Friday, 25th July
“You seem to be fond of red ties,” Diane said as she chewed a bubble gum, “Where did you get a name like that?”
“It’s a long story,” John replied, as he observed some of the statues in the garden where they walked adjacent to the lake.
“I am a girl, I love long stories!” she said as she seductively smiled and flaunt her body walking in front of him, in her peach dress, “You don’t seem to talk much, not like the first day!”
“Well, I didn’t know I’ll be tasked to look after you!” he replied.
“Protect me, you mean?” she said, smiling, “I think daddy’s plan is way beyond that!”
“He cares about you?” he said.
“Tell me about you, John!” she said.
“Hmm! What would you like to know?” he asked.
“I would love to know everything,” she turned and stood right in front of him, “Tell me, John! Tell me anything,” wetting her lips.
He opened his mouth to talk but stammered as he set his eyes on her peached-moist lips, “I don’t think this is the right place for that, I mean, right time-for uh...”
“Let’s go to your place then!” she said.
“What?” he responded.
“You heard me, John!” she said, “Don’t worry about nothing, the big old lion seems to like you. Baby, you don’t have any problem!” wrapping her arms around his neck, “I think you can get away with almost anything. Besides, I won’t tell on you!”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he said in a weak tone.
“My father hired you to protect me, right?” she asked.
“That’s right!” said John.
“If you want to keep your job and his trust then I say we do as I want, yeah?” she added, “I suggest you do whatever it takes to keep your job, John. Because the last time some clown didn’t let me have my way, daddy made sure he never lived to see the sunrise!”
“That’s a joke I presumed,” he said, “Tell me about it!”
“I’m an independent gal. But this sweet guy walked to me one night at the club, he told me he liked me. I kind of liked him too cause he looked a bit different compared to the other guys in my life, you know. Well, I told him if he really wants to go down he needs to understand that I’m a free gal, he said he didn’t care,” she bragged, “So, we started seeing each other and he kept sending me flowers, telling me he wanna marry me and all. Well, we dated for a couple of months and I began to fall for him, then on the day he proposed to me, we went clubbing that night and he caught me in the bathroom making out with the club owner, and he just...Lost control. I told him to calm down, but he wouldn’t listen so I slapped him like the dog that he was,” she puffed and popped the bubble gum, “He broke up with me right there in the club, could you believe that? How could he do that to me?”
“That’s all?” John inquired.
“No,” she replied, “I came back home that night crying, tore my dress and lied to daddy that he beat me up. So, daddy had him taken care of!”
John gently pushed her hands off his shoulders and grabbed her by the neck looking straight into her once beautiful yet innocent blue eyes, he watched her struggle for life as her pupils dilated. Diane tried to kick him on the groins but missed, she tried hard to loosen her tender neck from his grip as the muscles around her neck began to swell up. As he squeezed her throat from her last dying breath, he knew she had not only lost the last ounce of breath but the last ounce of purity in his eyes. John frightfully stared at the dying Diane as her neck snapped in his grasp.
One of the maids witnessed what happened, she screamed and was so frightened she could not move, her voice drew the attention of some of the guards.
John flung Diane’s body off, as her corpse landed on the lawn, he stood there and took a deep breath then started to walk towards the mansion. Three of the guards approached him not knowing what went down, John pulled out two pistols and fired at them without missing a shot, sending them to their knees as he walked pass the terrified maid.
John got into the mansion killing all the guards that came up against him, including a shocking Idris who hid behind a small bar in the pool room. He walked upstairs crashing the door to the Director’s bedroom.
“Podius Podrufio!” he shouted, “Time to go!”
“What...What happened, son?” said the scared old man as he managed to come out of the bathroom, where he was hiding, “Where’s Diane? Is she safe? I heard gun shots, son. I heard gun shots. Is my baby okay?”
“She’s dead, Podius,” said John, “Diane is dead, just like Martha. You may probably have to call the artist again!”
“What?” said the Director, “I don’t understand?”
John walked to him and seized him by the neck, and began hitting him. He pulled the Director out of the bedroom and kicked him.
“Son, what’s this all about?” asked the scared Director, “Did anybody make you an offer to do this?”
John shot the last guard that made it through the door as he pushed the Director down the stairs, then looked back to see the Director struggling to stand on his feet, he fired two shots at his legs and slapped the director with his pistol on reaching him, the old man went straight to the floor like a dry leaf from a dead tree. He then grabbed the Director by the collar and dragged him into the room where the big painting of Martha hung.
John walked to the painting, stared at it for a few seconds, spat on it then pulled out a lighter from his pocket and set the painting ablaze.
“What have you done?” cried the Director, “What are you doing? Oh, Martha!”
“Nothing, Podius, nothing!” John replied.
“Who are you?” the Director asked faintly, “Who do you work for?”
“On this job?” responded John, “Let’s just say it’s a token of my favour returned, Podius!” as he walked to the Director, he pulled out a photo and flung it at the Director’s chest “Do you recognise the person in that photograph?”
“I can’t freaking see without my glasses!” the Director cried, “Oh Diane! What have you done, son? Whatever the feud, why didn’t you just kill me at the office and settle it there?”
“It’s gotta to be the heart, Podius” John replied, “It’s gotta be where it’ll hurt you the most, old man!”
John looked around and saw one of the Director’s reading glasses on the artefact table below the burning painting. He walked to it, “I can’t get it, old man! I don’t like the sight of your wife!” he picked the glasses anyway then returned to the Director who was still bleeding from the wounds in his legs.
“You son of a whore,” cried the trembling old man, “and I thought one day we would invite you over for a dinner, so you would tell us how you got that name! I guess the jokes on me now!” he coughed.
“I actually looked forward to that dinner too, Podius,” John said, “But your precious daughter wasted the lifelines you two had left with her big mouth!”
“What are you talking about, son?” said the Director in pain, “Hand me the freaking glasses! Oh, Diane. Baby, I’m so sorry I brought this on you!” he wept as he tried to have a good look at the photo John threw at him.
John unknot his red tie, threw the glasses away then strangled the Director with the tie, “You won’t need it where you are going!”
The Director struggled for his life looking at John in the eyes, he put up a fight for a while then suddenly gave a final twitch.
Minutes later, John got out of the mansion and into the Black SUV. He adjusted the rear view mirror to have a good look at his own face. He then gently used his left hand to pull off the synthetic mask he was wearing and laid it on the passenger’s seat along with the photo he gave the old man, then used a handkerchief to wipe his face and neck.
John pulled out his cell phone and switched it on. He started the car, while the engine steamed up, messages began to storm into his phone but he ignored them as he kept staring at his face in the mirror. A call came through, John sighed, smiled and picked it.
“Hey Angel,” he said.
“You’re so full of crap, JD. Do you know that?” said a female voice over the phone, “Where the hell have you been?”
“Had to go take care of some business, Jessica!” he said, “Do you miss me?”
“No! I don’t,” she responded.
“Come on, baby, admit it,” he teased, “Confess.”
“Okay, I do miss you,” she said, “But gosh, do you know how many big contracts we have missed? Urgh! JD, I was saving money to get that yacht I told you about, now I called and the idiot told me he sold it. Could you believe that? It’s-all-your-fault!”
“Don’t worry, we will get you another one!” he said, “Calm down, Jes!”
“I sent you an email this morning,” she said, “Check it and if it’s a green, Target’s location is Nairobi, Kenya. You’ll find all necessary details in there. If you do this for us, at least it’ll help me pay for another yacht with my own cut!”
“You know what?” he said, “How about I give you a present for saying you missed me; I will give you ninety percent of my cut from this contract! Deal?”
“Oh my God, seriously?” she said excitedly, “Is this for real JD?”
“As real as Death can be, Jes!” he said.
“You’re a darling!” she replied, “I’m already swimming in dollars! Dollars! Dollars!” she rapped excitedly.