JONATHAN'S POV

I held my hands out for Danielle and I could tell how hesitant she was to take it. I pulled her closer and took in a deep breath as her body slammed against mine. She tried to pull herself away, but I tightened my hold on her, not letting her.

I didn't trust the fact that we had really been left alone, and I could not allow us, even for a second, to let our guards down.

The song started playing, and I kept my eyes on Danielle. The fact her eyes weren't on me helped me keep my cool. This song had been chosen on purpose, I was sure about it. The fact that we were so close to each other and expected to stare into each other's eyes was doing something strange in me, I hadn't felt in a long while.

Danielle, probably feeling my eyes on her, rose her head and stared into my eyes, and I felt my heart start beating faster. What was it about this woman that was keeping my body on edge? At the same time, I loved the fact that this section had been carved out. She had a beautiful face that was worth staring at. And her eyes. They were really beautiful and not very expressive. I was proud of my poker face and expression, but this woman could give me a run for my money.

She swallowed, and my eyes went to her throat.

"How come your skin is so smooth? Do you have a skin routine?" She asked, breaking the thoughts I shouldn't have even started.

I shook my head. "I just use soap." I should have stopped at that, I really should. "Your eyes are so pretty."

Danielle blinked and I cleared my throat. "I've wanted to tell you that for a while." And if that wasn't the truth. Her eyes had been one of the first features I'd noticed, as they weren't as expressive as other people's. But now that I was staring at her now, I could see they weren't black like they appeared. It was kinda between black and brown and that gave it a gorgeous look.

The song ended and Danielle pulled against my hold. I released her, and she turned towards the wall that was meant to open immediately. I took a deep breath, had that been really uncomfortable for her? From her being unable to look me in the eye, to how her eyes had flitted around rather than meeting mine, to her turning away immediately. Was I the only one that had gotten affected that way?

I had no choice but to put it out of my mind. Even if I had a choice, there wasn't anything I could do about it. There was nothing weird about it, it was not only okay but expected to feel this way. My wife was a stunning woman with beautiful features, no one could contradict that. She was also a hardworking person, and one of the attributes I respected most in people was diligence and hard work. As someone that worked with me, that attribute was really appreciated, not like someone I didn't even want to remember.

The wall slid open, and we stepped into the next room. While I was still wondering what lay in wait for us here, our narrator started talking.

"Congratulations on making it past the previous hurdle, even though it couldn't have been a hurdle for you lovebirds, right? Not that we were watching." He laughed. "The previous room being so easy was intentional because this room is going to be much more intense and challenging. You weren't expecting anything less, right?"

I looked around the room, even bigger than the dance room. It looked nothing like the rooms we had formerly been in. I could tell this room was going to be like a horror chamber with the dimly lit environs, a large and dusty bookshelf and a huge grandfather clock that was ticking loudly, to list a few. Was something going to jump out? Danielle had subtly burrowed herself into me, meaning I wasn't the only one that had noticed the vast difference in mood.

"Do you think this is like a ghost abode?" Danielle whispered, looking around.

I hid my smile. We were even on the same page. "Depends. Are you scared of ghosts?" I teased her and she scoffed.

"Of course not. I'm well aware they are just actors. I just don't like being surprised."

I nodded, sure if one actor appeared right now, my wife would have screamed.

"You need to pay attention here." Our narrator continued and we both turned towards the speaker. "Mr. Houston, the owner of Houston enterprises, a company last valued at three hundred and eighty billion dollars, was found dead in his car after having a meeting with his board of directors about appointment of another management director and dinner with some business associates. His body was taken for autopsy, and it was established that there was no sign of tamper or food or gas poisoning. He was also in perfect condition apart from being diabetic which he was taking insulin for. He entered his personal car fine and when the car stopped, he was discovered dead…"

A screen in the room I hadn't noticed before opened, and there was a table there with some items on it. I moved closer to take a look.

"…the police had first ruled his death a natural incidence before several suspicions were established. His brother had called him urgently to come home as there was an emergency. The last recorded call is on that voice recorder. His parents had also signed his death insurance of ten billion dollars the day after his death. His parents and brother have solid alibis, but they cannot be ruled out in his death. Other suspects are his driver, someone in his board or someone else he had met that evening…"

The pictures of the suspects were displayed along with the time they had met, their relationship with the deceased and their alibis.

"… You have forty minutes to figure out who killed him and why based on these clues. If you want additional clues, or you have questions, there are mission papers hidden in the bookshelf. You have to look for it and fulfill the mission to pass. Do you have any questions before you begin?"

I glanced at Danielle, whose expression I couldn't read, but it changed to teasing when she saw my eyes were on hers. "What if we don't find it after forty minutes? Will the people waiting for us have left by then?"

I smiled. I had forgotten the fact that people were waiting for us while we were stuck in this space.

Our narrator laughed. "There's no need to worry about that. The guests are keeping themselves entertained, and they'll be ready for the party whenever you're ready. Plus, I have full faith in you succeeding on time. Your husband has quite the experience with things…" He trailed off and I glared at the speaker.

I'd guessed it could have been him, especially with his commentary that sounded so familiar, and his word vomit had confirmed it. I had also wondered what Scott was doing here in the UK, but I knew he was more than capable to have organized something like this. He was adept at making connections, so this little farce was making a lot more sense. Plus, he was a man that liked to have fun and force me into his ideas of fun.

Danielle glanced at me and I shook my head. "Ignore him" at the same time Scott muttered. "That was a slip of the tongue. I'm sorry" with his real voice this time.

I didn't want to make whatever was happening right now a big deal or something for my wife to obsess over and start acting like I was suspicious later, so I shook my head. "It's fine. You're right that I have quite the experience with things like this, since I've always loved mysteries and puzzles like this."

Danielle smiled. "Me too." She whispered softly, and I looked at her, unable to just glance at her and remove my eyes. There was something a little sentimental about that response.

Scott cleared his throat, the audio modulator in place again. "That's great. You have forty minutes to find who killed Mr. Houston and now, and your time starts now."

The clock started ticking even louder now and I glanced at it, surprised. The timer was displayed on the clock now. I had to shake my head. Technology was really innovative, everyone would have assumed it was an analog clock alone.

Danielle grabbed the voice recorder from the table and looked at me. "What do you think? Who is your main suspect?" She asked.

I rolled my sleeve up, adjusting to the mindset to investigate. That was quite my area of expertise. "His parents are not innocent, but they probably had nothing to do with his death. I suspect his driver. He's not telling everything."

Danielle narrowed her eyes and took the pointer that was on the table, zooming in on the driver's profile. She shook her head. "I doubt it. He's been working with him for over five years. He had nothing to do with his death."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.