Lone Wolf

Chapter 15

Addison could hear the jazz playing behind her as she browsed the selection of top shelf liquor that Holland's had to offer. The Madeaux Brothers were regulars at Holland's. They played every Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights, and in Addison's eyes...or more so, her ears...they were extremely talented. Brandon, the trumpet player, was the oldest of the quartet. All of the brothers went to the same high school as Addison, and Brandon was a senior when she was a freshman. Harrison, the saxophone player was just a year older than she was. They dated for a brief period in high school, but it was one of those so-called "band relationships"; a placeholding relationship between two people in the high school band. Nicholas played the standing bass, and was one year younger than Addison. He may have been the second-youngest of the four brothers, but he was the tallest by a longshot. William was the youngest and four years younger than Addison. She never met him in school, but he was one hell of a keyboard player. She tried to keep up with what the brothers were still doing, but what she really enjoyed was the relaxing atmosphere created by the band.

"Anything to drink?" Micah, the usual bartender, asked. He always dressed in all black; a style that not many black men could pull off, but he always looked extremely professional and exceptionally handsome. The only other color he wore was a scarlet tie; the same shade as the lipstick Addison favored on her Holland's trips, and this time, it matched her dress as well.

"Tom Collins," she smiled.

"How many times do I have to tell you? My name is Micah." He laughed as she turned to glance over at the band. She watched for a second before things seemed a bit off. The music sounded like it was a second behind the band. She hadn't started drinking yet, but it felt as if she had.

"Your drink. Addison, right?" She turned back around to see that the bartender had changed. A bleached blonde man with a scar over his lip smiled. She went to stand up from the barstool, but when she put her hand down behind her, it sunk into a bed. She looked around the club to see that it wasn't there anymore. The club had changed into a hotel room. The man stood looking out one of the many windows in what seemed to be a presidential suite. Addison began to panic.

"It's one of the most expensive rooms in the city," he said, turning to look at her.

"Where am I?" She asked, her voice feeling as if it were stuck in her chest.

"Don't worry. It's my dad's money." The young man said, seemingly ignoring her. "Not even close to breaking my bank, let alone his."

She couldn't speak now as he moved closer to her, untucking his shirt, "You sure the age gap doesn't bother you?"

That question echoed in her mind as everything faded to black.

She shot awake, breathing heavily. She had been lying on a thin mattress that was being held up by a very squeaky steel frame. She could feel the beads of sweat rolling down her neck as she sat up and put her feet on the cold, concrete floor. The room was dark aside from the illuminating light of a television screen that showed nothing but static and blared white noise. She stumbled over to it, weak and cold, to try to turn it off. It was mounted on the wall behind thick plexiglass. There were no windows. There was, however, one door.

Addison felt around the heavy door but could not feel a handle. She slammed her fists on the door and began screaming for help, but there was nothing. After just a few seconds, all of which felt like hours to her, she collapsed in exhaustion next to it. As she caught her breath, a small slot on the door opened. She watched as a tray of white rice and a bottle of water was pushed in before the slot slammed closed. She didn't even have time to yell for help.

The static on the TV calmed as what seemed like a commercial played.

A man with a purple suit stood in front of a massive tree.