Chapter 6. The pleasantry and explanation

The huge doors to another room opened wide the huge chandeliers casting prisms of light around the room. A voice was heard through a speaker asking them all to come in and sit at the finely polished and set table adorned with wine glasses and fine foods such as caviar and lobster and the finest veal and truffles that money could buy. As they all sat quietly eating the butler of the house handed all of them an envelope. They each opened their envelope and read it slowly. The message inside read “ you have been bought here by the intent of 1 million pounds free cash. Each one of you can tick the box take the million and walk away now no questions asked or you can play for the bigger prize where only one of you will walk away with 5 million the others will leave with nothing but their pride. The decision is yours but the decision if you decide to play has to be unanimous all 5 have to agree to play or take the 1 million offered” . Each of the players eyed each other warily not knowing what each one was thinking but the offer of 5 million was just to good to pass up or was it. However what they failed to read was the small print which read as “ you have 15 minutes to decide between you what happens after that the doors are locked there is no way out and it shall be taken as each of you agree to play for the 5 million and once the game starts there is no way out and until only one possesses the cash but hurry time is ticking.

Chapter 7. The deliberation

Cindy, David and Tony signed up for the 5 million straight away as if their lives depended upon it regardless of the thought of consequences. Ellie and Paul however questioned the morals of such a deal and sat with their pen n their hands not sure wether to sign or not as the butler collected the 3 other pieces of paper and time was now ticking. Each second seemed like an hour as the tension on the room built until Paul spoke saying “ well it comes as no surprise that you three signed straight away god knows you could all do with the cash the look of desperation is written all over your faces” trying hard to hold a poker face and let’s face it after all it was the game poker that had enticed him here in the 1st place. With huge gambling debts and his lavish lifestyle that he liked to keep up not to mention the expensive women that he a clearly enjoyed the company of on any given night of the week. Truth of it was he needed that 5 million as much as the next person. Ellie remained quiet deep in thought unaware that the clock was ticking but thought to herself, what an arrogant bastard Paul was to make such n assumption about the other three and that he immediately reminded her of the husband that she was so tired and bored of being around with his ever crushing doting on her and his lavish obsession of buying her expensive gifts wether she wanted them or not and yet this million was her key to being away from him and with her lover who’s life was far more exciting if not risky but then maybe she lived for the risk and thrill of being caught. She knew that if she waited long enough her husband would drop dead as his health was failing and everything he had would be hers anyway. Unaware she had less than 3 minutes sign the paper. The butler stood looking uneasy as he produced 5 cheques from his pocket each wrote out for 1 million and placed them in front of the five players. Time was indeed up and Paul had resigned himself to the fact he needed the cash as much as the other three. Ellie however had started to raise her voice when it was interrupted by the voice over the speaker which said “ Your 15 minutes are now up and the conclusion is drawn that you will each now play for the 5 million”.

Chapter 8 Ellie’s wrath

Ellie being silenced by the voice from the speaker was utterly unthinkable as she sat and screamed “ This is criminal do you actually know who I am or just how powerful my husband is I am ringing my husband and the police right now”. The voice from the speaker spoke “oh dear Elizabeth of course I know who you are and who your husband is and you wouldn’t be able to ring either as all mobiles are jammed so there is no signal and let’s face it would it not pose awkward questions towards yourself as to why you are here” witch of course exposed her for the fake she was seeing as she had spent the past hour staring at her phone screen and smirking as if she were contacting someone. . Ellie’s temples now pulsed at the side of her head with anger as she picked up a crystal decanter and hurled it at the speaker with such force it splintered into a thousand tiny shards scattering the floor in a crystallised sea of jagged splinters and demanded she be released from this ridiculous charade straight away. The voice from the speaker calmly said “oh dear Elizabeth you do disappoint me and I thought you were such a well presented lady when you walk through the doors. Ellie screamed “Fuck you and whoever you are and your twisted game as she swiped the mahogany table knocking all of the contents flying to the floor causing a hell of a mess as she did so as she slumped to the floor hands in her head screaming obscenities until she had nothing left to give as the voice from the speaker said “ you didn’t actually read the small print and I doubt any of the others did either but they are driven by greed and greed alone”

Chapter 9 The rules

After a long silence within the room of which the butler had now cleaned and there were reasons why he hadn’t been attacked because the voice in the speaker had told them “ if you try to tackle my friend and butler I must warn you within your drinks and food there were small explosive microchips which I possess the detonator to and if any of you make any movement towards him I shall not hesitate to blow each and everyone one of you to pieces with just the simplest touch of a button”. Each of the players had now realised that this was no longer a simple game but it would be a fight of moral dilemmas. And now for the rules “ each of you were given a blank cheque for a million and now it is up to you to gain those cheques from each other until only one has all 5 cheques at which point their name will be added to it and the game is over so let the games begin”

Chapter 10 Game 1

They all sat at the table and boxes were put in front of them. They each opened the boxes and stared blankly as what lay before them. The note read “in each box is a gun and one bullet please load the bullet into the gun and twist the barrel and return the gun to the box where the butler will collect them before he puts on a blindfold and mixes the boxes up and places them back in front of you so there can be no guarantee who has loaded what gun” after a short pause the speaker roared into life saying “welcome to game one roulette in your hands. You all have one chance to pull the trigger if you so choose not to then the next player will also have to make the choice of put the gun to their head or yours and if they choose not to point the gun at you then the next player may also do so if they wish so think carefully on what you decide because one risk is enough but another could be life ending for one of you. The way it shall be played is in order as to who turned up 1st and so forth. So Paul if you would like to start the wheel the rolling with your decision.

Chapter 11 Human roulette

Paul had never even seen a real gun let alone held one in his hand. The butt of the gun cold in his hand as it shook and he took it from the silk casing it lay in. He lifted it level with his temples closed his eyes as he could feel the sweat dripping from his forehead and pulled the trigger…. click he let out a sigh of relief and cautiously set the gun down in its casing which the butler had now collected and would do with every player in case one of them decided to offload every shot in the barrel in a moment of frenzy.
David picked up next showing no fear of the weapon itself and with little care lined the tip of the gun to the bottom of his jaw pulled the trigger and threw his head back as he squeezed the trigger and let out a laugh at his own stupidness hoping that nobody would realise the look in his eyes as his finger pulled that trigger. Full of bravado on the outside but yet on the inside no more than a scared child but there was no way he was going to show it. To him to show weakness would have been defeat at the 1st hurdle.
Ellie had held guns in the past but only for the case of hunting on Sunday morning shoots during pheasant season. She picked the weapon up and straight away aimed it at the butler. Within a second the speaker came into life. “Well Elizabeth what a spirit you have. I wouldn’t do that remember I have the button and I wouldn’t want you to die knowing you also ended the life of these other people it would be such a shame for it all to end so soon” Ellie’s hand quivering laid the gun back down and said “ I do not care for your mindless games I will not put that gun to my head regardless of consequence.
Cindy given her choice of lifestyle had obviously encountered firearms before and showed very little care for the weapon as it felt quite weighty in her hand. Her palms cold and clammy as the realisation of the situation was oh to real now the effects of the drugs she had taken just before she walked in started to wear off. She could feel all eyes on her and within a second she had opened her mouth and slid the tip of the gun in her mouth as everyone watched her bright red lips enclose around the single barrel maybe a little more sexily than it had should have. Her fingers now shaking as she took a final glance at the rest of the room and pulled the trigger click…. She lowered the gun and since their first meeting turns to Ellie and said “that bullet would have been wasted on you” Ellie said nothing just sat in silence
No sooner than Cindy had put the gun back into it’s safe place Tony who had said very little since his arrival hauled it up before him the cold steel surprising him and levelled it with Ellie’s face who was sitting straight across from him. Her blank stare now the look of a terrified rabbit in the headlights. He sneered at her and quietly said “ if you had of put it to your head I would have done the same but I’m not wasting my life to save yours” his fingers now pulling the trigger not just once or twice but three times in quick succession. Tony sat there staring at her the whole room now quiet and you could have cut the atmosphere with a knife. Each of the five players now looking at each other the gun still pointed at Ellie’s face.

© Valhalla bound