THE TRIP TO WOODWARD VALLEY It wasn't often that the Don left his mansion to go on a road trip. Thus, for him to have to come all the way, it meant a big deal.El-Zaki looked every bit the Don he was in his three-piece black overcoat worn over a black suit and white shirt. He had on his fedora hat and moved with an air of authority. Carlos took one glance at the approaching man and stopped loading the truck."Hey, Mister. To what pleasure do I owe this visit?" he asked in his characteristic low rumble tone. He groaned and took a suspicious look at the truck. "What have you got in there, old farmer?" "Who are you to come into my property and question me?" Carlos spoke testily, a bit too defensive for the Don to overlook. He turned to look at Nathan who was immediately at his side and smirked, "Oh, my apologies, old man. Let me introduce myself: My name is Miguel El-Zaki popularly known as Don El-Zaki." "A Don?" murmured Carlos, trying to connect his presence at his home with anyt
THE NARROW ESCAPEEl-Zaki waited another two minutes then his instincts told him to wander into the kitchen. As he did, he found the old farmer fiddling with his phone.He made to stealthily creep up to him and seize the phone, but just as he moved past the cabinet by the entrance, his arm brushed against a glass bowl containing some herbal mixture. The bowl fell and clattered on the wooden floor, spilling its content.Enrique who had expected this kind of surprise was smart enough to instantly delete the message from his phone. He spun around and looked down in horror at his wife's already prepared potion smeared on the floor. "Good heavens, Don!" he mouthed. "Why are you creeping up on me? And look what you've done to my medication. Am I also a suspect like the men you're looking for?" he was facing him squarely now. A pang of guilt flitted through El-Zaki's mind but he quickly dismissed it. "You will let me see what you've been doing with your phone, won't you?" he stated firmly.
WE NEED A DOCTOR Pedro had lost consciousness. His wound was starting to form gangrene. Camila went to assist in bringing him out. It was a bit difficult but they succeeded in the end. "Is there something you can do for him?" Caleb asked looking anxiously around the deserted farmhouse. It was smaller than Camila's house at Farmville but had the advantage of a river that they could access in case the chase became more intense. "I could try something but at this rate, he might not make it without seeing a medical professional," Camila answered honestly. Caleb gave her word a thought and wondered if calling Doctor Fernandez and asking for her help might be a good idea. He hadn't contacted her since he was kidnapped and taken across the Caribbean Sea. The thought gave him an instant sense of dread. Adriana would be very mad at him. But she will understand when he explains everything to her, he thought out loud. "Just do whatever you can for him. I'm going to make a few calls and see
ACCOSTED BY THE POLICE "What's the matter, Camila?" asked Caleb stunned. But Camila only began to weep. "Come on, talk to me. What's wrong? What did your husband say?" he kept probing her. When she still refused to speak, Caleb bent and picked up the phone and placed it against his ear. He heard it too. Gunshots and shouting. Camila looked up just then and saw the look of horror on Caleb's face and wailed. "They've shot my husband, isn't it?" she sputtered. When she got no response she continued bitterly, "What am I going to do now? I can't spend the remaining days of my life a lonely, sad widow." Camila's continuous cries and lamentations made Caleb feel hopeless and distraught. He felt responsible for her misfortune. "I'm so sorry, Mrs Enrique," he said without looking at her. That was the first time he formally addressed the old woman after they became acquainted. And it seemed befitting at the time. "I have watched many people I love either get killed or murdered in cold bl
THE TRUTH IS OUT "We can't continue to stay here!" Caleb announced as he burst into the living room. Camila who was saying something to her husband looked at him askance. "What is the matter?" He swallowed hard, not knowing how to put it. After he abruptly ended the call to Doctor Fernandez, he turned around to relay what he just heard to Carlos but noticed he was no longer outside trimming the flowers, his sense of fright went overboard. "I can't exactly explain except that I suspect the police might be unto us any moment," he answered, reaching for his jacket which he left on the couch for Pedro to rest his head. "But did you call the doctor?" Carlos asked looking at him in confusion, wondering why he was suddenly acting strange. "Yes, I did." "And?" "And some-someone else answered her phone," he stuttered. "Who?" interjected Pedro. The noise of Caleb barging into the room had woken him from his siesta. "What did the person say?" he adjusted to give him space. "Nothing au
AN UNEXPECTED TURNAROUND "What are you looking at that is making you white in the face?" Carlos asked observing him. "Nothing, Mr Enrique." Then Caleb turned to Pedro, "I need to speak with you outside.""There will be no whispers around here. If there's something wrong or amiss, we all should be aware of it." Carlos spoke defiantly."I'm sorry, Mr Enrique, but this is a bit personal.""More personal than letting you into our private lives?" Camila replied curtly."Fine," Caleb said in defeat, "the doctor has found someone who claims to know this place. She said he is bringing her over.""Who?!" the old couple asked simultaneously."Someone who used to work with Fabian," he dropped the bombshell on them."My Fabian?" Camila asked getting up. "My boy? You know someone who knows where he is?" she said with optimism in her voice. "Not exactly, Mrs Enrique. I'm not promising anything yet. The person might in fact have lost touch with him by now, but I do know they used to work togethe
BECOMING AN INITIATE The man turned to give a disapproving look at the house, then bent down to speak with someone inside the car.When he straightened up again, he put his hand into his waistcoat as if to pull out a gun. He was dressed like El-Zaki when he visited Farmville. The only difference was his facial symmetry. He was a bearded man with muscular chin. He wore dark sunglasses to cover his eyes. As he moved, his tall and slender frame gave him a larger-than-life demeanour. Carlos crept up behind Caleb and peeked at the visitor. He didn't look familiar to him. "Follow me into the house through the backdoor. Let's get the guns and be ready." Caleb did as he said, his heart jumping in his chest. They barely made it to the living room when they heard a loud banging on the front door. Pedro who had fallen asleep on the couch opened his eyes, then held his head in his hand."Please tell them to stop. My head feels like the inside of a drum." The knock came again more persisten
A POUND OF FLESH Caleb had reacted in a moment of blind fright. His fidgeting index finger pressed on the trigger - just as swiftly as Carlos had taught him to do: "If someone aimed a gun at you, shoot first without waiting to be killed." It was precise and accurate; directly on the forehead. Brutus was dead even before his body crumbled to the wooden floor. There was a moment of complete silence in the living room. Carlos who had taken position behind the sofa where Pedro had slept on, slowly uncurled to his feet with his mouth hanging open in disbelief. He kept staring at the hideous slender figure of Brutus as it sprawled across the doorway. The dark sunglasses he wore now hung suspended on one side of his ear. His gun had swept under the centre table when it fell off his hand. Then he darted his eyes to gaze at Caleb. "You have outdone yourself for a first-timer." Caleb swallowed nervously. He looked at the revolver in his hand and began strolling to stand by the window look