23: The Honored Guest

The next morning, Sophie arrived at the office with Aaron on his bike. There were some gasps among the onlookers. He parked the bike and they went to their floor. It was unanimously decided that it was better for her safety if she didn’t travel alone. Aaron had done a great job in convincing her that they were in for it now. His enemy had narrowed him down to his loved ones and had already struck at them twice. It was only going to escalate from here. The two arrived at their floor and went to their work stations. As soon as he mustered up enough courage, Aaron paid Mr. Lawson a visit which didn’t take too long. He returned to his desk and dived into his work. It was a busy day. He didn’t mind the diversion. Hours passed quickly. In the final hours of the shift, Mr. Lawson emerged from his room and demanded everybody’s attention. All the staff gathered around. Sophie was also among the staff gathered. He announced that the company was in the final stages of signing a contract with a new potential client. The client was bigger than half of the company’s present clients combined. The staff almost cheered but it was apparent on the face of Mr. Lawson that there was a catch. He eventually got there. The client wanted to see the customer support department with his own eyes. The Vice President had excitedly offered him to arrange a visit today and he had, unexpectedly, agreed. That was the climax of the announcement. The client was scheduled to visit in an hour.
“I don’t have the slightest hint as to what he aims to achieve by this but it is happening all the same”, he said.
He directed the janitor of the floor to give the floor an extra wipe and requested the staff to organize their workstations. It all had to look as professional as possible.

The staff was thrilled to have the opportunity to meet a big fish up close. Aaron wasn’t much amused.
“Alright! Do your best and I’ll see you guys as soon as he’s here”, added Mr. Lawson and left. Sophie was excited and directed the staff like troops. Aaron had never done anything on his desk in the first place. He went to the pantry and fixed himself a cup of coffee. He took the coffee with him to the clear glass wall of his floor that overlooked half of the New York City’s financial district. He sipped as he stood at the glass wall, watching the skyscrapers and the hordes of people the buildings puked on the street at that time of the day. Aaron wondered if he was ever going to be accustomed to such robotic life. He could see the VP stepping out of the building with his PA, straightening his coat nervously. Aaron almost laughed at the man’s childish excitement. The VP would have arranged a mariachi band and a balloon arch if he had known about the guest’s arrival two hours earlier. He was visibly asking his PA if he was looking fine, over and over again. Aaron didn’t even know if it was safe out there on the streets but he just wanted to go home. The coffee was crappy but he didn’t mind. Sophie called him from behind. He nodded and gestured that he was going to come as soon as the coffee was finished. He turned back to the glass wall. A VIP convoy materialized, seemingly out of thin air. A sharply decorated limo appeared in front of the building along with four black sedans with tinted windows, two in the front and two on its tail. The gullibility of the VP told him that the guest had arrived.
“Damn! That really is a big guy!”, Aaron thought to himself. A guy in black suit emerged from the limo and scrambled to open the door at the back. Aaron was getting impressed by the protocol. Rick Hudson, dressed in his usual all whites, emerged from the back of the limo and was warmly welcomed by the VP. Aaron choked on the coffee and dropped the cup on the floor, pissing off the janitor. The white coat and cowboy hat were unmistakable even from several stories above. Aaron was running out breath and wondered how he could warn Sophie who was delightfully helping around in front of him. There were a lot of groups and persons who had a lot to gain if Aaron went six feet under but Rick Hudson’s case was different. His seemingly useless visit was no coincidence. Aaron had always had his suspicions on Hudson but he prayed that he was wrong. It was no secret that Rick Hudson was a titan and a very resourceful one at that. Having him as your sworn enemy was a death sentence.

She looked back at him to ask for a hand. He was sweating profusely and the panic in his eyes was obvious. She offered a few instructions to the staff and walked away from them. She paced towards him with visible signs of concern on her face. He was still not sure if he should tell her or flee himself but then he saw the bandage on her hand. She was a sitting duck without him. Besides, he owed her even more answers now. As she inched close enough, he grabbed her by her arm and pulled her to the corner of the floor, behind a tall wall of a cubicle. A few from the staff saw them swiftly heading to a secluded space and they weren’t surprised after what they had seen in the morning. But the couple’s mood was far from romantic. She was desperate for answers.
“They are here!”, he whispered holding her close to herself. She stood there terror-struck. He realized that she was in no position to ask any questions so he answered them himself.
“Rick Hudson, the real estate tycoon, is one of my worst enemies. He is the honored guest we’re waiting for. He has just arrived and it’s not a coincidence”, he explained further. Sophie was trying to gather herself and make sense of all of it. “We need to run now!”, he added.
“You go ahead. Maybe I can handle the situation while you’re gone”, she managed to say. He wasn’t amused. He just glared at her injured hand and she got the point.
“Face it! Our cover is blown! We need to get out now!”, he pleaded. She hesitantly headed to the hallway that lead to the elevator. He stopped her and insisted that they use the back stairwell. She agreed.

By the time Mr. Lawson and the VP escorted the guest at the floor, Aaron and Sophie had already made their way to the basement parking. They sneaked to the front parking lot where Aaron’s bike was parked and found Hudson’s men scattered around. They were armed to their teeth and there was no way through them. Aaron tried to find an opening but found Ronald Mosely barking orders at the men and setting the field. Aaron found cover inside the building and begged his brain to produce some plan out of nothing. Any last shred of doubt that Aaron had regarding the purpose of the visit, vanished. The two looked for options and they needed a way out fast.

Mr. Lawson was not amused when he didn’t find Sophie to welcome the guest on behalf of the staff. He took the reins himself and introduced all the staff members to Rick Hudson. Hudson was warmly welcomed. Most of the employees already knew him and professed their love for what he did while the rest had heard the name but had never seen him. As Mr. Lawson finished introducing the employees, he realized that one more employee was missing. That made him smell that something was off.
“Where is your team leader?”, Rick Hudson abruptly inquired. Mr. Lawson was taken off guard. He decided to go with the sickness excuse.
“She was just here a moment ago”, an employee said, looking around.
“Pity. I was looking to have a heart to heart with the superwoman”, Hudson added and shook his head with a venomous grin across his face. Mr. Lawson felt blood abandoning the upper half of his body. The company’s website was yet to be updated with the new recruitments. There was no way an outsider like Rick Hudson could know that the team leader was a girl. And Sophie’s disappearance along with Aaron’s raised terrible suspicions in his mind. An abrupt loud siren stirred panic in the establishment. It was the fire alarm. The bodyguards of Rick Hudson surrounded him and escorted him to the fire exit. The employees rushed to get their belongings before they headed out.

The men at the front parking rushed inside the building as soon as they heard the fire alarm. Aaron looked behind him puzzled, trying to find Sophie and found her standing at the wall at the far end of the underground parking with a broken fire alarm switch beside her. The idea had given them a window of opportunity. They dashed to the bike and darted out of there.