As the bell tolls
Another day in the sobering life of a marked man.
A whistling of winds mixed with the sounds of heartfelt laughter filled the corridor.
" But Aisha, you've hardly touched your food. You can't already be leaving. You just got here." The dark figure said
" I'm not hungry, and I think I'm done here."
The feminine figure let out a shriek, from hell, and it emanated through the halls. "If you must go, then, goooooo! Good luck finding your way. You have no idea where you are! Do you?"
He hadn't thought of where he was. He just knew he must go, he was wasting time. There was something he had forgotten to do, but what was it?
A brisk walk in the open air, was what he needed. That shreik was ungodly. Why had she wanted me to stay so badly? And, who was she?
First one fat droplet smacked down right on his nose, then another. Then, suddenly, there was a downpour.
Aisha sprung awake soaked in sweat.
"What time is it?" He thought
Right as he looked at his alarm clock it turned 5 o'clock. The radio blared, it was in the middle of giving the local traffic update. He hurried to hit snooze. 5 more minutes was what he needed. He thought of his dream for a second, why am I soaked in sweat? And who was that chick I was dreaming of? "After a dream like that there's no snoozing." He thought. So he hit the alarm button. "Might as well get moving it's going to be a long night." He thought
There was a rap on his door and he jumped to his feet. It could only be Mama Sahn.
" Yes, Mama Sahn. Good morning! What is it?" He said through the door.
"Good, you're awake. I called your employer and requested you as my personal detail for the next 2 weeks. Your shift starts now, you weren't cheap ya know. I cooked you some breakfast, it's in the microwave."
Now? What could she want with me?
"Meet me in the front yard in 15 minutes and make sure that thing is on your hip and loaded. There's a few squirrelly folk we've got to be ready for." She said
" Ok, surely you're mistaken."
He'd never had a problem before, he hardly ever thought about having to possibly take a life. He was sure she was exaggerating.
" Oh they've got me pegged. But, they won't expect a fragile woman like me to have an armed security guard watching her back. You might have to use it. I never mistake the intent displayed in a man's eyes. These folks want what's in my bag, and they'd kill for it."
He hadn't expected this, he checked his phone and there were emails and texts from his supervisor detailing his new assignment. It didn't say much, just her name and address. He was to be her personal detail. 2 weeks? 12.5 hr shifts, the max his employer would allow. This was just great, it had been awhile since he worked overtime. He was getting spoiled in his time off.
He knew she was in knee-deep in the criminal underworld and he tried to stay out of her business. She was so open about her activities it was hard to remain ignorant, but, everyone in the community treated her like an honest citizen. The truth is she was the devil incarnate, and he feared this was just a ruse to submerge him into the underworld. He began thinking of excuses to get out of it but nothing came to mind.
"Damn it! What could she be up to?" He thought
He decided that she must just want to keep him on his toes and that everything will go smoothly and he'll be back at his typical post in 2 weeks time. This was going to be a cake walk.