‘Time is on my side, yes, it is...’ he continued with his favorite band, The Rolling Stones. A smile came to life as he remembered travelling to London for their concert.
Was it 1983 or 84? he thought. It was a once in a lifetime experience, that’s for sure.
Inevitably, his mind thought of his trip’s companion. His ex-wife, Rena.
‘No, Maximos. Don’t go down that street,’ he whispered. The love of his life, he did her wrong way too many times. A fan of the booze and the so-called weaker sex, Maximos was not made out for marriage. Three kids followed, two hated him while his youngest daughter put up with him, mostly to enjoy his expensive gifts. It had been three years since he had last spoken to Rena. A typical conversation over the phone. She asked for a raise in child support, and he replied with a casual, ‘Fine, no problem.’
Money came easy to Maximos, if not always in a completely legal way.
‘It’s just bending the rules,’ he would say, and it was his motto not only to his farming business but to life.
Two hours came, ruled and evanesced.
The image of tied-up Maximos on what seemed to be a metal runway, like those used in factories to move products around, appeared on screens around the country.
‘Nexttodie votes have passed the one hundred thousand mark. Congratulations, Greece. As always, your wishes are my command. The leech of sponsored funds has been chosen. The multimillionaire farmer with the extravagant life, Maximos is next to pay for his sins. Sins made on our backs with our tax money...’
‘Fuck you, man. I worked hard,’ Maximos shouted and brought a sad smile upon the faces of those who knew him. They all knew his sins, they all knew he did not work hard for his vast fortune. Now, they were about to witness his death.
‘... As a farmer, you must know what a combine harvester is.’
And with that, a loud noise spread out in the low-ceilinged basement. Maximos began to move backwards. More lights pushed shadows back into their corners and Maximos leaned his head back to see where his destination would be. A long, red harvester –the type he owned many of, his favorites to collect wheat- spun round just feet away from him. Upon it shiny, sharp blades had been added.
‘Mince-meat it is,’ he joked.
‘Rena,’ he yelled. ‘Rena, my love. I’m sorry. You deserved better. I truly, truly loved you. All those whores meant nothing, my queen. Vasili, Sergio, Polina, you are the best things that I ever planted. Live your lives to the fullest,’ he said as he felt the wind from the machine blowing on his hair.
‘One last song,’ he thought and began to sing the chorus from Frank Sinatra’s anthem. ‘I did it my way...’ were the last words that came out of Maximos’s loud, foul-mouth lips. He did not scream, though the pain was excruciating. His body shook as it was eaten up by the machinery. Blood spatter covered the machine, and body tissue was flung into the air as Maximos was ground into pieces.
As the last, prolonged beep representing his heart silenced, the voice came back.
‘Two hours.’
Chapter 27
‘There’s nearly no one left!’ Elias cried as Maximos was executed. ‘Think of the group. Who’s left? Shit, we are next. I feel it. All this because our parents are rich and we posted a few photos on Instagram. Fuuuuck!’
His brother, Dinos, walked up and down the room behind him, biting his nails.
‘Not that I wish bad on anyone, but there is still that sexy lady who owns Humbo, the gentleman with the name of a Greek god and the two cops,’ Clio said calmly as she stood in the corner of the room, her head leaned back on the wall and her eyes closed. ‘Wow, you two are right. I am bad with names.’
‘Diana, Apollo, Alexandro and, and, and Valentina. And you’re forgetting the bi... bishop’s wife, Salome,’ Dinos said.
‘Your memory never ceases to amaze me. We only really heard all their names during the listing of our crimes,’ Clio said, sarcasm enwrapping the last word. ‘If they murdered the Bishop alone, I doubt they will kill his wife from now on.’
‘Yes, because they have shown such a kind heart so far, right?’ Elias snapped.
Clio exhaled and opened her eyes. ‘Well, she wasn’t on the blame list, was she?’
‘Cops weren’t either,’ Dinos commented.
‘The group of ladies was certain that the cops were actors.’
‘Which means, Clio, we are, at most, three kills away from being slaughtered,’ Elias said, breathing heavily, his fingers grouped together into tight fists.
Clio looked around the bare room. The walls seemed so close. She watched her brothers and thought, At least, we are together.
She slid down the wall and sat on the hard ground. She fought back tears as she realized that maybe she would witness her brothers die. Just then she thought of her poor parents. They had tried for years to have children without success. After countless of fruitless procedures, one day the gynecologist announced to her mother, that not only was she finally pregnant, but she was carrying triplets. Not a single soul on the planet was happier that day than her parents. And now, they were going to watch all three of them perish before their eyes.
‘We have to get out of here,’ she said, her throat clogged up.
‘No shit, Sherlock. How?’
Clio looked up at the cameras. Both with a red light. She was sure they were switched off and came on during their executions.
‘We first have to die.’
Both brothers stared at their sister. What was brewing in her mind?
Rooms away, Diana gave up searching the room for food or anything she could use. She had hoped for a knife. She pictured herself stabbing her attacker. She always toyed with the idea of being the hero. Her grandfather’s war stories and the praise he received were idolized by her as a child.
A cheese-less mouse-trap, a dirty plunger, a bottle of expired dishwasher liquid and a small box of rat poison. Her plunder from her search. No knife.
I’ll blind them with the dishwasher, hit them with the plunger and force feed them the poison.
She chuckled at the thought. Her eyes remained fixed on the rat poison. ‘Could it work on humans?’ she pondered as she knelt and picked up the old box. She turned the box around and tried to read the faded letters.
‘Kills mice and rats... keep out of the reach of children... if accidentally swallowed, contact your doctor...’
Diana threw it back into the cupboard. ‘Nope, I am not dying like a freaking rotten. Puking and aching and then it probably won’t even work. Anyway, Nana always said Christians don’t commit suicide. ‘A high sin,’ she said, imitating her grandma’s shaky voice. ‘A special place in hell, God has for them. You are not even buried in the cemetery. They throw you over the wall.’
Diana sat back down on the floor. ‘This is the special hell, Nana.’
A click in the silence caught her attention. It came from behind the door. Diana placed her right hand on the floor and struggled to stand up. She controlled her breath and closed her eyes, ready for the worst. The door moved backwards and two hooded men, both with guns in their hands, entered the room. Diana had no time to react, no chance to be the hero as she desired. The chloroform-covered cloth settled on her mouth and nose. The tall man’s strong hands holding it down. The other injected her with a see-through liquid and Diana felt like falling. An avid skydiver, she knew the feeling well. The entire earth far from your feet. A sense of drowning in one’s mind and then, all goes blank.
Diana opened her drowsy eyes. It burned to fully open them, but she did not mind. Locked away in that kitchenette, she made peace with herself and swore to her inner, proud self that she would exit this world with her head held high. Though, fear conquered her heart on how she would leave this life. Just thinking of the previous deaths, made her backbone shiver and tremble. The dizziness of the drugs wore off gradually, and her ears heard the last words of the voice as he wished her a good death.
Viewers heard how three hundred and sixty-two workers lost the
ir jobs in a day. Above Diana’s head now hung a pot filled with liquid acid. Three hundred and sixty-two liters of it.
Diana waited for her sentence. She prayed it was not anything alive like bugs and rats. ‘A decent way to die, God.’
The pot of sulfuric acid tilted and death rained from above.
A whole body melted in less than a minute. Skin popping and vanishing in seconds, hair frizzling up and bones left to rot in a red pool of blood. A human body turned into a bloody soda.
‘Two hours, Prime Minister. Two hours. Tick tock, tick tock!’
Chapter 28
‘It’s pitch dark in here,’ Valentina said as she grabbed onto Alexandro’s hand and followed him into the cavernous hallway, her shadowy figure blending in with the blackness.
‘It gets narrow after a few steps. I can’t see a thing, but we can feel our way along the wall. Anywhere than back there,’ Apollo’s voice came from the darkness.
‘Wait,’ Valentina called out to him and stepped back out into the library. She searched around on the fireplace shelf and lifted up and teapot-looking ornament. ‘Yes!’
‘What is it, pumpkin?’
Valentina could not resist a smile. She resented the adjective – it wasn’t the thinnest of fruit- yet as Alexandro used it so fondly, with a sweetness in his voice, it grew on her.
‘Matches. A full box, too,’ she answered, and with one worried look behind her, she stepped into the secret passageway. She lit the first match, and faint light fought back the darkness. The walls were made out of old bricks and the mud that once glued them together had begun to turn to dust. Deserted spider webs were spread out among the rocks while mold and mildew covered a large portion of the ground.
The short-lived flames frizzled and vanished. Valentina lit the next, and with an exchange of stares with Alexandro, they both scurried along. Match by match, the group of three moved along.
‘What if this is a trap?’
‘How could it be, Valentina? They have no idea we would guess that the fireplace moved?’
‘Look at the flame. It’s leaning forward; the wind is behind us. We could be heading to a dead end.’
‘You worry too much,’ Apollo said. ‘It’s a hidden hallway. It should be closed on both ends.’
Alexandro stroked her hand. ‘We will find a way out,’ he reassured her.
The passage took a curve to the right and soon, they came to an end. Valentina lit three matches at once for more light. A Hobbit-sized door stood closed before them.
‘The key is on the door,’ Alexandro said, and his eyes opened wide. He squeezed Valentina’s hand and kissed her on the neck.
Apollo turned the key and pulled back the door by its huge round handle. The wooden door moaned as it was forced to move and scrapped its way along the floor.
‘Well, aren’t we fucking lucky,’ Apollo said as sunlight came rushing through. Waves crashing upon beach rocks and seagulls fighting over dead fish could be heard.
‘We are on the beach,’ Valentina said and ducked, peeping outside. No one was to be seen. From what she could tell from the windows above, they were at the back of the building. ‘We have to be careful not to be seen.’
‘And go where?’ Alexandro said.
‘We swim?’ Apollo suggested.
‘You mad?’ Valentina snapped and then apologized. ‘I mean, we have no idea how far we are from the next island or what direction to go.’
‘No. I’m the one that’s sorry,’ he replied. ‘You’re right. It’s just if we stay here, we’re dead.’
‘What about the ferry?’ Alexandro asked, also ducking and looking outside. The blue sea had never been so beautiful before. He took a deep breath of fresh air and let the warm sun play around upon his cold face.
‘If it’s still here, it will be up front where we docked,’ Valentina said and bit her lower lip.
‘Don’t darken your face. I promised you off this island, and off this God-forsaken rock we will go,’ Alexandro said and took her into his arms.
Just then, a vibration was felt by both of them. Valentina looked down at her leg.
‘Is that...’
‘My phone!’
Alexandro pulled out his cell from his right pocket, its green light illuminating the dark surroundings. ‘It’s Ioli!’
‘Unbelievable! You sure? Is it working?’ Apollo said and came closer, staring at the phone.
‘Hello? Oh, my God. Ioli! I can’t believe it’s you.’
Alexandro stepped back and bowed his head; his phone stuck to his ear. ‘ Yes, Valentina is here with me. Aha, hmm, yeah, okay...’ he lowered his voice and took another step back.
‘What’s wrong?’ Valentina asked, observing his eyes.
‘Nothing,’ he replied mumbling and avoiding eye contact. ‘Great news! The police know where we are and are on their way.’
Valentina closed her eyes and whispered, ‘Thank God.’
‘So, we stay put?’ Apollo asked. ‘No need to risk going outside.’
Valentina opened her eyes and turned towards Alexandro. ‘The triplets are still alive. They’re just kids...’
‘The police are on the way,’ Apollo said.
‘We are the police,’ she replied, pointing to herself and Alexandro. ‘And, time is almost up. With us gone, they will be next.’
‘Babe, how? Go out and walk around the place? It’s sealed off, and there are cameras everywhere.’
‘Man has a point,’ Apollo said, sitting down and leaning back against the wall.
‘However, now you say, we cannot stay here.’
‘Why not?’ Apollo said, slightly raising his voice.
‘If you are next, Apollo, that means that soon, men will come looking for you. In the library! And, guess what they will see? A passageway behind a fireplace.’
‘Shit,’ he said and quickly stood up, rubbing his lower back.
‘Maybe, that’s how we save the triplets. We go outside, find somewhere to hide. Let’s hope Apollo is next. Sorry, Apollo.’
‘No need,’ he said, waving his hand. ‘I get your point. If I am next, we gain time, with them looking for me. Let’s hope the police arrive on time, before they find us or turn on the Afroudaki kids.’
The group of three carefully stepped out into the sun. With their backs against the wall, and their eyes tuned to alert mode, they made their way to the mansion’s corner.
A row of bare hills ran along in the distance. Rocks and dried grass were all the hills housed. The hotel was the only building on the golden sandy beach.
‘Did Ioli say where we are?’
‘Pano Antikeri. A private island near Keros,’ Alexandro said.
Apollo looked back at them. ‘Pano, you said? Or Kato?’ (*Pano=Up, *Kato=Down).
‘Yeah, Pano. Why?’
‘You sure?’
Alexandro squinted his eyes. ‘What’s wrong, Apollo?’
‘Nothing, nothing,’ he said, shaking his head. ‘Erm, it’s just that you said private island. Kato Antikeri is privately owned. Not Pano.’
Alexandro took a step towards him. ‘That’s some genius trivial knowledge you have there. You know every privately owned rock in these vast waters?’
‘Hey,’ Apollo said, placing his hand upon Alexandro’s chest. ‘I’m in the fishing industry and have a photographic memory. What’s with the aggravation?’
Alexandro replied with a single, ‘Nothing.’
Valentina took him by the hand and rubbed his fingers with hers. ‘What’s up?’ she whispered.
‘Nothing. Let’s get to those hills. See there?’ he asked pointed in the distance. Valentina nodded. ‘Looks like a row of small caves. We’ll hide out there until Ioli and the police arrive.
Both looked around and above at the sealed windows of the mansion. Without saying another word, they both dashed out into the sunlight, away from the dark shadows of Hotel Murder. Apollo swallowed the lump in his throat and stood still for a second or two. He watched them sprint for the ca
ves. He placed one hand on the brick wall, scratched his hair with the other, whispered his favorite curse word and ran after them.
Chapter 29
The three men stood before their multiple monitors. Every inch of the mansion was being recorded. Many empty, dark rooms and a few rooms lit, featuring dead bodies.
They watched as Apollo, Valentina and Alexandro vanished into the dark cavity behind the 19th-century fireplace.
‘Okay, they are on their way,’ Platonas said, sitting in front of the screens’ control monitor.
‘What’s going on there?’ the forty-year-old man with the cat-like eyes asked, towering him from behind.
Their attention turned towards the man’s hairy finger, tapping on the 5th screen on the 2nd row.
‘Sound, please,’ he said.
‘On it, Dad,’ Platonas said and pressed the orange button with the sound symbol.
‘What are those triplets up to?’
In the round room, Clio and her brothers had no clue as to who was listening in.
The three stood in a small circle, close to each other and listened as Clio showed them her unlabeled nail vanish. ‘I will pretend its poison,’ she whispered as quietly as she could. ‘I will go into anaphylactic shock. You will pretend that I’m dying. Let me die. When I stop moving, you two will argue about how it was Dinos’s idea to come here and strangle each other. Do it by the door. By the side. When they come in and open the door, they will come straight for me, in the middle of the room. You two will get up and run. I will stay and play dead. As they chase you, I will follow. One of us should make it out, get some signal and call the police.’
‘That’s fucking dumb. It isn’t going to work,’ Elias said.
‘Got a better idea?’
‘No. But, when this is made into a movie, we are going to be that lame scene when the stupid kids made up a childish plan...’
‘Shut up, Elia,’ Dinos said. ‘It’s our only chance.’
Back in the control room, Platonas’s dad rolled his eyes. ‘Rich kids!’
Platonas chuckled. ‘They are next to die anyway. Shall we just send in the men, now, before the whole parody charade begins?’
Hotel Murder: The most gripping, page-turning mystery of the year (Greek Island Mysteries Book 5) Page 14
