Chapter 1: Invitation from a Mysterious Client

The plane was arriving an hour late due to the air traffic congestion at the main airport in the country's capital city of Malen. Flight delays have been the norm lately, thought Jon Aster as he looked around the crowded terminal. He had been travelling extensively in the past three years since he took on this job. He liked the mobility and the freedom it gave him, but the constant delays in the airports were starting to make it less and less enjoyable. Already, he missed Lisa and remembered her face and her tender gaze as he left her that morning. He would have stayed longer with her if not for this business trip that his manager said could last a few days.

The steady buzz of conversation and noise that accompanied human activity inside the terminal was drowned by the pleasant voice of an airline staff. With a light tone that sounded like the female host of a radio morning show, she spoke the words as if announcing something delightful rather than another hour of delay. There were groans of disappointment from waiting passengers and a woman spoke loudly to her companion that she would not fly with the perennially late airline again.

Jon had heard such protests before and could understand the dismay from the waiting passengers. He knew as well that the delayed flights were mainly due to the inadequate capacity of the existing airport and the increase of flights using the international hub. There were plans to build two new airports in the outskirts of the capital (perhaps a decade too late, he thought), but until these were finished, there was not much that the passengers nor the airlines could do. That is, except wait for it as patiently as possible.

Jon looked around and saw a family of three rising from where they were seated in the waiting area. The father was carrying a baby girl who was sleeping peacefully in his arm. His wife held on to him as she pulled their luggage from behind. After hearing the announcement, the young family probably thought they could go to the airport lounge or the food court for a snack.

Jon thought of Lisa and imagined them to be that small family leaving for the food court. He remembered how he hurriedly said his goodbyes because he was running late for this flight. Not that it mattered now, but he could have waited another hour, or two.

Jon took out his laptop and opened his default search engine. He  typed 'Orsica' and pressed 'search'. I might as well know where I am going, he thought. Immediately, the screen filled with amazing scenery of turquoise waters and white sand beaches as well as rocky mountainsides and a picturesque coastal village in the Mediterranean. Jon frowned as he realized that the search engine's algorithm suggested the French island of Corsica instead of his original query.

He next typed 'Cardena', his port of destination, and from which he would be travelling by boat to the island of Orsica. He clicked on the topmost link given by the search engine and was taken to the tourism web page of the island province. Instead of the Mediterranean, he saw the tropical beaches of the Pacific with coconut trees casting shadows on white pristine sand.

Cardena was one of the biggest provinces south of the capital and going there and visiting its many amazing islands had been one of the items on Jon's bucket list. As his clients were mostly located in the capital and the mountainous northern regions, he felt elated when he was told by his manager that he finally got an assignment to the south.

With renewed enthusiasm, Jon thought of inviting Lisa to fly over to him after a week when he had already finished his work with his client. She did say she had a cousin in Cardena and had been planning to visit for a long time. Jon thought that he and Lisa could have a brief holiday in Cardena and see its amazing beaches after he had finished with his work.

Not finding any information on Orsica from the web, Jon clicked on the file explorer icon and opened the brief sent to him by his manager to find out more about his destination.

Orsica is an isolated island sixty-six kilometers from the mainland, Jon read. Getting there would require travelling a few hours to a small dock and another three hours by ferry. Jon groaned as he felt his stomach sink. He gets extremely dizzy and nauseous when travelling by sea and three hours of tossing around while on a small ferry did not bode well. He remembered his last ferry ride a year ago and how he felt nauseous all throughout the trip.

An email notification popped up from below the screen telling Jon that an email had arrived from his client. Jon clicked on the notification icon and read his client’s email.

Dear Mr. Aster,

Thank you for agreeing to come to my beautiful island to meet me in person. The matter we are going to discuss is too important and confidential that I could not talk to you about it on the phone. I hope that you will be most comfortable on your trip. My staff will be meeting you when you arrive at the airport and he will take you to the dock to board my private boat.

Your friend,

Dante

Jon closed his laptop and heaved a sigh. At least there will be someone to meet him at the airport when he arrives and… a private boat! Jon tried to recall the contents of the dossier that his boss handed him just a week ago. Jon remembered reading the client's net worth and whistling at the huge amount. His client had a vast property on the western coast of Orsica with an enormous house on top of a mountain that was accessible mainly through cable car. Of course, he can afford a private boat!

Taking off his glasses, Jon stood up and approached a large LED screen near the center of the terminal. Jon hoped to see the updated time of departure. He found his flight near the bottom, but instead of the new ETD, there were only red capital letters indicating DELAYED.

Jon decided to stretch his legs and walked to a nearby bookstand where he looked for a travel guide on Orsica. Finding nothing, he asked the store clerk if there were any brochures or maps, but the clerk merely gave him a shrug and turned away to serve another customer.

Giving up, Jon decided to buy himself a cup of cappuccino from one of the coffee shops and sat at an empty table. Using his hand, he brushed off the crumbs left by the previous customer. Jon then rested his elbow on the table's polished wooden surface. If Orsica really was a beautiful island, I wonder why it's not too well known, Jon thought.

After taking one sip of the hot beverage, Jon took out his phone to look at the weather at his destination. He frowned as his phone returned a 'no connection' message. He looked at the wifi strength indicator at the top of his phone's screen - all bars were shaded, indicating very strong signal. Pocketing his phone, he wondered if the airport's wifi network was as congested as the air traffic.

Jon recalled the short email he got from his client and thought it curious how the client closed his message - 'your friend'. It seemed as if he had known Jon for a long time when Jon knew that they had not met before. Jon had no idea what his client looked like, much less remember talking to him.

"Dante… Dante…" Jon murmured as he recalled the 14th century Italian writer and his Divine Comedy. There were three parts to the epic poem, but for some reason, Jon only thought of the first one – Inferno. The images of hell flooded his mind – tormented souls that reside in the nine circles of hell. For a moment, he thought he could hear cries of anguish and pain as well as see writhing bodies amidst the red flames and scorching heat.

Suddenly, he felt as if his hands were burning and he was back in the airport holding his hot cup of coffee. He sighed and drank the rest of his cappuccino. He tried to clear his mind of hellish images and decided to think again of Lisa and how it would be like living with her when they get married. Jon had not asked her yet, but the thought had already crossed his mind hundreds of times in the past few weeks.

Jon remembered Lisa holding his hand as he kissed her cheek that morning before he left. Lisa did not show it, but he was sure that she missed him during these long business travels as much as he missed her. He wondered what she was doing that very moment and how she thought about where their relationship was going. Nowhere, she would probably tell herself, as Jon's work always came first.

Jon took his empty paper cup and threw it into the recycle bin. Perhaps this should be his last assignment before he transfers to a new job, Jon thought. What if he just leaves the terminal now and go back to Lisa? Just forget the flight… forget his client… forget Dante…

Jon would think of this moment a few days later and regret deeply that he decided to board that plane and made the choice that led him to the path of disaster and ruin.