The Rectifiers 5
.......................
Watching as blood gushed out of Bella's body, Israel wept. That was the most painful sacrifice he had made for the cause. Killing the woman he loved in cold blood was something he never imagined he'd do. But there he was, staring at Bella's lifeless body lying on the floor.
At that moment, something died in him. Something he couldn't place at the moment, but he knew something changed. As painful tears of regrets rolled down his cheeks, he felt a part of him dying. He felt it immensely.
About thirty minutes after Israel shot Bella, three members of The Rectifiers came for him. They knew he was shot and would be laying low. Thus, they knew his house was the safest place he could go to without blowing his cover. By the time they got there, Israel had passed out. But he was alive.
The members of The Rectifiers who came for him were surprised to see Bella's corpse in the house. But they already knew what happened. They didn't need to be told. They quickly carried Israel to a couch and started reviving him. They came prepared.
Within minutes, they had administered painkillers, removed the bullet and sewn Israel's wound. They also transfused the pints of matching blood type they came with into Israel's system to make up for the lost blood. Before long, Israel was stabilized. Then they set to getting rid of Bella's corpse and removing all evidences pointing to her murder.
They dismembered her body and stuffed her body parts into a big tarpaulin bag. Then they scrubbed the area with bleach, leaving no traces of blood. When they were done, they took the dismembered body parts to the ocean. There, they didn't just drop the bag into the ocean with its content. Instead, they emptied its content into the ocean, making Bella's body parts quick food for the fishes.
It took some months for Israel to recover fully from his injury. Gradually, his wound healed and he became physically whole again. But he never healed from the emotional trauma he suffered when he shot and killed the woman he loved. The images of Bella as life snuck out of her body became resonant in his memory and weighed steadily on his conscience. The sight of her lifeless body lying in the pool of her own blood haunted him.
At every turn, remorse, guilt and regrets hit him. He wished he had shot himself instead of Bella. But the deed had been done and he had a lifetime to spend in guilt and regrets. As time went on, the feeling of guilt and regrets deepened.
Gradually, doubt came in. He started doubting the righteousness of the group. He started considering the mission of the group and comparing it to the sacrifices he and other members of the group had made in the course of effecting it. He arrived at loss as the summary.
The lives they had lost, the time and resources they had put in, the lives they had taken, the injuries they had sustained, all of it couldn't stop people from perpetuating evil against humanity. He questioned the usefulness of the group.
He started losing interest in the group and what it stood for. He was no longer keen on fishing out evil men and punishing them. He was reluctant to lead the group as he used to. The enthusiasm was no longer there. Guilt, regrets and doubt had dampened his spirit.
..
While The Rectifiers laid low after Israel was shot, the police never relented in their quest to apprehend and destroy the group. A special taskforce was established to hunt the group and its members. Monetary rewards were announced for anyone who had useful information that would lead to the arrest of The Rectifiers.
While still in the dampened spirit, a report of a crime against humanity came to The Rectifiers. The report was of a man who was in the business of importing and distributing fake and expired drugs in the city. It was discovered that the man usually bribed his way through the authorities and took the drugs to his desired locations. From the Intel gathered by The Rectifiers, these drugs had caused the deaths of many unsuspecting individuals.
After considering the crimes of this man, The Rectifiers decided it was worth paying him a visit. But their financier objected.
The man in question was the financier's father in law. He wouldn't sanction or finance a mission that would see to the death of the man he called father. He decided that what was good for the geese was not equally good for the ganders. His position on the termination of the illicit drug seller caused a great disunity among the members of the group.
That also gave Israel the factor the decide what he had contemplated for a long time. He felt deep pains for sacrificing Bella for a group that wouldn't uphold equity. He decided that the group had to go. Also, he decided that he and the other founding members of the group must face the law. That was guilt, regret and anger taking possession of his reasoning.
But before that, he had one last important task to do. Two days after the disagreement with the financier, Israel led a solo attack on the drug seller. He couldn't contain his anger. He shot the man twice in the chest by the entrance of his compound and left a note detailing his crimes just like The Rectifiers did. That which was good for the goose had been meted out to the gander.
What happened next?
Find out!!!
To see the rest of the story, visit our telegram channel here