2/3
LOVE AND JUSTICE
EPISODE 2
The night was silent, there were neither movements nor voices around the white house in front of me. My heart was racing, not that I was afraid, but the anger burning inside me was ma-king it pump fas-ter than normal. If I had history of High blood pressure I could have thought I was having it right at the moment
“Well, you killed what is mine so will I take over everything that belongs to you” I spat moving down the small br@nches in the back of the yard. I had gone to the first person that c@m£ to my mind, Mberere. He was the one Chama tracked as p@rt of the crew that drove to my farmstead and I thought I would begin with him. At first I thought of killing him together with everyone that he held dear, but on second thought, I felt that would be too easy for him.
A woman dressed in a silky night go-wn sat in front of the TV sipping on a cu-p of some h0t substance, I wasn’t sure whether it was tea or coffee. I looked back to make sure the guards I put down where still asleep, satisfied it was still silent in, I moved along the wall and pas-sed round the front door. On another day, I could have tried the gentle way in, by knocking softly on the door and walking in customarily, but this night was different, everything in me was not in order. What with the fact that I had to take in twice the dope I usually took to help calm myself which evidently had resisted.
Shooting the door knob to get it open, I heard screaming sounds from inside the house and a cu-p falling to the ground I smiled at the thought of how the woman I saw earlier jumped in flight at that ban-g.
“Got you!” I hissed as I rushed inside to where she was pointing a gun at her. She started shaking and going down her hands in surrender. “You are not in some kind of movie for you to raise your hands like that” I tea-sed matching across the room to where she was and gr-abbing her by the n£¢k. “Where is he?” I asked her not minding her wincing and kicking to be set free.
“Who are you? plea-se let me go” she screamed her voice chocking my ears I threw her down with a strong push she cried out in pain getting to the well tiled floor and holding her hand I as-sumed I broke her.
“Where the hell is he?” I asked matching to her my boots leaving a trail of dirty. The route throu-gh the back yard I used must have left some pieces of mud on my heels and in was glad because that will leave some marks that I was in the house.
“Who, who oo, are you talking about? It’s just me and the kids in this house, my husband is out on a business str!p” she p@n-ted shaking her hands raised to her head like she could shield herself from my hit if I went for her head.
“Where are the kids?” I asked her looking straight at her eyes, her shaking and p@n-ting made me put my gun in my back knowing so well she was terrified by my pres£nce and I nee-ded no gun with her.
“In the be-droom on your right” her shaky hand pointed in the direction.
“Good, can you now sit down and tell me what I nee-d to know” I calmly spoke sitting down across her and indicating for her to sit on the couch near where she was.
She slowly sat up without taking her eyes off me.
“Now, I’m going to ask you one more time. Where is your husband? Where the hell is Jose Mberere?” I paused giving her a chance to respond.
“He went out to some meeting and was supposed to come back tonight, I have not sle-pt because am waiting for him to return. Why are you here?” she asked afterwards.
“Where is that, I mean where did he tell you this meeting will be taking place?” I asked instead ignoring her question.
“He didn’t say for sure” she shrugged now seemingly comfortable I stood up to remind her I was not on some courtesy visit.
“Look here, am not here for you or your kids, but if you f0rç£ my hand. I swear you will hate me for what I will do to you all. So take that cell phone, call your husband and ask where the hell he is and ask him nicely to come home” I instructed her my face so close to hers she kept fidgeting to escape my glance I could bet the smell of dope was covering her nose as I noticed she was struggling to keep her breath.
She nodded at me and I smiled.
“Good, now do as I say. Just tell him you are waiting for him and have a nice surprise for him and let him come home” I giggled pushing the phone closer to her hand.
“Where are you?” she asked her husband upon his response. I gr@bb£d the phone and put it on loud speaker and nodded for her to go on.
“What is it? You are still up this time?” he responded.
“Yeah, I missed you and thought of waiting up for you, where are you? I have a surprise for you” she went on and I nodded my head all way throu-gh to agree with the way she was handling it.
“Am on my way, something c@m£ up and I delayed but am 5 minutes away from home now” he responded.
“Okay then plea-se hurry” she told him and I cut the line placing the phone back on the side table and looking at her.
“Good, am glad he didn’t marry a dull woman.” I sm-irked tea-singly and moved back to my seat. “I used to love your husband, we c@m£ a long way and he was my good friend” I started, pla-ying with the gun in my hands my legs folded.
“Well, what kind of friends shoot their way into the other`s house.” She murmured looking away from me.
“The kind that has been betrayed and made to go throu-gh pain more than once” I responded bluntly. “I wanted a normal decent life for myself as at today, I had planned to be happy. To settle down with the woman I so much loved and forget the past. I thought well, if I have found a woman that catches my breath and made me smile, then why throw the chance away” I looked at her with a sad smile.
“Why not do that then?” she asked innocently.
“Well, let’s say your husband and his friends cut my dream short by killing that woman” I chuckled feeling so broken I didn’t realise saying it aloud would pain so much.
“Why would he do that? I know him he would never hurt a fly, am sure there is a mistake somewhere” she spoke up sitting up.
“Hmmm, here he is to defend himself” I smiled standing up as I heard the car driving in. I stood and quic-kly went to the back of the door placing my hand on my mouth to warn her not to do anything stupid. A few minutes later I heard something drop and someone cursing by the entrance and before he could awake from his shock I pointed a gun at his face.
“I should have known, what the fv¢k!” he screamed seeing me standing before him.
“Welcome home Mberere, how much I waited for you” I smiled pointing inside with my head to let him walk in.
“What do you want? How did you find me?” he asked one question after the other.
“St©p asking stupid questions and join your wife there?” I shouted loudly.
“Don’t do anything stupid man, I don’t know why you are here. Am not…”
“Shut the fv¢k up son of a Bi**h!” I yelled my anger so evidently his wife shrunk back in the couch
“Leave me and my family alone you bas***d!, why are you here?” he shouted back his hands raised as he moved back his face on me. He in an instant pas-sed his hand behind and pu-ll-ed a gun at me but I was quic-ker shooting his hand off before he could raise his gun. He screamed in agony falling down to the ground.
“Last time we talked I told you never to cross my path, you gave done more than that by killing my people and someone so dear to me,” I shouted loudly.
“Wait, wait! Don’t kill me plea-se, I don’t know why you are…” he could not finish defending himself and I shoot him in the leg s£nding him back to the floor there was blood around him.
“Another move and the next one will land into your skull” I yelled and the wife screamed kneeling down before her husband.
“plea-se st©p you will kill him.”
“The bullet has pas-sed on t©p of his skin. He has a few minutes to tell me who else was involved in this or he will bleed to death” I responded shaking my head.
“She was innocent, she had nothing to do with all this sh*t and now you have killed her” I pronounced angrily.
“If she was with you then she was not more than a slut” he spat to get at me and he succeeded.
“Say that again!” I stooped towards him.
“Get out of here, you bas***d! I don’t know what the hell you are talking about” he spat in my face and I was done. I pu-ll-ed the trigger and before he knew what I was about to do I shoot his wife in the leg too and she fall down beside him wailing in pain.
“The next one goes to her head” I spoke intensely. “Speak dammit!” I yelled my gun at her.
“You wouldn’t dare! If you wanted to you could have killed her, I know you will never kill a woman especially that she is innocent” he said, wincing and moving back to his wife.
“Well, I thought you would say that” I moved closer aiming at her head and my f!nger close to pu-lling the trigger. “You killed what’s mine and I will kill yours” I shouted and before I could pu-ll the trigger he screamed loudly.
“She is alive!”
“What?” I asked removing my f!nger from the trigger.
“Don’t kill her man, that woman of yours is alive, plea-se don’t kill her!” he gro-an ed de-eply crying like a little boy
EPISODE 3
I walked around the road like a mad man, I didn’t know where to start from. My hope of ever seeing Queen squashed into pieces.
“Calm down now will you” Chama spoke up from my back. It had been exactly 24 hours after I was made to believe Queen was dead and shockingly, Mberere revealed to me she was still alive. At first I didn’t believe her, I thought he was trying to buy himself some time knowing so well I was going to kill him.
“Am telling you she is alive and can take you there if you let me live” he begged me looking at me like I could re-ad his mind for the truth.
“What makes you think I believe you huh? The only thing you do since the time you decided to betray me is lie. Whatever the case, you are going down cause your time is up man. “I spat and tilted the gun re-ady to shoot him.
“I can take you there, believe me the b©dy you saw at the farm stead is a fake one. It was planted to make you believe she was dead” he cried painfully holding his wounds.
“Why would you and your people do that huh? Why make me go throu-gh the pain of thinking she is dead?” I shook my head not believing him.
“They knew you will do anything for her man, one of your own sold you out and we knew you are in love with her. She is your Akeley’s heel”
“What’s the plan? Tell me what it is now!” I yelled loudly stepping my foot on his wound in the leg.
He screamed loudly like a child as I increa-sed the pressure on it.
“We wanted to hold her as a bait in case you c@m£ onto us again. There is no special unit Steve it was all a frame to get the evidence information from you” he giggled his head to the ground still gro-an ing in pain.
“You are not that sharp after all huh? You are just an angry dog who backs more than he can bit!” he laughed and I lost it kicking him till his head fall back to the ground silent. Realizing he had not told me where Queen was, I lifted him up shaking him vigorously.
“Tell me where she is dammit! I screamed
“Don’t die before you tell me where she is, come on man woke up, Jose! Hey wake up” I tried to push him around but he was motionless his head fall back down and I left him moving backwards blood on my hands as I cried loosing myself again.
The wife l@ythere loosing blood and crying for her dead husband silently but I cared less about her.
“Where is she?” I whispered holding my head. Slowly I walked out pas-sing throu-gh the broken door and out the patio. I was like a zombie as I moved unsteadily to where I had left my truck. The chirping night birds ma-king some sounds into the dark night.
My phone vibr@ted and I walked on pretending I had not heard it. The third vibr@tion from my side pocket changed my mind and I picked it up without bothering to look at the caller ID.
“Where are you?” Ackim asked from the other end he didn’t wait for me to respond.
“She is alive man, they took her hostage and she is out there” I responded instead.
“How did you know that Steve?”
“Jose told me” I bluntly responded opening the door and pushing myself inside the truck.
“Okey then that’s good news at least, we know she is alive and we will find her. Don’t worry yourself we are family now. The boys are coming back there and you will make another team.” He went on explaining
“I killed him before he could tell me where they have her. I was set up man, that unit from Solwezi was fake Ackim, we are done, and they succeeded getting me” I sighed closing my eyes leaning my head back on the seat.
“That’s what they want you to believe, that you cannot go against them. You are not alone Steve, the boys and I will help you get to the bo-ttomof this and together we will fight. Chama and others are alre-ady on their way so stay put and wait for them, try calm down and think throu-gh things so we get back on our feet”
The moment the line cut, I hit the steering and not satisfied re-leasing my anger, I screamed aloud moving out and taking my anger into a tree near by hitting in it like it was a punching bag till I felt my hands bleeding and so-re.
“Hey! Did you get that?” Chama pushed my shoulder to get my attention as I kept ru-bbing my so-re hands my mind lost in thoughts.
“Yeah I heard you man” I sighed looking at him and he smiled.
“Bullsh*t! You have lost your mind over that girl man, it’s not only about her, we nee-d our heads up if this mission has to succeed, don’t let her get to your head” he spoke calmly but my response to him was the opposite
“How dare you!” I scolded him angrily.
“She saved my life, she was there because of me, she is innocent and I feel bad I got her in this mess. If we don’t get to her on time they will kill her you know that. If am not fighting for her then am not going to fight at all. Get that throu-gh your thick head!” I yelled angrily and he stepped back.
“Am sorry, it’s just that we nee-d to stay alert and plan our next move. We cannot do anything if you get like this” he spoke firmly his stare at me I sighed knowing he was speaking the truth.
“I heard you, you said we should get in t©uçh with our remaining boys and regroup” I responded
“So any ideas where we can get some guys for this job?” Jim who was seated on t©p of the truck watching us in silence asked pu-lling on his smoke and breathing out satisfactorily.
“I can find some guys though not from our circle. This time around we are dealing with a Mafia. The bad guys of the city.” I announced pu-lling my own cigarette and lighting it before throwing back the lighter at Jim.
“Good let’s move then” they responded in unison and we matched to the vehicles. I was driving alone and the three of them with another guy I usually never paid attention to went together. I c@m£ to know he was good with tech and Chama made him tag along all the time.
“I love this tree, the thickness of its br@nches gives a good shade during summer and the sight of its leaves in winter just makes me love it” I recalled the time Queen and I went in the bushes to fetch wood some time back before I c@m£ back to the city.
“Really, I have never paid attention to nature. I don’t honestly see anything appealing about it” I had shrugged casually
“What? Steve come on, you don’t like nature? Where on earth do you come from? This is beautiful it’s one of the reasons I stay here, I just love seeing the natural environment around here. It’s so lovely and quiet one can have a clear mind” she laughed pla-ying with the leaves of the tree.
I tried to look dee-per to see what she was trying to see but nothing.
“well, am sorry I don’t know what is good about this bush, every time I see such I think of war and guns, people dying, cause I have experienced that out here. “ I told her as a matter of fact.
She walked towards me and held my hand walking me on.
“One day, when your mind is at easy and you tell yourself that there is more to life than fighting and killing, you will appreciate the simple nature and know that God is the creator of all things around us and that we can see his love throu-gh all this” she went of explaining and I was amused.
“What kind of woman are you that sees beauty and love in all things?” I looked at her white round eyes and she smiled wi-dely revea-ling her perfect set of teeth.
“Look there! Mushrooms!” she screamed running ahead before she could answer my question, I watched her jump up and down excited her hands raised as she called me to go and see. Shaking my head I smiled and closed in to her.
All this I repla-yed in my mind as I drove the truck.
“I nee-d her back or I will go crazy” I whispered to myself and pu-ll-ed on the cigarette once again breathing out the h0t smoke from my nose and enjoying its burning s-en-sation.
After 1 hour 45 minutes of driving to another town, we were hooting in front of the wi-de gate before us. I hit the horn again after a few seconds and I heard the lock cl!çk!ng and someone opened the small gate peeping to see who was outside.
“Who are you?” a short man walked out to my vehicle scratching his head as he spoke.
“My name is Steve. Am here for Aaron” I introduced myself and the guy looked back at the other vehicle and at me.
“Let me get him. I tell him who?” he asked in his shaky accent ma-king me want to put a h0t sl@p on his silly face, I hated he was wasting my time.
“Go get tell him Steve” I sighed de-eply not wanting to lose my mind on a stupid guard.
A few minutes later Aaron stood before me his hands folded and his de-ep stare on me. The scar on his face seemed a little exaggerated with his serious stare I wondered if the guy ever smiled. One look at him would scare a little kid.
“What the hell are you looking for here.” he asked before I could get closer to him his long gun pointed at me.
“The last time we crossed paths was when you c@m£ after me. Do you have a death wish or something?” he added.
“I come on peace man” I raised my hands In the air moving slowly towards him and three of his guys standing closer to him.
“I have nothing to do with military guys, am not your clas-s, you and I are originally adversaries” he shouted, his right hand man c0cking his short gun at me.
“I don’t work for the military any more. Am here for love and justice” I announced
“Can we talk inside, those are my guys “I pointed at Chama and the others behind me.
He looked at all of us for a minute and put down his gun.
“Open the gate. Let them in” he shouted and I saw one of them move closer to him whispering something.
“Just do as I say I will handle this?” he pushed the guy away
To be continued…