Walking towards the door, his steps synchronized with the beating of his heart. He felt like a protagonist in a cheap thriller film. Only the current situation is not a film - but real life.

He held the phone firmly in his sweaty hands, pressing it closer to his ear before opening the door, trying to prepare himself for whatever was on the other side.

He released the deep breath he took and slowly creak the thick door opened, and get somewhat confused.

Briare and Samara were in their foyer, all smiles. Like they are here for a neighborly visit and not to investigate a crime scene.

He scanned the surroundings behind the couple and saw no other people. He was expecting men in black suits, stoic faces, muscled men to storm inside their villa. That would manhandle him with intense questioning -- but none of that was happening.

The one he is seeing in front of his face is just like a scene from a beautiful Sunday morning.

"Hello, Luke? Is Briare there now?"

His thoughts were pulled out of his thriller fantasy when he heard Ellise's puzzled voice on the other line.

He sighed, cocked his head for Briare and Samara to enter the house.

"Briare is here. He is with Samara. It's just the two of them." he said in a confused voice, closing the door when their visitors were inside the villa.

"Ellise is it so bad of me if I feel disappointed," he whispered on the phone.

"Disappointed? How so?"

"Well, I was expecting a scene from an action movie. I was looking forward to some handsome men in uniform."

There were a few heartbeats of silence that preceded Ellise's roar of laughter at the other end of the line.

"My, my Luke! You are being a kinky kitty with all these naughty thoughts in your head."

"That's why I asked you if it's bad of me to have these unholy thoughts in this kind of situation," he bit his lower lip as he snorted stifling his own laughter.

The situation became somber again when he saw Samara pulled a pair of latex gloves from the pocket of her summer dress before picking the vase of wildflowers arrangement with the disgusting card on it.

"Uhm, what will happen next?" he asked hesitantly.

"We will take these back to have these check for anything," he smiled as though it is nothing but another friendly visit that he does for the guest of his resort.

Samara put the flower vase on Briare's lap. Bent down to get a wicker basket under Briare's wheelchair.

"Here are the things you need for making your waffles. We are taking everything just to be safe."

She took out what's inside the wicker basket and exchange it with what the resort staff brought together with the hateful but innocent flower arrangement.

"We won't be in your way," she said with a bright smile, standing behind Briare's electric wheelchair.

He maneuvered his electric wheelchair back to the main door, and he followed them in silence. He opened the villa's door for them and bid them goodbye, all smiles, as though he was glad for their neighborly visit.

He watched them took the steep pathway for Briare's wheelchair, then, he closed the door when they were far enough from their villa.

He leaned on the door and clasped his hands in his chest. Today, is a strange day, indeed.

He slowly walked back to the kitchen, thinking if he should call Ellise again. But then, there is nothing she can do anymore.

And to continue to act out the normalcy of the day prior to that hateful flower arrangement, he doesn't need to call Ellise. For sure, she would get an update from Briare himself.

He picked up the floral apron, tied it in his waist, and start preparing his out-of-this-world waffles for Jess and Lucille's brunch.

The familiar steps of the recipe put him at ease. He prepared the batter and put it inside the fridge. He still has twenty minutes before Noah and Lucille come over.

He washed the strawberries and blueberries, and dry them to prepare as the toppings of his waffles.

He ground new beans for the coffee, prepared the breakfast table at the balcony.

And because of what happened that made his heart jumped and almost drove him to a heart attack, he threw in some thick slices of honey-cured bacon in the skillet.

Because if he's gonna die, he wants to have bacon as his last meal.

While the bacon sizzles on the pan, he went back to his waffles batter, oiled the waffle maker, and started making his out of this world bacon, with the coffee maker on making the best coffee it could ever make for the day.

Before long, the whole kitchen and living room was full of the mouth-watering aroma of the coffee, waffles, and the sinful smell of bacon.

He was cooking the last waffles when the door of Jess' bedroom yanked open and she came out yawning, rubbing her eyes that were heavy with sleepiness as she trod to the kitchen, following the delicious smell that woke her up from her deep slumber.

"Luke, please tell me you are going to feed me a delicious breakfast." Her voice was husky from the remnant of her sleep.

"Well, you are in luck. I have the best brunch prepared for you milady!"

She was already filling a coffee mug with steaming black coffee when he made a mocking curtsy in front of her.

"Your honored guests weren't here yet?" she asked, inhaling the divine smell of freshly ground coffee.

"Why, you -- Little Miss Jessie? Don't tell me you woke up not because of the smell of my delicious waffles but because you were waiting for our delectable neighbor?" he smirked.

"Shut up!" She snarled at Luke and took her cup of coffee back into her bedroom.

"They will be here any minute...go make yourself pretty. For you don't want Mister Tiefenbacher to see you looking like a witch again."

She slammed the door on Luke's obnoxious remark but went to the bathroom to freshen up.