Rashid sat in the back with Randy, and he kept his head on the headrest and his eyes closed mostly, replying perfunctorily to Yao as he asked for directions.

“We’re here,” Yao said finally, and Rashid opened his eyes and looked around.

They were in a lovely beach community. The houses were beautiful and new, their painting exquisite and luxurious. The houses – mostly three-bedroom detached apartments – were separated by beautiful hedges.

Lights were on in most of them as the people settled for the night. Dogs could be heard barking in some of the compounds.

Rashid glanced at his phone screen.

“Yeah, she’s here. I guess she just put her phone back on. She’s here alright. What the hell would she be doing here?” Rashid said with some puzzlement.

“Maybe one of her friends lives here, who knows? Lemme try and call her again, or send her a message that we’re around,” Randy said as he got out of the car and looked around.

Yao and Rashid got out too, and as they stood looking around, a pickup car pulled out behind them and two armed security guards got out. There were chained dogs in the truck who growled ominously.

One of the grim-faced men regarded them.

“Good evening, gentlemen,” he said, his voice calm but with an edge of hostility in it. “We’re community security. May we enquire of your business here?”

Randy and Rashid hesitated, but Yao Kolo spoke quickly.

“Yeah, sure, we’re here to see a friend,” he said. “Mr Stephen Ledi.”

The security officers looked at each other with relieved expressions and nodded.

“He’s in apartment forty-five, right across from you,” the other security officer said. “Keep it quiet, gentlemen.”

“Yahman!” Yao Kolo said with a smile as he locked the car with the remote. “C’mon, boys.”

But Rashid was stricken.

He could not move from the car as he stared at Yao Kolo with horror.

“Steve Ledi? He lives here? How did you know?”

Yao Kolo sighed and rubbed his chin.

“Guy said he brought some shoes from uptown for Jem, asked her to come for it. She begged me to bring her over to take them, so we came here a couple of weeks ago. When you said Aku was inside Labadi, I suspected it, but kept quiet just to be sure.”

Rashid felt a hammering in his head as an acute headache gripped him, and he looked at his friends helplessly.

“She comes to her ex at the first sign of trouble?” he asked.

“Hey, buddy, give her the benefit of the doubt,” Randy said quickly. “She and that bastard buddied up really closely, man. So, they’re still friends. You confirmed it yourself at the party, remember? Let’s just get in there and get her.”

Rashid shook his head dazedly.

“Wow. Damn. Let’s get outta here, guys. I don’t think this is a good idea,” he said with a deep sigh.

Yao and Randy looked at each other, then Yao spoke.

“It doesn’t work that way, bro. You can’t spend a peaceful night knowing she’s here after what happened, man. I know I can’t. Come on, bro. Let’s get this shit over with.”

Rashid looked at them and licked his lips miserably, then he nodded and ran a hand down his hair.

“You’re right, man. But this is what we’re going to do. You two get back in the car. Lemme try and speak to her.”

“Rash,” Randy said feelingly. “You sure?”

“Yeah, yeah, wait for me. If she’s here, I don’t think I’ll keep that long.”

He walked briskly past Yao and headed for the apartment. The electronic gate was open, and a sleek silver Jaguar was parked in the garage.

The lawn was artificial green grass, but it was lovely. He walked to the front door and pressed the doorbell several times, then knocked hard when there was no response.

Finally, he tried the door.

It was locked.

Rashid sighed and turned away, meaning to go back to his friends, but just as he stepped off the front porch, he heard a tingle of laughter from around the house.

An excited, girlish giggle!

And it was Aku’s special sound of happiness.

Rashid’s heart thumped as he walked quickly down the stretch of the house to the side.

There was a small but lovely pool area there, cordoned off with dark glass, but the interior was well-lit. It had a small door which was hanging open.

The laughter came again, muted somewhat now, tender…

Rashid stood at the gate and took in the situation.

A lovely poolside, kept private by the tinted glass.

A bottle of expensive wine in an ice bucket was sitting on a low table. Tall, elegant drinking glasses, one empty, one a quarter full. A small barbecue grilling system, plates of tender meat and sweet food beside the wine.

Romantic, sweet, beautiful… and so devastating!

A cozy sofa, made for love, soft and inviting.

And on it, two naked bodies, man on his back, girl on him, back facing her lover, riding him in the cowgirl position, moaning, her hair tied back from her face, her eyes half-closed, moaning as the man grunted beneath her!

Misery!

Rashid’s vision clouded and he almost fell to the ground. His legs buckled and his body slammed against the wall. His breath came in wheezes as an excruciating pain rolled through his heart. It was as if his heart was being cut right out of his chest with a blunt knife. Quickly, he held the gate and moved sideways so that his back was pressed to the wall, and that was when Aku sensed the movement and looked up sharply.

Lust and bliss disappeared from her face as she looked at the devastated handsome man leaning against the wall.

“Rash!” she wailed in agony when their eyes met.

She stopped all movements, but she was sitting on Ledi fully, and he was fully embedded in her core, and all Rashid could see were his balls sticking out like black Harmattan pawpaws beneath Aku’s pudenda.

“They’re shiny,” he said as he stared at the balls because his mind was almost broken, and he was almost insane. “You’re sitting on shiny black balls, Akushika. Yes, they’re shiny. Shiny balls of Ledi.”