IN LOVE WITH A MAFIA – Episode 2

IN LOVE WITH A MAFIA

Written by: Bambi

Episode 2

 

The morning rays settled on an elongated body in the sheets as a soft moan enveloped the room. Its owner stirred as dazzling ebony eyes danced in their sockets; the alarm clock rang, the third it had done. Grin! Came the ring. Grinnn! Came another ring. Kendra slid out from under the sheets and gave a stretch, then a soft sigh. She looked to the side, catching no sight of Penny. “Penelope?” she called, panic-stricken. The child couldn’t have known her way around the house so soon, could she? She jerked up fast and ran out the door.

 

Penelope sat on the vice president’s lap downstairs as Kendra hurried down to know if she was there. The child giggled at everything the vice president said, making Kendra aware that she was there.

 

“Penny?”

 

“Oh, you’re up,” said Kamila at her daughter’s voice.

 

“Gosh, you scared me!” Kendra breathed a sigh and walked to them. She heaved again seeing how pleased the child was…

 

“Did you sleep well?” asked her mother before she could ask.

 

“Not quite,” Kendra gulped. “Thought you should have left for work, though,” she said. She looked down at the child and gave a slight rub on her cheek. “Hey, little one,” she smiled.

 

“Hey,” greeted Penelope, shy.

 

“Would you like to get off Big Mama’s lap?” Kendra motioned for her to come to her.

 

“Oh, she’s comfortable,” Kamila replied in her place. “You seem stressed, my dear,” she took notice. “Really stressed.”

 

Kendra sighed. “Oh, it’s nothing…”

 

“Nonsense! Do tell,” Kamila pleaded with all ears.

 

“I’m just not feeling well, that’s all,” Kendra said with a shrug.

 

Kamila eyed her thoroughly before asking what she had in mind. “Would you like Michelle to get you some meds, or call Dr Rover instead?”

 

Kendra rejected. “I’ll be fine,” calling their family doctor wasn’t her problem. She had a whole lot going on in her mind. “Trust me, I’ll be.” She needed her mother to.

 

Her mother’s P. A appeared with a file that almost looked like the one from yesterday. She had a tablet in her right while her other hand lapped the document close to her leg. “An urgent call from the minister…” she didn’t complete.

 

Mom responded by quickly letting Penny down and rising to her feet. “Duty calls…”

 

“…as always,” I sighed and slumped on the sofa beside me.

 

•**

 

__Jong

 

I blended in with the many people at the park as I sat on the pavement close to the fountain. “How’s my daughter?” my guest had arrived. “Hope she’s doing well?” I turned my head at the call.

 

Tapping the space beside me, I asked her to sit. “A nice job you did there,” I started. “A really nice job,” I complimented, as the Swiss woman grinned.

 

“Am I getting her back anytime?” she crossed over to sit.

 

“Our work isn’t done,” I said without a smile.

 

Marie was her name—a 63 inches tall chubby woman, with a white oval face.

 

“There’s more?”

 

“Yes.” I gave a straight answer. I wasn’t one to talk much, that part of me I adored.

 

“Alright,” she got up and looked at me. “My money?”

 

“To be transferred to you when all work is done,”

 

She huffed and left unhesitatingly.

 

I sat alone once again, admiring the kids on the slide, my fingers clasping the surface of the pavement. “I saw what you did there,” a familiar voice froze my spine.

 

“Emily?” I called.

 

“I see you still got your bad boy moves, uh-huh?”

 

Five Years Back…

 

“Whoo! Yeah! Come on, man. You can do it! Ye-ah!”

 

White Buck and Eagle’s Eyes were at it again. It was the final tournament. The spectators adhered and cheered at whoever they thought would emerge the victor.

 

The ring tumbled and heated with the referee’s yell engulfing the air. “1, 2…”

 

“Yah!” Hot grunts accompanied the grasp, showing Eagle’s Eyes was winning.

 

“Yeah! Whoo-hoo!” cried the people, their cheers representing their desire was about to be granted.

 

An unexpected turn of events sent those who whooed and booed off their feet as Eagle’s Eyes fell to his feet. “Rah!” His outraged opponent came on top of him, while those in favour of the champ-to-be cheered and screamed in delight. “Yeah, White Buck!” their man was declared—the winner he emerged.

 

“You were good out there, handsome,” a black brunette congratulated the champ. Her name was Emily, White Buck’s first love.

 

•**

 

“Ha-oh. So you still remember?” Emily had already gotten seated beside Jong-su. Her teeth shone as she laughed in her usual way. “Oh, how I’ve missed you…”

 

“For five years you didn’t bother to text,” the atmosphere changed to a quiet one. “Why didn’t you text, Emily? Or even returned my calls?” Jong-su asked. “You left the States for Bulgaria, and completely forgot about me.”

 

Emily stiffened, her voice lost. Her family had moved to Bulgaria, leaving her with no choice but to follow. All those years she spent without Jong-su, she sniffed. “I-I was going to call-“she made to say.

 

“Five years, Emily,” Jong-su pointed out. “Five good years!” he showed his five fingers and Emily held him.

 

“Jong…”

 

“Don’t touch me!” Jong-su removed his hand. “Why are you here, anyway? To know how I’ve been fairing all these years?”

 

Emily was broken. She knew how Jong could be when it was something that had to do with love. She messed up, this she knew; never would have moved on the moment she got on that plane.

 

Flight 127, she replayed, as she gritted halfway. She was to stay if not her Dad had insisted. Those long years, she recalled, the way she met other boys, including Sean.

 

Sean and Emily had begun dating in the later year. He was the cranky, sand hair man who Emily loved after Jong.

 

Jong, on his side, had long forgotten Emily. All that they shared and the memories-all he cast in the barn. “Why are you here, Emily?” Jong asked, not hiding his displeasure.

 

“I came back for you,” Emily held him again.

 

“Well, you’re late!” Jong gave her a stern look.

 

“I know you’re angry with me…”

 

“Emily, nothing you say will make me forgive you…”

 

“I still love you, believe me,”

 

Jong stood up, already fed up. “Goodbye, Emily.” He bid her and left.

 

The guy who kept his gun aimed at him from the 12-storey building withdrew. He gnashed and stamped, removing his cap. “That bas***d!” he cursed.

 

The angry man took his phone out of his pocket, dialled a certain number and got the receiver talking in seconds. “Target eliminated?”

 

“Not quite.”

 

“Goddamn, Hakeem. You’re f****ng slow!” a sudden cheesed-off voice rang.

 

The line went dead and Hakeem got ready to leave. He put his phone back into his pocket, and his gun back in his bag. Hurrying out, he went down the stairs, outside, ready to hunt-but also on the lookout.

 

Kendra and Penelope went shopping that day; the little girl smiled as her new friend bought her the things she pointed at. “Ice cream!” she pointed at the ice cream cart outside. She tugged at Kendra’s sleeves and dragged the jolly young woman with her. They went outside and bought a cone in time, as Penelope cried. “Mommy!”

 

Kendra was forced to turn. “Mommy?”

 

The woman in a fine leather jacket hastened her steps. Penelope followed her, quickening hers; Kendra followed and called her back several times but she didn’t hear. “Penelope!” the child was about to cross the road. She ran as fast as her legs could carry her, an incoming vehicle almost hitting her. A man appeared out of nowhere and pulled her out of the road. Kendra cried as she watched with a heavy heart. The girl she had taken in, would have died if not for him.

 

“Oh, Penny! Penny—Penny,” Kendra kept breathing. She took her from the man, overjoyed, and not wanting to wonder what would have happened if he hadn’t come. “Thank you. Thank you,” she said with a sigh. She hadn’t taken notice of him, until she looked at his face, their eyes meeting at the spot. “Chang—” she remembered, “the man from Chang.” She completed.

 

“Um, hi?” greeted Jong.

 

Penny’s eyes wandered as Kendra kept staring at Jong. She didn’t expect to see him there—their meeting must have been a coincidental one. “Hi-hi…”

 

“Kids, am I right?”

 

Kendra looked stupid. “Yup,” she said.

 

Jong averted his gaze and let go of Penny. He introduced himself as Psi, a fake name he had given intentionally, and Kendra’s lips curved in the cutest way. “Psi?”

 

“Yes.” Jong tried not to laugh.

 

“Well, I’m Kendra,”

 

Jong clasped his hands in a bid to avoid a handshake. “Kendra. That’s nice.”

 

Kendra’s heart raced. She gulped, feeling a whole new feeling. This man must have had something on her to make her attracted to him. “Yeah, I’m Kendra,” she said again. Quickly chiding herself, she relaxed her mind, wiped the sweat off her forehead, and said appreciatively, “I appreciate what you did there,” she had her thumb pointed backwards. “Thank you,”

 

Jong nodded and they talked for a while. He let the black woman leave while he tarried, lost in thoughts. Ironical how the one woman he was out to eliminate, turned out to reach the bottommost part of his heart.

 

 

Meanwhile, the Pisces were still on a hunt; instructed by the boss to catch the betrayer and ‘the girl’, they stayed on the lookout and infested every place.

 

“We had better find Jong-su before sunset!”

 

“And the girl, too, Emil!” Gabriel spoke.

 

Emil was the 10th member of the gang—the last. He had a spiky personality, two glaring almond eyes, and a thin, square-jawed face. “Yes, the girl.”

 

“44 Avenue should be where she stays,” implied Spikes. “Hakeem mentioned, remember?”

 

The gang looked at him. “44 Avenue?”

 

Hakeem chimed in. “That’s where we should be looking…”

 

 

TBC