He lunged at her, grabbed her by the throat, and choked her. A peace glazed over her eyes; she did not fight back. Instead, she closed her eyes, smiled, and let her body go limp. Faraji could not hold her body up in his condition, and they tumbled to the ground. He landed on top of her. I barely had my hand on the back of his shirt before his body came flying at me. Seraphim had used her feet to catapult him off of her. He flew into me and knocked me back on the table. A pain shot through my lower back that made my legs go weak for a moment. As soon as he was off, she sprung up and stood in a combat stance, ready to defend herself. I held Faraji’s shirt and pulled away from Seraphim. The pain would not let me hold on to him and the gun. I let him go.
“Tell me where the fuck you stashed her!” he demanded as he lunged towards her again.
Seraphim sidestepped him and pushed him in his side. She faced him and stayed focused. He turned around, but the pain in his side crippled him. He went down on one knee in pain.
“The warriors are in place, Femi. We are ready to defend the Opal to the death,” she spoke to me as she snapped back to reality and attention.
“Major, I need you to gather a team and search from top to bottom. Every inch, and leave no room unchecked. We have to find her,” I ordered.
“Yes, sir.” She pivoted on her heels and shot Faraji a sinister look as she walked out of the conference room.
-Kae-
It had been ten minutes since the clock stopped counting down. Femi was ready to play Russian roulette with his brother’s life. If that was what he wanted, let us play the game. It was apparent Faraji and Zaire underestimated me. I would take their heads the same.
“Hawk, you copy?”
“Go for Hawk, Miss Kae.”
“Blow the back of the roof. Wait on my word,” I ordered.
He spoke to the commander of those vans. The van lined up its sites on the target.
“Jacob, are you with me?”
“I’ll always be with you, my lovely,” he said in that boyish Irish accent.
“Cut the power to the Opal. Can you tap into that?”
“I can; it may take a minute. They have a secured grid. Who did they pay off to get this kind of off-grid?” Jacob marveled.
“They have the money and resources to grease any wheel they need. But, in America, the almighty dollar will always win,” I laughed.
“They have generators, wouldn’t you think?”
“With a hotel this big, it’s only going to run at half capacity.”
As I spoke, the lights in the Opal went off. Then, about thirty seconds later, the emergency and secondary lights popped on. An eerie glow made the hotel appear haunted.
“Hawk. Hit it. Flank anyone that comes through those doors,” I gave the order.
Within a few seconds, the whistle of the missile filled the air, and the hotel lit up in flames. A plume of smoke billowed into the sky. Brick and mortar went flying up and out; it sounded like ice chunks hitting the vans. We took cover. There was no movement at the front or the sides. Black stood in place, still holding the gun to Zuberi’s head. Back to the mic.
“Femi, you’re trying my mothafuckin’ patience!” I looked for movement.
There was none, so I ordered Hawk to hit the other side of the roof. He coordinated with the van, and in a few moments, that familiar whistle and boom filled the air. This time the building shook lightly.
“I got all night, Femi! All goddamn night!” I yelled in the mic.
“Dallas!” Black yelled, “Hold him here. Don’t take your eyes off of him,” Black said as Dallas held Zuberi at gunpoint. Black walked over to me.
“What are you going to do, blow it with her in it?” he whispered to me angrily.
“Now, why the fuck would I do that?” I rolled my eyes at him.
“You blew two holes in it! What the fuck?”
“I know what the fuck I am doing! Femi is stalling, meaning something is wrong. Don’t you see that?” I stared at him.
I saw concern in his eyes; he could see the fire in my eyes. I wasn’t about to back down until my wife was in my arms.
-Seraphim and Akinyi-
“They are bombing the roof. Zaire has been shot in the leg. Faraji is, to say the least, in bad shape. Femi is going crazy trying to keep it together. They want to know where you are.” I looked at Black Heart.
“I told you my wife would show up.” Black Heart sat on a bench.
“How on earth did Zaire get shot? He will be fine, yes?” Akinyi asked.
“A flesh wound at best. Black Ice is holding Zuberi in the garden with a gun to his head. The longer we make her wait, the worse it gets.”
“Faraji will not let her go now. He doesn’t want to be the center of his defeat at a woman’s hands. Zaire might try to kill them all by himself,” Akinyi said, deep in thought.
“Then it is up to us. We have to do what we women always do, fix the mess.” Miriam touched Akinyi’s shoulder.
“We have fixed so much, you and I. But, we have to save my baby boy. So, Black Heart, it is time to get you back home and to get my son back.” Akinyi and Black Heart smiled at each other.
“I’ll do my best to make sure your son isn’t harmed. But, from the sounds of things, she’s pissed off.” Black Heart touched her face slightly and winced in pain.
“Akinyi, we need to use the tunnel to the security desk. Let her come out there, and we can bypass everyone.” Miriam lifted her robe and took out a Glock nine, and handed it to Akinyi.
I did not put much of anything past my mama or Mother Akinyi. I am a Major in this army, and if Faraji found out what I had done, demotion would be the last thing on his mind. For him to be outsmarted by his own mother is one thing and bad enough. I was his most trusted soldier and had crossed him. I was in the shit now with nothing left to do but to complete the mission. Akinyi was on my side. I knew my soldiers would stand by me.
“I know these tunnels like the back of my hand. Let’s go before they decide to come and check on you,” Miriam said to Akinyi.
I followed Mama, Akinyi, and Black Heart towards the darker side of the tunnels. My guards brought up the rear. The rest of the families were in their respective bunkers in the tunnels. They knew to stay there until the signal was given that it was safe. As we walked farther into the dark, glowing tunnel, the low hum of generators grew. I tapped Black Heart on the shoulder. She turned, ready to strike at any moment. I understood completely.
“I mean you no harm. You might need it. I don’t know what is going on up there, but it doesn’t sound good.” I handed her one of my backup guns.
“Thanks.” She smiled at me.
We kept walking until we came to a metal door. Miriam put in the code, and the door opened. We went, and it closed with an echoing thud. It was an elevator. Akinyi put in the code, and it went up. I had a sneaky feeling the sons had no idea about that door or this elevator. These two women had more secrets than years between them. When the elevator stopped, we were in a small space that could hold about ten people. There was another door; it was like a wall. Akinyi used a code, and the wall slid inside itself. As soon as it opened, the night air rushed in, and my senses were filled. It smelled like spice, gun power, with a hint of the desert sands. I readied my pistols, as did my guards.
“The security shack in front of the hotel. Once you step inside the booth, you can see the front door and the gardens unobstructed. Stay low, and they won’t see you,” my mama said.
The security booth’s top was made of bulletproof glass, and the bottom of bulletproof panels. There was a dead body in the middle of the driveway. Out in the gardens, a man was holding a gun to Zuberi’s head.
“Stay here. I’ll be back,” I said.
“Here are the codes to get back in the door and elevator.” My mama whispered them to me.
I disappeared back the way we came with one of my guards. We took the service elevators up to the main floors.
-Femi, Faraji, Zaire-
“What
the hell is taking her and her team so long to do a sweep?” Zaire paced the floor away from the window.
“How the hell would I know what is going on? Am I out there with them!?” Faraji spat back in anger and pain.
“She will find her and bring her back. She is your major; you trust her, don’t you?” I eyed Faraji hard.
“Yes, but she is still a woman. You can never trust one completely. You saw her earlier. Who turns on your superior officer. If I-”
“You attacked her first. You are not doing yourself any favors. You are in no condition to be doing anything.” I pushed him down in his chair.
“Who knows when or where she will blow another hole in the Opal. We won’t sustain too many of them for long.” Zaire pounded his fist in his hand; he continued to pace.
Zuberi still stood there shaking with a gun to his head. Black Ice stood at the side of the van. If I could go back before…. It was too late. Black Ice had the taste of blood on her tongue; it happened to be the blood of my family. Never seen this level of anger or cunning in a woman in my life. Her prowess had me mystified. Who had my father been doing business with? Why had he not explained to me who they were? I walked away from the window.
“I am going to see if I can buy some time while they search,” I finally said.
“She is a fucking lunatic! She is bombing a hotel in the middle of the city in the middle of the night!” Zaire yelled.
“What do you suggest? I go out there shooting at her like you?” I shook the gun in his direction.
He rolled his eyes at me and waved me off. “Eh? What would you have me do? Stand up here and argue with the two of you?”
“I expect you to have some damn sense. You are lucky it is a flesh wound. Black Ice does not miss. I need more time.”
“That big flashing clock out there says there is no more time! Those holes in the roof say there is no more time! The holes in the side of the building say sorry, brother, time is one thing we are plumb the fuck out of!” Zaire belted in my direction.
“Sir. We searched the hotel from top to bottom, and there is no sight of her. I found your mother in the tunnels in the safe room.” Seraphim reported as she and one of her guards came into the room.
I looked over them as they stood at attention; neither one moved a muscle. Faraji bore a hole into Seraphim. He wanted to see if she was lying to him. My heart sank because it was my last chance. My family was in crosshairs. The realization was, I put them there. What was I supposed to do? No clue.
I rushed out of the room, took the stairs down, and headed to the front office. They followed. The window had a good view of Black Ice and her front line. The security cameras showed how surrounded we were—nothing more to say than I was a believer. Never cross a woman. Mother tried to warn me. I was sure she had warned us. We failed to listen.
“What will you say?” Faraji asked with an attitude.
“I am not quite sure yet. You have any good ideas?”
“Give you your money and your brother before you blow her head off,” He replied.
I shook my head at him and looked at Seraphim. She met my gaze with familiarity. She understood what I was dealing with.
“Tell her the truth. She escaped, and you do not know where she is. As a woman, she might appreciate the truth more,” Seraphim said calmly.
“She will put another hole in here if you do; you are crazier than her idea,” Faraji spat out.
“It is better than your idea,” I said. I put the gun on the desk, opened the blinds, and turned on the mic.
“Black Ice! You do not have to do this! I want to give you your wife back!” I yelled.
“I don’t fucking see her, Femi! Make it make sense before I light this bitch up!” Black Ice yelled back at me.
Faraji grabbed the gun, rushed his injured body past Seraphim and out of the front doors. We ran after him.
“Listen, you crazy ass bitch! Give me my fucking money and my brother! Then, you can come to find your wife yourself. Lights up, boys!” Faraji yelled across the way.
Immediately several sniper beams lined sights on Black Ice, the man standing next to her and the man holding a gun to Zu’s head. The whole front line had a beam to the head and chest. I did not know what the hell Faraji was doing. He held up the gun in his hand and pointed it toward the sky.
“It is on my word, bitch! Now let my brother go!” he yelled and spit.
Disbelief was on their faces. I flashed back to being back home in the bush hunting with my uncles. Never underestimate the wild boar; he was as clever as he was fast. Black Ice was as clever as she was fast.
Chapter 13
Restitution
-Kae and Black-
"I know damn well this nigga ain't got no beams on me!" Dallas yelled as he looked up.
"Don't take your eyes off of him! Don't worry about the beams. Stand still," I told him.
"How the hell I ain't supposed to worry 'bout a beam to my head! Shit is a little bothersome, you know?" He laughed nervously.
"Shit ain't fun, is it?" Zuberi said under the bag.
"You shut the fuck up. I'll blow your goddamn head off before they blow mine, mothafucka." Dallas pressed the gun harder to Zuberi's head.
"Hawk, you got eyes?" I asked him over the coms.
"I got eyes. A line of twenty on the rooftop," he reported.
"Take care of them quietly and quickly. For the rest of you, standstill." I followed my own orders.
Black smiled as the devil crept up around his eyes. He didn't appreciate the beam on his head. He wanted to turn and blast them, but he kept his cool. I laughed to myself. If this was a job in the field, I might do something different. But, right now, this is the best move. The radio chatter of Hawk and his men went silent. Then the beams disappeared down the line until they were gone. Bodies rained off the roof. The thud of bodies echoed as they hit the ground. All of their throats had been slit.
"Neutralized. We are clear to breach from the roof. Waiting on your word, Kae," Hawk reported.
"Breach. Adults only, unless it's a threat. They have assassins everywhere."
Black shook his shoulders, cracked his neck, and released the tension. He laughed, shook his head, and waved a finger at me. I'd hear about this shit later; I was sure. Gunfire could be heard in the distance. The team was inside and worked their way down.
"Faraji, their blood will be on your hands, including Zuberi!" I pointed to his brother.
His dead warriors lay at his feet. His snipers had been compromised, and he needed a new card to play. The gunfire behind him was a blow to his ego. He lowered his arm, gun in hand, as if he was about to spray the garden. Then several women emerged with guns drawn on Faraji and his brothers from the left of the hotel's front door.
Kari was with Akinyi and four other women that came out of the security shack. Akinyi led them with another taller woman behind her. Kari was third in line, and a couple of soldiers brought up the rear. They moved like a unit and drew down on the crew. The two women with the brothers at the door drew their guns on the men. The women quickly surrounded them. Akinyi walked up to her son and pressed her gun to his temple. Faraji stopped and slowly lowered his weapon to his side. He never took his eyes off of me as she stepped closer and eyed him with pure disgust. I stood with my twin Desert Eagles, ready to blast any of them.
"Son, are you alright?" Akinyi yelled out.
"Yes, Mother, I am alright!"
"Black Heart, go; no harm will come to you. Keep the robe; it is my peace offering. It is lined with gold threads," she said with a nod of her head.
"I want Seraphim to walk with me as insurance," Kari said.
Seraphim nodded her head, and they both started walking towards the driveway.
"Take the bag off his head," I instructed Dallas.
Zuberi shook his head and adjusted to the bright floodlights; he shivered from the cold. I took the shackles off his hands and feet. He was shocked, not sure what else to expect, and eyed me suspiciously.
He had a right.
"Go home. Your mama is waiting for you. Watch you make friends with next time." I pushed him towards the driveway.
He stumbled but didn't fall and walked towards the driveway. Kari and the soldier came from the other side. My eyes knew it was her, but my eyes saw her in that fucking box too. I needed her in my arms to be sure. A motion behind them caught my eye. Faraji lifted his arm. I aimed my guns, so did Black, Dallas, and Houston. It happened in slow motion. I yelled out for Kari to get down. She and the soldier hit the ground. Zuberi ran towards the hotel; Faraji raised his hand and took aim at Kari and the soldier. The single-shot echoed through the night air. Faraji fell forward and landed on the car in front of him. His body slid down to the ground with his head propped up on a tire. The hole in the side of his head smoked. His finger never made it to the trigger. Akinyi slowly lowered her smoking gun to her side. The other women around her stayed ready and held their weapons on the brothers.
Akinyi had killed her son. I'd never want to be in her position. If he had managed to get off a shot, I would've sprayed the front of the hotel. She wasn't going to lose Zuberi because Faraji wanted to be his own hero. Akinyi did what she had to do as a mother and Queen of the family. Kari and the soldier got up, dusted themselves off, and faced each other.
"Seraphim, as a woman and a warrior, thank you for everything." Kari handed her the gun she carried.
"Black Heart, I could not forgive myself. He deserved the ass-whoopin' you gave him," she laughed.
"It's a shit storm back there. Akinyi is back on the throne, to say the least. If you're ever interested in freelance work, let me know. There's a lot of money to be made." Kari stuck her hand out.
"You got it, Black Heart." She shook her hand and turned back towards the Opal.
Kari turned and ran towards me. In the middle of a row of multicolored roses, our bodies collided with magnetic force. I wrapped my arms around her and tried to feel her soul through my fingers. I grabbed her by the face and searched her eyes. Our lips melted into each other; it tasted like our first kiss. It's as sweet now as it was then. She was here in my arms, and she was genuine—flesh, blood, and bones.
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