JAMES' POV

Everything hurt, literally all parts of my body felt like they were being hammered on over and over again. Were it not for the meds Doctor Ezra had put me on, I would have been in much more pain. Speaking of meds I should have been taking my second dose of the day but they were in the kitchen and I didn't really feel like getting off the couch.

I'd been discharged after spending two days in the hospital and it was my third day at home. I'd managed to get my mother and sisters to leave so they could stop hovering over me but at the moment I wished they were around so I could send one of them to get my pills. The worst thing about my injuries was my broken ankle. I wouldn't be able to walk on it for six weeks then after that I would have to wear a boot for another six weeks until it was completely healed. Three months was a long time to be hopping around on one leg but it was better than being dead.

When I had woken up next to Lulu in the hospital, I had been relieved. My brave fiance had managed to save us.

The only thing I recalled after Lulu blew up the car and leaving me to find the helicopter was being lifted from the mattress by Isaac and Mark. After that I must have passed out from relief or something but I did vaguely remember holding Lulu's hand on the flight to the hospital. She had been my strength and always would be after the ordeal we had survived together.

Mark, Isaac and my brother's were still on the hunt for the culprits behind our shooting but they hadn't caught them yet. The savannah was vast and if they were trying to leave the country through the Kenya-Somalia border it would be harder to catch them. I would have been happy to join the hunt but I wouldn't be going anywhere for another six weeks and that sucked. I really hoped they were found though, because anyone who put my life and that of Lulu in danger deserved to rot in jail.

The door connecting the backyard to the living room opened and Jack walked in wiping sweat from his brow.

"I just wanted to get some water for the guys, the hose stopped working out back."He informed me.

"That's fine, there's a jug in one of the bottom cabinets and while you're at it bring me my pills and a glass of juice from the fridge."I requested him.

"Okay boss."He nodded waltzing past me.

Jack, Jasper and a few other men from the village were helping me remodel and complete my house. Rashid and some of the other engineers had helped me draw up a plan to finish the house and make it less of a bachelor pad and more of a home. There were a lot leftover materials from the sites Lulu had been working on and I had free labor from my fellow villagers so I wasn't using a lot of money. All I had to do was keep them fed and even my mother was taking care of that. For some reason that woman didn't feel okay if she wasn't shoving food down someone's throat.

Jack gave me my medicine and juice before he left the house whistling to himself carrying a jug of water in his hand. I could hear all of the men working outside and for some reason that gave me comfort because I wasn't really alone.

I took my medicine before lying back on the sofa in a more comfortable position, my left leg propped up. I started dozing off a few minutes later when the meds kicked in.

I had no idea how long I slept on the couch but I was woken up later by the front door opening and closing and the familiar footsteps of my girlfriend headed my way. She walked into the living room and smiled she saw me. I would never get over how beautiful she was because anytime I saw her, she was even more beautiful than the last time I'd seen her.

"Hi Jamie."She greeted cheerfully kissing my lips softly before scooching next to me on the sofa, lying on her back, her head nestled on my arm.

"Hi, you're here early."I commented.

She usually came in later in the evening after spending the day with her sisters.

"I know but I missed you and my sisters are driving me crazy. I can't wait for the unveiling ceremony so they can leave. I mean I love my sisters but they hover too much especially now after the accident."She replied.

"So you decided to come hide out here?"

"Yeah and hang out with my fiance."She grinned looking up to meet my eyes.

"Well you're free to come hang out anytime."I smiled back.

"Perfect but why is it too quiet in here? Where's mom and your sisters?"She asked me.

"I sent them home, they were becoming too loud and nagging."I replied with a shrug.

"So we're both okay with being in each others company but not with our families. You know what that means?"She asked.

"That you should say yes already and move in."I grinned trying my luck.

Since we left the hospital I'd been trying my luck to convince Lulu to move in with me but she kept turning me down. She insisted that we had to wait until we got married. It wasn't an unreasonable request, it was actually in par with tradition but the sooner it happened the happier I would be.

Ever since the accident I'd had this constant fear of losing Lulu that's why I kept her as close to me as possible whenever possible. If it were up to me she would never leave my side but Lulu was too independent for me to keep her by my side because of my own insecurities.

"Will you let me go outside to see the construction today?"Lulu asked and I shook my head no.

"Why? You know you're currently crippled right so you can't really stop me."She argued.

"You're right but I know you won't."I insisted.

"How do you know?"

"Because even though you act like you don't like it, you actually want to be surprised."I replied silencing her.

I hadn't allowed Lulu to go outback to see the work going on. The only rooms she was allowed into was the living room, kitchen and my bedroom. A few months ago, Lulu had given me ideas on how she wanted our home to look like and I was incorporating all of them with the plans drawn up by the engineers. I wanted her to be happy with the final product so that when the wedding finally happened she would be proud to move in with me and call my four walls home.

"How did you get here by the way? I didn't hear an engine?"I asked Lulu.

"I walked."She mumbled.

"You what?! You walked for an hour to get here?"I asked alarmed.

Lulu might not have been as injured as I was but she still had injuries. She had been on bedrest the whole time I was in the hospital so it wasn't sitting well with me to hear her exerting herself like that.

"Yeah so? It was a good work out."Lulu defended.

"Not with your injuries."I scolded.

"Cool your jets, I'm joking, I caught a ride with a tour bus driving from the hotel to the park."Lulu replied and I sighed in relief.

"Don't scare me like that, I'm serious you need to take better care of yourself."I demanded.

"Yes sir, I promise."Lulu assured me before brushing that topic off and moving on to the next. "Do you have any food in this house? I'm starving?"

"My mom and sisters have been here for three days, what do you think?"

"Perfect so that means there must be yoghurt, Amani and Jeremy finished up all the jars in my room."Lulu cheered as she got up from the sofa running into the kitchen.

A few seconds later I heard her open the fridge then a whistle followed.

"Damn that's a lot of food. What are you in the mood for? There's literally everything in here."Lulu asked me.

"Chicken, definitely chicken, I haven't had that in a while."I replied.

"Coming right up your highness, you just sit there, relax and wait to be fed."

"Yes ma'am."I smiled.

Twenty minutes later, Lulu and I sat in my living room enjoying some chicken and rice as we talked about the unveiling party. It was still happening and even though I didn't want to, I would have to attend to support my girl. I had been excited for the party since Lulu started talking about it but it would not be fun attending it with a broken ankle and a bruised face. I still would though otherwise Lulu would be very unhappy with me.

Half an hour later, just as Lulu was cleaning out the dirty dishes we had used my phone rang. I picked up when I saw that it was Mark calling me. I'd asked him to call me every few hours with updates on their hunt.

"Tell me you have some good news for me."I said into the phone immediately after I picked it.

It had been five days already, and the fear that the criminals behind our accident were getting away kept increasing as more time passed.

"For once, yes I do brother. Are you at home?"Mark replied and I could hear the excitement in his voice.

"Yeah, Lulu is here with me too."I replied sitting up slightly.

"Perfect we'll be there in half an hour."Mark replied before hanging up.

I didn't even get the chance to ask him if they had actually caught the bad guys or why he was so excited.

"What was that about?"Lulu asked as she joined me in the living room.

"I have no idea but Mark said he is on his way here with the rest of the guys. They'll be here soon and apparently they have good news."I replied with a shrug.

Lulu looked at me confused but I didn't have any more information to give her. At the moment I only knew as much as she did.

"Do you think they caught them?"Lulu asked sounding both sacred and excited.

"Yes I think they did but we'll just have to wait and see."I replied.

Lulu huffed in frustration and took her place next to me on the sofa leaning onto my shoulder. I put my arm around her, kissing her hair deriving the comfort and strength I needed from her. I had no idea how I was going to react once I saw the culprits responsible for attempting murder towards us but it was definitely not going to be a happy occasion.

Fifteen minutes later we heard a car pull up surprising us since they had arrived too fast. Before Lulu could even get up to go get the door, it opened and Marini, Amani and Jeremy walked in without even knocking. The sisters didn't look pleased to see Lulu in my arms.

"Seriously Lulu you could have at least told us you were coming here."Marini admonished.

"I know and I'm sorry but I wanted to see James."She replied half hiding behind me.

"I don't even have the energy to scold you right now. Hi, James how are you feeling today?"Marini asked addressing me directly.

"Better."I replied honestly.

Marini and I got along so much better compared to our first meeting but I was still intimidated by her.

"That's good, I know it sucks being stuck at home but you'll heal quick and be back to your normal routine in no time."She consoled.

"Thanks, I hope so too."I mumbled.

"What are you guys doing here anyway?"Lulu asked.

"Isaac called and asked us to meet them here, they said they finally have some good news."Jeremy replied explaining their random visit.

"He called us too, I'm sure they will be here soon, for the moment make yourselves at home."Lulu replied taking charge of the situation as if it were her own home.

Marini took a sofa all to herself while Amani and Jeremy shared a love seat.

"James can I sign your cast?"Amani randomly blurted out.

It was a weird request but I'd realized that that was actually Amani's personality. She was bubbly, all smiles and very adorable.

"Amani!"Lulu and Marini simultaneously scolded making me laugh.

"No it's okay, there's a marker pen in one of the kitchen drawers."I informed her.

Amani stuck her tongue out to her sisters before jumping and running to the kitchen. She was twenty years old but sometimes she radiated the energy of a ten year old.

"You can say no to her you know."Lulu pointed out.

"Actually I can't, I want her to like me and its just signing a cast, it'll be fine."I assured Lulu who just shrugged at me.

A few minutes later Amani came back with a blue marker pen. I propped my leg on the table to give her enough room to work with. She took a few seconds chewing on her lip as she thought about what to write. Her eyes light up once she made up her mind and she quickly scribbled the words down on the white leg cast.

"All done."She declared pulling away to admire her hard work.

Everyone leaned forward to peer at what she had done and the confused look on everyone's face matched mine.

"What's that supposed to be?"Jeremy asked the question everyone was afraid to ask.

"Lions, two lions just like Lulu and James. The one with the mane is James and the one without is Lulu."Amani explained excitedly.

We all looked at each other confused because the two blobs she had drawn were the furthest thing from being lions but no one dared say that.

We were saved from hurting her feelings by three loud hoots coming from the gate. A minute later Mark walked in, in his rangers uniform looking very dusty, dirty and sweating heavily. He looked like hadn't slept or eaten in days, which was sort of true. He didn't even let us talk because he addressed us first.

"You guys have to come outside with me. No questions, just come outside."He requested before walking out again.

No one dared say anything but follow his instructions. Lulu helped me with my crutches since they were my way of getting around without putting pressure on my leg.

We all gathered outside the compound as per Marks insistence where there trucks had been parked. They refused to drive into the compound. All my brothers who had joined the hunt, Isaac and Mark were standing next to the covered bed cap canopy of a double cabin truck.

"Isaac, baby what's going on? The sun is hot so please tell us why we are out here."Marini requested politely.

All seven men looked at each other before nodding at Isaac to speak.

"So we found them, it was a long and tiring seven days but we finally caught them."Isaac announced and I heard Lulu sigh in relief next to me.

I was happy too that they had been caught, they deserved to face justice for what they did to us.

"We have enough evidence for them to be put away for a long time, if not for life. We're taking them to the police station but first we thought we'd bring them here so you guys can see the faces of the culprits behind your attack. Some are bruised and bleeding because they refused to surrender peacefully but no one died, death would have too easy for them. Oh and one of them is a woman, the other three are men, all locals but poachers too as advertised by the tusks we retrieved from their hide out."Isaac informed us.

Poaching was illegal in Kenya so if they were killing elephants too it meant they would suffer for a longer time in prison. And the fact that one of them was a woman made it much more interesting.

Mark and my brother Timothy opened the top of the truck and started pulling them out, tied up with rope and with sacks over their heads. They really did look like they had been through hell but Lulu and I looked so much worse when we had been rescued so I felt no sympathy for them.

They were all arranged in a line on their knees infront of us. One by one the sacks were removed and Lulu and I both gasped in surprise when we recognized the face of the woman kneeling in front of us with a bleeding lip and a black eye.

"Fuck I knew it. Oh I so knew it."Lulu cussed out hands on her hips.

"Knew what?"Marini asked looking at the four of them with contempt.

"This is none other than Nalu, I told you guys about this bitch."Lulu cussed and I'd never heard her use such strong words before.

I understood though because I still couldn't believe that Nalu had stooped so low.

"You tried to kill us? Why? Just because James loves me and not you."Lulu asked but Nalu didn't reply just kept her head down.

Lulu stepped towards Nalu with slow calculated steps and bent over to her level. She gripped the back of Nalu's locks and tugged her head back so they were eye to eye.

"If you loved him so much, why not try to kill just me so you can have him all to yourself?!"Lulu asked in a menacing tone.

I expected Nalu not to say anything but surprisingly enough she replied.

"I tried but you survived, your car was bulletproof."Nalu spat back.

Everyone understood what incident she referred to. We hadn't thought of that incident as an attempt on Lulu's life because the one's responsible were caught and prosecuted for poaching and murder attempts at Rangers lives.

"So what? You just decided to kill us both?"Lulu seethed.

"If I couldn't have him neither could you."Nalu gritted out.

"You bitch."Lulu yelled and before we could stop her she brought her knee up and hit Nalu square in the nose breaking it.

Nalu fell back with a cry but Lulu wasn't done yet. She followed her to the ground kicking and punching her. No one said anything and no one stopped her. Nalu couldn't even fight back because she was tied up so she kept crying and begging for mercy but no one listened to her.

"I. Hope. You. Rot. In. Hell. You. Stupid Bitch."Lulu said enunciating every word with a kick.

She landed one last blow at Nalu's head knocking her out before she spat at her and walked back into the house leaving us gaping at her retreating back.

"She's alive."Mark confirmed after checking Nalu's pulse.

"You want to beat anyone up James?"Isaac asked.

"I would have but Lulu has done enough for the both of us. Thank you for catching them guys, now let justice be served."I replied nodding respectfully at them.

I turned around and hopped back into the house to find my fiance. I found her in the bathroom cleaning her hands so I just sat on the bed, my back against the headboard and waited for her to come back out.

When she eventually showed up, her hands were wet and tears were threatening to fall down her face. I didn't say anything, just held my arms out for her. She crawled into my arms, sitting astride me burying her face in my neck. I held her as she cried because I knew she needed to let it out.

I was angry too but I was satisfied because they had been caught and would rot in jail for all their crimes. I had no idea Nalu's obsession with me would drive her to do such crazy things but I was happy that all her attempts had failed. Now she would rot in prison for failing to move on.

Lulu cried herself out and eventually dozed off in my arms. I adjusted us on the bed so that we were more comfortable joining her in dreamland. And for the first time since the accident I slept peacefully because our lives were no longer in danger and the ones behind the attack were behind bars.

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It took me days to get this down because I'm so busy nowadays and don't have a lot of time for writing but I did try my best. Tomorrow is the end of the month and as per my calculations I have five more chapters to write. I won't be able to complete the book by tomorrow as I had hoped but as I promised you guys, I'll not start another book until this one is complete.

Keep supporting me by reading, voting and commenting.

I love you all.