IDRIS

He can't sleep. He's in bed with three other women from his list, and even after a long night of lust, he still couldn't find it himself to rest. Now he just lays there, thinking. That's how things have been the past couple days. He just sits and thinks about Josi. He thought inviting those women into his bed would level things out. Make him forget. But all this has done is make him yearn for Josi even more.

Idris leaves the bed and heads out onto the terrace. Maybe the fresh air can calm him down. He lights a cigarette up and peers up at the sky. The clouds can still be seen through the darkness, though much of the moon has disappeared behind that thick blanket. Idris leans against the railing, eyes down at the sleeping city. The wind feels good. It's calm. But it only relieves his body. His mind is the thing that needs emancipation.

Idris's frustration triples. Why must he feel this restless? It's all Josi's fault. She's the root of all his problems. If it weren't for her, he'd still be sane. If it weren't for her, he would have his mind to himself. Instead he's been forced to share it with her, because that's all his mind has been able to think about. Josita Cade. Josita fucking Cade. Perhaps she plotted this all along. And now he's been lured right into her trap.

This wasn't supposed to happen. A game was all it really was. Entertainment was all he was looking for. Yet there he is in the middle of the night, struggling to get himself past that surge of helplessness. Restlessness. Maybe this was all a mistake. Who would have thought that in the very game Idris deviced himself, he would come out the loser?

Idris begins to chuckle. There's nothing funny about the situation. Even he's not sure what he's laughing at. Perhaps it's at the fact that everything has taken such a sharp turn. He's the one in charge. He has her life in his hands. He's the one in the driver's seat. But why does it feel like he's under more torment than she is?

The cloudy sky soon turns to drizzle. Idris doesn't leave and instead, allows the light drops soak his skin. He won't sit back and allow things carry on this way. That's not how the story's supposed to go. He has to do something about it. In fact, he's already begun digging up a plot. He has to cement his role as leader. Because he's the one in charge.

~《¤》~

JOSI

Josi finishes her dinner reluctantly that late afternoon. There's been no calls from Idris the entire week. No distressing text messages either. Nothing alarming. She had even begun growing hopeful, as if hope has ever been on her side.

But as the universe has had it since her first encounter with Idris, things will never be that easy.

The text came a couple minutes before dinner with Bradley. Now she's seated at the table fidgeting, eyes casted down, throat so dry, not even the glass of water has been able to quell it. She hasn't touched much of her dinner, neither has she said a word. All because of that damned text.

Yet again, Idris Verdonni seeks her presence. And yet again, Josi has to oblige. She's gone so stiff, Bradley hasn't been able to keep his eyes off her. He simply watches her, his dinner just as untouched as hers.

"You've stopped laughing."

Josi looks at him, and immediately the guilt sinks in. Bradley has gotten caught up in this game between her and Idris. In her attempt to cheer him up, Josi exchanges the anxiousness for a smile, which soon turns into strained laughter.

"I still laugh, just not as loud as I used to."

Bradley doesn't respond. Josi's attempt fell flat.

After dinner is done, Josi helps Bradley move the dishes to the kitchen. They clean them all down, still shrouded in that same strained silence. Josi doesn't even sing off-key the way she usually does. No jokes about Bradley's terrible attempts at karaoke either, or the usual talks about how intelligent her students are. Just a cloud of silence.

All Josi can think about is that meeting with Idris. Will he arrive with some more information on her family? He could go after Aspen next. He already has. What's stopping him from trying again? He could rope her mother in as well. And then he'll revel in her helplessness, in the fact that she can't do a single thing.

As soon as the dishes are done, Bradley leaves the kitchen for their bedroom. Josi takes this as her chance and heads for the door. Another day, another trial. The anxiousness has built up so much, she's already begun shaking. But that will amount to nothing. Because Idris is in charge.

So she begins her journey towards Idris once again, not even aware that Bradley is back at the apartment searching for her, clutching the present he's been meaning to gift her for a while.

__

The car pulls to a stop in front of a gate and waits to be welcomed in. They continue their journey through a lone road for what Josi thinks is an eternity. All too sudden, the sight of perfectly trimmed shrubs and hedges greets her. And all too sudden, a mansion appears in the near distance. Now Josi knows where they're heading.

There are more levels of security, but once those have all been cleared, the rest of the trip is smooth. It figures why the security is so tight. Who knows what kind of danger Idris Night Verdonni dabbles in. He must have his hands full with enemies ready to take his life. For once, Josi actually supports violence.

The car pulls to a stop in front of the mansion. Even Josi can't fathom the size of the place. The estate ends somewhere far off, some place she can't even see. There are two mansions to the place; the one she's currently standing in front of, and the one next to it. Though it seems the one she's been brought to surpasses the other in size. That must be the main building.

Then there are the men armed with weapons. Josi goes stiff once again. Must everything be so dark with Idris?

They don't escort her inside the mansion, but through a trapdoor. Immediately, Josi's wariness spikes. This already seems like they're kidnapping her. Maybe they are. Who would think to ever look for her there? Not the authorities, because as it currently stands, Idris seems to have them at his beck and call.

Initially, Josi had expected - hoped - for it to be something similar to a cellar. But this is no house of liquor. It's a house of torture. There are chains and prison cells and the smell of what Josi can only guess is blood. The armed men there don't pay her any mind, because they're all busy with the scene in front of them.

There's a man bound in chains on the wall. His body has been covered only in his blood, and his breathing has grown so labored, it seems like he will pass away any moment. These aren't injuries familiar to Josi. This prisoner has been brutalized and spared not even an ounce of mercy.

Now Josi's own breaths begin spiraling. If she thought she knew fear before, she most certainly was wrong, because this scene before her has sculpted something brand new. Something Josi just cannot fathom. Her legs grow weak, skin so cold it could freeze the blood within. She can't even move an inch.

Idris is present, though it seems he hasn't yet caught Josi's eye. He sits with his legs crossed, spectating the prisoner in front of them, seemingly almost at peace with the image. Then he wakes from his seat and heads for where Josi is, still frozen. Maybe she's still trying to make a nightmare out of this. Yes, this can't possibly be real. But if it isn't real, then why won't it disappear?

Idris spectates Josi as well. When she doesn't move, he walks over to where his guns are on the table. The same ones Josi had seen the first night they met. The ones with the Verdonni inscription.

"Come here."

The way he says it sends chills down Josi's spine. It's what breaks the paralyzing spell. She seems to do it without her knowledge, almost automatically. And before she knows it, she's besides Idris.

"Pick up the gun."

Josi looks at him, eyes heavy with fright. She's never once held a gun before. Though, that seems to be none of Idris's business, because the look he gives her shoots that fright through the roof. A look so empty and cold.

So against Josi's wishes, she picks up one of the guns. Foreign and cold to the touch it is. Much heavier than expected. It lays down flat against her palm, because she's refused to clutch the weapon.

"You see that?" Idris points at the prisoner. "That's your target."

Perhaps this really is a nightmare. It has to be. Josi looks down at the gun, then at a nonchalant Idris who hasn't yet spared her a glance. He's trying to turn her into a murderer.

"I can't . . ."

Idris doesn't respond. He wraps his hand around Josi's and aims the gun at the prisoner's head in her stead. As soon as he steadies her aim, he slips a finger into the trigger guard and makes her pull the trigger.

Josi, however, as quick as can be, moves the gun out of the way just in time for the bullet to land on the man's shoulder. The prisoner wails at the pain, and from the hole, a stream of blood begins pouring.

Now the tears come. A bit late, but once they flow, they don't stop. "Please, stop . . ."

Idris's eyes widen, as if he's just regained his senses. He seems at a loss for words. Like he can't believe what he's done. He runs his hands over his face and breathes a heavy sigh, his own frustration settling in. It's like he's in some battle with himself. And he's losing. Terribly.

Idris relieves Josi's hands of the gun and turns to a guard of his. "Get her out of here."

Josi is out the chamber in seconds. The tears will not stop. The fear won't go away. And even as she fights to keep it all down, she knows it's futile. Because Idris will never stop.

________________________________________