by C. D. Samuda
It’s been hours since Gage left me in the basement with the cold seeping into me. My bones rattled from the cold and my skin started to crack. I was not only losing my mind, I could feel my consciousness slipping away. My tongue was dry and the blood on my face caked. Oh, what I would do with him once I was free… if only I could get free.
A faint laugh escaped my lips as I pondered my dilemma. The fucker had won. I couldn’t believe I lost the game so easily. I clearly had underestimated my brother Gage. He used to be the one with the heart, always giving more than he took. He made me sick to the stomach with his selfless attitude. I guess I created a monster when I sent him to prison. The man had become heartless, leaving me to die in a godforsaken butcher’s basement. One where I could still smell the old blood from the animals. The ghosts of the dead animals could be heard screaming for their lost lives.
“Ha-ha-ha,” I laughed, even though I could barely hear my own voice.
I created another me, except, I’d have shot him between the eyes. This was a worse fate as the rats nipped at my feet, making me their next meal. Even with the hate roiling through me, I had to admit a new found respect for my brother. If I make it out alive, the game would get quite interesting.
A rat bit into my toe, eliciting a scream from me. The only problem was my gag muffled the sound. Kicking hard, I was able to dislodge his teeth from my flesh. That kick took almost every ounce of energy I had remaining. Every joint and muscle in my body now ached. The pain was tearing through my head and chest and my stomach clenched from pangs of hunger. Gage was a dead man.
“You’re dead,” I grunted. “You’re fucking dead, Gage!”
My brain was shutting down, whether from sleep or exhaustion, I was unable to discern the difference now. All I could tell was that darkness was fast overwhelming me. A sound from the upper level caused cold fingers to crawl over my skin and an icy feeling running down my spine. I wasn’t sure what the sound was, but I didn’t hold out hope that some Good Samaritan would find me.
I kept still, trying to listen. The sounds approached and I relaxed my shoulders as I recognize footsteps and voices. They sounded like kids. There was hope yet. I was tempted to rattle my chains, but that would perhaps scare them. Therefore, I kept still, waiting for them to find me as I was unable to speak due to the gag in my mouth.
“It’s around here somewhere,” a male voice said.
They were descending the basement steps. “Are you sure?” Another voice asked. “This place gives me the creeps.”
“The switch should be around here somewhere,” the first one mentioned. “Ah, here it is.”
Suddenly the room flooded with light, blinding me. I squeezed my aching eyes shut and kept still, hoping they would see me before I made any movements.
“Holy shit!” One of them exclaimed. “What the fuck?”
‘Shit dude, is he dead?”
“I don’t know. Let’s find the stash and get out of here, man.”
“We can’t just leave him here.”
“He’s fucking dead. There nothing…”
I rattled my chains and slowly opened my eyes, groaning and swaying my head as much as was possible given that I was drained of energy.
“He’s alive,” one of them now declared. I wasn’t certain which one as the voices were now confused in my mind.
“What should we do?”
“What do you mean? Call the cops, man.”
“No,” one adamantly protested. “We would have to give a statement and shit. I don’t want to deal with no coppas.”
The footsteps approached as I tried to see through the glare of the light bulb which hung overhead. My eyes ached badly and I had to blink several times. I could tell when they reached in front of me as they conversed in whispers.
“Let’s loose him, then get the stash and get outta here.”
“You sure ‘bout this. What if he snitches on us?”
“Are you crazy? We’re helping him. He won’t snitch.”
“Alright.”
After a moment’s hesitation, they began to untie me. It took some effort on their part, but my arms finally were free from the chains, lowering them was the most painful thing I had ever experienced as the muscles had frozen in place for hours. They loosed the shackles from my feet and finally freed me of the mouthpiece.
My legs gave out and I sank to the filthy floor. I could barely sit up, but I managed not to pass out completely. I raised my eyes to my saviors and noted that they were no more than teen boys. One appeared to be a Latino and the other one and African American.
“Thank you,” my voice came out a hoarse whisper. “I owe you my life.”
They turned away and began to leave. “Let’s go.”
“Wait,” I said. “Please, lend me your cell phone.”
The black one came back and took a cell phone from his pocket. “Please don’t call the cops,” he said. “We didn’t do anything wrong.”
“I know. You saved me and I will repay you. How about fifty grand?”
“Shit!”
“Now lend me your phone and relax.”
I could barely hear my own voice now as it seemed distant. He handed me the phone which I could barely see, now that my eyes were blurry and I was quickly losing consciousness. I asked him to dial the number. Before the line opened, I was sinking into oblivion. Shit. How could I die when these boys just saved me?
3 – Braun
Angel, his men and the other two security guards had followed me to the gate. As I stood to my feet, I heard someone talking on the phone. I assumed they had called 911. This was a distraction for me. As far as I was concerned, Calvin deserved his fate. All that was on my mind was finding Gage and finishing Leroy if my soft hearted brother didn’t.
I knew Gage was tough, I had no doubt about his ability as a contender. But something about going against his brother was something Gage wrestled with. I watched him battle the demon since he was in prison. What Leroy did to him cut deeper than anyone realized. Even with such a deep betrayal, Gage was reluctant to send Leroy to his grave.
I thought about our original plan to take Leroy down. But as I investigated my brother, I knew it was futile reporting him to the local police. The list of officers whose palms he greased to keep his affairs untouched in Detroit in the state was never ending. Our father always taught us to respect the law, but as I discovered my brother’s affairs, I lost that respect and trust. It was left to us now to do the right thing.
I knew that people would question our decision not to involve the authorities, but they had no clue what we were dealing with. Leroy wasn’t just some street thug. He was the son of Roman Wilder, an internally renowned business mogul with connections reaching Asia and the far Pacific. Leroy used those connections to build his empire. Moreover, he wasn’t a one man band. In addition to his law enforcement connections, he had partners in high places.
El Lobo’s boss was on the FBI’s watch list as one of the most dangerous drug lords of the decade. Although Leroy was boss in his city, he was a part of an organization that reached Columbia, the Caribbean and Mexico. We had to be careful about getting caught in the middle of a weapon and drug war. This was a family fight, and even though I wasn’t afraid of getting caught in the middle, my priority was protecting my brother Gage.
Gage was not only my legal guardian and older brother. He was the father figure, my role model. I respected his family loyalty in that he didn’t want his own brother’s blood on his conscience, and that was why I would gladly do what he wouldn’t. With that, I left the dead body of Calvin to those who cared less about Gage.
When I returned to the living room, Ron and Rayne were talking. She’d dried her tears and was looking more in control of her emotions. She stood as I entered and came over to me.
“Braun, what happened?”
“Someone shot Calvin,” I replied in an easy tone.
She gasped. “Is he dead?”
“Don’t get so emotional Rayne. It’s t
ime you toughen up and realize this is a war we are fighting and there’s no room for emotional breakdowns and tears. Got that?”
“You don’t have to be so harsh about it Braun. Is he dead or not?’
“Yes, that traitor who helped put your fiancé behind bars got what was coming to him.”
“What?”
I stepped closer to her, looking directly into her widened eyes. “Yes, Rayne, Calvin was the one who shot Bainbridge on your husband’s orders.”
“He’s not my fucking husband!” She shrieked. “Don’t you call him that! I’m as much a victim as Gage was,” she continued, her voice cracking even though her anger was evident. “I hate that bastard as much as you do.”
“Then stop being an emotional mess and be strong, at least for your son and Gage.”
I was pleased that my taunting of her got a rise from her. What I needed from Rayne was strength and fortitude, not the damsel in distress. She needed to hold it together for her child as well, and I didn’t want to have to worry about her when I was not around.
I picked up my backpack and started moving towards the front door.
Rayne grabbed my upper arm. “Where are you going?”
“To find my brother.”
“You really think he’s alive?”
I turned my head in her direction. “I know he is. Now let go of my arm. I need to skip before the police arrives.”
“Are you sure about this?” She questioned.
I turned fully to face her, my voice betraying annoyance at her delaying tactics. “Stop with your twenty questions. I need to go find my brother.”
“You don’t have to be so damn mean. I’m just concerned about you and I want Gage home too.”
“Then let me go, so I can bring him home.”
“Be careful,” she said, her voice soft. “I don’t want you getting hurt.”
“The only one getting hurt, Sister-in-law, is Leroy.”
I must have said something nice to her because the next thing she was hugging me and telling me how much she was counting on me to bring Gage home. I had to extricate myself from her grasp and leave before she delayed me further. Angel and his team would have accompanied me, but I needed space to breathe and told them I would call as soon as I needed backup. They left a minute before I did, insisting that I call as soon as I had any information about Gage.
As I drove away from Wilder Oaks, I ran through my mind all that happened in the last hour or so. The police sped by me on their way to the mansion and I sighed with relief that I got out of there in time. Ron and the security guards were there to handle it. Ron would make sure that whatever statement was given would omit my name. I didn’t want to get involved in any kind of police investigation at the moment. My main focus now was finding both Gage and Leroy.
My first stop would be the site of the accident and then I’d have to locate the sonofabitch I knew was responsible. I knew he caused my accident and I knew he was responsible for this one was as well. As soon as I had all the facts on what caused this alleged accident, I would know for certain what to be done.
4 – Braun
Without thinking I’d taken Gage’s Jaguar which he’d refused to drive after being released. The car had been serviced recently and still purred like a woman being pleasured. Prison had done something to Gage that made him act differently than before. He’s insisted on wearing the same old clothes he’d had for over five years and had wanted to trade the Jag for something like a Honda. And this had nothing to do with money. The car he asked me to get him was a cheap model and I had to convince him to leave the Jag alone.
At the time when Gage was sent to prison, his personal net worth exceeded forty billion dollars. Since I was still in High school, Rayne was put in charge of his Wilder Industry Shares and his personal bank accounts put on hold. His personal investments were managed by Ron, his lawyer. So my brother wasn’t exactly pauperized when he stepped out of that maximum security facility a few weeks ago.
One would have thought that being locked away for five years would have debased my brother. I admit he came out grittier, but still the same loyal, selfless softy he had always been. I couldn’t say the same about me. For those five years, I felt as though I had been the one in prison. It appeared that I had been the one wronged and I knew it was selfish of me to think this way. However, Leroy took away my only support system and then tried to have him killed. I wasn’t going to let that slide. In all this, I was the one he despoiled… not Gage.
When I arrived at the location of the crash site, the fire department was still there, even though the fire was already doused. There were a few bystanders and a few cops still there. The body they found had already been removed and the shell of the vehicle loaded onto a wrecker. I stopped a few meters away and waited.
While I waited for the police to finish clearing the area, I made a call to Stephen, one of my college friends who had been instrumental in blocking Leroy’s bank accounts as well as designing the new eye scan security system now installed at the house. I knew he’d be awake when I called. Sometimes I wondered if Stephen slept at all as he was always awake at night working some plot to take down corrupt politicians. He’d joined an organization of hacker whose mandate was bring these politicians to justice.
He answered my call immediately. “I was expecting your call.”
“You saw the news?” I asked, knowing that he did.
“Yep, and already tracked your brother’s cell phone. The last person he spoke to was Rayne and he was in the car at the location of the accident during that phone call.”
“There was only one body in that wreckage, Stephen and it wasn’t Gage.”
“Are you sure?”
“My gut tells me it’s not him and the forensic report will confirm it.”
“Okay, I’m with you. But I also traced your other brother’s cell. His phone lost signal about a half hour before the accident at a location not far away.”
“Can you pinpoint the exact location?”
“It’s some old butcher shop that has been closed for a few years.”
I knew Leroy did his business dealings in these shady locations. But it’s suspicious that he was close by when Gage’s car caught fire. When Gage left to find his son, he insisted that I remain behind to protect Rayne. He did not tell me what he had planned with Leroy, but I suspected that they met in that old butcher shop. The restaurant where Leroy threatened Rayne was next door to it and Gage would have likely taken Leroy there to confront him. Stephen agreed to trace Leroy’s calls and get back to me with his findings.
A half hour later, the area was clear. All the cops and the fire department were now gone and I was free to take a look. According to the reports, only one body was found in the wreckage – not two. If Gage was indeed driving, then where was Hank? Something was fishy about this and I needed to figure it out soon in order to locate Gage.
There were only charcoal remaining where the accident happened. Nothing identifiable was left behind of which I could associate with my brother. I left the site feeling frustrated that I found no clue a two where he might be.
The butcher’s old warehouse was only a block away and I went there next. By this time, it was way past two in the morning and the warehouse was like an old haunted house. I retrieved my flashlight from the backpack and ventured inside. The upper level was quiet and I suspected that the place was void of any life form.
I walked around for a while until I came upon some steps leading down to what appeared to be a basement. Using the flashlight as a guide, I descended into the gloom. I found a switch on the right wall which I flipped. An overhanging light bulb came on with a few blinks.
Chains with freshly dried blood were in the center of the room. My heart jerked, wondering if Leroy finally accomplished his evil endeavors. I continued to check the underground room which was cold and musty. As I moved around, my feet crunched an object, I stooped to pick it up and realized it was a smashed cell phone, one I did not recognize.
The light from the bulb was not bright enough for me to see everything that was on the floor, so I switched on the flashlight once more.
After examining the shattered pieces of cell phone, found the SIM card in the rubble. I took it up and dropped it in my left breast jacket pocket. This was my only clue so far. Of thing I was sure of, that one or both of my brothers were in this basement. Whether they both came out alive was eft to be seen. I also knew if I found Leroy, I’d probably find Gage as well.
5 – Braun
If there was one place Leroy might end up after an encounter with Gage it would be his girlfriend Zoe. I left Downtown Grand Rapids and headed east. With little to no traffic, I burned the pavement and reached her apartment in forty five minutes. As I decelerated and pulled up in front of the apartment, someone on a motorbike pulled up in front of my car. I had to brake suddenly to keep from colliding with the idiot who was obviously drunk. I swear I’d pop a slug in his skull if he’s scratched the Jaguar.
I parked, stepped from the car and marched over with a warning. “You stay away from my vehicle you drunken piece of…”
The words from my lips hung in the air as the rider pulled off their helmet and turned to face me. With eyes ablaze and a few choice words coming from the prettiest lips I’d even seen, she closed the gap between us.
“You fucking retard,” she yelled. “Don’t you know how to signal?”
“Me?” I retorted. “You are the one who pulled in front of me.”
“You had your reverse light on, you moron.”
“You must be as blind as you are drunk… or maybe high on something. Anyway, I don’t have time for whiny little girls.”
