Did they think about the possibility of them going out alive, to tell about this painful experience to their friends and families..? And if they were lucky and lived long enough, to their grandchildren too..? In the winter cold nights, while drinking their tea.. Maybe some of them would even add more incidents to what happened and over describe his braveness in fighting the losers who attacked the place (that would be us) ..?
Maybe others will add crap like us being a part of a religious or a terrorist group, to use the incident to their own interest, just like TV reporters do already to be sure that their report about the incident would be attractive enough for their viewers.. I mean, what would be attractive in an ordinary theft..? It happens every day..
What would make the report more attractive was us belonging to a terrorist group that terrorized innocent civilians for sure..
For some reason I found myself thinking about my life few months ago.. I was a successful guy, and my life was going good, and had all the successful future ahead of me..
When did things start to fall then..? Difficult to decide precisely.. I guess after my wife "Rania" died at that hospital after spending a long time receiving chemotherapy, that wasn't exactly successful in her case.. Since then I tried to forget all my issues by gambling..
Not wanting to go back home except for sleeping, as every corner in the house kept reminding me of her.. The classical furniture that she chose herself.. The wallpaper that she insisted on buying.. Briefly, I saw her in every statue and every chair and every corner of the house, and now, this only brought me grief..
The only thing that I wanted now was to watch the ball as it rolled, stopped, hopefully making me win.. Things were good at the start and I couldn't deny it, especially that I was winning at the beginning, which encouraged me on diving more and more, but soon things started to exacerbate.. Debts kept piling up, and no matter how many times I played trying to make up for my loss, I ended up losing more.. I remembered that night in the casino I used to go to every several days.. I remembered the ball running and running.. Remembered the smoke in the air and the sweaty faces watching the ball in its hectic round..
The faint light and the jazz music coming from everywhere.. Greedy eyes following the ball eagerly, before the critical moment came and the ball stopped at number (2), which was the last number I wanted to see it stop at.. Carrying my glass of wine, I stood up, all staggered, walking away, while the eyes were now on me, some in pity and some in gloat..
Walking towards the large balcony, to take a look at the moon and the surrounding clouds..
- New loss.. Eh..?
The voice of "Khalid", the café's old owner startled me, he was standing there with his wily voice and gaze and inside as if the devil himself was standing next to me..
He was putting his hand on my shoulder in an exacerbating familiarity..
- The usual..
I replied coldly while looking ahead of me.. He watched me as I took another sip from my glass, before laughing...
- Hehe.. We both know it's not like every time dear.. Do you even know how much your debts became..?
He grinned at me, taking my hand, leading me outside the balcony, and through the dark hall and the adjacent bodies.. I left my glass with a waiter that appeared from somewhere, while I tried to concentrate.. The wine I've been drinking the whole night left me too dizzy and thirsty.. I stepped, feeling a bit groggy on the large red carpet covering the floor.. I remembered glasses clanging, naked shoulders and lewd laughs passing by us.. Round tables moving aside, as if to clear our way.. I remembered scenes changing quickly around me, as I walked behind him without any will of my own.. "Rania" died.. What else mattered..? I didn't even care enough for my daughter who must be sleeping now in her bluish bedroom with her teddy bear.. Even caring for her was a load for me that I left to my sister.. We ended up in his office..
He entered, leaving me at the door till he switched on the lights..
On the quite white light that spread through the room, I saw him walking to the dark curtains, before pulling them aside.. I sneak peeked around me, to what looked like a principal's office for me and don't ask me why..
If we excluded the parrot that kept looking at us curiously since we entered, I could say that the whole place was a lot staid than what I was expecting to see.. Starting from the heavy wooden desk in the middle of the room, passing by the fancy Iranian rug that sneaked from under the desk till it reached the two comfortable armchairs at the end of the room, where he told me to sit, till we reach the small fridge beside the desk, and in a corner of the room there was a bunch of small TV screens that showed him what was happening in the whole place..
He closed the door to prevent any unwanted distractions, then walked to his desk where he lighted a cigarette for himself, without caring to offer one for me.. He made his offer that was direct to the point.. My debts became intolerable, and no use of depending on my luck to pay them.. The casino's management wasn't exactly happy with my way of dealing with the debts that just kept piling up, rather than trying to really pay them.. That was why they were going to give me a simple mission.. If I was to complete it successfully, my debts will be something from the past, and then we can have a new start if I'm willing to still have that damn hobby of mine.. "Khalid" went towards the iron cage beside the window, and gave the green creature inside some food..
- You should know that it's not personal, but we can't leave deferred payments.. Not exactly the best reputation we would like for the place.. Don't you think so..?
I remember my head rolling, while I did my best to keep my eyes on the fat old man.. I remembered that all I managed to get out of my mouth then was:
- What kind of mission..?
- MISSION.. MISSION..!!
The parrot shouted my last two words while jumping inside his cage.. The old man smiled answering my question:
- Too simple.. Just helping us with collecting cash from another debtor.. The only thing is that the way of collecting is a little different than usual.. You'll go with a bunch of trustful men to collect the money yourselves from his safe..
- HIS SAFE.. HIS SAFE..!!
The parrot was still acting like an echo machine, while dizziness started losing its control on my head from the surprise.. I shrieked:
- Theft..? Don't think so..
He smiled at me, before turning to his parrot and give it something to chew..
- As you like.. Just wanted to help.. Anyway I'm sure I'll be hearing from you soon when you change your mind..
- YOUR MIND.. YOUR MIND.. CHANGE YOUR MIND.. !!
The damn parrot kept repeating his last words while jumping in his place as if it had gone nuts, while I tried to realize what to do now.. The chat was over before it even began.. Leave..? That easy..?
I leaned on the hand of my armchair, trying to pull myself together.. "Khalid" went to open the door silently, which explained that I should be going now just like I thought..
He didn't try to stop me, neither did any of his gorilla-like assistants like they used to do before...no one even tried harassing me .. They just stood there watching me as I left..
And when I went back home I found that little "Nancy" was gone, and there was a short notice saying that I know what to do if I wanted to see her again..
That's why you see me here carrying that pistol that I'm not even good at using, pretending to be dangerous, pretending to be a professional gangster, just to finish the bloody job and set my only child free from the claws of the villains who took her.. Had to do so because all the attempts I made to find their hiding place were useless, and my sister didn't see anyone around the house that night, and didn't even realize what happened till I came back.. We stood for few seconds looking stupidly at the empty small bed.. Couldn't find anything they left behind to use to follow them, and there wasn't enough time from the first place.. They just gave me one day to give them a final answer..!! Either yes, and have my daughter back in one piece after the theft is over
, or no, and receive her back in many pieces..
When my sister asked me whether I knew where the girl was, and what did that note mean, I didn't know what to say, things were complicated enough without her in, so I told her it was a sick joke from my pals, and left the house quickly promising her to return with the girl as soon as possible..
But I obviously overestimated myself, because I couldn't find a clue to lead me to their place, so I didn't have another solution.. I had to accept their bloody deal.. My eyes went quickly on the people sitting silently, horrified, or broken-down in front of us, trying not to think of how much we must be assholes to them..
If I just handled things wisely.. If I wasn't stupid enough to plunge myself that much in that bloody world.. But I guess it was a little bit late for those thoughts now.. The trigger was pushed and the bullet was already fired, and the best ending for that nightmare is to end neatly without victims from both sides, so that I could get my daughter back..
If that bastard named "Khalid" tried stalling after this I'll eat him alive.. I wouldn't have then anything to lose.. A dead guy walking was a good description.. I'm already one ever since "Rania" died so let's not deceive ourselves..
Just soulless body walking.. "Nancy" who didn't do anything wrong to be involved in this was the reason I'm here.. It wasn't her fault that her dad was a drunkard idiot who pushed his life to the complete mess that ended with her being kidnapped.. She was just six, and she deserved better than that..
My eyes stopped on a little girl trembling from fear in her mother's hands, the mum was that blonde who got my attention earlier while walking into the place.. The little girl's eyes reminded me of my daughter's, but my daughter had a darker hair.. Was she trembling like this kid in the gang's lair..?
Was she crying like her..? How were they treating her..?
Did she eat anything since the day she was taken..? For I knew that she never ate with someone strange, especially if she was scared.. I knew I haven't been exactly spending much time with her, but I knew her enough to be sure of that.. I set my thoughts aside, to find that everything was just the same, so I returned to my Hell again..
I walked through the place for a couple of steps, So that no one might think I wasn't paying attention, to find myself ending up next to the glass door that had a blue curtain pulled down on.. I leaned on the door thinking: was she still wearing the ballet dress she always slept in..? How came no one saw her with "Khalid's men and suspect her being kidnapped..?
Was she injured..? What did they tell her when she asked where she was..? How did they answer her when she asked who were they, and where was her dad and her aunt..?
Did she realize that she was kidnapped, and that daddy was stealing now to set her free..? I recalled a memory.. The one when we went to the circus together..
- Daddy.. What is theft..?
Was one of the few days we spent together recently.. I wondered, trying to gain some time to make up an answer:
- Where did you hear that word..?
She took a bite from her candy before answering:
- In a story.. Do they really go to hell..?
- Yes.. A thief is a bad person sweetie because he takes Something that doesn't belong to him.. Don't you think so..?
Well.. I must say that I didn't really much like the idea of being a preacher, but I was her dad and I was entitled in the role unfortunately..
- mmm.. I guess..
She answered, before turning to the cotton candy she was carrying with all of her attention..
I patted on her smooth brown hair, before taking her from her hand to change the dark subject.. There was a small booth where they played aiming games, where you shoot an arrow at a moving toy to win a prize, and although I was never accused of having a good sight, I managed to hit the target from the second try, and the prize was that teddy bear that "Nancy" chose from the trophies.. The look in her eyes when she hugged the brown fuzzy toy was priceless, and when we were back home, she kept holding it as if she was the winner, and on her bed, she took it to keep her a company since then.. That was after my wife had just died, and I was trying to be a normal dad then, before ruining everything and realize that it wasn't for me, and that I couldn't take care of her alone.. My sister realized that too so she decided to come live with us since she wasn't married, and since she adored "Nancy", while I was dragged by "Khalid" and his dark world, that ended with me being here..
****
A guy looked suspicious enough for me, for being confused more than the others, and when he was passing by "Sameer" and me he whispered to us:
- You need to know something..
- Don't think so.. Go sit with the rest..
"Sameer" pointed his gun at the guy, but I noticed then the blood that was covering the ends of his pants.. When I told "Sameer", he grabbed the guy's hand, asking him roughly:
- Whose blood is that bro..?
- A girl.. She committed suicide in the bathroom before you arrived with few minutes, an ambulance is on its way, and probably the police too because they know about the suicide thing..
We looked at each other unable to react.. Dammit.. We couldn't be more lucky.. Breaking into a café just minutes before the police comes.. Dammit..!!
- Calm down bro..
"Sameer" grabbed me to a corner and looked me in the eye, trying to make me stop shivering.. I shouted crazily:
- Don't tell me to calm down..!! There wasn't supposed to be any killing..
He placed his hand on my mouth, whispering coldly:
- Did anyone of us kill her stupid..? The bitch committed suicide.. Now shut up before anyone hears you..
The hostages started looking at us already..
- Say that to the police that will come soon to kick our asses..
I removed his hand angrily, before pulling myself together.. It already happened and nothing can be done to change it..
I didn't care about any of this.. All my thinking was about "Nancy", and for the first time in a while, I started thinking about God, and whether he really exited or not..? And if he did, will he look after my daughter that had nothing to do with any of this..?
****
-13-
"Nadia"
Looking on her right, she found the girl with the scarf looking in front of her, uncaring of what was happening.. What could be possibly making a beautiful girl like her apathetic about death, unlike the rest..? But "Nadia" didn't have the guts to open her mouth and try talking to the girl, because she no longer had enough emotional strength, besides she was afraid that anyone of the people threatening them would see her and think they were putting a plan to escape, so she kept looking in front of her silently, before leaning on her legs with both of her arms, waiting to see what would happen..
She heard someone in the front line sobbing, and heard the men's confident footsteps while passing between the people in the front row to pick up their money.. She was in the third row so these miserable moments of waiting would last for a while, before her turn comes... She found herself thinking: what would happen next..?
Would they set them free that simple after they'd seen their faces and identified them..? If they had the least amount of intelligence, which she knew they had judging this clever plan and this professional implementation, the logical answer would be: no..
Anyone of the people around her could identify many of them if they were to be confronted in the police station.. Since they decided to show them their bare faces, then there must be some kind of a twist in the tale waiting, and probably a lethal one.. But she decided to keep her thoughts to herself in order not to frighten any of the people around, causing a riot, and the attackers lose their minds and kill someone of them as a threat to the rest.. Let’s stay calm and see where would that go.. She found herself looking at the pulled down curtains.. Didn't anyone passing by notice there was something wrong happening inside..? Didn't they wonder about pulling down the curtains in the middle of the day
..? Will anyone of the people outside be smart enough to suspect that something fishy was happening..? Will anyone call the cops..? Will the cops ever come to rescue them, or they'd just be imprisoned here till those men decide their fates..?
A look on the front row showed her "Sherif" sitting next to that bloody blonde woman.. He knew that she saw him, but didn't open his mouth.. Even worse, he looked like he didn't see her from the first place.. He just looked in her way for a moment while they were all heading to sit beside the wall like the armed men ordered, but his face didn't even change as if she was someone strange.. Was it the shock..? The tension they were in prevented him from realizing that the woman looking at him was his wife..? She didn't get a chance since then to try to talk to him or get his attention...
- You think they're going to kill us..?
The whispering soft voice coming from her right startled her.. She guessed it was the girl with the scarf - that she'd shortly know her name was "Nadine" - without looking..
- I really don't know, but I hope they don't..
"Nadia" whispered back without removing her eyes from the fat guy with the strange nose sitting in front of her, trying not to open her mouth too much, so that none of those Haines watching them notice..
But the moment she spoke the words, she realized how silly they must've sounded.. She hoped..? Were those really the best words she got to say..? But the girl next to her whispered again:
- They murdered a girl already..
A shiver ran through "Nadia's spine.. That was a new piece of information.. Just suspecting that they'd kill them was a thing, and having already murdered one of them was another thing.. She thought this might end in a clean way without anyone murdered; a part of her stayed hoping that all of her doubts were just because she was paranoid, but when did they kill that girl, and more important question:
- Who..?
She whispered back nervously, preventing herself hardly from looking at "Nadine".. She tried to keep her eyes on the backs of the people in front of her, and at that moment she started to think about one thing: what was the story of each one of them, and who was waiting for each one back home..? A wife.. A mistress.. Children.. A mum..? Will those armed men murder them all ending this bunch of lives at once..?