TurfWars-Criminal Underworld

Organised Chaos

The streets had dried out, the earlier shootout had now become old news yet whispers of it still live fresh in some minds. They talked of how the police seem to not care; others created theories of what might be the underlying reason behind the events that had just passed. First, Smiles, now a shootout at Chiliza’s, dots getting connected, lies spreading and all being spoken under their breaths, whispers.

Yet that seems to not be the case throughout the entire region. At Grey’s General Hospital the emergency ward seems to be flooded with prayers, screams and panic. Those who survive are sent here, even those barely holding on, the only hospital big enough to hold such a panic. The night shift crew seem to be short-staffed even though they have a full complement. Aid from the other wards chip in as the ambulances drive in and out, dropping bodies, those with nonfatal bullet holes get patched up in another ward, where the emergency is deemed less threatening. Those fatal are rushed to the operating room, surgeons woken up in their dreams, they rush in, half awake.

The chaos seems to be ordered to the trained eye but to the patients, all this seems to be the end of the world. Blood trails on the floor as James walks to the ward a nurse pointed to earlier. He arrives at what looks like a hell hall, here all the nonfatal are gathered. On one side are makeshift dividers that seem to receive all the people who are sitting or standing in a queue waiting to be patched up properly. He is told to sit down and join the line.

Next to him sits the young lady from earlier, the waitress, she recognised him again. “I am glad you’re alive,” he said, trying to break the ice. She just looks at him, no response and turns to look away. A few minutes pass as the line begins to move. Moans of agony and pain come from those in the line, their family members walk around impatient. James turns back to the lady and asks, “Did you see any of the shooter’s faces?” The lady looks at him and looks around. “don’t be scared, I am a cop” He tries to take out his badge when she said under her breath “I know, and talking to you will get me in trouble,” James looked around “If you know anything, I can protect you-”

“-I don’t know anything,” answered the lady, “Please if you know anything you can-” The lady turned and looked away. Leaving James with nothing.
Minutes pass as the line moves and he gets to one of the makeshift cubicles.

He enters.

“You!?” He exclaimed, in surprise, as he saw the medic from earlier on waiting for him “I see you took my advice and came to get that wound properly treated,” says the medic. In the light, James could finally see her well. Short hair, no make-up on. A stern yet beautiful look. He deduces it was more a defence mechanism than her actual personality, years of erecting walls just to keep nonsense out, he had seen countless like her. “Yes, I had to, I thought if I was going to catch the bad guys, I would like to do it with a shoulder that was properly treated,” said James as he took off his shirt and lay on the gurney. On her scrubs a name tag, Maria. “It’s warm!” exclaims James “You're not the first on it tonight,” Maria says as she approached him “You catch the guys that did all that tonight?” continued Maria as she opens the dressing she wrapped his arm in earlier “Would be great if the community would feel safe to talk to us,” answered James. “You can’t blame them, people trust what they see, not what they hear,” Maria says as she starts cleaning the wound. “Ouch! What do you mean by that?” asks James as he tries to adjust so that the local anastatic can be administered well. There is silence as the injection is administered. “This will kick in, in about a few minutes, for now just lay there while I prepare for the second part,” Maria said as she walked out the cubicle, leaving James to his thoughts. She returned shortly with a tray and sewing equipment.

“You did not answer my questions” emphasised James. “What question?” asked Maria as she started her procedure. “What do you mean, when you say ‘people believe what they see and not what they hear’?”. There is silence as Maria is locked in and concentrated. The silence is broken by Maria “For years the police have said, they will protect us, keep us safe and make sure we are not in danger, yet we are terrorised and live in fear, Papa Smiles was better, he was the devil, yes, but at least he never lied,” she continues to work. “So, Smiles was a better protection than the police?” Maria doesn’t answer this question. “What I don’t understand” continues James “Is that, he was so loved by the community yet you people fear to help the people willing to find the men responsible for his death, is that how you repay his kindness?”

“No,” Maria says as her voice drops

“We fear the new power.”

“What power?” asks James. Maria is quiet as she finishes up James. “I take a break in 5 minutes, where are you parked?” James immediately understood what was going on. “I am at the eastern parking lot” He lied. “Come to the south, I’ll meet you there,” said Maria. She finishes her job in silence as the two do not share a single word after.

James had no car and had to make a plan fast. He stood next to a car and lit a cigarette. He hoped it was not another ambush, the last one cost him mobility in the left shoulder. He scouted the area as he waited for her, calculating his escape if shit hit the fan. A figure walked into the parking lot; He recognised Maria straight away. She approached him, “You got any of those left?” Maria asked pointing at the cigarette, James pulled out one gave it to her and lit it. “Which one is your car?” She asked, “I rather not say,” he said, avoiding the subject and changing it immediately. “What is it you wanted to say?” He asked as he kept a lookout.

His transports would be there in 5 minutes which was also his backup, he thought to bring one this time. “Smiles did not just win the love of the community, he started with fear, that turned to respect, love came after, well those of us who still remember those times, are few.” She pulled in some smoke and released as she continued “That power gives you enemies, Smiles had same, other he killed, sending a message to all who dared challenge him”. As James was about to ask how she knew all this she said “I know because, I have cleaned up, sewed up and tried to save countless of his victims, yet when the message of his death reached me that cold night, I felt relief and fear at the same time. The devil was gone, hooray, and yet this heavy fear kept lingering beside me, as I asked myself, who was the new devil?” She pulled in some more smoke and released and continued “You see, there should always be a devil to a God, ying and yang, light and darkness, we know God, but not the devil, we knew the previous one, we don’t know the new one, is he like Smiles or worse? Stripping one man of such power only means that another needs to take his place, it’s the law of this world, the food chain.” This time she took a deep pull and an equal release. “Find the new devil and you find the killer, I think.”Said Maria.

From afar James saw the squad car pull up “You think the man that killed Smiles is after his territory? So, this might be gang-related? Could it be a rival gang? Someone trying to start one?” She saw the Squad car too and started to walk away. “Thank you for the Cigarette,” her pace increased as the car circled towards James.

“Detective?”

“Mazibuko?” answered James “Let’s go, it's cold out here,” James entered the car, arm still strapped and mind with new questions on top of the old.