Chapter One

"You should have some more... Dad" Maxwell said to his father who laid helplessly on the old foamless couch. 

"Max.. I am tired.. I can't eat anymore" Justine said to his son looking very weak. 

"But you've barely eaten anything since last night... You need to eat this so that you can have some drugs" Maxwell replied. He could see the visible pains in his father's eyes as he forced the small bite of potato down his throat. 

"Yeah dad... Have some more..." Maxwell cheered putting another portion of the meal into his father's mouth. 

His dad had been diagnosed of kidney failure some years ago but recently the illness took a worse turn and his family moved from being poor to wretched. 

They could not take him to the hospital for proper medication because the bills were too expensive for them.

His mother took a cleaning job while he was given the full time job of watching over his sick father. 

Maxwell had lived almost all his life hoping for better days to come but each day seemed to close into a more worse and terrible dawn. 

His parents were aging fast and often times, he'd resented himself for not coming to them at their early age. 

Sometimes, he wished he could switch places with his dad and ease him of the pains be felt but all of it remained what they were... thoughts and wishes. 

He had just help his father lay on his back to the couch after feeding him with the last meal available in the house. 

He sat down on the sofa arm and fixed his gaze on a rough page of the magazine, reading the same article for the umpteenth time. 

He heard a loud sound like that of a reckless driver trying to pull the break on a car, he stood up and walked towards the window to have a view of what it was. 

"What is that sound?" His father asked in a very weak tone "I don't know dad... It seems like we have visitors" He replied closing the window cutton and heading to the door. 

There was a heavy bang on the door as he approached and he hesitated to open it in fear of who it could be. 

"Who is there?" he asked in a very sharp and clear tone but to his surprised there was another heavy kick on the door and the knob pulled out immediately making the old wooden door break open. 

Over five men walked into the house wearing black suits. The guy who lead them in had a short gun on his right hand and his look was very scary. 

Maxwell stood at the same spot behind the broken door in shock and fright but they seemed not to have seen him. 

The men all walked towards his sick father and one of them drew the wooden table that was at the edge of the couch closer to where his father laid and sat directly opposite to his father . 

"It's been a while, Justine" He said scanning him from his head to his toe. 

"Who are you?" Justine asked almost like a whisper. 

"I'm not here to make introductions, Justine... Wilson sent me and you know what that means" he said in a very authoritative manner hitting his fingers lightly on the wooden table. 

The expression he had while speaking to Justine sent shivers down Maxwell's vein. 

Somehow, he new that whoever these men were, they weren't going to be nice to him and his dad at all. 

He watched as the first guy who had a gun dragged his father up from the chair yelling at him with his red eyes sending signals of danger... 

"I don't have his money" Justine said looking helpless as he could not move or struggle to free himself due to the illness that was gradually paralysing his whole body. 

"Then you will have to surrender something worth the amount... What do you have? " The armed guy asked I'm fury. 

"I don't have anything and I am ill" Justine said, his voice revealing the frustration and pain that he felt. 

The guy cracked his gun and pointed it at Justine "I will blow off your fucking brain if you don't bring out something" He thundered, his loud voice almost shaking the whole building and Maxwell feared that he would shoot his father. 

"We do not have any money" Maxwell said walking out from the corner where he stood watching them harass his sick father. 

"You can search the entire building if you want... He is telling the truth" He said further,hoping it will change their minds and make them leave

"And you are.. ?" The armed guy asked turning to Maxwell with an unpleasant gaze moving up from his head to his toe. 

"He is my son please, he has nothing to do with this..." Justine lamented from the chair begging them to let Maxwell be. 

"You have a son... How come we didn't know" The guy said walking towards Maxwell who just stood there staring at them. 

The confusion he felt had intensified at this moment and he wished someone could explain to me what was going on there. 

"Please leave him alone... He has nothing to do with this" He heard his father beg further but the man kept coming closer to him and he felt the man touch his face with the gun. 

"Your father has no money... Right?" The guy asked saying each words slowly which made Maxwell shiver in fear. 

"Yes.. He couldn't even afford a proper medication" Maxwell said moving is gaze away from the man's face to avoid their eyes meeting. 

The armed guy stood very close to Maxwell and he could feel the hot breath coming out of his nostrils.

The musky smell of cigarettes and alcohol exuding heavily from his body almost made Maxwell pass out.

"Take the man away" The armed guy commanded, not moving his gaze away from Maxwell. 

Two of the other men walked over to where Justine laid and tried to carry him up but they couldn't do it easily. 

One of them let go of Justine and walked over to the armed guy, he whispered something into his ear and took a few steps backwards. 

"Take the boy then" The armed guy commanded again, gesturing at them to take Maxwell. 

Maxwell struggled to free himself while the hefty men carried him out of the house, one of them hit him on his head and he lost consciousness immediately. 

Justine who was unable to move could not do anything in the situation. He begged them to let Maxwell go and take him instead but his pleas fell on deaf ears. 

Justine try to move but fell forcefully off the chair, he whined in pains call out his sons name "Max... Max.. Let him go".