JASMINE’S SECRET
FIFTEEN
The text came in early the next morning.
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At exactly 12:00hrs, walk up to the black limousine that will be parked across the street from your house. Show the driver the complimentary card and speak the passcode: PARROT. He will take it from there.
Jasmine immediately called in sick at the office and prepared herself. At exactly 12:00 pm, she stepped out of her house. Sure enough, there was a black limousine, complete with tinted windows, waiting across the road.
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This is it, Jasmine. There’s no going back now.
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Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, she squared her shoulders and walked up to the limousine. She rapped on the driver’s window.
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“Parrot.” Her voice shook a little.
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The door swung open and a muscular man dressed completely in black got out. She inclined her head so she could get a better look at his rigid and unsmiling face. She couldn’t see his eyes as they were hidden behind black shades. Jasmine swallowed hard, trying her best to control her racing heart.
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You can take care of yourself, Jasmine.
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She willed her fear away and showed him the complimentary card. The man nodded and led her to the back door. He placed a hood over her head before opening the door.
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“Sit”.
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The man pushed her gently into the seat and slammed the door. Soon the limousine revved up and sped out of the estate.
……………
Jasmine’s auditory and olfactory senses were heightened due to her lack of vision. They had been on the road for a while now, and she reckoned that it was for roughly an hour and a half. The limo veered off the road and judging by the rough terrain and the sound of wildlife, she could tell that they were now in a remote environment.
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“Won’t you tell me where you are taking me?”
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Jasmine had asked the chauffeur the same question thrice within the hour. She did not get a response then nor did she receive any now.
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The car stopped after a few more minutes of driving. ‘Mr. Silent Chauffeur’ killed the engine and stepped out of the car. He walked over and opened the door to the back where she was sitting. Jasmine got out and tried to register any piece of information that could help her through smell and sound.
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“Walk”. Silent Chauffeur ordered.
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She did as he commanded and put one foot in front of the other. It was difficult since she couldn’t see where she was going, and the ground was uneven.
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Now she could hear him opening a metal door. She continued walking and soon she realised that she was in some sort of building.
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‘Stop”. She did. “You are about to step through a metal detecting machine. I hope for your sake there’s nothing on you.”
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Jasmine’s heart thumped fast and hard against her rib cage. Giving in to paranoia years ago, she had invested in a tiny, high-resolution camera, and this morning she had decided to fix it into one of the buttons on her blouse. Going by Silent Chaffeur’s warning, she was good as dead if the camera were detected. She had to find a way out of stepping into the machine.
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“Erm, the buttons on my blouse are linen-coated metal…” she began.
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“Step through please.” Silent Chauffeur didn’t let her finish.
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Jasmine stepped gingerly through the metal detector, one small step after the other. She expected the machine to let out the loud shrill sound of an alarm any second now. Miraculously she crossed without any incident. Jasmine squelched her sigh of relief.
Thank God.
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At Silent Chauffeur’s prompt, Jasmine started walking again. Sweat beaded over her eyebrows and rolled into her eyes. It was hot in the building. She still couldn’t see anything through the hood, but she reckoned they were inside some kind of metallic structure, a shipping container maybe. The air also smelled strongly of antiseptic. Perhaps the place was rubbed down frequently so that anyone looking to lift fingerprints would be unsuccessful.
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Silent Chauffeur stopped walking. She stopped too. A door creaked open.
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“Go in through the door. It’s directly in front of you.”
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Jasmine moved again, this time praying to not bump into a wall and hurt her head. Thankfully she didn’t and when she was inside Silent Chauffeur told her to stop, then closed the door behind her.
