BLOODLINE Prologue by Ironkurtain

BLOODLINE Prologue by Ironkurtain

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED………
NO PART OF THIS STORY MAY BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT PRIOR PERMISSION OF THE AUTHOR.

Contact the author at [email protected]

2 o clock pm friday afternoon. Unlike the gloomy weather of yesterday, nature seems to be in a very good mood today with it’s conditions looking perfect. But like every other day, the streets of ST. Michael crescent of downtown Metro-city was completely drowned in traffic that is building into a traffic jam. There is weekend vibe in the air with a crowded street sidewalks made narrow by the roadside stalls set up by traders trying to make weekend sales. Most were largely ignored as couples checked out the restaurants and clothing shops. Families taking the kids for a stroll or pushing the baby trolley.

“Here….u can keep the change”. Eric said to the taxi driver as he stole a glance at his wristwatch and hurriedly got out of the car. The driver collected the fare with a smile that fades after noticing the difference between the amount in the meter and what he just received. Without saying a word, he drove off, disappearing into the sea of cars.

Eric stood and stared at the rows of buildings in front of him as if unsure of where he was. Then he reached for his phone that just vibrated in his black jean pocket.It was a new text message.
“where are u now”. The message reads. He exhaled deeply and proceed to type a reply.
“just arrived”. He typed and sent. Then he paused for a moment and type “Standing in front of BIG CITY bank”. after glancing at the sign on the ground floor of a six storey building and sent the message.

Seconds later, he got the reply.”DAMMY DINERS. It is opposite the bank…..please hurry up”. Then Eric head towards the crosswalk and joined the crowd waiting for the green-light.

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“Oh there he is”. Liz said to her friend sitting at the opposite side of the table and pointed at the boy who just walked into the fast food joint after the tinted glass door slide open. Her friend looked over her shoulder and gazed at him as he stopped in his tracks and scan the restaurant while the automate door slowly slide shut.

He looked well above average in height and slightly above in weight. He wore a grey turtle neck loose sweater with a black straight jean. Perhaps 18 or 19 years of age.
“Eric….over here”. Liz said a bit loud as she waved and gestured at him to come over to their table.

“Hi Liz”. Eric began as he sat next to her and nod at the other girl who smiled wryly and took a sip from her ice and soda filled cup. Eric pretend not to have noticed the cold reception and focused his attention on Liz.

She is good looking as usual and in her late teens. She is the daughter and only child of a rich business mogul father and a fashion designer mother.

Everything she wore looked expensive. From the tight fitted black short sleeved blouse and the gold bracelet adorning the smooth skin on her wrist to the perfume that hit Eric’s nostrils the moment he sat next to her.
“Are u hungry?”. she asked him while trying to get the attention of the waitress serving another customer.

“Just a glass of water”. Eric replied, taking out his phone from his pocket and placing it on the table. It made him uncomfortable whenever he is seated. “Would be great if there is a slice of lemon in it” He added.
“so what’s good?”. Liz asked again, trying to start a conversation before letting him know why she wanted to see him on a short notice.

“It was all good till i got ur message”. Eric murmured.
“What do u mean?”
“U know what i mean”
“No i don’t”. Liz said with a smile. But seeing the look on Eric”s face that seem to demand for an explanation for him being here, she decided to stop playing around. The waitress came over and took their order and left.
“Okay……..”. she began with a sigh. “This is Janet Adams…..Janet, …this is Eric Uzo”. she introduced
“Nice to meet u”. Janet said, speaking for the first time.

“Me too”. Eric replied, wondering what’s up with the over-sized sunglasses she had on.
“My friend, Janet have this problem and kind of a serious one for that matter. And from what she told me, she seems to be in precarious situation as long as this problem is not solved”. Liz stated.
The plain looking waitress arrived with a glass of cold lemon water on a tray and placed the glass in front of Eric. She gave him a quick smile and left. Eric stared at the glass of water and said nothing.

“So that is why we were so eager to see u”. Liz continued. “Desperate times like this require desperate measures…….so… we want u to….”
“Wait…”. Eric interrupted her. “What is this serious problem u are talking about?”. he asked
“The problem?”.

“Yes….the problem. I want the details”.
Liz pursed her lips and remained silent for a few seconds. then she looked at Janet with slightly raised eyebrows. Janet nodded the approval.
“It’s about her ex boyfriend”. Liz then said
“Her ex boyfriend?”. Eric looked at Janet and then back to Liz.”What is it about him?”. he asked.
“She broke up with him and he is not taking well”.

Liz replied
“Really?…..well most break ups don’t usually go that well for sure but in the end, u have no choice but to move on”. Eric said to her. “So i don’t see how this is a serious problem like u said or even a problem at all”
“No not that”. Liz protested. He shouldn’t lecture her about break ups, being a girl who like changing boyfriends constantly. Of course one have to deal with the begging, stalking, lies, threats and whatnots.

But if someone says it’s time to move one, she just don,t understand why some people just can’t respect the decision.

“Then enlighten me because am getting the feeling that it is not about him not taking the break up well”. Eric said coolly without looking at her.
Liz eased closer to him and slide her right hand in-between his left elbow, making them look like intimate couples. But he was unmoved as more of her perfume filled his nose. Then she raise her face like she is about to plant a kiss on his left cheek.
“Lets just cut to the chase….”. she said with almost a whisper. “….We just want u to get his phone”.

“Get his phone?”. Eric cocked his head closer. He heard the words but wanted to be sure he heard them right.
“Yeah and we also want u to…….to hurt him”.
“Get his phone and hurt him?”.
Liz nodded.
“Which one comes first?, getting the phone or hurting him?”.
“Any”
“And why do u want me to get a phone and hurt the owner?”.
“Because……”.

Liz began as she slowly and gently smooched his upper arm and triceps. She knows what is under that loose sweater he wore. A lean and mean machine that can put in work anytime any day. “……..there is something in that we want to get rid of and it have be done because her ex is using it to make her dance to his own tune and the fool is enjoying it. Now she don’t like the music and neither wants to dance to it”.

“What’s the reason for wanting him to be hurt?”. Eric inquired.
“Cos he hurt her and she want to pay him back”. she replied.
“So what is in that phone if i may ask?”. Eric got hold of her hand that was now travelling to his right thigh and gently placed it in between her legs.
Hearing the question, Liz eased away from him and picked up a fry from what was left of the burger and French fries she and Janet had before Eric showed up.

She crushed it in-between her thumb and index finger and said nothing.
“What is in the phone?”. Eric asked again.
“That is private matter.” she murmured
“You don’t want to tell…….” Eric began but Liz cut him short by telling him again that it is a private matter with a firm voice this time. Janet stared at him intently trying to decode his thoughts.

Eric sipped his lemon water for the first time and it has gotten warmer. He placed the cup in it’s original position and remained silent. Liz on the other hand stared at her silky and baby looking skin of her hand as she rubbed the oil of the flattened fry in-between her finger tips.She is in a difficult position. She knows Eric very well and he is the kind of guy who always wants details of anything to the last full stop.

She have heard rumors that he learned it from his karate master and mentor. The man was more like a father to him since his biological wasn’t around and the old man had being in his life since he was five.There are also rumors of the man being a retired soldier in the special force. That explains Eric’s well known precision in dealing with things.Whatever. She is not willing to tell him what is in that phone.

As the silence seem to go on for eternity, Liz now knows that it is going really bad for her and Janet. Eric being silent meant he is not going to do it. The silence is him giving u the luxury of not wasting your time or even his.

The silence dragged on. Janet is now getting worried. She need an answer and fast because will soon be getting a text message or a phone call anytime. from her ex. So she wants to to know what’s the deal. Liz kept mute and glanced at Eric from time to time, waiting to see if he will break the silence.

But when his attention had drifted to a C.N.N program beaming on one of the flat screen t.v hanging on the wall of the diner, she decided she have had enough.
“Aren’t u gonna say something?”. she asked but Eric is still focused on the program. Then she put her hand on his cheek and turned his head to face her. Their eyes met.
“What say u?”. she asked again.

“Horse yoga”
“what??”.
“Horse yoga”. Eric said again with a funny smile and pointed at the t.v screen. It showed a horse lying on it’s back with a man lying on it’s belly and using both his hands and legs to give the horse’s four limbs a stretch. “Can u imagine that?, horse yoga”. he sniggered.
Janet made an audible ‘uh’ as she rest her elbows on the table and ran her fingers through her braided hair with head bowed. She just cant believe this guy. Liz is now irritated. Though she stole a quick glance at the t.v screen and saw nothing but a man having an inappropriate relationship with a horse.

“Am not going to do it”. Eric then said as Liz was about to say something. He took a sip from the glass and held it close to his chest. Turning to Liz he said. “I can’t help u or ur friend in this. It’s not gonna happen. I can help u out in other things but hurting someone or anybody is out of the question”. Then he turned to Janet. “Am sorry to disappoint u but i can’t do this”
“U really don’t want to do it?”. Liz asked.

“Of course, i can’t and i won’t”. Eric responded. “Besides u girls can report him to the authorities because this is a case of blackmail”. then he paused and gave Liz a suspicious look. “Or are u girls into some illegal stuff?”. he asked
“No we are not into some illegal stuff”. Liz retorted
“We just want it to be done quietly”. Janet put in. She just had to say something. “We don’t want to draw much attention to it that’s why we don’t want to get the police involved.
“Why?”. Eric asked
“It’s best done that way”. she replied.

“Wait let me get this straight.” Eric began as he shift his weight on his seat. “You want to get ur ex’s phone and hurt him and clearly, u don’t want to tell me what is in the phone that is worth putting a beat-down on him because according to ur friend it is private. And clearly u don’t want to file a report to the police because according to u, it is best done quietly?”
Janet nodded and looked at Liz who said nothing and kept staring at her manicure. Then Eric got up and straightened his sweater. he glanced at his wrist watch as he picked up his hand phone and slide it into his his jean pocket.

“I don’t know the kind of circus show u girls are running but one thing for sure is i don’t want to be part of it”. he said and started heading towards the door without saying goodbye to either of them.

Eric left the diners and head towards the sign that reads ‘Taxi Park’ that is standing a few meters away at the kerb.
“Crazy girls”. he muttered under his breath as he stride toward the sign post. He is thinking it is now time to cut Liz off for good before she lands him into seriously trouble. As he made his way towards the taxi park, someone grabbed his sweater from behind.

He immediately turned around and found himself looking into Janet’s eyes. For the first time he noticed how short she was. She came closer still looking up to him as he stood towering over her.

“What is it?’. Eric demanded after staring at each other for some seconds
Janet took a deep breath and exhaled gently as she looked down. then she unzipped the hand bag she had being carrying and took out her cell phone. Eric could her the tock tock sound as she typed the password and unlocked it. She held the phone on one hand and slide the icons and menus with the index finger of the other hand. Looking at Eric, she held the phone to his face.
“There u go”. she said and then handed it to him.

Eric saw a picture of what seem to be a white bed spread and some flesh. He held it closer to his face and saw it was a nude body lying on a bed posing for a snapshot. The smiling face is that of Janet. Eric slide to the next picture and saw worst.
“There is also a video. Do u want to watch the action?”. Janet asked. Eric handed the phone back to he and said nothing.

“I fell in love and because i fell in love i did foolish things”. Janet began as she put the phone back inside her bag. “Then i found out who i fell in love with only saw me as a piece of toy he can play with anything he wants. So i decided to end the relationship. But to him he wasn’t done. Now his best friend has joined in. After u left, he called asking when i will come over so he and his friend can have their way with me for the third time”.

“Why do u even allow such thing to happen?’. Eric asked in bewilderment
Janet zipped her bag close and looked at Eric. He could see her eyes welling up with tears. “My mother is a well known figure in the church and also the leader of one the christian organizations”. she answered and turned and saw Liz standing outside the diner staring at them with arms folded.

“In two weeks a knighthood will be bestowed upon my dad by the church”. she turned back to Eric. “this will bring shame and insult to my family if it happens to circulate. I don’t want them to suffer because of my poor judgement”. she continued.
“Damn” is all Eric could say. Liz is now approaching them.

A.j heard the buzz of the doorbell and smiled. He moved the cursor to the right and click the ‘X’ icon of the video screen he had being watching on the desktop computer in his bedroom. the room was dreadfully untidy. A pile of dirty laundry on the unmade bed, books and magazines and even dirty socks strewn all over the floor rug.

Even the computer desk is not spared as bags of half eaten potato chips and biscuits compete with the keyboard and mouse pad for space. Beside the desk that was positioned at the foot of the bed is a waste basket overflowing with paper shreds and tissues. Lots of tissues.

A.j made his way through the chaos to the lobby. Closing the door of his room behind him, he head towards the living room. The living room is quite the opposite. Everything is look very clean with the black leather sofas and other furniture well arranged.

“Am coming”. he said out loud as the bell keep buzzing. He switched off the the flat screen t.v mounted on the wall and carelessly dropped the remote on the sofa.
Dan is probably on his way now, A.j thought as he is about to open the door. He said he will call when he arrives. So he will have to keep this girl ‘busy’ till he comes over.
“Baby….u are here on time today”. he began and opened the door. “It’s like u are beginning to enjoy our…….”

A.j saw someone else standing in front of him instead of the girl he was expecting. A boy wearing a black hoodie sweater with the hood on. Both hands inside the side pockets.
“who are u?”. he asked.
“Hi, are u A.j?”. the boy answered his question with another question.
“Yeah and who are u?”.

“Can i come in?,…..thank u”. the boy pushed his way in to the house without waiting for a reply.
He took his hands out of his pockets and rubbed them gently as he looked around the living. Then at A.j who stared at him curiously.

“So……am…”. the hoodie boy began and immediately paused to check his cell phone that just vibrated a new text message alert. “Ok….not to waste ur time or mine, am going to make this quick”. he continue after glancing through the text and slipping the phone back into his pocket. “Am here to get a phone. ur phone”
“My phone?”. A.j asked, still staring at the boy and wondering what is going on.
“Yep and i need to have it now”.

“And who the hell are u?”
“Not important. I need to have it now”
“And why do u need to have my phone?”. A.j asked with frown
“Well let’s just say the phone have something in it.

Something that is very graphic in nature and it is being used to make a friend of my friend to do things that are highly unacceptable. So this friend’s friend thinks she have had enough of it and wants it to end”. the boy stated as he gestured both hands from left to right. “So to make it end, the phone have to be taken.

“Oh yeah……”. A.j began with a smirk and nodded as if he have gotten the idea of what was going on. “Well tell your friend’s friend that it’s not gonna happen and she better be here today or the whole world will see how she looks with no cloths on.

And i might also let them watch how she does it in bed”. he smiled
Then A.j went over to where hoodie boy stood and got close enough that they were only separated by some inches. he glared down down at hoodie boy because he is quite taller than him.
“And u better get the hell out of my house before u have to be taken to the hospital!”. A.j bawled

The hoodie boy looked away as he took off his hood slowly and rubbed his 360 waved low-cut hair with his palm. Then he looked at A.j with a smile on his face.
“Do u really want to do this?’. he asked still smiling.
“Get the hell out of here before the count of three”. A.j thundered. The smile irritated him more.
“This is best done as gentlemen because…….”
“One!!…”
“Dude….this could get real nasty so let’s just……
“Two!!…’

Then A.j took a swing at the hoodie boy but he ducked out of the way. A.j took another swing. This time with one movement, the boy blocked the punch with one hand and grabbed the collar of A.j’s shirt with the other hand. He tugged A.j towards him and at the same time thrust his head forward. A.j thought his face exploded as the head-butt hit his jaw and knock him down to the floor.

“A physical confrontation is not a good option for u because the outcome won’t be in ur favour”. the hoodie boy said coolly to A.j.
Then A.j rushed to the dining place and looked around wildly. He grabbed a knife, knocking down the cutlery rack in the process. He turn to the boy with the knife pointed and approached him slowly with a murderous look on his face.

“Really?”. the hoodie boy asked pointing at the knife in A.j’s hand. “U gonna use that?”
Then A.j rushed at the hoodie boy with the knife held over his. And it all went bad for him.
The attack is defended so easily and an arm twisted.

A left hook to the jaw as the knife dropped to the floor. A right hook to the chin followed by another left hook to the other chin.dropping down, the hoodie boy banged in a right thunder clap at A.j’s left rib that made him groan with pain. Then grabbing his shoulders, the boy rammed his knee into his mid-section.

The blow rattled A.j’s entire spine. He scream with agony and dropped to his knees, finding it very difficult to breath. He moaned as saliva mixed with blood drooled from his mouth. A strong hand grabbed his hurting jaw and raised his face up as he was still on his knees. With a blurry vision caused by the throbbing pain in his face, he could see the hoodie boy say something he couldn’t hear properly. Then a fist came looming at his face and everything went blank.

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

A.j opened his eyes and felt the rug pressing against his face as he laid on his stomach. For a moment he didn’t know where he was nor could he remember what happened. The smell of the place hit his nostril as he took a deep breath and found out that he was in his own room. He wondered how he ended up lying on the floor as he tried to get up.

The pain in his face and jaw increased in intensity as he did so. And his left side and gut felt like it was on fire as he winced painfully. Then he remembered what happened earlier. But what puzzled him is how he ended up in his bedroom.

“Dude u are a pig. No wonder she wanted to break-up with u”.
A.j turn his head and saw the hoodie boy sitting on his computer desk and going through his computer.
“Look at this place”. he continued without taking his eyes off the monitor. “This is……piggery on a whole new level”.

A.j felt his face and noticed his nose is swollen and crooked. He had alot of pain in his jaw and his teeth seem not to fit together properly.
“Whh……who are u?”. he managed to ask the hoodie boy as he found it quite difficult to speak. “Wha……what do u want from me?” he asked again.

“The password”. the hoodie boy answered, waving A.j’s cellphone and placing it beside the computer keyboard. he is still gazing at the monitor and moving the mouse.
A.j said nothing. He took a sitting position on the floor with his back leaning against the wall.
“Don’t let me beat it out of u”. the hoodie boy said after minutes of waiting for A.j to say something. Then after a few more minutes, he grew impatient and stop what he was doing. He looked over his shoulder and stared at A.j.

“6…..9….9….6”. A.j murmured on seeing the look on hoodie boy’s face.
The hoodie boy proceed to type the password and smiled when the phone unlocked. He checked the contents in its storage files quickly with a blank look on his face. And then placed the phone on the desk after seeing all the evidence, both the pictures and videos and even the text messages exchanged.

“See how smooth it goes when u co-operate”. the hoodie boy then said to A.j as he continue browsing the files in his computer. “i ask questions and u give me the right answers, thereby avoiding unnecessary loud and messy situation. Unlike ur friend Dan”.
A.j heard the name and froze. He stared at the hoodie boy intently.

“That dude is one hell of a stubborn person. Even after having his face literally bashed in, he refused to give me what i want. Not until i dragged him to the bathroom with a cleaver to de-meat his left ass and then let him decide on what i should do with it”. he continued with a casual voice
A.j was visibly shaken. The thoughts of the hoodie boy wielding a meat cleaver sent cold chills down his spine. He hoped that his best friend, Dan, is not dead yet.

“Don’t worry, he will be okay”. he reassured A.j.
Then he turned off the computer and got up from the desk. Taking the phone with him, he went over to where A.j sat nursing his injuries.
“Janet wants u to stay away from her and i want u to do exactly that”
A.j slowly looked up at the hoodie boy who is standing over him and said nothing.

“And don’t u ever do this kind of rubbish again because u wouldn’t want to see me come here again”. the hoodie boy said as he waved A.j’s phone at him. “do i make myself clear?”. he asked
A.j nodded.

“Good”. the boy said and dug his hand into the right pocket of his sweater and brought out another phone. A.j recognized it immediately. It belonged to Dan.
“Am taking ur phone and that of ur friend. Both of u should get new ones”. he said and slip both phones back into his pocket and opened the door. As he was about to leave, he paused and looked at the the bedside table.

An open glass candy jar filled with candies stood near the table lamp. The hoodie boy went over and took a handful from the jar. He unwrapped one and popped it in his mouth and looked at A.j and left the room.

Closing the door of the house behind him, the hoodie boy calmly look around the quiet upper middle class neighbour-hood. All the houses are a single storey building with a lawn and a flower hedge neatly lined up on both sides. He put his on and head towards a pearl white BMW 2 series sedan parked a few meters away. the engine of the car turned on as he approached.

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“Did u get it?”. Liz asked Impatiently as she worked the wood grained steering wheel, making the car follow the curves smoothly.
Eric who sat on the passenger seat beside her took off the hood of his sweater and push his hand into his pocket. He glanced at Janet through the rear-view mirror. He could see the eagerness in her eyes as he brought out both phones.

“The password is 6…9..9..6”. he said and tossed A.j’s phone to her and placed the other phone on the dash-board. “This one is clean. I also checked ur boy’s computer and it is clean too except for the countless porn.

“porn?”. Liz sniggered.
“All sorts of porn. Ur boy is a total loser. And also sleeps in a garbage dump”
” Hey Jenny, do u know your ex’s favorite hobby is staying at home and watching porn all day?” Liz asked Janet without taking her eyes off the road. Janet was too busy deleting all the scandalous contents in the phone to know what they were talking about or even hear what Liz just asked her.

“And what about that fool?.” Liz asked. “Did u also………”
“A broken jaw and a busted nose”. Eric replied without looking at her.
Liz glanced at him with a delightful smile and revved the engine, making the posh car to roar and accelerate it’s speed.

End of prologue

BLOODLINE Prologue
#OpraDre

I want u all to see it as an introduction to the main character Eric Uzo……….

so if u all want the main story. click the next episode below