Timeless Chistye Prudy, Moscow.
10:50 pm.

Ebunoluwa could not decipher what was increasing the tempo of the headache she was feeling. Was it the excessively bright bulbs that dangled from the chandeliers on the ceiling? The tongue-twisting classical music playing in the background that was most likely sung by some unknown Russian? Or was it the bitter-sweet feeling of the Irish whiskey against her tongue pallet?

Ebun didn't understand why she couldn't bring herself to stop drinking such a terrible drink. She remembered when Sean would always force her to have a glass. He'd always mumble about how homely the liquor felt whenever the cold liquid merged with the tip of his tongue. He'd always say: "Irish whiskey has become the drink of the Russians, making me feel at home!"

Ebun never saw much sense in that statement, mainly because Sean was a black man even though he'd spent many years in Russia.

But here she was, drinking herself into a stupor. For what reason in particular? She couldn't figure it out. Perhaps it was because she didn't know which other drink to order when Nurse Zoya pulled her out of Khovrino Hospital and forced her to come and have some drinks. Although she detested this drink, it was the only liquor she knew. She wasn't in the spirits to try new things. Better the devil you know than the angel you don't, or so the saying goes.

It was quite the puzzle trying to know what was triggering the nauseous feeling within her. The mishmash of sounds and bright illuminations was a noisy swirl to her senses. The cacophony of sounds, including the faintest ones, coupled with the unnecessary iridescence of lights, was spiraling deeper down into the pit of her stomach and was quickly forming into a knot. A very tight knot. She needed to loosen it up. She had to. She felt like puking.

But she had to try her best to keep her cool for Nurse Zoya's sake.

"You know," She spoke after a long session of silence. She playfully twirled her whiskey glass with the tip of her fingers. Perhaps, focusing on something else will help subside the queasiness she was feeling. "I was very pissed and frustrated with how things turned out."

Ebun didn't want to speak about what happened a few weeks ago at the hospital. It was like opening a fresh wound all over again. But she had to.

"I ahnderstend how you feel, ma'am," Nurse Zoya, who tried her best not to drink too much, answered her boss with all the concentration and attentiveness she could manage to have. If she didn't try to stay sober for Ebun's sake, she was scared that none of them would be able to drive back to the hospital.

"Oh, Zoyaaaa! You don't understand. Trust me!" Ebun poured everything left of the glass into her mouth and swallowed it in one gulp. Then she dropped the glass cup on the table in a very lousy manner. Nurse Zoya flinched.

"Do you know how many years I had to wait and endure? Do you know the number of weapon usage training I had to undergo as I waited the day I was going to see the bastards who raped me? It took me thirteen years, Zoya! Thirteen freaking years! I've been in Russia for seven years now, preparing so studiously for that special day to come.

And it came, but it came in a way that made me wish I hadn't waited and endured for such a long time. It made me feel like I've been wasting my time. Do you know how frustrating that is?"

Now that she had vented her genuine sentiments, she could feel hot tears about to emerge from the corners of her eyes.

This time, Nurse Zoya didn't say anything. She figured it was best to let her boss express every one of her feelings without interruption. She'd watched Ebun for the past week ever since Gilbert walked into the hospital on his own accord and got killed because he refused to reveal the identity of the masked guy.

Since then, Nurse Zoya noticed a drastic change in Ebun's behavioral patterns. Ebun was always temperamental, feisty and outspoken. If something irked her, she was always quick to express it. But after that day, she became strangely calm. The quiet mien that loomed over her aura was frightening. She was rapidly becoming a thick wall that could never be broken.

Ebun was always on her laptop, surfing the internet for every means — every guide that could assist her in finding the masked guy who'd led the gang of rapists. Occasionally, Nurse Zoya would hear Ebun scream out loud in frustration, smash an object against the wall and cuss out loud because none of her efforts yielded positive results.

Looking for the leader of the rapist without having an idea what he looked like was like searching for a needle in a pitch-black room.

As the days rolled by, the random sounds from Ebun's office ceased. That was when she began to appreciate the times she could hear those noises. At least, it gave her a faint hope that she would eventually be okay because she was expressing her rage. It also assured her that she could still do something to make her feel better.

But when she no longer heard even a pin drop from Ebun's vicinity, the uncertainty of her boss's welfare scared her. One couldn't even tell if she was present at the hospital, if she was dead, having a seizure, or had even committed suicide. Nurse Zoya never saw Ebun leave her office for any reason whatsoever. She never ate nor attended to patients that came to the hospital.

If it was an urgent matter, she assigned Nurse Zoya to handle it. Her instructions were always brief. She was always quick to dismiss Zoya, her favorite nurse, out of her presence. Her walls were closing in quickly, and Nurse Zoya knew she had to do something immediately before it was too late.

Nurse Zoya was always glad whenever Ebun said more than a word to her. She was always happy when she opened the door of her boss's office and found her alive. Even if all Ebun did was give her instructions, Nurse Zoya still appreciated it. One day, she would bring Ebun out of her shell and today happened to be the day. Zoya decided to make use of the little opportunity she had.

She lied that there was an emergency since that was the only time she was allowed to enter Ebun's office. How she could get Ebun to step out of the hospital and come into one of the lousiest bar spots in Moscow was a miracle that would be narrated another day.

"I don't even know who to be mad at or what to be angry about. I want to blame someone or, at least, a circumstance. I want to blame Sean. He's been trying to help me as usual, but lately, it doesn't feel like he's lending a helping hand. The last time he told me he saw a rapist that looked like one of the men from my past, it turned out to be untrue. It was just some random rapist guy from Novosibirsk.

Now, he persuaded me to stay back in Russia. He assured me that one of my rapists would show up very soon. And he did. But with the way things turned out, it made me wish he didn't even show up. It was pointless. The only thing I liked about him showing up was the joy I felt from watching him die. However, at what cost? Especially since I could not get the most essential information out of his lips.

Still, I can't blame Sean. He genuinely meant to help. Unfortunately, his assistance has been yielding negative results recently. I don't know if I should blame myself for choosing this path. My sister in Nigeria has been persuading me to come back home," Ebun brings her second option to the discussion. She's considering that returning to Nigeria might be an option for her.

"My sister is a lawyer, and she has excellent skills as a detective. She's even been able to arrest and apprehend three gang members. Two of them are currently in prison, and one is dead. She recently found another member.

This particular one happened to be her daughter's boyfriend. Crazy right? I know. But he turned himself in to the police. He will be of great help in discovering who the gang leader is. This was what my sister told me over the phone as she gave me reasons to come back home, but—"

"Bat vhat ma'am? Vhy heven't you gone ahlredy?" Nurse Zoya questioned, intensely confused. She couldn't understand why someone would willingly choose to walk in a valley full of thorns when there was a bed of roses on the other side.

Ebun took a deep breath and lazily stared at her empty glass to pass the time. Finally, she responded.

"I'm scared of my sister. She's very controlling and always loves to have a say in people's lives. The reason I came to Russia, despite how silly, was because I needed freedom. I needed to be able to catch the rapists myself and kill them with my own hands.

Going back home will snatch away the liberty I have right now, even though there's the guarantee that my rapists would be put to death. Still, my sister won't let me do anything dangerous, and that's not the life I want for myself."

"Bat...ahre you kheppi now zat you have zat freedom?" Nurse Zoya breathed heavily. "I ahnderstend vhat you mean, madam bat you cen't keep seeing tings een ze sem vay. You cen't streamline ze feeling of freedom into one locetion, one setting, or one environment. You mey never know how you feel antil you get home.

Going khome might be ze fryesh eyr zat you need. Ahlso now, you don't khave much of e choice, do you? Ze only wey to know vho ze guy behind ze mesk ees ees by asking ze subordinates zemselves. Now, zere's someone vho turned heemself een villingly to ze poleece as you've syed. He'll be villing to ekspose ze identity of zees mysterious guy. So zere's no reason you should remain here. Go khome, ma'am."

Nurse Zoya wanted to say more words than the ones she'd just uttered. She wanted to voice out her little suspicions and warn Ebun to be wary of whoever she seemed to trust so much. But she knew she'd sound stupid, mainly because there was not much reason to suspect anything.

Ebun rested her head on her palms, pondering on what Zoya had just told her. Zoya was right, even though it disturbed her to acknowledge it. Come to think of it, why was she so obsessed with wanting to kill the rapists with her own hands? If she could allow Sean to control her, supervise her every move and walk side-by-side with her in every murder operation, why couldn't she give her sister the same opportunity?

Sean wasn't even the most amazing human being on earth. He was quick to anger and had an unfiltered tongue. Their arguments, even as the adults they were now, were still always fatal. Yet, she allowed him with all of his flaws. How much more her family member? After much rumination, she realized that, indeed, she should give it a try. She might experience a new dimension of freedom that would be more enjoyable.

"I'll go home, Zoya. Thank you for your advice."

"You're most velcome, ma'am."

"But..." Ebun could feel a thick lump in her throat now, but she managed to get her words across to Zoya. "What If going home turns out to be worse than I imagined?"

"You cen ahlways come beck here, ma'am. Ve'll be vaiting for you at Khovrino Hospital."

Ebun smiled and held Nurse Zoya's hand faintly. She could feel a resurfacing of the alcoholic liquid on her tongue.

Suddenly, Ebun slipped off the stool way before Nurse Zoya could catch her midway. Once her body was faced with the floor, she began to vomit.

***
Four days later...

Ebun had packed everything she needed into her luggage box, booked her flight ticket for noon, and was fully dressed, ready to leave Russia. It was now that she decided to let Sean know of her departure. That way, he wouldn't be able to make her stay back. After all, she couldn't miss her flight. All she was doing now was biding him farewell, not asking for his consent or opinion.

Earlier in the morning, as she threw her clothes, books, toiletries, and necessary items into her luggage box, nostalgia consumed her. Russia had become like a second home for her. It was a place where she'd had lots of adventurous moments, experienced what it felt like to be in love with someone and what it looked like to be bailed out from trouble at the very last minute.

She was going to miss all of that. Even as she packed her belongings and stuffed them into her box, she was reminded of her days at Hostel Pavlov and her numerous criminal escapades. She could never forget that morning when she lied to Mrs. Mariyah that she was going for an excursion. She thought of Viktoriya and wondered how she was doing right now.

For a very long time, Ebun wondered how come Yemisi hadn't come looking for her in Russia after that afternoon when Sean came to take her away. It was only expected of Mrs. Mariyah to put a call through to Yemisi to let her know that her sister was missing. What must have transpired that was potent enough to permanently keep Mrs. Mariyah and Viktoriya away from her life forever?

Perhaps, it was Mrs. Yekaterina's doing. There was nothing that woman could not do. Blackmailing people was her superpower.

The reality of going back home after seven years was such a strange concept to Ebun. She had not seen any of her family members ever since she left. The last time they'd seen her, she was still a teenager, broken and seething with so much rage. Seven years later, she was still the same person — only that she was much worse. She was now a murderer. It would hurt her family so much to know such things about her.

Ebun had no idea what her parents now looked like, how much they'd aged. She knew nothing. She always declined video calls. If they desperately wanted to see her or know what she was up to, she'd always send a selfie of herself at the hospital or some random, old photo. She was able to keep deceiving them. But never for once did she wish to see them as much as they desired to see her face and know how she was doing.

But now, she'd have to face them for real.

She no longer felt like a member of her family. If things turned out to be worse during her stay at home, she wouldn't be surprised. She didn't deserve to be treated like family after abandoning everyone for so long. Her only consolation now was going back home to interrogate the rapist her sister had mentioned over the text message.

At last, Sean arrived at the airport at the exact time Ebun had provided in the text message. He looked disturbed and slightly unkempt. He'd forgotten to comb his hair and torque the hem of his shirt into his trousers. Ebun, from where she sat at the verandah, watched him walk towards her with tears in yer eyes.

What if this was the last time she ever saw him? What if going home would require staying for a long while? Was this the end of everything they'd shared for seven years?

No. It didn't have to be. She didn't want it to be. Hence, she decided to make use of the last card left.

"What the hell is this? Why did you change your mind?" Sean asked with bated breath once he got close to Ebun. Sweat dripped down his temples. He stared at all of her luggage in intense confusion. Then, his eyes landed on her, impatiently demanding answers to the puzzles in his mind.

Ebun took a deep breath and sagged her shoulders.

"I didn't think I was going to leave either. Not until I saw Gilbert and tortured him for days to confess, and he didn't say a word about who the leader of the rapists was. I want to go back home to interrogate the other guy my sister told me about. I want to try out all of my options."

"Listen—"

"That's what I've been doing, Sean. I've been listening to you thus far. I get that you're trying to help me, but so far, nothing's worked out. I want to listen to other voices too."

"Have you decided to stop trusting me now?" Sean's eyebrows fell. Ebun had never seen his eyes look this gloomy before. It broke her heart, and it almost made her want to change her mind. But she had to do what was best.

"No, Sean. I didn't mean it that way," she took his hands in hers and rubbed them with meaningful affection and reassurance. "Far be it from me that I don't trust you. That would be a betrayal to all we've shared these years. But I want you to understand the pain that I feel.

I'm on the verge of accomplishing my long-term mission, and I've seen enough teasers. The experience with Gilbert was too torturous. I just want to get it done. I want to find the guy behind the mask as soon as possible, and it will ache my heart if I stay here, hoping that my answer will arrive here whereas it's waiting for me in Nigeria. I don't want to regret anything."

Sean stared. Her words were counterproductive to his emotions. His sadness only increased despite how valid her reason was. Ebun's inability to figure out why Sean's mood still hadn't improved troubled her greatly. So she came up with the best possible reason as to why he could be so distressed.

She stepped closer to him and placed her small hands on his broad face, cupping his cheeks.

"I'll come back, Sean. That I promise you," she assured him, staring into his deep brown orbs that were now slightly watery. It was still a bit of a surprise to Ebun that Sean loved her this much. "Remember we had a deal. You still haven't introduced me to your parents as your fiancée as we agreed. We still have to do that. I want to fulfill my part of the agreement because you've fulfilled yours," Ebun kissed his lips. "And I'm not fulfilling my part as a fake fiancée. I want to spend the rest of my life with you for real."

"You'll come back?" Sean's eyes lit up.

"I will. Pinky swear," Ebun smiled. "Thank you for understanding me, Sean."

And not persuading me any further to stay back. Ebun added in her mind. She didn't know how she would take it if he did. It would put her in a very tough situation, and it would have been absurd to discover that he didn't prioritize her happiness.

Then Sean held her face and sealed her lips with a kiss. Ebun felt so much joy in the wells of her stomach because she was getting to taste the wine of his soft lips one more time. And she drank so much till the cup of her love ran over. Her fingers ran through nearly every strand of his hair. His hands were working extra hard too. They caressed her lower back and areas beyond.

"Don't forget your promise," His words were a soft, needy command as he placed a quick, fluffy kiss on the side of her neck.

"You have my word," Ebun's words were a whisper.

She ravaged all of him and roamed her hands through his hard chest and broad back. Tears ran down her cheeks as she grabbed his collar, nibbling his lower lip as though her life depended on it. The passion between them burned hotter than hades.

Unfortunately, it was time for Ebun to go. The announcement on the speakers blared, informing those who were flying to Nigeria and nearby countries in West Africa to move to the check-in section and get ready to leave.

Dejected, Ebun detached herself from Sean and waved him goodbye briefly. Then she turned and walked away with her luggage quickly. She didn't want to spend more time staring at him or crying as she departed from him. That will hold her back and make her reluctant to leave. She didn't want that.

She had to leave.