CHAPTER 13

               The car sped down the dark lane, its tires brushing against stones and rough sticks, it took a quick wheel onto the busy road illuminated with street lights, head lights, and bulbs hanging off miniature kiosks and table stands, of traders that dealt their business till the break of dawn, it was a rainy evening, the whippers flogged off the rain as it landed on the wheel screen, but despite that, it still looked misty on the inside of the car, compelling the driver to wipe it clear with the back of his hand.

They bumped off from one speed break to another, from port holes to puddles, landing hard on the bad road, for the driver and his cohorts they didn't feel much of the impart, but that was more than could be said for Alice.

It was as though she was being tossed back and forth in a very unpleasant way, it was the awakening from her unconscious state, as her body virtually hit almost every single side of the booth, the unmelodious and striking resonance of her aching head forced her back to the reality, it was dark, dirty, hard, except for a tiny light that came in through the corner where she laid her head, the car didn't stop, it continued at a steady speed, a sudden swerve and the loss of the light told her they had pulled away from the public. The lights, the rain, all came to a stop, the car slowed down, there was a ruffle, like the sound of a garage door being opened, the car eased a few metres and stopped, as well as the patter of rain that had continued for the last minutes of her conscious torment.

It was quiet, but the quiet lasted only a while, then the bamm of closing doors, footsteps, exchange of vulgar pleasantries, crafty laughs, and a hard bang on top of the booth that made Alice shake with terror. There was a cringle, as whoever it was, led the key into the keyhole in the booth, nothing good could possibly await her on the outside, her eyes broadened despite the darkness, which made it even worse as blinding bright flashlights were pointed at her face the moment the booth was thrown open, the lights against her eyes clouded the faces of her kidnappers, she pushed her right hand in front of it, hoping to protect her eyes, but that was the least of her problems, she could see the shade as blood dripped across her eye, she hadn't realized she was bleeding, she muttered near inaudible pleas, the choking sobs prevented her words from attaining their usual composure, but amidst that, the three faceless figures wouldn't budge, then she caught sight of his hand, as he reached into the back of his pocket, and brought out a 9mm death black steel revolver, positioning it at a committed murder angle, a drop of blood fell across her face, her heart pounded, she pleaded, but even her words were as a falling leaf, she knew her lips were moving, but couldn't tell why they made no sound, maybe because the sound of her racing heart had overwhelmed them, or her sudden view of death had somehow messed with her ability to speak, no matter, the reasons were pointless now, she was far from any help, she saw his finger push up the cock of the gun, the flash of lightning across the sky, a shade of blood on her eyes, then smoke, the metal tore through her flesh, a searing pain... blood... and shadows.

Dying as an unfufilled actress, in a wet, stinky booth had never been one of the items on Alice's bucket list, none of the events of the past two days had been, it was needless to say that she had lost all hope of ever completing that list, as a matter of fact, she had kicked the bucket, torn down her dreams, agendas, plans, everything. The bullet had made sure of that, or at least that was what she thought.

Shaking and gasping for air at the same time, she found herself detained by Joseph's arms, as he tried to hold her together, she jetted her eyes round the room, fidgeting like a crazy person, she hadn't yet realized what was happening, and was far from calming down, that was where his masculine voice intervened, he had tried to calm her down with soft, reassuring words, but they didn't seem to do the trick, so he retorted to a different tone, one that was a short stretch from a barry tone, commanding, but gentle.

" Alice! Alice!! Alice!! calm down, shhhhh, look at me, " he responding with both his hands on her cheeks, " it was only a dream " he finished off slowly.

With his words, a little adjustment of her frantic, panicking eyes, she slowly eased, then he guided her through a deep breath, with what followed being an emotional melt down as she collapsed in tears on his shoulders.

" Shhhh, you're okay, you're safe " he muttered, gentle stroking the hair on her back.

As he carried her to her room, her arms around his neck, while he supported her body with his hands, she noticed the food she had thrown on the floor was no longer there, neither was the ceramic, he had taken care of the mess and allowed her sleep while she could, little did he know the nightmare she was having.

The room was more or less a stone throw from the sitting room, but Alice still appeared too shaken to walk there, and he wasn't going to let her do it anyway, as he held her in his arms, she could feel his warmth, and in a strange way it made her feel safe, being so close, she felt the pounding of his heart, not in an excited or frightened way, but somehow steady, bold... beautiful.

He pushed the door open with the side of his right arm, and walked into the airy room with Alice still hanging from his neck, navigated for the bed, and laid her down gently, he pulled the blanket over her, and noticed the windows were open, he saw open windows, but she could still remember breaking them to pieces, right before almost crushing his skull with the flower vase, she ought to have known it was a dream, her escape was too easy, but all that didn't matter now, she was terrified, but was still glad she hadn't really hurt him, a thought she muttered out unconsciously, as he made to leave the room.

" I'm glad I didn't hurt you " she said, leaving him with a puzzled look.

" What ? " he questioned, doubtful of what he had heard.

" I had destroyed the windows and attacked you with a flower vase " she said softly, rendering him speechless and in vivid surprise, " you were hurt pretty bad, I just took your keys and ran out, and that's when they kidnapped me. " she continued honestly.

" O..Kay, well I'm glad it was only a dream, he said with a pinch of a grin on his face, and then broke into a smile which made her smile back. 

" And I'm sorry about the ceramics... and the food, she apologized genuinely.

She couldn't hide how embarrassed she felt about her previous reaction, and her nervous self reprimand made him smile even wider, exposing a clean set of delicately polished dentition, that made her smile back.

" Well then, I'm glad it was only a dream, " he replied, the grin still on his face.

" Yeah, but I wished I hadn't trashed the food though, I'm quite hungry now. " she responded, followed by a growl in her stomach.

" I'll get you something to eat, he replied, and stood to leave, but was held back by her unexpected hold.

He turned to find her staring at him, she wouldn't let him go, and for a minute he thought something was wrong.

" Thank you " she said

His response showed he couldn't be anymore relieved as he smiled at her and patted her hand.

" It's the least I can do " 

" Well... can you do something else for me ?

" What is that?

" I never want to feel helpless again... teach me, teach me how to defend myself.

The look in her eyes told him just how serious she was, whether he accepted it or not, he wouldn't always be there to protect her, and he knew he wouldn't be able to bear losing anyone else, he had promised Mike he would keep her safe, if this was a way to do it, there was no reason for him not to.

* * *

Courtesy of the millions of dollars from years of shady deals, illegal importing and a whole crew of alley boys, Fasting had secured nothing short of a luxurious life for himself, what the outside world saw as a result of years of hard work, was actually guided under made up stories, lies and innocent blood, the luxuries built on trechery, murder, heroine and guns. 

Even though the architecture was impeccable, the house didn't compare to the mansions he had planted in other parts of the world, he could see the beach from his balcony, the continuous tease of the shore by the water, his gaze was unhinged, and even though his look narrowed down, anyone observant enough could tell his mind was else where, he rubbed at the tip of his champagne glass, circling it with a finger, maintaining an ever stoic look, when the touch of soft hands over his shoulders caught his attention, without looking, he knew who it was, she leaned over his shoulders, slowly gliding her hands down his chest, while dropping kisses on the side of his face and neck, she lingered, as he rubbed on her hands.

" Hey baby " she said, placing a kiss on his cheek, " ready to come inside ? " 

" Not quite, I'll join you when I'm done here " he responded

She pulled back the caresses and turned to stand in front of him, but even the allure of her jaw dropping crimson lingerie wasn't enough distraction, while she danced in an attempt to seduce him he reached for the cigar on the stool beside him, lit it, and sucked hard, blowing out the smoke like a pro that he was, and then fixed his eyes on her again, she was on all fours, crawling towards him like an animal, up close and personal, with barely inches separating them, when suddenly she stopped and withdrew back.

" Looks like this evening isn't going to be any fun, your boys are here, I'll wait for you inside. " She finished off with one final kiss on his cheek, before walking out of the balcony, her gown obeying the push of the wind.

" Good evening boys " she said with a chirping voice, they responded to her greeting with an almost invisible nod, and then fixed their eyes back on Fasting, who was out of his seat, and heading in their direction. The cigar still in his mouth, as he blew out the puffs.

" Tell me, did you find him ? "

" No, not yet " the man standing in front of the two others responded

" And the girl ? "

" I'm afraid it might be harder than we think...but we did find something. " he continued, stretching his hand to the side, as if waiting for something to fall on it. The younger man behind him reached forward and dropped something on his hand that he appeared confident about, judging from the way he showed it to Fasting.

" We followed the gps and found... this. " he said passing the object he held in his hand.

Fasting however was yet to grab the significance of the battered cell phone, and he made no attempt to hide his disappointment.

" What is this ? " 

The annoyance now very evident in his voice.

" It's the girl's, we found it close to the Ikorodu cemetary, that means they can't be far, what do we do ? " 

" Get me on the phone with James "

" And Sunday ? " 

" Oh you will find him... soon enough , " he replied with a sinister voice, and continued inside the house, "very soon ".

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