by Nana Prah
“I got my bachelor’s in philosophy. At one point, my greatest desire was to understand people.”
“And how did that work out for you?”
“I’ve learned it’s an impossibility.”
Jasmine became somber. “We’re too messed up to understand.”
Their pizza arrived filling the air with its tantalizing aroma.
Sean looked at her as she pulled a slice of the hot cheesy pizza away after a bite. The cheese got everywhere. She wiped it off with her napkin.
He reached over and rubbed his thumb slowly from the corner of her mouth to her chin and back before forcing himself to remove his hand.
She licked her lips. “Did I have cheese on my chin?”
“No.” I just had to touch you.
She took a sip of water.
They chatted throughout the meal about their families and current events.
“Are you going into law so you can take care of the family business?”
“I’m not cut out for business and my parents know it. I’m an only child, but I have cousins who have more of an interest.” His paternal grandfather had invented some kind of tool back in the ’seventies that made him financially independent.
Jasmine dominated the conversation with her questions. “Where was your favorite country to visit?”
“I don’t have one. Each place was unique in its own way and I learned from them all.”
“Yeah, but where did you enjoy the most?”
He tapped his fingers on the table as he contemplated the question. “I think I would have to say Ghana. When I toured the Cape Coast Castle and experienced how the slaves were treated, it brought a sorrow over me that I still feel on occasion.”
“That doesn’t sound enjoyable.”
“No, the good part was remembering how far we’ve come since then and experiencing the people of the country, knowing that some may have been related to me. The land is beautiful and the people are even more so.”
“Sounds nice. I’d love to go there one day.”
She regaled him with some of her family’s funnier stories and they laughed throughout the rest of meal. Before they knew it, they’d finished their shared chocolate cheesecake.
She looked at her watch. “Oh my goodness, it’s ten. Wow.”
“Time sure does fly when you’re having fun.”
“Yeah.”
He signaled the waiter for the check. “I’ll pay half,” Jasmine offered when the bill arrived
“That’s okay. I asked you out so I’ll pay.”
“If I’d invited you, would I have paid?” she asked with a little raise of her eyebrow and mischief in her voice.
“Of course not, I would still pay. Why? Were you thinking of asking me out?”
“I didn’t have to because you beat me to it.”
“You didn’t answer the question.”
“I’m stuffed.” She patted her stomach. “Thanks for the food. It was wonderful.”
“You’re not slick, Jasmine, but I’ll let you off the hook this time.”
“Such a gentleman. Let’s go.”
She stood and gathered her jacket and bag. As they headed for the door, he placed his hand on her lower back and felt her shiver.
“Where’s your car?” he asked when they’d gotten outside.
She pointed to the left. “I parked over there.”
“I had a really great time. Thanks for dinner,” she said.
“Me too.” This time he didn’t need to dredge up any courage. “What are you doing tomorrow?”
“Not much planned. It’s my relaxation day. I go to church and then come home and chill.”
“Sounds nice. I have a paper due this week, but I was wondering if--”
She held up a hand and rushed to open her door. “I’ve got to get going.”
He’d seen that startled look on her face before. “What’s wrong?”
“My parents are out at a party, and I want to pass by their house to make sure everything is okay.” Her words were slightly rushed as she dug in her bag for her car keys.
“Is it a general check or is your intuition acting up again.”
She appeared calm yet emitted an undercurrent of anxiety. “It’s the latter.”
“Do you mind if I go with you?” he said as he rounded to the other side of the car. “You know, just to keep you out of trouble.”
She slipped behind the wheel and unlocked the doors so he could open his. “I’m praying there won’t be any, but you can tag along.”
Chapter 6
Jasmine handed him her phone. “Can you please call my dad’s cell?”
“No problem. I suppose he’s listed under Dad right?”
Jasmine gave a curt nod and waited for a response as she drove toward her parents’ house on Lincoln Avenue.
“It’s busy.”
“Call Ed and have him get to our parents’ house, but to park down the street.”
He did. “Ed said he’ll be there in three minutes. He’s hanging out at a bar that isn’t too far away.”
Sean tried again and got through to her father. The tension in her shoulders seeped out, knowing they were fine.
She rolled past the house, observing that both the inside and outside were dark, and parked down the street at about the same time as her brother arrived. After retrieving the tire iron from the trunk, she raised it in the air as a silent indicator for Ed to get his own. He nodded and went to his trunk.
Jasmine handed the tire iron to Sean and proceeded to Ed’s car. “Mom and Dad are still at the Hillsen’s party. Dad insisted on coming back to the house.”
Ed nodded. “What’s going on?”
She thumped her chest with her fist. “Bad feeling.” Nothing else needed to be said for Ed to understand. “The house is dark.”
“Mom and Dad always leave a light on in the living room and the front porch when they go out,” Ed said in response to Sean’s confused expression.
She turned to Sean. “Either someone’s in the house or has been in it.”
Sean shook his head. “Couldn’t they have forgotten to turn the lights on before they left?”
Jasmine studied the house, trying to detect if anything else was out of the ordinary, but they were too far away for her to notice any details. “It would’ve been possible if I didn’t have this feeling that something was wrong.”
Sean took out his phone. “I’m calling the police.”
Jasmine clasped his hand. “We’ve been down this road before with them. They tend to be skeptical when I tell them I have a hunch, and it wastes precious time,” she replied. She turned to Ed. “Are you ready?”
“Yeah,” Ed said, brandishing his tire iron.
“We’ll go in the back way. If someone’s in the house, they’ll be expecting us from the front.”
Sean raised a hand. “This is ridiculous. I think we should call the police. What if they have weapons? Let’s let the police handle it.”
“Go ahead and give them a laugh if you want. It would be better if you stayed out here,” Jasmine told him and stalked away.
Sean followed. “No way! Who’s going to protect you?”
Ed gave a low chuckle.
“I can take care of myself.” Jasmine should’ve known better than to let him join her when they were outside the restaurant. Now her concern for his safety had her considering doing the unthinkable. Calling the police. Which would be futile. Prior experience told her that they wouldn’t believe her, so she’d have to take matters into her own hands.
Sean tried to give her the tire iron. “Won’t you need this?”
She gave it a cursory glance while Ed laughed again.
They walked around the block to the back of the house and scaled the low-lying fence. Jasmine tried the door handle and found it unlocked. She looked at Ed and he shrugged.
Adrenaline pulsed through her system, heightening her senses. She prayed her instincts were wrong. Doubtful. “Stay together,” she whispered.
; She assumed a low crouch and led them in. She saw nothing out of the ordinary in the dark kitchen. As her heart raced, she indicated for Ed to try the basement door to the left. Locked.
Her thighs burned as they proceeded around the corner to the living room. At the entryway she peeped around the corner. A sliver of moonlight shone through the bay window outlining four shadowy figures spread throughout the room.
She signaled to her brother and Sean to turn. Time to get out and call the cops now that they’d had proof.
Sean, unaccustomed to the nuances of the house, knocked over the umbrella stand when he bumped into it. They froze.
“What was that?”
“I’ll check it out.”
To run or fight? Jasmine’s adrenalin told her to kick some ass, but she feared for Sean. She pushed him into the kitchen, hurried to brace her back against the wall, and waited. As the thug rushed into the room, she swung her clasped hands into his midsection. With a grunt, he slumped over and Jasmine drove an elbow down into his back.
Creating the needed space with a quick jump backward, she delivered a solid front kick to his ribs, crashing him into the opposite wall before tumbling down. That should keep him out for a while.
Ed ran to her side, bent, and did a quick sweep of the guy’s pockets. “No gun.”
“Good.” Then she stormed into the living room straight for the biggest guy, knowing Ed would follow. As for Sean, she sent up a prayer.
She forced herself to keep her breathing even as her mind raced with possible fighting strategies. Not bothering to get within arm-striking range, she ran at her opponent and delivered a flying kick to his sternum, slamming him into the wall. Jasmine deluged him with rapid-fire kicks to the knee, groin, abdomen, and head before he slumped to the ground. Her nostrils flared as she scanned the room.
From the corner of her eye, the glint of a knife registered as the guy she’d taken care of in the hallway dashed toward her. She rotated in time to block his swinging arm with both of hers, barely stopping the knife from gutting her.
Grabbing his wrist to keep the knife out of play, she struck him hard in the throat. Bending his arm so his elbow pointed upward and the knife no longer posed a threat, she yanked him backward until he hit the ground. Snatching the weapon, she raised her leg straight into the air and drove her heel into his chest.
She flipped him onto his stomach and ground her knee into his back while grabbing both of his hands.
Sweat streamed down her face as she noticed that Ed also held his guy in an unmoving heap on the floor.
The guy fighting Sean was shorter but more muscular than the first guy she’d taken down. “Damn.” She leapt off her thug and ran over to Sean being choked on the couch.
The bastard released his hold on Sean when she threw a front kick to the side of his knee.
Jasmine’s speed lay in her hands, but her power came from her legs. She kicked him in the chest when he turned her way, forcing him to stumble backward. A quick step brought her close enough to strike his nose with the base of her palm, which she followed up with a rigid hand strike to his temple.
Blood splattered from his nose. This didn’t deter her from coming around the side of him, grabbing his jacket, and sweeping him onto the floor. He hit the hardwood floor hard, as if from a free fall.
“Are you all right?” Her adrenaline had carried her to another level making her sound harsher than she’d meant to.
Sean held his hand to his throat as he nodded.
“Turn him over and hold him down until we can get him tied up. Now you can call the police,” she barked. She stalked to where Ed had bound the other guys. “Assholes!” she hissed, her anger volatile.
Ed had turned on the lights and she could see the situation clearly.
“Are any of them strapped?”
“No, I guess they thought they could come in here and take out the folks with minimal effort.” He reached out and touched her right arm. “Jas, you’re bleeding.”
She looked down, saw the minor wound, and waved it off. She hadn’t even felt the slice of the knife. Shaking her head in disgust, she held herself back from slamming the bastards’ heads into the floor. “They could’ve done some major damage to them. Dad’s no weakling, but he wouldn’t have been able to take out all four.”
Ed gave Sean a cord so he could tie his guy up. “Mom would have fought like a banshee, but she wouldn’t have had a chance with these guys. Dammit!”
She rubbed her hands over her face. “Did you find out who they are?”
Ed shook his head. “No ID on any of them. Big surprise there. There’s only one guy who’s conscious and he’s not talking.”
“We’ll see about that!” She marched over to the only one moaning and crouched down near his head. “This isn’t a simple burglary. You were waiting for my parents. Who sent you?”
“Go to hell, bitch.”
“You see.” She stood and kicked him in the ribs. “I tried to be nice, you piece of crap!”
He cried out with a string of cuss words.
She drove her knee into his lower back and took his left hand in her own. Placing her thumbs between the bones on the back of his hand, she applied a minute amount of pressure. He whimpered. “I’ll break your wrist, asshole!” She applied more pressure. “Who sent you?”
He groaned, but kept his mouth shut. She gave a quick twist and a loud snap ricocheted through the still night air. His screams as he attempted to writhe in pain had no effect on her. “The other wrist is next, and once I’ve broken it, I’ll make sure you never walk without a limp again. Who sent you?”
“He called himself Venge,” he said through clenched teeth.
Jasmine ignored his anguished cries as she exerted pressure on his other hand. “What’s his real name and what did he look like?”
“I don’t know,” he said between sobs. “I never met him. I only spoke to him on the phone. He offered us money to come rough up this couple and make it look like a burglary, but we weren’t supposed to kill nobody.”
“Did he tell you why he wanted them beaten?”
“None of my business. Pay me and I’m in,” he groaned.
“When?”
“Last week.”
She stood up and left him to cry. “Did you hear him?”
“Every word. Do you know a Venge?” Ed asked. “What kind of name is that?”
Jasmine shook her head. “A weak one for a gangster, if that’s what he is. I don’t know any Venge. Hell, I don’t know anyone who would want to hurt Mom and Dad.”
“Me neither.” Ed rubbed his chin as he shook his head. “Damn, Sis, sometimes I forget about your ferocity. Did you have to break his wrist?”
Jasmine glared at him. “Was he answering my questions? Would they have been merciful to Mom and Dad? They came here to beat our parents down,” she snapped. The guilt would come later, once the adrenaline and rage wore off.
“Damn,” he repeated.
She glanced at Sean sitting on the couch with his head in his hands. She couldn’t know for certain what he was thinking, but she had a pretty good idea. Even through her angry haze she had the urge to comfort him. She resisted, knowing she’d be rebuffed if she touched him. Comfort would come later.
Damn it! I knew I should’ve left him at the restaurant. She pivoted to Edward. “Do you think the same Venge could’ve pushed Carly off the cliff in Stowe. Or had her pushed?”
“It’s possible, but I don’t see the connection. Carly can be bossy and aggressive, but not enough for someone to want to hurt or even kill her. And Mom and Dad are good people. It doesn’t make sense.” Ed looked around the room at the carnage they’d created with bodies strewn all over. “If it had been you, I wouldn’t be as surprised. You’ve made a few enemies in your lifetime. Of course, they all deserved what they got, but perspectives can get warped.”
She nodded with total understanding. “I don’t like it.”
“Me neither. We just have to keep our eyes open.
Hopefully there’ll be no more attacks or accidents.”
“Yeah, but I’d feel better if I knew who was behind this.” Something in her gut told her they had more to fear.
As they waited for the police, Jasmine spent the time thinking and pacing as she avoided looking at Sean. She had no desire to witness the mixture of horror and disbelief in his face. The same look she’d recognize in the mirror after she calmed down.
When the cops arrived, Ed, Sean, and Jasmine gave their individual reports. Three of the assailants were carried away by ambulance.
When their parents came home, fifteen minutes after the police’s arrival, she and Ed explained what had happened. By that time, Jasmine had cleaned and bandaged her injured arm. Neither her father nor mother had any idea who Venge was.
“You should’ve seen her,” Ed said, while imitating some karate moves. “Jas was amazing. Kicks and punches with huge men sliding all over the floor.”
Jasmine’s mom rubbed her back. “I’m sure she was. You saved our lives. Thank you, baby.”
Her father gathered her up in his arms and held her close. “You know you should’ve called the police to handle this.” His voice was void of any severity, but she still felt its sting.
Jasmine held onto her father. “But we did.”
“No, I mean before you came into the house. It was a dangerous thing you did. They could’ve been armed.”
She had no response for her father. Jasmine knew in her heart she’d done the right thing and felt no need to defend herself. From the shelter of her father’s arms, knowing she looked innocent and maybe even cute, she dared to glance at Sean. A slight wave of dizziness hit her and she leaned into her father.
Sorrow at the loss of what they could’ve had weighed her down. She strengthened her voice to say, “I drove Sean here. Ed, do you mind taking him back to his car? I’m going to spend the weekend with Mom and Dad until they can get a security system installed on Monday.”
“No problem.” Ed hugged his parents. Then he squeezed Jasmine so tightly it lifted her off the ground.
“Put me down, SB,” she said, laughing.
“You did good,” he whispered. “I’m proud of you. I’d follow you into any battle, any day, anywhere.”