The Filters 9

  Seun dashed towards the apartment. He had been observing the brawl from afar and could tell from the get go things would not go as planned. Five minutes had turned to fifteen and now people-(who had no doubt already called the police) were peering out their windows and locking their doors. He kicked the head of a foe who was reaching for a gun and pulled out his 43 revolver. A bulky foe who had blood on his fair fingers like ketchup on chips plunged at him but was met with a knee to the stomach.As he curled himself into a ball of pain Seun was lifted off his feet and thrown against the door of Hakim's apartment. This sent the gun flying out of his hands, he attempted to swiftly move but the heel of a shoe met with his Jaw. He could feel his teeth seemed to writhe in his gum and he shut his eye in pain. He was pulled by his jacket up and head booted, his back hit the metal door sending a quick but piercing pain through his neck down his spine. His assailant jabbed again and again and Seun's feet gave way, he reached for the door handle for support, he found it, and drew himself up thus pulling the handle down and opening the door. He saw an unconscious Jesse lying on the floor, and that is when his adrenalin kicked in.

As the knuckles drew closer to his nose Seun knew the impact would knock him out for sure. His hands were to far away to intercede so he leaned against the open door and let himself fall  to the living room floor. It hurt but he barely felt it, on his back he kicked furiously at his attacker, like a child refusing to change its diaper. The assailant pulled back and Seun rushed to his feet just in time to see one of Jesse's captors cock his weapon and point to shoot, he moved a second before the trigger was pulled, and as the sound of death rang high in the air he thrust himself at his would be killer and secured the weapon.

"You have a very light grip my man."

"Oshogbo, what are you waiting for." the man said to his counterpart.

Pow!, pow!!. They were both dead.

Getting on a knee, Seun checked if Jesse still had a pulse, indeed he did and even stirred at his touch.

"You okay man?" Seun asked as he helped Jesse to his feet.

"..We've got to find Hakim."

 Hakim lay on what he knew would be his death bed, he had been beating to a pulp and starved almost to death, and he knew it was only a matter of time before the latter came for him, often his crumbling mind tried to formulate a reason to hope, to construct a scenario were he would walk out alive, but ever so often  it failed, over and over again, and just when he mustered enough will to survive, he remembered ** and then he longer wanted to live, infact he embraced death, like a soft and thick duvet on a cold night. But Tunde would not have that.

"Hey hey, you need to be awake for this." Tunde said as he snapped his fingers.

 "Casper."

"Yes boss?"

" point your gun at Mr. Hakim would you please?"

Casper did what he was told and Hakim chuckled.

"Casper, really? How ironic is that?"

Casper sneered and his trigger finger twitched.

"Relax C, if those are his last words ,let them be."

"My last words?" he spat out blood and glared at Tunde with his one good eye. "My last words are how could you kill your own sister? Your own flesh and blood?"

Tunde brought out his gun and tapped it's muzzle against his head as he mockingly pondered this question. Then he tapped his index finger against his lips as if asking for a cigarette. Finally his face lit up with melodramatic illumination and he said.

"She is not my blood, nor is she my flesh, my blood runs securely in my own veins, and my flesh clings ever so tightly to my own bones. She was just another person, just like you. All be it a less than stellar one, now enough talking, this should be ending soon." He looked at his watch and calculated it had been 28 minutes since the first shot went off. Though he had paid off the two closest police stations in the area, others were probably already on their way. He needed to speed things up.

"Bring him, and never stop pointing the gun at his head." He said and motioned for the door.

Seun and Jesse pointed their guns like accusing fingers at the three figures approaching them. As they got nearer Seun could make out Hakims feature and his body tensed. Jude took a step forward.

"Put the guns down and kick them over here."

Tunde snickered and looked at Casper bemused.

"Can you believe this guy? "Put the gun down and kick them over here." what are you the police?, speaking of the police, they'll be here any minute, so let's make this quick."

"Are you the boss?the one who compromised our agent?" Jesse asked with his weapon still raised.

"Um..." He pointed his gun at Hakim and pulled the trigger,  then he pulled the trigger again and Caspers body fell flat on Hakim's. "There, settled, can I go now?."

Outside Naomi sat in a reclined chair wondering tuning through the various stations on her radio when a call came in on her phone.

"Finally!, I've been sitting here for hours!, it's dead silent in there, the whole place is dead silent, not even the faintest sound of sirens, it's like everyone's dead." She whined into the receiver.

"Naomi, change of plans"

"Okay?". She sat up.

"You need to apprehend whatever survivors remain."

"What!?"

"We were looking for evidence, a way to have one of them to ourselves, under lock and key, this is it, we have them, now do your duty and bring them to us, to justice."

"Wait..whu?...what makes you so sure they'll just come along with me?"

"Do you have your weapon with you?"

"Yes, but..."

"Do whatever is necessary." Mr Stanley said and the line went dead.