My Priceless Diamond

Chapt

celess D

ith narrow lanes that emerged into wider ones until she found herself in a labyrinth of six-lane highways, high-rise concrete structures, glass houses, neon-signs, street and traffic lights all around her. Flashy cars and streams of gaily dressed passers-by were threatening to suffocate h

rs competing for attention; music and sound effects from video shops close by; men and women talking on their cellular phones and gesticulating as though the world was coming to an end and they needed to call up some familiar angels high up for possible reservations; two drivers le

ivious of her presence. If she had arrived after a long and energy-sapping journey from Roye-city or where ever, nobody showed the slightest interest to know. She was in the middle of nowhere, no friends, let alone relatives. Why, she might stand there guessing,

m for the night. The following day, she would set about sorting out her priorities and the next move. " Azuma-city, here I come!" she said half to herself and to the surrounding hustle and bustle. A tinge of her receding self-assura

lit by flashes from the headlamps of passing cars, ' Pleasure base'. Mimi had never been inside such places before, but from stories, the place was obviousl

n an athletic built young man , with bulging muscles that pushed and pulled against his heaving chest like fer

r ladies of the night,' he int

te he would have turned out were he not a bouncer. What with the acrid smell of ' burst grass ' blending suffocatingly with stale sw

gle females- " he began, but s

n me!" she interjected, looking arou

ld make out pockets of by-standers liste

e an ID?" The

t is, when I get a job," s

aid?" The bouncer

replied con

a job!" said

wondered where all

Alon

, fighting hard to restrain herself

no ID, you said?" T

late mother's hand bag slung over her left shoulder. Rummag

ents': young, sweet and innocent... unti

er voice as from a distance

d to grilling. At least, not from bouncers who ca

uniformed security per

celess

which she surprisingly was not aware of, was something out of this world. When she left her city, Roye in the stone-mixed red soil in the mountainous range that straddle Gama and Asuna zones for the prospect of a respectable means of livelihood in Azuma city; her father, had remarked tha

especially, by her boyfriend Jack, who loved her so passionately beyond human description, even more than the memory of his own late mother; titled her head side-ways, lost in thought of how to assist her family's

plication". That had been a sad period with tombs springing up like poisonous mushrooms dotting the landscape. The Lasa Fever epidemic had taken a huge toll on the population of Roye-city boosting the coffin trade, which

th cried bitterly and embarrassed each other in comfort...Even in their silen

t returned from Azuma-city two days ago, after a very long ti

sant gesture.... Quickly, Jack tried everyt

the scratch. All means of communication were shot-down due to my incapacitated state as at then, simply because, I was robbed of all my assets by fraudster in an online business......... "I felt like dying, countlessly. Reckoned! I won't last much longer in your absence. Uncontrollably tears often forced out of my eyes, down

th a clouded face of tears. Her love for Jack always forced tears out of her eyes anytime he

and her citizens ?"

said, and his eyes took on a gleam that suggested he was refl

stic, he almost exclaimed as the familiar mood

wds moving back and forth in droves. All seeming in a hurry , pushing, shoving and heaving in all directions. With cacophony in the air, the hustle and bustle reached fever pitch during the rush hours. And little children 'talking' English and Pidgin faster than weaver birds. At the bureau de villa, you meet smooth-talking gentlemen in caftans, gold

t their women,

bed. So they tried being friendly with me , sitting beside me during lectures and invited me to parties and their gatherings in order to draw my attention. They even showered me with gifts just to buy over my mind. All these I accepted without second thought, except believing in myself that nothing would happen. After all

...... Even in your absence I had been so faithful for a day to meet my princess. Ever since of staying in Azuma-city, I did not indul

ity was manifested as Mimi hugged Jack so tightly, with a ge

g a baton on his right hand, and tapping t