The Confrontation

Without any arguments or otherwise words, Asha turns around, leaving the room., sliding the door closed behind her.

“What was she talking about?” Ana asks, holding Bethan’s hands and pulling her down to her level.

“I’ll excuse you two.” Mandall announces, Bethany looks at him but he knows it is a thing between mother and daughter to grieve in peace. “I’ll be right outside.” With an encouraging smile, he leaves the room.

“Where is Paul? What am I forgetting?”

“Calm down Mum. I’ll tell you everything. Do you remember asking me to go find a man?”

“Yes, that was the last time I saw you.”

“That same day, I had gotten into a small accident and slept off at the hospital. On the news the next morning, we had been attacked, you and Dad. You had mysteriously disappeared and Dad was… shot.”

Anastasia reels like she herself was shot. “So… Where is he now?”

Painful to admit, “He was shot in the face, it was a hate crime, orchestrated by someone who hated us apparently, and before the next morning, you were gone. And no one was able to trace your whereabouts. Not even the cameras around ever caught a ruffle of your dress. That rude officer is the one in charge of the case.”

Anastasia breaths in short gasps, her chest rising and falling with every breath. “Oh my God, Paul…” She moans, her palms covering her mouth in held back sobs.

“I’m sorry. The morgue could not keep his body for so long so we had to do the funeral.”

Ana wipes her eyes and tries to be coherent. “You were telling me something about your uncle the day I woke up. What about him? Did they get to him too?”

Bethany bites the insides of her cheeks, unsure of whether to tell her or not, but knowing Ana, she will find out sooner or later. “The day of the funeral, we were burying the body when your secretary alerted me of an unauthorized live conference being held at the company so I came down here to meet Uncle Drake about to announce himself as the new CEO…”

“WHAT?! That son of a bitch!” Anastasia curses, her pale face red with fury.

Bethany reels slightly over the swearing, knowing that even she needed some respite sometimes. She would have smiled on another occasion but this is not the place nor time for one. “I was able to stop him… and announced that I will be CEO as you wanted.”

“He tried to pull the card of not being married, didn’t he? That sly bastard.”

So many swear words.

“Yes. He tried to but I told him, the reporters and everybody caring to watch the live conference that I was getting married.”

“You are?” Anastasia looks at her blankly.

“Yes. To him. He’s going to be my husband.”

Anastasia looks at her daughter for a close ten seconds. “At least one of us will have a partner.”

Bethany pulls her into a hug. “He is pretty capable. I’m sorry. If you ever remember anything, it could help with the investigation. That could be why that detective was here. Oh, and Drake got escorted out of there by the police. He was a prime suspect but I guess he’s been released now.”

“Prime suspect? And he’s released already? In less than forty eight hours? That is fishy. Even if they were going to find him not guilty, they will publicly announce and apologize. It is fishy.”

“I thought the same. I’ll be meeting him soon anyway, that is if he has the balls to come to work.”

Anastasia’s shoulders start to sag, and her eyes start to twitch. Bethany helps her into the bed, adjusting her pillows and bed’s high rate. “I think you need some rest. I’ll be outside with Mandall, would you like me to get you some things?”

“Just some good food and please, some good clothes, out of these rags.”

Bethany pecks her on the forehead. “Sure. I’ll be back before you wake up.” I love you.

Bethany leaves the room, closing the door silently behind her.

Outside the room, Mandall is staring furiously at Asha and as soon as the detective sees Bethany come out, she walks away, down the hall, into the elevator and then leaves, her stare never leaving Mandall, and he looks positively furious as well.

“What was that all about?” Bethany asks as Mandall’s eyes soften, facepalming.

“I think she mistook me for someone else, and she did not let go of it, pestering me. I had to tell her off…”

~ Just some minutes earlier ~

Mandall turns around, closing the room’s door behind him, to meet Asha pacing around. She had looked up at him and then walked over to him.

“Good afternoon. I am Detective Asha Rawlings. In charge of the Paul Worth case.” She had outstretched her hands for a handshake, and Mandall had shook her hands good naturedly and as politely expected.

“I am Mandall Hall, Miss Worth’s fiancée.”

“Ah, it was you she so proudly announced at the conference?”

“Probably. It’s nice to see you coming here as soon as you heard she had been found. That shows some good dedication on your part. Its admirable.”

Asha had scoffed. “Yea, very admirable. I am a pretty bull headed and strong willed person, so I always, always see my cases to the end.”

“Yeah, that sounds impressive.”

“Except that there was this one case that has been bothering me even till now. We never even got to meet the culprit, until today, I suddenly, for the first time in years, met someone who has the same exact side profile as he does. Do you think that is a coincidence?”

“I wouldn’t know. Maybe not?”

Asha chuckles, an unfriendly emanating from her. Mandall shifts away from her a couple steps, standing in front of the room directly, leaning his tall frame on the walls.

“Would you like to see the picture?”

“Of the criminal’s side profile?”

“Hm. Maybe you can tell me if he really does look like it or I am tweaking or being delusional.”

“Well, I am not doing anything right now, would love to help.”

Asha unlocks her phone and hands it to Mandall and true to her words, its just a side profile. “So who is the suspect? Maybe I can compare?”

Asha is silent for five seconds. “You don’t think the picture of the side profile you are seeing looks like your own side profile at all?”

Her question takes a few seconds to register, then he laughs. “This is an expensive joke right? I didn’t really peg you as a prankster. You don’t really think that?”

“I do.”

“Sorry but its not me.” He hands her phone back and turns away, apparently disturbed by her actions.

“It is you though. I think we need to do a sketch out of this.”

“Yeah, go ahead. A side profile can be catfishing anyway. That is not more.”

Asha sucks in her teeth, walking closer to him, till she is almost breathing on him. “I still think it is you though.”

Starting to get a bit pissed off, Mandall leans forward, staring her down. “It is not me. Step away.”

“Aren’t you just a tiny bit curious about what this man did to be such a wanted man?”

“No. I am not interested. Leave me alone.”

“I will tell you all the same. He was a mafia don. Had a ton of thugs and gangsters at his disposal, and one day, it all came to a rise. A full out mafia war, here in Brooklyn. Almost never happens but it did. Almost a thousand lost their lives, and guess whose family was part of these dead people?”

Mandall makes no move to answer. It’s a rhetorical question anyway.

“Mine. My family died because of some stupid selfish gang war. I barely escaped myself. I was the one who even helped the police with this damned side profile, because I saw him, I saw that bastard that day. I saw you. That is why I joined the police force. I know deep in my guts that it is you. I will make sure I bring you in front of a court and have you sentenced. I am sure you don’t want your little Worth princess to know about this…”

The door to the room opens gently and Bethany steps out, looking at the duo staring daggers into one another, the Asha leaves, her sentence unfinished, but Mandall has a good idea what she was about to say anyway.

“How is she? Did she take the news well?”

Bethany sighs. “I don’t know. My mum has not been one to show her feelings to the public anyway. She’s trying to rest. Ill use the time to get her some clothes, food and return back here.”

“Okay. Let me take you.”

“Won’t I be taking you from your work?”

Mandall laughs heartily, almost like the confrontation between himself and Rawlings did not happen. “I am my own boss, no one can question m

e.” He takes her hand, and hand in hand, they leave the hospital.