Outsmarting The Mafia

Before the rage

7 MONTHS AGO

***

Henna Farrider painted the last of her garden scenery. Seated on a soft cushion stool before a wide window, she'd began her strokes, making meaning to every pattern. The sight of nature pleased her so much. No wonder her dad had chosen that view for her paintings.

She lived up the hill, far away from other residents who barely knew they existed. This was a choice of her father. He loved the peace and quiet, which was one thing she respected in him.

Giving her painting one last stroke, she'd dropped her painting brush and made her way out to the open.

Her home wasn't the best; just her and her 49-year-old dad, but she hadn't asked for more. Peace was one she valued a lot and never underrated.

Just behind the wooden fences which shielded one from falling off the steep edge of the mountain, was the amazing sight of the city. Lots and lots of skyscrapers. The lighting at night from the city was one of the most amazing sights she knew she would ever see.

She recalled well, at the age of 9, begging her dad to allow them to move to the city. All she got was a pat on the back and a I-will-think-about-it-look.

Who needed to go to the city anyway when you could just fantasize about how life could be there? She'd thought. Her childhood is about her in her young head, wrapping her hands around her chubby body and wondering how life in the city was. There were hovering bikes, neon-lighted trains, underground water tunnels for submarines…what else could one want?!

Every night came the sound of helicopters flying over their little home. What had it carried? Why does it pass her home all the time? When she'd asked her dad the following morning, her dad covered it up with a ridiculous lie.

"That's a cargo plane, not a helicopter", Her dad would correct, grabbing hold of his bag for another bunch of wood.

"That was a helicopter I heard, and not a plane. Father, there is no way that there was not a helicopter". She tried pointing out she knew the differences between the two. Helicopter hover blades made a loud noise due to the fast pace they spun. A plane had none of that.

"Fine, you got me there. Just mind your business and don't think much about it. I do not want you to have any interest in city life."

Unfortunately, she already had.

" The city is a beautiful place to live in. I mean, everyone lives there, dad. The birds even get the chance to rest on the minister's roof. Imagine that."

"Henna, stop being stubborn and take my words as they are."

Her dad never changed his mind about her mixing up with the outside world. This led her to become anti-social and caused deprivation of understanding the importance of human interaction.

Despite her dad's mysterious reason for hiding her from the real world, she was certain he never proved himself evil. He spent as much time as he could with her, got her everything she ever wanted and loved her unconditionally.

Now that she was 22, she slowly came to the realization that she had nothing to show the world about her life aside from her paintings. She had no other skills nor had she been through any form of education, aside from helping her dad prepare meals. This hadn't struck her mind as a problem until she'd slowly begun to adapt to others and realize how much of her life she'd wasted.

When allowed to explore the open world on her 22nd birthday, she had full hopes of this. It had felt nice at first, with the thought of being free from the prison and allowed to do whatever she wanted. The fresh air became her lover and the trees won a spot in her heart.

Finally, away from the hill where her home was located to the entrance of the main city, her heart almost stopped for a moment. There were lots of human faces… strange human faces like hers who'd explored the roads without even paying attention to her existence. Her enthusiastic feeling turned into anxiety promptly as she'd gazed around, having no clue how to speak with anyone.

The easy interaction everyone had with each other, and the complying with traffic rules, almost led Henna to tears to realize she might have been stuck in the ancient world for a long time. She had no clue what was happening.

As her eyes explored with tension, she recalled her dad's mission for her and placed her left hand in her gown's pocket.

"Get some bread and leave" she'd told herself, trying hard not to be distracted by a soundless hovering car.

Looking out at each store name for the store proposed by her father, The Lairs, she spotted the right one and walked in.

As expected, the large store confused her tremendously. Nothing made sense to her anymore. All she'd spotted were thousands of shelves and people.

Standing at the door with obvious helplessness, unable to move from the spot she'd stood, a worker approached her and offered to help. She'd been nice enough to ask what she wanted and led to the shelf which held bread.

"What exact kind of bread do you want?" The worker asked with a smile, as she pointed out the different rolls of bread.

"Cashew Flavored", she answered, feeling more comfortable with the interaction.

"O! Sorry. We are out of stock. Why don't you come back this evening or tomorrow morning for a new batch? "

Henna had no objection over this, so she nodded and walked out with the money in her hands. Her next move, according to her dad, was to make her way back home instantly. That was boring! She wanted to see more! To experience more!

Ignoring her dad's warning, she'd made her way farther into the city and branched into a less traffic area which had more creepy-looking people. The houses got more enclosed and the lighting got darker.

"Alright. That's enough now. I have to go back. We've seen enough fairytale land for one day", She told herself as she was about to turn back toward the direction she went. Before she made the attempt at all, someone pushed her flat onto the floor and grabbed hold of the money she held in her hands.

Feeling the heavy impact of the fall, she'd grumbled and felt her eyes filled with tears and disappointment. Her face rose at the sight of who'd done it. All she sighted was a dark figure, racing deeper into the alley. She hadn't sighted his face but she knew he had brown hair and a gray shirt on.

These were the disadvantages she'd never thought of. Of course, with every good comes bad. Unfortunately, one tends to overlook the bad a lot.

Back home, her dad hadn't reprimanded her for losing the lesson nor had he blamed her for going into alleys against his will. Instead, he'd made a promise to never let her set foot in the city again.

"Running away from the problem won't solve the problem. I am 22 now. I should be able to take care of myself"

"The world is dangerous, Henna! The world is not a fairytale land where everyone learns their lesson and apologizes. You need to protect yourself from its evil side."

"What evil side, dad? A guy snatching my money from my hands?" She argued. "There is no way I can protect myself by just hiding. There is more to the world than just our fears… "

" I know how the world works better than you do. Take my word for it."

Once again, her dad wanted her to do the listening while he did the talking. For the first time, she'd felt she had enough of it. She had enough of being controlled. She felt the need to be obnoxious and planned out her next move to trace her new enemy. There was no way she could let him go that easily.

Making her way back to the alleyway where she'd been robbed two days later, she hadn't spotted the guy wanted. Instead, she'd spotted a group of students, laughing loudly and smoking a cigar.

Her anxiety struck her once again, causing her to turn back.

"Wait up, chubby! You're ashamed or what?" One of the girls called out, causing the rest to laugh out in response. Henna had anger build up in her. She'd pressed her eyes shut for a while before turning back to them.

"There is nothing wrong with having a little more weight. In fact, it's healthier than… "

"Save yourself then". Another one in a red sweater sneered, before pushing her down to the floor.

"Stop! I haven't done anything to you" Henna cried out, as she tried fighting back her tears. She helped herself up.

"Why? Do you have to? You look bully worthy" The initial girl who'd called her, laughed, giving her friends a fist bump. "You look like you've got no confidence in you. The way you turned back at our sight shows how timid you are. You fear us, don't you? "

"Leave me alone!" Henna screamed out at them as she'd tried backing away.

"What will you do, huh? What will you do?" The lady bullied on, pushing her backwards repeatedly, causing deep irritation. " What does your family have to send me behind bars? You do not know who my father is, I guess. I am a very popular model with a high status. Every freaking soul fears my dad, due to his arms. I sweat your family will be dead, before you put a scratch on me"

Henna didn't believe she was threatened like that.

"Mark the name Berky in your heart. I do not want you to ever forget me because I will haunt you. Even in your most beautiful dreams", the bully smirked, before walking off with the rest of her gang.

That is all you get for rebelling against your dad, Henna!

Having no clue how else to react and feeling her esteem go down to zero, she'd made her way back home with self-pity. Waiting for her on the sofa was her dad, who'd foreseen her rebellious act and awaited her return.

"What's this, Henna?" He asked furiously.

" I am sorry" She apologized, standing before him with a bruised arm and dirty orange gown. " It was a Berky. She'd taunted me for my weight"

Her dad's angry expression suddenly relaxed at the name. He'd swallowed back every other word he was about to lash out instantly and drew her for a hug with fear.

"I love you, Henna, and I can't afford to lose you. Don't ever go to the city again"