Chapter 1

The setting sun's rays colored the Los Angeles sky. It surrendered the world to streetlights, enticing music from clubs, and  half-dressed ladies that modeled their entrances. Across a deserted street, a neat black limousine glided to a halt in front of an old warehouse.

"Darling, we've arrived," Mellisa, a lady with eyes the color of the ocean announced.

John looked at the sagging windows of the proposed building, its overgrown bushes and stairs with too many broken edges with a raised eyebrow.  "Honey, are you sure this is the right place?"

 Melissa leaned in, caressing John's laps. Her fair skinned cleavage showed and the subtle perfume she used on her dark-brown hair drifted into his nose. It made him smile.

“My brother's ready to discuss the price for a share in your app," Melissa trailed off, her voice dropping to a seductive whisper as she slowly pulled up the end of her black dress. “Once it's sold, we can finally get married, and you'll get to savor -"

"Alright," John interrupted with a big grin. He planted a light kiss on her lips. From a black suitcase beside him, he retrieved a flash-drive and gave it to Melissa. "Let's go."

John climbed up behind Melissa's slender rocking waist, ignoring the sweat drops trickling down his face. The worn-out tiles broke beneath his weight.  He witnessed a piece bounce down the stairs and paled because the thought of him slipping in his excess body fat made his mouth dry.  

One candle light on a center table illuminated the room.  A shirtless man with two massive scars criss-crossing his chest sat on a chair with his legs crossed. In front of him was a very wide window. Behind him thirteen armed men stood.  He stared at John in silence. John felt a bead of sweat trickle down his spine, more than he had produced during his climb. 

"Darling, come and see this. It's so beautiful," Melissa called. John turned to find her smile as radiant as a child's. He squared his slumped shoulders, and took her waist in his arm. He looked outside the window with his back to the men in the room. The night time view of Los Angeles through the window resembled a dazzling fireworks display; it felt alive. 

"His name is Xavier," she whispered into his ear and walked away, leaving John to gaze ahead. The sight of armed men in an isolated warehouse rang bells in his head, he wanted to call it off and just walk out. But they needed this deal. No, he needed this deal. It was his chance at a better life, anything was better than the slums. 

"'Xavier,'" John muttered to himself, swallowing hard.

"John, is it?" Xavier inquired. "  Tell me about your app? I've heard it can display the balance of any account, regardless of its security." 

"Yes, that's basic stuff. I plan to upgrade -" 

 "There's no need for that! What's your selling price? Full rights." Xavier interrupted.

John's brows furrowed. He recalled his discussion with Mellisa, during which he had been specific about not selling full ownership. The sense of unease about the situation deepened.

“I'm not selling it. I just need investors," John stated. It was time to stand his ground at negotiation. He nodded at the bright Los Angeles night for support and turned to face Xavier.

John eyes widened in shock.

Mellisa, in her black dress, sat on Xavier's lap. Xavier waived his right hand, and the thirteen men jogged out of the room. In his left hand was a gun.

"Johnny boy," Xavier chuckled in a thick Russian accent, "there are no investors."

"What is going on?" John asked, his voice trembling. Mellisa smiled at him, a cruel contempt in her gaze. "You told me he's a major figure in trade."

Xavier's hand traveled up Melissa's dress.

John's eyes filled with tears as he watched. She did not resist. 

"Without me, the app is useless," John screamed, his voice growing hoarse.

Xavier nodded. "But Lisa here holds the key, at least a copy of what you'll take to your grave when you're dead."

John faced Melissa, confusion and hurt evident in his eyes. "Why are you doing this?"

Melissa leaned in and kissed Xavier. "He's the love of my life."

John winced, gasping for breath, his heart heavy with betrayal.

Xavier grinned. "She also told you she's keeping herself pure until you both get married, but guess what?"

John shook his head in denial. He tried to steady his legs but staggered. Xavier laughed so hard he had to force himself to keep talking. "I screwed her last night when she came to set this meeting. But, I can promise you that your app will be used well. Very well indeed."

John's eyes landed at his flash drive and a burning rage ignited within his belly at the thought of his work in Melissa's hand. He rushed at them.

Xavier shot three bullets, the first one hit the window behind John and shattered it, the last two hit his chest and pushed him out of the window. He looked at Melissa as he fell, she was laughing. She kissed Xavier.

John's life flashed before him.

He met Melissa at a coffee shop where he worked overtime during the weekends. He worked three jobs to buy a high-end laptop for his project. All passes he made at her failed till the night she saw him working on his project and showed interest. She supported him, cheered him on and fed him when he cut down to one job in order to build the project. He was skeptical but she assured him she was well-off. And he gave her full access to the device. For love.

F**k.

His heart felt like it had been struck by an electric train. John clutched his chest as he landed on the top cover of a closed dustbin, which shook under his weight and threw him to the floor, where he landed face-down on broken glass.

His surroundings moved in and out of focus.  He heard hurried footsteps running down the stairs. Above, he could hear Xavier's loud laughter.

"Stand up, you bastard!" John muttered to himself. He pressed his hand onto the shards of glass, using the pain to clear his dizziness and forced his body to rise. As he looked ahead, he saw Jimmy, the driver of the limousine, step out of the car with a silencer in his hand. His body swayed as he stared at the gun. John managed to balance his swaying body when Jimmy tossed the gun. It landed right in front of John's feet. John picked it up with a nod of gratitude to Jimmy.

Jimmy reached into his pocket and brought out a ringing phone; he picked it.

"Ma'am, he's still out cold on the floor," Jimmy said into the phone loud enough for John to hear. "No, I think so. I've not gone out of the car to check."

Jimmy kept the phone away from his ear and mouthed the word "run."

John nodded and bolted. The warmth of his blood spilled down his face and the bullet wound dyed his shirt from within. He ran, hopped, and limped into an alley that would lead him to the bustling streets of Los Angeles with the gun held to his chest for it was heavy in his hands. 

John swayed to his left and a bullet blew a block size out of the wall beside him. He glanced back to see four men sprinting down the alley at full speed. Two more bullets missed him before he emerged from the alley. However, what greeted him was another deserted alley. He spotted a red Lamborghini SVJ and made a dash for it. His body protested, and his right eye's vision was tainted with red, but he gritted his teeth and pressed forward. He positioned himself behind the car, using it as a shield from their bullets. 

His vision blurred, he swayed and held the handle for support; it unlocked and swung open.

"What the f**k?" He thought.

John locked eyes with a fair-skinned lady. She was naked, attempting to put on her panties. She frowned at his stare and reached for her side. He thought she might scream, grab pepper spray, and start throwing things at him. He heard the footsteps of the men chasing him and put his hand to his lips.

"Shush," he said and stood on shaky legs. "No matter what you see. Shut up until they've gone."

The lady had an eyebrow raised. Without waiting for a reply, John closed the door. His arms were cold and numb, and he couldn't make out the shape of things. He let the silencer drop to the floor. Everything was blurred. He heard the men panting as they entered the alley. He took heavy footsteps toward them and away from the car.  

"This Motherfu**ker runs like dem castrated piggies," one of them said, and they all laughed.

 John legs gave in and he knelt down. They were too weak to carry his weight. 

"He ain't got any juice left," another one said. More laughter.

John felt an urge to turn and confirm that the lady remained in her car but he wouldn't drag a bystander into his problems. He hoped they'd walk away after he was dead. He started laughing - hoarse, forced laughter. 

John couldn't see; his world was spinning too much to dodge the punch that slammed his head into the floor. The impact made him curl.

"It'll be too good to just kill you, that's for making us run, you bastard!"

The men started kicking him.

He groaned and coughed up blood.

"If I could just have one chance, they'll pay. Every single one of them," he thought.

A kick hit his head and made his thoughts chaotic.

"Hey boys!" A lady's voice called. It was the lady John was trying to save and she held an automatic AK-47 in her hands. 

"Hail Mary," one of them said just before she sprayed them with bullets.

John heard the gunshots and the bodies drop, but he could not manage anything else. He felt someone turn him and proceed to check his vitals.

"Melissa. Why?" He said before he lost consciousness.