Lies, Lies, Lies

by David A Max

  The Colour of Deception

  by David A Max

  Copyright © 2018 by David A Max

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  Published by WriterMotive

  www.writermotive.com

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 1

  There was a very loud noise followed by sounds like thunder in the alleyway. Jake was petrified and disoriented, he tried to run away from where the loud noise was coming from, but he tripped and fell. As he tried to get up he turned back and saw a figure that looked like a man; from a distance it looked like it was about 6ft tall and its body looked like glass, it looked really scary. Jake screamed for help as the figure walked towards him, but when it got close to him the glass-like figure turned out to be a man wearing a reflective jacket. Jake sighed with relief.

  The man in the jacket stretched out his hands to help Jake up, Jake grabbed his hands and the man pulled him up. The man was blond, well-built and had blue eyes. Jake thanked him for helping him up, and asked him if he had heard the loud noise. “Yes I did,” the man replied, but said he didn’t have a clue what must have caused such a loud noise.

  The man introduced himself as Kevin and stretched out his hand to shake Jake’s. After shaking hands, Jake introduced himself, “I’m Jake, I was on my way home from work, my apartment is just five minutes away.” Kevin smiled but before he could reply, they both heard another loud noise followed by more thunder-like sounds, which this time lasted for about three minutes. They both took to their heels and ran in the same direction away from the noises, and while they were running Jake told Kevin to follow him as his apartment was just a minute away. They ran into his building, and rushed into the lift where Jake pressed number seven as his apartment was on the seventh floor.

  They got out of the lift on the seventh floor, Jake quickly got his keys out and opened the door and told Kevin to come in. He switched on the light and they both sat down on the couch trying to catch their breath.

  “You have a nice apartment,” Kevin said as he looked round the room. Jake’s apartment was a luxury two-bedroom apartment, well decorated and had some luxurious fittings.

  “I moved into the apartment about four months ago,” Jake replied. “I work for a finance company so my salary is not too shabby,” Jake said smiling.

  “That’s nice,” Kevin replied. As they both tried to calm down they heard the same loud noise from a distance, and they both wondered what was going on. The next minute there was a knock on Jake’s door. Jake wondered who it could be, because it was about 9:00 p.m., and it was unusual to have anybody coming to his place at that time of night during the week. He got up to open the door, but when he was about to open it Kevin stopped him, and said it was suspicious considering the fact that there were loud noises coming from outside. So Jake decided not to open the door. They heard two more knocks on the door and then the knocks stopped.

  After a while, Jake peeped through the keyhole and there was no one there, so he cautiously opened the door to check if there was anybody outside; thankfully, it was all clear, he shut the door and told Kevin there was no one there.

  Kevin got up and heaved a sigh of relief, “Jake, I have to leave now.” Kevin put his hand in his pocket and brought out a business card and handed it to Jake, “Please give me a call tomorrow, so we can discuss what happened today. I’ll get a taxi when I get downstairs.” Kevin thanked Jake who nodded and waved him goodbye. Jake locked his front door behind Kevin and sat down on his Italian leather sofa, he was tired and had a lot running through his mind, multiple questions were racing through his mind; what is happening? What was causing the loud noise? Why were there knocks on his door? So many questions raced through his mind, until he finally fell asleep on his sofa.

  The next morning, Jake’s daily alarm went off at seven o’clock; he got up from the sofa and quickly had a shower and got ready for work. He left his apartment, got into the lift and was about to leave the main entrance when someone nudged him, they both turned back to look at each other. Jake thought to himself, ‘that was rude, that man just nudged me and he couldn’t apologise,’ but Jake didn’t stop to say anything, he just kept walking so he wouldn’t get to work late, but the man actually stopped and kept staring at Jake until he walked away.

  8:55 a.m., Jake got to work; work started for him at 9:00 a.m. He was the Chief Investment Officer at Talan Holdings, and he had an important Board meeting that was starting at 9:00 a.m. that morning. After two long hours the Board meeting ended, and everybody got up to go to their offices. The company CEO, Mrs Gina Davies (she was also called ‘She Hulk’ behind her back) got up and called Jake and told him to see her in her office straight away.

  Jake quickly gave his files to his secretary and followed Gina to her office. Gina was a beautiful, tall and athletic-looking forty-year-old woman, she got the name She Hulk because she was a go-getter and did not believe anything was impossible to achieve. Jake and his boss entered her office, Jake shut the door behind him and by the time he turned back, Gina shoved him against a wall and they started kissing, kissing and breathing heavily. Jake and his boss had been having a secret affair for about six months; Gina had fallen in love with Jake and didn’t want to be with her husband of ten years any more. As they both kissed and caressed each other there was a knock on the door. Jake and Gina hurriedly adjusted their clothes and quickly sat down opposite each other at her desk before she asked who it was. Her secretary said that she was the one knocking, and Gina told her to come in.

  The secretary came in and said, “Sorry to disturb you Mrs Davies, but Mr Davies is here to see you.” Gina was shocked and Jake could see the shock on her face, “What does he want to discuss with me in the office?” she mumbled to herself. She looked up and told her secretary to let him in. The secretary left and told Mr Davies to go in. Mr Davies walked into her office and said hello to his wife and Jake, and Gina told Jake to please excuse them. Jake got up and said, “Nice meeting you Mr Davies,” and left the office.

  When everybody had left, Gina asked her husband what he had come to discuss with her in the office that couldn’t wait until she got home. Mr Davies looked at her and said he had to go away for a month to attend to his sick mother. Gina replied, “Your mother is eighty-two years old!”

  “Yes I know that,” Mr Davies replied, “but she said it was like her last wish, in case she passes away.”

  Gina agreed with him and said, “You don’t have a choice, since she put it that way.”

  “Thank you for understanding,” her husband nodded. “I’ll be leaving this evening,” he added, and they both smiled, then he got up and left her office.

  Ten minutes after Mr Davies left her office, Gina sent Jake a message; ‘meet me at the George restaurant at 6:00 p.m. tonight.’ Jake got the message and smiled, he felt a bit guilty because he had seen Mr Davies earlier, but thought to himself, ‘she is my boss and I might get fired’, and he was beginning to really fall for her.

  At 6:00 p.m., Jake entered the George restaurant, he looked round and in a corner he saw Gina sippin
g a cup of coffee, so he walked towards her and sat in the chair opposite her at her table. “How are you?” he asked, “hope you haven’t been waiting for long?”

  Gina looked at him and smiled, “No my love, I got here five minutes ago. What would you like to drink and eat?” she asked, waving to the waiter to come to their table.

  Jake picked up the menu, the waiter was now standing by their table; he ordered the ‘pasta prawn special’ and a cold glass of wine. Gina told the waiter she would have the same thing. When the waiter left, Jake turned to look at the view outside, it was quite serene as the restaurant was overlooking a lake. “The view is quite lovely, I feel relaxed whenever I come here,” Jake said, talking to Gina but still enjoying the view. A man outside walked past the big glass window; Jake paused and looked at the man properly, “That was the man that nudged my shoulder this morning when I was leaving my apartment.”

  Gina smiled and said, “What a coincidence!”

  Twenty minutes later their meal was served, and after they finished their food Gina suggested to Jake that they should go to a quiet secluded bed & breakfast so that no one would see them. She told him her husband was out of town for a month and she was all his, so they both got up and left the restaurant.

  The Blue bread & breakfast was quiet and secluded, just the perfect spot away from prying eyes. They both drove into the Blue parking lot, parked their cars, got out and Jake grabbed Gina’s hand as they both walked towards the Reception.

  A man walked out of the Reception and walked towards them; Jake looked at the man’s face and noticed it was the same man that nudged his shoulder in front of his building, and he remembered he had just seen the same man at the George restaurant. As they walked past each other, Jake kept a straight face and walked into the Reception. He grabbed Gina’s hand a little tighter, trying to signal to her with his shoulder. Gina turned back and saw a guy walking towards his car and she asked Jake what the problem was. Jake whispered to her that it was the same man he had seen twice earlier today.

  At the Reception desk they booked a room for the night. The room was number 201 on the first floor, so they climbed the flight of stairs and walked towards their room. At the entrance of their room, Jake brought out the keys and was about to open the door when Gina tapped his shoulder. He turned back and she was pointing at a man at the end of the hallway, standing and staring directly at them; Jake looked at the man, and saw that it was the same man he had been seeing all day. He opened the door and they both rushed in, and he locked the door behind them.

  They sat on the bed and froze with fear, and after what seemed like ten minutes, Jake asked her if she knew whether her husband had asked people to follow them and that maybe he had found out about their affair. Gina said no, it wasn’t possible, “I hardly talk to my husband, in fact I don’t have a clue about what he is up to these days and I don’t think he has a clue what I do any more. This is very odd.”

  They started thinking about the strange man following them, and Jake suddenly recalled the night before when he’d heard some mysterious noises and he remembered Kevin. Checking his pockets, he brought out Kevin’s card, took out his mobile phone and dialled Kevin’s number.

  When the phone rang, Kevin picked up and said, “Hello, Kevin speaking.”

  Jake quickly answered and said, “Hello Kevin it’s me, Jake from last night, we both heard some loud noises in the alley close to my house.”

  Kevin said, “Yes I remember, Jake how are you?” he asked, “I’ve been expecting your call.”

  “I think there is a strange man following me, I’ve seen him a couple of times today,” Jake said, “the man is practically outside my door now, at Blue bed & breakfast.”

  Kevin said, “I know Blue B&B, I’ll come and get you now, it seems you might need help.”

  “Thank you so much,” Jake replied, “call me when you get here.”

  Jake and Gina sat and waited for Kevin to come and pick them up, and while they waited Jake kept peeping out through the spy hole in the door to see if the anyone was outside. “There’s no one out there,” Jake told Gina.

  Forty-five minutes had passed since Jake had spoken to Kevin and he wasn’t there yet. Jake picked up his phone to call Kevin again, but as he was about to dial Kevin’s number, his phone rang and he picked it up. “Hello,” Jake answered.

  “Hello it’s me Kevin, I’m downstairs in a black SUV, hurry up I’m waiting for you.”

  Jake grabbed Gina’s hand, opened the door, looked left and right to see if the man was still standing outside. They both rushed downstairs, and dropped their key quickly at Reception. The receptionist wondered why they had dropped their key so early, but they didn’t have time for chatting. They ran towards the black SUV, which was a beautiful fully loaded Porsche SUV, top of the range, and as they ran towards it another car pulled out of the car park and inside the car was the man that had been following Jake all day. The strange man’s car sped towards them, Jake and Gina jumped into the waiting SUV and shut the door; immediately the door was shut the SUV drove off, pursued by the other car.

  The SUV swerved in and out of motor lanes in order to escape from the car that was in pursuit. As the car swayed, Jake realised that Kevin was sitting next to him, another man was driving, and a well-built man sat in the front of the SUV. The driver kept driving until the SUV suddenly turned into a small dirt road, but the strange man’s car couldn’t make the turn in time; the SUV had managed to escape from the other car and everybody in the car heaved a sigh of relief.

  “Kevin do you have a clue what’s going on?” Jake asked.

  “I don’t know,” Kevin replied, “but I’ll take you two to my place, it’s on the outskirts of town and you can wait there until we figure out what to do next.”

  About an hour later they arrived at Kevin’s place, the time was about 10:45 p.m. There was a main gate into the property, a code was entered and when the gate opened they drove into the property. Jake was speechless, the property was an estate in Newport Beach, Orange County, in southern California, it was one of the most expensive counties in the whole of the United States. The gate was a good one minute to two minutes’ drive from the main property. The property was a mansion, one of the biggest Jake had seen, and the lawn and flowers in front stretched for acres.

  Jake was overwhelmed, “Is this your property?” Jake asked Kevin.

  “Yes,” Kevin answered, “relax, when you get inside the house and rest we can talk better.”

  Gina at this point had become speechless, she was still in shock and wondered why a stranger was after them, and now she was in a property that looked like Buckingham Palace. The whole thing to her was too much to handle.

  The SUV parked in front of the main entrance to the building, and at the entrance a butler opened the door for Kevin and a housekeeper opened the door for Gina. When they got down from the car they saw several workers who welcomed them. Jake and Gina stood in awe at the entrance, as they watched all the workers about ten in number saying hello to them. Kevin walked towards them and stood beside Jake and Gina, he said, “Listen all of you,” talking to his workers, “these are my special guests and I want you to treat them with special care, anything they want they must get, do you all understand?” and they all said, “Yes sir.” Kevin turned around and told Jake and Gina to go in and he welcomed them to his home.

  Kevin took them to one of the several sitting rooms in the mansion, Jake and Gina sat down and marvelled at the level of opulence displayed in the property. “This place is marvellous,” Gina said while looking around. The floors were made of expensive marble, the walls were stone mixed with marble and gold trimmings, and the ceiling was adorned with all sorts of majestic paintings of winged creatures and human-like figures. The chandeliers and fittings were embellished with gold, the furniture was intricately designed, each section had a different appearance, the interior of the house was a marvel.

  “You actually told me my apartment was nice, but my apartment is sure no
t as grand as your toilet!” Jake joked.

  Kevin smiled and said, “I actually liked your apartment,” then called one of the housekeepers to take them to their room. It had been a long day and everybody needed to rest.

  Jake and Gina said goodnight to Kevin and walked behind the housekeeper who took them to their room. The hallway was quite long with paintings on the wall; the paintings looked old and expensive. Gina whispered to Jake, “Who is Kevin, what does he do and how did you meet him?” The housekeeper stopped and opened the door to the room where they were going to spend the night, immediately the door was flung open you could smell like a mild perfume scent coming out of the room. They entered the room and it was a grand room; the bed was large, and surprisingly the room had a lot of modern fittings compared to the other parts of the house. There was also a staircase in the room to an upper level which had a mini library, and a large modern television that came out of the bed post. “Lovely!” Gina exclaimed. The housekeeper asked them if they needed anything else, “Could you get us a cup of coffee and some snacks?” asked Gina. The housekeeper showed them a table in the corner of the room, where there was a kettle and all manner of snacks set out. “Oh thank you, that will be all then.” The housekeeper turned and left the room.

  “Jake what is going on?” Gina asked, “What have you done and why is someone chasing us around and who is Kevin?”

  Jake said, “Calm down Gina, I don’t have a clue what’s going on myself.” He put his hand in his pocket and pulled out Kevin’s card; the name on the card was Kevin Brian, C.E.O., Chandon Investments. Jake took out his phone and searched the name ‘Kevin Brian’, and when it came up he showed the search to Gina. “He is 47 years old and worth $16 billion and his company owns shares in everything from oil to tech companies, no wonder he is so rich and he is actually my age-mate. The only question I have is what he was doing in an alley close to my house, alone, yesterday evening, since he lives so far out of town; I have questions to ask him.”