Stephnie's tears kept dropping to the floor. She still cannot believe what’s going on. “God, what is going on around us?” Stephnie whispered as she walked away unconsciously dragging Terry along.
Her head was heavy, her eyes clouding with the sprayed incense, and she immediately felt her left leg bone extremely light. She felt it swinging in the air. Her hair ruffled, her limbs frozen, but still conscious.
Ohman and his crew started working on Mike. They drew a liter of blood from his throat region carefully. They cut off a vital organ as ordered by Cruizerdin, after which they sang their Zuslic anthem, with a strong passion.
“…our oath remains strong, covenant unbroken, brotherly love we share in wealth and health, bloodshed in good faith, billionaires we are, poverty will abhor, wealth our possession as the covenant stands in honor…”
A few minutes later, they were done and started marching out. As soon as Stephnie heard the sound of their feet, she knew they were walking out of the sitting room. She struggled to recover quickly.
Intercepting Ohman, she challenged him, “What is the meaning of this, Ohman? I demand to know right here and now!”
Ohman removed the eyeglass that had made him look evil in appearance a few minutes ago, “Yes woman, you have the right to know. The Zus needs Mike’s portion, and we have done just that, and sorry he never told you. That is the rule. I’m just apologizing on his behalf. He was one of us, and by the way, did he remember to plug Terry, I mean was he initiated?”
Stephnie recalled what Mike said, “These things you see may be lost soon. I didn’t fix the plug on Terry. He is still a kid, I want him alive, and you will remember when the time comes…”
She knew Mike never did. She held onto Ohman, and shouted, “I don’t understand what you are talking about. You murdered him, right? You are evil, how could you Ohman! Gush, this world is full of hurts, best friends suddenly become worst enemies, and incredible things start happening mysteriously.” She was in tears now, Ohman could not, but held her closer to himself, “it is okay Mrs. Dickson, life is hurt and hurt is life. The world is full of the insatiable; don’t feel bad—it is a price. He had paid it already, and he paid it in a grand style, so—besides, if Terry was plugged his wealth will stay. Things will just go on as normal, not even the absence of Mike will make any tangible change if Terry was plugged in. Time will tell Mrs. Dickson, only time will tell.” He nodded his head sadly and walked away quickly to meet up with the fast pace of the Sixteszo, who were already making their exit out of Mike’s compound.
Stephnie walked cautiously to where Mike sat but was surprised to meet him on the floor with his hands at his side.
What did they do to him?
She saw the dinner table close to him. She pondered for a while as she stared at the table, and saw drops of bloodstains, and what looked like a green substance. She wasn’t so sure what it was.
They must have used the table.
Was Mike placed on top?
It seemed like it, her mind was working fast as the words of Ohman Chrest crawled in slowly, “sorry woman, you don’t have to see this, you have to excuse us, take your security men out with you, and this is strictly confidential. I will explain later.”
“But he never did.” She whispered to herself. Her brain starts working again, and finally, it clicked.
They used the table, they placed him on it, and they did what?
What did they do…strictly confidential?
She shifted her eyes quickly again to Mike on the floor.
Suddenly, tension crept into her. She placed her hands on her breasts as fears pumped into her heart, then through her anus. She jumped up like a madwoman and screamed. She started crying out loud. Sweating profusely this time, her feet hit hard on the floor, and her eyes anguished.
The way she felt now was crazy. She knew a lot had happened during this little space of time, and Ohman was the evil one that had supervised everything.
He had warned Mike about him, but never knew they were birds of the same feathers.
Who lured the other into evil?
Ohman did, she thought, but still not sure. She can’t figure it out—
It all began when Mike's desire for wealth blew out of proportion, and he wanted to be a billionaire, and Ohman was right there to show him the door, the door that leads to wealth without limit. He was lured, and it was Ohman that lure him. Her thoughts in her mind were flogging each other now but stopped when she saw Landus and then Paul.
Landus and Paul ran into the sitting room when they heard a cry of Stephnie. They were terrified to see Mike on the floor. They knew he was on the chair minutes ago.
How did he get there?
They could not comprehend what transpired. The mysterious appearance of the men in black was a shock to them. There was this warm breeze that came in with them.
The air was filled with a captivating perfume more like burning incense mixed with ingredients too strong to inhale.
Their voices were metallic as they sang their ritual songs.
Landus knew they lost their senses as soon as the men on black walked in, and they never knew when they finished their operation and departed. They only became conscious of themselves when they heard Stephnie scream, and cried out loud.
They hurried into the sitting room, and meet her lying on Mike’s dead body.
They struggled to pull her away. And as they watched Mike’s dead body, they knew the men in black showed no mercy when they cut off his vital part.
Terry saw them. He wasn’t sure what they were doing. His eyes were only filled with strange pictures—pictures of his father’s death.
The cloud was getting dark now, and it appeared it was going to rain. Doctor Lens was driving faster through various shortcuts, he could remember. He knew he must get to Mike’s house quickly. It was obvious; he was not comfortable with the strange noise he heard in Dickson’s house a couple of minutes ago.
The traffic had been his major obstacle. And as he stared at his wristwatch, he was sure, he will be there soon.
The screaming of Stephnie was all coming back to him as he drove.
What was she trying to tell him?
Could there have been an attack?
As his thought engaged, he never knew when he made several bends in quick succession with a crashing noise on the tarred road that got the attention of passers-by.
He has been the family Doctor to the Dicksons for about two years now. He knew Mike was such a nice guy with a good disposition. He also knew he was getting emaciated lately.
He had conducted several tests on himself and all tests were negative. He still remembered telling Mike, “rest Mike, you need rest, I think you have been too busy, this money thing is getting you all worked up, break your tight schedule and rest, that will do you some good.”
Several minutes later, as he drove into Mike’s compound, he saw the entrance gate open, and that was very strange. And he also discovered that the security men were not on their duty post either.
A chill breeze swept past him. He was scared and wanted to go back, but knew he had come a long way to at least know what Stephnie’s scream was all about. He knew something must be wrong somewhere, and that the scream of Stephnie couldn’t have been intentional.
He walked straight into the house. He could smell strange choking perfume. He noticed that the entranced door to the sitting room was wide open and that almost made him urinate on his pant.
What? Mike never allow this, perhaps—
As his thought strained, another thought of running out sprang up strongly within him again. He can’t imagine dying this early in life.
What will happen to Dorly and Jessy?
Who will cater to them?
And as the urge to go back swelled within, Stephnie's scream on the phone minutes ago made him stay back. He changed his mind, he walked on. This time, cautiously, he left all doors behind him open the way he meant them.
As he walked further into the large sitting room that was masterly designed, he saw a lifeless body on the floor.
Now, what he wasn’t so sure of was who was on the floor. The body can’t be Mike’s. He was with him this morning, and his health was above average, and that wouldn’t have been enough to take his life. He increased his steps quickly as he saw Landus and Paul holding unto Stephnie far off. They appeared to be pulling her away from the dead body on the floor. As he approached the lifeless body, he knew it was Mike’s body.
Is Mike dead?
He was putting on the same shirt, and pair of trousers, he came with to the hospital a few hours ago.
Mike can’t be dead, is it a dream? Or—
He whispered nervously. His question was like a bang on his head.
Stephnie on seeing Doctor Lens ran and held his shirt firmly. So tight, her grip almost got Doctor Lens gasping for breath. Doctor Lens managed to soften her firm grip on him and stared at her sobbing face that was almost turning pale.
“It is okay Mrs. Dickson, was it an attack by arm robbers? How did it happen? Come on talk to me.” Stephnie was still in tears, crying out loudly.
A few minutes later, she started sobbing uncontrollably and stammering as she spoke, “I—I—d—do not know Doctor Lens, I—I’m confused. That is Mike’s body. A few hours ago before his death, we were just talking, and I noticed he was a little weak, and as I started calling you. I noticed that his appearance changed, and I thought—” she started crying again, “I thought he was kidding, but Mike had never been a joker. I touched him, he was cold and—”
Doctor Lens held her to himself, “calm down Mrs. Dickson, I will examine him right away perhaps I’ll be able to figure out what happened, okay.”
He put on a weak smile as he walked quietly to Mike’s lifeless body on the floor. He touched his heart region trying to feel his heartbeats afterward his pulse. He noticed his body was stiff. He tried hard to calculate the time Stephnie called and now. He figured out it wasn’t more than two hours and perhaps not enough to make Mike’s body stiffen. He noticed bloodstain on the floor and wondered how the blood came about.
As he examined him more closely, he discovered a cut by the side of Mike’s throat. The cut was expertly done. It would have been extremely difficult for an inexperienced Doctor to detect it.
He examined the cut more carefully, and then demanded a white cloth which he used to cover Mike’s body on the floor. As his thought shot wild, he still finds it difficult to believe that Mike was dead.
Standing up terrified, and struggling so hard to control his emotion, he withdrew back quietly.
Mike’s death will be a great loss. He had been with him this morning, and how it all happened will for a long time remain a mystery to him. It can’t possibly be Stephnie.
Was there a fight?
No, it can’t possibly be. He answered himself quietly.
He tried to search his brain for what may have transpired. And as soon as he knew his brain search was failing him, he turned around and looked at Stephnie, “how did this happen, I mean this whole thing?” He pointed to Mike’s lifeless body on the floor, forgetting he has asked the same question before.