HARSH WELCOME

The cab drive has been long and silent, with my mind wandering about how unfair life has been to me. How can someone's life turn upside down in such a short time, huh? A lot has happened, and it is way too fast to even tell which one hurts more than the other. It hurts to bury a loved one, but it's another different pain to not be sure if one is dead or alive. It hurts to lose someone, but witnessing their death hits differently. It sucks like hell to watch someone be taken away from you, yet you can do nothing to help. Loosing your memory is another shit that stinks like hell! And having no freedom at all isn't any less of a hell. To think that I am going back to that den again!

The cab comes to a stop, meaning that we have reached the destination. I pay the driver, and I walk out. I'm not seeing Ejay around nor his car, so I presume he hasn't gotten here yet. That's fine, because I need to pack my clothes. I am double sure he won't let me off the hook from now on, which means I will be staying with him or in whichever pit he decides to dumb me into.

I open the gate and walk inside, dragging my feet at a chameleon pace. I wish that that weird dream I had been having since the day I lost my memory had been a bit more clear. I wish I could have understood it, because things wouldn't have gotten this far. It all makes sense now. The girl I was dreaming about was actually my elder sister, and the male voice was my father's. They say that things happen for a reason, but I am mocking that saying right now. For a reason, huh? What reason could there be that all these had to happen? There is no freaking reason. It's just stupid life to decide to just fuck you up! Yeah, that is my own understanding of all these. Too bad I couldn't understand anything back then, but now that I do, I can't wait to find my sister. I can't wait to see her and hug her. But wait, does she know about her father? Ejay couldn't have told her. I'm sure she will be devastated. How will I even break the news to her? But that aside for now, the first step is to find her. Besides, we still don’t have the remains of my father or any bones. I wonder what happened.

I open the door and walk in, only to be greeted by Ejay's composed body seated on the couch, his left leg on top of his right while his back rests on the backrest of the couch, a gun in his hand. I told you this jerk is so cunning. I'm sure his goons are on the lookout somewhere outside the gate.

Greetings are out of the question, considering his murderous looks, so how about I walk upstairs and gather my things so that we can get the hell out of here? I'm sure he doesn't want to stay here a second longer.

"Lock the door." He speaks, and I turn to do as the master commands, and I start walking back, only to notice him standing on the way, his eyes strangling me.

God, please, it's not my time to die yet! I cannot die. But I also know I blew all the chnaces to fuck with his mind. I can't make any deals with him anymore.

"I will go pack my things. I won't take long." I say this when he refuses to say anything after a long time. Standing in front of him like this, with him staring at me from head to toe, is freaking me out.

I take two long strands, but he stops me, his palm under my chin, his thumb resting on one cheek while the other four long fingers are on the other. I close my eyes, wincing at the pain as he presses his fingers hard on both my cheeks, making me groan with pain. "Who told you that you can walk in and out of me anytime you feel like, huh?" He is fuming, and this statement has a deep meaning. "Speak up, you lying bitch!" His icy voice echoes throughout the entire house, making me shudder with fear.

"Aah.." I scream with pain when he throws me forcefully to the cold floor. Good Lord! This hurts!

"Up." He yells, and I know better than to disobey him right now.

I knew I would have it rough anyway. I stand a distance away from him, but he closes the gap and speaks between gritted teeth. "How much have you ranted about me?"

Wait, is he scared right now? Of course he is. The way he is trembling with anger, it's because he knows the police will start chasing him if I tell him. He is dangerous, yes, but nobody would want anybody on their backs. That alone will jeopardize his business operations because he won't be able to move freely. A slap that reverberated throughout the whole house brought me back to my senses as I hit the floor once again. "Ouch, Ahh!" I cry with pain again, my left cheek heating up due to the pain. I see darkness for a moment, fighting all the noise to soothe my cheek. I might make things worse.

I feel his steps nearing, and he squats in front of me in seconds, grabbing me by the neck and forcing me to my feet, squeezing life out of me, and I am now struggling to breathe. "Listen here, bitch. When I ask you a question, I expect an immediate answer. Am I clear?" I nod my head. I am holding his hand, trying to push it away from my neck, but he is just so strong. "Now, how much do people know about me?"

"No..not..noth..ing.." I say, struggling between every letter.

He realizes he is chocking me for real, and he loosens his grip a little, and I gasp for air. I take in as much air as I can and breathe out as much. "I hope so, for your own good. Next, and you better answer with all honesty. Has that son of a bitch touched you? That jerk of Azzua, has he touched you?" I shake my head without wasting a second of his time. "Really? How so? All those days in Mombasa, and all those three days you have stayed in his house? He hasn't touched you." I shake my head again, and another slap lands on the other cheek, this time falling on the couch.

Oh God, give me the courage to stand against all these. I can feel tears burning my cheeks as they flow down like two streams of water. I can imagine the marks on my cheeks by now and the redness on them, and I know this is far from being over. I get up slowly, even though my legs are threatening to fail me. How did he know I saw Deep in Mombasa?

"You... you... had me followed?" I should have known better and just kept my stupid question to myself, because that earned me two heavy slaps each on both sides, and I can't pretend to be strong anymore. As my loud screams of pain echo through the house, my legs give up, but I don't hit the floor as I expected because this monster still has a heart. Laugh at that! Heart, my foot! He most likely does not want me to die this soon before I sample his real wrath. He wraps his hands around me, preventing me from falling, and he pulls me to his chest. I am entirely supported by him because all the energy has left me. For whatever reason he is doing it, I hate him, and I curse him.

When my cries diminish, his demons arouse again, and he grabs my hair from behind, forcing me to look up to him. "Yes, I had you followed, you stinky whore. And yes, I knew exactly when you returned to the city. Nothing happens behind Ejay, you hear? Now," he pulls my head closer to his face, the curtain of tears in my eyes making his image a bit blurry, "one last time. Did you give yourself to him?"

"I swear, Ejay, nothing has happened between me and Deep."

"Don't you dare mention that bastard's name to me; is that clear?" The last part was a yell that can cause deafness.

"Yes. Sorry. But I didn't. Nothing is going on between us. I swear." I insist.

"I will confirm that. But don't you worry, I won't be the one to fuck you tonight, because I don't want to imagine how disgusted I would feel if I found out that he already had you. For your sake, I hope he hasn't, because if he has, that will be another reason for me to kill him and you as well." That hurts so much.

Another reason? Meaning he already has a reason to kill Deep? More tears flow, and I am rescued by his phone ringing. He throws me to the couch as he receives the phone. I coil myself on the couch and snuggle to myself, allowing sobs to escape my mouth as loudly as they can.

"Damn those bastards!" I hear him yell, and I suppose he has heard about the raid on the club. I hope he does not connect that to me because he won't spare me. "Were you able to save anything?" He queries, but the answer he got wasn't any good because he yells again. "Nothing? I will finish off those bastards, I swear! They better watch their fucking backs because I will kill them the first chance I get. Go back to the other club." He orders, smashing his phone on the floor.

"Fucking bastards!" He murmurs a curse, followed by a thousand more that I can't make out from here, especially because I don't want him to know that I am listening to his conversion. If I wasn't in so much pain right now, I would be silently chuckling. They might have failed, but at least he is restless. The monster is shaken to his shrinked balls! Let's see for how long you will remain untouchable, Ejay!