FLIGHT 7

Red saw red when his father told him his inheritance had been handed over to Jake. A person used to cartoons would have seen a little, fiery-red, horned creature sitting on his shoulders, egging him on. He forced himself to be calm—first things first.

He knelt before his father and asked for a reversal. His father told him that it was impossible. Although there had been trickery involved, the deal would stand. When Red saw he was making no headway, he lay on the floor held his father’s ankle and wept his heart out. The father’s heart shattered into a thousand of fragments on seeing his devil-may-care son want something so badly.

Maybe there was still hope for him after all.
"Your brother will retain what he has, you will serve him. But the day you come of age, you will come into your own."

It was the most cryptic of promises. It was not the assertive proclamation that would override everything, and everyone. Neither was it the assuaging promise Red wanted. That would have made things look up. What he got was an opening, a sliver of opportunity that could be grasped to turn things around. Red understood that and wiping tears, rose to his feet.

As he stood to leave, rage repossessed him. What kind of twin was he cursed with? He doubted anybody else had this kind of brother—contriving, usurping and inconsiderate. Any other person would not have gone this far. To think it was not the first time he was taking what was rightfully Red's. But it would be the last. He knew just what to do.

His inquiries turned up many leads but he whittled them down to a few. He wanted a capable hand; there could be no slip-up or backlash. He settled for one that had been mentioned by his sources as being ruthless and unquestioning.

He’d visited the bar where he was told the assassin could be contacted. They reached an agreement. But Jake had fled before the hit could be carried out. Since Red had neither the reach nor resources of the Cosa Nostra, he decided to bid his time—however far the behind travelled, it would come back home to meet the seat.

Years passed, time in which Red was consumed by bitterness. He could not get over the fact that his brother had repeatedly pulled the wool over his eyes. It served as the fuel that propelled him to work at excelling. For a long spell, his sole purpose for existence was to prove that he was better than his brother, and could succeed without the things he'd lost.

He worked hours he didn’t know existed and pushed himself to extents he’d never thought possible. He learnt ways to grow his business, tried them, floundered and got back in the fight. Ultimately it had paid off. And the Red brand flourished.

It had done more than that, it had become an empire. Late one evening, Red stood on the balcony of his duplex watching the vista stretched out in the horizon. The red sky framed a sun fast returning to its hiding place and cut such scenic image even non-artists wished they could paint. He never ceased to marvel at the colourfulness of nature. On its return journey his gaze rested on the buildings that lay to his right. They housed the over four hundred men on the payroll, most of them had families.

He saw two little boys playing a game of catch. It brought back memories. There had been a time when he and his brother had been Pinky and The Brain, before they became Tom and Jerry. He longed for those days. His heart went out to his brother. Who knew how he was faring as a foreigner?

At that moment, on the other side of the world, Jake had just concluded what he did not know was only the first half of his internship with his uncle. His gladness was such that if he’d been thrown into a dormant volcano, it would have become active instantly. Finally, he could start a new home with the woman he had slaved so hard and long to marry.

He remembered the day he mooted the idea to his uncle. The man was not averse to giving him his second daughter in marriage. He was not blind. Even if that was a possibility, his wife would not allow it. She called his attention to the growing bond between the young’uns. Hence, he’d been expecting Jake’s move. When it was made, he set out a conditionality most men would have found scary, if not downright outrageous. But Jake was in love, and without any negotiation whatsoever entered into contract with Rache’s father for her hand in marriage.

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