Ben sat back in his chair and just soaked in the ambiance of the surroundings. He was sitting in a patio of a restaurant in a walled village in France with people he loved and who loved him back. A wonderful breeze was blowing up the hill cooling them as did the shade they were in. He smelled pine and the wonderful food around him. He felt a sense of peace settle over him and he closed his eyes to listen to the gentle sounds of people conversing quietly, the wind passing through the needles of the pine trees, the clink of cutlery and glasses, and the warble of the swallows flying above. He heard a click and opened his eyes. Daniel was smiling at him across the table. He turned his camera around and showed Ben the image.
Daniel had captured the peace Ben was feeling at that moment. He looked completely tranquil. “Thank you Daniel. That image will always remind me of this day and will bring me back to the tranquility and perfection of this moment.” Daniel grinned widely at his praise.
Gabriella had tears in her eyes as she looked at Ben interacting with her son. This was what her husband should have been doing instead of chasing after his lust for more money!
Catherine took her friend’s hand in hers and gave it a squeeze. Gabriella squeezed back.
After lunch they returned to mooching and Ben and Daniel stuck close to them and poked in a few stores themselves. Ben was mostly interested in the architecture of the buildings. It was late afternoon when they decided to head back. They loaded their purchases in the back of the van and Gabriella sat in the middle seat with her kids while Catherine drove and Ben rode shotgun. Catherine’s girls sat in the back and showed each other the clothing they’d purchased.
The drive back to the hotel passed quickly as they discussed plans for the following day. Shopping in Nice! Ben begged off as two days of shopping was too much for him. Daniel asked his mom if he could stay behind as well and Ben said he’d appreciate the company so it was settled. It was going to be a girls-only shopping extravaganza. The ladies cheered while Daniel rolled his eyes and Ben chuckled.
They left the van with the valet after they gathered their purchases. The group made their way back to their rooms and as Ben was going out on a date with Gabriella the others said their goodnights on their floor. Catherine and her daughters all got their kisses and left with happy smiles carrying their bags of finds. Ben arranged with Gabriella to meet her in the lobby and went to freshen up and dress up. He put on his black dress shirt and black dress slacks and dress shoes. As he waited in the lobby he attracted attention from the other guests as he looked rather intimidating dressed in black. He was just about to go back upstairs to change when Gabriella showed up in a gorgeous dark green dress. The neckline was daringly low and Ben froze when he saw her.
“Is it too much?” she asked biting her lip.
“GOD NO! I mean- you look incredible!” Ben hastened to say.
She smiled at him and took his arm. Ben felt the attention swing from him to her and he was ok with that.
“Where are we going for dinner tonight?” he asked.
“I read some stellar reviews of a Lebanese restaurant a few blocks away. We’ll have to take a taxi but we can walk back if you’d like,” she suggested.
“Sounds good! Let’s go!”
The taxi ride was relatively short but the roads twisted and turned so Ben was quickly lost. Gabriella had the taxi drop them off at the entrance to a side street so they could enjoy the walk up the street to the restaurant which was in a cluster of older buildings. Ben saw most were small shops and restaurants but a few seemed to be residential. Odd zoning, he thought.
The Lebanese restaurant was small and simply decorated but they got a nice table facing the street so they could see the people come and go. Gabriella ordered for both of them.
“Ben, I wanted to tell you how sorry I am to have upset you so badly this morning. The instinct to protect our loved ones is very strong and we tend to smother you a little I think,” she said sincerely.
“Thank you! You understand how that kind of protection doesn’t work for me though, right?” he asked.
“Yes, I think the message finally sunk in today,” she admitted.
“Then we move forward,” he said with a smile and pressed his lips to her fingers.
The food began arriving and Gabriella explained what each dish was. Ben gamely tried everything and found most of it was to his liking. They ordered a little extra of the falafel as Ben found them to be delicious.
They took their time and lingered over the meal. They decided to find a gelato place for dessert on their walk back. Ben paid the bill and told Gabriella he had to use the washroom before they left. He left her sipping the last of her wine at the table as he made his way back to the washroom. He descended a staircase and saw a number of doors with symbols on them. The middle one looked familiar so he went through. Beyond the door was a hallway and an arrow sticker on the wall pointing down the hall. He followed the arrow and went through another door into another hallway lined with doors. None opened. He turned the corner and finally found a washroom but it seemed to double as a storage room which he thought was odd and slightly gross.
He did his business and headed back. When he reached the first door it wouldn’t open as it seemed to be locked on his side. He pounded on the door but no one down here but him. He looked up at the arrow and followed it to the end of the corridor. He pushed through a door and stumbled down and out into a laneway behind the building. He looked in both directions and wondered which way would take him back to the front of the restaurant. He had no idea so he decided to try the door in the hallway again. Maybe it was just jammed, not locked. He turned back and saw two identical doors. He didn’t know which one he’d stumbled out from. He tried the one on the right but it was locked. The other was not so he hoped it was the right one. The interior hall was the same dull color so he walked back. He tried to keep the cardinal directions straight in his head as he moved forward. He rounded a corner and came face to face with a fat, bald man standing in front of a door.
Ben was scowling in frustration and the man took one look at the scar flaring across his face and a look of recognition passed over his florid features as he muttered ‘Rapava’. He immediately stepped aside and opened the door for Ben.
Annoyed at being once more confused for the serial killer, Ben stepped past him into the room and the door closed behind him.
This wasn’t the restaurant.
In the split second before all hell broke loose Ben noted three girls kneeling side by side on the floor to his right with black bags over their heads. They seemed to be clinging to each other’s hands. There was a glass topped coffee table in front of him with a gun on it, a bag of white powder, and a straw. There was a skinny unshaven man slumped back against the couch behind the table blinking stupidly at him. To Ben’s left was a heavy set man leaning back on the rear legs of a chair. He heard the girls whimpering in fear and Ben’s eyes went cold.
He saw the man in the tilted chair pulling his gun with his left hand so he reached out and grabbed his hair, yanking him back and down to slam his skull against the concrete floor. The gun was clear of his jacket and went off with a huge boom as Ben cracked his skull open on the floor. The bullet grazed Ben and punched a hole in the door and the man guarding its other side.
Skinny guy on the couch was suddenly aware that something was seriously wrong. He stared into the cold eyes of the man dressed in black then tried going for his gun.
Ben grabbed the bag of white powder and slammed it into skinny’s face, crushing him back against the sofa cushions. He held it over his nose and mouth until the man’s eyes rolled back and he went still.
He heard the sound of running feet and quickly stepped to the side of the door on the other side of the room. The first one through the door got a fist to the throat and dropped his gun as he clutched at his crushed windpipe. The second man slammed to a halt back at the bottom of the stairs and opened fire. The bullets hit the body of the man Ben was holding as a shield.
The sound of sirens approaching could be heard. The man in the hall swore then turned and ran back up the stairs. Ben closed the door and dropped the body behind it.
He looked around and saw the carnage. The three hooded girls had crawled to the corner of the room and were huddled together. Ben heard crying from behind another door in the room and saw there was a lock on it. He opened the lock quietly and yanked the door open. He was greeted with shrieks from the two women inside the room. They were wearing simple, white nighties. He recognized the blonde by her large mane of hair. She was the one in the convertible with that Shakir guy he saw at breakfast this morning. The memory of having breakfast with his loved ones pulled Ben back into the here and now and he looked at the two women clinging to each other in fear.
“Are you ladies alright?” he asked. They blinked at him. He looked at the lock on the door. “Were you locked in this room?” The two slid off the bed and rushed up to his side. They peered out into the room and saw the three dead men and squeaked in fear. Ben made reassuring sounds and sat the two down on a small couch. The sirens were much closer now. “Just wait here for the police. They’ll be here any minute. I have to go see if the girls are ok.”
Ben looked into the frightened light blue eyes of the blonde and the hazel eyes of her brunette companion and smiled reassuringly to them. “Everything will be ok now.” He gently pried their hands from his shirt sleeves.