Chapter 1
USA
Poleville interstate highway was designed for a hitch-free vehicular movement. Traffic law enforcement authorities prohibited pedestrians from plying the multiple lanes that spiraled to an intricate engineered pattern. The area had never been empty of smooth-running traffic – light or heavy.
The surveillance camera, mounted at the rocky towers overlooking the busy metropolis worked effectively to catch every moment of the motorists driving to or from their various destinations. Cars of varying sizes compete for visibility and prominence on the street, and the CCTV didn’t fail to record the footage. From sedan to hatchbacks, to heavy duty vehicles like trucks and vans, Poleville accommodated them all. Traffic controllers and law enforcement officers, decked in their neat uniforms, signalled and gestured at motorists when necessary. Their responsibilities complemented the traffic signs that continued to change their colours at the right intervals.
From the camera’s perspective, all was going well – or so the surveillance thought. A sleek red sedan drove at a steady pace towards a black SUV blocking its view. Behind the sedan was an Audi tailing it bumper to bumper. On the other lane, taller automobiles swerved on unhindered.
The red sedan swerved left to overtake the SUV and flew forward on a clear road, driving side by side with the bigger vehicle. But it suddenly slowed down and parked close to the culvert.
At that moment, the rock-mounted CCTV recorded a shocking turn of events that if it were a living thing, its heart would have done a back flip.
A truck loaded with agricultural products on the opposite lane, driving at 80 mph, lost its balance, skidded off its track, stumbled sideways and summersaulted over the culvert. The full weight landed on the sedan, the bashing sound, followed by a ball of flames bursting from the collision, was a horrible spectacle that would remain a permanent memory on the minds of the eye-witnesses. The impact of the crash shoved the SUV off the tracks, pushing it against the next oncoming vehicle. Every automobile on that stretched road tasted from the commotion.
But no better filming could match the accurate footage recorded by the surveillance camera. Splinters of metals and the resultant inferno needed no soothsayer’s prophesy that getting survivors out of the frightening scenario involving the truck and the sedan would only happen in another planet.
******************************************Australia
“Hugo, I checked out your reports on the Caribbean Shipment. The details seem scanty, I’m not impressed,” Theo remarked firmly, his eyes glued to his projector screen as he looked at the faces of his employees popping up in their screen boxes.
Attending board meetings in his classy boardroom at the penthouse company premises was a norm. But the boss didn’t feel up to it that day. One hour earlier, Theo had called Charlotte, his blonde, sexy legged dimpled secretary. The instruction was loud and clear.
“Arrange an emergency meeting with every member of the management on Zoom in an hour. I’m working from home today. Also, cancel all my meetings for the next 2 days. Send the memos to HR and the IT units. I’ll take 2 day off. I need a break.”
An ever efficient staff with a Midas touch of feminine allures, Charlotte got to work. All Theo had to do was to recline on his swivel chair at the topmost floor of his Sydney multi-million dollar 40-acre mansion, set up his projector, connect some cords, and bring the virtual meeting to life.
Hugo’s face shone on his screen above Karl’s, whose head screen was directly below his.
“Oh, my apologies, Mr Clarke,” Hugo stuttered and shifted nervously on his seat. “I cross-checked the files before I forwarded them to you. B-but I’ll rework them.”
Theo sighed and leaned forward on his seat, placing his arms on the glass-topped table in front of him. “Do it before today’s close of business and send the corrected one to Charlotte. Copy my email and Ava’s.”
More official matters dominated the Zoom conference for the next 40 minutes. When Theo ensured that nothing was left to dissect, he signified to his co-attendees to draw the curtains.
“Alright, guys, that’ll be all for now. Y’all should get back to work,” he said authoritatively and raised his arms, then he clapped his hands together, indicating the end of the section. “Pretend as if I were there in the office to police y’all, be up and doing. No messing around because of my absence.”
Then he stared at a male head at the lower side of the left screen. “Galahan, I want feedback on my scheduled flight before nightfall. Bye guys.”
Murmurs of confusion arose among his audience as he picked up the remote control beside him on the table and pressed the switch off button. The large projector screen blanked. He stood up and walked over to the tall drink shelf stuffed with exotic wines and rare liquor brands only found in the abodes of loaded moneybags like Theo Clarke.
He grabbed a glass and the sky blue bottle of Exair, a sea-colored grape and Bailey wine he had purchased on his last vacation to Seychelles last Spring. Uncapping the sleek container, he tumbled the shiny liquid over into the glass. When satisfied with the volume, he replaced the bottle cover and walked over to his floor-to-ceiling glass door overlooking the city below, his wine in hand.
As he sipped the rich drink, savouring its raw taste, many thoughts ran through his mind. The several business empires under his belt, his uncountable properties scattered all over Australia and abroad, the business deals that wouldn’t stop flooding in like hurricane, contracts, expanse fleet of both the vintage and the latest automobiles – endless strings of wealth that continued to stretch beyond his imagination.
A business mogul dealing in several juicy enterprises; real estate, forex, stocks, banking, gold, cryptocurrencies, technology, AI, and even fashion lines, Theo Clarke remained at the top of the food chain.
Still looking forward to his 30th birthday, Forbes had named him among the top 30s under 30 for 3 consecutive years, describing him as an:
‘...enigmatic, charismatic, and an arsenal of wealth jam-packed in a young man filled with an elderly assets.’
He smiled at the memory of the caption. The writer must have imagined him as a supernatural prince riding on gold chariot. Wealth wasn’t new to Theo. His family, The Oligarchy Clarkes, had been swimming in old money for 5 generations in Australia. His grandfather, Senior Willie Clarke, served as a senator under two Prime Ministers.
Last born of a family of 5 with three children, Theo attended the best schools and worked only within the family’s conglomerates. But after his 20th birthday, he ventured out on his own and his parents supported him wholeheartedly. Eight years down the line, his self-made riches piled up beyond what he’d anticipated.
Yet, despite these luxuries and best comfort that life offered him on a silver platter, Theo felt an emptiness from within. He wasn’t fulfilled. To the world outside, Theo Clarke was living the dreams that millions of people could only fantasize about. Theo Clarke was a super-rich guy who had the world wrapped around his fingers.
But on the inside, Theo’s personality was crumbling and eroding. The money, the affluence, and all the worldly possessions that surrounded him paled his true desires. Many times, he couldn’t point out where his lack of motivation emanated from. Could he be bored with everything? Perhaps. After all, he only needed to snap his fingers or press a button on his iPad or laptops, and whatever he ordered for would be at his feet in milliseconds.
But an inner Theo knew that there was more to life than financial buoyancy. Handsome and physically fit, coupled with his excess wealth, he should be complete. Women toppled over themselves to have him. A few had fought themselves to win him over. Some wouldn’t take a no for an answer – except they get his heart tied to their own.
And there were his friends, flocking around him like bees. His table and drawers were filled to the brim with invitations from charitable organizations, desiring him to grace their occasions and fund their humanitarian projects.
When the chips were down, will these people still love him the same way? He had doubts that his so-called loved ones saw him without the money and his qualities. Something more should be out in the universe for him.
He heaved a sigh and sipped his wine again, delaying the liquid in his mouth before pushing it down his throat. A distant expression etched on his face, he made up his mind. Things needed to change around him, and he would make sure of that.
