Street Diaries.

Between God and the Devil.

"How the hell did that bitch get into his room!" Akeem thundered. The guards stared at one another foolishly, and I could not blame them, not really. Even I did not notice the assassin until she was squeezing life out of me.

"Let them be, Akeem. They were useless against that girl anyway," I said with a crackling voice..

"What do you mean, Kunle? You know who this bitch is?" He pointed at the girl who was already tied to a chair, unconscious.

"I think I have an idea.... She is from the Union," I replied him

Union? The Union of assassins? Why the hell would they pull this stunt? We have never had any dealings with those shady fuckers.

"Someone contracted them, obviously."

"Sarumky?" Akeem asked.

"I can not really tell,  the Alhaj was attacked by one of these knife wielding ass holes too."

"But, the visitantes were responsible for that, weren't they?"

"It was kind of strange how they were able to get to the Alhaj that quickly, they must have collaborated with the Union. Their operatives are able to blend in the crowd, they are street kids, and everyday people, you would not even suspect."

"This keeps getting more complicated," Akeem whispered.

"Get the car ready, we're going to Sinstrict. I need to have a chat with someone there."

"Do you think that is smart, Kunle? There are still bounties on your head, and people still want to get that money."

"Do you question my reasoning, Akeem! Do you think I'm stupid?"

"No, boss," Akeem whispered.

"Just go and get the car ready, and grab some guns."

"Oh, it is that type of chat," Akeem smiled as he turned and was leaving the room.

"And Akeem! Don't you ever question me again."

"Yes, boss," Akeem replied and left.

Sinstrict was one of the worst ghettos in the city, full of churches and mosques, but most of these places of worship were just covers for criminals. Drug houses, illegal gambling spots, brothels, and most notorious of them were the Union sanctums. These places looked like churches to outsiders, but they were really used to house assassins of the group known as the Union. Everybody knew of their existence, but, like all the atrocities going on in the city, nobody could do anything about it. The politicians patronised the Union, in fact, they were their top customers. So, the Union had government protection, although it was their secrecy that kept them hidden mostly.

Akeem and I drove to Sinstrict Avenue under a cloudy night sky, and I ordered Akeem to park just outside of one the many churches. Home of God Church was boldly written on the building, and there was also a large signboard with the same words on it, under the name of the church, an inscription was written that said, "come and find peace." Reading the inscription made me smile briefly. Akeem briefly disappeared, he found and shut down the power transformer that supplied the church electricity, that would buy us time before the switch on their generators. l As I opened the door and took a step out of the room, it began to rain, I raised my eyes towards the sky, drenching my face in the sweet wetness, and inhaling the smell of the rain water as it hit the sand. I could not remember the last time I felt that free, and it made me feel the days of my childhood. That beautiful innocence was just too far gone, and it was replaced with so much hatred, anxiety, and neverending struggles.

I walked slowly through the front door of the church, the weird appearance of the church would have given it away to anyone who was not already brainwashed by religion.

"There is no God to be found in this dirty place," I whispered as I swaggered into the building. I was immediately greeted by a pastor who appeared to be in distress.

"Hello, children of God. May his peace be upon you," he said.

"Well, I believe that you're wrong, my pastor friend," I reminded him.

"About what?"

"Oh, everything. Firstly, I am no child of God you see. I believe that the devil would lay more claim to me, if he existed. And secondly, we are not here for peace... We are here for violence." Akeem took this as a sign, and he immediately grabbed the pastor by the neck, he then unholstered his glock and stuck it in his mouth, whispering "Just say the word, boss. Let me paint the walls with this motherfucker's brains."

I ignored Akeem and focused on the pastor who was already pissing himself, his shirt was soaked with his sweat and his eyes full of pure terror. I know you're nothing here, pastor. I know you, just like this whole church is a front for some evil men. They obviously pay you a lot for a supposed man of God as yourself to turn a blind eye to the evil they perpetrate here... They kidnap kids off the streets, torture them into submission, and then make them into sadistic killers, yet you as God's mouthpiece can let that go on and even be a part of it?" The pastor started crying as he tried to say something, but Akeem further hammed the gun down his throat.

"I do not need you to talk, I don't want to hear anything from you. Just take me to the master of this house, now!" I signaled to Akeem and he immediately let him go. He then used the gun to instruct him none verbally to move, "whispering Ride on, pastor." The pastor then led us through the back of the church, staggering as if his legs would fail him at any time, he went through a series of doors, and then we got to a final weird looking door, he pressed the buzzer and asked us to stay aback, out of sight. The doorman opened a compartment of the door to check who it was, and when he saw the pastor, he asked him what he wanted

"I need to see the master," he replied. The doorman shut the compartment up, and disappeared for a while, when he returned, and he opened the door, the surprise on his face was somehow funny, he knew he was going to die the moment he opened the door and saw my face, I was pointing my pistol at his head, he seemed as if he would beg for his life but decided to take his chance with a fight, a final effort to save himself. He quickly raised his hand to his hip as I expected, I pulled the trigger and the bullet went through his head in close range, blood and brain splattered over my face and some even got into my mouth. Akeem rushed in behind me and started shooting at everything that moved in the room. The pastor fell to the ground, and I noticed him again in the past few minutes, I turned my gun on him, and he released gas. He actually shit himself.

"Please have mercy," he begged.

God may forgive you if he so chooses to, he is all forgiving after all. But the difference between me and God is that I don't think people like you deserve forgiveness. People who know the truth but would rather lie, people who should protect but would maim, people who should be pillars of society but would sell out others for their own gain, you are what is wrong with this nation!" I once again pulled the trigger, and the pastor fell to the ground, on his way to his God to be judged.

Akeem shot everybody in the room and some minutes later he dragged a pot bellied man out and pushed him down in front of me.

"This is the master, boss," he declared.