I woke up in Ruby's room upstairs, feeling soar and aching all over, the gravity of last night's events pressing on me down on the soft matress.
Wrapped in my arms was the black evening dress Ruby did been wearing the day before.
Impulsively I pressed it to my face and inhale deeply, luxuriating in the lingering essence that was uniquely hers and hers alone.
I sat up slowly, bracing myself for the perpetual migraine to drop its sledge hammer, especially on mornings such as this.
But it never came. On the contrary, I feel somewhat elated as though an alien has been exorcise from within me.
I am not sorry for my actions or the consequences there off. Given the opportunity, I will perform the gruesome deed all over again with the devilish zest of a ghetto scum that I am.
No police, that I am sure. Lycan heights has its own laws, more like an order. they have different ways of reprimand.
What is the punishment for pounding two Lycan princes an inch to their last breath?
I hit the shower, and soak my body in the cold bath for 10minutes. dried my self and put some clothes on.
in the drawer, I found the .38revolver and wedge it between my waist line. I will need that no than ever.
I was about to walk out but got curious about my secret room through the shower.
Perhaps Ruby found out about it, or D'mick or anybody else.
It is not a secret room anymore. I was compelled to step back into the shower to open the door. perhaps, a good read will clear my mind.
I turned the shower nob beyond the locking limit, but didn't hear the click sound. which means it's already opened.
pushing the tile wall which was actually the door to the secret room, it gave way without any resistance, and I stepped in.
It was dark except on the desk where a light from a phone screen illumines the face of the man staring at me with a wicked grin on his mercurial face.
"what a collection you have here kuga. I did spend all morning reading Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu," he said mischievously.
"you are a long way from home Nka, to what do I owe the honor?"
rolling a spliff now with eyes still resting on me he said coolly;
"hell of a night you had the day before? I did been watching the video all night. What a grand spectacle.
Mad fury jaded by a vengeful lust. And the blood, oozing in goblins. How my loins quiver for an anchor?
But the finale never came did it kuga? Why start something you can't finish? Now you got the bastards off the hook, ruining years of strategical planning?"
"you do what you got to do Nka, and let me handle things my way."
"your way stinks kuga," he roared without emotions. then, lighted the spliff and draw sea blue smoke into his lungs as I switch on the light and AC.
I approached the bed in three strides. Nka turns his chair from the desk to face me. "your way," he scoffs dismisfuly with a wave of his hand. The bed felt warm, like it did been slept on.
as though reading my mind, he said;
"yes, I came in an hour before you came in yester night. I used this room sometimes just to be close to her without causing her any panic." He said easily….
"well, Ruby is not here anymore. Why did you come here yesterday?"
"I knew you did be expecting me kuga. You were scared to the point of numbness. Oh kuga, when I saw the video, I concluded you will need my help to get out of your folly all over again.
Your way can't function in this terrain kuga. We reason and stalk the prey till its ripe for the taking.
Mike played with your emotions to get you to act the way you do, because that's exactly where he wants you to be." He paused and draw on the spicy smoke again."
"well, you can keep your terrain to yourself, I don't need your help. Reason with your guns, Nka.
I will reason with my fist any day. we can't inflict pain on a dead body, can we?"
"if you were an apache, you probably would've earned a name like 'talk with fist'. You can't get it any realer than that.
You see how logical even savages can be? Perhaps the acumen of a savage not only lies in the act of savagery, but the way the act is performed.
Time and place variance kuga,". Sniggering after a long pause, and relighting the herb again, and taking a puff…
he continued, "I am privy to the whole footage. I saw mike taunts before you flip off, what did he say?"
"why not riddle that one out with your thrifty sagacious mind? What can cause a man to explode in that much violence, eh Nka?"
"perhaps an affront to your honor, or the honor of that which you hold dear," he answered shrewdly.
"you don't expect an answer from me then."
"not in the least kuga. But honor is yours by the asking."
"I am honored indeed. But none of this explains why you sneaked into my house."
"a house where my daughter lives. I had to make sure she was okay, but as it turned out, she was so scared even to follow you back here.
Now I guess she fears you more than she will ever fear D'mick,"
" you seem to be having lots of fun with all this?"
"oh kuga, kuga, why do you think am here if not for the fun of it. as you will come to know how salacious deliverance taste, especially when is about saving a man you want in your debt."
"so this is what it's all about?"
"this is what it's all about… we can turn you over to the law, and believe me, there is no lawyer out there to get you off the hook.
Or we can sit back and let the brothers come after you with everything they got. Either way you are screwed kuga."
He chuckled calmly as though telling five year old a bedtime story.
"name your price, Nka."
"first let's talk about how we can turn this into an advantage, perhaps another grand opportunity for all of us."
"what are you suggesting?"
"run the clubs, make things right. You made a right candidate yester night in safari. Few underdogs will want to missed with a guy like you.
thus your brutal escapade in the videos can be used to get you off the hook in our circle.
We want a club baron our competitors will fear kuga. On that level, Mike and D'mick will back off, probably choke in their own vengeance," he said and draw breath, looking up the ceiling through the reading glasses he did been wearing all this while.
"I thought you have your own laws, and don't deal with laws of the state?" I tested.
"how can we govern without the state, kuga? We have ways of dealing with our kind, yes.
but not an outsider. We hand them over to the state to handle, and you are still hanging on the outside."
"if the world has evolved into a place where men have the power to make their own laws, don't you think I will want to live by some of my own?"
"here is a copy of the video footage. Watch it,"
Nka said, stood up and looked at me wirily, "it's all about survival kuga. It is a jungle. There is no law above this basic instinct of survival in the jungle of society.
I offered you a helping hand in your time of need to keep you under the shade. Off course, you own the rights of choice. You can dry yourself out in the sun, who cares."
"what exactly do you want from me Nka?". "I want your company kuga. A partnership maybe. 50% shares for a start wouldn't be bad."
I could see a smile in the glitter of the man's eyes behind the reading lenses as he said this.
A cunning triumphant impression beseech his facial features. Subtly, the expression turns meek as though it has never been there.
what is it about Wodmax that kept these folks hovering around it like vultures.
"it will be a revolution. your petty company, will evolve and tripple overnight. you will running it...."
"you need wodmax as a cover for your operations. Was Felix and Ziggy working for you or Lycan heights?"
"woo! I don't think you need an answer to that," he said irreverently, smiling with that same glitter in his predatory eyes.
I did been right about the man all along. This man is his own law. No order governs his actions. What is his relationship to Nebulous?
As though reading my mine, maybe he actually does, he asked silkily, almost in a whisper, "you want to ask whether he knows about this? No kuga. The ancient one is not aware. You see, not even him has that power."
"I have been right about you all this while."
"well, thank me for handing to you half of the pie even under this current circumstances."
"half of the pie," I couldn't help but scoff. "how can you give back to me a half of what I already have."
"stubborn, ninny mind of a wimp. it will life's in light years to make you grasp the situation.
Did you really read 'the book of the way' by Lao Tzu? I bet you did, hastily like fake book keeper....
I don't blame you. the subtle message in the book is not for scums, but the elite, the Lord's.
," he said, picking up the classic from the desk, and shake his sweating head in the could interior as he planted on me another piercing glance.
"you are just like your bull headed father, kuga." At this statement, I swinged free the revolver I did tuck under my waistline.
My movement was quick, but Nka was swifter.
It seems he never took any step before reaching to strangle me effortlessly by the neck.
hissing and chortling under his breath, he held me by the throat with one hand, while the other hand restrains my right hand from pulling the trigger.
Without yanking the gun free from my hand, he twisted it in an awkward angle, causing my fore finger and wrist to snapped and sprain at the joints.
The pain causes my eyes to melt in frustrated anger when he bore into them.
He was strong, abnormally strong for a man his size. my bulk and height was no much for his iron girth.
Fighting for breath, I hit him had with my free left hand. But he didn't budge as he pivoted
and slam my weight on to the wall next to the bed, crashing my larynx under his firm grip.
"you are a puppy kuga, my little puppy… just like your father before you. I killed him because he was pigheaded, just like you. you are ungrateful like your uncle, but not as cunning as Tarik, Felix, or Ziggy…
that's why I want you as my perfect puppy. A diligent puppy who at least knows his work. I like the way you play with the figures in the system.
But not even that can seduce me from the temptation to snap your neck right here, right now.
No this; you are still alive because of my little girl…"
he rasped like a crony suffering from throat cancer. Or maybe my constricted ears couldn't assimilate sound as my sense begun to dull.
All sense of logic flew from my mind. I feel helpless and ashamed at my lack of strength to fight this real monster.
I heard my self-whimper like a kitten, when he releases his hold a little. Any little struggle from me made him tighten his grip.
And Each successive one, push me to the brink of death. He is taunting me, toying with my life, he wants me to beg for my life.
"I will rather die Nka. do as you must. Because if I live, I will be the one to kill you some day."
At this he released me and laughed with the glee of an adventurer.
"I did like that very much. you are not the first to make such futile threats though." He giggled and stepped back from me.
"we have an understanding, then. You said someday, until that day comes, you work for me."
He walked to the door of the secret room and glance back at me as I sit on the bed robbing my hands on my bruised neck, gasping for breath.
"she saved you kuga. This time I did wanted to do the deed. But she saved you yet again," he said gravely, before storming out into the shower, and was gone as though merging with the wing.