Richard Hudson is a gambler. A hardcore gambler who's been banned from most of the casinos around his city.
During the day, he's a bank accountant and during the evening, he gambles like tomorrow doesn't exist. The reason for his ban wasn't because he was broke or bankrupt. Rather, it was because if he kept gambling there, the casino themselves would go bankrupt.
No one knew if it was pure luck or skills gathered over time but they knew he was making it possible somehow. How it was done was what no one understood.
While many of the gamblers didn't know him personally or physically, they'd all at least heard his name. A crazy figure with black hair and a few white stripes who always wore a mask to every casino.
Today was a Friday, the beginning of the weekend and Richard had just closed from his day to day job at the bank and boarded a taxi back to his place. It was a joyful ride and Richard was already anticipating his wins in the casino he would be visiting tonight.
"Just a hundred thousand tonight and I'll be back home before midnight." He chuckled at the back of the car. He could see himself winning that much as he'd done it countless times. However, this time he wanted to do it differently. "Three games, one hundred thousand dollars and I'm out."
As he arrived in front of his house, Richard highlighted from the taxi dressed in a three piece dark suit and paid the taxi fee. As the driver zoomed off, Richaed turned to his house, a fully detached three bedroom duplex.
One luxurious SUV was parked to the left atop a round metal disc and to his right was a similar round disc with no car on it. The side of the house had a driveway that led underground to a garage.
Richard walked inside with a smile on his face. It was as if he could already tell today would be different.
Despite being this accomplished at age twenty five, Richard was…single! "I'm home." He said as though he was notifying his wife or kids.
"Welcome back, Richard." An automated voice responded to his statement and he smiled. "Thank you, Lexy." Richard replied as he walked into the sitting room.
It was a large space with a three-pieced chair set arranged in half a square pattern at the centre of the room. In themiddle of the chair piece was a small table with an elegant design and a glass top. Atop the table were the remote to the inbuilt flat screen television, a remote to the home theatre arranged on a shelf beneath the television and a humidifier.
At the back of the chair was another chair with a table that acted as a mini dining or reading space. All of the furniture was black while the walls and marbles of the room were white. The design was simplistic yet luxurious.
Although he still had his wristwatch on him, he called out, turning to a certain square shaped device on the shelf below the television. "Hey Lexy, what time is it?"
"6:32 pm." The response was immediate from his AI which made him nod satisfactorily. There was still time. Time to get ready for the casino. And above all, time to sleep.
"Wake me up at exactly 9:00 on. I've got somewhere to be." Richard announced to his AI.
"You mean the casino?" The female automated voice replied.
"That's none of your business." Richard chided, pointing at the AI's core as he made his way up the staircase toward his room.
His room was just as spacious, housing a king-sized bed, a smaller smart screen embedded into the wall, a door to a balcony, a chair and a table toward the beside, small cupboards on both sides of the bed and a smaller room that acted as his closet. A small chandelier hung in the ceiling, giving light to the whole room. Like the sitting room, it was simple and luxurious.
Taking his suit off and changing into a piece of black shorts and white tank top, Richard crashed on his bed, falling asleep almost immediately.
He hadn't even slept for an hour when he was forced awake by his AI. "Burglar alert! Burglar alert!!"
Richard's eyes snapped open immediately he heard those words, his sleep disappearing like it had never been there.
"Calling 911. Calling 911." His virtual assistant AI spoke again. It had different connecting parts, one of which was in his room. Aware that sounding the alarm all over night alert the burglar, the AI had only warned Richard with its extended part in his room.
As he heard this. He jumped out of bed. While it was true gay Lexy had called the police, they wouldn't arrive for the next five minutes. He needed to secure his safety first.
When the cops get here, he would feel safe to get inside once again.
'How did they enter?" Richard asked as he rushed toward his balcony. There was a ladder there that he could let down and would lead him outside the back of his house.
As he hesitated to go down, he heard the clicking sound of his room door.
Bang!
The door was kicked open forcefully, revealing two figures dressed in black and wearing masks with pistols in their hands.
"Shit!" Richard murmured and immediately began climbing down the ladder without a moment of delay. 'These people aren't here to rob. They're here to kill me!'
He speedily descended down the ladder and made a jump as the Ladder didn't get to the floor completely.
Thud!
It wasn't loud but the figures picked up the sound. "He's outside. Head to the front and I'll follow from behind! Get close enough and kill him!" One of the men commanded as he sprinted toward the balcony that was left open.
The other wasted no time bolting outside the room and heading back outside.
Richard heard the command and immediately began to run. The back was completely fenced and so the only way out of the house was through the front. He had to make it there before the other figure did.
His heart raced as he ran and as he arrived in front of the house, he wasted no time racing outside.
Just then, one of the figure raced out of the front door and found Richard attempting to escape.
"Hey! Stop there or I'll shoot!" The voice undoubtedly belonged to a man. Richard froze when he heard the man cock the gun.
Slowly, the man began to walk toward him, closing the distance slowly but surely.
'I can't get caught! These people definitely want me dead either way!' Richard concluded and with a burst of emotions, he took another step. And then another. 'The worse is that I'll get shot. It can't get any worse, can it?'
"No, thank you," Richard roared as he continued his race, exiting the compound with a smile.
The man aimed at Richard planning to fire when he heard Richard's words. "I'd rather wish to be hit by a speeding…"
Hooorrrn!
"Fuck!" Richard cursed the moment he ran into the road and saw it.
'It really could get worse.'
His wish had come true.
Bang!
Crack!
Crunch!
He'd been hit by a speeding truck. Killed.
Just then, the other figure arrived having raced after Richard from the back.
"Where is he?" The figure asked, another male voice behind the mask.
The first one who'd aimed at Richard took off his mask, revealing a handsome young face with a scar on the chin. The figure sighed, pointing at the road. "Those are his remains."
The second figure also took off his mask revealing an average looking man with brown hair and black eyes. As he stared at the mangled corpse of their target, the only words he could utter were uttered. "That's fucked up."
••••••
Meanwhile, Richard's eyes snapped open again but in a different location.
It was nothing fancy. In fact, it felt too simple that Richard thought it was the afterlife.
As he rose from the cold green grass he'd found himself, he noticed he was dressed in a white long robe. "Is this… Heaven?"
"I'm afraid you won't be going there." A melodic female voice echoed from every direction, making Richard's eye scan the entire place for its source.