allegiant
[uh-lee-juh nt]
1. loyal; faithful.
2. a faithful follower; adherent:
allegiants of religious cults.
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Jonas had expected to wake up in a dark cell, chained to a
metal slab or chair. Instead he woke up
sitting in a large, well stuffed lounge chair, in a room filled with high end
artwork. There was only one other man in
the room with him. It was someone Jonas
knew right away, even though the two had never met.
“Ah,
you’re awake. Good. I was starting to worry. Any longer and I would have called the
paramedics.” The man said when he
noticed Jonas waking up. “I know it’s
probably not exactly healthy for your current condition, but I always like to
make my guests feel welcome. To that
end, would you care for a glass?”
The
older man held up a small glass of amber liquid. Jonas said nothing, even as the glass was
placed into his hand.
“There
you go. It’s good scotch, don’t
worry. I wouldn’t dream of adding
anything to it.” The man said. He raised a glass of the same liquid and took
a slow sip. “I assure you it’s not
drugged. Just take it slow. This is a drink to be savored, after all.”
Jonas
raised the glass and breathed in the aroma of the liquor. It smelled alright, but that was hardly an
indication of what might be in it.
Still, after the night he had, he could certainly use a good drink. He took a careful sip. The alcohol slid down his throat like nothing
else. His captor was right. It was good.
“That’s
a good man. This a truly fine vintage.” The man said, holding up the old bottle. “Pity they don’t make it like this
anymore. Ah well, people so seldom have
a taste for the finer things in life.”
The man sat in a chair similar to the one Jonas had been placed in. He took another sip of his drink before
continuing. “Now then, I’m sure you have
a lot of questions.”
“A few.” Jonas said.
“Why am I here, for one.”
“You
mean why you’ve been placed in my personal study instead of some dungeon or
torture chamber, correct?” Jonas
nodded. “The answer is quite simple,
really. I despise torture. I really do.
Such a barbaric method of gaining information. Same with drugs and other chemical
means. It’s why the only drug in the
scotch is the alcohol. Really, I can’t
understand why some people resort to brutish violence and inefficient chemicals
when there are so many better methods of acquiring information.”
“Such
as?”
“An
excellent question, my good man. And the
answer is why you are in this particular room.
After you’re little botched attempt at escape, I reviewed all the
security footage, and I discovered one thing.
That I couldn’t discover you. You
quite simply did not show up anywhere in the security footage until your
capture. You, sir, are very good. Very good indeed. In fact, I dare say your capture was due to sheer
dumb luck on my part.”
Jonas
couldn’t agree more. The job had gone
smoothly. He had acquired everything he
had needed to. He was on his way out,
when he had stepped on a leaf. One
single leaf that had fallen off a tree in early autumn. It was the only such leaf in a back yard the
size of a football field, and he just happened to step on it. Most people don’t think twice about such
things, but it was all that was needed for Jonas to be discovered and captured. He was still a bit bitter about it.
“I’ll
say.” He muttered. “What’s that got to do with anything though?”
“Simple. I have two questions to ask, but only one of
any real importance. The first is,
obviously, who hired you. I’m assuming
you’re not going to answer that one easily, so let’s just move on to the
next. Would you like to work for me?”
That
was not the question Jonas expected.
“What?”
“I
would very much like to hire a man of your skills. Of course, you would need to give up the
identity of your current employer, but considering the compensation I’m
offering, that shouldn’t be a problem.”
“Compensation? What, like a big salary?”
“Well,
yes, I suppose that would be part of it.
And when I say big, I mean seven digits.
I doubt whoever you work for is paying that much, are they?” Jonas had to admit they weren’t. “But it’s not just the money. It’s far more than that. For example, that scotch. It’s good, right?” Jonas nodded.
“Well I have dozens of bottles that make that look like a $10 bottle
from a grocery store. You can have
enough to last for years. And that’s
just the beginning. You’re a handsome young
man. I bet you’re quite the lady killer.”
“Well,
I don’t like to brag, but I get around.”
“Well,
how about spending your nights with women who make Hollywood actresses look
like cheap whores? I can make that
happen with a phone call. I can give you
everything your heart desires. The
finest food, liquor, women. Everything
great can be yours. And all you have to
do is come work for me.”
Jonas
placed his drink on a small, round table next to his chair and folded his hands
in his lap.
“Well
now, Mr. Telleric, that’s quite the offer.
A man’d have to be an idiot to turn it down.”
“Wonderful,
wonderful. I can get the paperwork
started right away.”
“Hang
on, I’m not done yet. See, there’s some
things you need to know about me. I’m
not a very nice person Mr. Telleric. I
can snap your neck right here and now and I wouldn’t lose a second of
sleep. I can take you for everything
your worth and it’d just be another day at the office. I don’t have much in the ways of morals, you
see. But, there is one thing I can’t
stand. Just one. And that’s betrayal. I really hate when someone betrays his
loyalties just because a “better offer” came around. It just…it just gets to me.”
“Ah, I
see. So you’re turning me down then.” Mr. Telleric said. His face darkened as he said those words.
“Yeah,
I am. And I’m not selling out my people,
no matter what you’ve got. Hell, I’ve
had offers just like yours a dozen times before, and I’ve always turned them
down. I gotta admit, the thing with the
ladies was knew. Usually they just say
supermodels or something, so I give you props for that. But yeah, I’m staying with my current gig, no
matter what happens.”
“Well,
I admit, I can respect a men with true loyalty.
Such men are rare these days.”
Mr. Telleric said. “Of course,
that does mean I can’t let you live, right?”
“Yeah,
I’ve heard that a dozen times also.”
A few
minutes later, Jonas walked out of the study and down the large, art filled
hallway connected to it. He straightened
his black outfit, brushing of a few drops of liquid—some amber, some red—from his
sleeve. No matter what happened to him,
he remained confident that his loyalty was not for sale.
*********************************
A part of me really wants to show what happens in that room after the conversation ends. Another part thinks it's better to keep it a mystery. At least, that's the case for this format. Maybe if I write a longer version of the story I'll show it, but that's a pretty big if. Either way, I hope you all enjoy it as is.
