against her; she’s all alone and doesn’t need that
huge apartment.” He rubbed his hands together
as he concocted a diabolical scheme.
Sy stared at his boss with a look of disbelief. “How could you do this to her? Don’t you
have a soul?”
At that moment, Tyler’s usual cold emotion returned, and he stared at Sy with dead eyes
and a blank expression. “I once was broke and
pathetic like you. I was married with two children
and was pinching every penny I could.” He rose
to his feet then walked over and stared out the
window. “I was tired of living like that so I gave it
all up to get ahead.”
He turned and faced Sy. “I sold my soul
long ago, so don’t speak to me about compassion,
because in this business; there’s no place for it.”
Tyler walked over and grabbed the papers
off of his desk. “I’ll head over to that building and
speak to her, and in thirty minutes; I want you to
arrive with these contracts so she can sign them.”
He grabbed his trench coat then headed for the door, but just as he opened it; Tyler
stopped. “What’s her name?”
“Ms. Cipher.”
Tyler shrugged his shoulders then said.
“Interesting name; have those contracts there in
thirty minutes.”
A short time later, Tyler arrived at the
apartment building. After ascending to the sixth
floor, he exited the elevator and walked down
the long hall to the only apartment on the floor,
apartment thirty six.
Tyler knocked on the door then looked
around with a frown on his face, as if it was beneath him to even be in the building.
Seconds later, the door opened and an old
lady with a head full of thin gray hair emerged.
“Can I help you?” she asked.
Tyler looked down at the small woman.
She was about five feet in stature, and wore thick
bifocals.
“Yes, my name is Tyler Sands. I would like
to speak to you for a few minutes.”
The old lady was trusting by nature, and
liked the way he was dressed, so she stepped aside
and invited him in.
After entering the apa rtment, he looked
around and noticed how spacious it was, but also
noticed there were no pictures on the wall.
The furniture was haggard to say the least,
and the apartment had a smell of a cat’s litter box,
but there were no cats in sight.
“Would you like a cup of tea?” she asked
in a low, frail voice.
“No thank you”
He took a seat on the couch, and watched
as she struggled to sit in the chair across from
him. He looked at his watch and knew his assistant would be arriving in just over fifteen minutes, so he had to begin.
“I would like to speak to you about your
apartment.”
Before he could continue, Ms. Cipher interrupted. “Yes, I’ve been living here for over fifty
years.” she looked around the room. “My husband
and I lived here until the day he died.” she paused
for a moment while thinking of her beloved then
cracked a smile. “Are you married?”
“No, ma’am”
Just as he was about to continue, she
interrupted once again talking about her husband
and the old days.
“Would you like some tea?” she asked
once again.
He smiled in an attempt to conceal his
frustration. “I’m fine.”
As she continued to banter, sinister
thoughts began to resonate in Tyler’s mind. He
knew she lived alone and did not have any family.
No one would miss her and I could forge her signature. He thought.
He surveyed the room searching for a
blunt instrument, and his eyes quickly focused
on an old, brass candlestick holder that sat on the
end table just to his right.
Ms. Cipher made her way to her feet then
asked. “Would you like a cup of tea?”
“No, Ma’am” he responded with a harsh
tone, clearly aggravated.
She gave him a smile then began to slowly
make her way to the kitchen with the aid of her
cane.
He stared at his watch, knowing Sy would
be there in a matter of minutes. His frustration
had turned to anger, as he aggressively grabbed
the candlestick holder then rose to his feet.
His eyes narrowed, and his grip tightened;
the moment of truth had arrived, and his mind
was made up. Her life was meaningless to him,
and it was time to take action.
He took two steps forward then came to