THE MEETING I

THE PRESENT,

My hand which I placed on my mum's thighs went to the back of my pockets as I sat close to her, in despair. Surprisingly, I was putting on the same pants I had on that day, and I remember putting them in the left pocket.

A little uncomfortable as I rest my weight on my right thigh, my free hand dug through my left pocket. It stopped rummaging only when my hand came in contact with a small card. I slowly pulled it out and held it close to my face to read the write-up on it, 'Mr. Black; 555(555)-2103'

"What's that?"

Startled, I quickly slid the card back into my pocket, "it's nothing, Mum." I forced a smile.

She stood to her feet, walked to our shattered family photo thrown on the floor by those nuisances, and picked it up. Separating the photo from the frame, she took a glance before her eyes suspiciously came back to mine, "If it's nothing, why are you acting all cautious?"

"I'm not being cautious, mum... I sat on the card and it made me uncomfortable."

She looked at me skeptically before tearing her gaze back to the photo she held in her hand.

Her left thumb brushed a part of the picture slowly, and her eyes became teary once more. I knew whose image was imprinted on that part, cause I'd seen that picture like a thousand times, and it's stuck in my head. It's my Dad. Seeing how her expression changed to a depressing one, I flinched in pain.

"I tried all I could to stop them from taking him away, Abby, but..." She burst into tiny sobs as her thumb continued brushing my dad's face on the picture. Fighting for self-control, she sniffed as her eyes came back to mine, "they pointed a gun at me, and then I thought of you, and Dylan. If I had protested even more, and they had used the weapon, what would become your fate, as well as Dylan's?"

I look into her eyes evident with despair with a bitter smile. Even when faced with danger, she still thinks of us first. How selfless can she be?

As her calm words invaded my thoughts, my mind screamed my brother's name, and I felt a new wave of anxiety build up in me. I had forgotten about Dylan and I haven't seen him since I got back.

My eyes scampered further into the house to look for any sign that he was home and safe, but I asked when I didn't see any, "Mum, where's Dylan?" My distress got the best of me.

"He's in his room, Abby. He was having a meal with your dad when those men came in, and I sent him to his room. He probably heard how the house was wrecked." Her tired eyes combed through the scattered room, and she let out a frustrated sigh.

Understanding the meaning of the look, I quickly suggested, "Don't worry, Mum. I'll take care of this."

She seemed pleased with my suggestion and nodded in approval, "I'll be in my room then." I nodded, and she walked away slowly but stopped when she got to the stairs. She turned to look back at me.

All this while, my eyes never left her as she walked away.

"Thank you, Abby..." She smiled, "I don't know what I'll do without you. I'm always proud of you."

My eyes teared as I looked at her sincere face with a smile. My mum always knows how to say words that interfere with my emotions, "Thanks, mum." She smiled again, before turning and walking away, my eyes still on her.

With a painful heart, I made a promise to myself - to do anything to get my family together once more and make my mum even more proud.

I took another peek at the stairs when I was sure my mum was no longer in sight, to make sure no one was there. I quickly brought out the card and took another look at it. After some seconds of contemplating whether or not to call, I determinedly picked up my phone from the couch and dialed the number.

********

The morning sun kissed my pale skin as I sat close to the roof-to-floor glass window in a coffee shop. I was informed last night that someone would be meeting me in the store by 8:00 a.m., but my curiosity made me get there by 7:00 a.m. I had been so curious since I heard all the information Zeke conveyed last night, and because they played continuously in my head, I couldn't bring myself to sleep.

Zeke had told me about the pay, which was good, and the duration of the job, which was a year, but he didn't tell me about the nature of the job, which was 'confidential.' I still feel very uneasy even if he assured me it wasn't anything illegal.

My mind had wandered to possible legal jobs that paid that well all through the night, but I couldn't think of any and this made me anxious. As I stared at the entrance door, my anxiety grew with every customer who walked into the store.

"Miss," the female voice captured my attention from the beautiful scene outside and I watched her place my ordered coffee on the table.

"Enjoy." She walked away before I could get out a "thank you."

I lifted the cup of caramel iced coffee to my lips and took a sip from it, before placing it back on the saucer. Running out of patience, I was about to take another look at the time on my wristwatch when I heard a female call out my name in a beautiful voice, "Miss Abigail?"

"Yes," I answered on impulse, before raising my head to look at the beautiful lady who stood in front of me. On seeing who called out my name, I stood to my feet subconsciously and received her hand in a warm handshake.

Her beautiful hazel eyes studied my face, and a side of her lips curved into a smile on seeing my reaction. Removing her hand from mine, she pulled out the seat opposite mine and sat on it, "Sit," were her next words which sounded more like an order, than an offer.

I obeyed diligently for some weird reasons, and as I stared at her passive eyes which were directly on mine, I could feel my nerves spike. Something about the woman in front of me screamed danger. I quickly broke eye contact as my eyes went to my coffee, and I took another sip to ease my nervousness.

"Zeke was right, you're perfect for the job," she broke the silence that lasted for a minute. I didn't know if I should be happy about the compliment, or not, but I forced a smile.

"I'm just gonna cut to the chase," she clicked her tongue as she brought out a file from a bag close to her and handed it to me. I took the file, opened it, and began skimming through it.

It's a contract.

My eyes widened in shock as I read the headline of the contract, and it came back to meet her indifferent ones in shock. Without uttering any word, I skimmed through the rest of the contract, including the benefits, and the terms and conditions.

"Contract of ownership for a year?" I read it aloud for her to hear. Her indifferent stare answered my question without her saying anything.