Kiani’s Journey- Mayhem

by Raqurra Ishmar

  “Why? You don’t trust any of us to be of much help?”

  “No,” I say. “I just can’t have any of you guys getting hurt over something that has nothing to do with our mission. Ashlynn’s injury was bad enough. I won’t let that happen again.”

  “So, you’re going on a suicide mission? You’re just gonna sacrifice yourself and die?!”

  I hop up out of my seated position and stand over him. My height advantage only lasts for a few seconds before he hops up as well. Since he’s only a couple of inches taller than me, we were pretty much standing nose to nose. “What did you just say?” I ask, deadly calm.

  “I said, you’re so determined to find Derrick that you’re ready to die and leave us all behind.”

  “Who said I was going to die?”

  “You’re walking into a lair of fucking Bandits by yourself and you think you’re going to just waltz out of there with Derrick, holding hands?! If it was that easy, where the fuck is Derrick now?!”

  My chest heaved up and down as reality came crashing down on me. Brian is right. The chances of me returning with Derrick, or even alone, is slim to none. I’m great at hand-to-hand combat, but I’m pretty sure they won’t hesitate to put a bullet in my head or a knife to my stomach. That place is probably crawling with Bandits; and every exit is probably heavily guarded, if it’s the right place.

  What are the chances that we’re in the right city, at the right time and happen to find the Boss? With how horrible my luck has been, the chances are mighty high. Hell, that note in that Bandit’s pocket pretty much confirmed this was the right place. No matter how hard it is to think about dying, I refuse to give up on Derrick. Angry tears start to form in my eyes, and I’m starting to get even more mad at myself. How pathetic.

  “Shit, Ki!” Brian exclaims, grabbing me and pulling against his chest. I stood in his embrace without returning it for a while, until my control begins to unravel. I wrap my arms around his frame and I begin to sob into the crook of his neck. How the hell did things get so out of hand? I’m mad at myself for being so weak, but I’m really mad at Derrick. I would never abandon him like he did me, and yet he left me so easily. Not a note or a message or anything. I haven’t given myself time to really sit back and evaluate my feelings on the matter, but the sadness is now crushing me.

  “He left me, Bri. Left me behind without even caring about what it would do to me. Maybe I should have heard him out more when he told me that he wanted to look for Sam.”

  “You can’t blame that on yourself. He was going to go whether you agreed with him or not.”

  “Still, we promised to never separate from each other, especially now. Then he decides that he wants to run off alone on a wild goose chase.”

  Brian leaned back and cupped my face with one of his hands. “He’s a dumbass for that, Kiani. I doubt he was thinking clearly. But I won’t ever abandon you like that.”

  I quirk my eyebrow at him, unable to stop the small smirk from forming on my face. “Really?” I ask.

  He places his forehead against mine with a matching smirk on his face. The smirk falls from his face, eyes boring into mine. The moment stretches on, until I’m not sure what we were even talking about. His eyes glance to my mouth and I all but stop breathing. He takes a deep breath and steps away from me. “Really. So, when are we leaving?”

  I sigh, glad that the moment was broken. “Are you sure you want to come along with me? Like you said, this is pretty much a suicide mission.”

  “I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I let you go alone, and I know you’re going to go whether I come with you or not. So, stop trying to change my mind and tell me when you plan on embarking on this crazy mission?”

  “After we get something in our stomach and maybe a couple of hours of sleep. Can’t raid a Bandit’s headquarters while delirious and hungry, now can we?”

  He steps back with a quiet chuckle. “No, we cannot.”

  And just like that, Brian finessed himself into my plans.

  20

  Kiani

  We make our way back into the apartment once it began to get too light for comfort outside. We just have to hope that no one stops by trying to visit these guys, only to find them gone and a bunch of kids staying in their place. Aida is still unconscious on the couch, which is no surprise. I’m sure this is the first time she’s slept comfortably.

  “She can’t wake up, even if she wanted to,” Christine says from the recliner, scaring the shit out of me. She smiles, enjoying how her announcement made me jump. “I gave her some sleeping pills. I’m sure it’ll take at least eight hours for it to begin to wear off; which is a good thing. Her body needs its strength to fight off whatever she has.”

  “Are you sure it’s not just exhaustion? Sarah said that they barely slept and rarely ate. Lord knows the last time they had any decent water to drink. Playing it safe could have cost them Aida’s life,” I state.

  “I thought about that,” she said. “It’s a really plausible explanation. I didn’t see any lesions on her and everything else seemed fine, fever excluded. She’s probably just really dehydrated. I wish we had an IV to give her.”

  “Do you want me to go back to the pharmacy and see if they have that? Will that help her bounce back quicker?”

  “It should. But it’s broad daylight. Do you really want to risk yourself or risk being followed back here?”

  “If it helps her wake up faster, then I’ll try to get it. Brian, will you stay-,”

  “I’m coming with you,” he interrupts. I nod my head, knowing that there’s no point in arguing with him.

  “Christine, give me a list of things you think we may need to grab so that we don’t have to make any more trips.”

  Fifteen minutes later, and we’re out the door. Ten more minutes and we’re fighting for our lives. I knew this was going to be the outcome, but I didn’t want to worry Christine. A Bandit rushed me, tackling me to the ground. I grunt as the impact knocks most of the air out of me. I recover as quickly as I can, but still find myself in a headlock. I actually feel better fighting on the ground, because I’m great at getting out of holds.

  I grab hold of his pinky finger and force it to bend backwards. On a simpler man, it would have been enough to have him loosen his hold, but for this Bandit, it seemed to only encourage him to tighten his hold. My vision starts to blur and I’m wondering if I’ll have enough oxygen to reach down and grab my knife and stab him. I’m reaching down to do just that when I see a foot fly past my face. The sound of a shoe stomping down on his face, and the sweet feeling of air filling up my lungs, let’s me know that Brian is here to save the day.

  Only it wasn’t Brian, it was a stranger. I roll out of the way as he brings a knife down into the chest of the Bandit that I was fighting. I scramble to my feet, preparing to fight this guy if need be. He’s around six-foot, brown hair and green eyes. His clothes look like they’ve seen better days, so he must be a traveler as well. Before I have the chance to question or fight him, he sheaths his weapon and jogs away.

  What. The. Hell.

  I search for Brian, scared that he’s hurt. I see him on all fours, heaving. I rush over to him, noticing that he’s bleeding on his side. His Bandit lies just beside him, stabbed in the chest as well. I reach his side and help him stand up. “You’re hurt,” I stupidly point out. “Stabbed or cut?”

  He stands up at his full height without me and grimaces a little. “It’s a cut, though it’s kind of deep. Not life threatening, but it hurts like a bitch.”

  I pull up his shirt so that I can see his wound, and I exhale in relief when I see that it is just a cut. About three inches in width and not as deep as he thought. Pussy. “We’re just a block from the pharmacy. Do you think you can make it that far?” I ask.

  “Yeah, it’s not that far and I’m not dying.”

  “So, are we going to talk about the strange guy that just saved my life?”

  “He saved your ass too? I was over here getting my
ass handed to me when he pulled my Bandit off of me and stabbed him.”

  “He literally came over, monkey stomped my Bandit, then stabbed him like it was nothing. I thought I was going to have to fight him, but he just cleaned off his knife, sheathed it, and walked away like he didn’t just save me.”

  “The sad thing is, we shouldn’t have needed to be saved Ki. We have to do better.”

  “I agree.” We make it to the pharmacy in record time. We find everything that was on Christine’s list and also some stuff that we used to clean and bandage Brian’s wound. We grab a lot of extra stuff too, just in case it could be used one of these days. The trip back to the apartment was super silent. We were more vigilant than ever. We can’t afford to get jumped again.

  Christine hops up, a look of panic on her face when she sees the state that Brian is in. “What the hell happened?” she asks.

  “Bandits,” we reply in unison.

  She shakes her head, not bothering with any more questions as she prepares to set up a bootleg IV for Aida. My eyes start to droop a little, but I know I need something to eat before I can curl up and get some rest.

  I walk into the kitchen and I pop open a can of beans and some minute-rice. You know, the kind that cooks fast in the microwave? That’s what I need, a fast meal. Once my meal is made, I divide it up in two bowls and bring one to Brian. I head back into the kitchen to get us both a cup of water before sitting down at his feet. “Eat this and then take some antibiotics and pain pills to ward off any possible infections and ease the pain. Then we need to rest.”

  “The Twins and Isaiah slept in the Twin’s bed, but they said that they will wake up after you guys get done with your watch. They slept most of the night, so they’ll be ok with hanging out in here. You guys look like death warmed over,” she jokes.

  I swallow my food and choose not to focus on the fact that Brian and I will have to share a bed, and this time I won’t be drunk. Christine goes and wakes them up while we finish our food. “I’m going to take a shower. I kind of was rolling all over the ground,” I say while standing up. I go and deposit my dirty dishes and head back towards the Twin’s room. By the time I get to the doorway, everyone was filing out. I nod at them all and continue on my journey. I grab a giant T-shirt out of the dresser and take the quickest shower known to man. By the time I’m heading back to the room, Brian is already in the bed and snoring. I guess he was in more pain then I figured, and those pills must’ve knocked him out.

  I stand by the bed for a while, probably making this a lot more awkward than it needs to be. I set my watch to go off in five hours, hoping that will be enough rest for us. “Are you going to just stand there and creepily stare at me, or are you going to pull back the covers and get some rest?” Brian asks, startling me since I thought he was asleep. “Your thoughts woke me up. I can practically feel you thinking.”

  I hop in bed without hesitating any longer. I really am tired, so I don’t want to waste any more time thinking about something that doesn’t matter. “I set my watch to go off in five hours. If you’re still hurting at that time, I’ll have to leave you here.”

  “I’d like to see you try,” he mumbles before turning over on his good side and going back to sleep. Too bad his good side faces him towards me. I try not to stare at his face. He really is beautiful. Can you call a guy beautiful? He’s fine too, don’t get me wrong. But his long lashes make him, more.

  “Kiani,” he says, opening his eyes. “Do you want to talk?”

  “Nope,” I reply, adding emphasis on the ‘P’.

  “Then go to sleep. Here, come here,” he lifts up his arm.

  “You think that’ll help me sleep? Snuggling up against you?” I ask.

  “You’ll never know unless you try. Come on. Unless it’ll mean something more to you?” he challenges me.

  I immediately scoot closer into his embrace and am enveloped by his scent. His warmth seeps into me, soothing all of my frayed edges. I gently wrap my arms around him, making sure to avoid touching his wound. I wanted to say something slick, to show him that I’m unphased, but he began to hum, and I had to just let go of my anxiety and go to sleep.

  My alarm goes off, startling me awake. I realize that I’m pretty much straddling Brian. He didn’t move at all when the alarm went off, which means that he’s still very tired. I try to extricate myself from his hold, but his grip tightens on me. “Where are you going, babe?” he asks, though I can tell that he’s still sleeping. I lean back to tell him to wake up, but I’m met with a very sleepy kiss. “Go back to bed,” he mumbles against my mouth.

  I’m stunned for a little bit before I regain my senses. Well, some of it. I kind of panic and I lick his face, like the moron that I am. He jerks back, finally awake, and look at me like I’ve lost my freaking mind. Which I apparently did.

  “What the hell, Ki? You couldn’t wake me up like a normal person?”

  “Next time don’t tenderly kiss me in your sleep and I wouldn’t freak out and lick you in response,” I say as indignantly as I could.

  “I did what?!”

  “You heard me, I tried to move but you called me babe and pulled me closer and then you kissed me,” Speaking of closer, I’m practically on top of him at this point. I try to scoot back again, but he won’t let me go. I quirk my eyebrow at him, wondering what he has planned.

  He pauses for a little bit and then brings his forehead against mine. “Do you want to try again, this time with both of us involved?”

  “Stop fucking around with me, Brian. We need to get up and get ready to head out.”

  “Is that a no? Or is that a ‘make it quick Brian’?”

  I stare at his lips and then back into his eyes. I don’t think kissing him ever really crossed my mind like that. But now that he’s presenting his lips to me like a gift, I can’t seem to turn the offer down. Instead of wasting anymore time trying to figure out what this could all mean, I lean forward and press my lips against his. He stiffens, as if not really believing I would kiss him, and then he takes charge of the kiss.

  He grabs hold of the back of my head and presses his tongue against my lips, seeking permission to enter my mouth. I grant him access, figuring that if I was going to do this, I might as well go the whole way. He rolls onto his back and brings me with him so that I’m straddling his waist. His hands start to trail down my sides and finally rest at my hips. His grip tightens on them as he increases the intensity of the kiss. I have never been kissed like this before. Then I realize that I’m only wearing a t-shirt. I feel him growing beneath me and the other thing separating us is my undies and his shorts. His arm lifts to drape across my back, pulling me closer to him. My body naturally rock against him, eliciting a soft moan from him that shoots straight to my core.

  I slide my hands into his silky hair, pulling just a little bit. His hips jerk up, rubbing into me just as I rock into him. I gasp into his mouth, enjoying the feel of him. His other hand snakes underneath my shirt, finding its way to my breast. His thumb brushes across my pebbled nipple, causing me to rock harder into his hardness. The sound that emanates from the back of his throat makes me consider taking this all the way.

  And that’s when I realize this kiss is starting to get a little too much and we don’t have the time.

  I break away from his mouth, breathing hard. We stare at each other, the only thing breaking the silence is our labored breathing. I close my eyes before getting off of him. That was incredible, but I can’t do that again. Not until I have everyone together again.

  “We should get up and get ready to go. We have so much to do today.” I stand and gather my things to take into the bathroom to get dressed.

  “Hey Kiani?” he calls out.

  “Yeah?”

  “I don’t regret that at all.”

  I give him a genuine smile, eyes seeking his in the dimly lit room. I touch my fingertips to my swollen lips, remembering how great it felt to just give in. “Me neither.” I leave the room grinning like an idiot.
What the hell have I gotten myself into?

  21

  Kiani

  Aida is up when I make my way into the living room, and Ashlynn of all people is sitting on the edge of the sofa, feeding her soup. I’m looking around, trying to see if I stepped into an alternate universe, but everything is still the same. Isaiah is watching a movie with the volume really low, probably a little too close to the TV, but he’s otherwise entertained. Ashton and Christine are sitting at the kitchen table, talking with their heads close together.

  I turn back to nurse Ashlynn, wondering why the hell she’s up. I clear my throat, drawing the attention of everyone. “Sorry, Ashlynn, did I interrupt something?” I ask with a smirk on my face.

  “I was just helping Christine out with Aida, no need for her to do all of the work,” she says casually, though I can’t help but notice the red flush that’s slowly creeping up her face. My my my, what do we have here? I look past her and see that Aida is actually fully awake.

  “Aida are you still very weak?” I ask, using my best leadership voice so no one can catch on to the fact that I’m full of shit.

  “I actually feel really great, thank you.” Well damn, if honey had a voice, it would sound like Aida’s.

  “Interesting. So, I’m guessing Ashlynn is feeding you more for herself than for the fact that you need assistance?”

  Ashlynn’s face burns brighter and she’s shooting daggers at me with her eyes. I look back at Aida and I see a mischievous glint pop up in her eyes. “Oh, I must have overestimated my strength and Ashlynn decided to come to my rescue; I don’t know how I would’ve eaten without her.”

  “Ashlynn, you’re such an angel. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this side of you before,” I say, jaw hurting from holding back my smile.

  “I think I’m going to go take a shower,” Ashlynn says as she places the bowl down and stands up.