Julia had just nodded, but nothing could stop him from staring at the hallway. Something wasn't right; Julia's eyes parted and fixed at the room entrance. He wanted to lay out some words, but shunned it. Because it might affect Julia's stay here.
He walked toward the room entrance, eyes fixed on the door entrance and hands firmly on his gun. Even though sweat had dripped all over his hot trousers, he still went further and spied.
The hallway was quiet, a little one it was. Beside it was the washing machine, and then, at his room door, it was quiet. He tiptoed toward it, and then. His room was well closed. He inhaled deeply and pinned his body on the door.
"Thank goodness," he muttered before twisting the door handle and walking inside the room. The curtain was shifted to one side; William couldn't recall placing it that way. But he brushed the thought off and ran toward his bed and lay on it. His eyes glanced at the brown ceiling, with a star design on it.A little smile curled as it reminded him of his childhood days, always watching the stars and praying to reach there one day.
Suddenly, footsteps echoed as it came closer to his door. He groaned, rolled off the bed, hid his body at the bed's edge, and pointed the gun at the door.
"Uncle… are you in there?" Julia asked, her voice filled with scared and cracked."Yes, hop inside," he hissed and strode up and then went back to the bed and sat there waiting for Julia.
Five minutes later, she finally entered the room. "Julia? "Are you there?" his voice was barely a whisper as he stared. He stood and strode toward the door, already fed up with her joke. "Don't play games with me!" he snarled, and immediately he yanked the door. But Julia wasn't there; hands trembling and face sweating, he stood there for close to a minute, frozen, still lost in thought.
He ran back inside, closed the door, grabbed his phone, and dialed her number but got a busy signal. "Oh shit." He punched his hands on the pillow; as it shifted the bed, he hissed and took a deep breath before walking out of the room again. This time, he wasn't in for a joke. He moved gently and calmly, eyes scanning everywhere.
"Julia?" he called again. Just then, he saw a shadow in the dining room.
"Uncle?" Julia spoke from the parlor as she sat there, clutching her phone. "Where did you go?" William asked, raising his eyebrows, waiting to hear a response.
"Go? I didn't move an inch; I've been here all day, Uncle." She frowned, frowned, and curled into the sofa and the bedsheet she took. "Don't joke with me, did you go to my room?" he yelled, grinding his teeth as she jerked off. Her phone slipped down and fell to the ground, hands trembling as she stared at him.
"What's wrong with you? You can't speak now, right?'' William lashed out, and stormed toward her. She pulled back and ran toward the door entrance. "Where are you going?" He sassed and ran toward her, grabbed her wrist, and pinned her to the wall. Her breath hitched, and her eyes parted, as she couldn't look at him for once.
"Split it out!" he ordered her, and she kept on tossing her head, refusing to meet his gaze. He felt her hands still vibrating, and a gasp escaped. "Who sent you?" he yelled, and squeezed her body as she screamed out.
"Please…stop," she pleaded, and she stared with unshed tears. "Who do you work for?" he snarled, as their eyes locked. "I…I'm sorry," she stammered, with her eyes avoiding his gaze. "Speak! I wouldn't hurt you, trust me," he assured her and detached from her.
Her knees buckled as she stumbled finally and stared, hands on her neck, and her eyes batting. Her heart skipped a beat. Just then, her eyes got fixed on one direction. "What?" he asked.
"He…is…" she stammered, as she pointed at the door, William stood fast and pulled her behind, hiding her from anyone. He stared at the door, waiting for anybody to come in, but twenty minutes passed, and there was no sign of the intruder.
"Hey, I told you not to play games with me. But you choose to." Anger rose up, pulled her, and dragged her to the dining room. Her legs flailed, trying to get out of his grip, but his broad shoulder made it hell for her. Finally reaching the dining room, he curled her into an empty seat and tied her with his trouser belt.
"Now, speak!" he ordered. Julia knew at this point; her life could be at stake if she didn't align with his orders. "Say a name." He commanded.
"Franklin." She said boldly with a smug face. "Good," he sassed. "Why?" he asked.
"Mom needed some drugs. She was sick, and I couldn't allow her to rot there. I had to find a way." She explained, "William heard the news; he didn't know if he should be sad or be angry at her."
This was his sister, but betrayal wasn't child's play. He watched her say those heavy words; yes, she doesn't deserve this cruel world, and that's why he was fighting against it. Mr. Anders, everything that circled around injustice was his goal.
"Uncle William," she called his name softly as he turned and faced her. She wiped off her wet tears, and her eyes pierced into his. "Do you recognize his face or something?" he questioned. "Yes, I do, but not perfectly," she took a deep breath and answered. Julia stared at her uncle, wondering why he was so quiet after betraying him, maybe it was for his sister or something deep.
"Uncle…Will, I'm so sorry." She stuttered and held his hands as he stared at her. "What? Sorry? I would deal with this. But for now, you must tell me everything." He was forced a small a smile.
William stood up from there and walked toward his room. Leaving Julia to wonder if today was her last day. Even though the hallway was so cold, with no soul in it. That didn't stop him from entering his room and grabbing his laptop.
He headed back to the parlor and sat on the sofa. Julia, still tied up, glanced at him even though she couldn't see him from that distance. William rushed and searched for Franklin Gulfport. No single picture of him on the internet; he then went to the dark website. And that's when his eyes met with a familiar face, a woman beside Franklin. Franklin had a cowboy cap and ash-colored shirt and tight black trousers fixed to a sharp belt buckle.