Betrayal, heartbreak, disappointment, disgust, were all feelings Alice thought she had homed when it came to her now broken relationship, it was strange, the anger, the hate, the ache, she had come to the club with a sixty percent expectancy to witness his betrayal, but it still hurt, and even worse, that Taria had to shove it in her face. She no longer felt the urge to follow through with her plan, he wasn't worth it, not anymore.
Somehow her stare pulled his attention, and he saw her, eyeball to eyeball, she was furious, and he was unfaithful. He suddenly lost the vigour he had danced with before their eyes locked, she shifted her gaze from him and turned towards the exit.
Alice sobbed as she made her way through the mad crowd, she was already outside but could still hear the loud music coming from inside the club, as well as quick footsteps rushing behind her, she felt a sudden cold creep inside her, right before he grabbed her by the arm in an attempt so to make her stop, she was disgusted at his frail attempt to apologize for something that was anything but a mistake, and her patience was already exhausted, she sized him as he stood in front of her, 6 foot tall, dark skinned, muscular figures, wearing a white t- shirt, along with a pair of ripped blue jeans, the sooner he was out of her sight, the faster she could face the reality of everything being over between them.
He rushed in front of her trying to stop her from leaving.
" Alice! Alice! Alice! please, don't leave like this, don't end this, don't end us, I know I was unfaithful to you, but that girl, she means nothing to me, it was all for fun I swear, you know you are the only one I care about, I promise, she means nothing to me, please, I can't live without you."
Rantings, all she heard was the beep of her car as she unlocked it, his excuses were meaningless, his sad attempt to save a shattered relationship was pointless, Alice wanted to say so many things, she wanted to hit him, to slap him, to tell him how big of a cheat he was, how he didn't deserve her, how he never will, but a single word out of her mouth was all it would take to unleash the monster raging inside her, her silence was deafening, and it told him all he needed to know.
Alice held back the tears, she wouldn't allow him see them, and that was what she did, one look at her face and he could see that she had made her decision, there were regrets in her eyes, that much was obvious, but regrets not that they were going their separate ways, but because it took her this long to figure that out, sadness and defeat suddenly washed over his face, his posture lost confidence, and with that his fingers slid from the door handle.
Alice was heartbroken, she couldn't stop thinking about what had happened, and she couldn't stop the car, her relationship had come to an end, with her boyfriend cuddling another girl right in front of her, it wasn't fair, thoughts of him with her kept on filling her mind, she didn't know when the tears started flowing, nor did she see the unsuspecting young man as he made his way across the street, before she hit the brakes Alice's car hauled the man across the road, sending him few metres in the air, down to a shocking, breathless, painful drop, the images cleared, her heart raced, the man bled, unconscious on the cold tarred road, her tears flowed freely, she came down from the car trembling, teary eyed, speechless, scared, she walked closer, he wasn't moving, what had just happened? what had she done ?had she killed a man ? was she a murderer? questions she asked, but got no answers.
Alice was in so much shock that she staggered back to the car for her phone, she had to call someone, anyone, and that was when she saw it, they were everywhere, the lights flashed, against her and the unconscious man that laid almost lifeless on the floor, she didn't know how, but within seconds the once quiet road was filled with people, she couldn't think, she couldn't speak, she could barely breathe, what had she done ? everyone would know about this, she could already see the headlines, YOUNG IRRESPONSIBLE ACTRESS KILLS MAN UNDER THE INFLUENCE, ACTRESS OR ASSASSIN?
The stairs looked like they would never end, she couldn't use the elevator, the place was crawling with hoodlums, they made sure to block every exit. Cornered, trapped, it was run or get caught, and Alice wasn't prepared for the latter. She was exhausted, scared, fearful, that her attackers would find her, she couldn't think, she couldn't hide, there was a threat on every side, she imagined what they would do to her, her heart raced, her mind flooded with morbid images, they were monsters, in, and out, she had to get out, there was the door, the one exit that hadn't yet been blocked, she could see them, parading the halls, searching for her, like hounds, following a scent, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and sprinted for the door, it was only a few feet away, but they had seen her, they followed, they yelled, they tore through the crowd, this was it, the second that would determine what happened next,
The alleys had always painted a scary and dangerous picture of themselves, there were more than enough dark corners, where different things hid in plain sight, many secrets, imbeded in the cracked concrete walls, shadows, blended with the darkness, the only thing that couldn't be hidden was the stench of marijuana, coke, drugs, heroine. It went by different names, some, more popular than others, it had long since become one of the many ways of survival for the desperate lagosian, young boys who didn't hearken to the advice of their parents, more often than not, found themselves in these alleys, selling cocaine, smoking cocaine, buying cocaine. The place had become what could be described as a melting point, the deals were precise, it was a trade, they had the goods, all they
The chips had been staked, the drop was today, they had 2 co-ordinates, one was at lekki, and the other at a relatively farther location, it was the same time, they had the location, they were ready to intercept, the guns were loaded, their hearts crossed, today would be the day, Fasting had to be stopped. The beach was always serene at night, the cool breeze would whisper, incomprehensive whispers, it was tranquil, precious, flawless, captivating, the waters would reach for the sand and withdraw back, like a muse, enticing the shore, the sight was infectious, tailored to lure, to attract, to amaze. It was the beauty of the sea shore, but as beautiful as it was, it had been a harbinger of one of the worst criminals in Lagos " Fasting ".
For the past 2 days, the weather had been cool, it had rained continuously, and the pedestrians were always in a cover of umbrellas, on a day like this, Alice would rather have nothing more than a cup of hot chocolate and toasted bread, while watching the latest marvel movie. She enjoyed them for their blend of comedy and action, but even more because they weren't real, none of it was, not the gods, not the aliens, not the meta humans, they were all a product of an open mind, a rich imagination, literature would call it fiction, but this was the exact opposite of her life, everything was real, Mike's attackers were real, the wounds were real, her worries were real, his pain was real, and so was the ever present conciousness of a lurking threat, she had not wasted a second to tell him to get out, had practically kicked him out herself, he was heartless, cruel, selfish, but he was hurt, and as fa
. The quiet was history as the bullets blasted freely into Alice's apartment, shards of glass, flying in the air, the dishes, the cabinets, the walls, all came crashing down as the metals shot right through them, this was completely different from how the movies made it seem, it was relentless, brutal, thirsty, one wrong move could mean sudden death, she was right to be scared, they were ready to kill anyone and everyone. The gunshots stopped, but the room was in chaos, Alice was still too shaken to get up, until the sound of Mike's voice brought her back to the reality they were in. " Alice ? Alice ? are you okay ? "his voice oozed with more concern for her life than his.
. Itwould only take a pull of the trigger, two pulls to finish them off, Mike's assault had bought them time, but it looked like their time had run out as fast as it came, he had succeeded in wounding his attacker, the force he used when he hit the plank against his head had left a pretty deep cut, still shaken from the impact, he saw him reach for the back of his head with his left hand, as if checking to see just how hurt he was, but instead of going into a mad rage, as would've been expected, the sight of his own blood seemed to cause some sort of excitement . Mike could neither control the fear nor the guilt of the tragedy he had brought to Alice's doorstep, if not for him she would still be safe , but his wishful thoughts didn't change anything, the reality stood in front of them, and it wa
. In combat, the possession of a weapon had often served as an advantage to the side fortunate enough to have one, that was the universal assumption, and it was evident in common fightings, from a wrestling ring, to little kids playing sword fight, to the cult boys, as well as the troublesome bus conductors, regardless of the size of their opponent the possession of a weapon more often than not awakened a degree of confidence in them.For Alice however, it was a different case scenario, she had the gun, but lacked the courage to fire, her eyes trailed round the men to the gas cylinder she had recently filled, that stood outside the kitchen a few metres away from where they stood, then she saw his arm tense as he prepared for his next kill, time wasn't on her side, nothing was.
. It was dark, lonely, silent, a cold silence that was occasionally broken by the sound of speeding cars, sounds which were often washed away as fast as they came, then the chill of the quiet reigned again, even the cresent moon had the company of stars, the nocturnal creatures had each other to bother, the spark of lighting had the cackle of thunder, but Alice had no one as she trailed the ever lonely road, it was her sole companion, she had no idea what would happen next, no where to go, she didn't make any attempt to return the numerous calls that continued flooding her phone, her life had drastically changed after Mike walked back into it, her future now appeared like a foggy field, nothing was clear anymore, the other day Mike had come to her house bathered and bloody, and now he was dead, the uncertainties made her sob even louder, but alas, she alone could hear them.