Daiki
It was time to collect another debt. People seemed to think that I was some sucker bank handing out credit cards. They thought I wouldn’t come for my money, but they were wrong. I had to teach them a lesson, one resistance fighter, or inspired revolutionary at a time. They could wage their war, so long as they paid their debts.
The helicopter set down in a blistering hot field. Sand and debris scattered all around us as the engine cut out and the blades slowly came to a stop. The pilot leaped out of his seat and opened the back door. I climbed out and immediately broke a sweat. I hated the cold, but I hated this kind of heat even more.
Kraig stepped out beside me. I could still see pink on his knuckles from the blood. He would have them wet again with someone else’s very soon. I turned to the pilot.
“Wait here, we won’t be long.”
The pilot nodded. He had taken off his winter wear on the ride over, but I could see sweat emerging on his forehead. We walked across the flat terrain towards a military camp with tents set up across the landscape. Rusty jeeps drove in and out of the camp as men dressed in ragged uniforms passed by carrying my guns.
I even saw kids, no older than ten or eleven-years-old, patrolling the camp and armed to the teeth. It wasn’t right, but it also wasn’t my business. I only made house calls when the debt wasn’t paid. We made our way to the largest tent in the center of the camp. It wasn’t hard to find these types of people.
We walked into the tent with bravado, and the guards immediately put away their weapons when they saw who had arrived. I never gave these people my name, but in recent years they have taken to naming me themselves. I heard them whisper Vita when I passed by. It was Swahili for War. An appropriate name, given my trade.
At the back of the tent, a short African man sat dressed in ragged camouflage pants and a green vest. His skin glistened with sweat, no doubt because the interior of the tent was like a sauna.
“You have come for your debt?” he asked.
“Yes, I hear you have not paid.”
The man grinned as he stood to his feet. I could tell by the way he carried himself that he thought he could kill me and walk away a free man. So many had tried, enough that I invested in both gun and martial arts training myself. It had been a long time since I needed either, but I was up for some practice.
“I do not plan on paying!” he said, spitting on the dirt beside him.
“I thought as much.”
The guards in the tent all raised their rifles.
I applauded slowly. The smile faded from the man’s face.
“You do not fear death?” he asked.
“No my friend, because I am death.”
The man’s resolve cracked for a moment. I saw true fear in his eyes, but it didn’t stay.
“Kill him!”
I had my hand in the pocket of my slacks the entire time. In there I kept a failsafe that would disable all of my weapons. The easiest way to deal with a snake in the grass was to first take his teeth.
The two guards fired but nothing happened when they pulled the triggers. Kraig took the right, and I the left. I ducked down and hit the muscular guard with a strike that knocked him out cold. He fell to the ground. I spun around as Kraig tore the rifle out of the other guard’s hands.
He turned the gun around and cracked it against the guard’s skull. He went to hit him again, but I stopped him.
“Enough, Kraig, save your strength for the main course,” I said.
Kraig stood up and nodded. He dropped the gun onto the ground and we both turned to the man at the back of the tent. He was cowering in fear, mumbling, and begging for his life.
“I’ve disabled every gun in your entire army. If you want them back on, you’ll give me my money.”
The man dropped to his knees and pleaded with me as if I were some sort of merciful god.
“Please, I have no money! We need these weapons, for our cause is righteous!”
I couldn’t help but start laughing. I looked to Kraig who cracked a smile.
“Do you hear that, Kraig? His cause is righteous! Oh, if I had a dollar for every time I heard that, I would have my fucking money!”
I swung out with an open palm and back handed the man. He fell backward onto the dirt and covered his face.
“Get him up,” I said.
Kraig grabbed the small man by his shoulders and pulled him to his feet.
“Now listen, you’re going to pay with your money, or you’re going to pay with your life. It’s your choice.”
“I have women, big beautiful women! You take one, no cost! They are young, supple, she will treat you like a king!”
I had never been offered a woman before, this was new. I mulled it over for a moment, if only for the concept of being treated like I deserved. No, I wouldn’t stoop to human trafficking, nor would I cheat on my wife. I was an arms dealer, yes, but I wasn’t a monster.
“You have two weeks to come up with my money. After that I’m coming back, and my face will be the last thing you see.”
Kraig and I left as the man begged for me to take his offer. I had to admit, it sounded tempting, but I only dealt in currency I could count. I wasn’t about to put a price on someone’s life.