Devil on the Rooftop [Book 1]

Chapter 62 - Khaleel

Arisa and I got off at Heston Circle and walked up to one of the many condos towering in the near distance. It was strange having her in my neighbourhood but necessary for my plan. In order to stay in Kumar's good graces, I had to make sure I didn't go home alone. There were two things my father's secretary valued most in the world; his job and being a gracious host. He would do anything for his guests. No exaggeration, one time I saw him give a woman the shirt off his back. It was during monsoon season in Pakistan. He wanted to make sure the single mother didn't catch pneumonia on her way home from the market.

Whenever I told people that story they swooned at his thoughtfulness, which I guess made sense. Kumar was thoughtful but he was also able to switch of his humanity. I had seen him drown a man during that same monsoon. I had seen him cut off a thief's finger for stealing from him. I had seen him tell one of his old lovers that she shouldn't pine after men who could have her husband killed. Kind as he was, Kumar never let anyone underestimate him. He was transparent to a fault and it was one of the things my old man loved about him.

We entered the lobby and headed for the elevators. The ride up was quick, as most of the residents were grinding that nine to five. From the corner of my eyes, I spotted Arisa taking full advantage of the mirrors installed behind us. I couldn't help but admire her. I was so busy dreading this conversation with my uncle, I forgot to appreciate the time I got to spend with her. She had a long day and I was probably adding to it, but I hoped she would see the bigger picture.

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" Arisa asked, moving away from her reflection. Her instincts were on the nose but now wasn't the time to cater to her concerns. I had to save those warnings for when she met my old man.

"You're too paranoid," I dismissed her.

The elevator opened on the twenty first floor. I led her down the left hall to my front door. I pulled a set of keys out of my pocket and used a fob to unlock it. "I'm home, Uncle!" I called. "With a guest."

"U-Uncle?" Arisa was flabbergasted.

"Not by blood," I assured.

"And that makes it better?" Arisa hissed, frantically taking her shoes off. I followed her lead as a head peered out from behind one of the walls.

"Did you say guest?" Kumar asked. He was taller than me but only by a few inches. His toffee eyes were big and descriptively warm. He had short black hair that he liked to dye by himself and a dark overworked complexion. He hopped into view to flaunt a floral apron and the Mickey Mouse slippers he had on. Behind all the absurdity, he was dressed in a white dress shirt and pants.

"What the hell?" I asked unimpressed. "Why are you so embarrassing?"

Kumar did a little twirl. "You don't like it?" he asked, pouting. "Is it too much?"

"A grown ass man should know better."

Kumar welcomed Arisa into the open living room and had her sit on one of the sofa chairs set around our entertainment unit. "Aren't you a beautiful young lady?" he asked. "Your mother must be so proud. Khaleel never brings anyone over besides the boys, so excuse my excitement."

Arisa smiled. "It's sweet of you to say, but I'm really not all that special to him."

"Don't decide shit for me," I stared. She blinked to hide her flushed face but it didn't work. I kept my gaze on her, hoping it would squeeze through the cracks in her amour, and wash away all the insecurities she felt about me. Arisa dropped her gaze and stomped on my expectations.

"You don't need anything do you?" I asked her nonchalantly.

"Anything like what?"

"Like a drink or whatever," I offered.

Kumar moved up to whack the back of my head. Arisa was more surprised by his actions than I was. "Is that any way to talk to a guest?" my uncle asked, ripping his apron off. He tossed it on the arm of another sofa chair, before glaring daggers at me.

"You serve her then," I said, taking a seat. I took out my phone and drowned out the sound of Kumar waiting on Arisa's hand and foot. For a guy with such a notorious reputation back home, he was quick to act like a fool in front of people who didn't know his true nature. I guess it made sense. Kumar was pulled into my father's corrupt world at a pretty young age, so when he was off the clock, he preferred normality.

"Well," Kumar's voice filled the condo, as he moved into the compact kitchen. "What brings you two here today? School's not out. Are you skipping again, Khaleel?"

I didn't confirm or deny anything. Arisa tried to take charge of things in my place. "It was actually my idea," she said. "Uh, well you see—the thing is, Khaleel and I need your...um...help."

I looked up from my phone when Kumar spoke. "What kind of help? Must be urgent to risk another suspension, Khaleel."

I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

"Does this have anything to do with his sentence to join the student council?" Kumar asked Arisa. His tone changed and he became playful again. "Oh, don't tell me! There's a bake sale happening and you kids need me to whip up my special red velvet cupcakes?"

Arisa's smile was weak. "Uh, no."

Kumar placed two glasses of iced tea lemonades on the coffee table. He pulled out coasters for them and then took the vacant chair by the balcony. "What is it then?" he asked. "Khaleel, why aren't you saying anything? Don't hide behind her, you coward."

"I'm not hiding behind her," I lied.

Arisa took charge again. "We need to find someone who took me to—" she stopped talking because she couldn't bring herself to say what happened.

"She was kidnapped yesterday," I said, pointing at Arisa's healing wounds. "These guys could have done a real number on her if I didn't get there on time. She was seriously out numbered, I don't know how she even made it the lobby on her own."

Arisa but her lip anxiously. It was probably the first time she openly talked about the kidnapping since it happened. I didn't want to bring up the bad memories but I knew it was the only way to get Kumar's help. "The asshole who took her," I went on. "He's been terrorizing Loyal's sister since term one. He put his hands on enough girls that we were able to get him expelled but now he's making stupid plays. And hiring muscle to jump my boys. I thought I could handle it but it's getting out of hand. I need—we need your help."

"They did this to you?" Kumar's question was directed at our guest. "They put their hands on you?"

Arisa was too afraid to answer but I wasn't. "Yeah."