HOW DID IT HAPPEN?At the station, the crowd of people gathering outside wouldn't let the cab driver find his way to the entrance. Caleb was forced to come down and pay him off so he could call Officer Martins to come out and escort him inside. He wasn't allowed access even when he showed his I. D to the security at the gate. On a normal day, he might have been furious but today he had already played his card well and that silently put him in a good mood. Caleb was escorted to the office of Deputy Inspector John by Officer Martins. The man was already waiting for him alongside Officer Ethan who still appeared visibly shaken from the whole incident. "We asked you to come to the station because we have a few things that we need clarification about," the D. I. P began. "Because from the news report and also the account of a few witnesses at the scene, the military helicopter that blew the black Hilux took off as soon as the deed was done. Meaning that it wasn't on a rescue mission per
THE TENSION BUILDS UP Miguel El-Zaki stirred and opened his eyes in the hospital to the sound coming from the television. It was the chaotic scene at the police station being aired live. "What the hell is going on!" he muttered to himself when he saw people screaming and throwing items while some carrying placards were ranting as though demanding something he didn't exactly hear. Then he saw someone familiar pushing their way to the front to address the crowd. It was Caleb Dezani. He sat up on the bed. "What is he doing?" "They are protesting because a military helicopter burnt down a rich man's vehicle!" Bella supplied the answer. El-Zaki hadn't noticed his stepdaughter was also in the room. She was knitting something and sitting in her wheelchair. It was the least she could do to keep herself busy since she couldn't bring her laptop to practice her coding. "What rich man?" he snapped at her.The poor girl shrugged. "They say he's one of you.""One of..." his voice trailed of
CLOSER TO THE TRUTH Caleb was expecting a call from Mr Lujan but he didn't. Instead, it was the one called Adelio Amos that reached out to him.He sounded relaxed and calm as if he was one of his men but Caleb didn't let that fool him one bit. Of course, he knew Mr Amos had seen the news and read what people were saying on social media. A lot were against him. "Mr Amos, to what do I owe this pleasant surprise." He too was acting calm as if he didn't just go in front of the whole world to challenge them. "I'm surprised you seem calm and unperturbed despite what you've been through. That's one of the attributes of a true leader," he said, his tone still as relaxed as ever. "Were you expecting a different reaction? And how do you know what I've been through, if I may ask?" The man was silent. He had given himself away by that singular comment. He needed to choose his next words carefully now. "Common, Mr Dezani, let's not pretend like we're children here. You and I know that not ma
OVER MY DEAD BODYThe following morning, Caleb had scheduled the meeting with his men to take place as early as 7:45 am. It was a calculated plan to inconvenience Mr Adelio Amos knowing fully well he might not be up for it because someone within his faction had intimated him that Mr Amos was hosting the launching of his new car business the same day. As soon as he posted the update on the group, he turned off his data - which was around 5:00 am. He was making his way to Fountain Arena alongside Abhi who was driving while Officer Martins and Ethan sat behind. The other four officers were yet to recover so he didn't bother hiring more men. Then he saw people gathering in front of a guest house which is the next street before the venue. "Slow down, Abhi," Caleb said to his friend, "I want to find out what's going on there." Abhi slowed down. When they got closer, he wound down the side window. The people gathering around were discussing in hushed tones. "What is the issue?" he aske
TEST OF WILLS"You don't have much of a choice," Mr Amos sneered at El-Zaki. "I have control of the media as well as the loyalty of a good number of our members. They will do as I say.""Are you threatening me Adelio? Remember that I still have a lot of influence whether I'm the number one don or outgoing don."Mr Amos let out a burst of sarcastic laughter that echoed throughout the entire hospital room. "If that is the case, why didn't I see your security guards at the door trying to stop me?"The man stood up and walked over to the foot of the bed so he'd have a better look at El-Zaki. "Caleb Dezani had only recently beaten up two of your men and locked them up. The assistant head of police already gave him security escorts and pledged his loyalty to the new don."El-Zaki raised his head in shock."Oh ho!" Mr Amos smirked. "See? You don't even have adequate information about the goings-on in your household. Is that the characteristics of a man who intends to wrest power from a full-
I WANT HIM BACK Two days after the incident, Caleb's phone wouldn't stop buzzing at every minute. People were calling from different countries to congratulate him. His uncle, Mr Tomas, said he was going to pay him a courtesy visit from Madrid in a couple of days.It was going to be a big family get-together - one his grandfather said had not happened since his parents' death. And Caleb was desperately looking forward to it. Then out of nowhere, a strange number began to call him. When he saw it, he noticed it wasn't the local line. He looked closely at the country code, it was from Mumbai. "Do I have any M75 from Mumbai?" he muttered and decided to go through the names on the list that was given to him. There was no member's name indicated to be from Mumbai. He sighed and picked up the phone. "Hello, Don!" the voice said. It was feminine and strangely familiar. Caleb switched on his True Caller app to check the caller's detail. It registered as Liliana Jonas. What a surprise tha
BEYOND REACHCaleb wasn't sure he heard Mia right. Did she want him? Just like that? Why? And more importantly, why now?He didn't say anything. "Are you there?" she asked. "Please don't say no. Grant me this one request, if not for anything, for our past friendship."He scoffed. "Past friendship? Were we ever friends, Mia? Did I cut the mark to be considered a friend by you? Was there a time you made me feel loved or welcome in your life?" His tone kept rising with each question so much that he choked."I know how this may sound, alright. But I desperately need to talk to someone before I lose my mind.""In that case, let me get you the psychiatrist who works at the hospital you're admitted in. He's a good listener and counsellor."The dint of sarcasm could not be missed in Caleb's tone."Come on, Caleb. I know you're enjoying this. Yes, I admit that I'm miserable - if that will make you change your mind."Caleb heard the sound of the door opening and closing. "I have to go now," Mi
GAME OVER El-Zaki told his personal doctor Robinson that he wanted to go home. "I will continue to receive whatever treatment the doctors recommend from home." The old man tried to persuade him to stay a while longer but he wouldn't listen. "I want to be discharged," he emphasized. "Tell that young lady doctor." "Doctor Fernandez?" "Whatever her name is!" he snapped. He was acting moody and ill-tempered since the visit by Mr Amos. "Things are truly getting out of hand and unless I go back home, there's very little I can do from within these walls," he grimaced looking around. Doctor Robinson gave his explanation careful consideration and consented. "I'll see how I can convince them to let you go.""Yes, you do that."***Caleb was having a meeting with Mr Amos when he received a buzz in his phone. "I heard from one of the nurses that my father will be discharged today," the text message read. "Huh?" he exclaimed. That made Adelio jerk up his head. "Is everything alright?" he a
THE ENDCaleb went to DeZ Cosmetics the next day with some men from the ministry to reopen the place. He still remembered a few of the staff there and began to call them one by one.Mr Apollo, the company's supervisor, was the first person he called. "Hello Mr Apollo, this is Caleb. Caleb Dezani. I'm calling from DeZ Cosmetics and I am in the office right now. Do you mind reporting to work?"The man grunted in disbelief. "But the company was closed down two days ago. And you no longer work there. Last I asked, I was told you took over as the CEO of another company." Caleb laughed. "Well, that last part is true. However, the company was under dispute and has now been resolved. I have reclaimed it as the rightful CEO and want you to return to work. Please while coming, do well to call others to report to work too. I shall be waiting at the reception hall."But Mr Apollo didn't call anyone until he got to the company and found out for himself that the place was indeed reopened. It was a
THE TRUTH IS OUT It felt like a nightmare as the black police Hilux which carried Madam Rebecca drove into the ministry. Her heart was thumping in her chest. She didn't know what to expect. She was ushered into the office by the officers who brought her with specific instructions from the inspector. Meanwhile, Caleb hadn't joined them. When the inspector asked whether he was going to the ministry from the station, he replied that he wanted his grandfather to be present during the meeting. "I need to go and pick him up at home." The two men shook hands, "Well, whatever happens, do not hesitate to ring me." "Thank you so much, Inspector. I hope we shall be able to meet and have that drink soon." The man laughed. "I will count the hours till I hear from you. Good luck!" he added. Caleb drove back home and lord Diego joined him to the ministry. Abhi couldn't follow because he had already left for work. But his stepmother, Leah, insisted on being a part of it. Caleb obliged her.
The FINAL NAIL The next man to interrogate him was the meanest of them. His face was cold and unfeeling."Why did you abandon your textile business?""I didn't abandon it.""Excuse me?""I did not abandon the business. I was defrauded and the business collapsed." "That means you went bankrupt after that?" He didn't answer. "Please can you speak up so the next person can take over?" "Not really. I had people who pulled resources together to loan me the capital I needed to rebuild my business." "And yet you didn't. Or did you?" Again he swallowed hard. "Okay, let me rephrase the question. As a businessman who was into textile, after you were defrauded and people loaned you money, did you rebuild your textile business?" "No." "So what did you do? "I went into partnership with someone in another line of business." "And what business was that?" "Cosmetics. I went into cosmetics." "Good. That will be all from me."By the time the rest of the members had interrogated him, El-Za
MAKING CONCESSIONEl-Zaki woke up for the third time since he was shot and realised he was in a different atmosphere.This new place smelled of drugs and drip water. "Where am I?" he asked no one in particular. A male nurse who was attached to him was sitting by a desk writing. He looked up and said, "You are in an infirmary. You were shot but now recovering." El-Zaki tried to look around and the effort made his head hurt. "Who shot me and which infirmary is this?" The nurse was instructed not to answer any questions past introducing himself and offering medical care. "I'm sorry sir but you shouldn't be concerned about that. You are responding well to treatment and your wound is drying up faster than expected. Please tell me if you feel any pain or want anything." The man stubbornly tried to sit up and felt a sharp pain on his side." Oh gosh! My rib!" he grunted. "Lie still," the nurse advised. He looked at his watch and said, "It's almost time for your midnight draught. It will
SLIPPING AWAYIt was Mr Ramirez calling back Caleb to tell him the men at the checkpoint said the truck was merely carrying items for charity.But Caleb knew better than to buy that lie. He remembered his own travel adventure with Pedro. How he had to hide at the bottom of Grandpa Carlos' truck loaded with cow refuse and feed for hours until they got to Woodward Valley from Greenville."But did they offload the entire truck to search?" he probed."I doubt that they did." "Okay. You should get to your hotel and remain inside. I just got info that the police team from yesterday may be visiting Cholula this afternoon." "Is that right?" "So I heard. Or better still, do not go to any hotel. Find somewhere else to lodge until you hear from me again." "But where else is safer than a hotel?" he asked feeling desperate. "I know a place. It's an old farmhouse occupied by an old couple. Fabian's grandparents." "Oh ho! Don't tell me this was your grand plan all along to make your friend see
DISCOVEREDIt was lunchtime and Caleb realised he was starving. All he had eaten the previous day was toasted bread and salad prepared by Hannah and Bella. Then in the afternoon, he didn't have time to eat as he spent it trying to help them settle down at the new place he got for them. Later that evening, he was called to be at Primo Palace and all he took was a bottle of the most expensive wine which he shared with Mr Ramirez. And later on in the night, he drank French wine as they talked.He felt his stomach growling in protest. Even Abhi heard it from his office and teased him. "When Madam Leah was begging you to have breakfast at home you said food was the least of your worries. Now the worms can't bear it anymore that they want to cause a volcanic eruption in your stomach." Caleb didn't know when he let out a burst of laughter. "You're crazy, man!" "I swear I've been so busy that I can't wait for all of this to be over so I can take a month-long vacation." "Sure. You will ne
SHOWING UPCaleb called the inspector of police, and he promptly answered. "To what do I owe this personal call?" he said cheerfully. "To a long-lasting friendship of mutual interests," he replied. Then he added, "I was hoping we could hang out maybe later in the day. What do you think?" "Oh, that would be wonderful. Let's make it eight o'clock this evening." "That's fine by me," Caleb consented. "What venue?" the Inspector asked. "FanFood Eatery." "I shall be there," the inspector promised and the call quickly ended. A notification dropped in Caleb's phone. He checked it was a text message. He hastily read through because he was behind the wheel. A delivery truck just turned up in the El-Zaki mansion. It has spent about 25 minutes inside the premises." The message read. Caleb immediately sensed something sinister. He pulled over and replied to the informant. "Have it followed and let me know its destination." The info made him feel a bit troubled. But he shrugged it off an
DOOMSDAY Everyone's attention was turned in the direction of the intruders. "Gentlemen, how may we help you?" the lady questioned. "It's more about how we may help you," Caleb responded. Barrister Crusoe kept his face down avoiding Hart's gaze. The director spoke next. "Yes, let's hear you out." "Good day, lady and gentlemen. My name is Caleb Dezani of Dezani Cosmetics," he introduced himself. The director narrowed his furrow, and the three men seated to the right of the lady gasped. The other three including the lady shone their eyes in disbelief. "You mean you're the CEO of Dezani Cosmetics!" "That's correct," Caleb said suppressing a grin at their dramatic expressions. The director went on. "How may we help you? I mean you already said it's you who wants to help us, so please, to what do we owe this August visit?" "Well, I was reliably informed that you were asking to see the original documents of DeZ Cosmetics." "Dez Cosmetics isn't the same as Dezani Cosmetics, am I
DETAINEDHart drove with bated breath heading to the ministry. He kept trying to reach his father to find out whether he was able to trace barrister Crusoe but his line remained unreachable.It was almost ten o'clock and his line wasn't still connecting. None of the bodyguards that went out with him had returned home last night. It was as if there was a conspiracy amongst them to abandon the mansion the moment their boss went incommunicado. Everyone was just acting strangely - including his mother. She had suddenly packed her bags after his father left the house telling him she was going on an emergency business trip but that she would call to inform him when to join her. "Where is this business conference, seminar, or whatever taking place?" "We'd be touring round different countries starting from Portugal. Then we'd move to Brazil and so on.""All within South America?" Hart had enquired. But she didn't give a definite answer. Surprisingly, not too long after she left for the ai