Chapter 3: Secrets
Arthur, Natasha and Al are heading towards the exit of the house. Al is leaving now, they both are walking him to say good bye before he leaves.
"Thank you very much for inviting me.", says Al.
"No. We really enjoyed your company. Well! You gonna be in this town only! So, i hope we'll see more of you."
"Umm... i dont think so. There's a change in plan. I wont be living in this town. I'll be leaving tomorrow."
"What? Why?"
"I have no reason to stay here anymore."
AL looks at Natasha. They both exchange looks. Natasha knows he is taking about her.
"Well! You are the boss. I am no one to say anything. But the girl is gonna regret her decision. You are a good man. You deserve better."
"Honey! Can i talk to him alone for a moment."
"Yea! Sure. Bye Mr. Carson!"
"Good night mr. Milner. You guys talk. I'll be waiting inside.", says Arthur to Al.
Arthur leaves them alone.
Natasha opens the door and walks out of the house. Al follows her.
Natasha closes the door behind her, making sure nobody is around her when she talks.
"Where are you staying?", asks Natasha.
"There is only one place for people like us. Parkinson lodge. I am staying in our old room."
"Room 202.", Natasha hiding her emotions, "So, you are leaving tomorrow?"
"Yea. I came here looking for you but you have your own life. You moved on."
"You have been stalking my entire family. My children, my husband, me. Why were you doing this?"
"I just wanted to know that what special he has, that you chose him instead of me."
"There is nothing special about him."
"Then also he is living my dreams, my life. I wanted to have a family with you but you chose him."
"You know we would have never be able to get out of it together and you never wanted to leave it either. You are still part of the cartel. I just wanted good life for my child."
"Rose. Please tell me. Where is she?"
"No. AL. You need to understand. i can't take this risk."
"I always wanted children. And now i know i have a daughter. I just want to see her. Please tell me Rose. I won't talk to her. I won't even go near her. I just want to see her. Please."
"You should go now Al. It's too late. Too late."
"You are not doing right."
"I am just protecting my daughter. I hope you'll understand that."
*I can't. Please rose. You can believe me. I will not return again. Please. I have right to know about my daughter. Just say something."
Natasha is just standing in front of him, silent and tears in her eyes.
"So you will not tell me. Okay. If you want this. Then alright. I hope you a happy life Rose."
Al leans his head against Natasha's head.
"I will never stop loving you."
Al kisses on Natasha's forehead.
AL turns around and walks away. Natasha is looking at him. Al sits on his bike and rides away.
Natasha wipes off her tears.
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A gentle breeze drifts into the room through a partially open window, causing the darkness to envelop the sleeping figures of three boys. Will stirs and opens his eyes, glancing at his siblings, Alex and Henry, who are still fast asleep. He reaches for his phone to check the time - it's 11:30 pm.
Quietly, Will rises from his bed, looks if Alex and Henry are asleep or not and retrieves his bag from underneath the bag. With a sense of purpose, he exits the room.
Moments later, Alex opens his eyes in a rush. He was waiting for Will to leave. He too grabs his belongings and hastily follows Will out of the room.
Will takes the keys of house and leaves the house. Alex follows him.
On the other side, Natasha lay awake in bed, unable to find rest. Her gaze drifted to the ceiling, her mind consumed with thoughts. She is in turmoil , her mind and heart are heavy with the burden. She just don't know what to do. If she did right or wrong, in keeking Al in dark about their daughter. Turning her head towards Arthur, she observed him peacefully asleep. With a sigh, she shifted her position and sat on the edge of the bed.
Standing up, Natasha made her way to her purse, retrieving photos featuring herself and Al. As she studied the images, memories flooded her mind. Glancing back at Arthur, she felt a pang of sadness.
She quietly exits the room.
Natasha strides into the kitchen, her mind heavy with thoughts. She fills a glass with water and takes a long sip, trying to calm her racing thoughts. Sitting at the dining table, she gazes at the glass, tears welling up in her eyes. Emotions swirl within her as she questions her decisions.
Glancing at her phone, she sees it's 11:44 pm and a message from Karla pops up. "Are you free tomorrow? I need to talk to you about something."
Natasha switches off her phone, feeling a mix of anticipation and dread.
She looks at the photos on the table, memories of happier times with Al flooding her mind. She don't know what to do but this isn't right.
Natasha grabs the car keys. She opens the door and walks out of the house.
Natasha is behind the wheel of her car, glancing at the photos resting beside her steering wheel.
And there,Will is reaches next to the Parkinson Lodge building, constantly glancing back and forth between his mobile phone and the building. It is the same building Al is staying in. Why is he here?
Alex is looking at him from distance. He followed him here.
A man named Creek, in his 40s, approaches Will from behind. He is bald, of average build, and sports a mustache.
"Your name's Will?"
"Yes. And You are Creek?"
"You're too young man!!"
"I never told you i am an Adult."
"I mean, i thought you'd be some rich Adult."
"Now give me that?"
You have money?
Will opens his bag and shows him, there are two big bundles of money.
Its more than you need.
Creek peeks into the bag and discovers two bundles of cash. Will promptly closes the bag, leaving Creek astonished by the contents. Creek then retrieves a gun wrapped in cloth, which Will carefully unwraps and confirms to be a firearm.
"Now, give me my money."
Will takes out one bundle and gives it to Creek.
"It mustn't be fake!"
"You can check if you want."
Creek checks it. He Looks satisfied.
"Okay, it looks real."
"Thank you."
Alex is watching all of this and he is in a state of shock after witnessing the events that just unfolded before his eyes. He is struggling to comprehend the situation, but one thing is clear - it is not right. Will just bought a gun!!
Will turns and begins to walk away, but Creek quickly intervenes, halting his movement.
"Wait!!"
"What?"
"You seem a bit tensed."
"It's none of your business."
"Well! I have something, that can solve your problem."
"What?"
Creek retrieves a transparent packet from his pocket, containing a white powdery substance.
"Are these drugs?"
"Every medicine is a drug. It helped me when I was your age. When my parents died. It helped me to heal my wounds. It still does. There is no harm in trying it once. It's not like you're gonna get addicted to it. Try it. I am only trying to help."
Will is considering this offer. He takes that packet from Creek's hand.
"Only 400 bucks."
"What? For this!!"
"There is a cost for everything."
Will opens his bag give him some money from the another bundle of cash.
"Nice meeting you young boy!!"
Will turns around and walks away.
Creek takes out a cigarette to smoke.
Alex notices that Will is leaving. He quickly runs across the road to catch up to Will, but then he sees his mother's car stopping in front of the Parkinson Lodge. To his surprise, Natasha is in the car as well.
Realizing he might get caught, Alex hastily retreats back to his original hiding spot.
"Fuck!!", mutters Alex.
Natasha steps out of the car and gazes at the lodge before her. With a sense of anticipation, she makes her way inside the lodge.
Alex emerges from the shadows, finding himself in the middle of the road. Confusion washes over him as he questions why his mother would be out at this late hour. Realization dawns on Alex that Will is long gone. Determined to uncover the reason for his mother's unexpected presence, Alex makes his way towards the gate of the lodge. Standing there, he contemplates the morality of his actions, but ultimately decides to venture inside.
Alex enters the lodge and notices the receptionist was asleep.
However, he then sees Natasha heading upstairs. Intrigued, Alex decides to follow her while maintaining a safe distance to avoid being noticed.
Natasha eventually stops in front of room 202, prompting Alex to discreetly hiding behind a nearby wall while keeping a watchful eye on his mother.
Natasha knocks at the door. She seems bit tensed, her face looks gloomy.
Al opens the door. Al was not expecting Natasha.
"Rose?? What are you doing here??"
"I am sorry. I am Sorry Al."
Tears escape out of Natasha's eyes as she continues to speak, "That i didn't tell you about your daughter. You have all the rights to know about her. She is not like us. She intelligent, most beautiful and brave girl. She got into a good college. She is going to Princeton this summer. She going to be successful Al. Right now, she is working in a cafe.", Natasha is hesitant, "Her name is Sarah, Sarah Roberts. She was adopted by a lady named Karla Roberts, Detective Karla roberts."
"Detective Roberts?"
"Yes. She took a great care of our daughter. She gave her everything, everything that we might never be able to give her. Our daughter is living a happy life. She is happy."
Al took a long pause, realizing and confused that why did a police officer adopted their daughter. Natasha is staring at him for his response.
"Sarah... it's a beautiful name. But why you hided that from me."
"I just didn't know what to do. I was scared. I just wanted to protect her at any cost. We wouldn't have made it out alive together. They would have killed us. I wanted to tell you all of it but I was scared. I am sorry... Do you wanna meet her? I want you to meet her. But she don't know about us."
"Yes. I will meet her."
Al embraces Natasha, holding her tightly in his arms. He releases her, but his hands remain on her hips. Gently, he caresses her cheek as they lock eyes. Moving closer, their faces inch towards each other. Natasha moves less than an inch back but Al leans more towards her. There eyes locked into each other, Al comes more and more closer to her. Natasha can hear his heart beat, his breathe tangles with hers. Natasha us totally lost in his eyes. His warmth she can feel it, there forehead touches, she's lost in the Al's warmth, feeling after nearly two decades. Natasha looses her senses, lost in the Al's eyes, she leans in as well, bringing them closer until their noses touch. Finally their lips tangles, lost in each other, everything elopes out of their mind, lost in a passionate kiss. It is wrong but Natasha's mind cease to exist and her heart taking over the control. Their bodies entwine in a passionate embrace.
Their kiss deepens as they make their way into the room, closing the door behind them.
And there, at the end of the corridor Alex is trembling with fear after witnessing his mother engaging in intimate behavior with a stranger. Overwhelmed by shock, he takes a few steps back before turning and sprinting away as fast as he can.
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