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he narrow hallway leading to his apartment seemed quiet, just like it always was. Angela was walking behind David with the driver at the front, and both of them had their hands pressed to the guns placed against their bodies. The driver stopped outside Toby's apartment; David turned to face Angela and whispered under his breath, confirming if it was the place. Angela gave him a firm nod, and David gestured for her to take a step back. Her back was pressed to the wall in the hallway as she watched the two men.
The driver was the first one who raised his fist to knock against the door with all the energy in his body. The only sound in the hallway was the sound of his fist banging against the door. Other than that, there was nothing else. They waited for a few moments; Angela could feel her heart thumping against her chest as she took deep breaths and tried to calm herself down.
After a while passed in silence, she noticed that David gestured towards the door and then the driver. The man simply gave him a single nod before he walked towards the opposite side of the door; she had a feeling she knew what he was about to do as she stepped aside, and David did the same. She watched as the man charged forward with full force towards the door. A loud thud was heard, and the lock broke in half instantly, causing the door to open as the sound of creaking wood spread across the hall.
The place was dark; not a single light had been turned on, and that was the first sign that things weren't okay. Angela's heart was beating against her chest, and she followed both men into the apartment. David reached for the light switch near the door, and as soon as light flooded through the small, one-bedroom space, they came to notice that it was completely empty.
The driver rushed towards the bedroom, and Angela and David looked around the living room. Her heart fell to her knees as she began to panic. She placed her hands over her head and began to curse softly. David noticed that she had started to panic, and he rushed towards her as he spoke.
"Hey, it's going to be okay. I have people all over the city already working on tracing where he is, we’ll find him."
Angela felt like everything was coming down on her at once, and she couldn't even breathe properly. David took a careful step closer to her and placed his hand over her shoulder. She could hear the driver in the other room on the phone as she looked up, and her eyes met with his. He smiled the best he could in the given moment as he spoke in a quiet tone.
“Angela, I promise I won’t let anything happen to him.”
She looked away from him. The only thing that was replaying in her mind on a loop was the fact that he had called her and told her that he was not feeling safe, and she continued to ignore his words.
Angela ignored what David had said to her. Instead, she turned to face the driver who was on the other side of the small apartment. As she walked towards him, she could see that he was still speaking to someone over the phone, but as soon as he noticed that she approached him, he carefully tapped on the Bluetooth device attached to his right ear. She didn't wait for him to say anything; she stared at him and spoke in a demanding tone.
“What are your people saying? Do you have any leads?”
The man stared at her blankly for a few moments until he turned around, and instead of speaking to her, he turned towards David and spoke.
"Sir, we need to evacuate the area immediately. I'm getting a code red ahead."
David didn't wait for another second; he reached forward and grabbed Angela by the elbow; she was startled as she turned to face him. His eyes landed on her as he spoke. Angela noticed the way his tone had changed; he didn't sound the same at all.
"Angela, you heard what he said; we need to get going."
She didn't ask any questions. She followed them down the hallway towards the car. As soon as they got inside, David's phone began to ring. He looked down at the phone screen, and she watched as the color began to drain from his face. She couldn't tell what was going on; he gestured towards the driver. They didn't say a single word, but she could tell that he had communicated his point just through the expressions and gestures he did. The man at the front gave him a firm nod. Confusion and anxiety washed over her face, and she turned to face David, but he was almost unrecognizable. She spoke when she heard the sound of the engine coming on.
“What is going on?”
He tucked his hands into the pockets of his jacket and slowly began to back away from the car. He made sure that his eyes were fixated on her as he spoke in a low tone.
"I'm trusting Anthony to take you back, he's going to keep you safe so stick with him, and I'll meet you there."
Her eyes widened; she looked up at him with confusion as she shook her head. His phone began to ring in his hands, and she watched the fear flash before his eyes. She knew that something was wrong as she spoke.
“Wait, why aren’t you coming with us?”
the girl with bright pink strands glowing at the ends of her hair; she seemed less aggressive instead; Angela was shocked when the girl moved forward and wrapped her arms around Angela's body. Angela's eyes widened; she didn't get the chance to say anything at all as the girl spoke.
"Come here, you; everything is going to be okay; we're going to deal with this."
Angela wasn't sure what was going on. She just needed to know that Toby was okay. She stayed quiet. May finally let go of her, and they made their way into the elevator. She watched as the driver pressed the top floor button in the elevator. The doors had barely closed when May began to speak again. Angela had the feeling that she was the type of person who seemed to talk a lot.
“Did David tell you about me?”
She turned to face him and spoke.
"Yeah, you're really important to him, aren't you?"
She smiled as she answered.
“And so are you.”
Angela felt the little twist in her heart; she ignored the way the words had a huge impact on her. Before she had the chance to say anything at all, she heard the doors opening, and she stepped out into the huge penthouse. The floors were glistening throughout as chandeliers were glowing in the huge living room.
She took a deep breath and began to look around; she could see decoration pieces placed at almost every corner with wall-sized windows overlooking the entire city. The living room must have easily been the size of her whole apartment. Rugs were placed on the wooden floors, and a huge L-shaped couch was placed in the middle of the room. Angela was distracted by May's voice in the background; she spoke from behind near the huge glass-shaped bar at the corner of the room.
“Would you like anything to drink?”
Angela shook her head; she carefully laid her winter coat down on the couch. She stayed quiet; the only thing that was on her mind was Toby and where he must be. It seemed that May noticed the look on her face; the girl took careful steps towards Angela and spoke.
"If it helps, I was taken once, too. And right now, David thinks it's the same person who took me who has now taken your friend. If that's the case, he won't touch your friend. At least not until he gets what he wants."
Angela's eyes widened; she looked over at May and spoke right away.
"Who is it, and what do they really want if it's not Toby?"
May took a seat on the couch next to Angela; she made sure to keep a safe distance as they talked.
"Well, his name is William; he has some unfinished business with David. There's a shipment he wants David to send through his company’s coast, but David hasn't been allowing it. I think he took the case as a personal offense...."
Angela’s eyes widened she spoke without even thinking twice.
“Wait, you’re saying you think this Mafia boss is under the impression that I sued David to get to him?”
May gulped; she pulled herself closer to Angela and whispered under her breath.
"David cut off all business from him after the death of the boy, and he made a promise that revenge would be served."
Angela's heart skipped a beat; she wondered if May was right about the man not harming Toby or if it was already too late to save him.
