CHAPTER FIVE

Alex sat under the warm shower for half an hour and she had shoved three pills down her throat to keep her steady.

She stared at the large mirror in front of her and the pale look on her face reminded her of few hours ago, it reminded her of the rain and the cold. It reminded her of the inner trembling and how week her leg had been.it reminded her of that creature that puzzled her. He was indeed one of a kind; his eyes puzzled her, his words still rang in her head and his type of insanity wasn't lusting after her like many other men. He defied her without batting an eye and he had that warmth that was ravished from her many years ago. He had one half of Brandon and the other half had warmth like her father's, somewhere in between was a missing puzzle. Oh, how she hated him so much to the core; never did she want to ever set eyes on him again or she’ll be tempted to commit another felony.

Speaking of felonies, she wondered how Simon was going to ever be normal again after the beating he got from her.

She shook the water off her hair and then stepped out of the shower, she strode nude to her bedroom, took out her robe and wore it then her phone began to vibrate against the bed.

Once she pressed it to her ears, she waited for the caller to speak. "Alex" she recognized the voice. It belonged to her private investigator. "I found something rather quite shocking"

At last! Something out of the usual after so many years. This sounded like progress.

She sat on the bed and crossed her leg “How shocking?” she said in that cold bitter undertone that hid every emotions she was feeling at the moment.

“I found a man at Oklahoma, Grady Gulch with the same three pin tattoo on the man Brandon sent out to hunt you”

She shot to her feet

“They have the same tattoo on the face and I learnt that he recently moved in from New Orleans after a Walt Edna buried his company among several other companies here at Oklahoma, but this is not our guy”

“How are we sure it is not him?”

“I ran a data base on this guy. His name is Basil Howard alias Anthony Cooper. He is living with an old lady Margo Cooper; turns out he is married”

“Basil Howard” she racked her brain but the name didn’t ring a bell. She paced the room and repeated it several times but she couldn’t figure out where she heard the name before “I don’t know Basil Howard” she concluded.

“But you know A.D.A.M.S military training” yes, she knew A.D.A.M.S military training. Her father had told her about an organization that recruited soldiers to several countries as spies to gather weapons and information after the Second World War. Nobody knew about these soldiers except for the higher council, people at the apex of authority, people who controlled the new world order. These soldiers were marked with different identities and were given new names and some of those marks included the three pin tattoos on their faces. He told her that Brandon’s grandfather had been part of that alliance and so was his but unlike Brandon’s father, his own father cut off every ties with these people so he could lead a happy life with his family.

Now it all makes perfect sense.

Since Brandon’s father didn’t cut off ties with the organization and he was very influential, he could have bought off one of the guards to track her. A panic smile formed on her lips.

“I know A.D.A.M.S Will, I remember”

“Well, those son of bitches are trained killers with no compassion and they have been trained to track down even the tiniest pins in the ocean. If the organization still have them in check, they are as dangerous as a nuclear bomb that has three seconds countdown.” He paused “but what I don’t understand is why he hasn’t killed you yet.”

She shrugged “Because Brandon wants me alive” she sighed.

“Actually, I don’t think this guy is going to kill you at all”

“What are you saying Will, you know what happened to Eden”

“Eden. Not you.” Will hesitated “from what I have here, Brandon is killing everyone who has an attachment with you or better say, everyone whom you care about. They are not looking for you, matter of fact, they have found you and all your moves are known to them.”

“You mean…”

“I mean, they have you where they want you. Somewhere far away. Brandon is planning something and when he is done, he will come for you” she didn’t wish her private investigator, Will was so straightforward but that is why she hired him in the first place. He was the best she could find and they both had that same hatred boiling in their bones for Brandon. She paced for a while again, this time, her heartbeat slamming against the walls of her chest.

“So what are we going to do?” the panic broke in her voice

“It’s high time we stopped running. It’s high time we faced Brandon”

“I can’t go back. You know what will happen to me if I go back. They’ll kill me.”

“We just have to do this the right way. But first, we’ll have to visit the Basil guy. He can give us the information we need to find the man Brandon sent out to keep you safe enough for him to get to you.”

“Send me a picture and address, I’ll see to that”

“I can handle it Alex”

“No. I will handle that. You just focus on A.D.A.M.S”

“Okay, but you have to be careful – those vigilantes are extremely dangerous. You know the saying once a sniper, always a sniper. I will send it to you ASAP” he paused “are you sure you don’t want me to come with you?”

“We can’t be seen together. I can’t put you or anyone else at risk”

“You must be forgetting that when I signed up for this, I knew the risks.”

“Thanks William, but one comatose patient is enough. I’ll call you when I get anything”

“One more thing” he paused “Miller is in town”

“Miller?” she thought she would scream but Will already pressed the off button.

Miller? She growled in anger. How did he find her? She had made it clear that she didn’t want to have anything to do with him again but like a parasite, he always found his way.

Went-Earl Miller was a young man who worked for her father before he passed. During the time she and her father were in hiding, he had helped them secure a place to stay and during the cause, he lost his mother who was the only family left for him. Alex’s father was like a father to him, was a tutor and a friend and the only way he could ever repay all the kindness he did for him was to take care of his only daughter peradventure something bad happened to him during the cause of trying to escape. Alex’s father had saved Went-Earl Miller’s mother when she was fleeing from her demented psychopathic husband with a thirteen years old boy and had kept them in a safe haven under his protection in New York until Brandon showed up. Miller had tracked Alex through every nook and cranny of the globe and he followed her wherever she went. He made a vow to her father to protect her and he would stop at nothing to see that happen.

Unlike many other people that were searching for her, Miller was persistent, was brave and strong and found her no matter what and now, he had found her again. He was the only one who gave her a good beating if she deemed fit for he spent ten years of his life studying the art of the Kumate and the little skills she showed in fighting, she had learnt from him.

On her quest to revenge Brandon, he had taught her how to protect herself from anyone who tried to hurt her and she had persuaded him to teach her deeper into the art promising she would never use it to hurt any innocent person. Then she disappeared.

The Kumate was an ancient ninja fighting skill. It was the deadliest and each fighter had no other motive than to kill his opponent and tearing the heart out as a trophy.

Miller had learnt it to protect his mother from his psychotic father but when he met Alex’s father, he had taught him what forgiveness, compassion, love and humanity was all about.

Miller was a good man but she didn’t want unnecessary attachment.

Three messages received on her phone. One was the picture of Basil Howard another was his address and current location and the third was Miller’s current location.

She glared at it and… Miller was outside her house.

“Shit!” she rushed to her closet to retrieve a gun. She would scare him with this and would ask him to go back but hasn’t she tried that before? And when she did, he made her unconscious and she woke up to find herself in China with villagers who were eating tofu. She rushed to the kitchen instead to pick a knife and she placed it on her temple – that should scare him.

There was a light knock on her door and her heart skipped a beat, she heard herself gasp in fright and took a step backwards. “Jackie” she heard the familiar voice and she muttered a silent curse. “Open the door or I’ll break it down” he wasn’t bluffing and she knew it. “I’ll burn this place down” he was a shit-head rebel and that wasn’t bluffing either. “Jackie, I have gasoline and a lighter and I’ve got guts” he sure had guts and that was even more worrisome.

Then there was silence “I got shot. I am bleeding, is this how you treat an old friend?”

She paused “Shot?” If there was one thing Miller never did to her, it was lie. He was a straight-up bastard that told her the truth not minding how she took it or not and anytime she confronted him for being such a jerk, he’ll gladly tell her that he had a reputation and legacy to protect. How odd because he was the only one she knew that didn’t have a real purpose in life and his reputation was something she couldn’t write home about.

She lowered the knife from her temple and retrieved her firearm instead. She opened the door quickly and her gun pointed straight to his skull. “Try anything funny and I’ll blow your brains out”

“You are bluffing” he said in that confident tone making her hate him so much because she really was. She looked at him quickly for exit wounds and he was holding on to his lower abdomen “You look pretty sturdy for someone who just got shot” she offered him a hand and pulled him inside.

“Nice to meet you too Miller after five years.”

“I can’t say the same thing” she steadied him on her sofa and helped him unbutton his jackets. She quickly reached for her first aid kit and began to clean up his wounds.

“I took out the bullet already.” His temperature was high and fever was beginning to shake him down to the bones.

He looked even better-looking than she saw him five years ago. His jawline was firmer and his blue eyes shone brighter but with pain and he could say the same thing for her; she looked beautiful and radiant.

“I got to get you to the hospital”

“And say what? Oh doctor, help Miller, he got shot?!”

“You know you sound like a jerk for someone who is dying and needs my help”

“I’m not dying you punk. I’m just sick. I need to sleep, eat and take a shower” he was trying to be strong but she knew he was rotten on the inside. She picked her phone from her pocket and dialed a quick number. “What are you doing?” he knocked the phone out of her hands and sat upright, wincing.

“You are not welcome here Miller! I want to make sure you are okay and make sure that you leave my life”

“Sorry, I can’t do that” he coughed “I’ll be dammed if I do”

“Then, I don’t care” she picked up the phone again and dialed 911 but she paused to look at him “Who shot you?”

“Thanks for asking after a long argument” he adjusted himself on the sofa “His name is Kevin Ali. I’ve been tracking him for years and I found him here, then I found you”

“Who is Kevin Ali?” she frowned

“Do you mind to question me later, I just got shot!”

She dialed a different number and slowly, the lights in his eyes dimmed.

**************************

By the time he woke up, he was tied to a chair and the sun rays that penetrated through the curtains stung his eyes, he winced and would definitely have preferred entire darkness. His abdomen was heavily bandaged and his fever had disappeared; he knew Alex had gotten a doctor to fix him up.

"Rise and shine Miller" Alex rounded his seat and pointed a gun to his head "I'm going to make this clear" she cleared her throat "I don't want you in my life Miller. If there is someone you want to hang on to for your loss, I'm not that person." Her voice was cold and silence stretched between them. She had to do it to protect him and she would do it over again and again. The last thing she wanted was to have someone die on her; he had to go far away and live his life and not get caught up in Brandon's obsessions.

"Put the gun down Jackie" seriousness enveloped his face but she defied him. It was for his own good "put the damn pistol down"

"You think I can't do it?"

"I know you can't" he was daring her. He had that tone in his voice that she hated so much so, she pulled the hammer; he was really pushing her.

"I called the police and they'll be here in a few minutes. Go with them"

"What did you do Jackie?!"

"I am sending you away!"

"Why?!"

"Because I don't want you to end up like him." She dropped the weapon "don't you see that everyone around me ends up like him?"

"Like him; you mean your father. I'll be delighted to end up like your father, he was a good man and he died for what he believed in"

"You don't have to spell it out Miller." She settled in the chair opposite him. She stared at him for a while then buried her face in her palms.

"You must be really an idiot to think you can take on Brandon alone. Whatever he did to your father, that's not for you to judge! Let go of this mad resentment you piled up in your head because its just going to hurt you deeper and deeper." But he didn't understand. He didn't understand that even if she wanted it to all end, Brandon was out for her; he was out to kill her, to destroy everyone that surrounded her. She'd rather die trying.

"Can you say the same thing for yourself?" She eyed him.

"My father is not Brandon. My father was a monster" his jaw pressed in a grim line

"Why don't you take your own advice" she shot to her feet. Asides men who lust after her, she hated men who judged her. "I can't let go. I worked this far..."

"I am not saying you should let go."

"You are not?" She raised a brow

"No stupid. Before you tie me up like a burrito rap which you are lacking at by the way, or call the cops on me, I am not here to stop whatever stupid plan you have cooked up. I never was going to stop you"

She gave an exasperated laugh "you took me to China five years ago. You kidnapped me!" She threw her hands up in frustration."

"Because if I hadn't, Brandon would have kidnapped you instead. I took you to China to get away and what did you do, you came back into the very same trap I was trying to protect you from"

"I don't need your protection!" she paced for a while, disturbed and somehow feeling foolish. With the information she learnt from Will earlier, she knew Miller was right; oh she hated to admit it. "If you know this was a trap, why didn't you save yourself? Why did you come back?"

"Oh Miller, thanks for trying to save me again. Oh Jackie, you are welcome." He paused "I came back because unlike you, I keep to my words. I promised your father to keep you safe!" He could hear the sirens blaring from afar; the police were around the corner and soon again, he would depart from her. It broke him every time he failed to have her within his reach. She was just as arrogant and insensitive as always. Silence stretched again; nothing breaking the calm except for the uneven rise and fall of their chests and the sirens blaring from afar. There was nothing he could do to change her mind but there was something he could say.

"Kevin Ali" the voice shot out of his throat "he worked for your father once but he was part of Brandon's spies."

"What are you saying?"

"I am saying that Brandon doesn't just have one person watching you; he's got many. I killed Kevin in a brawl and the gun went off and I got hit. I told you I was tracking these guys..."

"What do you mean many?" He could see the fear in her eyes and the anger consuming that fear. This was the leverage that he wanted and he got it.

"Oh you think that its just one person? You and your P.I must really be dumb"

She raised the gun again "how did you know about William?"

"Is that his name? Well I could ignore the fact that he was all over me since I stepped foot in Oklahoma but I couldn't ignore that he tried to stop me from getting to you"

"Stay away from me Miller, I have never asked you for anything before just this once"

"You need me Jackie. It took me less than ten minutes to figure the shit out and I had nobody. Brandon has everybody" he was right again. Now the police were at the door.

"Miss Willis" she heard them call for her. With a gun cocked to Miller's head, she hesitated. He was looking at her with those confident eyes that tortured her so much and as much as she wanted to deny it, he was right. She needed him.

"It's not me you should be worried about Jackie, you should be worried about those other people you care about that doesn't know your real name. I know the risks"

She closed her eyes in frustration. There was this persistent knocking at the door and tied-up Miller in her living room.

She was going to push her ego aside just this once and risk having him around even though it might cost her a lot. She shoved the pistol in her pocket but as she made to untie him, he raised his freed hands with a wolfish grin cross his face. "I told you you suck at tying anything up". He had freed himself even before they began their long pissing conversation, he was just trying to make her see reasons before she acted on the spur of the moment again.

"Get up" she groaned and they both went to the door.

As soon as the police stepped in, they scanned the living space and the man who seemed to be in charge of the squad turned to look at both of them "My name is Gary Thompson. We got a call that there was a burglar here"

She flashed Miller a look and he reciprocated with the you-told-them-i'm-a-burglar-look? on his face before she cleared her throat to speak "Yes." She said without a least bit of wavering expressions on her face. "I heard someone  come in through the window. I heard the noise and panicked so I called 911 but before I got back, the person was gone"

"And did this burglar take anything?"

"Nothing except some of the milk I kept in the fridge. Poor person, how devastating" she said through clenched teeth.

"Must be a hungry fellow but we'll still look into it ma'am. It is called precaution"

"I'd love that Sir"

The man shifted his gaze to the stud that stood really close to her. "How about you sir, I haven't seen you 'round here. Were you here at the time of the incident?"

Alex closed her eyes. She wished the policeman had just stuck with her story and not ask anything from Miller. Giving him right to speak was like giving a loaded gun to an assassin. He cleared his throat and put an arm on Alex's shoulder; she hated whenever he did that then, he spoke "I came in from China to meet my friend here. You have a problem with that?"

"No." The policeman shook his head.

"I wasn't here at the time of the milk burgle. If I was, the man wouldn't have escaped" he had that taunting look on his face "I wonder what took you and your squad to get here"

"We..." The policeman made to speak but Miller interrupted  him.

"...Wouldn't be needing your assistance anymore sir, please do have a wonderful day"

Annoyed, the policeman walked out of the room and Miller slammed the door shut behind him. Immediately he did, Alex shoved away from his reach. The reason why she hadn't been able to get rid of Miller like she did to other men in her life who had such irritating confidence was because she didn't see Miller as a man. She saw him as a an alien; a creature she had tried to study but failed, a creature who had a mission she knew about, a creature that didn't care if she was a male or female and treated her indifferently but with caution.

"What?" He caught her glare but chose to ignore it. She tried to retrieve the pistol from her pocket but it was no longer there. She looked at him and he was pointing it at her with that wolfish grin on his face. Once again, he had outsmarted her "And so you know, I disarmed your weapon yesterday" he pulled the trigger and it made only a clicking sound. She had forgotten how skillful he was and it only got better with time.

He was the only creature to keep her sanity in check.

"So, are we going to see Basil or what?"

"You checked my phone?" She snapped getting more frustrated.

"Wrong. I checked everything"

**********************

It was eight in the morning and Luay was already at Tony's workshop trying to fix the broken down machines that were looking probably sixty years older than its owner. He had made up his mind to help Tony and Margo rebuild their business and within the last three weeks, he could beat his chest proudly on the magnificent up-rise in sales "a pretty face like yours is good for business" Tony had once told him and he was using that to his advantage quite well. He had hired a mechanic to help him fix the broken down machines and with a bit of architecture and his experience as a contractor, he had transformed the horrible looking berth to a more sophisticated workshop. The installed a heater for the cold mornings and Tony had given him a truck to aid easy transportation of the cups out of town to nearby mountain cafes.

Tony was a good man and good men deserved better.

He stood to his feet after tightening the last bolt and looked at the man who was busy checking the wires in the circuit. "Done?" Luay asked him and he shrugged.

"Yeah. Done like a magareto" the short black-American teenager laughed but Luay didn't get the joke. He blinked, trying to phantom what Jake, the mechanic was saying "magareto, buritto..." But Luay looked indifferent. "Forget it man, the Machine is up and good"

Luay smiled "Now, that's what I like to hear" he tapped Jake on the shoulder and strolled to get himself a bottle of water at the other side of the workshop.

Meanwhile, Tony was out as early as five in the morning. He had left a note for Luay that there was somewhere he needed to get to and would be back before lunch so, he should go ahead and work without him. Margo was indoors. She did a little gardening in the morning and made coffee for Luay and Jake before settling in to rest.  Luay retrieved two bottles of water from the tray and turned back to meet Jake at the other end only to stop at the entrance of the workshop. He looked towards the driveway that led to Tony's cottage which was a distance away from the workshop, he saw a car zoom in and  pull over not far away from the main house. He observed for a while and out of the vehicle stepped a man. He couldn't tell what the man looked like because of the distance between but he could tell he wore an expensive suit and sunshades. Through the other door, another man stepped out of the vehicle too.  Sense of familiarity struck him but he wasn't certain too for the distance between them faded their looks but he could also tell from the way he walked that he had seen him before.

"So, what do we do now?" Jake came close, interrupting Luay's thoughts "we wait for the old man?" He took a bottle of water form Luay and began to uncork it. But Luay couldn't get his mind totally off the mercedes benz that zoomed into the compound with a shinny golden WF written on its side.

He gestured his head towards the car "Do you know who they are?"

"Holy cow" he saw the change of expression on Jake's face as he squinted "those are Walt'n-Foams"

"What's a Walt'n-foam?" Luay raised a brow in curiosity.

"Walt Edna's foam cups. They are here for either two reasons, either good or bad. Maybe they wanna hire Old man Tony" he rubbed his hands. Quickly, the ingenious of Luay's mind told him it was the opposite. Tony had told him how Walt Edna's company tried to push him entirely out of the system and had struggled to get back on his feet. If these people were really from Walt Edna, then it could only mean trouble.

He pushed his bottle of water into Jake's hands "stay here. I'll be back" and he went to the house.

He rang the doorbell twice before Margo came to open the door from him and there was a gloomy look on her face. He held her at the doorpost and whispered to her.

"Is everything alright? I saw two men walk in..."

"It's fine" there was a tremble in her voice and he knew it was a lie.

"Walt Edna?" He whispered back. There was this frozen look in her eyes and when it softened, she invited him inside the house.

The smell of strawberries filled his nose and the warm cream color of the walls and white ceiling began to register to him. The home was cozy and the furniture were adroitly carved from very thick trees. That was what his mind was trained to do. She steered him into the living room and seated at the short-oak-center-table on sofas were these two men who looked all suited up like professional assassins. He could swear he recognized the one with the mustache and sunshades but he couldn't remember where.

"They brought in a letter" Margo began, handling him a white A4 sheet with a red letter head, WALT AND FOAMS.

He read through quickly and frown zoomed in his brows. "Close down?" He looked over the letter to the men who were beginning to stand from the Sofa.

"I think the letter is clear enough" the one without the mustache and shades spoke "you have a month" he gestured towards the door but Luay stopped him.

"Wait a minute, who do you think you are? This is a free world and you can't tell us what to do"

"We just did"

"And if we don't?"

"We'll be forced to take legal actions"

Luay scoffed. Was it because he was wearing a casual sweatshirt and he had grease all over him that made this people think he was ignorant or illiterate? That was an insult on his intelligence. He took the paper at the middle and tore it to shreds.

"You can go back to whomever sent you that its not going to work"

The gentlemen observed him for a while before the minute with the mustache finally spoke. "Walt Edna owns the disposables in this town. We can sue Mr Anthony Cooper of copying"

"Listen to yourself. For copying? Why don't you sue bottle water industries because as far as I am concerned, they all sell water which they didn't produce with their brand names on it."

"This is our town Sir... whoever you are"

"And this is also mine. I can't have you mess with people here for fun sake. Pick on someone your size."

"Rules are different here"

"You are right." A sly smile grew on his lips "now you are trespassing. Leave now before I kick you out myself"

"It has been decided. You have a month"

"Why don't we play by my own rules instead since you love playing by rules. I'm going to count to five and if you are not off this property by then, see that car over there..." He pointed to the mercedes benz outside "that's right. If you are not out of here in five, I'll bash it to the extent that you'll be the one carrying it out of here on your heads" he wasn't bluffing. He had a serious look in his eyes that gave nothing away.

If there was something he hated than lying women, he hated money-grubbing-pricks that think their the wisest to make a fool of one's intelligence.

"And if there is anything else you need, tell your boss to bring it down here himself"

Embarrassed with their faces flushed with red, they left the premises.

Luay turned to Margo. She was down in tears and her fingers were trembling "this is bad" she said beneath her breath"

"Hey" Luay held her "I promise you that those bastards won't take this away from you. Can you imagine? Copying? Outrageous!" He let go of Margo "they don't even have an argument."

"You don't understand. Walt Edna doesn't need an argument to win a case. He is..."

"He won't lay a finger on you again." He cut her short. "Don't mind those monkeys. I know Walt Edna, my company handled some of his projects before and I'm sure these ones came on their own will. An educated man wouldn't think of something so dumb to cheat people"

"You don't even know that Son," she settled on a wooden chair "I have seen what this man has done to so many people. He ruined them without batting an eye. He is a monster"

"Calm down Margo." He held her hands "I'll visit their head office first thing tomorrow to clear this misunderstanding. I promise you that" and with those consoling words, he left the house.

***

"Are you insane?" Sidney shot to her feet "Lu. I said you should meet people not get tangled in their mess"

"The workshop is going to close down for copying? Don't you see this is evident-cheating?!"

"Then get another job Luay!"

"Get another job?" He was puzzled. His sister wasn't someone who told him to give up what he believed in. He had made a promise to Margo and he wouldn't break it for no reason. He observed her for a minute, not knowing what was going through her mind. She seemed restless and began to pace the living room, soon she headed for the kitchen and he followed her "What is wrong with you Sid. A man is going to lose everything he has worked for and you just want me to turn my back on him especially when I can help?" He said, finally getting a hold of her. She shrugged away from his reach to get herself a glass of water. She was evidently out of breath like something was bothering her or she was trying to hide something.

"That is not what I am saying" she steadied her breath and once she finished the glass of water, she set the glass on the table and cleared her throat "I don't want you to get tangled in their mess. You have your own shit to handle." She was right but partially. It was true he had his own problems to solve but to him, not breaking a promise to Margo and reviving Tony's company was now his problem. He had loathed people who made promises just to break it and that was the reason why he didn't completely forgive his parents.

After Sidney got married many years ago while he was still a freshman in college, his parents promised they would come back from their vacation and they would spend only three week in Rio but they didn't keep to their promise.

They spent a full month and on their way back, they died in a car crash.

He loathed Kathrine and Miss Welch and Lasha too for they promised him forever only to leave him hanging. He loathed liars and cheats and saving Margo and Tony's was his sanctuary.  

"I'm not going to turn my back on them' he said in a cold bitter tone. That bitter tone that racked nerves in Sidney and made her want to tell him the whole truth.

"You don't know Walt Edna. He is a tyrant, a beast. You shouldn't mess with him at all. Never!" She paced restlessly "you are going to write a resignation letter and leave that run-down place!"

"Do you even hear yourself? I don't know about you but I made a promise and if you think I'll break it, then you don't know me at all"

Luay was stubborn and it took all the effort in the world to persuade him and the thing she loved about him but now loathed was that he never broke a promise. Only if he knew what Walt Edna did seven years ago. If only she had told him then, it wouldn't be so difficult to convince him now.

Walt Edna shouldn't be messed with for he was a son-of-a-bitch who got whatever he wanted,  self-serving narcissus who would do or say anything to get what he wanted.

She felt her heart beat rise and fall unevenly "you are going to resign! Anyone who messes with him ends up like..." She hesitated as the words threatened to roll from her lips. An awkward silence grasped the air making the situation tense.

"Ends up like who Sidney?" He sensed she was behaving strangely.

"I'll get you another job, I'll talk to..."

"I don't want another job. I want you to talk to me. Tell me why you are trying so hard to protect me from Walt Edna" for that was what it seemed like she was doing.

"Nothing." The unconvincing voice shot out of her throat "I just happen to know this town than you do. I know the hazardous nature of the people that inhibits it"

"What did Walt Edna do seven years ago?" Oh how persistent he was. Once he got an idea into his head, it took miracles to get it out. He wasn't a retard, he was an intelligent person and he knew Sidney was trying to cover up something, it was evident and an arrant insult to his intelligence.

She was silent.

"You are not going to tell me, are you?" He raised a brow "well, that won't change a thing because, I'll  help Tony and Margo anyway"

"You'll die" it fell off her lips and her response shocked him. Only that was not what she meant to say. She just wanted him to be safe. Darkness drew in his eyes and his jaw tightened in disappointment and pain.

"Let God be the judge of that Sidney" he picked his hat and jacket from the hanger and headed out.

"Lu..." But he was gone.

*********************************   

Luay arrived at the workshop late in the evening to see Tony and Jake loading the work-machines unto a large truck.

"What's going on here?" There was a frown cutting across Luay's brows. Tony cornered the large truck to meet Luay who seemed puzzled about the whole thing.

"I'm closing" Tony shrugged against the cold.

"Closing" Luay repeated trying not to believe his ears "why would you be closing?" this was all one big misunderstanding and he could prove it if only everyone stopped behaving like  scared-cats and stood for what they believed in. "Closing?" He looked Tony squarely in the eyes "you can be serious"

"Oh yes I am, kid" he pulled out rope from one of the big boxes on the truck to tie the machines firmly to one another "I can't risk it again. If Walt Ed. sent people here to threaten my wife, then he meant business"

"So, you are just going to close?" Luay repeated like it didn't register well at first and Tony gave that indifferent look. "So, you are going to chicken out and throw all our effort away because some monkey-suited-assholes told you to?"

"Oh, they were suited. Even more reason why I should take it serious" Walt Edna wasn't taking him serious. This was real deal to him and everyone was taking it with levity. What was going on?

"We've worked so hard!"

"And I appreciate, kid" Tony turned to him with seriousness settling in his eyes "they came here and threat'ned my wife. I might not be a huge-muscled-man but if there is one person I'd love to protect, its my wife! She was a victim of this once and I'm never gon' let it happ'n again"

"What about all your faithful customers?! Are you just going to hang them out to dry like you are doing to me now?" There was a sudden freeze in Tony's eyes "are you going to bail on them Tony?" Luay pressed

"I'll send them letters tomorrow"

"Outrageous!" Luay paced "what happens to not giving up? What about working hard? What about proving them wrong and exposing to them that foam cups causes cancer... What about..."

"You are a good man Mr Luay Sanders but I hired you now, I'm firing you. You deserve better than getting mixed up with country-low-lives. Walt Edna will crush you if you forge ahead. You are a good person and I can't have your demise weigh me down for the rest of my life. Margo told me how you stood up to those men and I am grateful but this is where I draw the line."

Luay was shocked, he was angry and pained. This wasn't how it was supposed to go down. He had mapped a plan in his head but everything had turn out to be an epic failure like his previous job.

There was something about him that dragged bad luck everywhere and now he had settled it in the warm hearts of Tony and Margo, the most warmhearted people he'd ever met in Grady Gulch. He stood perplexed, refusing to accept what had just hit him. How can Walt Edna be so frightening? He wondered. What makes a man so powerful that everyone fears him and wouldn't want to cross his path? What happened seven years ago that Walt Edna had to do with it?

Tony finished loading the truck and moved to open the garage doors.

"He fired me too" Jake shrugged, coming towards Luay. "Once I get this babies sold, he'll move with Margo back to New Orleans." That was another revelation that annoyed Luay.

Jake stepped into the driver's seat and drove the truck out of the garage into the streets.

Tony and Luay strode to the gates of the premises. He was still shaken by Tony's decision but there was nothing he could do. It was Tony's workshop not his and from looks, he could tell Tony's mind was totally made up.

An awkward silence dragged between them. The night blankets had covered the sky and the cold was an understatement for the freezing climate. Luay looked at Tony and a pang of pain struck him in the heart; how dreadful of him to run away from a fight he could easily win. He looked away into the cold night trying to nurse his emotions, his anger.

Tony broke the ice "I know you are mad at me young man, I know you want to take a wooden rod and hit my head back to senses"

"Not literally, but it actually feels that way" Luay confessed. He couldn't hide his emotions and sometimes he cursed himself for it. It made him feel vulnerable and weak and... Innocent.

"I m doing it for the woman I love. I am sure you understand that I wouldn't jeopardize the one I care about for a gamble. Yes, it looks like an easy win but we are both broke and Edna would crush us with a law suit."

"Jake told me you are moving back to New Orleans." Luay said without looking at his old-friend.

"Yes. I have a small piece of land there. We could start a poultry, Margo could do a little farming..." He sighed and snugged himself tighter "I m sorry I let you down kid"

Luay turned to Tony and shrugged "I still think you are a coward but I respect your decision." He paused "but don't sell this place. You have wonderful memories here, keep it and come here once in a while for vacation"

"Oh my dear boy" Tony laughed "you are so kindhearted and you are filled with positivity. I am envious of that, you shouldn't let the world corrupt you. After I leave, I propose to give it to the community development project so they can build a school on it or som'n"

Luay raised a brow and another silence stretched between them.

"Its going to snow soon" Luay tucked his hands into the depth of his pockets.

"Yes. And Its getting cold out here. You should move along now" Tony patted him on the shoulder and soon disappeared through the thick fog that had began to settle.

He watched him disappear and stood on the same spot for almost two minutes. The people that fascinated him in his life came through the dark and left in the same manner.

He could not deny that he was disappointed with Tony for being such a coward neither could he deny that working with Tony taught him about human relations and protecting the people he loved. Tony was a strong man who stood for what he believed in, he stood for the love he believed in and unlike him, Tony love to Margo was for eternity. That made him envious.

In the distant corner of the road, a black car was parked on a very isolated street and through binoculars, someone peered.

"I don't know why we shouldn't meet the man now" Miller fumed as he dangled a stopwatch between his fingers.

Alex was still trying to fit the puzzle in her head. What was the creature doing with Basil Howard? Why do they look so squinted? Was he another man Brandon sent after her? She looked as he stood there for many minutes even when the old man had left him there and even though she had promised never to cross path with him again, he happened to be her next line of investigation.

She turned to Miller. "We'll meet Basil in a moment. I want this man out of sight first"

"Why?" Miller asked

"He works for Brandon" she responded with utmost bitterness in her voice.

*********************************

The doorbell rang twice. Basil Howard rolled out of bed, away from his wife's embrace and glanced at the clock on the bed stand. "Eleven?" He muttered. Who would visit him at such awkward hour and day?

He retrieved a pistol from his drawer and switched on all the lights in the house before opening the door.

A loud bang was heard followed by a scream and another bang.