Night time in NewYork was as active as day. The city pulsed with energy, high enough to cause a land slide and the streets still had throng of people walking hurriedly across it—They looked like they had taken an oath not to rest, till they had accomplished their goals.
From an arial view, it appeared true.
Light and music buzzed through from every corner, and the weather that evening, made relaxation, a blessing.
Downtown Brooklyn, in a bustling street of skyscrapers, stood a global centre for innovation technology, the largest IT building in NewYork...
BlueBird.
Anthonio Thompson, a wise old man, stepped out of his exquisitely furnished office at BlueBird's roof top.
His heart was filled with conflicting emotions, the strongest being anger, against his oldest grandson—Lucas.
He was the only one who knew where Marcus had saved the document, he got from the conference in Baltimore, just before his car accident, and it's been three years since Marcus' death.
BlueBird still hadn't a Chief Executive Officer.
Her competitors were rising steadily and gaining new frontiers.
For ten years,BlueBird had topped Forbes' list as the leading IT company in the United States. A feat no other company could attain, no matter how hard they tried—Marcus made sure of this.
His success, was tied to his quest for knowledge at all cost, so attending a closed-door conference in the Baltimore, was a huge milestone for him, and BlueBird.
For him, BlueBird would remain unbeaten in the tech industry for years to come. Forever.
A breeze stirred the air around him, bringing with it nostalgia , days when he and Marcus would sit here, facing each other, and talk about nothing but business.
He had never seen a visionary like him and it hurt him he was only a memory now.
Something deep bothered Anthonio, and he knew time had come to confront Lucas.
BlueBird needs to move on. Even Marcus would want it. He thought deeply, his eyes staring at the heavens, his mind in total chaos. If Lucas thought all Marcus' years of hardwork and vision for Bluebird, would be wasted, he was about to make him think again.
And Lucas was going to do that this minute.
"Tonight was going to be difficult." Anothonio murmured.
He had waited this long for Lucas to mention something about the document, without pressure, but he hadn't.
"It all ends tonight." Anothonio mumbled again. His face hardened with swift anger.
Stepping away from the roof top into elevator and down hallway leading to the eastwing of the building, Anthonio entered Lucas' office without knocking.
The door squeaked softly, but loud enough to make Lucas jump in his leather chair.
He was with a woman, she too leaped in fright, scrampling the floor for her clothes. Within seconds, she fled the room.
"You still haven't learnt to knock on my door Grandpa?" Lucas asked, his eyes, narrowing darkly at the older man.
"Another one-night stand Lucas. You don't get tired, do you?
Lucas said nothing.
"Get a life Lucas. Marcus already gave you a living."
Mean words, struck to crush him. And it did.
Lucas turned, slightly angry that he should remind him.
"He also gave you a living Grandpa, large enough to build your own company. Leave BlueBird alone." Lucas snapped back.
Anthonio's jaw clenched.
Marcus and Lucas.
Both were his grandsons, yet he loved one and hated the other.
Lucas knew why he wasn't loved. He was the oldest of Anthonio's grandchildren, rich, but still broke, and unmarried.
Anthonio made it worse by constantly reminding him of it, and he was going to make him pay.
"I don't have the documents you are searching for. Marcus didn't share any information about it with me. How many times do l have to tell you?"
"You are thr only one who has the codes to his confidential files."
"I owe you no explanation Grandpa. Marcus is still Boss..."
"He's dead Lucas. We all saw his car burn. It's been three years since he left for Baltimore, and out competitors, see this as an advantage against us. We both know Marcus would'nt let that happen, if he were here..."
"You love him so much to grow his company huh?" Lucas studied the old man closely.
"BlueBird must remain unbeaten Lucas, it was Marcus' dream."
Lucas knew his Grandfather.
Anthonio was as determined as Marcus to keep BlueBird topping Forbes chart.
Power was important as air to him, still, he wasn't going to give in to what he wanted, but he had to find a way to make it seem like it.
"We need a new CEO then. The new leader can then have access to all Marcus' files." Lucas said hoarsely, adding dryly, "That's the only condition."
Anthonio heaved a sigh of relief.
He hadn't expected Lucas to be this co-operative.
"He even suggested electing a new CEO, " Anthonio thought inwardly, excited at the possible thought that he might emerge as BlueBird's next leader.
"Schedule a board meeting in three weeks then." Anthonio spoke dryly too, hiding his surprise at his Grandson's sudden change of attitude.
Tonight wasn't difficult as he thought it would haveafterall. He thought inwardly, scanning Lucas' office, for something to criticize again.
When he found nothing, he said almost impulsively...
" Get a life Lucas!"
**************************************************
"I hate to admit it Dr Phyl, but you did a good job." Marcus standing, staring at the marbled mirror for the umpteenth time in Dr Phyl's newly renovated office.
His face felt as though it was sculpted by an artist. The hard lines against his cheek had disappeared, and his fore-head looked better slightly curved, than it was when it was oblong.
"It's been three years, and it still feels healthy." Marcus continued, not wanting to give Dr Phyl time to respond to his compliments.
"I guess it's time l leave Baltimore. BlueBird needs me. There's nothing to distract me here anymore."
Dr Phyl knew better.
"Ava is somewhere Marcus. She hasn't been reported missing or dead at least..."
"Then where is she Dr Phyl, l have searched everywhere in Baltimore. Schools. Malls. Hospitals. Estates. Slums. Parks...Everywhere!"
"Churches? Marcus? That's where she may likely visit. I remember she said once, that it was a prayer, she said in a church close to where she stayed, that lead her to me. She had given up on hospitals admitting her son."
"Did she tell you where that was?"
"No!"
"Still, you disappointed her Dr Phyl . Alfred needs surgery. Heaven knows if he is still alive, cos it's been three whole years since l saw him."
"I hope he still breathes". Marcus said, pushing himself to his feet.
Memories of his only meeting with Alfred, flooded his thoughts, and his love for his mother, had grown in three years...They were the reason he stayed this long in Baltimore. Her absence even made it worse, he wished he had explained why he asked her to marry him.
Had she said yes, they wouldn't be here.
He, she Alfred. And Alfred's health would be as it should —whole and hearty.
Stubborn Ava. Marcus cursed.
But how could he be so obsessed about loving a total stranger and her son.
He had never met a girl who hadn't first known him, so it surprised him now, as it did then, that Ava was the first girl he met who had never heard about him.
Intresting still, Ava was bold, confident and very courageous and confident.
Intelligent too!
Tilting his head sideways, he squinted his eyes at Dr Phyl.
"If anything happened to Alfred or Ava, i won't forgive you in a hurry Dr Phyl, and l guarantee you won't become famous like you dreamt of being."
Marcus saw the pained grimace on his face. It was so clear now to him, that this man cared only of himself.
"If it wasn't for me, you would have been totally disfigured. Let's not forget that Marcus..."
Marcus was undaunted by his expression.
"It was your duty to have every patient under care, treated importantly. Wealthy or not. That's the right thing to do, Dr Phyl." Marcus said, clearly irritated by his defence.
"Must l suffer because you love her dearly, and ..."
Marcus cell phone rang, interrupting Dr Phyl's response.
Crossing Dr Phyl's office to a corner close to his bathroom, the look on Marcus' face, showed the call was important.
Dr Phyl studied the profile of the man who stood before him.
Totally confused, he didn't know what to think.
It wasn't only the accident that changed something in him, Ava did too.
He wondered where she might be. They had left the night Alfred had had an episode.
That girl was as daring as this man. He thought inwardly.
"You have no right to treat one patient more importantly than the others in your care. It's so wrong Dr Phyl, but you know what? To hell with you and him. I pray you rut here and he looks like a zombie, when you take his cast off. We're leaving here now." Ava had blurted, and all he could do was to stare after her.
The call soon ended and Marcus struggled to stay still. Dr Phyl noticed his face was full of color.
"You were right!" Marcus raked his hair roughly.
My Private Investigators said they saw a woman they believed to be Ava. She fitted the picture they had. They said she was walking out of a Church, close to an island, not too far from the border seperating Baltimore and the Eastport, with a boy, about Alfred's age." Marcus said heavily, his voice, almost inaudible.
"What are you trying to tell me with this story Marcus?" Dr Phyl asked. Not wanting to listen to him anymore.
"That even if l have to move heaven and earth to find them, l will."
Dr Phyl could not argue.
He couldn't.