CHAPTER EIGHT - Nairobi Cocktail, The Sleaze

Naliaka was nervous.

She shifted her bottoms on the high stool she occupied at a vantage point at the counter. There was a whiff of adrenaline in the air and a discreet sniff of her armpits confirmed she was the guilty party. She fished out a little bottle of perfume from her bag and dashed a little of it on her neck, sniffing the air around her to make sure the unpleasant sweaty smell had been overpowered.

On the outside, it was just another day on the prowl, but on the inside, the turbulence of her heart and the nerves in her stomach could match a rough day on the high seas. It was on a Friday, one of the busiest drinking evenings in Nairobi. People lived for Friday evenings, she had learned that.

Naliaka surveyed the crowd through her thick fake eyelashes. The pub was crowded, but she could pick up Boss and the two house size men who discreetly trailed his every step with their watchful eyes as one sipped on soda and the other one on water. A few tables away, she could see Kamau and Oti, both on water and pretending not to see her. That they were not facing her did not ruse her, she knew they could see her every move.

She surveyed the crowd again. On any other day, she would have already identified target – already she could see several. They would be well on the way to the hotel. Not today. She was nervous because it was her first day at her new job, and that thought almost made her laugh. She was nervous because her new job was dangerous, and she was nervous because her boss, the Boss, was watching her. It didn’t help that he was looking extremely handsome. Focus! She screamed at herself, giving herself a slight slap on the cheek. She adjusted her wig and went back to surveying the crowd.

Her nerves were also making her feel a tinge of humanity she had not experienced since Queen became her surrogate mother. She was hoping that her target tonight would be somebody she did not like, like Kaggai. On this night, she would happily accept to leave with Kaggai, the most detestable human being in her book of judgment.

Someone interrupted her nervous thoughts by approaching her from behind and covering her eyes playfully.

“Who is that?” She demanded as she tried to unlock the fingers.

She had never seen him before, and she was good with faces.

“Do I know you?” she asked, cocking her head.

“Can I sit down?” He asked instead, pointing at the empty stool next to her with his chin.

She shrugged, like she usually did when in the mood of playing hard to get. “I don’t know. Can you?”

He laughed. He had a good smile. “Rephrase. May I sit down?”

She shrugged, but she smiled at him. “It’s free seating...but why do you behave like you know me? Who are you?”

He smiled. He smiled a lot. “Don’t worry Kiki. I am the friendly sort.”

“How do you know my name?” Now she was alarmed. She gave Boss a quick glance. He was looking at his phone. She quickly sent him a text; ‘Do you know him?” He answered negative, but he told her that he looked good to go.

“You are a regular, so am I. I have seen you having friendly chats with the waiters, all I had to do was give a few hundred shillings to one of them...”

“Traitors...” She muttered as she looked at several waiters accusingly. “So, why are you paying people to know my name? You got something special for me?” Now that she had her target, she wanted to get this over with. She flashed him a come on smile.

“Oh, you are in a hurry…” He laughed, but he did not seem to mind that he was being rushed. “Your place or my place?”

“Well, depends on a couple of things; where is your place, and are you sober enough to drive to wherever you live?” This was the first time she was using this line. Boss had insisted on the importance of establishing if the target had a car or not.

“Well, I live in Ruaka and yes, I am sober enough to drive, and do other things.”

She didn’t hear what he said next because he was busy texting multiple text about the possible location and to affirm there was a car. She looked up to see Kamau and Oti walk out. They would be waiting outside to begin the trail.

“Oh…if you are taking me that far out of town, you would have to either pay for the taxi back, or have me the whole night…”

“How about the whole night? How much is that going to be?”

She named her price. He agreed. She demanded to be paid first and to her shock, he agreed. If things worked out to plan, they would never make it to the destination, she would not have sex with this man, but she would still have some money. She hoped Boss did not expect her to surrender the money to him.

Twenty minutes later, Naliaka sat nervously next to the man whose name she could not remember – she could not even remember if he had told her his name. She had the urge to look behind and see if Kamau and Oti were behind, but she needed to act as natural as possible. She did however keep looking at her phone and at some point, he had asked her whether she was on social media.

“I don’t do social media…” It was true. She had absolute zero interest in social media. She had tried Facebook once, but it just made her feel miserable about her life because it appeared that everybody out there was having a great time. She had deactivated the account.

“For someone who does not do social media, you are quite busy on that phone…”

“I do have clients who would like to have me for the night, you don’t mind if I tell them I am booked, do you?”

He shrugged, but through the darkness Naliaka did not see the shrug.

They were just past the Village Market when Kamau and Oti struck. The vehicle they had stolen earlier from a garage on Kirinyaga Road for this purpose overtook them and cut them off, forcing them to veer off the road. Naliaka screamed and covered her head. There was a pain on her chest as the seatbelt locked and tightened across her. Within seconds, Kamau and Oti were inside the car, Naliaka was ordered to sit at the back with Oti while Kamau took over the passenger’s seat. It was so quick, Naliaka could swear the execution took less than ten seconds.

Kamau and Oti had their empty guns pointed at the driver. “Drive. If you try anything stupid, I will pull the trigger…” Kamau growled, slightly knocking the man’s head with the gun.  The man nodded and complied. Their first stop was about a hundred metres into Gacharage, towards Gachie, a lonely road even when there was daylight.

“Drive into the quarry…” Kamau ordered. In less than a minute, they relieved the man his two phones, wallet, rings and a watch. They took Naliaka’s phone and purse. “If either of you has hidden something from us and we find out, I will shoot you…”

“I swear that’s everything…I can give you my ATM card pin number…” The man was volunteering information in a shaky voice.

“Good man. You keep it up, you will come out alive. What’s the number?”

“4567…”

“Did you get that buddy?” Kamau asked Oti.

“I did. 4567…”

Kamau took over the driving, ordered Naliaka to sit at the front as the man sat behind with Oti. He drove the car towards Gachie, ordered Naliaka and the nameless man to get out just after the shopping centre, and they drove off into the night, leaving a genuinely shaken Naliaka and the nameless man by the roadside.

Naliaka paced up and down, in tears. Her customer sat on the ground hugging his knees and rocking himself. He was crying loudly.

This was going to be harder than she thought. She was feeling genuinely sad for the man.

***

As Kamau sped off, Oti was beside him making a call to Boss.

“It is done.”

“Good. Kiki?”

“We left her with the man, but in a well-lit area near the police post…”

“Right. Someone is on the way to pick her up.”

Naliaka had an emergency phone tucked away in her bra, set on vibrate mode.

***

Naliaka looked at the tail lights of the nameless’ man’s car disappear, and then looked at the shaken man sitting on the ground. She felt sorry for him, and guilty for his state. She was crying, genuinely shaken. Looking at the numb with fear man only added to her guilt. 

“We should go to the police…” He finally whispered, launching himself up and wiping his tears with the back of his shirt. He blew his  nose loudly.

“I am not going to the police…I am a prostitute, I do not deal with the police…”

“But I have to report the theft…”

“It’s your car, not mine.” She said stubbornly, crossing her arms.

“Don’t you want to report the theft of your phone?”

She shrugged. “It is a cheap phone and it’s not worth police trouble.”

“You want me to leave you on the road alone, at night, after what just happened?” He finally looked up at her. “Are you crazy?”

“No, I am not crazy, just a prostitute. I can handle myself better than you think. Besides, I doubt lightening would strike twice. I will try and flag down vehicles, or hide in the bush. Morning is not that far away…”

The nameless man, because he had enough manners on him, wanted to argue, that he would not feel good leaving a lady in the darkness. Then he decided that he did not care much about what happened to her. For good measure, he decided that she was the reason why this misfortune had befallen him. He stomped away, leaving Naliaka behind. He never turned to check if she was following. A snap knife had been carefully strapped on Naliaka’s wrist. She unstrapped it, held it on the ready as she watched the man stagger away until darkness swallowed him.

She shivered, genuinely scared. What if her rescuers did not turn up? What if they missed her? Maybe she should have accepted Boss’ offer of a loaded gun? She jumped when the phone started vibrating in her bra. Boss was calling. “There will be a five minute window after the boys abandon you. That should be enough time to get rid of whoever the victim is…” Boss had instructed earlier. She had not even realised the five minutes were over.

“Are you alright?” He sounded anxious. It made her feel good.

“Yes I am, but I am alone in the middle of the road. Somebody better come right now…”

“There is a vehicle with hazard lights on…can you see it? It is coming from the same direction you came from…” Naliaka turned and it was right there.

“I see it.”

“Flag it down, he is coming for you.”

In the safety of the car, Naliaka thought about her deeds and wondered if she would be able to do it again. That she knew what was happening had not made her fear less. If that fear occurred every time she was on a job, she would run out of adrenaline. They drove past the spot the jacking happened not more than an hour earlier. The police were there, examining the car that had been abandoned.

“Turn around…” She ordered the driver.

“What?...”

“I said turn around. I want to go to see my friend. She lives in Ndenderu…”

“But Boss asked me to take you to him…”

“Boss does not own me…”

“Well, he owns me, and I do what he says…” The man, according to Naliaka, sounded like he was happy to be owned. To communicate his intention, he stepped on the accelerator.

Naliaka pulled out her phone and called Boss.

“I want to go and see my friend in Ndenderu. Could you please ask your faithful goon to take me there?”

“What friend in Ndenderu?” He sounded alarmed. She had never told him about a friend.

“There are things about me you do not know, but I really need to go to Ndenderu right now.”

Boss hesitated. He wanted to see Naliaka, to congratulate her for a job well done and to spend time with her. He was fighting to urge to ask if the friend was a man or a woman but decided to wait. Naliaka was already on edge. “Alright then, but come to my house tomorrow at midday…”

At five minutes past midnight, Naliaka called Queen on her new number. “It’s Naliaka…”

“Naliaka.” Queen’s constant excitement whenever Naliaka called always made her consider returning to the whorehouse. “What are you doing with a new number? Are you now a thug?” It was a joke, but it touched Naliaka’s nerve.

“No…it’s…I just wanted another number.” She answered defensively.

“Why are you calling me so late? Is everything alright?”

“It is. I just want to come to the house. Are you at home?”

“What a silly question. I have always told you that you never, ever have to give me notice when you want to come. My home will always be your home, whether I am in or not. I am not at home, but I shall be there at some point tomorrow. The guard will let you in. You know your way around.” Naliaka, even having known Queen for years, often got confused at the older woman’s feelings towards her. On the surface, it was easy to conclude that Queen had no love for any other human but herself. When she still lived in the house, she thought it was because she was a tool of trade for Queen, a tool that needed to be taken care of. But Queen had continued to fuss over her even after she left. It wasn’t strange for Queen to make random calls, just to check up on her. To invite her for lunch. Once, she took her with her to Mombasa and introduced her to everybody as her daughter.

 “You are the daughter I shall never have…” Queen told Naliaka over dinner at the hotel bar.

Naliaka went along with it. On one hand, she hated Queen because at her most vulnerable, Queen had recruited her to prostitution. Queen could have paid for her school, but she had not. On the other hand, she loved Queen in her own dark way, ironically because of the same reason, that she had picked her up at her most vulnerable. She had come into her life when everything had crumbled, stepped into her mother’s shoes. Queen was the only mother she had. The only person, selfishly or otherwise, rescued her from the unknowns of village life after the death of her mother.

***

Ngari the gateman was the same one who had opened for Naliaka and Queen the first time she had come there, six years ago. She liked him, often felt sorry for him about the things he had to witness. Once in a while, while she was still living with Queen, she would talk to him. He had two daughters, and when he talked about them, Naliaka could tell that he worried that they may end up like the women he guarded.

Ngari peeped into the car and exclaimed excitedly when he saw Naliaka. She always tipped him well. He rushed back to open the gate for them.

The house was quiet, but the front door was open. Queen had most probably called Janet, the live-in housekeeper to leave it open. She went into the kitchen. There was always food in the fridge, a house that was run like a hotel, perhaps better. There was always pre-cooked food, packed in containers, put into the fridge or the freezer. Feeding over ten people on a daily basis was not easy, and Queen fed her girls very well.

She warmed some chicken and rice in the microwave and put on the kettle to make coffee. She ate quietly, thinking about her evening. It was easier than she had thought, but it had been equally scary, and the guilt she felt was like nothing she had ever thought possible.

Her thoughts kept going to the victim, the same one who had so playfully hit on her. Where was he now? Did the police help him? She hoped his car was insured because according to what Boss had told her, by the time she was chewing her second piece of chicken, the car was in fifty different pieces, courtesy of some underground garage on Kirinyaga Road. His bank accounts, if he had given the correct pin number, would be withdrawn to the maximum by men who wore baseball hats to hide from ATM cameras.

Boss had warned her that she may find it difficult the first time, that all the girls found it difficult the first time, but it got easier with time. “It must be the same with prostitution,” Boss had quipped, locking his eyes with hers challengingly. “It is difficult the first time but it gets easier with each one of them.”

At least they had not hurt the man, she consoled herself with a sigh. She wondered if he would ever again drive at night, or the trauma would stay with him for life. If he would ever talk to her if they ever met again.

She cleared her dinner and her coffee, then went upstairs to her room. She was the only girl with a permanent room in the house even though she lived away. Queen had turned one room that had been a store, into a miniature copy of the others. Even in her absence, however long, the room was never occupied. And it was cleaned every day, along with the other rooms. Perhaps, Queen did really view her as her daughter.

She took a long shower and although showers always made her feel sleepy, she turned and tossed in bed for hours. She turned on the lights, turned them off, switched on the small television in the room, switched it off. Went to the window to stare into the darkness, cried on and off. Finally, at dawn, she fell into a disturbed sleep.

***

Somebody was noisily drawing the curtains. The light burned through her shut eyes, she groaned and pulled the duvet over her head, sinking deeper in the bed.

“Wake up, sleepy head.” It was Queen, who now sat on the bed and hugging Naliaka as she lay on the bed

“What time is it?” She was vigorously rubbing her eyes, begging them to behave.

“Eleven AM…what’s your problem anyway? Did you start drinking?”

Naliaka giggled and shook her head. “Not a chance. I just felt extremely tired…”

Naliaka was a nocturnal creature, she slept better at day time, and Queen had awoken her up at the prime of her sleep. After the events of the previous night and her disturbed sleep, she would have appreciated sleeping the whole day.

“When did you come back?”

“A few minutes ago, only to be shocked to learn the girls do not even know you are here.”

“They were all asleep when I came in…|

“Of course they were. Unlike you, they are not nocturnal animals.”

They both laughed and hugged.

“How are you Naliaka, really? Last night you sounded very tense.”

Naliaka pressed herself against the headboard and stretched her hands to the maximum. For a few seconds, she considered confessing to Queen what she had been up to last night. But only for a few seconds. “I am fine, really. But this life can get tiring. I just felt very tired…”

Queen cocked her head, eyes full of doubt. “Okay, if you say so. But you know you can tell me anything… Remember I swore to you I would be there for you, no matter what…”

“I know and I appreciate it. But honestly, everything is alright.”

Queen shrugged. “How is business out there?”

It was Naliaka’s turn to shrug. “Business is good, I cannot complain.”

“You know you are always welcome to come back to the house…” Naliaka was always amused that Queen never used the word brothel to describe her line of work. She suspected that Queen did really believe that her business was as good as any property business around.

“I know, but I am happy doing this alone. Besides, it’s fun being out there. The city can be a very interesting place.”

“Have you made any friends?”

Naliaka shook her head. “Nope. I know a few of the other girls. We talk sometimes, but I cannot call them friends…”

“It bothers me that you do not have friends. What young person doesn’t have friends…”

“You never had friends even when you were young…”

Queen laughed. “Oh yeah. I keep forgetting that. But I was ugly. You are beautiful…beautiful people need friends.”

Naliaka laughed. “I am alright. I have never really had friends. Nothing new.”

Queen laughed as she smothered Naliaka’s head. “Oh, I miss you Naliaka. But I can live with the heartbreak. Come on, get yourself ready. The girls will be very excited to see you. I am leaving though so by the time you get ready I will be out so if you are not sure there is nothing you want to talk to me about…”

“I swear I am fine. I just missed you all.”

***

Naliaka was in the garden with the girls, laughing and catching up. Naliaka entertaining them with stories of the city and her clients. Then there was a phone ringing, interrupting the laughter.

“I think that is your phone ringing….” Julia told her, pointing at the phone with her mouth.

The phone was on the grass. For a second, Naliaka looked at it in confusion before grabbing in and walking away.

“Hey…”

“Naliaka!” Boss was mad. “Where the hell are you?”

“Erm…at my friend’s.” She had totally forgotten she was supposed to go and see Boss.

“You were supposed to be here at midday…why are you not here?”

Naliaka laughed. Not with amusement but in disbelief. “Don’t shout at me…I lost track of time, okay? I am sorry…”

“When I tell you to be here at midday, you need to be here at midday…”

Naliaka laughed again, this time louder. She stole a glance at the girls, they were looking at her curiously. “Who the hell do you think you are? You do not own me, sorry. You cannot order me around like that. I said I forgot, and that’s the truth…”

“Who do you think you are talking to?”

“I. Don’t. Care. I don’t care how everyone else talks to you, but you need to stop talking to me like I am a child. Your child. I am not. Now, if part of this deal is to order me around, I don’t want it. You can look for another prostitute willing to take your rubbish…”

“Naliaka…”

She didn’t hear the rest. She disconnected the call. She was seething. The last time anyone had such expectations about her, expectation to report even when she going to the toilet, was when her mother was alive. That was a long time ago. Even when she was under Queen, she still had a big chunk of her independence, as long as she met her target. When she left Queen’s house, she had lived as she liked. Worked when she wanted. Slept when she wanted. Ate when and what she felt like. She wasn’t about to start taking orders from anyone, least of all an armed robber.

Her phone was ringing again as she walked back to the girls. She looked at it and threw it away in anger.

“Whoooah…what’s your problem?” Malaika demanded in between exhaling cigarette smoke. “That’s a very expensive phone you are throwing away…”

“You can have it if you like…” Naliaka answered angrily. She sat on the same spot she was sitting on before the call and glared at anyone who dared to look at her.

Then the other girls started laughing. Eventually, she joined in the laughter.

“You are in love, aren’t you? Only a boyfriend can get you so angry…”

“I am not in love. I do not have a boyfriend. It’s just some stupid man who thinks he can tell me what to do…” Her anger was back.

“Careful. If your face gets hotter than it is, you will set yourself on fire…” They were still laughing.

“This is very good news. Prostitutes can get boyfriends…you hear girls? Do not give up. There is hope. Our Naliaka is dating…” Julia said in between laughter.

“I am not dating!” Naliaka shouted, fighting the urge to slap Juliet?

“You are. Come on, Suzie, get that phone for her. When she calms down she will need it to call her boyfriend and apologise…”

They all burst into laughter. Naliaka did as well, reluctantly. She was still angry, but she realised her anger was fuelling the teasing. She accepted the phone from Suzie. It had already registered five missed calls. Within two minutes.

***

Boss was seething as well. But unlike Naliaka, he was angrier at himself than he was at Naliaka. He had not meant to lose his cool like he had. Now he felt stupid.

Since the night before when Naliaka told him she was going to see a friend, he had been on edge. The driver who had dropped her had reported to him how happy the gateman had been to see her. He had described the big house and how Naliaka had let herself inside, like it was something she did often.

“It has to be a man…” he had muttered to himself after the call. He had felt the hint of the metallic taste and quickly went to the toilet to spit inside the toilet bowl.

He had drunk all night, thinking about Naliaka and how sensitive she was making him. Perhaps, he thought, bringing her on board was a bad, bad business idea. He had slept at six AM and set his alarm clock for eleven AM. Then he had walked to the central business district and bought a large pepperoni pizza, one he intended to share Naliaka.

Midday, he had already showered and slipped into a white tee shirt, black shorts and white socks. Every five minutes, he checked his phone and heard imaginary knocks at the door. By the time he had called her, his anger and anxiety had peaked, and he had been stupid. Then he had been angry at her for not being apologetic, for having the audacity to tell him off. For sounding like she was fine without him. That was new, at least in his new life. He could not remember a time when anyone dared shout at him, drop calls on him and to rub salt to an injury, to refuse to pick subsequent calls.

Then he laughed. He laughed because he finally understood why over and over, the romance books he read and romance movies he watched, love seemed to make people act stupid. He was part happy, that he was capable of falling in love, that his earlier suspicions of being in love with Naliaka were now confirmed, but he was partly disappointed with himself, that he could lose his cool like that, because of love.

At two-thirty PM, he called the driver who had dropped Naliaka to Ndenderu

***

Three PM, Naliaka was itching to leave the whorehouse. Boss’ angry calls had distracted her and she was struggling to have conversations with the girls. They all wanted her to stay, but she knew she would spend all her time getting distracted by thoughts of Boss. “I will come see you all next weekend. I promise …” She planned on going to see Boss with every intention of discussing their rules of engagement. If, she resolved, he was not ready to let her be free when she was not working, she would walk away.

She hugged the girls. She felt sad, as she always did whenever she had to leave the comfort and the unconditional love she felt from all of them. They were her crazy family, the only family she had. They were the main reason she sometimes considered moving back to the house. They made her laugh and they were a nice change from her reclusive life. She could be herself when she was with them, and she loved the way they fussed over her.

Moving back was however, out of the question. Moving back would mean having to sleep with Kaggai whenever he paid enough for her. And he liked paying for her. Even when he picked other girls as his regular when he needed company outside the house, he still went back to Naliaka.

“He is obsessed with you.” Queen had once told her. “Usually, he goes for the youngest one, but he keeps coming back to you. Perhaps it is because he broke your virginity?”

Naliaka had gagged with the memory of her first time with Kaggai. Her first time to ever have sex. That was not breaking virginity. That was brutal, painful sex. It didn’t matter that he had never asked her to have anal sex again. He had instead seemed to try and make up for that first time by being gentle with her, but it still disgusted her. To her, no matter what Kaggai did, he would always be a brute and a beast. It only mattered that he had been brutal, and he had enjoyed hurting her.

She waved her bye at the watchman and started walking towards the road, grateful that she still had some of her clothes in Queen’s house. Last night, she had worn her usual short outfits and heels topped with a blonde weave. Right now, she was wearing a pair of sneakers, a pair of jeans and a sleeveless top and a jacket to cover up her arms from the sun.

Ahead of her, close to the road was a car. It was facing the road. She thought nothing of it because such vehicles were always going in and out of Queen’s house. She assumed it was one of the clients, probably answering a call.

Then someone came out of the back seat. She jumped and squeaked, for a second wanted to run back to the house. Then she straightened up, put one hand on the hip and glared.

“What are you doing here? How did you find me?” She demanded.

Boss was leaning on the car, studying Naliaka from head to toe with an expression she could not work out. “I see you changed your clothes…”

She grunted, shifting her feet. “So?”

She shrugged. “Nothing. I was just making conversation…”

“How did you find me?” She repeated, still standing on the same spot.

“Have you forgotten one of my guys dropped you here?”

“Oh yeah…what do you want?”

Boss opened the car door and pointed at it. “Get in…”

“What if I don’t want to?”

“Stop acting up. What do you think I will do to you, kill you?”

“It’s a possibility I am aware of…” She retorted.

“Please…” He mocked with a tongue click. “If I wanted you dead, you would be gone by now. Now, come on, get in…”

She stood her ground, but only for a few seconds. A car, a familiar one, drove into the driveway and stopped next to her. The driver wound down the window and Naliaka nearly gagged at the sight of the gappy smile she had come to detest so much. She took a step back.

“Naliaka! So good to see you. Where have you been? Are you back? Why are you standing here like this? Is this man disturbing you?” Kaggai was already out of the car, walking towards her with open arms.

Naliaka took another step back before dashing past Kaggai and into Boss’ car.

Boss, almost reluctantly because he was studying Kaggai, entered after her and shut the door. “Take us home…” He instructed the driver as he turned to look at the man Naliaka had run away from. He was standing there, looking at their disappearing car, looking hurt.

It was a drive that bordered on being amusing. Naliaka was shaken and angry. Her constant fear whenever she went to the whorehouse was bumping into Kaggai. The timing of his turning up had been so wrong, considering that she had meant to punish Boss for his arrogance. She stubbornly faced ahead, most of the time. Her hands were crossed throughout and she deliberately kept the sneer on her face, willing her face to stop burning, aware that Boss kept looking at her and shaking his head. She could see him from the corner of her eye. By the time they arrived in Kirinyaga, her muscles ached from the tension and lack of movement.

He led the way up the stairs, she followed silently. He opened the door and let her in first. She walked in and slumped herself on the sofa, turning on the television immediately.

“Drink?” He asked after he locked the door. She glared at him then went back to looking at the television. “Suit yourself. I shall get myself a beer anyway…”

He was back within a minute with a beer can. He opened it, placed it on a stool before sitting next to Naliaka.

“What are you watching?” He asked.

Then it hit her. She had been staring at the television for over five minutes but had no idea what was on. “Something…” She muttered.

“I bet you have no idea what is on.” He said, taking the remote from her hand and switching off the television.

“What?”

“What? We talk…enough of this imaginary lovers’ fight…”

Naliaka chuckled. “You wish. I am just upset that you think you own me…”

“I don’t, but I think it is rude to tell someone you will turn up then forget to even call them to excuse yourself. It’s very rude. What happened to you?”

She sat on her legs before answering. “I overslept…”

“Heavy night?” He asked heavily.

“You ask that after what you know I did last night?” She looked at him and rolled her eyes.

“That’s not what I mean. Whose house was that?”

“Does it matter?”

“Perhaps not. But I am curious. Whose house is it? I saw a couple of men driving in…who owns the house?” He had actually seen more than a couple of men driving in. By the time the fourth car had driven in and two out, he had put two and two together. He still wanted to hear it from her.

“It belongs to my friend…”

“Tell me about your…friend?”

“Why?”

“Because you are my friend and I want to know about your friends…”

“I don’t know about your friends…” she said weakly.

“I do not have any friends…”

She thought she detected a sad note. She stole a glance at him. He was studying his fingers.

She took a deep breath as she debated on whether to tell him or not. Out of spite, just to get back at him for being so arrogant, she wanted to keep the information to herself, but that stolen glance at him had softened her. She had seen an insecure man. Besides, she thought with resolve, there was nothing to lose.  

“I will tell you, but you must first promise not to behave like you are my mother. I had a life before you, I will still have a life away from you. I realise you are used to giving orders, but I am not one of your boys. You do not own me…I will do what you need me to do, but if I want to go to Mombasa, I shall not ask for your permission…”

They looked at each other. He nodded and put up his hands in mock surrender. “Deal. It is something I need to learn how to do. I am used to keeping tabs on my people…”

“Well, do not keep the tabs on me. I am uncomfortable…”

“Promise. So, who is your friend?”

She sighed and stretched her hands. “Could you make me a cup of coffee? This is going to take long…”

“My pleasure. Oh, and your phone and bag and some money is on the dining table…” He said, walking to the kitchen. Naliaka saw the items, but did not move from the seat.

***

By the time Naliaka finished narrating her life from the day she met Queen to what else happened later that day, to how she ended up in Queen’s house and what happened there to how she left, Boss had long finished his beer and the can crushed flat by his right hand. Naliaka’s coffee had gone cold.

“My goodness…” Boss muttered when Naliaka finally looked at him, indicating she was done. “And I thought I have had a shit life…”

She giggled. It was not a happy giggle. “We are a crowd…”

“Two peas in a pod…” He added, taking her hand and squeezing it gently. “I am so sorry…” He meant it.

“Mushy doesn’t suit you…” This time round, her giggle was happy.

“You are right…” He agreed with a smile, dropping her hand. “Mushy doesn’t suit the biggest thug in town. How about I make a fresh cup of coffee for you?”

“Thank you…”

When he came back with another steaming cup of coffee and placed it on the stool, Naliaka had gone to the toilet. She returned to find him stretched on the sofa, leaving no space for her.

“Well, that’s selfish. Where do you want me to sit?” There were other seats in the house, but she had found her comfortable spot on the one seat.

He spread his legs and tapped on the spot in front of him. “Here. Come and sit here. Let me cuddle you…”

She looked at him and took a sharp breath; found herself wondering what making love to him would feel like. The only other person who had made him take similar deep breaths was the priest. “Are you paying for this?” She quipped as she slowly took the spot.

“Don’t be a wisecrack. I just want to cuddle. You don’t mind, do you?”

She shook her head as she let her back rest on his chest, taking time to relax between his legs. When she was well settled, he wrapped his hands around her.

“You know,” he said, almost to himself. “I watch a lot of romance movies. I know all the moves. I have always wondered how it feels like to do a lot of stuff they do…” He was running his hand, gently, on her bald head.

“You really have never?” She still found it hard to believe that he had never had a romantic relationship.

“I really have never. You are the closest thing I have come to having sex with…”

At that very moment, she decided it was her mission to have sex with him.

“For someone who has never had any practice, you are doing very well…” She was whispering, not trusting her voice. He really was. Naliaka, a woman who long ago lost count of the number of men she had slept with, was not that familiar with sex preambles. Most of her partners, understandably so, were more interested in penetration, wham bang thank you mum. Her thoughts took her to the priest, the one man who went out of his way to be gentle to her, to worship her body. It did not matter if he did it for her or himself, what mattered was he always left her feeling good about herself, not dirty.

“You mean that?”

“I do. At this rate too, my second cup of coffee will go cold too…”

“My beer may get hot as well…not to worry though. I will make another hot cup of coffee then get myself a cold beer…”

Then she forced herself to concentrate on how good she was feeling. A normal man would already have been poking her body with his penis, but she felt nothing from Boss. It didn’t matter, not then. She was in heaven, even appreciating that nothing was expected of her.

“Tell me about the man who stopped to talk to you at Queen’s gate…”

He felt her body tense.

But she did tell him, a voice so full of anger and hate. By the time she was done, his anger and hate towards Kaggai was neck to neck with hers.

“That is some heavy, heavy shit…” He declared, fighting the metallic taste that had been invading his mouth from the moment Naliaka told him about the rape. “How…how did you finally get out?”

Naliaka remembered only too well. The hate towards Kaggai had been building up for years. It had reached its peak that one week he had come to the whorehouse every day and spent two hours with her. She suspected that he had increased his dose of the Viagra. She could not satisfy him and the worst part, he thought she liked it because part of her job description was to convince the client that she liked having sex with them.

“I can’t sleep with him anymore…” Naliaka had walked into Queen’s bedroom one evening after a session with Kaggai. She had found Queen half-dressed. Naliaka had not bothered to look away, and Queen had not bothered to cover up. Nakedness in Queen’s house was nothing to cover.

“Kaggai? Did he hurt you again?” Queen had asked in alarm.

Naliaka shook her head as she moved to sit on the bed. “No. But I cannot stand him. He is disgusting. He makes me want to throw up…”

“Naliaka, but you know you cannot choose whom to sleep with…”

“Julia does…” She countered.

“That’s different, and you know it.” Queen answered as she finally covered her big body with a kikoi.

“Different how?”

“Her husband does not know she is here…”

“I want to leave…” She declared and glared at Queen.

Queen laughed sarcastically. “And go where?”

Naliaka shrugged. “Anywhere away from that buffoon. I cannot sleep with him anymore. I won’t.”

Queen sighed and sat next to Naliaka, taking time to speak. When she did, she started with a big sigh. “Listen, I understand where you are coming from, but what you are asking is hard. Kaggai is our biggest client, he gets what he wants. Is it more money you want?”

Naliaka shook her head, tears finally flowing. “It’s not about the money.” And it wasn’t. She had saved up a lot of money, money she hardly ever used. Even on her days off when she could go wherever she wanted, she would end up spending a little of it on junk and a few clothes. They hardly needed clothes in Queen’s whorehouse. Queen provided underwear and lingerie, the only items of clothing they spent most of their life in.

“It can’t be that bad…”

“It is. I want to leave.” She repeated more boldly.

“You are serious…” Queen said it as a statement as she moved to look through the window. “Where will you go?” She repeated her earlier question without the sarcasm.

“I will find myself a house…”

“And do what for a living?”

Naliaka shrugged. “I will figure it out. I have some money saved up. I will come up with something…”

Queen shook her head. “You don’t know anything about life out there. It is harsh Naliaka…”

“I cannot be here forever either.”

“Why not?”

“Because I cannot sell my body forever. I do not want to be Juliet’s age and still be doing this…”

“What else will you be doing?” Queen’s voice was growing exasperated. Naliaka didn’t care.

“I said I will work something out.” She snapped. “I refuse to sleep with Kaggai, ever again. He disgusts me when he smiles at me, like he thinks he has a good smile. I keep wanting to knock off his remaining teeth. I keep wanting to cut off the extra fat on his body. I want to put more scars on his ugly face, his whole body. He makes me cringe. I… I keep wanting to hurt him. The other day I carried a kitchen knife to the bedroom…”

“Oh my goodness…” Queen gasped, moving to kneel in front of Naliaka. “I didn’t realise it was this bad.”

“It is. I feel like if I ever see him again, I will not be able to stop myself from hurting him…please, let me go…” She was crying harder.

Then Queen did something that would leave Naliaka forever confused. She cupped Naliaka’s face and kissed her. A kiss that felt wrong but good, good because Naliaka could not remember ever being kissed like that by anyone. It was gentle. Even sensual. She let the kiss go on, only stopping because she lost her breath.

“I am sorry. I am sorry about what you have been going through. I feel terrible…” Queen said as she stood up, like the kiss never happened. The kiss was never mentioned after that.

“Will you let me go?”

Queen nodded. “Of course. But I have a proposal. I will let you go, I will pay house rent for you for two months. If at the end of the two months you have not changed your mind, then you will have to take over the rent yourself…”

“That’s fine. Thank you…I will miss you. I will miss everyone…”

“You have no idea how terrible I feel that I have to let you go. You are the sunshine in this house, Naliaka. My sunshine, believe it or not.”

Naliaka had never seen Queen that emotional. She felt like she was witnessing something she was not supposed to. She looked away and continued crying.

“Promise me that you will keep in touch. Promise me that you will come back often to see me, to see us. Promise…”

“I promise. I swear…”

Within a week, Naliaka had moved into her one bedroom flat, one that was furnished by Queen, and paid for, for two months. For a week, she stayed in bed, watching television, sleeping and over eating. The second week, she had decided to go out to town. That first time she had gone, she had no intention of getting herself a client, but she had. She had gone to his house, and he had had sex with her but refused to pay her and kicked her out of his house at five AM. Naliaka had waited outside the gate for daylight before getting into a matatu, attracting all sorts of unpleasant looks from the early risers. She had still been wearing her short dress and heels, and her makeup was smudged.  The man had only allowed her to use toilet.

The following day, Naliaka went to several hotels within the city to ask them if she could be renting a room for a few nights a week. Five of them, knowing what she meant, had refused flatly. The sixth one agreed. And she had settled into her new life.

“You really would like him dead?” Boss asked when Naliaka was done.

“You have no idea how much.” She answered innocently. “Let’s just say he is lucky that I am no killer, otherwise I may already be serving term in jail for murder…” She even giggled. Boss did not. He had the urge to brush his teeth. He needed to get rid of the overwhelming metallic taste.

“Hungry?” He suddenly asked, pushing her away so he could get up.

“Starving…” She said with a yawn.

“I hope you do not mind cold pepperoni pizza… I had bought pizza for our lunch. It’s still on the kitchen counter…”

“Sorry about that.” She was, by now, feeling sorry for standing him up. “Cold pizza and a hot cup of coffee would be great.”

“Good. Also, I suggest we move to the dining table. This seat is for cuddling only…”

They did. She looked at her items.

“Don’t you want to check missed calls and how much I paid you?” Boss asked as he took a slice of pizza, nodding at Naliaka’s items.

“It can wait for tomorrow…”

Hours later after eating then watching a romantic movie, Naliaka suggested a combined shower. She saw him tense.

“I swear, it is just a shower. I promise not to take advantage of you…” She joked to reassure him.

He smiled, attempting to hide how vulnerable he suddenly felt. If he allowed her to do what she was suggesting, she would be in the position of power. He knew nothing. He was afraid of his responses, or lack of. Then he shrugged. She already knew what his issues were, they had slept in the same bed, naked, two times. Nothing about his inability was news to her. He shook his body and tried to relax before allowing her to undress him. Appreciating her gentle hands on him, her kisses on random parts of his body. He risked a look at his penis and cringed at how unresponsive it was, but he allowed her to lead him to the shower. Allowed her scrub his body, every part of his body. He enjoyed doing the same to her, even for a moment forgetting his sexual troubles.

“You want a tee-shirt to sleep in?” He asked tensely, unable to look at her straight in the face.

“Absolutely not. We are sleeping naked…”

“We are?”

Naliaka paused and studied him. Saw the tension in his body. Looked at his penis, felt his embarrassment. She uncovered the bed and lay down, facing up. “Of course we are. We have done it more than once before. Now, lie on me…” She whispered.

He looked at her inviting body then shook his head. “It won’t happen…”

“Maybe I do not want it to happen…” She countered. “Maybe I just want to have a skin to skin experience. Please…come.”

He did. Hesitantly. Afraid of hurting her. She was a slim girl, he was a muscular man. “It’s okay…” She whispered in encouragement. “If and when you get too heavy, I should kick you off…”

He smiled and sunk on her. Body part to body part. He felt the warmth of her womanhood on her manhood, it was the most amazing feeling in the world.

“See, I do not bite…” She said, gently b

iting his ear.

He laughed, genuinely amused. “You are a terrible tease, you know that?”

He did get too heavy after a few minutes, mostly because with every minute, Boss relaxed more and more, putting his full weight on her. Eventually, the lay side by side, facing each other, one of her legs over his.

Boss still did not rise to the occasion, but he was a happy man. This woman was the woman he would do anything for, and anything included killing for her.