The icing on the very disturbing cake was the siren renting the air, breaking the silence.

“Fuck, fuck.” Amina exclaimed. “She called the police.” Her eyes darted again to the hung dead body, flickered to the all the blood. They couldn’t be found in here.

“Who called the police?” Grace asked.

“The killer, look, we need to get out of here or certain things are going to be very hard to explain.” Amina told her.

To her credit, Grace didn’t question how Amina knew that the killer was female.

“We can’t move the body, they’re going to find it in here because an ‘anonymous’ tip told them.” Amina explained. “We might get arrested.”

“What?!” Grace shouted, now she was panicking. “I can’t get arrested.”

Amina rolled her eyes. “Technically, everyone in that club might get arrested.”

“How are you so calm about getting arrested? Have you been arrested before?” Grace asked incredulously.

“No, it’s not that I wouldn’t deserve it but Orion has always been above the law. At least, the law you common folk know.” Amina answered. “And I’m not calm.”

It was the truth, she was far from calm. She knew how things was going to go, Joshua was going to end up in the news, he was the owner of the Love Club and the murder might get pinned on him since the body was found in his backroom. He’d end up in a beautiful, big scandal and he might not recover from. Not when his position as leader depended on it.

“Think, Hauwa, think.” Amina exploded, she paced and ran a hand through her hair, her wig came off and she tossed it at Grace who caught it with a startled look.

She took out her phone and made a call. “Joshua, where are you?” She said when he picked up. It was quiet on the other end and hope lit her chest. Maybe he wasn’t at the club anymore.

“I’m driving Ninah home. Is something wrong?” He said, blissfully ignorant and sounding slightly irritated. Joshua hated taking calls while he was driving.

Amina could have fainted from relief. “Allahu Akbar.”

“It takes me leaving to get you to believe in a god again.” He quipped.

She ignored him. “Joshua, everything’s gone wrong. The less you know the better. If my plan goes well, you’ll find out from the news. When the cops ask, you left a few minutes after seven pm.”

There was a terse moment of silence, then. “Okay.”

“You left because your girlfriend wanted ice cream, the party was not your scene.” She continued, she could already visualize the plan, it had to go well or they were screwed. “If you can get ice cream now, by all means, go ahead, take a few pictures and post them. To you, everything is going as normal as it can.”

“And who’s with you?”

“What?” She was confused.

“Is anyone helping you take care of whatever’s happened?” He asked, his voice quiet as if he meant for only her to hear the words.

“I’m Amina Khalid, I don’t need anyone.” She declared with a confidence she didn’t fee, she was usually the one causing the chaos, not fixing them. “But Firepemi and Grace are here.”

“That doesn’t reassure me very much. I’ll call the Dome.”

“Nooo.” She all but screamed. “Don’t, the less Orion is involved in this, the better.”

“I’m going to get you out of this.” He vowed. Amina tried to ignore the way his words made her feel, for years she’d always had his back, to hear that he had hers made her feel something she’d tried to bury long ago.

She didn’t answer him, only hung up. To Grace, she said, “Let’s go back to the club.”

*****

“Water, e no get enemy.” A drunken voice from the next cell sang off-key, tapping a clangy beat on the bars. Down the hallway, the yellow light bulb flickered for a brief second.

Amina had heard horror stories about Nigerian jail but she’d never had any cause to visit one, it was so ironic that she’d have to confirm the stories by herself – and they weren’t horror stories, they were every bit of the truth. The damp cells, the stink of fecal matter in the air and of course, handsy police officers. It took everything in Amina not to break the fingers of the officer that groped her while he searched her.

“He’s driving me crazy with that awful singing.” Grace hissed. Surprisingly, she was calmer than Amina expected her to be. The two of them had been arrested more than an hour ago, along with everybody the police could get their hands on. It had been pure chaos at the club, people fleeing the police, trampling on each other to get away.

In the end, more than forty people were piled into police vans and unfortunately, a good number of them were Orion members. Joshua was going to have a lot of mess to clean in the next couple of days. It was his party that had gone wrong, his party that a dead body had been discovered at and his party that several Orion members had been arrested. It was dangerous because said members were children of Nigerian elites whose private businesses and dealings would be thrust into the public eye to be ripped apart to shreds.

The past hour had caused Amina to realize that she couldn’t stop the chaos; she could only minimize the train wreck. And there was nothing more that scared her than control unraveling from her hands.

“Okay, you’re scaring me.” Grace said warily.

Amina turned around from peering outside the bars. Grace waited expectantly, seated on the lone bench in the cell, the piece of furniture looked unsteady and swayed when Grace leaned forward. Amina could bet that if she sat on it the whole thing would fall apart.

“I’m fine, my mother will be here soon and we’ll be out.” They’d gotten the privilege of one phone call when Amina slipped a female officer all the naira bills in her purse.

“We could have called my grandparents.” Grace grumbled. Her grandparents were Toluwanimi Kingston’s own parents, Tamika’s had been long dead, before Grace was born. “Or Firepemi.”

Amina smiled in the dimness of the cramped space but it was an empty tilt of her lips. She wasn’t the least bit amused by their situation. “Grace, both of your birth parents are dead. Your grandparents would have a coronary if you phoned them from prison. And Fire, he’s useless and I know for a fact that his mother is out of the country.” Fire’s mother was still an Orion member.

Grace was silent for the longest time and Amina ignored the guilt turning her stomach. Perhaps she’d gone too far this time. But she was incredibly nervous and borrowing a leaf from Joshua’s book – get twice as mean when you’re scared.

“You’re a bitch.” She finally said in the coldest voice. Whatever shaky truce they’d silently agreed on shattered to pieces.

“Yeah, well, you’re not the first person to tell me that.” Amina said faintly. She leaned her back against the bars. The metal was cool against her spine and she shifted, trying to get used to it.

“Fire said you aren’t as bad as you make yourself to be. He said it was a front and that you’ve had to be tough to be respected.” Grace said, she breathed a laugh.

“And you thought it was something we had in common.” Amina finished for her. In the dimness, it was hard to make out the other girl’s features but Amina squinted anyways. To an extent, Fire was right, he out of anyone knew how every single Orion member put up fronts – for various reasons. But he was also wrong in his assessment of her, she was tough and she was mean. It wasn’t just a front anymore, she’d molded with the mask she’d been forced to put on. Maybe in the past, she’d been nicer, sweeter and more trusting, she wasn’t anymore and she couldn’t be.

She hated how people tried to justify her behavior with trauma. For once, Amina wanted to be told that she was an awful human being.

“Listen, Grace. I’m an awful person, I’m not going to change as long as I remain in Orion and frankly, I don’t think I’ll ever leave. Stop justifying me. Call me a bitch, it doesn’t make me mad.”

“You’re a bitch.”  Grace repeated but Amina heard the smile in her voice.

“Why did you come tonight? You swore to never have anything to do with us.” Amina asked, because it had been nagging her all night. She’d just had to push her curiosity to the back of her mind but now, they had all the time in the world.

“I still don’t want to.” Grace admitted. Amina believed her, the two of them might be having a nice chat now but the darkness helped. When they were out of here, Grace would go back to nursing her grudge. But for now, they were tired so they leaned on each other a little. “I was never going to mention this to anyone but a few days ago, Firepemi was helping me login to my Spotify account, I’d forgotten the password and he was helping me reset it. Long story short, to retrieve the password from my Gmail, he opened the app and stumbled on an old email I received a few weeks ago.”

“I received an email from whoever murdered Jamal Popola the night he died.” She admitted quietly.

How did Grace Kingston always manage to find herself in the most dangerous situations?

Amina shook her head. “Why?”

“I don’t know, Fire said you guys were investigating the murders and that the email might be a useful piece in the puzzle.”

“And you agreed to help out of the goodness of your heart.” Amina didn’t believe that one bit. “You want something?”

“Amina inserts middle name here Khalid, you cynic.” Grace said sarcastically.

“My middle name is Hauwa. And I’m not wrong -- you want something out of this.”

“I want the Orion file on my mother’s death.”

“No.”

“Why not?” Grace snapped.

Amina crossed her arms over her chest, silently regretting the decision to wear such a flimsy dress; it was a particularly cold night. “It’s Orion classified information, Kingston. Only Joshua can sign them to you and even then, it would be a glimpse. I’ve never even seen it.”

Grace said nothing.

“Why do you even want it? Grace, this isn’t a fairytale, Tamika Afolabi Kingston is dead.” Amina said as firmly as she could. Grace was someone who’d seen a lot in her life, she’d lost people she loved but somehow, she kept holding on to foolish optimism.

Or you’re the one who’s pessimistic, her mind mocked.

“You think I don’t know that, if my mother was alive, Tolu wouldn’t have died.” Her voice was thick with tears and anger. Amina heard the deep inhale that followed. “I’m not holding on to foolish hope, Amina.”

“Then why?”

“Because I don’t think that Remilekun Phillips killed her.”

Amina bit her tongue, she’d lied to Grace when she said she’d never seen Tamika’s file. She had and the truth was so much worse.

“What does it matter? Either way, she’s dead.” She pointed out flatly. “And if you ever want to see that file, you’d have to be an Orion member.”

“I’m already an Orion member, Tolu and Tamika were. It makes me legacy.” Grace argued.

Amina shook her head, secretly impressed that Grace wasn’t totally in the dark about how The Orion Project ran its things. “You still have to join the organization officially. Because you’re legacy, it means that your request to join the organization will be accepted automatically. But you still have to apply to join.”

Amina could tell that the thought displeased Grace. Good, she hoped that it would be enough to kill that desire to dig into the past. It was futile hope though, the Kingstons were known for being stubborn as hell.

“I guess Ahmed Giwa would love to see the email from the murderer.” Grace said slyly.

The mention of Joshua’s current rival caused Amina to clench her fists. The old man would no doubt benefit from this disaster, maybe he was even working with the murderer. She wouldn’t put it past him to play dirty to win against Joshua. She sighed, she was tired and angry. Ahmed Giwa orchestrating several murders was outlandish.

“Go ahead, Grace.” She said and meant it too. Anything that went to Artemis was going to be revealed to Orion in the end. Sure, Giwa would take the glory for getting the information first but he wouldn’t keep it all to himself.

“Water, e no get enemy.”

“Jesus, shut the fuck up!” Grace screamed in a sudden fit of rage. The voice quieted down but footsteps approached from the end of the hallway and a few seconds later, a stern police officer with a battery powered flashlight reached their cell, he had a stern look on his face.

“Amina Khalid, your mama don come.” He announced.

Amina felt dread settle in the pit of her stomach. Nafisat Khalid was best handled in small doses; at family events and holidays. There was an Orion myth surrounding Nafisat’s nickname; The Bat. It was hilarious and untrue but many people liked to say that The Bat was a diminutive of the saying bat-shit crazy. Amina could confirm that if there was anyone in the world that scared her it had to be her mother.

Nafisat was perfectly sane or as sane as Orion’s most revered assassin could be. She’d trained Amina herself and she didn’t go easy on her because they were related – albeit not by blood, she’d been adopted at six weeks old from an orphanage after Nafisat discovered that she couldn’t have children. As far as Amina knew, her birth mother was dead and her birth father was unknown.

The police officer fumbled with the keys in the dark, tucking the flashlight in his armpit as he attempted to unlock the bar. The beam of light glared right at Amina and she stared back, suddenly regretting the decision to contact her mother. But if there was anyone who could help contain this mess, it was The Bat.

She almost didn’t hear the sound of metal sliding on the concrete floor as the bars slid open. It was Grace that gave her a gentle nudge that returned her to the present.

She steeled her spine and forced a swagger she didn’t feel into her step.

“Una, pikin of rich people, you go dey think sey una fit do wetin you like without consequence.” The officer was rambling ahead of them. “One day, you go jam wetin you no fit run from.”

He led them back to the lobby of the police station where an impeccable dressed Nafisat was waiting. Her mother was beautiful and possibly the most stylish person Amina knew; her clothes were custom made and she’d never reveal her designer.

Now, she wore all black, silk jalabiya that stopped just below her knees and trousers underneath. She was standing deathly still but the light caught the shimmer of the scarf that was wrapped around her neck. Nobody would ever guess that she was a few years past fifty with her fair, unblemished skin and poised stance.

As if sensing Amina’s gaze, Nafisat turned her head to the side and met her daughter’s gaze, she didn’t linger, swiftly moving to assess Grace. If a normal mother got the call that her daughter had been arrested as a potential suspect in a murder case, they’d probably have a heart attack. Not Nafisat though, she knew what Amina was capable of, if she was angry, it was because Amina had gotten caught.

“Your mum is even more terrifying than I remember.” Grace murmured.

“Her bark is as deadly as her bite.” Amina said.

“Come and collect your things o!” the officer behind the counter shouted, Amina’s eyes narrowed at him. He was the one that groped her.

“You can’t kill him here.” Grace warned, surprisingly, she took Amina by the elbow and led her to the counter as they received all their permanent effects that they’d been stripped of.

“Stay out of trouble.” He said with the slimiest smile on his face. Amina bared her teeth in a snarl as he slid her iPhone across the counter to her. She reached for it immediately, her hand covering his. She caught the widening of his eyes and gave his fingers the hardest squeeze, any more pressure and she’d break the bones of his fingers. Oh, she wanted to so bad.

He yelped a cry of pain and Amina let his hand go. It was the smallest punishment she could mete out.

“Have a nice night, officer.” She said with saccharine sweetness as she grabbed her phone. She spun on her heels and went to her mother, Grace trailing behind hesitantly.

“Are we done here?” Nafisat asked.

Amina nodded, hating that she couldn’t tell what she was thinking.

Unsurprisingly, there was a limo in the parking lot. Her mother would rather die than be anything less than flashy. It ran in the family. Less than ten minutes later, they were inside the limo and Nafisat dropped the mask. She unwrapped her scarf and cast it beside her on the leather seat.

Her eyes critically roamed Amina’s body, taking in the plunging neckline of the dress – the thigh high slit. She closed her eyes and shook her head.

“I didn’t teach you to dress like a slut.” She deadpanned.

Amina was used to the jabs about her fashion, still the barb stung.

“And look who you’re friends with now, the same girl who swore never to have anything to do with us.” She smirked at Grace.

“I haven’t changed my mind.” Grace said through gritted teeth.

Nafisat’s gaze was dismissive; she clearly didn’t find Grace worthy of her attention. “What is going on?”

Amina took in a deep breath. “There was another murder, this time at Joshua’s club where he was having his birthday party.” Suddenly, she felt juvenile. It had seemed like such a great idea to help win votes for Joshua but saying it aloud to her mother felt frivolous and foolish.

They were out having a good time while their organization was still dealing with the unsolved murder of one of their own.

By some miracle, she managed to hold Nafisat’s gaze. Explaining wouldn’t help so she briskly covered the parts about discovering the dead body with Grace.

“The killer tipped off the police and that’s how we ended up arrested.” She finished.

Nafisat was quiet for a second. “This news might break before midnight. It will definitely be national news and Joshua Phillips will be dragged through it.”

Amina waited for her mother to offer a solution but none seemed to be forthcoming.

“He wasn’t at the party; I think I can manage to detach him from the news to an extent.” Amina said.

Nafisat shook her head. “He owns that club; he’ll be attached no matter what and all the public needs is one more reason to tear into the Phillips name.”

Amina couldn’t deny that. She couldn’t understand why her mother seemed so unaffected by the situation.

“I’ve made sure to erase all records that you were ever in that cell.”

“And what happens to Joshua?” When her mother’s eyes narrowed, she quickly added, “And every other Orion member that might have been arrested.”

Nafisat gave a careless shrug. “They have parents, don’t they?”

Anger bubbled in the pit of her stomach and she clenched her fists. “What happens to Joshua? He’s Orion’s leader and this could affect his chances at evaluation.”

“Maybe it’s time to stop being loyal to that boy, Amina. I don’t know why you’ve been so soft towards him.”

Grace made a choking noise and was ignored by both mother and daughter.

“I’m being loyal to Orion by standing by its current leadership.” She argued.

Nafisat sighed. “Maybe it’s time for a new leadership.”

Amina leaned forward just as the limo gave a sudden lurch; she barely caught herself from flying into her mother’s laps. “I am part of that leadership.”

Nafisat puckered her lips as if she’d tasted something sour. “Habibti, you aren’t known for your leadership qualities. Anybody can be a leader but not anybody can be what you and I are.”

Assassins -- that was what they were. The reminder left a bitter taste in her mouth.

“How do you think I’ve managed to remain one of Orion’s most revered and important members? I was never a president or vice president. I was just an assassin, I am still an assassin.”

She was right. Nafisat was still one of the most powerful Orion members, she’d been Remilekun Phillips’ greatest weapon and she’d orchestrated some of the biggest disasters in Nigerian history – her infamous assassination of a former head of state was still talked about. That event had turned around Nigerian political history and Nigerians didn’t even know it. If there was one word to describe Nafisat Khalid, it was ‘iconic’.

And that was all she wanted her daughter to be too, not a leader or a scientist or a scholar – a cold blooded killer.

“Let go of your loyalties to Phillips, Amina. That boy’s reign is over.”