Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 52338 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 262(@200wpm)___ 209(@250wpm)___ 174(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 52338 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 262(@200wpm)___ 209(@250wpm)___ 174(@300wpm)
He takes a bite of his sandwich. "The cleanup crew took care of everything last night, so everything is back to normal at your house."
"Really?" I look over at him. "Everything? Like, the bodies and the blood will just be...gone?"
"Yep, that's their job." He finishes his sandwich and restarts the car, putting it in reverse. "I'll show you."
Trent wasn't exaggerating. When we walk into my house, there is no sign of the traumatic event that happened last night. Aside from the strong scent of bleach and something else, my house looks the same as if nothing was ever wrong. The carpet is clean, there isn't a single drop of blood on the marble floors, and the chairs my father and I were once tied to are back in their respective places.
"Wow. It's like nothing happened," I murmur as I slowly turn around to look at Trent. "Your crew did a good job."
He puts his hands in his pockets as he nods. "It's what they're supposed to do."
The front door opens again, and my body immediately tenses until I see my dad walk inside. His face is bruised and still a bit swollen. He limps farther into the house, and his eyes widen like mine as he takes in the cleaned-up space.
"Are you okay?" I ask as I rush over to him. He waves me off.
"I'm fine." His eyes move around the downstairs before falling on Trent. "Did you clean all of this up?"
Trent shakes his head. "I didn't clean it myself, but I had a cleanup crew come here and take care of everything," he explains.
"I see. Well, we appreciate it," my dad says. "Please let me know what I owe you."
"You can actually give me the contact information of the person you're doing these 'advertising' deals with," Trent says, his tone firm.
"I don't understand what you mean—"
"Don't play dumb with me," Trent interrupts. "I can't protect you if you're withholding information."
"Just give it to him, Dad," I murmur. My dad bounces his gaze between Trent and me before he sighs and retrieves his phone from his pocket. After scrolling in his contacts, he doesn't say a word as he holds his phone out for Trent to see. Trent pulls out his own phone and jots down the number on my dad's screen before handing it back to him.
"Thanks," Trent says as he puts his phone away. "You two stay here until you hear from me. I have a couple of guys posted outside of your house so that you have protection in the meantime." He heads for the door but pauses just shy of crossing over the threshold. "My team has also installed a new security system while cleaning everything up. Instructions on how to activate it was left on a table in a living room. It's best to set the alarm after I leave."
With that, he leaves without another glance at me, leaving me feeling a bit empty. I move over to the window and watch, and he walks down the concrete path to the driveway to his car. A roller coaster of emotions crashes around inside me as I watch him back out of the driveway and drive off before sighing softly and walking off to find my dad.
Now it's just going to be another agonizing waiting game while both waiting for Trent to return as well as knowing the true identity of the person trying to get rid of me.
15
TRENT
With the information I need in hand, I make my way to the Hotel in the middle of the city. The building presents itself to the public as a luxurious hotel that hides in plain sight to everyone who isn't involved in our line of work. I park in the side parking lot and quickly make my way toward the entrance, weaving through passing pedestrians along the crowded sidewalk. The bustling city sounds cease to exist as soon as I step into the lobby, everything becoming silent once the glass doors shut behind me.
Everything inside the Hotel is a sleek black and gray. While modern and high-end, the dark colors give off the impression that nothing about this place screams "vacation" or a high-end place to want to lodge. It always reminds me of those large corporate buildings with muted neutral colors that always give a "nothing but business beyond this point" vibe, and considering what we do here, it makes sense.
I cross the lobby to the elevators and press the up button, waiting until the steel doors slide open before I step on. Once the doors close, I punch in a security code in the panel and watch as number eleven lights up. The security of this place is top-notch. Even if a random person walks into the building and attempts to go beyond the lobby, without a security code, the elevators won't work, and the doors leading to the stairwell also won't open without a code.