Chapter 07|The ruled rather than the ruler
Jasmine traced the picture of her uncle's picture with her dad laughing while sitting beside each other on the floor. It was her father's 8th year birthday and there has certainly not been a party because in their hands were guns, their body was sweaty from practice and she could almost imagine both boys rolling on the floor, playing like kids were meant to and poking fun at each other. Acting normal.
She chuckled lightly even as she dropped the picture to the side and a tear dropped on the next picture she picked up. It was still that of her uncle and Dad on the same day but beside them was her grandfather, they looked nothing like the two children who had goofy smiles that were so wide and even comical.
In place of their goofiness was just pure stoicism, their eyes didn't shine with pure delight and more importantly, they didn't look like they knew what childhood tasted like.
Young would always tell her how he had to grow up way younger, man up and though he was younger than her Dad, he had to step into those difficult big oversized shoes even though all his life he had been trained to be second best, to rule beside his brother, not in front of him.
She sniffed even as she wiped her running nostril with the back of her palm as all the tales her uncle had told her about how he tried hard to be better, to be faster, to be the best because in the Natives weakness was what it was and you are not inexcusable if you show any ounce of it. Your age, height? Lack of training? Nobody gave two fucks. You either kill or you are killed. That's the way it was.
Nothing was fair.
She used to find the tales of how he had to give up chocolates completely regardless of his sweet tooth, just so he could eat healthily and be stronger, amusing but most times after she had laughed hard at how he would always demonstrate how tightly he'll clench his eyes when he sees chocolate wrapper or sweets, in the dead of the night she couldn't help but blame her father for abandoning his brother, his weak little brother.
But now, she was realizing that she didn't really have a beef that he left his brother because he did turn out fine. She dropped an evidence of that fact into the medium sized box with her uncle's name on top as other documents of the contract he had managed to win for them followed and documentation of other outfits he seized to enlarged theirs. She furiously wiped her tear as she threw in yet another framed picture of her dad with Young.
Young would always call it the day he regretted yet wouldn't change a thing if he could go back in time. It was the day, Young had pressured her father and made him follow him to talk to a girl he likes.
Young wasn't always bold and was once a stutterer, a mannerism you could consider cute and innocent. An innocence her father had tainted. An innocence Young had kept even at 22. An innocence that brought him his ruin as he never considered that his brother had fallen for the older sister of the woman he liked. An innocence he could keep because of his sole dependency on his brother who he never considered a figure in his life that wouldn't be present ever. His anchor and protector that he wanted to be good enough for, so while he trained hard to be worthy to be beside his brother, her father was ditching practice to see her mother in secrecy.
He hadn't tried hard to even hide it from Young, who could never conceive the thought of his brother ever losing focus of his destiny, the crown, the Native, hence it was safe to say the affair had happened right underneath his nose yet he couldn't tell, an affair that led to her mother's pregnancy of her, yet her uncle had been completely clueless. He just wanted to be second in command and be close to his best friend and brother. Her Dad.
And when he had run away, she could almost imagine him gaping into space just like she was. Seeing the empty drawer where his clothes had been the way she had seen his stiff cold body, reading the fucking I'm sorry note he had dropped for him while she had held his hand when he told her good-bye, yet even as she emptied her uncle's desk as was the custom and carried it to the attic where it would be placed next to his predecessors, she couldn't believe he was truly gone.
That the enamel plate with half of his ash which she had not poured into the river, a fortnight ago was the only remains of the biggest and strongest man she knew, the man she wanted to be like, a man she had admired all her life.
Not only was his strength admirable in the battlefield but now she could see that, wasn't where he was most strong. She would freak out if she was handed a child of a man that had abandoned him with scribbled three-letter words, but her uncle wasn't the type to fret.
He had shown his most strength when he had held her hand and told him he'll be taking her home, shown the most strength when he had forced her to have her vegetables despite her tantrum, he had not flexed his muscles when he had read bedtime stories to her and tucked her into bed but she couldn't think of a man stronger at this time.
Because she would prefer to kill a hundred times over than raise a child, disciplining a teenager who was always a handful and a criminal one at that, you can imagine how crazy the ride had been, but as always he had dived into the unknown waters with her ranging from squabbles to full-blown arguments.
She felt spite for her father as she screamed out of the window that Young was gone after dropping his box and watched every Native throw their clay pot on the floor from the windows and then she lowered herself to the ground as she felt spite for the dead man for saving her.
Both brothers had erred against her.
Though they had chosen different paths they both had certainly agreed on making her take this path, leaving her a baton of a marathon she wasn't the least prepared for and they weren't even here for her to punish them as they deserved.
They were gone.
Dead.
She angrily stood up walking back to the damn office she had hated as a child as she could remember standing outside the door and begging her uncle to come to the house and play with her. The office where she had been forbidden from entering now bore her name. She stared at the glass palate with the name Sir Jasmine and waited to feel something, something that wasn't despair, perhaps a bit uplifting but all she felt was anguish, betrayal, regret that she had stayed hidden in that closet like her mother had instructed and didn't just die with them.
The perfect family reunion.
Now, she had to live up to whatever madness her life was morphing into, she dropped the picture of her Dad and uncle smiling next to her name because it didn't matter the expression on both their faces, they have never really been truly happy all their lives.
Always have been in fear and every minute had felt like it brought them closer to their end.
Someone was going to pay for this, she kissed her uncle's favorite rifle and dropped it next to the picture. Taiwo was his name.
That thought remained in her head even as she walked out of the door, and slipped her hand into Uncle Chidi who walked her to the door where in front of her waited the Native. Men who now looked up to her, whose lives she held in her hands, an overwhelming power that had so many regulations and rules, so much so you felt more like the ruled rather than the ruler.
"I present to you, Your crown. Sir Jasmine Bankole."
Everyone fell to the ground including Uncle Chidi even as she heard a gun sound in the distance.
It was done. She was officially the president of the Native.
This was ridiculous, this was risky and frightening. This was power. She loved every moment of the glorious indication that she was now running towards her death. A Sprint that made the sides of her lips curve.
"You may rise!"
They did.
Chapter 08|Power reinsertion Jasmine rolled her eyes, fed up with the nonchalant chatter at the back by two of the men while she tried to explain what their weekly routine was going to be like and who was in charge of what. "Obinigwe!" She shouted, calling out the name of the man who was the loudest between the two and the most audacious. He squared his chest as he left his seat, walking towards her and straightening his posture to his six feet something inches, he looked down at her. "Nwanya, when I was serving in the Navy, you were still an infant suckling on her mother's bosom," He started disrespectfully, scorn in his tone, "So don't shout my name that loud, ever." Jasmine knew he had been wanting to tell her this for a long time and that was why he had tried to attract her attention with his chatter. "Obinigwe, do you know who you are talking to like that?" Chidi asked, se
Chapter 09|Dumb is the New Normal She wanted to give Chucks normal even in a family of criminals like herself, in a place where guns were carelessly dropped like they were toys and were an ideal present for a child. She wanted the only assignment he had to do, to be in a book and not a possible way of saying goodbye to his adorable face. She didn't want him to be the weirdo who was always on his computer, the teenage guy who wasn't obsessed with video games or in her case, parties, and boys. University was like a rude awakening to reality. She tried to ghost everyone and even though she came back right after classes, she still heard the whispers, the Snickers. She was the abnormal girl who was able to beat two Feared cultists in her Year one, who wanted to rob her and didn't break a sweat. He was already so intelligent it freaked her atimes. She didn't want him to be bull
Chapter 010|Her father's daughterShe strolled out of her room to have a second opinion of her clothing choice since it was 5:30 am and she still had a lot of time to spare. Especially as she starts work at 8. "Wow." Chucks whispered, his eyes wide in surprise as he gave her a quick appraisal from head to toe, his eyes trying to take in the transformation. He was on the porch, his hand around a mug full of coffee and his eyes which were on his computer, now on her. "You look like one of those working-class, disciplined women on magazines. You normally don't laugh, so it isn't hard to shimmy into this new job description." She scowled at him.He abandoned his cup of coffee, but yet kept it beside him. "That is it.. the air of a confident ruthless assistant to the Governor. Least I forget as your manager, I am entitled to 10% of that income among other miscellaneous benefi
Chapter 011|You have usTaiwo stared at the curvaceous beautiful woman in front of him, who had a daring and very arrogant attitude that both intrigued and amused him. She had in not more than 5 minutes made him actually see her. She was a nice surprise to him because you don't get to see a woman with such a cocky and smug grin every day. He hates to know that she won't last too because well, no one has but being a Governor most times could get boring, especially when you have the same boring schedules, the same pre-planned meetings with people you can't stand the sight of, but have to act cordially with for the camera. "Your conference call with the commonwealth chairman is in Ten minutes. Your mails have been separated from and compiled into three categories, treat as urgent, love messages, and Friends, relatives, and acquaintances mails." She informed him, about to leave. "Miss Bolanle," he called out.
Chapter 012|I crave to spill his blood"I'm sorry, Sir. It is just that__" "Taiwo the Governor is a Mark I'm set on killing not just because I was sent to, not because it was an instruction I was supposed to carry out even without asking questions but because it is a need. I crave to spill his blood. And if I never retreated from killing other faceless marks that I never bothered to find out their crimes, yet his I have stuck in my damn head why do you think I'll ever fucking retreat just because he is a glorified walking dead in Power?" "I'm sorry." His voice was firm and curt. He wasn't scared of her anymore. There was respect but the scare was over which she found puzzling. What has he been scared of? Her or the thought that her intentions have changed. "So," he swallowed, "What is the status of your operation?" She swiveled in her chair remembering the hardly eventful time
Chapter 013|Some lives are more precious than othersJasmine rushed towards Taiwo's desk the minute he was out thankful that he was finally leaving the office with her in it. Her gaze met the webcam directly facing his mahogany desk precautionarily because although she had already been planning this for a long time with Chucks who was already with a pre-recorded video of Taiwo's empty office which by infiltrating the capitol's security wall, he would make to be seen rather than her snooping around. She grinned widely noting the red beeping light was off, and although she was aware of Chucks' genius, she had been a bit scared that he just might not be possible to gain access to them but once again Chucks was proving to her how insanely good he was with his gadget and though pride squeezed her heart she couldn't help the anxiousness and worry that followed knowing that he was way farther from normal. It was a conflicting fee
Chapter 14|Kill me and hide my body?She shook her head, surprised to see a pistol, hanging out from Taiwo's jacket as he hurriedly came in. It was unlike him to be so forgetful and careless about such little details. The man was a symbol of composed and cold himself. Aside from the fact that he was 10 minutes late, which was unlike him, he looked really worried. "Good morning," she greeted, as chirpy as a bird. "Good morning Miss. Bolanle." He whispered, giving her a thankful nod as she offered him a cup of coffee. No sugar, no milk. She read about his likes and dislikes more than once. So much that her employee manual now has ears at its edges. He seemed disturbed and she could see through his cold demeanor, that he was on the brink of losing it. "You will want to tuck in your gun if I were you. Not the least ideal for an employee to se
Chapter 016|Even the Devil was once an AngelSo, the more she looked with that thought in her head, the image in front of her was beginning to morph and soon, she didn't notice a man that had such a beautiful grin he hid perhaps because he knew the effect it had on people and kind of make him human but she could see him as an ice King that was once a boy. Vulnerable, unloved, scared. He wasn't the Governor then and didn't wield so many powers. She just needed to remind him of how much he wanted to feel something rather than focus on him now that didn't feel anything at all because, for all she knew, a heart still beats inside this dear man, this moment confirms it, all she needed was to remind it and teach it how to beat faster because after all, even the Devil was once an Angel. They drove back to the capitol in absolute silence.***Jasmine dropped the complaint document Taiwo had ordered her to file against the government sch