The Connection

Jamal Benson

"We need to get some sleep." He murmurs. 

"I need to leave this place." 

"Have you checked the time? It is almost midnight. It is not safe."

"Should I believe you care about my wellbeing now?" Her voice is full of mockery. 

"I care enough to keep you alive until your father returns what belongs to me. I have no problem with you, Freya."

"What exactly did he steal from you?" She turns a curious gaze on him. 

How much should he tell her? He really didn't have anything to lose but the less she knows, the better for her. Their business is a risky one and he didn't want her involved more than she already is. 

"It is really not your business." He smiles to take the sting off his words. 

"Oh I see." Her voice goes cold as she looks down her pert straight nose at him. Laughter bubbles up his throat but he swallows it with a cough, hiding his face in his elbow. Then her stomach chooses that moment to rumble with hunger, their gaze meets and holds. They both burst into laughter. 

When is the last time he has laughed this much? Never. He can't remember. In the thirty five years of his life, his life has no semblance of peace or laughter. 

"Let's find something for you to eat before you keel over." He teases as he leads the way to the kitchen and she follows, then stops to look around in awe. 

"Who owns this kitchen? This kitchen has a world class standard. How can this kind of kitchen exist inside this white elephant of a house? Where is the cook?" Her praise goes straight to his head and he puffs out his chest in pride. 

"Here am I, madam. I am the chef and the owner of this kitchen." He grins at her and she gapes at him in absolute disbelief. 

"I don't believe you. You have probably killed the Chef and thrown the body in the sewage."

It is a possibility in their world and he understands her sentiment, he only grins. "Sit down and let me know what you would like to eat. I will prove myself and you can be the judge."

She sits at the farthest stool at the island table and places the gun cautiously in front of her at the table after pulling the safety in place. "It is late. Just give me something light and delicious"

By the time he whips up fish and yam stew, garnished with vegetables and spices in under thirty minutes and slides the tray across to her, her eyes are round with surprise. The aroma wafts around the kitchen and makes her salivate. 

"This is so good."She moans as she closes her eyes in ecstasy. The sound goes to his brain and blood rushes to his groin. 

Damn! He shifts and adjusts his stance so his combat trouser will accommodate his growing arousal and hopes to God she doesn't notice. 

"Thank you. Cold water or Juice?"

"Water please." He pours some into a glass cup and drops both the cup and bottle of water beside her meal. "Where did you learn to cook so well? I am a disaster in the kitchen." 

"I love cooking and learn it from the best. Paid handsomely for it." He leans against the kitchen sink and watches her eat. She is a pleasure to watch. "You don't have interest in it. Anything you have an interest in, you perfect it."

Her fork purse halfway to her lips and her eyes grow dark with emotion, "Thank you."

Something passes between them, strong and flitting. He can't make head or tail of it but for some reasons, a strange sense of peace steals over him and settles him. "You are welcome."

The silence between them is a comfortable one as she empties her plate and sits back with a yawn. He takes the tray from her and drops it in the sink. 

"This is a delicious meal. Thank you." She rises to her feet, taking the gun with her. She is not lowering her guard around him and for some reason, his admiration for her increases. She will be a worthy partner to some lucky man one day. 

"I will show you to a room to spend the night and freshen up. Please don't try anything stupid." He leads the way to a spare room and opens the door for her. "There is a change of clothes for you."

"I am not suicidal." She retorts and holds out her hand for the key. "I know there is a spare key somewhere but I am trusting you to behave yourself and call your dog to order." She glares at him before she steps in and closes the door on his face. 

He stands at the door, listening to the sound of her movements until he can't hear anything any longer. He wishes the circumstances of their meeting are different but life is what it is and it is never fair. A cold mask settles over his face as he moves away and goes downstairs to unlock Faro. Faro gets what he deserves. 

/\/\/\/\/\

James Aleshinloye

"What happened here? Could it be Jamal's handwork?" There is confusion in James's voice as he steps gingerly over broken electronics in his daughter's sitting room.

"I don't think so. Jamal did a clean job. She was taken from the school without a trace. I think her friend must have sold her out. This was done by someone else." Cameron's phone is busy, taking pictures and making videos.

"Who? Why?" James looks at him, truly puzzled and their gazes hold across the distance in the room. The blood drains from his face in horror.

"Is someone else looking for her?"

"It is looking as if someone is stirring the trouble between the two of you and pitching you against each other. What we don't know is if they truly want Freya or if there is more to it." Cameron's shrug is unconvincing.

He has yet to hear from Santino and it is beginning to worry him. The crates of arm should have gotten to its destination by now. Apart from Jamal. Who else is targeting his daughter? She is not a troublemaker. She practically shies away from anything that resembles Crime. If they are targeting her, they may indirectly be targeting him and the mere thought makes his blood run cold with fear. 

"What do you think is going on?" He walks into her bedroom and notices that the damage is minimal there. Are they looking for something?

"We will find out, boss." 

"In the meantime, can we pin this on Jamal? I need to flush him out and get my daughter to safety as soon as possible. I am not sure what exactly is going on but I don't want her caught in the middle." He looks around but is careful not to touch anything. 

"You are right, boss. Please let's get out of here."Cameron leads the way out of Freya's apartment and James follows. 

Later in the day, James gets a call from the school headmistress, Mrs Jane Faremi. The case was reported to the police. On further investigation, Saadah's body was found in the lagoon. She was dead but her body was bruised before she was shot. Unfortunately, Freya wasn't found yet and she was running scared. In the meantime,the school will be closed until further notice for security reasons. The poor woman was almost crying on the phone. He thanks her and sits quietly in his study room. 

He has been looking forward to dealing with Saadah on his own but it seems she got what she deserves in the end. Who killed her though? Why was she tortured before she was killed? Was someone trying to get information from her? What sort of information? What is going on for crying out loud? 

/\/\/\/\/\

Freya Aleshinloye 

It is a spacious masculine room, sparsely furnished in dark and beige colours. There is no frill but it is neat. The large neatly made bed calls her weary body but she moves round the room, checking corners, wardrobe and hidden crevices. The windows are wide and across each other for easy ventilation but both are securely locked. Smart move. It doesn't stop her from gauging the distance to the floor though and deciding it is not bad at all. She can scale through if push comes to shove.

The Air conditioning system is working and the room is cool just the way she likes. She opens the wardrobe and looks through the three levels. No weapon or weapon-like objects there. Just male clothes and his scents. Is this his room? She is tempted to lift the fabrics to her nose and inhales but she closes the wardrobe doors instead. She moves to the door and opens it. It is a bathroom and toilet. She wishes she can take her bath and change out of the clothes she had on for almost twenty-fours hours now. She feels grimy, especially when she remembers Faro's hand on her. She should have killed him. Gritting her teeth in anger, she turns away from the bathroom and locates a pile of clothes on the edge of the bed.