Page 23 of Grand Master

GRAND CORPORATION…

I didn’t know what to expect when we left out of my room. What I didn’t expect was to enter a black steel elevator. My mind went back to when Tone took me down a dark hallway. I went down lots of steps and ended up in what looked like a dark cave to meet Grand to supposedly play for him.

Now, I was on a different floor, stepping inside of an elevator. Before we got to the elevator, we stood in a stretched hallway. All white walls, no decorations, just walls and space with an elevator at the end of the hallway.

“What is this place? It reminds me of like a big corporation building.” I frowned.

Grand slipped his free hand in his pocket while his cuffed hand landed on the small of my back. I stepped on the elevator and eyed all the buttons that had no numbers on them. It had to be about twenty different shining buttons along the panel of the elevator.

“It is a big corporation building…Grand Corporation.” He stepped inside giving me his muscular back to gawk at.

He pressed buttons quickly like he was putting in a secret code. The elevator made a ringing sound just as Grand stepped next to me. I tilted my head back to stare up at him as he kept his eyes forward. The elevator didn’t go up, it sank and so did my heart in fear.

“The company that had it before me went bankrupt. Couldn’t keep their heads above water and pay back what they owed. I bought it, stripped it bare, and had the inside rebuilt to my liking.” His tone carried a quiet pride.

He loves this place…

“Fifteen floors. Each one carries its own purpose.” Something in his voice told me that it was far from office work.

The elevator stopped; my stomach tightened. When the doors slid open, the elements of luxury as I knew it to be since I’ve been here changed.

The lighting was dim, overhead lights flickered above us.

The scent of sweat, bleach and pee hit me first mixed with something metallic underneath it.

The hall stretched wide, lined with black steel bars.

Guards stood in front of bars spaced out about five inches apart.

Their posture was perfect; they were dressed in police-style uniforms with guns at their hips.

My mouth dropped open as I followed closely behind him.

“You could have been one of them…you still could be, if you attempt to run.” Grand’s deep raspy voice broke through my terrified thoughts.

Instead of him putting me in a cell, he placed me in his room…

“Tone felt like you should have been placed here to properly detox, when I first spotted you at the club. I told him you weren’t that far off the deep end on drugs. Your more of a functional addict which is still troubling to me.” He continued.

Well Tone is a fucking asshole! Or maybe Grand is lying.

I thought as I picked up my feet to follow behind him.

I wasn’t that bad when it came to sniffing cocaine.

It was more of a pick me upper. I tried smoking weed to rid myself of the habit of sniffing cocaine whenever I got depressed.

Weed always ended up making things worse, it forced me to think twice as hard about how unhappy and unsettled I was with my life.

Cocaine was the opposite, it made me feel like something.

It drowned out my sorrows and made me feel good.

I don’t have a drug problem! I use, when necessary, I can quit at any time! I reminded myself, but even that reminder made me cringe. It’s like trying to convince yourself of a lie so you wouldn’t feel guilty about doing something you had no business doing in the first place.

“The first step for you would be acknowledging that you have a problem. You seem to be the type that’s in denial or make excuses for your use. Come on.” He stated harshly, reading my thoughts.

Grand didn’t turn around to see the fucked up look on my face. My face went from being frowned up, to horrified as I stared at the people behind bars.

Men.

Women.

All of them in different stages of ruin. Some of them sat slumped against the walls with vacant eyes, others paced back and forth like caged animals. I could see the jitter in their limbs, the way their skin seemed too pale, and ashy. Their eyes tracked mine with desperation.

“What the fuck is this?” My voice came out tighter than I meant.

There was some sick and twisted shit going on in here. Everybody looked like they were on hardcore drugs. The haunted looks on their faces consumed me, making me sick to the core.

“Detox.” Grand said, strolling forward calmly and satisfied like we were walking through an art gallery.

“They were rotting on the streets from poison. I’m riding their bodies of it.” He said over his shoulders as he kept his head forward.

I had no choice but to keep up with his long strides since the waist chain was still connected to his wrist. He tugged at it every couple of seconds like he was reminding me that there was nowhere for me to run to.

“You shouldn’t have the power to treat them this way.” My voice cracked, I was starting to feel everyone inside of here, locked away emotions.

“I do have the power, just like they had the power to ruin their families. Selfish muthafuckas, only chasing a high that means them no good.” He stopped walking and turned towards me.

A vacant look was trapped in his black eyes. Upstairs when he talked to me, he was a different person. I got to see only small glimpses of emotion radiate from his soulless eyes. Down here, he had this look of void mixed with disgust on his face.

“Here, they can’t get their hands on anything. Two months, sometimes more they get to detox. Their bodies need it, and so does their kids and families.” He gritted out.

Grand turned away from me and kept walking.

Hesitantly, I picked my feet up and continued to follow him.

We passed a cell where a young man gripped the bars until his knuckles whitened, he looked like he was once handsome I could still see the youthful look on his face.

Caramel, ashen complexion, tall in height.

He barred his teeth at us and started foaming at the mouth.

A woman behind him was rocking back and forth on the floor muttering under her breath.

“Husband and wife, with three smart kids. Their ages are thirteen, ten, and a baby that was born with crack in her system. I saw their thirteen-year-old daughter on the streets half-dressed being followed by men. Men that planned to pimp her out and do ungodly things to. I killed them, right in front of the little girl. Afterwards she begged me to save her parents?—”

Grand gestured his chained hand over to the couple then shook his hand.

“I saved them, but they will be punished.” He continued.

“Where are the kids?” I asked hugging myself as I now stared at the couple with disgust for what they put their kids through.

“In the comforts of their home.” Grand looked over at me and smiled.

“I met with the grandmother; she receives a good amount of money from my funded foundation every month.” He kept walking.

“Who funds the foundation?” I asked intrigued.

“I do, along with retired kingpins from all over.” He said, nodding at one of the guards.

“Grand!” A voice sliced through the air.

It came from a couple of cells over. A woman with Hershey colored skin and matted blond hair shouted his name over and over. Her eyes were bloodshot, they looked painful. She stumbled toward the bars desperately, her broken nails curled around them.

“Grand! Baby, I’ll do anything—” Her voice cracked before she dropped into a raspy ass laugh.

“You so fucking fine, I know you need your dick sucked! I’ll suck it right here, right now! Just give me something baby, please.”

I froze, seconds later Grand stopped his stride. My stomach twisted as I watched the woman feel all over her frail naked body. Right next to her was a small red dress that still looked too big to fit her body. She slammed her palm against the bars; her voice rose as she yelled out again.

“Grand! You hear me! Come here, sweet chocolate!” She called out loudly like we were far away.

Grand shook his head and turned toward her with a look of amusement.

“She hasn’t been here past twenty-four hours… Apparently she thinks bargaining with me and my guards will save her.” He talked lowly.

“Three kids, depending on her with no father or family. Her two oldest follow her around on the streets when she buys and do drugs right in front of them. She leaves the toddler at the daycare pass closing time.” He turned towards me.

“Where are her kids?” I asked timidly.

“Shut up bitch! Don’t worry about mines! They where they need to be!” She yelled my way.

“Grand’s daycare, you’ll meet them in a day or two. Staress will meet with you tomorrow for your interview.” He finally turned towards me with a half smirk on his face.

“Interview?” I asked in disbelief.

“Yes, don’t you want a better paying job?” He asked with his thick bushy brows raised.

My mouth dropped open in disbelief as I tried my best to process his words.

Hell yes, I want a job but not if I have to be stuck here! I thought to myself as the wheels inside of my head started to turn.

“The job is here?” I asked now wanting to know more information.

“Of course it is, I think it’s best to keep you busy outside of you playing the violin for me, don’t you think?”

“Yes, I would like that.” I replied, still thinking all kinds of things about this job.

Grand’s day care… I would be working with kids whose parents are strung out.

I smiled at the thought. It was something about helping kids in need that made me feel good about what he was offering for me to do.

I found myself eager to learn more about this so-called daycare.

I hoped like hell he wasn’t keeping the kids behind bars like their parents.

“Good, I think you would like it. The pay would be good as well. I have a couple of my men along with my interior designer fixing up the vacant floor below the indoor pool.”