6th June 2019
6:00pm

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Logan would be a liar if he said he didn't feel bad about the words he'd said to Cassie and the effect it had on her.

But why was it so wrong for him to make her feel just as bad as she made him feel all the time?

She constantly judged him for being unfaithful even after everything she'd put him through.

What else was he supposed to resort to when he was stuck with a woman who'd suddenly become withdrawn and emotionally unavailable?

Talking to her was just as good as talking to the desk in his office.  Probably even worse. At least his desk did not haul insults at him or pick unnecessary fights.

Whether or not they had one of their passion-filled sex which almost always occurred in the spur of the moment, their situation never got better.

She'd refuse to be cuddled and head out immediately afterward, as though he was just a random stranger she'd picked up on the streets.

Two years ago, he gave up trying to have any form of relationship with her. It was the frustration that pushed him to seek comfort in the arms of another woman for the first time.

He had no regrets. He didn't love the women he shared his bed with, and couldn't possibly replace the love of his life so easily. But they offered him comfort and nursed his heart that had been shattered to a million pieces by this woman sitting in front of him.

Still, he hated to hurt her.

"Cassie, I'm sorry." Logan tried to reach for her hands but she pulled them away, turning her back to him like she always did. "That was completely out of line. I don't know what I was thinking..."

"Don't you dare try to touch me," she said.

He obeyed, nodding quietly and moving back to the ground.

There were some topics that Cassie had ruled out as not up for conversation. Ordinarily, when one of them surfaced, she'd run away and disappear like the wind.

It got so bad, that she could be gone for up to two days — Especially when it had something to do with any of their children.

He'd learned the hard way to succumb to her wish and never bring any of them up.

Logan sat there, having no choice but to watch her back, oblivious to the time. A while later, the door was opened and Flame walked in accompanied by two giant-sized men.

Logan got up, watching Cassie from the side of his eyes as she turned to face them. She looked angry and hurt. He wanted to protect her, but he was more concerned about protecting himself because she didn't deserve it. Not after everything she'd put him through.

"The boss is here," Flame announced the words which were both relieving and unnerving at the same time.

Both men had walked forward with their guns in hand and handcuffed Logan who struggled only a little while watching them handcuff Cassie who acted like the fighter in her had taken a break — quite an unusual sight.

"So-" Before he could protest any further, a black cloth bag was forced over his head and he was dragged out like a meatloaf, against his will.

He wondered for the umpteenth time what he'd done to deserve any of this.

Logan felt the large man lead him roughly for a few minutes before he finally stopped and forced him to go on his knees.

These people clearly had no respect for him or all his achievements.

Did they know that he'd built a very successful insurance company with nothing but his resilience and impressive talent in business? Well, it was most likely they knew, else he wouldn't be here in the first place.

"Ugh." He grunted as the bag was pulled out of his face. He turned towards Cassie to make sure she was okay.

She looked away from him immediately. It was obvious she wasn't okay but more difficult to tell if the cause of her discomfort was the fact that she'd been forced on her knees, with her hands cuffed behind her back, or his words from earlier.

"Hello," A dry raspy voice beckoned everyone in the room as loud footsteps announced the arrival of the man they'd most likely been anticipating for the good part of the whole day.

Logan looked from his expensive shoes to his neatly tailored black suit and finally to his ugly face, which held rather annoying and excessively thick eyebrows, a scar above his left eye, and an almost bald head, which didn't help his situation.

He couldn't help but feel disappointed, even though he wasn't expecting any better.

"Can you tell me why the hell you've kidnapped my wife and me? We're both decent people, we have no idea what this is about," Logan explained.

"I might've considered you decent. That woman beside you, however, not so much," he said and all eyes had traveled towards Cassie, who looked confused as well.

*I knew it. I knew it!* Logan had to prevent himself from saying that out loud. There was only one person irresponsible enough to put them into this mess.

He quirked his eyebrows at the woman next to him, as though trying to find out what she did, she only shrugged in response.

"I don't even know who the fuck you are," Cassie said before Logan could stop her. Had she already forgotten their arrangement? He was to do all the talking.

The old, bald man frowned. "It's one thing to leave a scar on my face, it's another to not even remember who I am." His voice reflected anger. That was terrible news.

Logan stared at the woman beside him. As though she'd not hurt him enough, she had to drag him into her mess? He'd never felt angrier at Cassie.

"Flame, bring me the tape, let's help jog her memory a little," he said, and as Flame walked forward, Logan saw Cassie's eyes widen in shock.

It was evident she knew what this was about.

Logan stared at the screen in front of him in disbelief, as he watched a woman he could hardly recognize.

Cassie was seated in a casino, adorned in a shimmering red gown, that stopped just below her butt. It had a low cut at the back and a plunging neckline, exposing much more skin than he deemed appropriate.

There was a blonde wig on her head, while her lips were heavily coated with dark lipstick.

It was not that he did not find her sexy and attractive. It just seemed very unlike her to dress this way.

She kept taking glass after glass of alcohol and gambling away.

The video displayed her sitting on the table, rambling words to anyone that cared to listen, that her husband was loaded and the five hundred thousand dollars she'd borrowed and was still in the process of squandering, meant nothing to her.

All the anxious, hungry-looking men were eager to go another round.

The almost bald man had walked into the scene, with his men behind him. He mumbled some incoherent words to Cassie who got up immediately. He could see her pretend to be confused and oblivious to whatever the man was saying and she'd taken out a pen.

The most breathtaking part of the video was that the pen had managed to magically turn into a knife which she used to stab his face.

Logan had to shut his eyes for a moment, due to how brutal it looked. "Shit," he muttered.

The boss's men stood there confused as he yelled in pain, with his hands clutching his left eye and blood spilling out.

In all the chaos, Cassie had managed to disappear.

Once the video was over, Logan turned to face her, demanding some kind of explanation and she couldn't even look him in the eye, horrified and embarrassed by her actions.

"So, you see. This woman here owes me and you're gonna have to pay," The boss announced with a smile as though it was supposed to be good news.

Logan frowned. "Me?" This was Cassie's mess. She ought to deal with this alone. How could she be so reckless and irresponsible?

"Yes, you. You're her rich husband, aren't you?"

"We're getting divorced tomorrow," he said angrily even knowing it didn't proffer any solution to their predicament.

The average height man in front of them laughed irritatingly. "Then I should consider myself lucky, right? You owe me five million dollars and I expect it paid to the last dollar in cash. You've only got two hours, love birds," he said excitedly.

Logan shot daggers at him with his eyes. After all, that was all he could do while on his knees with his hands chained behind him and a gigantic man towering over him.

"Five million?" Cassie exclaimed in shock. "I only borrowed Five hundred thousand, you dumb old man."

In reaction, he'd taken quick steps towards Cassie and grabbed her chin roughly, lifting it so her large brown eyes were in contact with his.

"There are extra charges for leaving a scar on my face, disappearing into thin air, and letting my men go through the stress of kidnapping you," he informed her.

Some part of Logan wanted to stand in her defense, while the other felt like she deserved this.

"Why don't we just settle this like businessmen," Logan urged him, so he'd shift his attention from Cassie that was already shivering terribly. "You didn't have to go through all these lengths."

"Obviously. But Flame here thought it was best not to take chances with you. As they say, birds of a feather, stick together."

Logan was certain that was not the exact way the saying went, but he wouldn't take the risk of arguing. "I had no idea-"

"Can you get the five million in two hours or not?" Flame interrupted him, pointing the gun at them, to give him a hint of the only alternative to abiding by their rules.

"Why don't we all try to be a little reasonable here. I mean... I can pay the five hundred thousand she owes and then we just move on from there and forget about all of this." He tried to sound brave.

The Boss grabbed a gun from Flame's hand and took quick steps towards Logan, pointing the gun to his head. "Do I look like some kind of joker to you? I ask for five million, you give me five million! If you question my decision again, I'd put a very deserving bullet through her head," he said.

"I-I'll get it," he replied, shaking in fear. "I mean. I... It's impossible to get it all in cash in two hours. B-but I have jewelry and other stuff. It could make up the five million, I promise."

The old man gave a sardonic smile, before moving away and settling down on a chair. "One phone call and then we wait. Flame, the phone."

"Yes, boss." Flame gave a playful salute before walking towards Logan with a burner phone. "One phone call," they reiterated.

Logan stayed still, his heart pounding against his chest. He couldn't believe what was going on. He was supposed to throw away five million of his hard-earned money because of this annoying, infuriating woman.

She just sat still, shivering and trying to garner his sympathy that she didn't deserve.

Then, there was a question of who he could possibly trust to access the safe box he'd hidden most of his valuable items. A decision he'd made having observed Cassie's addiction to gambling.

There was only one person he could think about.

He gave out the phone number and Flame had dialed it and put it loud enough for every party in the room to hear.

"Hello?" The soft voice came from the other side.

"Natasha, It's me, Logan." At the sound of her name, he caught sight of his wife watching him with disgust.

"Logan, are you okay? What the hell is going on?" She attacked him with questions. She must've been completely mortified by the events that played out earlier.

Logan sighed. "I have been kidnapped and I need you to do something for me," he said.

"Oh my God!" She exclaimed.