"Who are you?" Nayrah asked as she pulled away from Jason. Inside the hospital, there was a small garden where ordinary people weren't allowed to enter, and even cameras weren't present. It was a place where secret emergency matters were handled.
"I heard you really wanted to see me. Is this what you called me for?" the man asked, his face very serious, unlike the gentle demeanour Nayrah was used to.
"I've been told things about you that confuse me. Some call you 'boss,' others call you the younger sibling of the Chief Justice. I don't understand. Please tell me the truth."
"What do you want to know about me?"
"I want to know who you are. What do you do? Where do you live? How was it possible that the person who defrauded my father easily agreed to return his property after you just took their names? I'm so confused I feel like my head is going to explode. And also, who was that woman? No one can mistakenly identify someone so perfectly, from the face to the name. It doesn't make sense to me." Nayrah spoke her truth, deeply troubled by everything that was happening.
"If you get to know me, that will be the last time you'll see me in your life. I mean, you'll never see me again. I'm not easily seen by many people, which is why I'm not well-known. To meet me, you must first go through several people. You've managed this because I allowed it. I thought it might be something important, perhaps concerning your safety, but you just want to know who I am, right?" Jason spoke harshly, startling Nayrah.
"My name is Jason Japhary. I'm the blood brother of Markvelous Japhary, who was the Chief Justice of this country. The honourable President Shadrack Okoe was like an uncle to me, and they were the ones who were killed. We were only two siblings, my brother and I, who were taken by those with power. Now, I'm an orphan and alone, and you come here yelling at me wanting to know me? You've played your cards badly. You should have waited for me to sit you down and explain. Now it will take a long time for you to get close to me again." The man spoke as if in jest but meant every word, his face showing no sign of laughter or jokes.
"Doctor," Nayrah, still in deep shock from her boyfriend's harsh words, heard someone call her from behind.
She turned but saw no one, so she turned back to Jason. It was as if she had closed her eyes because she saw nothing in front of her. She turned around several times but saw nothing. She felt confused and started calling out to him, but there was no response. She felt like she was the only one there.
She now understood that he meant it when he said she would have very little chance of being close to him again. It seemed his people had arranged for him to leave the area without saying goodbye. Nayrah sat down and began to cry, while Jason hid nearby, feeling sorry for the woman suffering there.
"I rejected Monalisa in front of you for one major reason: she has a strong heart and can endure pain, even though it will torment her greatly. But you, you have a very fragile heart. That’s why I didn't want you to know anything and denied her in front of you. I don't believe that if I had rejected you there, you would still be alive now; you might have taken your own life. I'm very sorry for this, but I have no choice. My country is more important than love. Those who killed my brother and my uncle must pay every debt before I return to being an ordinary person. I'm going to become a very terrifying killer, Nayrah, which is why I can't allow myself to be close to you anymore, as I would lose you." The man spoke softly, watching the woman cry before disappearing from the scene.
He understood how love can be the root of negligence when you have something significant to accomplish, which is why he didn't want to let it dominate him. For him, pain was better than indulging in love while on duty.
****
After picking up his child, Honorable IGP Lusubilo didn’t speak to his child until they reached home. His wife was overjoyed to see their child safe again. She took the child to their room while he stayed in the living room to watch the news. That’s when he saw the report about ASP Bakari Zalimo, which prompted him to rush to the scene to see what was happening before heading directly to work.
In the evening, he returned home, planning to sit down with his family and talk with his child, who seemed to be okay. The kidnapping of one of his children had caused his eldest child to return home as well, so the whole family, including his two other younger children who lived with him, were together. Since the kidnapping incident and his personal retrieval of his child, the security around his home had been significantly increased.
Upon arriving home, he first went to take a shower. Afterwards, he changed into his casual home clothes, went to the corner of his house, and took out a cigarette. He wasn't a regular smoker, but he did smoke when there was a problem, and his family knew that if he was smoking, it meant there was serious trouble, either within the family or in the country. He moved to the living room and sat on a large sofa. His youngest child, who had been kidnapped, came over and lay at his feet. He loved this child more than anything, and now that the child was home, he felt he could speak to his family in peace.
Before they could do anything, they heard a loud argument at the gate. This commotion prompted the IGP to go outside with his family in the early evening. They were surprised to see a group of Black Unit soldiers from the army, accompanied by journalists taking pictures. The presence of these soldiers indicated that no one else could approach the area. The IGP was shocked to see them but seemed to know something might happen, so he instructed his officers not to do anything.
In the midst of this great tension, another surprise came when the CDF arrived. He was in his uniform and had brought his soldiers with him. These two brothers, who had last parted ways with hostility, were meeting again, but today was different; everyone had to fulfil their duties.
"Brotherhood is often shortened by trivial matters when one party has them. If neither party has any trivial matters, two or more siblings can live together for a long time without any problems. The last time, I remember well how you came to me and threatened that if I had killed one of our best friends, you wouldn’t spare me, and I agreed, telling you that if I were involved in such matters, I would be ready to face severe legal consequences," the Chief of Defense Forces turned to the journalists who were recording everything to ensure they could hear him well, then continued.
“What has surprised and hurt me the most, my brother is when you decided to choose the wrong path and essentially renounced our brotherhood. Remember where we came from, MD. Remember those two people who loved you. Why did you decide to repay them with death, my brother? What did you want in this country that you couldn't get? The President listened to you like his own brother from the same womb. Why did you do this to him?” CDF swallowed hard as he continued to berate his brother.