Chapter 3
Chapter 3 - Flashback
Max
"What does he think I'm doing?" he asked quietly.
No one answered. The quiet became heavy.
Then Randy carefully said, "The men wanted to know the next move."
Max looked toward the city again, his fingers slowly curled.
Seth Bower.
For years, that name had lived beneath his skin like poison.
For years, Max had imagined this moment.
He had imagined Seth begging, pleading, breaking and throwing many offers at him in exchange for his daughter.
Instead...the bastard was playing games.
A cold smile spread across Max's face.
He turned, "Set up a live transmission."
Confusion crossed several faces.
Max's eyes became ice.
"If he won't react..." he said calmly, "...we'll make him."
There were slight nods.
"Perhaps seeing his daughter live," Max continued, "will remind him he still has something to lose."
Randy nodded immediately, "I'll arrange it."
Max dismissed everyone with a wave, and within seconds, the room emptied.
Silence returned, but his anger remained.
It always remained. He couldn’t remember the last time he actually smiled. His men had known him to be always touchy, but in a controlled way.
He sat heavily in his chair and closed his eyes, just for a moment.
Darkness gradually took over his mind.
Then suddenly, there was light…
**
Fifteen-year-old Max looked around curiously. Jim Canada's mansion was enormous.
His father had told him to stay put at the estate security quarters while he attended a security briefing inside the mansion.
Max had tried, for almost five whole minutes.
Then teenage curiosity, for a child visiting his father’s workplace for the first time, drove him.
He wandered through endless hallways and expensive rooms before eventually reaching the back gardens.
And then he saw a girl near the pool. Her blonde hair was tied back and her bare feet placed against the floor.
Music drifted softly from a phone nearby and she moved slowly across the ground, turning, stepping, spinning; dancing ballet.
Max froze.
She looked...glamorously beautiful, even as she sweated lightly under the mild sun, not like girls at school or anyone he knew.
For a moment, Max simply stared from behind a corner, utterly mesmerized.
He had seen girls from rich families, but none had interested him.
He believed they were always spoilt and rude, and would only offer a middle class like him nothing but humiliation.
But right now, he didn’t mind being humiliated.
Then her movement slowed. She turned, and their eyes met.
Max's heart nearly stopped, he thought he would be in trouble being caught.
But...she smiled warmly, slowly lifted her hand and gestured for him to come closer.
Max looked behind himself.
Was she talking to him?
Apparently yes.
Reluctantly he walked over with a nervous smile.
As he approached, her smile widened. "Hi."
Max swallowed, "Hi."
"I'm Pearl," her voice was cheerful and bright, "Who are you?"
"Max. I’m Max," he said in a shaky voice.
"Max," she smiled like she was testing the name, "Nice to meet you."
“Nice to meet you too,” he tried to smile, amazed at how warm she was, totally different from his perception of girls from rich families.
“What are you doing here?” she gently asked.
"Pearl…" a voice suddenly stopped him from answering.
Both of them turned. Jim Canada approached with a small smile.
"Darling, who's your friend?"
Pearl opened her mouth…
But another voice interrupted.
"Max!"
Max turned sharply. His father practically stumbled around the corner, breathing hard.
"There you are!"
Embarrassment instantly crossed his face.
"I've been searching everywhere."
Max looked down, "Sorry dad."
His father looked toward Jim Canada, "I'm sorry, boss."
He placed a hand on Max's shoulder, "I'll keep him contained better."
Jim merely nodded. He didn’t seem angry or offended slightly.
Max and his father started walking away. But something made Max look back.
Pearl was still standing, smiling, apparently not listening to what her father was saying.
Then she lifted her hand in a tiny wave.
Max stared for a second, then awkwardly waved back…
Darkness returned…
**
Max's eyes opened. His phone was ringing on the desk in front of him.
It had been ringing for a while.
He had inadvertently dozed off in his chair.
Suddenly, his face softened as he replayed Pearl’s face in his mind.
Then, his chest became strangely tight as the phone started ringing again. Anger immediately followed.
He picked the call.
“Boss, the live transmission is ready,” Randy’s voice came through.
Max simply ended the call without saying anything.
He looked toward the clock, 12:12 a.m.
Max stood, straightened his shirt and walked toward the door.
As the elevator descended, Max stared at his reflection in the steel doors.
Then quietly said; "I'll torture her until Seth breaks."
His convoy sped off immediately he got into the SUV.
Once the convoy pulled into the parking lot in his compound, he got out and headed straight to the basement.
The men followed without a word.
…
The heavy metal torture room door opened.
Max entered the room and took his usual seat.
Randy and the others were already there, waiting.
“Bring her,” he ordered.
Immediately, two men moved.
Moments later, Paige was dragged inside and placed on a small stage.
Max stared at her from his seat, loathing everything about her.
Randy adjusted the camera and checked the live feed.
Then he looked at Max.
"Ready, boss."
"Go ahead," Max ordered.
The camera activated and a harsh white light came on above Paige.
She flinched immediately under the bright light, shielding her eyes as confusion and fear crossed her face.
The silence inside the room felt cruelly deliberate.
Two men appeared on her either side with wide water hoses pointing at her.
Suddenly, water gushed out from the nozzle, almost ice cold water, slamming on her with a dizzying pressure.
She screamed, lost balance and fell.
The spray didn’t seize. It continued mercilessly, freezing, drowning, and painful.
Paige screamed at them to stop, begged even, but none of that mattered in Max’s world.
Everyone just watched in silence, only Paige’s screams filed the air.
Few moments later, a phone vibrated.