THE GRAND PLAN Hart quickly dialled his father's line, the Don answered."Father, there's trouble. Big trouble," he said shaking."What kind of trouble?""I am just arriving at the venue of the meeting, but it appears the meeting is already over.""What do you mean already over? What time did the circular say?""I'm not sure father. I couldn't locate the place on time and your line could not get through when I tried to call.""But that's not all," he went on."If you have anything to say, say it quickly. I want to call the director and explain your foolishness to him," El-Zaki yelled. Hart wanted to argue that it wasn't his fault, but he knew that was a lie. He got drunk with some girl he met at the airport after taking her to a club last night. The two of them ended up in bed and before he could get over his hangover and manage to escape back to his hotel to get ready for the event, it was nearly noon. His father's angry tone would turn to a war cry after he hears what he's about
AN EYE FOR AN EYECaleb ended the call with Mr Ramirez and turned to Fab, "I have a job for you tonight. Do you think you can do it?" "Any kind of job, rich kid. I'm here at your service," he said. "Call me Cab going forward, especially when we're together." Fabian nodded and waited expectantly for him to tell him the type of job he needed him to do. "I want you to kidnap someone." Fab jerked his head up sharply. "Here in Rome, I mean." He raised his eyebrows, "Tonight?" "Right away if possible. We don't have much time," he said and went to open his luggage to remove the small Mauser he had purchased the first week he arrived in Madrid. "And I'm going with you to do it." "No! No, you can't be mixed up in something like that. Mr Ramirez asked me to accompany you for a reason." Caleb was staring at Fabian with curiosity. He hadn't met someone so eager to serve him. Perhaps Mr Ramirez was right when he said he saw a good leader in him. And Mr Felipe Santino repeated the same ea
HE WHO LAUGHS LAST The time was 6:00 am, the chiming sound of the clock indicated as much. Hart stirred and opened his eyes to a nagging headache.He stretched to clutch his head and realised he could not move his hand past a certain point. He groped for his phone to use the flashlight because everywhere was pitch black, but his wrist twisted with the effort. He didn't understand what was happening to him. "Where am I?" he mumbled and tried to sit up. Then it occurred to him that his hands were tied to something like a chain because it kept clanking with each effort he made.He opened his mouth to scream for help, but that only made the piece of cotton wool stuffed in his mouth migrate to his throat.Cold fear gripped him and his eyeballs popped out from their sockets."What is happening to me?" he wondered. Then he tried to remember the last place he was. It began and ended with him dancing in the club. From that point till now, he didn't remember anything else. A growling sound e
THE NEW DAWNIt was not often that a don was deposed. Maybe for newbies, it was a well-deserved punishment to effect discipline within the Mafia organisation, but for a man like Miguel El-Zaki, he considered it a personal vendetta."Seventeen years I have been accorded this honour. And I've lived up to the tenets of the title. I never missed the annual conference for once; not even in the year my only brother, your uncle, died - which coincided with the date of the general annual meeting." He was talking with Hart after his release. The outrageous conditions he was forced to consent to just to have his son back weren't terms he could have imagined himself bowing to if it wasn't for Hart's foolishness and reckless behaviour. He had never stopped berating him every moment he got the chance since that day. El-Zaki had aged by a decade in the last couple of days that followed the incident. But nothing prepared him for the announcement that was to follow later that evening.Hart sat idly
NEMESIS"Your father needs to see a specialist," Doctor Robinson said as he removed his stethoscope from El-Zaki's chest and hung it back against his neck."What is his condition like, doctor?" an apprehensive Hart asked. His mother, Madam Rebecca, was sitting by the foot of the bed. She was beside herself with worry."Well, like I suggested earlier, your father needs to undergo some pathological examinations. It appears he has a defect around his chest region. A scan and an x-ray will tell us what the actual problem is.""Then recommend one specialist right away. Money is not the problem as you know it!" Madam Rebecca said, her olive eyes flashing with impatience.Doctor Robinson, an advanced man; averagely built, round face with a bald head and thick moustache smiled nervously. "We have one renounced pathologist who works at Parklane Hospital but she has been sent to Spain on a special course." "And that's the only one in all of Mexico City?" Hart cut in tersely. "I didn't say so
A TOUGH CALL Caleb studied her for a moment and then asked, "Who?" "The coordinator of the WHO programme. He's my research supervisor in the specialized Advanced Pathology course I'm currently running." "Okay, so does he want you to return to work already?" "Something like that. Although..." she trailed off. "Although what?" Caleb inquired hastily. "He says he wants me back in Mexico City." "And why is that?" Caleb was unconsciously raising his voice. "Because he wants me to examine a patient with a special case." "Who is this patient, if I may ask? Because unless he's the President, I don't see why he can't be brought to the hospital where you work in Madrid for you to examine him." "Well, he's a prominent personality in his own right," she said observing Caleb's disapproving frown. "So are you!" Caleb returned, his voice sounding possessive. It startled Adriana. "You should wait until you hear his name," she added. Caleb narrowed his gaze. "What is his name?" "His name
IN EL-ZAKI'S HOME "You can't return to Mexico City when you've only just got back from Rome," Mr Ramirez argued. He was in his office when Caleb went to tell him of the new plan. "It's important that I do. I am the number one don now and since my name has been announced, I need to see all the men under my command and address them." He didn't want to tell him that El-Zaki was ill, which was his other reason for wanting to go back. Mr Ramirez knew Caleb was right about meeting members of the Mafia group he now leads, however, he felt that if he allowed him to go, the partnership deal he agreed to sign might be affected. "But you still have work to do here in Madrid," he tried to dissuade him. "I have you here, Antonio," Caleb picked up a crystal ball on his desk and fiddled it with his finger. "You can keep an eye on the goings on in Madrid while I'm gone." Antonio sighed seeing that he had run out of excuses to trap him. Moreover, if he forced him to stay, he could use his author
BLOOD TRANSFUSION"The test results are ready," Doctor Robinson said to Adriana, handing her the envelope containing all the results he had collected from the laboratory and x-ray unit. She opened it and brought out one of the sheets. "Tumour of the stomach. Malignant and rapidly spreading to the lymph nodes," she read out loud. Doctor Robinson adjusted in his seat, tugging the collar of his lab coat. Adriana brought out another sheet, "This one is his x-ray report." "What does it say?" he questioned anxiously. "Dark patches in the upper lungs region. Patient suspected to be having chronic obstructive pulmonary disease," she read out again. Doctor Fernandez put down the two results and gave a poignant look at Doctor Robinson. "It seems we have a very delicate case in our hands." The older doctor nodded ruefully. "He needs to be operated upon without delay," he suggested in agreement with her. "I couldn't agree more," she added, "but I fear that the family, especially his wife