Chapter 28

Camille was tied to a wooden chair. Her hands were secured with a rope behind her back. Marc lie on the floor in a puddle of blood. Talib shot her with a syringe and she smelled an awful stench, like onions. He lowered into a chair in front of her and glared into her eyes.

“How do you feel?”

She did not want to respond, “Fine, considering...” came without thought. She turned from him and kept her eyes on Marc. He'd stopped moving and she could see his breathing getting slower…and slower. She searched Talib's eyes for a trace of the man she shared the entire night with, but she found his eyes void and cold.

“Are you a police officer?”

“No.” She thought she saw relief in his face.

“Do you know where my money is?”

“No.” She tried to stop the answers from coming, but she felt the need to comply.

“Do you know who I am?” He stood and started pacing in front of her.

She noticed Saul on the far wall, listening. Then she saw...wait what was he doing here?

“DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM?”

She jumped and answered, “No, not really, but I have an idea. You're an acquaintance of Ashanta's. She met you as a child and she believes you're responsible for the death of her mother. You run an international corporation that has a scholarship program, which is responsible for Ashanta getting a job with IJDC.”

“Who are you?

“Camille Blackwell.”

 “Blackwell?” Talib stopped pacing. “Camille Blackwell, what do you do for a living?”

“I'm an undercover agent for the Federal Bureau of Investigations.”

She could feel the life suck out of the room. All three men stared at her. Talib turned his gun on Saul, “Do you have anything to do with this?”

Saul threw up his hands, in surrender, “No! If I did, why would I assist in giving her the truth serum? I have as much to lose as you.”

“And what about you?” He turned his gun on Derek resting against the wall.

She too wanted to know what he was doing in Ashanta's apartment and why he'd shot Marc, his contact, in the back.

Talib's face twisted as he looked over his brow. “Actually, let's ask Camille, since she's being so forthcoming.”

He held his stance and addressed his next question to her. She could see the sweat rolling down Derek’s face.

“Camille, dear…do you know D?” He lazily turned the gun in D’s direction.

“Yes, he's my boss. We work together for the FBI. But for the life of me I don't understand why Derek shot Marc. That is no way to treat a friend.” Camille said looking at him through tear filled eyes.

Talib looked at Marc on the floor and back at Derek. “A friend, huh?”

As if in slow motion, she watched as he squeezed the trigger causing Derek to topple to the floor. Camille screamed, caught off guard by the shooting. She heard someone fire another round. She scanned the room trying to determine who executed the last shot.

Saul stood in shock while Derek remained on floor clenching his leg. She could see bloodstained expanding his right thigh. He was losing a lot of blood.

Camille turned to check on Marc when she watched Talib collapse to the floor. The last shot went his chest.

“Cam! Are you okay?”