Later that day, Octavio came home. Octavio was Rodney’s cousin who had warned him about Alberto when he first arrived at the mansion. Octavio went to Emilia’s room and was in there for a long time. When he came out, he went to the living room and started to drink. Rodney decided to join him.“Emilia told me you were around,” Octavio said.“Yeah.”“I don’t believe that you’re only here for the little girl,” he said, taking a long sip of his beer. “What do you think I’m here for?”Octavio stood up and looked around. “Let’s go outside and talk if you want.”“Okay,” Rodney said without questioning the rationale behind it. It was possible that there were recording devices here and there. For Alberto Roco to evade capture like that, he had to be very cautious. Rodney was pretty sure the man did not trust his own family.“What is it?” Rodney asked Octavio when they were outside.Octavio stood near a tree trunk, placing his leg on it. “You hate Alberto, and you wish you could do something to
“Get out,” the man seated with Rodney at the back pulled out his blindfold. Rodney opened his eyes and stared up at the imposing building in front of him. It was a large, gray concrete structure, with bars on the windows and a wall fence surrounding the perimeter.He opened the door and stepped out. Octavio who had been at the front also got out with the driver. They were at the headquarters of the most notorious drug lord in the city, his own father.The place said a lot about the man. Rodney knew that anyone who crossed his father would most likely never be seen again. Octavio had told him stories of ruthless violence and ruthless retribution, of bodies left in the streets and families torn apart. Rodney knew he was treading on dangerous ground but he had accepted to join the business so that he could take out Alberto from the inside. He could not get any information if he returned to New York and Alberto would continue to harm people and destroy their lives.But despite his fear, R
Rodney and Octavio spent the night at the big house. Thankfully, Alberto had left soon after they arrived so Rodney had not had the misfortune of running into him. There were about thirty guys living in the large two storied building. Most of the room upstairs were bedrooms, some with bunk beds. The ground floor was filled with loaded boxes and packages and the basement was basically a drug factory. Drugs were being produced, weighed and packaged there. There men working there seemed to never stop working and they were guarded by people with guns at all time.Phones were not allowed for people except the top guys, the gun wielding ones. They did not have some phones but button phones for only calls and messages. Octavio’s and Rodney’s had been confiscated before they even got into the car. The men had also ensured that the boys did not get to know where they were. Rodney could see that the security was tight and it was going to be hard for him to reach his goals. Still, he decided to
Octavio clearly had a way with words. Less than a minute after approaching the couple, Rodney saw the man letting out a stream of words while looking angry. He went away and Octavio and the girl laughed before starting to dance together. The date was so good that Octavio took her back to his apartment. Rodney had decided to stay the night at the apartment as well. He would sleep in the spare bedroom. As they went to the apartment, Rodney started thinking of an idea. When they got to the apartment, he asked Octavio to show him the bedroom, after mouthing we need to talk when she was not looking at them. They left the girl in the living room.“You need to get her drunk,” Rodney said. “We need to know if she can tell us some of Alberto’s secrets if she knows any.”“What, you’re still on that stupid plan that will never lead to anything good.”“You want your freedom, right?”“I think I gave up on that.”“Let’s just try, okay. If she knows nothing, we’ll let go.”“Okay, I have the perfect
A part of Alberto was amused by what Rodney had tried to do, but another part was proud of him. That boy had the courage of the Rocos, and the Nelsons. Sara Nelson had been one hell of a woman, and he had loved her at a certain point in his life. That was before she ran away with his child without telling him about it. The next time he saw her, he was not very happy with her. And it annoyed him very much when she stood up against him. Sara was not one to sit back and do nothing. He had felt that she would create problems for him sooner or later, which was why he decided to get rid of her. He hated that it caused a big rift between Rodney and him but he figured there was nothing to do. Life had to go on, and Rodney had to find ways of coping with the new reality.Alberto was surprised when Rodney built his life and became a great man. He was not very happy when he decided to leave everything in New York just to come and play nurse to a little girl. Although Rodney accepted to join the
Rodney frantically searched the streets for his cousin, Octavio. He didn’t remember how he found himself in the streets, sounded by a bunch of homeless people. They had been kidnapped last evening but he had been released. However, there was no sign of Octavio and Rodney was determined to find him. He ran from door to door, asking anyone if they had seen him. His heart pounded in his chest as he feared the worst. Who could those men have been and why did they take Octavio and not him? Were they Alberto’s enemies who recognized Octavio only? He couldn’t go back home without finding him. He was the one who had convinced Octavio to be part of the stupid plan. As the sun became hotter, Rodney's hope started to dwindle. He had no leads and no idea where he could be. Tears streamed down his face as he collapsed onto the sidewalk, feeling helpless and alone. Just then, a kind stranger approached him and knelt down beside him. “Are you okay, son?” the man asked gently. Rodney shook his head
Octavio.Octavio hands were tied tightly behind his back, and he could feel the rough ropes digging into his skin. His mouth was gagged, and he felt a lot of discomfort allover his body. One of Alberto’s men stood in front of him, a cruel smile on his face. The tall burly man held a knife in his hand. He walked around for a while before turning back and moving towards Octavio. He crouched down and dragged the blade slowly across the Octavio's chest, causing the young man to flinch and writhe in pain.“You thought you could mess with the wrong people, huh?” the man sneered. “Well, you're gonna regret that. We're gonna make you pay, one way or another.”Octavio desperately tried to plead with his eyes, hoping someone would come to his rescue. But no one was coming. He was alone with his tormentor, who continued to torture him with the knife, cutting him in small, shallow wounds. Octavio couldn’t help but wonder if his uncle was okay with the mutilation. The cuts were not very serious bu
Rodney was feeling a deep ache in his chest. He had been friends with Octavio for only a few days but was missing him so much. He stared out the window, watching the leaves fall from the trees. The atmosphere outside seemed so dull and lifeless, just like how he felt inside without his new friend. He curled up on bed, wishing he could just disappear and never have to face the pain of losing Octavio. He had not prayed in a long time but that night he did. He prayed for Octavio to be alive.He went and sat on the edge of the bed, staring blankly at the dull walls of the room. Tears streamed down his face as he thought about his mother, who had been murdered in cold blood just a few months back.As he sat there, he could still hear her sweet, angelic voice in his head, telling him to be strong and to never give up. She had always been by his side but now, he felt lost and alone without her. For a dark, gloomy moment, he thought of ending it all but the thought quickly left his mind, which
Emilia’s crazy party was still ongoing when Rodney returned. He packed his things, said goodbye to his drunken sister and left her with a letter warning her to be more careful and less reckless. He told her she was welcome to contact him if she needed anything. Rodney arrived in New York and went straight to Harvey’s apartment where they reunited happily. The next day, he and Harvey went to check on the companies. He was relieved to find everything running smoothly. Harvey had achieved beyond expectations. Rodney had a feeling one of the contributors was Harvey’s happiness. Since he had moved his whole family to New York, he was much happier and less worried. Although Rodney was happy to see his friend, he couldn’t wait to see his own family.Four days later, he was on a plane heading to Europe with his little sister. Lyra was more excited than he was. She couldn’t wait to see Europe. They arrived at the small French town at 10 in the night. When they knocked on the house, Rodney’s h
Alberto was killed on his first day at the maximum prison. After his escape, he had been taken to a more secure prison where he could only dream of escaping. Unfortunately for him, that was where other notorious crimes were being held, including some notorious drug lords who had been his competitors. One of them was El Monstruo. He had been sold out by Alberto two years back and he had sworn to get his revenge. When Alberto was taken to the prison he was in, he managed to bribe a guard to lace Alberto’s food with drugs. When Alberto felt weak, he sneaked in and killed him. That was how a man who had always been so cautious went down.Rodney wasn’t happy when he heard the news. He wasn’t very sad, either. He had thought he’d be overjoyed when Alberto died but he didn’t feel so. He had never really thought Alberto needed to die. He just wanted him pay for his sins. Rodney was even a bit disappointed because he had hoped Alberto would be alive to witness his downfall. He had hoped Albert
The sound of fists pounding against flesh filled the air as the Rodrigo relentlessly attacked the Rodney. Rodney had been knocked to the ground. He tried to shield himself with his arms, but it was no use. Rodrigo who was fueled by anger and resentment, continued to pummel him without mercy.“Stop it, stop it!” Rodney cried out.But Rodrigo only sneered and continued his assault, landing blows to Rodney's face and stomach. The younger man tried to crawl away, but the older and stronger one grabbed him by the hair and yanked him back, raining more blows down upon him.Finally, Rodney managed to break free and got up to his feet, gasping for breath. He wanted to leave the room, tired of hearing Rodrigo’s mocking laughter following him.Suddenly, uncle Markos came into the room and delivered a strong punch to Rodrigo’s face. Rodrigo raised his hand to strike his uncle, but Markos held his hand. Rodrigo’s strength was nothing compared to his uncle’s.“What’s wrong with you, boy?” he asked
Alberto.“What are you doing here?” Alberto asked his son. “I’m pretty sure you’re mighty glad I’m here.”Rodney smiled. “You’re not wrong. I’m glad you’re here, where you belong.”Alberto chuckled. “So what? You came to gloat? I must warn you. I’ll not last long here so be careful about what you say or do. I might just ruin your life when I get out.”“Then I’ll make sure to enjoy the time I have while you’re stuck behind bars then. I’m enjoying this more than you think, Alberto. You know why? Because I was the one who told the police where you were.”Alberto’s lips slightly parted as the words sunk in.“That’s right,” Rodney said. “The son you think is no good actually managed to put you in jail. Alberto, the greatest drug lord whom many have tried to capture but have failed. Rodney Nelson, the good for nothing son with one kidney actually did it. The woman you killed must be very proud of her son, wherever she is.”Alberto rose and swiftly grabbed Rodney’s neck with his handcuffed h
Two weeks laterRodney was tired of being confined in Alberto’s mansion. He had reached his breaking point after begging alberto to let him go in vain. Taking care of Lyra was the only thing that gave him some comfort. One afternoon, he was sitting on the edge of the bed, his sister seated on a small stool. He carefully combed through her soft, curly hair, trying to gently untangle the unruly knots.“Ow, that hurts!” Lyra protested, squirming in his grip. Her hair had been messier than before that morning.“I'm sorry, Ly, but you have to let me comb your hair,” Rodney told her, trying to be patient.He continued to comb the hair, using his fingers to gently loosen the tangles. His sister’s hair was so curly and thick, and it was a struggle to get through it all. Finally, he finished and leaned back to admire his handiwork, a proud smile spreading across his face.“I’m done now,” he said. “You have the most beautiful hair in the world.”Lyra giggled, reaching up to touch her now-smooth
Miss Jones.Miss Jones was marking her student’s maths homework after having her lunch. When she came upon Lyra Sandman’s homework, she paused, feeling mildly annoyed. She remembered the girl’s brother who had promised to call her but had ghosted her instead. She felt more annoyed at herself for flirting with him. That’s what you get for flirting with your students’ parents, she chastised herself. She decided it would be the last time she would ever do something like that.She decided to forget the brother and focus on her student’s work. She realised this was Lyra’s best work. She figured the brother must have been helping her with it. Before, Lyra’s homework was always poorly done, as if there was no responsible person to help her with it at home. She felt admiration for the man.When she reached the second last paragraph, she saw something that had been written in a smaller font in between the paragraphs.“Lives on the wrong address. Details faked. Both stuck. Most wanted dl. Don’t
Rodney stood nervously in front of the kitchen counter, staring at the different ingredients laid out before him. His teacher was a seasoned chef called Marlon Price. He worked exclusively for his father’s cartel, earning millions. He had worked on a TV station for a while and never made anything substantial so he was more than happy to work for the drug lord. Marlon stood beside him, ready to guide him through the steps of creating a delicious meal.“First, we’ll start with the vegetables,” Marlon said, picking up a large, sharp knife. “You want to chop them into small, even pieces. Like this.” He demonstrated, expertly slicing the vegetables into neat little squares.After seeing how it was done, Rodney picked up the knife and mimicked the chef’s movements, trying to keep his cuts as even as possible. His looked a hundred times worse than the chef’s. Rodney had decided to learn how to cook out of boredom. As he looked for a way of delivering Alberto to the police, he decided to do s
Rodney was feeling a deep ache in his chest. He had been friends with Octavio for only a few days but was missing him so much. He stared out the window, watching the leaves fall from the trees. The atmosphere outside seemed so dull and lifeless, just like how he felt inside without his new friend. He curled up on bed, wishing he could just disappear and never have to face the pain of losing Octavio. He had not prayed in a long time but that night he did. He prayed for Octavio to be alive.He went and sat on the edge of the bed, staring blankly at the dull walls of the room. Tears streamed down his face as he thought about his mother, who had been murdered in cold blood just a few months back.As he sat there, he could still hear her sweet, angelic voice in his head, telling him to be strong and to never give up. She had always been by his side but now, he felt lost and alone without her. For a dark, gloomy moment, he thought of ending it all but the thought quickly left his mind, which
Octavio.Octavio hands were tied tightly behind his back, and he could feel the rough ropes digging into his skin. His mouth was gagged, and he felt a lot of discomfort allover his body. One of Alberto’s men stood in front of him, a cruel smile on his face. The tall burly man held a knife in his hand. He walked around for a while before turning back and moving towards Octavio. He crouched down and dragged the blade slowly across the Octavio's chest, causing the young man to flinch and writhe in pain.“You thought you could mess with the wrong people, huh?” the man sneered. “Well, you're gonna regret that. We're gonna make you pay, one way or another.”Octavio desperately tried to plead with his eyes, hoping someone would come to his rescue. But no one was coming. He was alone with his tormentor, who continued to torture him with the knife, cutting him in small, shallow wounds. Octavio couldn’t help but wonder if his uncle was okay with the mutilation. The cuts were not very serious bu