Dreams Ltd Read online

  “When will I be able to read the documents that you provide to enter the territory?”

  “You will get them directly at the entrance of the border. Any other questions?” Brahms, oddly enough, also looked tired.

  “I would like to familiarise myself with them now.”

  “I cannot provide you with this opportunity. Documents are being prepared by another department. They will be given to you at the entrance to the city.”

  Damn! I can’t get a lot out of you.

  “When will I need to go there?”

  “At dawn.”

  I almost didn’t feel surprised. I just stretched out my hands in front of me and rubbed my tired face. On one hand it is bad - I have no time for packing, on another hand - it’s good. As I said before, the sooner I start the sooner I finish. If it’s not going to take more than a few days I’d prefer to go there as soon as possible. Yes, get it over with and come back with no debts and no liabilities.

  “Do you have any further questions, Mrs Moore?” Brahms asked indifferently, reaching for another cigarette.

  “I have plenty of questions. It’s just hard to think where to ask”

  “Get some rest” He obviously noticed the signs of fatigue on my face and it was to his advantage as I had no energy to concentrate or insist or argue about anything. “Decide what to ask later. You’ll be given a room on the fifth floor where you can sleep. You will be also provided with food and you will have access to the bathroom should you wish to refresh yourself.”

  All that sounded damn nice, especially the idea of a cushy bed. And I was forced to give in.

  “Alright” I rubbed my eyes wearily. “I guess I really should get some sleep. But I still have many questions. Do not forget that.”

  “Of course” Said Brahms softly. “We won’t forget.”

  He picked up an internal intercom and pressed the button:

  “Lee, please escort Mrs Moore to her room. We are done for today.”

  As I was leaving the office and followed the woman in red skirt I was still thinking about everything that Brahms said. The City… I must not forget to pick up the box and write down the name of this Laroche.

  I forgot to pick up the box from the table. I remembered suddenly and as I was going to turn around when another thought came. They won’t let me leave this place without it, no worries. And after I get some sleep and have some food – I’ll ask my other bunch of questions.

  At least, those were my thoughts at that very moment.

  Tossing and turning in bed, I tried to find a comfortable position which would allow me to fall asleep quicker. The room I was taken to was unpretentious but comfortable. The lay out of the room reminded me of a hotel: a wide double bed, bedside table, lamp, three chairs and a couple of paintings on walls. To complete the resemblance there should be a TV but it was missing. The windows were tightly draped; I tried to open the curtains to look outside but they were pinned to the walls. I backed off without putting in too much effort into pulling them off. If they don’t want to show where we are – it’s their choice. I washed my face, turned off the lights and went to bed. Impenetrable darkness surrounded me.

  My head was spinning from all that has happened today. A new collection of accessories came to the shop in the morning - Linda and I sifted through the various items and added the new stock to the database. I sleepily thought I should give her a call in the morning and warn of my temporary absence. I opened a women's clothing boutique three years ago and during this time it began to bring a small but steady income. A business like this was not difficult to run and I only hired four employees, yet I enjoyed being there every day, looking after employees, ordering new collections, thinking of strategies to attract new customers. Overall everything was going quite well and I was thinking about opening a second shop but perhaps bit closer to my apartment. Even though Alex used to pick me up after work every night I still wanted a chance to walk there and back to enjoy the warm summer air.

  I didn’t notice how my thoughts returned to Alex. I remembered the smile on his face and his mischievous eyes. But lately he’d not been his usual happy self as before he’d disappeared. He completely stopped smiling and he was always frowning. Something had changed. How could I have missed that moment? Looking at him I saw this intense, even frightened look on his face. I tried not to press him with too many questions but support and take care of him, but nothing seemed to bring him back to his usual self. Alex turned from a very eloquent guy into a withdrawn and alienated man. What was it that he knew? Was he aware of the troubles that were about to start or was it just because of his misunderstanding with Elmer?

  Elmer was the one who received the kidnappers’ ransom demand, and the one who refused to pay it.

  What a great business partner he is! Bastard…flashed through my head but I had no energy for any real anger. OK, we’ll deal with you later.

  I heard someone’s footsteps and muffled voices in a hall. And as soon as they faded away I fell asleep.

  I was woken up at 7am. I could tell the time by the digital clock that was standing on the bedside cabinet. The room, because of the dense curtains, was just like the night before, plunged into darkness. Wincing painfully from the loud sounds I reached for the lamp, turned on the light and yawned.

  A trolley laden with plates was delivered into the room.

  “Breakfast, Mrs Moore” alerted me the same woman who accompanied me into the room last night.

  What was her name? Oh, yes – Lee.

  “Thanks, Lee!”

  But as soon as I threw my blanket out of bed I had to pick it up quickly and cover up my semi-naked body again – two men entered the room.

  “Hey!” I said indignantly, at the same time trying to wrap myself up in sheets. “May I at least get dressed please?”

  “Sorry, Mrs Moore but we must inform you that you have just twenty minutes for breakfast and dressing up. The car is already waiting, and we must go as soon as possible.”

  I instantly thought about Brahms.

  “What about my morning meeting with Mr Scott Brahms? He promised to answer my questions!”

  I didn’t even have time to think about the questions I was going to ask but my hasty departure would deprive me of any possibility to ask them!

  The two men exchanged cautious looks.

  “Mr Brahms has not arrived at the office yet. And he probably will not appear until later this afternoon. We must make sure that you catch today’s bus that’s going to "Area 33". The bus only goes there once every few days so it would be quite unfortunate if you missed today’s one.”

  That would be quite unfortunate… I thought angrily, regretting the absence of Brahms at the office.

  “Leave the room, please” I said coldly. “I need to get dressed.”

  “You have only twenty min…”

  “I remember. And I’ll be ready by then.”

  Men disappeared. Before leaving the room Lee asked if I there was anything else I needed but there wasn’t.

  As my guests left me alone I sighed, unwrapped myself from the sheets and sat on the bed.

  Is it worth trying to argue or try to make them find someone else who can give me more information I need? I pondered for a second. But those two men will force me into the can in twenty minutes anyway. If the bus really does go to “Area 33” once every few days, maybe it’s not such a bad idea to catch it then? Who needs delays? Alright… To hell with all the questions. I’ll manage..

  Twenty minutes later I stepped into the corridor. The two men that came into the room earlier were now waiting right outside the door. One of them was impatiently glancing at his watch.

  “I’m right on time. Do not even think to reproach me.” I growled.

  “Let’s go.”

  They walked down the hallway and I followed them.

  The car was waiting inside the underground garage. It was the same black colour as the one that brought me to the Corporation. I sat on a back seat and regretfull
y noticed that it’s not possible to see a thing through the tinted windows again.

  What a conspiracy!

  From the entertaining point of view I only had two things to do: change the temperature and move my leather seat back and forth. I got tired quickly of such a great diversity so I leaned back and closed my eyes. Meanwhile the car was speeding up. After a while the cabin of the car filled up with a smell of last year’s wet foliage.

  It must be raining outside. Shame I can’t see it.

  I felt sad thinking that instead of going in an unknown direction I could stroll down the street, go to a small and cosy café, buy some fresh buns and continue the way to my shop.

  Oh, my God! I forgot!

  I leaned forward and knocked on the partition that separated me from the driver. Little window lowered immediately.

  “Could I borrow your mobile, please? I must warn my staff that I won’t be around for some time”

  There was a silence for a few seconds, and then a hand with mobile phone appeared.

  “Thank you.”

  “Don’t say too much” the man warned me.

  “As if I don’t know”

  The little window went up and I started dialling Linda’s number.

  She answered after a few long rings.

  “Linda? Hi, this is Shereen. I wanted to warn you that I have an urgent trip now and won’t be able to come in today. In fact, I don’t even know when exactly I’m coming back. No, I didn’t have time to warn the others. So, you are in control now and in charge of the new collection as well. No, I don’t know when I’ll be back, perhaps in a few days… Please call “Divuee” and try to get a discount for us. Also Mr Oliver should call today. Arrange a meeting with him and pass the documents from the top drawer to him, alright?”

  I was certain that Linda won’t forget a thing. Her punctuality and precision were borderline tedious at times, but it was much easier to put up with qualities like hers than deal with forgetfulness or even worse - negligence.

  It’s a huge luck to have an employee like that. I thought while answering a thousand questions Linda was asking. At least I don’t have to worry about the store while I am away. A nice bonus for her won’t hurt when I get back.

  “Linda, thank you for helping me with this and I’m sorry I couldn’t warn you earlier. I know you will take care of everything the best you can… What?” Her last question made me feel sad again. “No, there is no news about Alex. Yes, I’m sorry too.”

  We were silent for a moment.

  “Okay, I have to go now. I don’t have my phone on me now, but I’ll give you my new number as soon as I have it. Thank you, sweetie. Good luck to you too. Bye!”

  I’ve pressed the “end call” button and looked at the tinted window. The conversation made me feel sad and I felt strong desire to get back home, make a cup of coffee, flick through some new magazines, enjoy the birds singing outside my apartment and walk down familiar streets. It’s been always interesting for me to see how other owners decorate their own displays.

  Chin up! This trip has already started which means the end is now closer.

  Comforted by this simple thought I leaned back and closed my eyes. I might even be able to get some sleep, recharge my battery before my ordeal continues? Yet again I thought that life can be exhausting sometimes. Many things have lost their meaning since Alex had disappeared. What am I fighting for? So many efforts, so many sleepless nights but so far nothing has come from that. Life has become dim and faded like an old photograph. Fragrances have lost their smells and all the sounds have got similar to a monotonous drone of an off-tuned musical band. What a miserable life. Who cares if I will miss couple of days in my shop? And what difference does it make where I am going now? The debt will be paid back. It probably won’t make me happy but at least one less load off my mind. Comforted by these thoughts I calmed down.

  The bus stop looked grim.

  A one-story stone building was painted in white and an old paint cracked was peeling off the wall. Maybe that was because of humidity or because of time. A few unwashed dusty windows that have not been washed for a long time were located on the perimeter but the lack of light bulb made it impossible to see the interior inside.

  Where the entrance should be there was no door, only a hole. The door itself – lone and rusty - was lying on the ground in the puddle next to the building.

  The scenery around the bus stop wasn’t pleasant for the eye as either: rare shrubs on the sides of the concreted area, muddy ditches where rainwater would flow, grey mountains half hidden in the mist were rising in the distance on the horizon.

  Carrying the envelope and squelching through the puddles in water soaked shoes I approached the station. My luggage bag was dragging behind me; its two little wheels were making constant noise “sh-sh-sh-sh”. All the new items that I was given by the car driver were in there. He also told me that there was some money in my luggage bag as well as the package for Laroche and the envelope to be shown to the bus driver later. That was it. All my attempts to get any additional information such as “What kind of place is this and how can I find my bus” were cut with short answer, “This is the station you need and there will only be one bus. You can’t confuse it with anything else”

  A group of people, most of which sat on their bags similar to mine - there was about thirty or forty of them, men and women – some older, some younger. Almost all of them kept quiet, waiting for the bus. Nobody paid any attention to me.

  I stood there a bit further away from everyone else. I hid the envelope in the inside pocket of my jacket (after scrutinizing it I found out that it’s completely sealed) and started staring at the only road to the mountains on which I guessed, the bus should arrive.

  To my right, covering the cigarette from the rain a man was smoking. He was the only one who gave me quick and unfriendly look and then turned away.

  Trying not to turn my head too much I looked at people cautiously. Casual clothing - nothing bright or fancy: trousers, jackets, simple but comfortable shoes with no heels and mostly trainers. Almost everyone had a bag or a backpack. Who are these people? Are they the staff of “Area 33”? If it wasn’t for the pressing silence hanging over the place I’d think that they are employees of that closed city and now they are getting back there from a short break away. Judging by their faces they must really hate their job.

  “Why is everybody so quiet?” I asked the man nearby.

  He rewarded me with a strange look but didn’t reply.

  Confused and a little annoyed - if he doesn’t want to talk I won’t force him - I turned away.

  “I'd rather work there than anywhere else ...” Suddenly I heard his voice “Don’t you think?”

  Not really knowing what is he talking about I nodded vaguely and for some stupid reason added “yep”.

  You’d rather discover what kind of job he is talking about before you agree to who knows what, I told myself.

  “I also think that it’s better there” added another man and then went completely silent.

  I’ve lost any desire to continue our dialog as well – who knows what kind of weird stuff I’ll tell him next? And what all this might turn into later? I don’t need any problems just yet, I just need to pass this bloody package to Laroche and be done with it.

  I started rummaging through my bag pretending to be busy.

  I’ll be alright without asking any question. Everything will become clear when I see the city.

  At last - the bus, yellowish-brown with constantly creaking brakes pulls up at the bus stop.

  People started hurrying and getting up from their seats to queue in front of the hardly opening snorting doors. But there was no rush visible in people’s movements. Envelopes just like the one I had in my pocket appeared in everyone’s hands. My neighbour threw his half-smoked cigarette into the puddle and reached for the bag to find the envelope; then shuffling with his old shoes, went to the bus.

  I think it’s time for me as well; I fo
llowed his lanky figure with my eyes.

  At this moment driver’s bold head showed out of the doors.

  “Come here, folks – one by one, show me the bar-codes on your envelopes and get inside. And hurry up people!”

  Those people who were still sitting on their bags rushed to get up. I followed their lead, found the envelope in my pocket and wheeled the bag to the end of the line. There were about five other people separating me from the guy I had a conversation with. One after another men and women were disappearing into the cabin of the bus – not very quickly, but not very slowly either. About ten seconds per person. Making small steps with my wet shoes and wheeling my bag behind me, I was approaching the doors. When the woman standing in front me went inside it was my time to show the envelope to the fat bus driver.