My fingers found the strings. My old acoustic guitar, that was lying against the wall near Liam's bed.
It felt good to have the familiar weight on my lap.
It was the only comfort in that awful room. I didn't sing. I simply played. Soft chords at first.
It was something I have never played before.
It was a new melody, it was sad and slow.
It mirrored the beep… whir… beep… of the machines.
Music was usually my escape till today.
Today it simply echoed my fear out loud.
My eyes kept flicking to my open laptop on the bedside table. To the bidding wall. $387,500. User_Obsidian.
His message sat like a bomb beneath it. Something I wasn't in a hurry to diffuse.
The door clicked open. It was Dex. Liam's drummer, his best friend since high school.
He looked wrecked, carrying two paper coffee cups. His usual loud energy was gone, replaced by weariness.
"Hey, Helenie." His voice was rough. He placed a cup near me. "Any change?"
I shook my head, muting the guitar strings with my palm.
"No. Still… still sleeping" I took a shaky breath.
"Come on, buddy. Open your eyes" Dex whispered.
"He is not going to open his eyes, Dex. And I don't suppose you have 900,000 lying around to fly a specialist into the country?" I asked him.
Dex shook his head. He didn't say anything else. Simply slide down into the only other chair in the room...he was exhausted too. We all were.
"Dex… did Liam ever… did he mention anyone? From his family? An aunt? A cousin? Anyone that could help us?"
Dex frowned "His family? Helene, you know how it is. He doesn't have anyone."
"I know, I know," I rushed, desperation making my voice tight. "But… he's dying, Dex. I thought maybe… maybe he had an uncle or an aunt...anyone really? I will take any help" The plea sounded pathetic even to me.
Dex stared at his coffee. He looked uncomfortable. "Helene… Liam didn't talk about them much. I don't know anything I'm sorry"
"So, there's no one. Just me?" I asked him.
The air left my lungs.
"He chose you, Helene to be his future wife. You are his family in my book. You are all he's ever needed really" Dex says quietly.
The words hit me like stones.
"He chose me to be his family. I am all he really needs" I repeated Dex's words to myself.
I looked at Liam's still face. At the machines keeping him alive. At the impossible number glowing on my laptop screen.
User_Obsidan's offer was the only light at the end of the tunnel.
Tonight. I will get your fiance the help he needs.
It was the only way. Damn it! It was the only way.
"Dex?" I called out. "If roles were reversed and I was dying, would Liam do anything...I mean, anything to save my life?"
Dex looked at me...like really looked at me. I think he saw how sad I was and how hopeless I felt in that moment. And then he spoke. "He told me once that he has never loved anyone the way he loved you. The first day he met you in that run down bar, he leaned in and he whispered... that's my wife. So yeah, I think he'd save you. And I think he would prefer he was the one dying"
And so I made my decision.
If Liam could give up everything for me, I can do this for him. I will do this.
"Thanks, Dex," I whisper, my voice strangely calm. "For telling me. For being here."
***
The lobby of the Aura Hotel screamed money.
It was all marble floors, soft lighting and hushed voices.
It smelled like expensive too, it smelled like flowers and leather.
I clutched my small purse. Inside it, just my phone, lip balm, and a sick feeling in my stomach.
A man approached me. He was tall. Thin. Dressed in expensive grey suit.
His hair was perfectly silver. He looked like a lawyer or a very polished butler. There were no warmth in his eyes. None at all.
"Miss James?" His voice was smooth. Cold. "I am Obsidian. You can call me Mr. Vale"
I just nodded. I couldn't speak. My throat was too tight.
He gestured toward a secluded alcove with plush chairs. We sat down.
He placed a slim leather folder on the low table between us but didn't open it yet.
"So what now?" I asked him.
"Discretion is paramount," he began. No greeting. Just facts. "You will be escorted to a private suite shortly. Your acquirer is already en route."
Acquirer, huh. Like I was painting. Or a horse. I flinched but stayed silent.
"It's not...you?" I asked him. It was barely a whisper. I couldn't even hold his gaze.
"No" he stated. "I simply run a business. I acquire things for people who need...things"
Again with that word.
"I have reviewed your… profile," Mr. Vale continued, his gaze impersonal. "I need you to know that your acquirer doesn't know that I bought you for him. You are a gift of some sort. Do you understand the context? So, I need the desire to feel real. He needs the authenticity tonight. The girlfriend experience."
The girlfriend experience? The bitter laugh caught in my throat.
My real boyfriend was dying in a hospital and they needed the girlfriend experience.
"What does that mean?" My voice was barely a whisper.
Mr. Vale finally opened the folder. He slid a single sheet of expensive cream paper towards me. It was Bullet points.
* Greet him warmly at the door. A genuine smile. Use his chosen name: Alexander.*
* Engage in light conversation. Ask about his day. Listen attentively.
* Share details about your own day (keep it positive/neutral). Your music, perhaps.
* Accept a pre-dinner drink. Sip slowly.
* Dinner will be served in the suite. Maintain pleasant conversation.
* Express physical affection appropriately. Hand on his arm. Brief kiss if initiated.
* The evening culminates in the bedroom. Consensual intimacy. He prefers… enthusiasm.
* Stay the night. Depart discreetly after breakfast tomorrow morning. A car will be provided.
I stare at the list. Instructions. It was like a script for a terrible movie. 'Genuine smile'. 'Enthusiasm'. While my heart was shattering.
Mr. Vale watched me. "The agreed sum will be transferred in full to you by morning"
He pushed a plain white key card across the table. Room 4202.
"The escort will arrive shortly to take you up," he said, standing. "Do you understand the expectations, Miss James?"
I looked at the key card. At the list. At Liam's engagement ring on my finger. I thought of Dex's words. He chose you.
I picked up the key card. It felt cold. Heavy. But my hand didn't shake.
"I understand," I said. My voice sounded flat. Dead. Like someone else's as I took off the ring and placed it in my purse.