The Magnificent Cat - Nadia Ramadan (little red riding hood read aloud TXT) 📗

are done" Wade replied 

"Ok let's talk something important" Ray said as he sits on the main desk

"What is it?" Armand asked

"Mr. Herbert" Ray said happily "let's give Mr. Herbert a date, shall we?"

"Okay" Armand replied 

Armand turned to Lewis and said "I think your job here is done. Come again later"

"Aright, aright" Lewis replied "I know you have a business to run, I will leave"

Lewis left the room and closed the iron door behind him.

"Who is Mr. Herbert?" Wade asked curiously

"Well, Wade" Ray started as he looked at Wade "Mr. Herbert is a guy willing to higher the Magnificent Cat for 7,000,000 and only for 4 hours!"

"It's fake" Wade said sharply

"Wade!" Armand shouted "please"

"I mean it" Wade continued "I think it's fake, there is something behind this"

"There is nothing behind this!" Ray shouted "are you jealous I find better customers for the job than you do!"  

Wade looked at Ray angrily and was heading to the door

"Wait a second" Armand called out "Wade don’t go"

"I am leaving" Wade replied as he looked at Armand 

"No, wait" Armand repeated "just stay for a minute"

"I am sorry, Wade" Ray said calmly as he stood up "but you are starting to get a bit annoying"

"Ray!" Armand shouted "stop it both of you! Let’s talk about the meeting; I say we do it tomorrow"

"Sounds great" Ray said happily "I will make the arrangement"

"Let it be held tomorrow afternoon" Armand repeated "confirm that"

"Sure will" Ray said as he looked at Wade annoyingly "we should all be here when he arrives"

"We will" Armand replied "right, Wade?"

"Yes" Wade replied dryly "of course"

 

 

The night passes quickly as it turned to dawn and soon afterwards it was morning before anyone knows it. 

"Lisa!" Jessica shouted as she knocked the door "Lisa its 9:00 in the morning we are already late to serve breakfast"

Jessica continues to knock but there was no reply from Lisa

"Lisa!" Jessica shouted again "are you in there with Wade? Is everything alright?

Suddenly the door opened and Lisa was still wearing her pajamas with her hair messed up and sick from crying the entire night

"Oh my God, Lisa" Jessica said as she looked at her "I was starting to get worried, what's wrong? Are you ok? You sure seem chaotic"

"I really can't go to work today" Lisa replied with a soared voice

"Have you been crying?" Jessica asked seriously

"I feel horrible, can you please give Mr. Lennox an excuse, I mean anything; just tell him that I am very sick and tired"

"Sure I will" Jessica replied "just forget about Mr. Lennox, let me come in, I think we need to talk…tell me everything!"

 

 

Far away in Slycity Ruddick and Alden cannot wait to snatch away the Magnificent Cat, as a matter of fact they are even more excited for the war, they are considering their plans to be the best ever made.

"When is the damn Concert?" Alden asked Ruddick

"Patricia will give me a call" Ruddick replied "don’t you worry at all, this war is on!"

"Don’t you love our team" Alden said happily

"You mean my future wife and future father-in-law" Ruddick interrupted 

"Yes" Alden replied with a laugh "We are one big family, aren’t we"

"Only if things go smooth" Ruddick replied.

 

 

"What the hell?" Jessica shouted just as Lisa finished telling the story.

"Your father was executed for no reason!" Jessica continued "what is the Magnificent Cat? What the hell is this?"

"I have no idea" Lisa said as she continues to cry "he was talking about it on and on and I just can't take this anymore! I asked him to leave"

"But what happened to your father wasn't entirely Wade's fault"

"It wasn't his fault at all" Lisa continued "or maybe…I really don’t know what happened last night, it was just horrible"

"Don’t worry" Jessica said "for the mean time I think you need some space and time to think, but later on I think you and Wade need to talk this over"

"I don’t think that is going to happen" Lisa said

"Why not" Jessica said with a smile "he likes you a lot…I think we both know that"

"I said something horrible" Lisa continued "I sacked him horribly, I told him that I love James" Lisa said as she started to cry again

"Lisa?" Jessica said surprisingly "Do you really have to bring James up in the conversation? Oh my God, Lisa, even if that was you true feelings, do you have to say it to his face! What are you thinking?"

"My true feelings…?" Lisa said seriously as she stopped crying "you think that’s my true feeling? That’s NOT my true feeling, I don’t love James, yes I liked him, I had a school crush on him but I love Wade, I love Wade!"

"Oh my God" Jessica said as she looked at Lisa seriously "you Love Wade"

"I do" Lisa said shyly as she smiled “I love him, I love the way he smiles…his kindness” 

"I knew it" Jessica continued "I always knew it!"

"I re-"

"I think you should go talk to him!" Jessica interrupted "you should talk to him"

"Right now…?" Lisa asked surprisingly 

"No" Jessica replied "At the Concert!"

 

Chapter 20 - A close call

Armand walked into the secretive room feeling like a king, for a moment he just knew that everything can be controlled only by his own permission.

"What a wonderful World" Armand said happily

"What did you say?" Ray asked as he walked into the room with Wade.

"Good morning" Armand said as he looked at them "you are up early"

"What a wonderful World?" Ray repeated as he laughed 

"When is the meeting?" Wade asked angrily to change the topic

"This afternoon, Wade" Armand replied "you know that"

"I confirmed it as well" Ray added "let’s just make sure everything goes smooth"

"It will be smooth" Armand said "perhaps let’s just make sure James doesn’t interrupt"

"He won't!" Ray shouted "why is keeping James out of the way a big problem?!"

"It's not a big problem" Armand interrupted nervously "now let’s clean up the place for a nice loaded meeting"

"I will make sure everyone downstairs knows that a meeting will be held" Wade said dryly as he left the room.

 

James woke up later than anyone else in the building, he wasn't feeling well. He woke up from his bed and looked at his reflection in the mirror.

"Am I still human?" he said lowly to himself as he continued to look "what? What is going on?"

James changed his cloths and ran downstairs; he walked out of the building and heads straight to the Greenwood's house.

 

Patricia was packing her things when she heard the door bell rang. She walked down the corridor and opened it.

"James?" she said as she opened the door "what are you doing here?"

"I am here to see you" James replied "what do you think?"

"Of course" Patricia said with a smile "I am just guessing …."

"Is your dad home?" James asked as he looked inside

"No" Patricia replied "isn’t he at your building?"

"I really have no idea" James continued "can I come in"

"Sure" Patricia replied with an awkward look 

James walked in and saw her dresses all packed up in a luggage.

"You are going somewhere?" James asked as he looked at her seriously "are you leaving?"

"No, silly" Patricia replied as she laughed "I am unpacking! Well my dad told me that we will only stay here for a short time, so I didn’t unpack all of my things, but yesterday he told me that we will be here for quite a long time!"

"I see" James said with doubt in his eyes "did he actually say quite a long time or for good?"

"Are you asking because you want me to stay or because you wanted my father to leave as soon as possible?"

"Patricia?" James said as he walked closer to her "it's always you"

"I hope so" Patricia said as she looked at him "I sometime feel that your mind is far away from me, it is as if you are hiding something"

"No, no" James replied sharply "I am not hiding anything, trust me"

"I think you are just more mysterious than I thought" Patricia said as she smiled "I like that, and you know why, it's because I will figure it out one way or another"

James was not listening to a word Patricia was saying, his mind was only focused on the Magnificent Cat, he really wanted to know what really happened that very day when his grandfather made him become the Magnificent Cat. He knew that his grandfather had no choice, for if James wasn't the Magnificent Cat, he will be dead by now, either killed by Bacilli or Armand.

"I have to go" James said suddenly as he walked out of the house

"James!" Patricia called out "where are you going? We are still talking!"

"I am sorry" James shouted "I have to talk to someone"

Patricia looked at James as he walked down the street to the other side and straight to the building.

"This is just great" Patricia said angrily and sarcastically "this is just great, I don’t know what is up with you, James, but I will find out"

"How come I never heard your side of the story, Armand?" James said to himself, as he walked across the street to the building "I deserve to know the truth about what happened"

 

Armand and Ray started rearranging the secretive room for the meeting; they made sure it looks cozy and professional.

"Mr. Herbert is a very important client" Ray said as he arranged his desk "we better not blow this meeting"

"No one is going to blow this meeting, Ray" Armand said as he looked at Ray "why do you think this meeting is going to be blown off!?"

"No I don’t think that, I am just making sure everything will go on smooth, that’s all, you know…no James involved"

"It will" Armand continued "lets juts get this place ready, shall we?"

"You are right" Ray said sharply "he will be here at noon"

"Noon…?" Armand asked surprisingly "I thought you said afternoon"

"I am not sure anymore" Ray said confusingly "let me call him and make sure"

"Yes, I think you should do that" Armand replied as he looked at Ray strangely.

"Alright" Ray said as he grabbed his cell phone and walked out of the room.

 

Ray stood behind the second iron door and started dialing.

"What is it?" Ruddick said directly as he answered the phone

"When is the Herbert guy coming?" Ray asked angrily "is this trick even working"

"Relax Ray" Ruddick replied "he will be there afternoon at your ridiculous building"

"Well he better be here" Ray continued "with the $7,000,000 Cash!"

"Don’t get too excited about that?!" Ruddick said angrily "remember that the $7,000,000 is mine! And not to mention we are broke without the Magnificent Cat, you better not let Armand touch that money!"

"He won’t" Ray said sharply "it's our money! Same way the Magnificent Cat will be ours"

"Now you are talking" Ruddick said annoyingly "just go do your job or whatever…Mr. Herbert will be there afternoon"

 

Ray walked in the secretive room.

"So?" Armand said as he looked at Ray entering the room.

"What?" Ray asked weirdly

"Is it noon or afternoon?" Armand asked with harsh tone

"Oh its afternoon, Mr. Herbert will show up this afternoon with 7,000,000" Ray replied nervously 

"Time and Date is very important I will let this pass for now" Armand said angrily "but the next time I asked you to confirm something you better do it!"

"Definitely"