🥀A Father's Pain:Shadows and Redemption (prt 4)

To Be Continued…

My heart slammed against my ribs, fingers burning as I clung to the cold metal beam. The city below blurred into a sea of lights, my breath ragged, my mind racing. I was seconds from death. Seconds from everything ending.

That’s when I heard it.

“Do you hang out around here often?”

FUCK ME!

I twisted my neck, heart still pounding, and saw him. A tall, lean figure, leaning casually against the rooftop railing, arms crossed over his chest. The city lights painted his face in shadows, but I could make out the smirk curling at the corner of his lips. His eyes? Cold. Calculating. Like he’d seen this scene a thousand times before.

“Need a hand?” he asked, extending one. His voice was smooth, almost comforting. Almost.

I hesitated. But my grip was slipping. I reached out, and his hand locked around mine, strong and steady. With one powerful pull, he hauled me back onto the rooftop. I collapsed, gasping for air, staring at the night sky.

“Close call.” He chuckled, lighting a cigarette. “What’s your name?”

“Bond,” I croaked. “Just… Bond.”

He took a drag, watching me closely. “Bond, huh? I’m Kane. Dominic Kane.” He exhaled slowly, the smoke curling into the night. “You’re lucky I was up here. Not many people survive a fall like that.”

I sat up, trembling. “Why were you up here?”

He gave me that smirk again. “Looking for people like you.”

That was the night everything changed.

Kane was… different. He had this way of talking, like he understood pain. Like he knew what it felt like to have the world crush you until there was nothing left. And when he offered me a drink and a place to crash, I didn’t think twice. I followed him.

At first, it seemed harmless. Kane was smooth, always knowing the right people, the right places. He introduced me to a life I never imagined — a dark, glittering underworld where money flowed like water, and consequences were just whispers in the dark.

It started with women. Older women. Lonely women. Sugar mummies. Kane called it “escorting.” I called it survival. The money was good — too good. It felt dirty, but when you’re drowning, you’ll grab any rope thrown your way. Even if it’s tied to a noose.

But it didn’t stop there. Kane always had another job. Another hustle. And when he mentioned “the big leagues” — robberies, high-stakes jobs — I hesitated. But the promise of quick cash was hard to resist. Especially when you’re desperate to provide for your family.

That’s when I started slipping. Coming home late. Reeking of booze and perfume. The lies piled up. I could see the disappointment in Marly’s eyes. Gianna… God, I barely saw her. The weight of it all crushed me. I drank to forget. Took pills to sleep. Some nights, I’d pass out in clubs, too high to remember my own name.

Marly had enough. One night, I stumbled home, half-drunk, stinking of someone else’s perfume. She stood in the doorway, suitcase in hand, Gianna asleep in her arms.

“I can’t do this anymore.” Her voice broke. “You’re not the man I fell in love with.”

And just like that, they were gone.

I lost everything. The house. My family. My sanity. I moved back in with my mom, but I wasn’t living. I was existing. Six months. Six long months of darkness. I didn’t shower. Didn’t shave. Barely ate. My clothes hung off my body, and the man staring back at me in the mirror… he wasn’t me.

Then, one morning, I woke up and stared at the ceiling. The silence was deafening. I looked around the room — my childhood room — and realized I couldn’t keep living like this. Enough was enough.

I dragged myself out of bed, shaved, showered, and made a decision. I was getting out. Out of Kenya. Out of the life that almost killed me. I applied for my passport, but nothing comes easy when you’re trying to change your life. Six months of frustration. Six months of dead ends. I tried finding agents who could help me leave the country, but they all wanted money. And by then, everyone had given up on me. No one believed in me anymore.

Except my family. My nuclear family. They held me up when I couldn’t stand.

Then, just when I thought the universe had abandoned me completely, something happened. No — someone happened.

It was exactly six months after my passport came out. I was at my lowest, convinced my dreams were slipping further and further out of reach.

And then, she walked into my life.

Her name was… Zara.

To Be Continued…