As she sat at her desk, fresh tea in hand, bag in the other, her morning looked just like any other. Papers cluttering the desk from the day before and a PC quietly humming away before her. Except this morning was not quite like any other morning, as Sophia was about to find out...
"Sophia!" The tea nearly spilled all over her. Sophia had enough time to regain some of her composure just as her colleague Katie came bounding up to her with a huge grin on her face.
"Oh my goodness, you're too awake for 8.45am! What's wrong with you?" asked Sophia.
"Nothing wrong, but a lot right," Katie replied. She took Sophia's arm and led her away from the desk and over towards the kitchenette, "You wouldn't believe me if I told you, but you have got to let me sign you up to something."
Sophia frowned, "Sign me up to what? What's so urgent before I've had my tea that it can't wait?"
"Just trust me, you won't be able to do this again after this week. Please just say yes and trust me."
Sophia had known Katie for almost 15 years, long before they started working together. It had just been a nice coincidence that they ended up in the same building. Disastrous for everyone else at the work functions of course, but Katie had never steered Sophia wrong before, at least, not so far that it wasn't fun.
"OK, fine! What is it?" came Sophia's reply.
"Can't tell you, but you're gonna love me," and with that Katie gave Sophia a quick hug, almost spilling the tea a second time and was gone as quickly as she appeared.
Sophia didn't hear anything else from Katie for the rest of the day. Not even a reply to any of her emails and texts demanding answers for that morning. Eventually the end of the day came and Sophia headed home along with everyone else to put her feet up and relax with a warm meal and a good book.
As she climbed into her bed at the end of the evening, her phone lit up the dark and twittered the presence of a text message. Unlocking her phone, it simply read:
The Red Fox, 8 Warwick Avenue, London. 9.30pm Friday night. Don't be late, bring an open mind. Tell anyone and the offer is withdrawn.
"This has to be what Katie was talking about," she muttered. "How would they know if I told anyone?"
The phone buzzed again:
We'll know!
Feeling slightly paranoid, Sophia locked her phone and tried to go to sleep.
The next morning Sophia got up and immediately checked her phone thinking last night had to be a dream, but the messages were there too clear to miss, no number and no name.
Getting up out of bed and heading to work, she saw Katie before they even reached the office building.
"Katie!" shouted Sophia, eager to get her friend's attention.
Katie turned and immediately saw what was about to happen. "Don't say another word. Don't ask. Don't even mention it. Just trust me, ok. It's tonight, right?"
Sophia nodded, surprise on her face telling a bigger picture.
"Just go, it'll be worth it. Not many get a second chance." There was a sense of disappointment in Katie's voice as she finished her sentence. Sophia saw in her eyes a slightly glazed look as Katie was deep in thought about something. Turning towards the office, they both started to walk in. Not another word was uttered between them.
Throughout the day, Sophia kept on checking her phone. Hoping that on the one hand she would get a text telling her that it was called off, and on the other to see if the texts had disappeared and this was still all part of some sort of illusion.
Neither of those came true.
As she walked through her door, her phone buzzed again:
Room 279, 4th Floor. Don't be late!
Checking her watch, she had enough time to have something to eat, pack a small overnight bag, just in case, and hit the road.
Arriving at the address, the place was far more than she expected. A Valet sign stood at the edge of the curb and 2 men dressed very smartly approached the car. The 1st opened her drivers door and politely asked her to step out, while the 2nd was already removing her bag from the back. As the car was taken away, she asked "How did you know I was stopping here?"
"We were informed Miss. Please report to the desk, they will give you a key for room 279. Your Bag will be there waiting for you. Please enjoy your evening," said the Valet.
Still unsure what to think, or who was orchestrating all of this, Sophia slowly turned to walk inside the hotel.
As she stepped through the doors, the atrium was ornate, at least 2 storeys tall with a modest candle lit chandelier hanging in the centre. The walls were all decorated with a red and black velvet wallpaper, the pattern of which she could barely make out in the dim light. Before her, was a single dark grey marble desk with another well dressed man standing patiently for her to approach.
"Ah Miss Sophia, we've been expecting you. I trust your journey was an easy one?" he asked.
"Err, yes, thanks," came her reply. Looking around the room, she wasn't sure what to believe. Was she about to be killed? Had Katie set her up for some sort of hidden camera show?
"Don't worry, you're perfectly safe here. We have you booked for just the one night in Room 279 on the 4th floor. Everything has already been paid in full so I hope you enjoy your evening with us." and with that, he held out the key with a big smile on his face, satisfied that he had fulfilled everything she needed.
Carefully taking the key, the man gestured towards the wall to her right where a set of bright gold doors stood glistening in the dim light. As she walked towards them, they opened up revealing an elevator. Entering, she pressed the button showing '4' and the doors closed behind her.
When they opened up again, before her lay a gently lit corridor which seemed almost to never end. It took a minute or 2, but eventually she found her room and closed the door behind her. True enough, the Valet had spoken the truth. There by the window on a chair was her bag. Checking the time on her watch, it read 9.23pm, just a few minutes to wait. But what for?
Exploring the room, she found the bathroom to have a shower and a bathtub, and the bed was very comfortable. The window didn't have much of a view, being in London, a lot of the buildings were around this height, but there wasn't any traffic. In fact, since she had entered the street in her car, she hadn't seen another car, and except the staff, not another person either.
The feelings of unease began to increase, should she really have come here? Was this all a mistake? Yes! Definitely a mistake. Grabbing her bag, she began to walk towards the door, when a loud knock echoed around the room. Shocked, she looked at her watch; 9.30. "Shit!" cursed Sophia under her breath, "Now what?"
"Now, you open the door for me." came the response from the corridor.
The bag dropped! How could they have heard? She almost whispered those words! Her mind started to race thinking of what to do, nothing came to mind. Giving in, she decided the best thing to do was to just say it had all been a misunderstanding and to go home.
Walking to the door, she turned the handle and took a deep breath to start explaining her need to leave as quickly as possible. As the door opened, her nose was level with the chest of a man. Adjusting her gaze, she looked up and saw a plain white mask looking back at her.
Instinctively she walked backwards, the man following her into the room. As they entered, his hand reached out for the door and closed it behind them, the mask's gaze never left Sophia's and she couldn't look away.
"Hello," said the mask as the door clicked closed behind them. Its voice had been changed, Sophia knew that much. Clearly whoever was behind the mask didn't want to be recognised, "Don't worry, you are in no danger here. This whole hotel is for the protection and safety of those who stay at it. No one gets in who isn't wanted, and no one finds it unless it wants to be found. You are welcome to leave at any point, but you will not be able to return. Should you stay, this will be a night you will always remember. Do you understand?"
Sophia paused for a moment, thinking it over. Shivering slightly from the nerves, she replied "Yes."
"Good," came the response from beneath the mask. Its gaze transfixed to hers. "Now, please sit down, you've had a long day." Sophia broke the stare between them and looked around the room before deciding to sit on the chair by the table. Only now could she see that the masked figure was wearing a black suit with a white shirt and red tie under the jacket. He wore Black silk gloves and the shoes were polished so much she could see her own face peering back at her. From the physique, she guessed her guest to be an athletic man about 5'10" in height but beyond that, nothing was given away.
"I am going to start by stating some rules to you. If you are happy with these rules, we will continue. If you are unhappy with any of these rules, you are free to leave, the car will be brought around and you will not be asked any questions. Rule 1: What happens in this building is completely safe, no harm will come to you. Rule 2: You will do exactly as I say for as long as you are here. Rule 3: Nothing that happens here is to ever be repeated to anyone. Ever! Rule 4: You are to keep an open mind at all times."
"Do you accept these rules?" the Masked figure enquired "you may think for a few minutes if you desire."