ironkurtain:
Rest on father

It is well Sir

Seems you are from SS, I would had said Urhobo or Itsekiri, but lemme not jump to conclusions yet

Adieu papa sleep well

It is well with you. God will bless you more and help you to wear the crown of family leadership with ease, joy and dignity.

So sorry bro...may God give you all the fortitude to bear the loss.
I pray you grow stronger in all ramifications to be the best head of the family.

CHAPTER SEVEN.


The first light of the next day dawned with a chilly weather over the city that warmed up by late hours of the morning. The sky over Midtown Arlington bay was clear and blue with a bright sunshine. The exterior windows and curtain walls of the highrises and tall office buildings gleamed to the rays of warm and brilliant sunlight that shone on the central business district in downtown Easthill. And the ever-hectic activity in the country's biggest financial hub, very much up and running for the day with good weather.

Nina was in a coffee house called LUX CAFE. An upscale café with a big presence in the district's vicinity. A spacious cafe that occupies a bigger portion of the ground floor of a fifteen-floor modern structure which stood with the other tall buildings lining Midtown Arlington bay's ever busy Ivory avenue that runs through the heart of the paved expanse jungle of tall concrete buildings, skyscrapers, and vehicle thronged road networks.

Looking neat in her all-black suit and pants work outfit with a white dress shirt underneath the suit jacket that adorned her tall shapely figure, Nina was sitting alone in the coffee shop, her composure as calm as a sheet of ice. She was seated at one of the tables that were arranged next to the cafe's big windows facing the traffic on the main street with a panoramic view of the big city hustle'n'bustle epidemic on steroids.

She had spent close to ten minutes in that place; fifteen minutes earlier than the scheduled time, which she needed and solely for the purpose of preparing herself mentally for the person she was about to meet. She spent half of that time taking sips - with delays in between - of the hot, black coffee from the white ceramic mug the café attendant had set on her table. The other half was spent being mindful of the activities around her, which always comes as a second nature; taking cursory glances around the café with her darkshades that covered the surveillance her eyes were making of the place and movements of every customers that were having their caffeinated drinks.

After a little over five more minutes in the wait and Nina getting to know about it with her eyes on her Rose-gold constellation wristwatch, a man walked into the cafe. He was finely dressed in a grey suit and wore black shoes. He made a brief paused at the door to absorb the cafe's uniquely designed modern interior with a well refined elements of the decor, made a few glances at the activities going on in the place, and then proceeded in his steps.

Nina looked up from her wristwatch and saw him. Then she took off her darkshades and regarded him with a fixed gaze as he approached her table with a recognizing smile on his face. He stood before Nina with his smile turning bright, and she then got to her feet, having butterflies in her stomach, and forced a weak smile at the visitor whom she had been expecting.

It's been ages since that last time Nina had set her eyes on him. But she clearly recognizes the face of the man she had dated during her teenage years. It brought back memories of the relationship they had a long time ago, and she also remembered vividly the day they broke up, or rather, the day she stopped seeing him. It was the day that they had their first, and also the same day, she also found out about the affair that he had had with her classmate and most bitter rival.

"Hello, Nina," the man began.

"Desmond," Nina said to him.

Desmond then moved closer to Nina and gave her a warm, tight embrace. Nina did embrace Desmond, too. But hers lacked affection, and her arms were loosely wrapped around him.

They broke away from each other after a brief while of being in that position and made themselves comfortable in the opposite chairs.

"It's been ages." Desmond continued as he adjusted his suit jacket and still wearing his bright smile. "How have you been doing all these years?" he asked.

"Good," Nina replied plainly, staring back at Desmond . "And you?" she asked.

Desmond held up his spread-out arms.
"Not what you had expected, i guess," he replied. "I got out of prison....about four months."

"I know," Nina said quietly and reached for her coffee mug.

"I heard that you came back to the country several years ago."

Desmond heaved a sigh. "You could have at least paid an old pal a visit."

Nina furrowed her brows at him. "And do what? Mock at you for how things had turned out for you...and your family?" she asked. "Cos that would be the only thing that will bring my presence there, as far as I'm concerned," she went on dryly.

"Talking about family, I heard that you are now working for your father's organization, just as you had always wished," Desmond went on. "But certainly not in the rank that you had wanted to be in," he noted and studied his fingernails. "Company office assistant?" Desmond cocked his head to the side and raised an eyebrow at Nina. "One hell of position for a billionaire's daughter in his company."

Nina shrugged. "One has to start from somewhere at the bottom and work their way to the top," she sighed.

Desmond pursed his lips with a shake of head, expressing his disapproval for what Nina just said. "That's very low level for someone like you," he said. "I'm very sure you know that too. And from my findings, your father is really tough on his workers. I heard that he even treats you less,". Then he eased forward and rested his elbows on the table with his hands close to Nina's, and said, "And one thing that i am very sure of is, we wouldn't have ended up in our current situations if we had stuck together."

"So you are saying that I'm to be blamed for you going to prison." Nina muttered with a wry smile. Then, she narrowed her eyes at Desmond. "And i can see that you have been keeping an eye on me," she muttered with a long searching stare at Desmond. "Is that why your man is posted in here, watching me?", she asked and looked in the direction of a man seated at a table away from them: He was Matt, and he had been in the café all the while before Desmond arrived, pretending to be reading a newspaper while keeping a close watch on Nina.

Desmond shifted in his seat and was taken aback by Nina's discovery. But he didn't express it.

"I could have sent one of my men to make him tell who sent him to spy on me," Nina continued, her fixed gaze at Desmond turning hard "And you will get to know my real line of work."

"Look, I didn't come here cause any trouble", Desmond immediately put in quietly.

"Neither do I, and you better see it as my last warning," Nina muttered, flashing a brief baleful look at him.

Desmond sighed, nodded his head, and said, "I only wanted to know how you are doing...and it's the reason why i wanted to see you after getting to find out." His hands moved a bit closer to Nina's hands that were clasped around her coffee cup. "The both of us could have done a lot of great things, Nina", he continued. "By now we would have been on a different level, a higher one, not sitting like this....with you literally working as a paper pusher for your father who has done nothing except being very ruthless to you."

"And you ending up being an ex-convict," Nina added.

Desmond sighed uncomfortably. "Yes.. That too," he murmured quietly.

"Well, I've always known you to be someone with a lot of ambition," she went on, raised her mug to sip her coffee and returned it to its former position with her eyes staring at mug.

"A lot of ambition for the both of us", Desmond corrected. "I've always had that in mind from the first day I got to know about you," he said with a cadence that showed he meant it.

Nina smiled mirthlessly and looked at Desmond. "So, did you also tell Priscilla this same thing on that day the both of you were cuddled up? Or are you kind of confused as to who it was that you had this in mind for?" she then asked with a sneered.

"Nina, come on", Desmond rolled his eyes with a frustrated wince. "That was just one mistake, and the only mistake that i still regret to this day. "Besides, you can't still be mad at me for something that happened a very long time ago," he stated.

"Just one mistake, huh?" Nina sighed. "But the question is, how many more mistakes will you make if I had stayed?", she asked. "Cos i still remember what i saw." An expression of detest briefly flickered across her face. "And i also remember what you told that...Stupid b!tch..about me", she continued, trying to keep herself from making an angry outburst at the man whom she had once loved. "It's true that it happened a long time ago. But sitting here and telling me about the ambition that you always had in mind for us that somehow slipped out of your mind when you decided to jump in bed with her, is a damn big insult to me," she stated with a slightly raised angry tone of voice and then turned the crossed look in eyes away from Desmond.

Desmond knew that Nina was trying to control her emotions. And bearing that in mind, he then remained silent to let her cool off. Even though he was more interested in accomplishing what he had in mind for wanting to meet her, and with no regards whatsoever for her feelings nor a single regret for his past actions, he was very aware of one rule when dealing with her; pushing the boundaries whenever Nina's emotion goes through the roof was a bad idea, even as far as back when she was still a naive girl. And definitely won't be the best thing to do now that she's well equipped with a whole world of experience.

Nina did cool off after a short while, taking a deep breath and exhaling with the bitterness written on her face, slowly fading away. And like Desmond, she too kept mute.

They remained like that with the silence that had settled between them which never existed when they used to be so fond of each other decades ago, steadily growing longer. A plain looking waitress walking-by, made a brief pause to look in their direction for any signal of her attention being needed, and then continued with her journey after seeing none.

After a few more moments of not uttering any word to each other, Desmond decided to test the waters again.

"I know that you are still hurt, and I'm very sorry for what my foolish mistake had made you go through", he then started, trying to sound as sincere as he could, even though it was just a pretext. "I had tried innumerable times to reach you back then, to apologize. But it was as if you had vanished, and then heard about a year later that you had left the country."

Nina sighed. She continued maintaining her silence, but her ears were open to what he was saying.

"The main reason for wanting to meet you is make amends for my past mistake," Desmond continued, moved his hands further and gently rested them on Nina's. "And to see if we can make a fresh start and let bygones be bygones."

Nina stared at Desmond's hand that held hers, and thought about what he said.

"You can't just continue living like this: being underappreciated and also being treated less," Desmond went on. "You deserve a lot better, and the Nina that i had always known is a very strong woman with a lot of potentials, and wouldn't settle for less," he concluded, staring at her, and hoping the bait that he had casted was good enough to make the woman take a bite.

"So...what do you want from me?" Nina then asked and looked at Desmond. "I do have my own plans and ambitions, and I have gone too far down the path that I had chosen to be convinced to move away from it, especially to join someone like you", she sighed heavily.

"I am not trying to convince you to do that," Desmond disagreed immediately. "I just want to be there to help you with it." His hold on Nina's hand slightly tightened. "And more than that, i just want to be there for you."

Again, Nina remained silent. For a while she thought about what Desmond had said, which left her reflecting on her relationship with her father, her two sons and their biological father. His words about her situation was true: her sons and their biological father mostly left her feeling unappreciated for all efforts that she had made for them, and she was endlessly slaving away for her father who had done nothing but being ruthlessness to her. And this could be her chance to get away from a future that looked bleak to her.

Then Matt came over to their table with a hurry, his cell phone in his hand. He stood beside Desmond and regarded Nina with a brief faint smile. Nina shot an indifferent glance at him and disregarded his presence.

"I have a message for you, sir," he said quietly to Desmond.

"Didn't I mention not to be disturbed?" Desmond muttered irritatedly without looking at Matt. Then Matt whispered something into his ears. He suddenly turn tense and stared surprisedly at Matt with furrowed brows.

Nina did notice the change in Desmond's demeanor. It left her with a curiosity that interrupted the decision she was about to make.

Again, Matt whispered into Desmond ears. Desmond nodded a few times and casually turned his attention to screen of the big t.v hanging on the wall of the café that was on mute. It was beaming images of the bodies of several dead men being lifted into ambulances in an alleyway and a crashed van.

Nina then glanced at the t.v screen that was now showing other dead bodies being carried out of a house and looked at Desmond.

"Is there something wrong?" She asked him quietly.

Desmond looked at her with his expression turning calm again. "No," he replied with a faint smile. He withdrew his hands away from it's hold on Nina's and got to his feet. "I'm sorry to say that i gotta get moving," he continued, sounding apologetically, - "There is a pressing issue that i have to attend to immediately." - and quietly got to his feet.

After he was done readjusting his suit and tie, he motioned at Matt for them to leave the café, and regarded Nina with the faint smile that hid his great concern about the new development that he had been informed.

"I think it's best to give you some time to think about what I've said," he suggested. "Even if you think otherwise, you can still call me...and at any time. Atleast we can still do some catch-up together, probably over lunch or dinner," he concluded, nodded at Nina and left with Matt following after him.

Nina stared at the two men until they exited the café. She turned her sight at the t.v screen, gave it a brief stare and then rested her eyes on her coffee mug, gazing absent-mindedly at it with thoughts about Desmond and considering what he had offered.


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

The story continues. Sorry for the long delay.

welcome back

Welcome back the great nairaland writer

ironkurtain:
The story continues. Sorry for the long delay.

Good to have you back

Welcome back bro

Seems Desmond is connected to the happenings, or the person other ring those hit on the girls, that's backfiring so far

"Do you think she will fall for it?" Matt asked as both men made their way along the pedestrian filled sidewalk.

"That depends on how smarter she had gotten," Desmond replied. "Females tend to use emotions to make decisions. So we might not have to wait too long... unless she is given enough logical reason not to give a positive reply," he continued.

"Well, i hope she does...cos things have quite been turning sideways these few days," Matt sighed.

"So..," Desmond then stopped walking after they had covered some distance away from the café and closer to their parked vehicle. "What the f@ck is going on?" he asked with a fixed gaze at Matt. "You told me that Tyson and his crew had the girl, and it all went smoothly."

"That's what he told me, boss," Matt replied.

"If that's what he said, then where did it all go wrong?" Desmond demanded, looking visibly angry.

Matt heaved a heavy sigh and dug both hands into his side pockets. "Tyson didn't give any explanation as to what happened, boss," he then answered. "The guy is even more confused than i am about this situation."

"I want you to tell me everything that he told you about this sh!t-show that I'm hearing," Desmond demanded immediately.

"Well, according to him, he had called his men to give them the location that i had told him to take the girl," Matt began with his eyes on the paved street curb they were standing on. "But he was unable to reach them after calling their cellphones countless times. So he went over to the house, thinking the h@rny bastards might have screwed themselves into coma as they always do to every good-looking female subject that would be eventually put down." Matt then looked at Desmond. "It turned out worse than he had thought."

Desmond stared confusedly at Matt. "So, what happened at the house?" he asked.

"He was there on time to get a good look at his men as their dead bodies were being hauled into the meat wagon", Matt continued. "The place was turned into a goddamn gallery of ways to kill a man, he said. One took a dead-center bullet hole to the head, the second was knifed deep in the gut, and the third appeared to have had his face rearranged with a sledgehammer."

Desmond furrowed his brows.

"And he sounded quite spooked when he told me all this," Matt went on.

"Did he say anything about the neighbours seeing or hearing something?" Desmond asked.

Matt shook his head. "He said neighbours were unwilling to tell the cops anything at all cos none of them wanted to be involved in that horror show," he said.

"He should have atleast asked around. Sh!t like that can't go down without some noise."

"That's probably the least of his worries. He intends to go into hiding cos the cops will be doing their investigations. His main concern is us telling him exactly who that girl is."

"Why?"

"He wants to know whom to be mostly on the lookout for, between the cops and the girl."

Desmond snorted. "That's why i hate doing business with low level thugs," he muttered under his breath. Then he continued making his way toward their vehicle.

"But that's not the real problem for us as of now," Matt said as he followed Desmond.

"What's the real problem?" Desmond asked with a sigh.

"Those dead men that you saw on TV weren't Tyson's guys. They are Bronco's men."

"Did they get their target?"

"I don't think so"

Desmond clenched his jaw, the look on his face turning frustrated as he stared ahead. "A problem indeed," he muttered to himself.

"Yeah, and Bronco ain't gonna take it kindly with us" Matt muttered too.

Desmond smirked. "I mean a problem for business," he said. "This might cause some delay, and we don't have much time."

"But aren't we suppose to be taking proper measures in protecting our asses?" Matt asked, now knowing that his boss was more concerned about closing his deal with Bronco than the grim possibility of the man killing him on sight. Especially him being indirectly responsible for his brother's death and also who provided the address of where his men got slaughtered.

"I ain't worried about that," Desmond replied. "I only gave his brother a job and showed him where his enemy's girlfriend lives. They are the ones that failed greatly in carrying out their plans," he said indifferently.

"If you say so," Matt murmured.

"We need to find out who's behind all these killings and what that person is really up to," Desmond went on.

"Could it be that someone is on us?"

"Probably not. Perhaps had gotten wind of our plan, but still not aware that it's us cos the person would have made their move, rather than sit back and wait for us to keep making ours. We have to find out who and what we are up against, and we have to do it fast."

They reached the parked Bmw and got inside it with Desmond sliding into the back seat and Matt commandeering the steering wheel.

"I want you to take me home," Desmond grunted as he shut the car door. "I'll be taking myself to Bronco's place."

Matt's hand paused mid-way to the engine switch. "Are you sure about that, boss?" he asked, staring at Desmond through the rearview mirror.

"I wouldn't do that if I'm not very sure", Desmond replied.

"Won't you be needing my company just incase Bronco decides that he's done talking? Perhaps, call some backups," Matt suggested.

"Why?" Desmond asked as he reached into his pocket for his cellphone.

"The guy is a murderous beast...and his cage has been rattled one too many times," Matt replied. "As much as i wouldn't wanna be anywhere near that cage when it is open, we still have to let it be known to Bronco that it ain't gonna go down like that if he decides to kick up some dust."

Desmond smirked and unlocked his mobile device to consult its call list. "I have dealt with Bronco for a very long time," he then said with his eyes on his phone screen. "Of course he's a dangerous sick bastard, but i do know how to pull his chains," he continued. "Besides, with the way his men are being killed off, that crazy animal now knows that an even more bloodthirsty hunter is on the prowl. He will be more than willing to listen to what i have to say." He raised his eyes from his phone and looked at Matt. "Just take me to my place, and see what you can find out from your subject," he ordered.

"Will do that, boss," Matt said. He brought life to the car engine and put the car in motion to battle their way through the heavy traffic on the road.


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

ironkurtain:
"Do you think she will fall for it?" Matt asked as both men made their way along the pedestrian filled sidewalk.

"That depends on how smarter she had gotten," Desmond replied. "Females tend to use emotions to make decisions. So we might not have to wait too long... unless she is given enough logical reason not to give a positive reply," he continued.

"Well, i hope she does...cos things have quite been turning sideways these few days," Matt sighed.

"So..," Desmond then stopped walking after they had covered some distance away from the café and closer to their parked vehicle. "What the f@ck is going on?" he asked with a fixed gaze at Matt. "You told me that Tyson and his crew had the girl, and it all went smoothly."

"That's what he told me, boss," Matt replied.

"If that's what he said, then where did it all go wrong?" Desmond demanded, looking visibly angry.

Matt heaved a heavy sigh and dug both hands into his side pockets. "Tyson didn't give any explanation as to what happened, boss," he then answered. "The guy is even more confused than i am about this situation."

"I want you to tell me everything that he told you about this sh!t-show that I'm hearing," Desmond demanded immediately.

"Well, according to him, he had called his men to give them the location that i had told him to take the girl," Matt began with his eyes on the paved street curb they were standing on. "But he was unable to reach them after calling their cellphones countless times. So he went over to the house, thinking the h@rny bastards might have screwed themselves into coma as they always do to every good-looking female subject that would be eventually put down." Matt then looked at Desmond. "It turned out worse than he had thought."

Desmond stared confusedly at Matt. "So, what happened at the house?" he asked.

"He was there on time to get a good look at his men as their dead bodies were being hauled into the meat wagon", Matt continued. "The place was turned into a goddamn gallery of ways to kill a man, he said. One took a dead-center bullet hole to the head, the second was knifed deep in the gut, and the third appeared to have had his face rearranged with a sledgehammer."

Desmond furrowed his brows.

"And he sounded quite spooked when he told me all this," Matt went on.

"Did he say anything about the neighbours seeing or hearing something?" Desmond asked.

Matt shook his head. "He said neighbours were unwilling to tell the cops anything at all cos none of them wanted to be involved in that horror show," he said.

"He should have atleast asked around. Sh!t like that can't go down without some noise."

"That's probably the least of his worries. He intends to go into hiding cos the cops will be doing their investigations. His main concern is us telling him exactly who that girl is."

"Why?"

"He wants to know whom to mostly be on the lookout for, between the cops and the girl."

Desmond snorted. "That's why i hate doing business with low level thugs," he muttered under his breath. Then he continued making his way toward their vehicle.

"But that's not the real problem for us as of now," Matt said as.

"What's the real problem?" Desmond asked with a sigh.

"Those dead men that you saw on TV weren't Tyson's guys. They are Bronco's men."

"Did they get their target?"

"I don't think so"

Desmond clenched his jaw, the look on his face turning frustrated as he stared ahead. "A problem indeed," he muttered to himself.

"Yeah, and Bronco ain't gonna take it kindly with us" Matt muttered too.

Desmond smirked. "I mean a problem for business," he said. "This might cause some delay, and we don't have much time."

"But aren't we suppose to be taking proper measures in protecting our asses?" Matt asked, now knowing that his boss was more concerned about closing his deal with Bronco than the grim possibility of the man killing him on sight. Especially him being indirectly responsible for his brother's death and also who provided the address of where his men got slaughtered.

"I ain't worried about that," Desmond replied. "I only gave his brother a job and showed him where his enemy's girlfriend lives. They are the ones that failed greatly in carrying out their plans," he said indifferently.

"If you say so," Matt murmured.

"We need to find out who's behind all these killings and what that person is really up to," Desmond went on.

"Could it be that someone is on us?"

"Probably not. Perhaps had gotten wind of our plan, but still not aware that it's us cos the person would have made their move, rather than sit back and wait for us to keep making ours. We have to find out who and what we are up against, and we have to do it fast."

They reached the parked Bmw and got inside it with Desmond sliding into the back seat and Matt commandeering the steering wheel.

"I want you to take me home," Desmond grunted as he shut the car door. "I'll be taking myself to Bronco's place."

Matt's hand paused mid-way to the engine switch. "Are you sure about that, boss?" he asked, staring at Desmond through the rearview mirror.

"I wouldn't do that if I'm not very sure", Desmond replied.

"Won't you be needing my company just incase Bronco decides that he's done talking? Perhaps, call some backups," Matt suggested.

"Why?" Desmond asked as he reached into his pocket for his cellphone.

"The guy is a murderous beast...and his cage has been rattled one too many times," Matt replied. "As much as i wouldn't wanna be anywhere near that cage when it is open, we still have to let it be known to Bronco that it ain't gonna go down like that if he decides to kick up some dust."

Desmond smirked and unlocked his mobile device to consult its call list. "I have dealt with Bronco for a very long time," he then said with his eyes on his phone screen. "Of course he's a dangerous sick bastard, but i do know how to pull his chains," he continued. "Besides, with the way his men are being killed off, that crazy animal now knows that an even more bloodthirsty hunter is on the prowl. He will be more than willing to listen to what i have to say." He raised his eyes from his phone and looked at Matt. "Just take me to my place, and see what you can find out from your subject," he ordered.

"Will do that, boss," Matt said. He brought life to the car engine and put the car in motion to battle their way through the heavy traffic on the road.


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

thanks for the update

Alex tiredly trudged into the living-room, still wearing his white pajamas, and sank his weight in the sofa with a heavy sigh. Eric sitting next to him, threw a short stare in his position and turned his sights back to the cellphone screen he had been staring at.

"Problems sleeping well last night?" Eric asked.

Alex nodded and felt his jaw that was still hurting from the blow that he had taken from one of the men he killed last night. "I kept seeing the faces of those guys," he said. "I should have done more to those assholes if i had known it will give me sleepless night." Then he heard a sound coming out from one of the rooms upstairs. "Is Lisa back?" he asked.

"Two hours ago," Eric replied.

Alex looked at his brother. "So...what are we doing next?" he asked.

"That depends on what you found out from Greg's girlfriend cos the men that i dealt with weren't in any mood for a conversation," Eric replied.

Alex then rested his head on the sofa back cushion with his eyes closed. And he started recollecting everything that Sharon had told him. After a while Lisa walked into the living-room to join them. She had taken her usual morning shower and changed into new a with her hair still wet and draped around her shoulder. And still looking beautiful without her makeup.

"Arise and shine big man," Lisa began cheerily at Alex with and sat next to Eric. "Eric told me that you guys were very busy last night," she continued and rested her head on Eric's shoulder. "Yours must have been very very hectic cos your snoring was enough to wake the dead," she smile.

"Or enough to leave some people...dead," Eric murmured and Lisa chuckled.

Alex opened an eye, stole a glance at Eric and sighed again with the other eye opening. "So how did yours go with the girls night?" he asked Lisa, knowing that she wouldn't be amused if she knew that he indeed did leave some people dead, and her boyfriend doing far worse.

"Not much of the fun that it used to be," Lisa replied and stared at Eric's cellphone. "Maybe I'm getting old," she sighed.

Alex smirked and shut his eyes again. "So what did you guys do?"

"What girls do whenever they are together."

"A lot of talks about boys, i guess."

"We talked about alot of things with questions about how we were fairing, and i had to listen to endless comparisons of current lifestyles to see who's better off with proving pictures"

"And also talks about boys."

Lisa gave Alex a funny look.

"Yes...they also talks about boys, if that's gonna float your goat," Eric replied to Alex.

Lisa laughed. Then she looked at the clock hanging on the wall. "Already past Twelve noon," she said. "Are you guys hungry?" she asked the boys.

"We have a lot of things to eat in the refrigerator if you are," Eric replied. "You will have to use the Microwave for some."

"Okay....let me go check." Then Lisa got up and made her way towards the kitchen.

After she was out of sight, Eric looked at Alex. "So can we talk about what Sharon told you last night?" he asked.

Alex suddenly realized that he hadn't been thinking. He paused for a shortwhile to do some recollection. "Well, Sharon is as clueless as Greg in regards to what's going on," he then said. "But she said her friend that was with her last night, was kind of acting strangely lately. And she is indeed quite the strange type," he continued.

"And who is this friend of hers?" Eric asked.

"Her name is Annette," Alex replied. Then he looked at Eric. "And this is where you might come in bro", he added.

Eric regarded Alex confusedly. "How?, he demanded.

"Annette said that she had seen you," Alex replied. "In Angel's house, when you were putting the seismic beat-down on his friends to save Lisa," he went on.

Then Alex went into details on everything that had transpired in the club last night, while Eric made a lookout to see if Lisa was within hearing dustance. He talked about how the kidnap went down, how he, Greg and Chris saved Sharon, what Sharon told him and also what he advised both Greg and Sharon to do.

"So...how do i come into this?" Eric asked Alex after he was done talking.

"Since it was you that did the damage in the house, i figured out that you are in the best position to be able to get something from her," Alex replied. "She might decide to mention one or two events that went down that day which i am not aware of, and my response might arouse her suspicion," he continued. "And I'm not a good listener to history lessons if you decide to give me one now. Hell, i can barely remember what i did last month, how much more someone else's," he noted.

Eric sighed. "I guess I'll have to go see her," he said quietly.

"I have her home address. Sharon gave it to me." Alex took out his cellphone. "I think you should meet her as soon as possible," he suggested and texted Annette home address to Eric's cellphone. "And she is ain't really the friendly type, bro," he warned.

"I will keep that in mind," Eric glanced at Alex text and then checked his clothing, the one which he had put on when he left the house to pick up Lisa and was still wearing. Then he got to his feet as Lisa was walking back into the living-room carrying two steaming plate of food in her hands.

"Something just came up that i have to go check immediately," Eric began at Lisa which made her pause in her tracks with an inquisitive stare at him. "I will be back in a jiffy," he continued.

"Why don't you eat something before you leave," she said "Or is it really that important?"

"Just got a call from our mother," Eric lied. "You know how she gets if her time is being wasted." Without waiting for Lisa to say something else, he grabbed the car keys lying on the center table. "You take care of her," he said to Alex. "You know where everything is incase if she needs anything," he concluded and got a nod from Alex. Then he gave Lisa a quick peck on her lips and immediately walked out of the living-room leaving her staring in his direction with a puzzled look on her face.


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

Welcome back op
And thanks once again for this wonderful update

Abdulreheem:
Welcome back op
And thanks once again for this wonderful update

Thanks man

Abdulreheem:
Welcome back op And thanks once again for this wonderful update

Next time don't quote the whole update to comment ok

do4luv14:



Next time don't quote the whole update to comment ok

tell that to seun who created that feature

Abdulreheem:
tell that to seun who created that feature

Seems you are new here and proving stubborn

Welcome back boss, you don't know how much I've missed this

nastynic:
Welcome back boss, you don't know how much I've missed this

Thanks my longtime nairaland friend. It was my dad's funeral that put it on hold.

I want you guys to honestly rate this story on a scale of one to ten, and also tell me where I need to make a lot of improvements. Thanks.

Welcome back boss swears you're doing a really great job

Welcome back boss and this series is 10/10

johnwizey:
Welcome back boss and this series is 10/10

yungbanks:
Welcome back boss swears you're doing a really great job

Thanks.

8/10 my first comment. You are doing a greatjob.

I'm that person that can not give you full marks because nobody is perfect except God so manage am like that

ironkurtain:
I want you guys to honestly rate this story on a scale of one to ten, and also tell me where I need to make a lot of improvements. Thanks.

Being one of your longtime reader Right from book 1, I would had given it a perfect 10,
But that will means you need no improvement, and might even let you rest on it ,

I had seen and still seeing the mistakes you need to improve on Details, like using she, where a He should be, and vice versa,

I had noticed it from book 1, 2, and now it's in book 3 again, Anyways that's why we always need Editors right

so It's 9/10

do4luv14:




Being one of your longtime reader Right from book 1, I would had given it a perfect 10,
But that will means you need no improvement, and might even let you rest on it ,

I had seen and still seeing the mistakes you need to improve on Details, like using she, where a He should be, and vice versa,

I had noticed it from book 1, 2, and now it's in book 3 again, Anyways that's why we always need Editors right

so It's 9/10

My God! I might have to reread the entire book 3. Thanks for the notice.

Yh

Yes

Yh