Hot Coffee (The Hollens) novel Chapter 13

Emma's POV

She had to be out of her mind to even think about stealing one of Mr. Hollen's watches. I didn't want either of us getting in trouble with him so I pulled her aside.

"Halley, are you crazy? Please tell me that wasn't Mr. Hollen's Rolex. He would skin you alive!"

"Emma, would you relax. How crazy do you think I am? I wouldn't steal from him."

"Well, where did you get the Rolex?"

"It's a knock-off I purchased in Chinatown. Matt thinks it's real, but how the hell am I supposed to afford that? Now can we just enjoy the party?"

I'd never danced before so I just watched at Halley and her boyfriend.

A guy walked up to me and said hi. He was very handsome and looked around my age, maybe one or two years older. He had a Mohawk haircut, which complimented his handsome face. He was lighter than I was in complexion with light brown eyes and thick eyebrows.

"Hi," I replied, tucking my hair behind my left ear.

"I've never seen you around before. Are you new in town?"

"Not really."

"Who are you here with? A boyfriend?"

I laughed; if only he knew. "No, I'm here with my friend, Halley?"

"Halley. That's whats up."

"You know her?"

"Yeah." He was sipping from a red cup. I assumed it was alcohol, maybe a beer.

Halley came between us. "Hey Max, long time no see." She hugged him.

"Hey Hal, what's good?"

"I've seen you already met Emma." She was smiling at me and winking.

I rolled my eyes.

"Here Emz," she handed me a cup that contained a strong aroma of alcohol.

"Halley, I don't drink." I pushed the cup back into her hand. She shook her head and glared sourly at me.

"Emma, don't be a party pooper. It's just a beer."

"I don't drink. I don't like alcohol."

"Emma, come on."

I took the cup from her and sipped. Max made an air toast gesture to me and I gave him a small smile, but I had a feeling that something weird was going on. I pretended to drink but just let the contents  touch my lips and move back into the cup. I hated the taste of all alcohol. I couldn't understand why people drank it. It was no good for one's body and, if you have too much, you pass out and wake up with an unbearable headache the next day and your stomach feels like it's tied in a knot. Why put yourself through that?

I walked up to a tree and emptied the beer. It was then that I noticed something else, besides the beer, fell out.

What the fu..., what's that?!

I stared at it. It was a small red pill which hadn't completely dissolved. I picked it up and wrapped it in a makeup tissue I'd gotten at the salon then stuck it into my purse. I wanted to leave immediately. I went to find Halley.

I found her dancing like a stripper on her boyfriend. She didn't look like herself-- like the way she looked when we first got here.

"Halley, I think we should leave," I whispered to her so that Matt wouldn't hear, but the music was a bit too loud and her head was spinning too much. "Halley!" I shouted. I wanted to shake the hell out of her.

"Hey, what's your problem? She's with me. She's fine!" Matt shouted back.

"She's not fine. Look at her. I think she had too much to drink!" I snapped at him.

"Emma, dance... with... me," she stammered between alcohol induced hiccups pulled me onto her.

I lost my footing but recovered quickly. "What the hell Halley? We need to leave now."

"Why?" She hiccuped again.

I whispered into her eyes, hoping she would hear me. "I think someone is trying to drug us."

"Huh?" she asked as she danced and smiled.

"The both of you are not going anywhere," Matt said as he moved between us.

He started pulling Halley towards his house and she was just laughing and squealing like an idiot. I figured she had to be extremely high. Halley didn't smile or laugh that much. I wanted to yell for help, knowing what could happen to her, and me, then I remembered that Luis was just outside, parked on the street. He couldn't see what was going on in the yard because of the tall broad fencing.

I looked around for the other guy, fearing that he would grab me next. Max wasn't in sight. He was talking to another girl underneath a tree. I took the opportunity to rush for the gate. I ran straight for the car and pounded on the driver's side window. Luis rolled down the glass. "What's going on?"

"I think Halley's been drugged. She was pulled into the house!" I was speaking so fast and was already emotionally in tears. 

With that, Luis got out of the car. "Get in the car and lock the doors. Don't open it unless you see me coming back with her!" He made a beeline for the entrance to Matt's gate.

I got into the car and locked it. I peered through the windows, waiting in panic.

In less than a minute, it seemed, he was carrying a passed out Halley over his shoulder. I unlocked the car and opened the door. He placed her in the backseat then got into the driver's seat. He started the car and drove towards the mansion while on the phone. It sounded like he was speaking to a doctor because he was describing Halley's current state. I pulled her head onto my lap to elevate her just in case she puked. Her eyes were shut and wet and she was groaning like she was in pain. She seemed to be coming down with a fever now. I recalled the pill I saw and what I did with it. I took it from my purse, still wrapped in the tissue.

"Mr. Luis, I think I may have something useful." I passed it to him and he took it without taking his eyes off the road.

We arrived at the mansion fifteen minutes later. He carried Halley inside. I wondered why he didn't just take her to the hospital instead; we'd passed one on the way. She looked terrible; we should have gone to the hospital. This was crazy.

"Why don't we just take her to the hospital, she could be in real danger here!" I shouted. I couldn't hold back the anger because it was insensible to carry her to the mansion without seeking medical attention for her.

"You'll understand," he answered simply .

My eyes caught the flashing red light outside. A medical team was at the mansion. They rushed in and took over the situation. She was carried into a room that I had never seen before but it was located on the first floor and designed like a room normally found in hospitals.

The doctors took Halley's temperature, drew her blood and checked her vitals.  I was ushered outside of the room after I started crying again. Luis came out with me.

"Are you alright. Did you drink anything too?"

"No, I only took one sip. I don't like alcohol." I wiped the tears.

"She'll be alright. Just so you understand, Mr. Hollen doesn't allow any of his employees at a public hospital. He has a team of private doctors and nurses that come to him instead. That way, scandals are prevented and the problem is kept between him and the doctors. In this case, where Halley had been drugged, this could have gotten out of control real quick; headlines like: 'Maid Drugged at Mansion for Lay' or 'No Work, No Drugs'." His eyes were glued into mine, "Although it would only be rumors and lies, we prevent it where we can."

I could never get use to that kind of life. Mr. Hollen was like royalty, everything was done for him and revolved around him. It was nice that he looked out for his employees as well. He really wasn't selfish; he had a warm heart. Others might just worship their money while their employees could go to hell, but it wasn't like that with Mr. Hollen and I was definitely seeing it.

My mind drifted back to him. I wondered what he was doing in the Bahamas right then. Was he having fun? I gave a small smile just thinking about the kiss, though he said I was to forget it ever happened.

"Will he find out about this?" I asked, remembering that we shouldn't have been out in the first place. We were supposed to be indoors, not going shopping and a party.

"Yes, he'll know. I can't hide something like this."

My heart raced around my chest. Oh God. He'll be so mad about this.