The next day, while suffering through the bad conditions of the roads, whether they be the dirt or the pitfalls, Lucas couldn't help but think about all he had been through during the last period as he was closing in on his home.
First, he had been posted in the coalition army fighting against terror in the Sahel. While he had had some close calls, with some bullets passing closer than the others, he managed to stay alive and not lose any limb. And when his shift in the desert was almost over, there just had to be a f*cker produced through nepotism that basically caused his death.
Don't be fooled by the way he rationally took in his changes, having even taken the opportunity to make some money with his improved capabilities on his way home. He had his reasons for not crazily clinging to life when he had been dying.
And now, the only reason he was not reeking bitterness and resentment was one, he managed to survive against all odds and two, he needed to fight to keep living so he was pressed for time and couldn't care less about pursuing an inconsequential pleasure of little to no relevance.
What's more, he was still struggling to understand the whole weight of the opportunity he got and its proportions and more importantly, he longed to survive to enjoy it.
Because he knew, just one instance of what he would coin for now as "baptism", made him lose more than 20 kg of weight, allowed him to go through the biggest desert of the world unbothered by the sun, the temperature, the weariness and the lack of supply and allowed him to decimate a town of about 70 hostiles and come out unscathed even if he needed his brain for the later.
Who wouldn't want to be special? Even life seemed more vibrant and less dull.
Remembering an earlier comment he made before attacking the town, he could not help but chuckle inwardly: 'I think, no, I'm certain that I am now better than those nineties action movies MC.'
After being guided through the border, he could not help but let out sigh full of frustration and weariness:
"It really wasn't easy bribing my way back. It was already difficult enough to find the good (corrupted) people, there always had to be some who were too greedy for their own good, needing some help to recognize their position as simple vermins only needed to smoothen some parts of the world."
Shaking his head, he chose one of the better looking taxis, lamenting at how things had not really changed in this still developing country he called home.
The urban planning still had traces of the colonial period in the most parts and since those slave drivers didn't have the best interests of the colonized country at heart, you could imagine the amount of effort or lack thereof they put in in the job.
Even now, since they had many ways to keep the country down and keep exploiting it, it stood to reason that the latter was having troubles becoming better.
After putting his things on the back seat where he could see them, he asked to be taken to a hostel near the airport. To make things more convincing, he put some accent in the French he was speaking, making him feel funny inwardly.
Taking one of the better roads in the capital that could accommodate four medium sized vehicles, the driver that seemed to originate from the north of the country according to his facial features and accent, this time probably natural, tried to strike a conversation with him, the bearded stranger.
Since he was feeling a bit anxious, mostly about the reactions of his family given the results of some of the research he made, he did not ignore him and sparsely answered while looking at the sea that was visible from afar on his right.
He strongly hoped that, since he had to search for quite some time and purposely at that to get the results, his family would still be unaware.
The car took a turn to the left then, a few minutes later, to the right. Because it was not the rush hour, the ride was smooth, if you ignore the rare few pits on the road.
Before taking the turn to leave the center of the city and go toward the airport, he saw his old high-school on the left.
Reminiscing about those times there, he smiled a little. They used to find it stressful and complain and they used to fear the stern teachers who for the most part only wanted the best for them, which was quite funny. Compared to society and the troubles of adulthood, those times were quite carefree.
Sighing a little, he stopped thinking to give his heart and brain a rest after this period of stress. Really, since waking up, he had been thinking about his changes, how to stay alive going forward, how to complete the job he took, how to stealthily come back, how would his family react to his return and how not to leave any track that could later put them in danger.
'Sigh...'
Less than fifteen minutes later, the smiling driver that had been sensible enough to stop chattering pulled up beside a building.
It was a little big, about one thousand square meters with two floors above the ground floor and a cemented courtyard in front. Looking at it, it reminded him of a similar hostel his family and he lived in during one of his high-school vacations after being thrown out of the paternal family house with some flimsy excuses.
Remembering those difficult times made a fire burn in his chest. Those uncles and aunts were lucky that he stopped caring about them.
Taking a deep breath, he looked around, letting his gaze linger a little on the noisy airport some distance away before paying the driver with a nice tip, taking his belongings and stepping toward the place that would be his lodging for his stay here with a lonely back.