TOXIC ATTRACTION

TOXIC ATTRACTIONEPISODE SIXTEEN

Milton left happy about the money he had made in one day. He has never thought about being a corrupt officer but the fruits of his cooperation tasted sweet and he was going to try and do good in Richard's eyes so that he could continue harvesting such a huge amount of money. The agreement between him and Richard was that he was going to be doing them little favors and also being on the lookout for them. Richard knew that Tosh's confession had opened a can of worms for them and the police were not going to turn a blind eye to everything Tosh had said. Maybe they had gotten lucky that once and thanks to Milton but they were going to have to keep the situation under control.

Santos: that was close. What would have really happened had the other cop insisted on going with us to the hospital?

Richard: we would have had a terrible accident and he would have died.

Richard said getting up from his chair and walking out of his office followed closely by Santos. They were headed to the room where they had kept Tosh after the officer left.

Richard: clearing the scene was a good move. You made Tosh look like an i***t.

Santos: you think the cops bought it?

Richard: I don't know, they might go back to doing a thorough check, if they find anything that might implicate us we will go down.

Santos: let's home Milton does his job...

They got to the room where Tosh was and Santos opened the door for Richard and he stepped in. Tosh was seated on the floor holding to his head and when he saw Richard he moved away from him with fear written all over his face.

Richard: you fool, I thought you were my friend!

Santos was standing behind Richard still evidently angry with Tosh. If it were for him, he would have shot Tosh dead.

Richard: you tried to get me arrested?

Tosh was dumbfounded, he did not know how to get himself out of the situation but he knew that Richard could kill him like he had witnessed him killing the other guy.

Tosh: you killed a man, that person I saw out there was nothing like my friend, since when did you start killing people?

He managed to air out his concerns finally.

Richard: people don't play with my business and certainly not my money. You on the other hand are a traitor and to me, traitors are better off dead than alive.

Tosh: don't kill me, please... I won't question you again. I won't open my mouth to anyone again.

Richard: oh no you won't. I'll make sure of it. Santos gives me your gun.

Santos handed Richard his gun and Tosh got up begging him not to kill him.

Richard shot Tosh on both legs and he got down then handed the gun back to Santos.

Richard: that will stop those legs from running to the police station. Next time you have an issue, you talk to me. Be careful Tosh, next time I might aim at the head. He walked out of the room and asked Santos to lock the door and go with him.

Mark drove me home. The drive was interesting as we got to talk a lot about different things. His life, his friendship with Richard, why he wasn't married and I realized that he was not only funny but he was very brilliant as well. Mark owned a multi-billion company that distributed cement all over East Africa and some parts of west Africa. His company had over three hundred employees and was looking forward to opening a new branch in one of the countries in the West.

Mark was in love with me. I could tell that what he felt was not some sort of infatuation. His touch was gentle and the way he looked and talked to me was heavenly. He made me laugh my heart out with his funny jokes and for a moment I had forgotten about my worries...

Mark: I love to see you happy, and I also love to be in your company.

He said taking a turn and we would soon be at my mother's place.

Me: me too. It's been a while since I laughed this hard.

Mark: then let me be the one to tickle you into pearls of laughter, when can I see you again?

Me: park right there. I wouldn't want my mum to see me getting out of your car.

He looked at me and our gaze met...

Me: I didn't mean it like that, you know the situation with me and Richard. My father has not even spoken to me since I got home.

Mark: I understand.

He took my hand into his and kissed it.

Me: Mark, I like you a lot but whatever this is can't go any further than it already has. It is getting complicated as days go by. You can always find another girl that will be her best for you.

Mark: I like complicated, I don't want another girl, I want you, Robina, I want to hold you, and kiss you. I want you for so many reasons I can't list down and I'm not backing off. I will take you away from Richard and I will make you mine...

He moved in for a kiss but stopped and let me meet him halfway.

Mark: don't fight it..just kiss me...

I did, with butterflies all over my stomach and in the back of my head, I knew that trouble was knocking and I was gladly opening the door for it. I pulled away yet again, opened the door and stepped out of the car then waved to him as I made my way home.

The guy Richard had killed was a spy. Richard was smuggling firearms into the country and then selling them to goons and terrorist groups for training and for attacks. The operation was always smooth as he had people working for him at the port and he also has a few police officers who were in his pay role. The weapons were not only sold in the country but he got orders from outside and he run his business in a very discreet way. Richard also had a gang of armed robbers who robbed banks and jewelry shops and even stole expensive cars and sold them off after his boys at the garage pimping the rides into something that could attract a lot of clients. Richard was a good boss and he paid his employees well. No one knew how ruthless he could get unless they stepped on his toes but an ordinary day, he was a sweet, charming, very calm, and collected human being.

Santos: I hear Rafael is asking questions and he is organizing a group. They found their guy's body dumped along the border and now they are waging war.

Santon said driving Richard off to a meeting with Johannes, Johannes was one of his contact persons at the port, the guy who cleared his weapons once they arrived in the country. He had flown into Nairobi because there had been a problem with their shipment this time round.

Richard: Rafael is not my problem at the moment. Get the boys to it. I need 24-hour surveillance on what's going on within my territory. Rafael sent a spy to my camp and when you find a spy you send a message to whoever sent them. Rafael is only reacting but we can't underestimate him. I need to know what he is thinking. If the noise is too loud we silence him, should what we are doing get to the government, not even Milton will help us this time round.

Santos: okay.. so what will you do with Tosh, he is your friend and at the same time he is a threat to our business.

Richard: he doesn't know about the business, he only knows I killed someone. The bullets in his legs should make him figure out if he wants to live or die. The choice is his.

Davis got to his place and dropped his car keys on top of his table then switched on the TV and dumped himself on the couch. He made a call to someone asking him to make a food delivery then dropped the phone on the table and up again and went to his bedroom to take a shower.

Davis was deeply disturbed by Julia's words, he stepped into the shower and her words kept ringing in his ears. He knew there was a husband in Robina's life but what other men was she talking about? He had a good time with Robina and even though it wasn't much but she gave him a listening ear.

Davis: there has to be a way to make her mine again.

I got to the house and my mother was already back from wherever she had gone to. I said hello to her and then started making my way into my room but she stopped me and asked me to sit down. My mother was always very direct to the point and if something was bothering her, she didn't beat around the bush.

Cleopatra: When are you going back to your husband?

That caught me off guard, why would my own mother ask me that when I ran home to seek refuge from a marriage I never thought was going to work?

Me: I thought I was welcomed here.

Cleopatra: you are, this is your home but you also have a husband who needs you.

Me: Richard has always existed without me, he could have called or even followed me here if he thought I was worth it, Richard probably views me as some pair of shoes he bought from the market and that includes his mother and crazy sister. I didn't ask for this mother, you and dad did this to me so pardon me if I'm not feeling sentimental.

Cleopatra: why did you come back Robina, this could be a conversation between mother and daughter.

She was preparing vegetables for dinner when she started asking all those questions.

Me: can I ask you something?

Cleopatra: yes.

Me: how much was I worth when dad sold me to Richard?

She made a sign then put the Vegetable away and sat next to me. She took my hands into hers but I pulled them away and looked deep into her eyes. I wanted the truth.

Cleopatra: your father owed Richard's family a lot of money.

Me: I know that, tell me what I don't know.

Cleopatra: your father was involved in some fraud. He was arrested and was released on a bond of half a million on the condition that they return the money they took from an employee. Two of the guys disappeared without a trace and your father had to pay three million for his employer to set him free. He paid one million and the rest he couldn't pay. His employer died in a shootout and before his death, he had told his family that should something happen to him.

Me: wait, dad worked for Richard's father?

Cleopatra: yes.

Me: and let me guess, he could not pay Richard the remaining two million hence the agreement?..

Robert: that's not all...

My father said walking in having heard a part of our conversation. I turned to look at him and got past us and sat on his chair having dropped a newspaper on the table.

Ronald: I'm the reason why Richard could never walk again.

Me: what do you mean?

Robert: I hit him with my car and left him to die... I couldn't pay the money or cater for his hospital bills. I'm sorry but there's no way out of this unless you can pay him four million in cash, you are stuck with him...