BLOODLINE 2 Episode 18b (Blood And Diamond) by Ironkurtain

BLOODLINE 2 Episode 18b (Blood And Diamond) by Ironkurtain

Nina remained still infront of the mirror and Esther moved behind her to make the final adjustments to the wedding dress. For a while, she stared at the image of herself wearing a wedding gown in the mirror with a faint smile while Esther worked on the dress. Then the faint smile turned into sneer.

Esther heard it and paused in what she was doing. “What is it?”, she asked Nina.

“Oh…it’s nothing”, Nina replied with a laugh.

“Then what’s so funny?”.

Nina shook her head. “There used to be a time i would scoffed at the thought of me wearing a wedding dress”, Nina said and looked at Esther. “You know, due to the kind of person i am and things i did”.

Esther continued with the adjustments she was making on the wedding gown and said nothing.

“As time went by, i started wondering how i would look if i wore one…..then started wishing that i would wear one someday”, Nina continued with the look in her eyes turning into a happy distant gaze.

“Then you started getting desperate to wear one and decided to strong arm another woman into giving up her husband for you”, Esther added with a mutter.

Nina sighed. She remained silent for a few seconds and looked at Esther. “Even after a month of obediently taking all those sh!ts”, Nina began quietly. “Sh!ts that you endlessly shoveled down my throat in the name of teaching me how to be a good wife and other things i never thought a woman must do if she gets married,…..”, then Nina furrowed her eyebrow. “…..you still dont want to put an end to this cold war that is going on between us?”, she asked, still furrowing her brows.

“But you were the one that came to me because you were about to get married and still dont know the difference between salt and sugar”, Esther replied indifferently.

“There are lots of places i could have gone”, Nina said. “Places where if i throw the right amount of money, i would be taught how to manage a home and also have my ass kissed as a bonus. But i still chose you…..because i saw you as role model….my role model. That’s why i swallowed my pride and stayed unconditionally humble to you”.

Esther was highly flattered by those words. And it coming out from the mouth of the woman she had always seen as a rival, made her feel quite elated.

“Well…..”, Esther began, not knowing what to say. “It’s…..anyway…..you did something…..something very wrong to that woman”, she stammered.

“What is wrong in what i did?”, Nina asked.

“The man you are about to marry, is the man you snatched from another woman”, Esther scoffed. “And what i hate most is me taking part in it”, she muttered and inspected the adjustments.

“I didnt snatch any man”, Nina differed. “He just made the right choice between two bad choices. Besides, his so called wife was also cheating on him”, then Nina frowned. “Not that i have forgotten what she did to Alex”.

“But two wrongs doesnt make a right”, Esther said.

“Yeah right…..i’m sure Hector would agree with you on that one”, Nina chuckled. “Do you know that it is unlawful to participate in taking a man life…..especially if the person is not in a threatening position…..like being tied up”.

“That’s what i hate most about our relationship”, Esther frowned. “Willingly or unwillingly taking part in some of your evil deeds. I hate the feelings i get afterwards”, she shook her head.

“Welcome to the other side my dear…..and my advice to you is to learn how to get used to that feelings”.

“Anyway……..”, Esther paused to make the final inspection on the wedding dress. “I hope you do change your lifestyle as you had promised”, she said and turned Nina around to face her. “And be a very good woman and a good wife to your husband”, she added and stared at Nina.

“A good woman, i can be. But i’m not sure about being a good wife”, Nina said.

“Why say that?”, Esther asked. “Didnt i teach you enough?”, she furrowed her brows.

“You did very well and i learned alot”, Nina replied. Then she showed Esther her hands. “It’s just these hands are more acquainted to pulling triggers and putting blades in arteries. I’m afraid that cooking a meal in the kitchen could escalate to something else”, Nina snorted.

Esther shook head. “Just…..just employ a cook”, she sighed.

Nina looked at herself in the mirror one last time and beamed a satisfactory smile at Esther. Then Nina gave Esther a tight hug and murmured some words of gratitude to her. Esther responded with some final words of advice with a friendly pat on the back.

After about a minute of being in each others embrace, Nina broke away from the hug with a weak smile on her face and started heading towards the door. Then she paused in her tracks with her hand over the door handle. She let out a deep sigh with a downcaste gaze and then looked at Esther.

“One more thing”, Nina began with a somewhat concerned tone of voice. “It’s about that….strange old woman”.

“You mean your mother?”, Esther asked, quite surprised at the words Nina used in describing Diana.

“Yeah”, Nina replied. “You have to be very careful with that woman”.

“Her?”, Esther chuckled. “That woman is a good person….and thanks to her, you are getting married to Barry. She is the only person related to you that is normal, as far as i’m concerned”, she stated.

“You think so?”, Nina asked.

“Yes of course”, Esther replied confidently. “And she is a Nun”, she added.

Nina looked away and shook her head with a smirk on her face . “After all these years with me, i thought you would have learned one or two things from me”, she muttered as she continue shaking her head. “Dont let her kindness and soft spoken manner decieve you”, she warned.

“Why do you say so?”, Esther demanded.

Nina looked at her. “When i was still a fresh recruit in the Family organization, one of the original members told me of alot things. Tales about that woman”, she said. “And from what i heard, that woman is a remorseless and horrible human being….a complete psycho beast”.

“But….”, Esther began with a confused look on her face. “……but what Lisa told me about her contradicts what you are telling me now”, she said.

“I dont blame you if you believed that ‘Wanting to leave so as to put an end to the organization’ bullshit story”, Nina laughed. “Being a gang leader and doing nothing other than to just sit back and watch the boys do the dirts in the field aint much fun at all, especially for someone who was once called, ‘The blood countess’, by the federal army during the civil war”.

Esther was speechless as she stared at Nina.

“She was bored and wanted some actions. That’s why she left”, Nina continued. “She knew very well that the Sosai loved her so much as not to allow her have some of it cos he wouldnt want to risk putting her in danger”.

“But she went to Rome and became a Nun”, Esther muttered and still trying hard to doubt what Nina said about Diana.

“Yeah…..but she could have gone to other places”, Nina said. “I mean, forty years is more than enough time to travel around the world, especially the war zones and the trouble spots under the guise of a Nun coming to do God’s work in refugee camps…..and unleash a ‘biblical proportion’ level of whacking on the people or group she deemed as the enemy”.

Esther remained silent with a thoughtful stare.

“Eric said he first met her in the cemetary where Ernest was buried before he found out that she was his grandmother”, Nina said.

“Yes that’s what he said”, Esther agreed with a nod.

“Did she tell him the reason for her being in the cemetary?”, Nina asked.

“He said that she was there to see a friend”, Esther replied. “Why do you want to know the reason for your mother being there?”, she asked.

Nina didnt reply the question. She just smirked and nodded her head slowly.

“Maybe she came to visit the grave of a friend who passed away while she was in Rome”, Esther noted.

“The only person she knew apart from the Sosai is Mr Andrew Philips, my fiance’s father…..and Mr Andrew wasnt buried in that cemetary”, Nina said.

“Then why do you think she is there?”, Esther asked.

“I dont really know….i’m still trying to figure it out”, Nina replied. “Perhaps she is there to relive every moment of what happened there during the civil war”, she sighed.

“What happened there during the civil war?”, Esther asked.

For a moment Nina surprisingly stared at Esther for her asking that question. The next moment she remembered that Esther was originally a refugee from another country and decided to answer the question.

“That ground was the place where the federal army suffered one of their most devastating loss”, Nina said. “So messed up that the entire place had to be turned into the cemetary that we are seeing today”, then she smiled weakly and turned her eyes to the door knob. “One of the Sosai’s undoings they said…..and believed. “But…..”, Nina looked at Esther. “…….that original member of the organization told me that it was Diana that planned and executed it. That the Sosai wasnt even there when the real show went down”. Nina smiled again. “In the man words, he said, Cantona and the reinforcements arrived at the battlefield and saw the young woman sitting on a pile of dead federal soldiers. The young woman, on seeing them calmly got up, kicked some limbs and guts that was on her way as she approached them and asked Cantona if he was hungry so that she can go prepare lunch for him”, Nina concluded and laughed.

Esther didn’t find it funny at all. What she heard so far was giving her alot of chills. And it was raising some questions in her mind, especially on how Eric met his grandmother for the first time. Could it be fate that made them cross path in the graveyard…..or could it be Ernest trying to tell her that it’s time to let go of Eric?.

Then Nina sighed. “I may be wrong about that old woman”, she said with a downcast gaze. “And the little informations about her that i have might be false. But one thing i know for sure is that woman is back to take her rightful position in the Sosai’s Family”. Nina looked at Esther. “That’s the real reason why i’m leaving the organization”.

“So, why are you telling me all these things?”, Esther asked intently.

“It’s because of Eric”, Nina replied. “I know you love him alot. And if you really do, then dont let him get close to that woman. Dont let him get her attention. He might have done that with the show he put up when he was saving them from Dante. If he did, please try as much as you can to convince Eric not to go to that woman”, Nina warned. Then she turned to leave the room

“So what are you saying?,….that your mother is evil?”, Esther asked as Nina was about to leave.

“I’m not saying that she is evil….and neither am i saying that she is good”, Nina replied. Then she looked over her shoulder. “All i’m just saying is, dont ever be on the opposing side when it comes to that woman”, she concluded and walked out of the room after telling Esther that they will meet at the church wedding.

Esther sighed and stared at the door with a somewhat worried look on her face.

Nina closed the door and saw the twin boys and Suzanne talking among themselves and waiting for her in the corridor. She smiled and tried to compose herself as she majestically walked towards them.

“Mmh mmh!”, Alex began delightfully on seeing his mother. “I really regret being your son. Cos if i wasn’t, i aint gonna give up till…..”.

“Aww shut up”, Nina said to him with a smile. “Even if you weren’t my son, you wont be able to handle someone like me. I could kill you in the first encounter….and i dont do inexperienced boys”.

“Mom you are really underestimating me”, Alex feigned being serious. “Ask Eric, he will tell you who i am and what i can do”, Alex said intently and looked at his brother to see his reaction.

Nina laughed.

“This is the part where i suppose to be asking what you are talking about”, Eric muttered indifferently without looking at Alex. “But i will just pretend like i didnt even hear it”, he continued with a faint smile.

“Hm….someone seems to be in a good mood today”, Alex smiled at his brother.

“Well he is just trying to tell you that he will straight smack horse-sh!t out of your mouth if you say that again”, Suzanne said to Alex.

“Oh please, remember that ‘i keeps clappers all the time’…bro”, Alex said.

“I’m unable to translate the foul language”, Suzanne murmured.

“Anyway, what about your father?”, Nina asked them.

“Outside, waiting patiently”, Eric replied.

“Okay then”, Nina exhaled after one last check up on her wedding dress. “Let’s go make this family a legit one”, she gestured at her twins and step-daughter and they all started heading towards the door at the end of the brightly lit mansion corridor; the family’s new mansion.

**********************************************************

The guests filled elegant wedding reception was more than fantastic with the eclectic mix of party music that made the busy atmosphere of the party very lively. Alot of laughters and inter-mingling between the guests. Refreshments of expensive brands flowed like it was nothing and the bride and groom put up alot of memorable performance…..especially the bride.

Alex shook hands with the well built man he had been having a friendly discussion and the man left. He took a sip from his champagne glass and went over to Eric who was sitting alone under one of the umbrellas in the mansion’s patio.

Despite the lively atmosphere around him, Eric doesn’t seem to be enjoying himself. He just sat with his elbows on the table and his eyes on the party scene going on in the mansion.

“I thought this was suppose to be a very private wedding reception”, Eric said as Alex sat on the vacant chair next to him.

“Yes of course”, Alex answered and took another sip from his glass.

“This doesn’t look like a private wedding reception”, Eric gestured his fore-finger at the crowd infront of them. “I dont know half of the people here. The other half are mafians and the Sosai’s affiliates”.

“The mafians and the affiliates are here to pay their respect to mother”, Alex said. “After that week-long insanity you and i perpetuated, the city’s gangland big boys wants to align themselves with mother”.

“And you think it is a good thing?”, Eric asked and stared at his brother.

“Well…..”, Alex began thoughtfully and not being sure of what to say. “…..we need to have some of these jack-boys on our team….incase another dumb individual decides to f@ck with us”, he said.

“But what if ‘these jack-boys’ decides to come at us?”.

“We take care of them bro”.

“Yeah……”, Eric nodded and looked away. “We take care of them bro”, he mimicked Alex’s response in a sarcastic manner. “And the cycle of fuckery starts again”.

Then both of them looked at the crowd of guests that were enjoying the lively wedding reception. Their mother who was dancing alone and smoothly to the song being play caught their attention.

“Just look at her”, Eric muttered and jerked his head at Nina after staring at her for some minutes. “She has being dancing there for like an hour…..like she has gone crazy”, he sighed.

Alex smiled. “Well i dont see a woman who has gone crazy”, he said. “I see a woman who is finally free…..and enjoying every moment of it”.

“Free from what?”, Eric asked, glancing at Alex and staring at Nina. “Even if she is free from whatever it is that was holding her down, she shouldn’t be out here dancing like her mind is gone and embarrassing herself”.

Alex smiled again and remained silent for a while. “You take everything too serious”, he then began and looked at Eric. “And always extreme with everything you do. That’s your problem bro. Maybe it’s because of your psychological condition….or maybe you are just a born pain in the ass”, he muttered. “Though i personally admire this unique character of yours because of all the sh!ts it had made you get us out from…..But if you just for a while…..let things be the way they are just like everybody else, you will see all the fun and enjoyments in life bro”, Alex advised. “And people wont always be seeing you as a disrespectful douche”, he added.

Eric sighed and stared at Nina as she continued to groove to the music being played. Alex stole glances at him and hoped that he didn’t touch a nerve. It would be bad for their relationship.

“You are right about me”, Eric then agreed to what Alex said with a nod. “But the problem i’m having with you guys is you all are judging me based of how you all think and feel”, Eric turned to his brother. “You mentioned my psychological condition. So you already know that i am not wired to think and feel like you guys or like most of these other people walking around”.

Alex stared at his brother and nodded slowly.

“Do you think i dont want to be like you guys?, to be able to feel…..to see all the enjoyments and fun in life”, Eric continued. “Bro, i can’t….cos that’s how i am and i cant do anything about it. If i could, i would have done it long ago”, he said with some pain in his voice. “But i can’t”, he muttered quietly with a downcast gaze. “Sometimes i see myself as nothing but an animal of human race. Animal that is only good at killing and inflicting harm”.

Alex thought for a while and placed his hand on Eric shoulder. “Like i said, i admire your unique character….and envy you alot because you are special. Everyone that are very close to you just dont want to let go of you bro, because they know how special you are”, he smiled and pat Eric on his back. “And i also wanna be the kind of animal you are bro……cos i have seen Lisa walking funny on several occasions”, Alex laughed.

“F@ck you”, Eric said under his breath with a weak smile on his face. “Oh by the way, two girls came to me few minutes ago. One of them said her name is Candice. Do you know her?”, he asked Alex.

“Yeah….i’m her manager”, Alex replied and eagerly glanced around the place. “Where is she?”, he asked as he scanned the crowd

“I dismissed her”, Eric replied.

“You what?!”, Alex gasped and glared at Eric.

“Well she was calling me Lex gorilla”, Eric muttered. “So i thought she mistook me for some porn movie actor. And i had to dismiss her”.
“Aww!, you son of a….”, Alex groaned. “I thought i once mentioned that Lex gorilla was my nickname you f@cking idiot!”, he said irritatedly. “Now you just made me lose a client……and some fun night with two girls!”.

“Haaa….i gotcha”, Eric laughed and slapped his brother on his back. “I just told her to wait in your room”.

Alex heaved a sigh of relieve. He immediately finished the content in his glass and got up.

Eric looked at Alex as he readjusted his suit. “Going for some business negotiations with your client and her friend or for some life’s fun and enjoyments”, he asked.

“The one that comes to mind first”, Alex replied. “See you later bro…..or tomorrow”, he muttered and turned to leave.

“Well you better be careful with the fun and enjoyments of life, before you start finding it difficult to do one of the simplest things of life……like taking a piss”, Eric chuckled.

Alex waved his middle finger at Eric as he left. Eric shook his head as he watched his brother leave and reached for his cellphone that just vibrated in his pocket. He saw it was a notification for a new text message. He checked and saw it was from Lisa, asking him where he was. Eric proceeded to type a reply. He stopped midway with a thoughtful look on his face and then looked at the chair his brother just vacated.

“Well you did it before”, he muttered to himself and continued typing the reply. “So you can as well keep on doing it”. He sent the reply.

Within half a minute Eric got another text message. But he didnt bother to read it. He got up and started heading towards the entrance of the building. “i’m in the room…..alone”, was the text message. Eric already knew that.

“……And do you know the funny thing about all this, the cycle just seems to continue”, Chris continued in his tipsy voice while Suzanne continued to listen….or pretended to do so. “Your dad used to be the ladies man, now Alex is filling his shoes. Nina is not your real mother, but you are the younger and highly upgraded version of that woman”, Chris continued.

“Oh really?”, Suzanne muttered indifferently as she watched the party scene with a bottle of light beer in her hand. “So what about Eric”, she asked.

“Eric…..”, Chris murmured thoughtfully. “Well he is something else; a human-being who happens to be in a class of his own. His personality is the type that the society finds very difficult to understand”, then Chris thought for a short while. “Indeed it is very difficult to understand that guy”, he then said thoughtfully.

Suzanne smirked and shook head.

“So….”, Chris looked at Suzanne. “….after all those men that you have sent to their early graves, have you finally found the one?”, he asked intently.

“Found which one?”, Suzanne asked without looking at Chris.

“You know,……the one that gives you that butterfly feelings”.

Suzanne looked at Chris with funny look on her face. “Is this some kind of a pick-up line? Are you hitting on me?”, she asked him.

Me….hitting on you?, no!…never”!, Chris replied but his facial expression says otherwise.

“Then why ask if i have a boyfriend?”, Suzanne demanded.

“Well….you are my best friend’s sister……and i also see you as my sister…..and…..”, Chris stuttered.

Suzanne chuckled. “Well i dont have any…..if you wanna know”, she said. “I dont really have any interest in relationships……for now”.

“I see”, Chris muttered with a downcast gaze.

“But i like computer games”, Suzanne and smiled at Chris.

Chris looked at Suzanne and his face brightened up with a smile. “Me too”, he said to her. “Online shooter game with alot of blood and gore right?”, he asked.

“Are you game to go kill some online game noobs?”, Suzanne asked. “

Chris picked himself up and helped Suzanne to her feet. “Forever game when it comes to the net”, he replied. “This could be a good start for……”.

“Nope”, Suzanne interrupted him. “This is not a good start for whatever it is that you are thinking”. She looked at him. “There will only be good start if you learn how to be brave enough”.

“Brave enough?, i am brave enough”, Chris protested as he followed Suzanne to the entrance door of the mansion.

“Oh please!, have you forget who i am?”, Suzanne chuckled. “I know a guy who is about to piss his pants when i see one. In your case, you will also pass out”.

“Oh yeah?, so how do i improve on my bravery?”.

“I can teach you if you want, but it gonna take time…..and alot of great pain”

**********************************************************

One month later.

Allen took a sip of the expresso coffee and placed the coffee beside the files on the bench he was sitting on. He let out a light cough after swallowing the coffee and took a deep breath of the fresh air in the park. He glanced around the place with a somewhat happy look on his face and went back to the newspaper he had being reading.

After a few minutes of reading through the fine prints on the page and sipping his coffee, Allen turned his gaze at a man approaching him with quick strides. He folded the newspaper and left it on his lap when the man sat next to him.

“You better make it quick cos i’m in hurry”, the man muttered without looking at Allen.

“Well this is new and quite unlike you”, Allen began with smile. “What happened to the ‘sneak-upon’ moves you always pulled whenever we have a meeting?”, he asked. “Perhaps, butchering Gus and his associates have gotten into you quite good i guess”.

“Like i told you, i’m in a hurry. So just state the reason for wanting to see me”, the man muttered quietly.

Allen stared at the man and wondered why he was so much in a hurry. “Anyway, talking about Gus and his associates, i have being doing alot of digging lately”, he then said and reached for the cup of coffee.

“I thought that case had being closed about a month ago”, the man muttered. “Why are you still on it?”, he asked.

“Because i have alot of unanswered questions”, Allen replied and picked up the files beside him. “But first i want you to take a look at these”.

Allen handed the files that were four in number to the man. The man glanced at the files he was given and stared at Allen.

“Go ahead, go through them”, Allen began with smirk.

The then man sighed and opened the first one.

“That’s one hell of a team you got there”, Allen continued. “Who would ever believe that it was a woman and her twin sons….and a nineteen years old girl, that were responsible for wiping out three of Easthill’s most dangerous and violent gang. I mean, it will come as a shock to everyone. Though i know very well who you are and what you can do. But that young girl by the name Suzanne, gave me cold chills when i found out what she had done and what she can do”.

The man glanced at Allen and continue going through the files and pictures.

“So i decided to take my time in preparing them”, Allen pointed at the files he gave the man. “And i’m sure that the information in each and every one of those files are good enough to get an arrest warrant for the individuals in those pictures”.

The man stopped what he was doing. He slowly turned his head and gazed at Allen with an expressionless look on his face. Allen took another sip of his coffee as he too gazed at the man.

“Eric i warned you, but you didn’t listen”, Allen then said. “I guess i will have to bring you and the others in…..especially Mrs Betty Smith whose real name is Nina”, he scoffed. “But….if you are willing to co-operate, then it might lighten things a bit……for you”.

The man sighed and remained silent for a while. “So what do you want me to do?”, he then asked Allen.

“It’s simple…..you just have to answer some question i intend to ask you”, Allen elated. “And i want you to tell me everything you know about this woman that you claim is your real mother….and what she does for a living”, he added.

The man sighed again and closed the file he opened. Then he stared ahead with a blank look on his face while Allen waited with the smirk of a man who just won a hard contest.

“I hope you know what you are doing and who you are dealing with?”, the man asked quietly.

“We have a history together, so i know very well who i’m dealing with”, Allen replied. “And i know that as long as i have all these information, the only option you have is to co-operate”, he added.

The man stared at the files for a short while. “Do you really wanna push your luck with this?”, he asked again and waved the files at Allen.

Allen laughed.

“You are the one that pushed your luck”, Allen chuckled. Then he moved closer to the man”, “Well i warned you, and you pushed it too far my friend”, he muttered under his breath. “And your rampant killing days has to come to an end. No hard feeling, but i gotta play this by the book”.

“I see”, the man smirked at Allen.Then he took out all the four pictures in the documents and dropped the files on the ground. “Okay, lets say i refused to co-operate, you will definitely submitted all these information?”, he asked.

Allen nodded.

“And you will get your warrants and for sure, you make the arrests”.

Allen nodded again with a smirk.

“But one thing that i know and you dont know is, on the day you are playing your good cop bad cop interrogations,….”, then the man picked out one of the pictures that has Nina’s face and showed it to Allen. “…..this woman will make a brief phone call….and your boss will come inside the interrogation room, saying his apologies to your detainees and giving you the order to let them go”, he stated.

Allen furrowed his eyebrows as he stared at the man.

“And while you are in your office, thinking about what the f@ck just happened and where it all went wrong, some guys from the Internal Affair will walk into your office with your boss”, the man continued with a smile and gazed at Allen. “They will present you with some files like these ones. But unlike these ones, the pictures in those files will have only one particular face, your face…..and some are quite graphic.

Allen furrowed his eyebrows. “what are you talking about?”, he asked the man suspiciously.

“Well”, the man began with a grunt and shifted his weight on the bench. “You know what they say about having skeletons in the closet..cos the ones in yours gonna be doing alot of talking, especially about some guy who is wasting away in jail because he was found guilty courtesy of the evidence that you wilfully planted on him”, he said.

“Allen stared at the man in silence.

“That doesnt sound like a cop playing by the book”, the man continued. “And what about the woman that was accidently shot dead in some alley when you were chasing a drug dealer?, a hidden camera showed that it wasnt the dealer that pulled the trigger according to the report you filed. Oh….and your lovely wife would probably enjoy watching the video clip of that ‘police work’ you did in room 237 at the Hilton hotel with your ‘stripper’ partner”.

Allen swallowed hard. Beads of sweat started forming on his forehead.

“Now let me tell you how it gonna go down for you if you wanna push your luck with this sh!t”, the man then said with a cold tone of voice and looked away. “We gonna f@cking ruin you. How?, first we gonna make you lose your job….and your reputation as one of the finest detective in this country. Then we will make sure that those bones in your closet talk loud enough to put your ass in jail. But it aint gonna be a ‘long term’ sentence, just enough to make your suffer”, the man showed Allen another picture. The one with Alex’s face. “And while you are doing time in prison, this guy gonna pay your beautiful wife a visit…..with all the video recordings of your adulteries”.

Allen glanced at the picture and his breath quickened abit.

“You have to know that this guy is very good when it comes to seducing women, especially those going through some heartbreak”, the man sneered. “Not only that, he also has friends who are inmates in the prison you will be doing time”. The man leaned closer to Allen. “Those animals like f@cking their enemies in the ass when they catch them”, he said to Allen in a quiet sinister voice. “And this guy gonna make sure that for every night he bangs your wife in your own matrimonial bed, those animals will take turns in pumping you hard in the ass.

Then the man showed Allen the third picture as Allen stared at him with a bitter look on his face.

“And after you get out of jail with no job, no wife….not even a f@cking broken pot to piss in; nothing but the shadow of the tough cop that you used to be, that’s when this guy will come pay you a visit”, the man gently placed the picture of Eric on Allen’s laps. “You saw what he did to Santos in the massage parlour”,  he said coldly with an expressionless look on his face. “I know you wouldnt want someone with the ability to re-arrange the bone structure of someone’s face with little more than a clenched fist to come pay you a visit”.

Allen stared at the picture on his lap for some moments and then looked at files lying on the ground. And thought about all those weeks….months of sleepless nights he spent gathering all the information. It just turned out that everything and all the efforts were for nothing.

“So you might wanna reconsider trying to arrest the people that did nothing but take out some of this city’s most violent gangs”, the man said. “My advise to you is to just look the other way and go after those that are the Real bad guys”, then he got up and looked at Allen as the detective remained seated with a downcast gaze. “And my name is Alex”, the man concluded and walked away, heading towards a black BMW that grinded to a halt infront of him. Its driver was a female with fierce tattoos on her arm.

**************************************** *****************

11:45 am Saturday morning in Metro-city. Three months after Nina’s wedding.

Eric smoothly swung the black Hyundai Genesis sedan into the parking lot and killed the engine. Reaching for his cellphone on the car dashboard, he unbuckled the seatbelt and casually got out of the car. He adjusted the black tee shirt he wore and started walking towards one of the building of the several twelve floors apartment buildings around him. He glanced and waved at the kids waving at him and playing on the sandy playground. Then his eyes caught something that stopped him in his tracks.

Eric pursed his lips as he stood and stared at the black Rolls Royces phantom parked a few metres away from the building he was heading to. He recognized car and its plate number. It belonged to old man; the Sosai.

Eric studied the four big men in black suits…..bodyguards, standing near the car. He made a careful scan around the area and saw three three more cars; black chrysler 300 sedans parked at different positions. Then he looked up to the tenth floor of the building he was heading to; the floor where Esther lived with her husband and their son.

After not sensing anything siniter about the bodyguards, Eric ignored them and continued walking towards the apartment building. He stepped into the elevator when he got inside and pressed the button for the tenth floor. And he pulled out his Smith and Wesson pistol as the elevator began its journey to the destination to check on it.

Eric cocked the handgun and tucked it in his waistbelt when the elevator reached the floor. He casually and cautiously stepped into the corridor when the door slided open. He saw four other big men standing near the door of Esther’s apartment. But he maintained his composure as he quietly approached them and stole a quick glance behind him as he analyzed the situation.

“Can i help you guys?”, Eric began boldly to the men who were standing infront of the door.

The big men in black suits and dark shades stared at Eric in silence.

“Can i go inside my own house….or did your boss fail to tell you guys what happened to the guy that took out six of your co-workers?”, Eric asked again.

One of the men gave Eric a smile and moved aside. The others followed suit and Eric sighed as he reached for the door handle.

“Oh you are such a funny man!”.

Eric heard Esther’s laughter as he cautiously stepped into the living-room with one hand close to his weapon. He craned his neck at the dining place and saw Esther sitting with the old man. Both of them were having a cup of coffee. And Esther was all smiles as the old man continued telling his jokes

Esther’s eyes caught Eric as he slowly came over. “Oh Eric!”, she began with a bright smile.

The old man looked over his shoulder with a smile. His eyes and that of Eric met.

“You are here on time. Come son,…come say hello to your grandfather”, Esther continued and motioned at Eric to come over. “He is in town and decided to drop by”, Esther said as Eric came over and stood beside her.

Eric said hello to Esther and gave her a peck on her forehead. Then he stared at the old man suspiciously.

“Hello Eric”, the old man began coolly with the smile still on his face. “It’s been a long time since we have seen each other”, he grunted as he reached for the cup of coffee infront of him.

“Yeah…”, Eric nodded and rested his hands on Esther’s shoulders. “It’s like you really missed me alot after our last meeting. But you shouldn’t have come with a presidential level of security”.

“Son, old habits are not that easy to change”, the old man said and placed the coffee cup back on the table after taking a sip.

Then Esther got up and asked Eric if he wanted a cup of coffee or any other thing. Eric declined and told her that he was okay. Esther excused herself and went into the kitchen. But Eric knew very well that she left just to give him and the old man some privacy. And the old man was probably the reason why she called and told him to come to her apartment right away.

“So how is life treating you son”, the old man asked Eric intently.

“Life is good”, Eric replied and sat on the chair that Esther vacated.

“Hm…life is good”, the old man murmured and smiled with his eyes on Eric.

“Yes…but i’m sure you didnt come here just to ask me how life is treating me”, Eric said. “And i also know that you are reason why she called me”.

“Oh she did?”.

“Yeah old man…..so you better tell me why you are here. It cant just be about how life is treating me”.

“You saved my life and that of your grand mother”, the old man replied. “So why wont i even come here to ask you if you have had your breakfast?”, he asked. “It’s called being indebted to someone. Besides, cant a man come see his grandson?”.

“Now listen here”, Eric began in a low tone of voice and took a quick glanced at the door of the kitchen. “First, i saved your life because i had no other choice, so you can keep your indebtness to yourself. Secondly, the only grandfather i know is her father”. Eric jerked his head at the kitchen door. “And he died years ago. So lets stop playing this family affair games”.

The old man nodded. “Mrs Esther!”, he then called out.

Esther came out of the kitchen.

“I think i have to go now”, the old man said to Esther and got hold of his walking stick as he got up from his seat.

“Already?”, Esther asked.

“Yes my dear. I have alot of things to run in this city before going back to Easthill”, the old man said. “I’m sorry for my short stay…..but i really enjoyed it though”.

“Oh we wish you stayed longer with us Mr Cantona”, Esther said kindly to the old man. “I know how things are for a man of your caliber sir. And we wouldnt want to be an obstacle. But you are always welcomed in our house”.

The old man nodded at Esther with a smile. “Eric, would you mind escorting your old man to his car?”, he asked Eric.

“Well you have like four line-backers sized men outside to…..”, Eric began.

“Eric!”, Esther interrupted him. “Do as your grandfather said”, she said to him in a reprimanding tone of voice.

Eric glanced at his mother and unwilling followed the old man who was already leaving the apartment.

BLOODLINE 2 Episode 18
#OpraDre

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