched the senescent worn out curtains and mildly stained tiles, she couldn't help but admit that it had aged quite well over the years.The bulbs overhead were covered with a ceiling lampshade made of metal and sophisticated ornament. The roof was undoubtedly worked on every month to avoid leakages. Tables with round tops hid the geriatric tiles, the tablecloths a healthy white colour but worn out around the edges. The cruet stand, a small glass stand containing salt and pepper shakers were used as center pieces and loo
THE CHARITY EVENT was held in a very magnanimous hall, one could mistake it for a royal ball. Sreya was in awe. She'd been surprised when she'd tucked herself in last night to check her email and saw the invite. Turns out the email arrived few days ago but she hardly ever checked them so yeah. She'd never been invited to anything related with K.G Inc before so this caught her off guard.After seeing the invite, she'd googled Xaver. She knew it screamed "stalker" and was very immature of her but she couldn't help it. She found out he was engaged not married and it had been arranged. She really hoped he was happy.Right now, she desperately needed to seat down, she shouldn't have worn these stilettos, her toes were cramped and her feet hurt. She wouldn't be surprised if her feet died from suffocation and her stomach frizzed from all the alcohol she's been sipping. Not less than five minutes later, a lady who introduced herself as the executi