I blink severally and open my eyes wide. I look around, my attacker is lying on the floor. He painfully groans, he is still alive.
"We have to go!" Andre says in a tone I find rude.
However am not leaving until get answers from my assailant. I slowly move to him. Andre shot him at his abdomen.
"Who sent you? The Nickels? The Coopers', I mean my aunt and uncle? Who?" I scream at him. He has a scary face, it looks like it is sculpted with blunt object leaving uneven edges. His jaws are so prominent and pronounced. He is like one bucket of ugliness.
He opens his mouth revealing his bloody teeth and gives me an evil grin before shaking his head.
"Careful kid with who you trust." He shuts his eyes in pain.
I shake my head, "What is that suppose to mean? All I need to know is who send you."
"Neither of those people have anything to do with this. Just don't trust blindly." His hand goes to his wound.
Andre is getting impatient and he looks like he could kill. He's wearing a wife beater, which is unlike him. I also note the Nike shoes and tights. It is like he is just out from a work out.
"Why should I trust you and you wanted to kill me?"
He coughs and I hear the sound of sirens.
"Am just a mess... Messenger..." Andre hits him and he falls back to the hard floor. He turns to me, grabbing my arm.
"The police is here, so is the media." Andre speaks. "let's go, unless you want to be in the paper again." He pulls me.
"What about him? What if he comes after me again?"
"He won't." He says as we take the stairs instead of the elevator. My mind is still reeling with what that killer said, 'Careful with who you trust.' How many enemies did my family collect? Why did he want to kill me, precisely? Why would anyone want me dead?
"Hurry!" He hisses. Some police are at the lobby. Andre pulls his wife beater to hide the gun. We silently slip out and the sun shines on us. I want to ask him about the gun and why he was here. I told him I was planning on coming here for my car earlier, I just want to know why.
His phone rings before I ask, he answers it. I don't know how I could survive without Andre. He has always had my back.
His demeanour changes suddenly, he finishes his call and turns to me.
"I have to go, my mother has had one of her mental breakdowns. My father is at the hospital." He says in a rush.
"I will come with you." I say. His mother was my mom's friend. I remember the days she would visit and the weird glances she would throw at me. She assisted Andre in building a new profile for me and my brother and swore to secrecy.
"Not a good time. Tomorrow maybe." He says.
I nod, I just don't have the energy to push further. "Will you be okay driving?" He walks me to my Audi.
"I will be fine. Just keep me updated about your mother."
***
I spent the rest of the afternoon going through my father's client list and trying to remember his acquaintances. Most of them I have already investigated.
Only four of them remain, Andre's family, and two men and a woman. I rule them out. There's nothing they could benefit from by killing my parents or me. Then I remember, Ryan's mother confessed stealing my mother's boyfriend. Could that be a reason enough to create enemity and kill each other? Nothing makes sense.
I look at my phone and it is already six. I have one message from Oliver. I hope he doesn't know what happened. It took him long to get over his fear. I open it.
Dinner your place or mine? I will cook.
I text him back and remind him, am at Quinn's. He offers to come over which am glad. Andre is yet to tell me how his mother is doing.
An hour later Oliver shows up with take out. I expect Nimo to have tagged along but he's alone.
"Wow! You are living large siz" His eyes feast on the penthouse.
"This could be us, if mom and dad were alive." I say.
"If they were alive, we could be living in school dormitories. They always reminded us of humble beginnings." Oliver moves around.
"Yeah, they were low key misers." I agree.
"Where is Quinn?" He asks.
"He doesn't live here. Am all alone."
"I thought he said he was going to protect you."
"This is his idea of protection."
"What is wrong with that guy? Who hurt him so bad? How can he put you in danger and just come throw you here all alone?" He is getting angry.
"Stop fussing, am happy he doesn't live here."
Finally Oliver sits beside me, he takes both my hands. He looks straight at me. I have been too oblivious, he is a grown man. His evening stubble say it all.
"It is not too late to let go. It is not too late to be happy. To wear your hair down, a nice dress and dance the night. To be free, to fall in love. You deserve all that, if only you let the universe and Karma payback on your behalf. It is not your job to avenge. They all caused harm to me too." Oliver says softly.
I feel my eyes fill with tears. I want all that. If only it were easy.
"You should be angry." I stand and drag him with me at the balcony. I point at the skyscraper with the name Cooper on it. "That is ours, they stole it from us. We have no name to ourselves. Why should I let go? Why should you?"
He retreats back. "Am happy. I have you and Nimo what more could I want?"
"Your birth right, our surname back. Justice for our parents."
"I don't want any of that. Being a Cooper is like a curse and I don't desire to be wealthy." I can't miss the unnoticeable tears on his eyes. "And as for our parents, I think they deserved it." He adds, and I sit before I fall.