DOPE Season 2 Episode 6 by Erasmus Ugochukwu Okafor
**Digging up the buried past**
Hugo decided to take his time and meet with Marco at Viper’s Bar; a bar where cultists, street girls, and drug dealers drink and share information. This secluded location remains a secret because it’s not easy to be spotted out. It’s located in the basement of a church which makes it hard for security agents to know that something of that nature was going on. Hugo knew he was taking a risk by taking a D.E.A agent to such location but he was doing everything possible to lure him into the drug business if he could.
On getting to the Church, Marco Antonio was really confused thinking that Hugo just became righteous all of a sudden. They entered the church and sat at one of the rear pews and remained calm, looking at the altar.
After sitting for a while, Marco nudged him and said: “are we here to pray or just enjoying the serenity of the church?”
“Just relax and be calm,” Hugo urged, “I need to know who Joshua and Caleb are and why I should be afraid of them,”
“I guess we’re here to discuss them, right?” Marco asked suggestively.
“I want to know who they are and their positions in D.E.A,”
“They’re strong forces that are used to bring down strongest cartel members and drug dealers. Joshua and Caleb are determined and willing to use any measures; both legal and unorthodox to bring down drug dealers. You dare not joke with them or even be their friends. The best is to avoid them. They are called the ghost hunters,”
“Ghost Hunters? Hmmm, that gives me a food for thoughts. How do I avoid them?” Hugo asked as he waited for clues.
“I don’t just know, but I can help you by informing you whenever an action is coming from the deadly duos,” Marco promised.
“That means a lot, but I just lost millions of dough because I couldn’t prevent their actions. Instead, I simply avoided them.
As they were still in the church, Belle Ramon entered looking so sexy and hot, exposing her smooth straight legs and hot lap. This got Marco wondering if he was still in the church because he expected something more decent from the girl if she was really coming to pray.
Belle came over to them and kissed Hugo’s forehead, acting coquettishly.
“This is a church,” Marco reminded her but she simply smiled it off.
“We’ll soon find out,” Hugo said and pulled Belle to sit on his lap.
In a short while, the minister of the church came out. This got Marco uncomfortable.
“Hey, guys. I think the minister is here,” he said and tapped Hugo on the back. “You may need to put the girl down,”
“Hey guys,” the minister said and as he drew closer, “are you now ready for entrance?”
“Of course we are,” Hugo replied and got up with Belle, while Marcos remained seated and confused.
“What’s going on here?” Marco asked and stood hesitantly and followed behind them as they went towards the altar.
On getting to the altar, the minister tapped a button on the bible by the altar and the altar shifted. It was then that the barricaded noise from the clubhouse forced itself out. A staircase was revealed and they followed it to the basement while the entrance door closed behind them.
Marco was so surprised that such population was drinking and dancing, even without a single noise filtering into the church. It was amazing to him.
Hundreds of guys were already having fun and doing some kinky and sleazy things like kissing, enjoying strippers’ shows, drinking, smoking hard drugs, gambling and doing all sorts of things that the state could consider illegal.
“This is an abyss of illegality,” Marco shouted so that his voice could be heard amid that deafening noise in the background.
“This is where we enjoy the day, especially when we’re stressed out,” Hugo yelled.
“Well, I love it, though I can’t lay my hands on the drugs. I enjoy the fun here,” Marco said admittedly, “we, the security agents spend more time hunting drug dealers than having fun. We lose a lot of fun amid those arduous jobs,”
“Hey, don’t use such word here because if people should know who you’re, you will definitely not be alive in the next three minutes,” Hugo warned politely.
“That sounds weird,” he said and shrugged away his disbelief. “But I concur,”
“I want us to take down the Spiders’ cartel and I need your help because you know a lot and can really be useful to me,” Hugo proposed, even though he wasn’t counting on him.
“Are you trying to use me for your dirty deals and vendetta?” he queried.
“Not really, but since you want to bring him down and I want the same thing too, we can partner,”
“Is it for you to take over his business and his wealth that you aim for?” Marco asked lucidly.
That question got Hugo thinking because it was obvious to him that even if he succeeds taking down the Spiders, the agent wouldn’t allow him to take over the cartel, except handing over everything to the government. After thinking for a while, He replied: “If the D.E.A can confiscate his business and properties, I’m still cool with it, as far as he leaves the competition for good. He is a bigger threat to my existence,”
“In other words, you’re trying to tell me that you want us to kill the man and destroy him just for your selfish desires,”
“I really don’t know the answer to that, but even if you don’t help, I’ll do it with my soldiers and defeat him,”
“When will the attack take place?”Marco asked after thinking through the deal for some time.
“I think anytime soon,” Hugo replied, “from the information I got from Valeria’s mission, they will launch an attack on my cartel anytime and it’s good we’re pre-emptive than just wait,”
“That’s true because the last time I checked, Ignacio wasn’t a man to wait around for an enemy. He crushes everything and anyone who stands on his way to achieving his aim,”
“The most confusing part is the billions of dollars worth of cocaine that he’s hunting me for. I don’t know anything about Octavio except inheriting his residence. I guess there are lots of things that the Baron didn’t tell me before he left for Netherlands,”
“Be careful before you die for what you know nothing about. Seems you’re just sitting on gunpowder and it will soon explode and shatter you into pieces. You didn’t just inherit his house but his problems too,”
“I won’t be cowed by Santiago’s threat but will seek a way to discover the location of the drugs and add them to my stream of wealth. I can see that I’ve already inherited Octavio’s problems, there is no going back,”
“That sounds brave,” Marco said and looked up. He sighted Valeria as she came down through the spiral staircase which got his eyes fixated on her.
“Go for it,” Hugo said and beckoned Belle Ramon forward. “I’ve noticed the way you look at her. She likes you too,”
“Are you sure of that?” Marco asked gleefully.
“You bet,” he replied and tapped his back to go for the girl.
Marco Antonio went straight to meet Killer Bitch who had fully recovered and ready to go back to the game.
The Super Falcons were the girls that handle street activities, especially getting relevant information that helps the Cartel to remain on top of their games or in charge of their own fortunes. They were the ears of the Cartel on the streets. The girls can whore their ways to fame or greatness as long as it will help the cartel to remain in business.
Belle Ramon came closer to Hugo and remained quiet beside him without knowing how to express her feelings for him.
Belle was really beautiful but sometimes shy; especially when she’s around someone she loves. She’d fought over the tender feelings she was beginning to have lately for Hugo because she knew that lots of women were around the drug baron and it could be confusing for him to know who really loves him. She hates competition; therefore, was willing to give up her love for him instead of ending up in a competition with another woman.
After Larissa’s demise, it was really hard for Hugo to give love a chance in his life, even though he was feeling the hurts caused by the hollowness and emptiness he felt for not having a woman around him. He kept thinking about what his dad told him concerning women being distractions for a man. He noticed that his late Dad could be right.
He was even beginning to feel that a woman’s presence in his life always brought pains instead of the immeasurable happiness it’s meant to conjure.
As silence loomed between them while downing glasses of wine occupied the gap, Belle summoned the courage and said: “Hi, it’s been a while we had a friendly chat. I know you’re trying to avoid me but I understand that,”
Hugo was really absent-minded; therefore, didn’t really understand what she was trying to say. She waved over his face to bring his attention back.
“Sorry, what did you say?” he asked looking absently at her pretty face, “You’re really an epitome of beauty,”
“Hmmm, thanks for the compliment,” she appreciated, “I thought you never noticed my beauty,”
“Of course, I did,” he answered with chuckles. “So, what were you talking about?”
“Never mind dear,” she said and feigned a smile, even though she was really disturbed about the way she was beginning to feel for him; “I like Las Flakes’s style. She’s dogged and committed to duty,”
“Oh, really? She’s cool and knows a lot,” Hugo said, not knowing that jealousy was really breeding in Belle’s mind. He didn’t read in between the lines.
“I know that and you two seem to be perfect match,” she said and smiled, “Flakes could bring out the best in you,”
“How can she do that?” He asked benignly, “she’s just a friend and a partner, so there is nothing more than that,”
That answer made her heave a sigh of relief, even though she didn’t want to accept that she was being jealous around him. “Well, you spend more time with her. That’s why I said that,”
“Can you refill my bottle please?” Hugo ordered her.
She obeyed without any question. “Is this okay or should I fill it to the brim?” she asked, trying to let him know that she was willing to do anything for him, just to have his attention.
“This is okay for the moment,” he said and downed the drink immediately, “More, please,”
“This is the sixth glass and I’m still counting,” she said calling to his mind the fact that he could get tipsy, “why not vent your anger in a more appropriate way than taking to drinking,”
“Okay, don’t pour more wine,” he said and relaxed on the couch and crossed his leg.
“If you need more, I can pour some wine but I just want you to remain sober so that you wouldn’t do something nasty,”
“Hmm, nasty?” he asked and laughed, “Something nasty like what dear?”
“Maybe taking me to bed or something,” she said in a bid to start up a romantic discussion.
“That sounds like a clue,” he said and pulled her closer.
“Hey, I said what I said to draw your attention to and not to push you to it,” she said in pretension to act as if she wasn’t eager to have him all over her.
“You’re really pretty and you know it, right?” he asked and stroked her hair gently.
“No woman is ugly,” she answered and relaxed her blonde hair on his chest, “even if you want to do anything romantic with me, it won’t be here, please,”
“You really want me to?” he asked, seeking an approval.
“I don’t really know. Just that I care about you,” she finally confessed.
“Oh, really,” he said raising his eyebrow, “but you’ve never shown it. You’ve been kind of distant all these while and never showed your interest in me,”
She didn’t want to give a direct answer; therefore, figured out the best way to answer his question to avoid making him feel she was some cheap street girl.
“Well, I care about you, just as any other girl around you,” she said and crossed her legs, exposing her sexy lap and curvy hip under that figure-hugging mini gown, “I never wanted to come too close to you because drug dealers have lots of women around them. Not just that, the first time you met me, I was on my way to whoring myself to riches but you stopped it. I felt that you may see me as a street girl, not the decent one, hence the need to keep away from being emotionally attached to you to avoid being seen as the boss’s whore,”
Hugo heaved a sigh and pulled her much closer and planted a kiss on her forehead. “I’ve observed you lately and have noticed that you’re a good girl. Starting from the first day I met you, I saw much innocence than wildness,” he said and stroked her arm, “I took up the responsibility to be paying you on daily basis just for you to be out of the streets. Since I made that promise, I never failed on the responsibility. Have I?”
“That’s the amazing part because, amid your tight schedules, I never stopped seeing an alert every day in my account. Isn’t that why I’m looking more beautiful now than when you met me in the street? All thanks to my amiable boss,” she said and pecked him, leaving a print of her pink lipstick on his cheek.
“I feel flattered and elated right now,” Hugo said and pulled her face closer until he found her lips with his. As he was about to start a kiss, the entrance door to the bar was forced open and the minister rolled down from the staircase in a pool of blood while some men followed immediately. The strange attackers started shooting sporadically and killing anyone they could.
The entire place was thrown into turmoil, making everyone to scatter while many died in the pool of blood.
Hugo took Belle to a safe place and hid her there, then got his revolver ready and met with Valeria and Marco who were already gunning some men down.
The trio hid behind the bar and kept firing back at the ambushers but the men in black that came were handling sophisticated weapons.
“I recognise these men,” Killer Bitch said and removed her high-heeled shoes for a weapon.
“They’re after you, boss. They’re Ignacio’s men. Now is the time for me to take my vengeance,”
She tried to challenge the guys for a physical combat but Hugo drew her back. “Hey, don’t act like a hero because they are many,” he warned, “How can you fight someone with a gun?”
Other drug dealers in the club kept firing and gunning down many of the ambushers but they couldn’t succeed killing all because the guys that came were really many. It was only Hugo, Killer Bitch and Marco that remained alive and kept shooting. They prevented the invaders from entering the lavatory where Belle hid. Even though Belle could handle a gun so well, Hugo didn’t allow her to take part in the battle. The pistol handed over to her was for her protection and not to take part in the fight. It was that moment that Hugo realised how much he cared for her.
Hugo took his phone and sent an SOS messages to Andre and Las Flakes with the code; ‘Forbidden powder at Viper’s bar’, which made them come with some Hitmen and the Falcons. Many soldiers working for Mistério cartel came with Andre.
As they were warding off the guys, Marco was shot in the arm but Killer Bitch helped him to tie it up. The gun battle continued until Andre and other soldiers came and joined, leading to a more fierce challenge which lasted all through the night until around 4 am when most of Ignacio’s men were overpowered and killed except few that took off with the armoured vehicles they came with, but not without some bullet wounds.
One of Ignacio’s men was captured as he tried to escape with his bullet wounds. The prisoner was taken straight to the cartel’s clinic to be revived so that he could be interrogated and forced to reveal more about the Spiders cartel and their mode of operation.
****
There was calmness everywhere for some days because the two cartels were resting as a result of the fierce gun battle. They were also strategising for the best way to outwit each other in the survival-of-the-fittest drug business.
The tall huge prisoner captured was treated with care to get well and strong and be healed of all bullet wounds. He was left in a very strong room for interrogation until he was fit to talk.
Andre came around and drew his seat and sat beside the man who was still in bed but unwilling to talk.
“The earlier you start talking, the better for us because there is no way you can’t talk as long as I am here,” Andre said with a sonorous voice, “do I have your attention, now?”
The hitman pulled himself up and sat on the bed. He exchanged battle of looks with Andre who was a perfect match and as huge as he was. After a while, the hitman smiled and said: “You’re in the same field as me, so it’s obvious that you already know what my reactions would be. Why wasting your energy to talk to a dead man?”
“I know that already but my methods can make you talk; however, I have a proposal for you,” Andre said in order to lure him to talk.
“To hell with your proposal, Andre Paulo,” he said and folded his arms, revealing his thick macho under that figure-hugging black jersey.
“You even know my name,” Andre said with surprises. He was daunted by his words, “who are you and how did you know my name?”
“I can’t answer that but suffice it to say that I’ll keep hunting you because you were born to be wicked and you will end up as one,” he said and looked at his hands and legs shackled with chains. “Remove all these from me and I’ll show you that you’re a piece of rag to me,”
He spewed on Andre’s face but he cleaned it up with a napkin without being angry about it.
“You sound so much as if you’ve met me in the past,” Andre said and pulled him closer, “but when I’m done with you, I’ll definitely make sure that I feed you to the dogs,”
“That has been your way of life, but I must tell you that I’m no more the guy you can be cowed or bully the way you used to do,”
Andre took his time looking at him closely because the Hitman really sounded so sure of knowing him so well. At a point, Andre sunk into thoughts, trying to remember who he was.
“I know that Ignacio won’t even spare your life if you go back to him because he’ll feel you’ve been compromised. Why not strike a deal with us than allow yourself to be tortured here and die without saying anything. Meanwhile, the Ignacio I know doesn’t care for his subordinates. He’d come for me once to work for him but I turned him down. I mean what I’m telling. You can give it a second thought if you wish,” Andre started leaving.
The hitman was surprised that Andre didn’t use any of the interrogating weapons he came with.
“You betrayed me when we were in training school during high school,” He finally said, which got Andre surprised.
“What are you talking about?” Andre queried inquisitively. He turned to take a second look at the prisoner, “You could be mistaking me for another person,” he said and kept moving to the door.
“You promised to be by my side if we ended up being caught in that jejune operation, but you left me alone when it finally happened, making me be rusticated from school. That was why I dropped out from school and became the heartless man that vowed to betray anyone who trusts him,”
At this point, Andre started to recall his face until he fully got the entire picture in his mind’s eye so vivid.
“Joshua Italo,” he called and felt moved because the past didn’t really end well between him and his cousin.
“Don’t mention that name again because Joshua Italo is dead,” he growled, “I am John killer and that’s what you should call me. I’ll kill you and make sure that I retaliate for all you did to me in the past,”
Andre came closer to his bed, drew the seat closer and sat back on it looking intently at his cousin.
“I asked your dad about you but he said that you were no longer his son because of the numerous heartbreaks you caused him and your mom. He said that your mom died untimely because of you, making you unworthy to be his son. Your face changed a lot”
“The monster I am today, you made me so,” John killer said and hissed, “I was on the verge of being the best in life but you led me into street life which brought out the hidden and suppressed monster in me. Even when you introduced me to the gangs that messed up my life, I tried my best to avoid it but you advised me the red skulls would protect me from intimidations and high school bullies. The first and only operation I went with you was what changed my life totally, turning me into the monster I am. The worst was that you were the one that shot the careless gun that killed the cop but I ended up carrying the can and taking the fall for you, leading to spending many years at the Juvie. The little worse of me was transformed into a bigger one when I met Ignacio as the warden in the juvie. He made life unbearable for me but later convinced me that all he did was for me to be a better man in life. All these broke my good personality and turned me into the ogre I am today. If not for the careless gun you shot trying to test your masculinity, I wouldn’t have met Ignacio in the first place. After spending time at the Juvie, I came out worse, leading to being disowned by my dad, especially because my mom died out of heartbreak and high blood pressure when I was serving the juvie terms. You’ve really…”
“Please, brother,” Andre interjected a plea and drew closer to him but he pushed him away out of anger,”
“You’re a daredevil,” John cursed.
“I really don’t know how to tell you how sorry I am for having allowed those cultists that took away my conscience to affect you too. I later turned a new leaf and became a better person in life but I couldn’t just do a legal business or something that would make me calm without fighting, hence the need to join Ramon Fuentes who picked me up and groomed me to be his personal bodyguard. You and I share the same destiny of being killers which have brought us to this moment we are. I am glad you were not among those that were killed in the gun battle at Cool City Bar,”
“What else am I living for?” John killer said angrily and dispiritedly, “You’ve taken everything from me including the freedom I had in Ignacio’s camp,”
“I didn’t take it away from you,” Andre corrected. “I freed you from being enshrouded by the man that destroyed your life at the Juvie,”
“If he destroyed my life at the Juvie, whose action took me to the Juvie in the first place?” He angrily asked and lay back on the bed, “Don’t convince me that you’re the saviour who could make my life more meaningful because you were the one that took everything from me. Don’t try to make me see you as a saint because I still breed threats against you and will surely tear you apart like a marauding beast. I prefer the devil in Ignacio than the angel in your sordid past. Get out from here or I’ll commit suicide before you can stop me,”
That statement really got Andre feeling sad and afraid at the same time.
He didn’t want to see Joshua killed because all the accusations he apportioned to him were all true. It was Andre that misled him in high school and made him see life from the rough ends of it.
Andre hunched over his knee and shed those silent tears that took possession of his cheek. The rueful tears of the Hitman didn’t move John killer because his mind was already made up that he’d kill the monster that made him the bad son who completely lost the parental blessings that he’d have received from his folks.
The entire conversations between Andre Italo and Joshua Italo were being listened to from the observation room which left the eyes of everyone heavy with tears because of what really happened in the lives of the two brothers that destroyed their lives with the carelessness that characterized their juvenile days.
Andre came out from the interrogation room feeling so sad and moody. He didn’t talk to anyone but left immediately to the lavatory and wept bitterly. He was really remorseful for killing the good conscience left in his brother’s inner voice. He strongly bemoaned the part of his life that he never wanted to remember anymore, especially being assured that Hugo and co-workers have all heard the true story and how his brother took the fall for him.
The interrogation was suspended for the time being because the emotions of the people were touched, while the only man who could get the words out from the prisoner was encompassed by guilt and regrets; therefore, not in the right state of mind to make decisions or perform his duties diligently and efficiently.
To be continued…
