Suits & Aces (#3)

46 // Demigod

Demi could not remember the last time she felt so humiliated, she could only imagine what Samantha thought of her, she probably thought Demi was a submissive wife who had nothing to stand on without her husband; which was by bar the honest truth.

There was something about Shaka that was commanding, it was difficult to say no to him or go against him. It was funny, because she knew what she was getting herself into when she said ‘I do’, and she never for a second regretted it. As much as Shaka had an authoritative aura, he was always loving and gentle with her, and he allowed her to do as she pleased almost all the time.

He always supported her, even against his own family. He never expected her to quit her career and become a housewife like his mother wanted, and he had gone as far as buying her a house so that she could have some privacy and focus on their relationship without his family’s interference.

Lately, they hardly saw each other, especially since he decided to ‘quit’ his gangster ways and become a nine to five office worker. He was always travelling, and whenever he was around, he was always busy. Sometimes it was as if he did not even notice that she was gone. She could not understand why he was suddenly concerned about her whereabouts.

The tension in the car was unbearable, neither of them said a word throughout their entire journey back home.

The moment he pulled up into their compound, she hopped out of the car and slammed the door shut, and then she rushed into the house and all the way to their bedroom.

Shaka took his own sweet time to follow her, and by the time he got to their bedroom, she had already changed into a gown and was ready to hit the shower, but he blocked the entrance to their walk-in closet.

Staring at him now was frustrating her even more, how was she supposed to stay mad at him when he looked so sinfully irresistible?

“I don’t know when last I actually had a proper look at you, you look beautiful,” he said, his eyes raking over her body.

She crossed her arms defiantly, he was not gong to get away with this so easily. “And you just suddenly decided to remember that you have a wife?”

He shook his head. “I didn’t decide suddenly, you know I love you, and there’s no second of the day when I’m not thinking about you. I know I’ve neglecting you, and I know it is no excuse, but things have been hectic at work. Namhla has turned into a real witch since your sister quit.”

Her heart swelled at the mention of Sasha. She still remembered the events of that day clearly, she had been shocked when Duma, the secretary from Endabeni, called to tell her that Sasha had quit her job. Demi knew her sister’s fate was doomed from the moment she met MJ Billings, she just did not expect things to go wrong so easily. Sasha just vanished, and months later, there was still no sign of her until she published the article that somehow managed to aggravate her new friend’s psychotic behaviour.

What has she gotten herself into? And most importantly, what has Sasha gotten herself into?

She would never admit it to him, but Demi was glad that Shaka arrived when he did, she would not have been able to stay in that house after Samantha’s outburst.

“Demi, what have you gotten yourself into? And who is that woman you were with?”

She gave him a weak smile. “Shaka, I know Sasha is not your favourite person, and I know she isn’t the greatest person too. But she is still my sister, and I know she would sacrifice herself if roles were switched and I was the one missing.”

He sighed. “I get that, babe. But if you needed help finding your sister, you should have come to me. You know I know people who know people, and we would have located Sasha in no time. There are a few people who owe me a favour, I could…”

Demi shook her head before he could even finish speaking. She knew he had connections, but she wanted him far away from those people. The best thing that had ever happened since they met was Shaka leaving his gangster life behind.

“No. Forget it, Shaka. They do you a favour, then they come back for another favour, and then you go back and forth until you can’t escape anymore, and just like that, you are back to being the number one wanted criminal throughout the entire country. You know it as much as I do that you don’t escape that life twice and live to tell the tale.”

“Fine, I won’t do anything you don’t approve of. But stay the hell away from that woman. I don’t know who she is, I’ve never met her before, but I know a freak when I see one.”

If she were to be honest, Demi had no idea what she was doing with Samantha, that woman had a loose screw and was not going to help her find her sister, she had no real connections in the city. Maybe asking for Shaka’s help would not have been such a bad idea, but she did not want him losing track again.

“Yeah, you are right, I won’t see her again. I thought she was going to help me.”

Shaka looked at her and then quickly averted his gaze, looking everywhere except at her, he was fidgety. “Listen, uhm… please don’t take this the wrong way, but I have to ask. Do you perhaps know anything in relation to the deaths of the ambulance driver and the nurse?”

Demi felt the blood drain from her face. “W-what?” She stuttered, her mind drifting to Samantha’s reaction when she read Sasha’s article. She shrugged in response, her mouth running dry.

What if Sasha also thought she was involved after the email she sent her, urging her to take down the article?

“It’s just that Sasha thinks that you might be affiliated with the murderer… that’s if of course, the nurse’s death was not suicide.”

“Murder? The nurse was murdered? I’m not associated with a murderer, why would Sasha think…” She trailed off as she finally caught his words. A bright smile lit up his face when she stared at him in question, waiting for reassurance that she was not imagining things. “Did you… did you just say Sasha? You spoke to my sister?” Shaka nodded, his boyish smile never leaving his face. “She’s alive. She’s safe right?”

He nodded. “Yes, she is safe and sound. She called me earlier to warn me that your life might be in danger.”

“Sasha is alive? My sister is alive!” She released a sound between a laugh and a choked cry. “Oh, my God! She’s alive!” She screamed and flung herself into his arms, and he laughed and hugged her back. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” She planted kisses all over his face. “Can I call her back?”

“Yes, but after you tell me everything you know about that woman.”

“I don’t know anything about her, I just know that she is from London, and that she has a huge grudge against Logan Parker and MJ Billings. She was admitted at the hospital after a hijacking accident, and she was discharged the morning Leah’s body was discovered in the laundry room. From what I learned, Leah was Samantha’s night shift nurse during her stay at the hospital.”

Shaka played with his beard, something he did whenever he was in deep thought. “Was there any connection between Leah and the driver?” He asked.

She shrugged, not really interested on her companion’s rendezvouses, especially now that she knew her sister was unharmed. “Well, some people at the hospital say they were close friends, and they were seen together before Gary left the hospital that night.”

“Sasha might actually be onto something, but say your friend committed these murders, how did she pull it off? She would need some connections to do that.”

Demi felt her head spin as the percussions of his words clicked. Caroline! She thought. If her sister and husband were on this, perhaps it would be best to share her suspicions too. “Uhm, honey?” Shaka looked at her in question, making her more nervous. “What if she has a connection?”

Shaka tilted his head, looking at her expectantly. “What are you talking about?”

“Eric Becker,” she muttered, the name itself hanging in the air like a dark cloud. “Samantha has Caroline Becker, the doctor claims that she is there at her own free will, but something just doesn’t feel right.”

The tension in the room was even worse than the time they were in the car, it felt as though death was looming around. That was the case whenever Eric Becker was involved, and Demi realised right there and then that she might have actually put her sister’s life in danger; she told Samantha about Eric and Sasha’s past, and because of that, three people were already dead, that was, including the man who impregnated Caroline.

“Demi?” Shaka started, his eyes conveying more than he could ever say in a second, and she knew what was coming. “We need to call Sasha, right now.”