The Plan

Author’s POV

“Ma’am please wake up”

Kayla’s ears picked up a vague sound and she opened her eyes with difficulty. Her gaze instantly fell on a servant girl who held a plate of food.

“Please get up and have this food” the girl suggested in a humble tone. The fact that the girl’s hands were shaking didn’t go unnoticed by her.

“I don’t want it” Kayla murmured and turned her head away because the last thing she wanted was food. By the somber color of the skies, it was clear to her that night was approaching and her stomach was rumbling like anything. But she wouldn’t eat from these men. She would rather starve herself to death.

That’s when the girl set the food on a nearby table and crouched on the floor next to Kayla, startling the soul out of her.

Before Kayla could speak, the girl joined her hands and began crying.

“P-please eat... or else the masters will hurt me today. I got punished yesterday for fainting while I was at work. I don’t have the strength to endure anything today. The masters were really rough with me yesterday...” the girl sputtered and brought a hand to clamp on her mouth so that no sound escaped.

Kayla felt her own eyes tear up.

“I’m so sorry” she mumbled and hugged the girl.

“I’ll eat the food, okay?” Kayla leaned back and pushing herself to her feet, she offered her hand to the poor girl.

For the girl’s sake Kayla picked up food and began eating. The food was delicious but after a few bites of the bread, something clicked on the back of her mind and she paused her eyes on the girl.

“Is the food adulterated?” Kayla found herself asking.

The girl’s eyes went wild and she shook her head, “N-no ma’am. I prepared it myself and there is nothing wrong with it”

“I trust you” Kayla spared a broken smile and proceeded to finish the food.

When the plate became empty, the girl came to take it away but Kayla couldn’t bite her tongue and asked a question.

“Have you ever tried to escape this place?”

The second the question ended, the girls’ face blanched in fear and she placed a finger on her lip and jutted her chin towards the door.

“The masters will hear. They always hear. You must never think about leaving. Our masters are gods and we were born to serve them”

The girl narrated like a well-trained parrot and retreated from the room, leaving Kayla speechless. Now she knew that no help would come from the girls who were trapped here.

**********************

Alexi’s POV

“This is the plan” I flicked my wrist and a new slide appeared on the projector screen.

Zack fixed his glasses and scrunched his nose as he soaked in all the details that I have mentioned in the blueprint.

“That’s not a plan, it’s a suicide mission” he shot me a disapproving look. It’s a weird coincidence but he resembles my dad whenever he does that.

“It’s how we do it in the Mafia” I gave a half shoulder shrug and waited for him to get his shit together because I was crazy enough to execute the goddamn plan all by myself.

“Well since you seem pretty confident about it, why don’t you explain it to me in detail?” Zack gestured towards the screen, challenging me.

I smirked before raising from the chair and carrying my feet closer to the splendid blueprint projected on the white wall.

I raised my hand and pointed a finger at a blue dot, “That’s me”

Then I moved my index finger to a green dot, “That’s you”

“I will get inside Bradford’s property through the secret tunnel beneath the house and you will be positioned outside in a vehicle which will be closer to the compound. You will work magic and swap the camera footage while I climb into the house and attach a detonator, a motion sensor and a mini camera in as many rooms as possible. The motion sensor and the cameras are to make sure that no girls are present near the detonator when I blast them. The explosions aren’t lethal, but it will alert Bradford and he will be forced to move the girls to another location. And while that happens, we will ambush them and save all the innocent victims of his slave trade” I finished and beamed proudly. I could very much feel the adrenaline rush of pre-victory celebration.

“Okay, smarty pants.... but what is going to happen if something goes wrong? How do you intent to escape?” Zack asked with seriousness.

I couldn’t blame him for being too uptight about safety because there is always a chance that things could go downhill in the blink of an eye. But luckily, I have that covered.

“I have placed four snipers at a safe distance and if anything goes wrong, they will cover for me until I get out” I replied and showed him where the snipers would go.

But he still looked unconvinced and I had to ask, “Now what?”

Zack didn’t say anything but began biting his nails, his eyes drifting between the screen and my face. I know he was thinking miles per hour, calculation every possible error and their solutions. And then when he stopped chewing on his nails and settled his gaze on me, I knew he had an answer.

“So, what do you think? Can we pull it off?” I walked to the glass table and leaned my hands on it, excitement curving my lips to a smile.

“That... I... uh.... Okay! Fuck yes, we can pull it off” He groaned and dragged a hand across his face.

I chuckled and shook my head. I was a little worried that he might say no and now that its cleared, I can focus on training myself harder for a smooth execution of the plan that will happen two weeks later.

When the meeting was over Zack left but before I could take down the plan, Michael came in. His hawk eyes scanned it and then he raised an eyebrow at me.

“It’s nothing important” I said and switched off the projector. From the stack of books on the table top I picked up a magazine that I haven’t read in ages. I slumped on my chair and flipped through its glossed pages while completely ignoring his existence.

“It didn’t look like nothing important” Michael stated as he hogged my office chair. His detective skills were on point and so I decided to downplay it.

“It’s just a small attack that I might launch on one of the shipment agencies that has failed to track my package” I explained with utmost pseudo honest expression and diverted my gaze to the book at hand.

“Alexi, I know you are lying” I stiffened for a second and lifted my eyes to him. If looks could kill then I’d be six feet deep under earth by now because he had so much fire in his eyes.

Until Stella got married, it was Michael and I who used to go on rampages to conquer the enemy territories. But everything changed the moment he vowed to be her husband. I purposefully kept him out of violence because one scratch on his body can bring so much pain to my sister and I didn’t want to be the one to cause it.

“Trust me Michael, the less you know, the better” I tried to make him understand. But he was never the one to take no for an answer. He locked his eyes with mine and I kept the stare down going until he clenched his jaw and looked away with an expression of hurt.

I almost felt guilty but then I recalled an event that happened two years ago. I and Michael were standing over a balcony with a cup of coffee in our hands. The caffeine was helping us get rid of the hangover from partying the previous night. The party was for closing a contract.

I wanted to give him an update on our next business trip but when I craned my neck to look at him, he had this goofy grin plastered across his face.

“What is that smile for, brother?” I asked and chuckled.

He was appalled for a second but then he regained his stance and turned to me with a smile.

“She did that hair tuck thing the last time we met” Michael replied. 

“What hair tuck thing?” I was confused.

Michael demonstrated what he said by pushing his own hair behind his ear, leaving me clueless than ever.

“I’ve heard that girls move their hair behind their ear unconsciously when they see the guy they like. The girl I told you about did it when I smiled her way and it means she likes me back” he explained and zoned out like he was recollecting that magical moment with her.

I groaned in exasperation and tightened my grip on the railing. “When are you planning to introduce this mystery girl to me?”

He never kept secrets from me and the fact that he was not willing to show me the women who stole his heart was eating at my patience.

He mulled over my question as he took a sip from his cup. “It will take a while. Although, I’m not sure you would approve of her”

I didn’t miss the dark undertone in his statement. Was he worried that I would judge him for his choice?

“I’m not that shallow Mike” I reminded him, my voice heavy with emotions.

“I know” he offered me a sly smile before walking away. I downed the rest of my coffee and spent my entire day on figuring out whom the girl was.

It took more than a year for me to learn that the ‘mystery girl’ was none other than my little sister. The pain I felt that day doesn’t come close to the pain he was feeling at this moment. He kept me in the dark for too long and I was only returning the favor by purposefully not including him in my activities, but more than that I was concerned for Stella’s happiness.

Now her happiness meant Michael being safe and doing it was my first priority. But he didn’t need to know that.