Uganda, Africa

November 2024

~~~~

The darkness of the night sparks in a dim green light around me. I adjust the night vision goggles; they are a little tight and restrictive but an evil necessity. Running along the tall wall of the compound, I halt at the southern end corner. The pressing heat and an abundance of moisture in the air make it hard to breathe and the shirt under my combat vest is drenched down to my skin. Sweat pools at my hairline, but I ignore the nagging itch. With a sharp inhale, my whole existence becomes flooded with the impending mission.

A wave of my hand has six claw-grappling hooks find their marks at the top of the wall. I climb up without making a sound and rappel just as quickly down the other side. Ducking behind a row of bushes, I wait for the others to join me. Pen signals that she is ready to roll. The thermal imager shows ten targets. Eight of the heat signatures are moving, two are stationary in one spot. The latter is where I'm headed—according to our specs, it's the master bedroom. A sure bet for a kill shot.

A few hand signs is all that's needed for my team to disburse. I scurry through the shadows of the night with Pen on my heels, the adrenaline pounding in my veins. It's an evil high driving me forward. The first few kills were hard and left an acidy taste in my mouth; a sensation that has long evaporated together with my morals. Every motherfucker in this world can turn into prey in the fraction of a second; it's not my problem if they piss off the wrong dude who then has sufficient funds to order a hit. A kill is a business transaction, the way I make my money. There's nothing more to it.

I reach the side entrance to the living room and Pen gets to work. Cutting a hole into the glass to open the door without tripping an alarm is as easy as pie. The AC blowing cold air into my face is a welcome reprieve to the stuffiness outside. For a few seconds, I lift the googles and gaze around the obscure room struck by the moonlight. It holds the eerie vibe of blood money to finance the pure luxury on display. Leather upholstery of the finest quality mixed with heavy, marble tabletops. Thick oriental carpets with such intricate details reflecting the endless hours of small fingers tying knots until they bled. Art lifted from museums around the world after being cleverly replaced by top-notch replicas.

I've seen it all before.

Men like Bandile Bediako make their money off the misery of others. Human trafficking, exploiting wildlife, and dealing arms are just the tip of the iceberg of his criminal empire. An empire that will crumble tonight. Bediako has no heir or trusted second who could take over. His operations will be absorbed by my employer, no questions asked. He poked them too hard with impossible demands until they were fed up with his theatrics. It always ends with a call to me.

I pull the googles back over my face and check my watch. I have exactly three minutes before all hell will break loose. One hundred and eighty seconds to extinguish a life and be on my way.

Gesturing Pen to follow me, I make my way down a long hallway. The heat signatures, now including my men, are centralized in other parts of the house. Whoever designed Bediako's security details was a fool who didn't properly analyze potential entry points. A fatal mistake and a lucky break for me. We reach the bedroom without incident. I glance at Pen as she takes up position to guard my back from unanticipated dangers.

Sudden shuffle behind the door has me jump and take cover behind a credenza. Pen has vanished from sight. The door opens and a man appears in the light flooding from the bedroom. I immediately recognize him from the photos. Bald except for lines of gray curled above the ears, a double chin that bears witness of years of overindulgence, a rich complexion that almost blends seamlessly with the dark wood of the doorframe.

Bandile Bediako.

His beady eyes are unfocused; my bet is that he either knocked down a few too many drinks or shot up some of the heroin he traffics.

"Denis, I'm out of waragi!"

The bellowed command rolls down the hallway into the darkness of the house. My gaze flicks to the dim display on my watch. Sixty seconds before my men will open fire and burn the whole place down. I have to act now.

Straightening, I step out from behind the credenza and raise my weapon. Bediako's hard glare meets mine. Naked as the day he took his first breath, he will meet his maker.

Pop, pop, pop.

The impact of the bullets expelled from my gun toss him back into the room. A surprised gasp tumbling across the threshold puts me on high alert.

"Stay where you are!"

My gruff shout doesn't yield the desired result. A woman appears in the doorframe. The side of her hand is stuck between her full lips as she stares at me with wide eyes. Her whole body trembles in deadly fear. Pen resurfaces from the shadows, her own weapon raised.

We don't leave eyewitnesses.

Ever.

It's bad for business.

Machine gun fire rattles in other parts of the house. I have about sixty seconds to get out before the whole place lights up.

I raise the gun, my finger curling around the trigger until I feel a slight resistance.

Tears trickle down the woman's cheeks. She is more like a girl, maybe in her late teens, with warm brown eyes and beautiful smooth skin, its color reminding me of the red clay I use for pottery. Silk-pressed hair that falls loosely around her shoulders, perfectly shaped and colored fingernails, a short silk robe that barely covers her ass but must've cost a fortune. Her affluent appearance can't hide the truth. Without her makeup, the fading bruise on her cheek only emphasizes the fresh blood on her split lip and the red stains on her thigh stemming from too rough sex. An abundance of pain simmers deep inside those gentle eyes.

I swallow hard and fight the tremble in my hand.

Never leave an eyewitness!

A rational thought that doesn't translate from my brain to the muscles in my arm.

"Jax?"

Pen's voice breaks my trance. My finger is still locked; I simply cannot pull the trigger. "Bag her. We're taking her with us."

Welcome to Paradise Rising. I hope this first chapter didn't disappoint and was tense enough (tbh, I didn't know if it needed more action, so I'd love to hear your thoughts on that). As indicated in the author's note, I'm planning on weekly updates for now, but I might post a new chapter if inspiration strikes.

If you enjoyed this chapter, please consider clicking the Star button and/or leave a comment. Thanks for reading and see you soon!