The Lady with a Cat

The room was well lit with chandeliers and colorful rotatory lights. Colorful bouquet were kept in each table. Carnations, Freesia, Daffodils were arranged beautifully. Businessmen from various sectors of fields had assembled there to celebrate their success meet. 

Mr.Richard, the middle-aged entrepreneur gave the starting speech. The audience clapped and cheered as Mr.Richard concluded his speech. It was then, Mr.Paul handed over a cocktail along with a piece of paper. Just before Mr.Richard could unwrap the golden thread from the sandal colored paper,Mr.Paul whispered, "Sent by the Lady with a Cat".

Mr.Paul was one of the youngest and finest staff over there. And before Mr.Richard would say a word, Mr.Stevenson called on Mr.Paul to pour him another glass of wine.

Mr.Richard's eyes searched for the Lady with a cat, but he couldn't find any. In the room, there were a few well scholar'd ladies but none had a cat. It was then, the shadow of someone crossing through the other side of the room caught his attention. Probably it could be just because of the colored rotatory lights which were there at the corners and side of the well-spaced room yet it seemed to disturb him.

No more patience. Mr.Richard opened the paper and to his surprise the handwritten note was in Russian. 

"Оглянись вокруг, и ты найдешь опасность, окружающую тебя.  тебе лучше уйти"

It was obvious now that this lady wasn't one among them. This was because..how would you even expect Englishmen to speak Russian. Speaking Spanish or French would rather make some sense. 

With a little knowledge from doing his interns in Russia, Mr.Richard figured out what the lady wanted to convey. The note was short but stronger enough like a Morse code. At the same time, it was life-threatening too. It read "Look around and you shall find yourself surrounded with danger. It is better for you to leave".

There were a thousand of queries running through his head. He kept asking himself if he had read the note correctly and why should he even leave when the hotel is protected by police officers and professional gunmen from the outside. A typical businessman usually has rivals and stock market crashes bring the worst out of them. But still, the possibility of being injured within the hall, where around 25-50 high standard leaders were present was also practically possible.

Little did he know that every letter in that note was true and the moment he would step out of the hall in the absence of his assistant he would land in brutal danger. After sharing the cocktail drink with a couple of friends and co-partners,Mr.Richard went straight to the restroom to wash his hands so that he could have his Turkish delight with clean hands.

And this is when his fate began to play the game. Mr.Richard's shoe skidded on something but he managed to grab at the handrail inspite of his heart thumping.The very next moment,he was hit by something hard.He went blind for the moment and various noises were creating a turmoil inside his brain. He felt for a minute as if someone was knocking the door and the next moment he felt as if there was some cat purring nearby. There was a huge emotional turmoil going on within and soon he fell unconscious.

Mr.Paul was waiting in the hall with Turkish delight for over half an hour.As time leaped,Mr.Paul got frustrated yet with a pleasant smile, he questioned Mr.Stevenson and others if they knew about Mr.Richards departure from the party. On hearing this,Mr.Stevenson got suspicious because he knew that Mr.Richard would never leave without having his favorite Turkish delight.Mr.Stevenson left the place without uttering a word. Now,he was on a secret personalized mission to find his friend.He tried calling but no one picked up the call.

Like a cat chasing the mice, Mr.Stevenson searched to and fro within the party hall but there was no trail of Mr.Richard. Depressed enough for not having found his friend,Mr.Stevenson walked into the rest room. He went and washed his face. When he was about to return, something bright red sweeping out onto the light white tiles caught his attention. It was from the last bathroom. With fear on his face, he tried to open the door.Mr.Richard was lying down. He wasn't dead but it was obvious that he was badly injured.

Mr.Stevenson's jacket snapped and fluttered as he ran downstairs to get the aid from the police force outside. Legs thrashing all the way down..."Up there..in the restroom...Mr.Richard". These words were more than enough for the police officer to understand what Mr.Stevenson was wanting to say.

In less than fifteen minutes, the ambulance arrived and Mr.Richard was taken to the hospital. His left leg was twisted and broken and he had injuries in his elbow and shoulder. Upon reaching the hospital, he was taken immediately into the operating theatre.

Do you wonder who was behind this attempt to murder?

When Mr.Richard regained his consciousness, the first thing he uttered was "The Lady with a Cat".