Ghost in the Neighbourhood (pay #500 into 2005949551, zenith before downloading)

 

Extract from Tomorrow may be mine

 

  A little farewell party was organized in Chike’s honour by the Pacific Insurance Company two days before he left Ghana. The party was a gathering of members of staff and customers of the Company. Chike’s friends and well-wishers were also in attendance.

   There was enough fun to catch. Jokes were cracked and stories told. Addresses and phone numbers were exchanged. Encomiums were poured and lots of gifts were presented.

   A farewell message delivered by Mr. Solomon was full of emotions. Mr. Solomon started from the first day he set eyes on Chike.., talked extensively on how much the Insurance Company had improved with Chike becoming its member of staff…, and ended with how the company was going to miss him.

   When it was time for the vote of thanks, Chike wasted no time in thanking Mr. Solomon solemnly for raising him from the dead.

   “Dry bones shall rise again…, so says the bible. Mr. Solomon didn’t just make my bones rise again; he made sure that my bones rose, covered in flesh. I have had it so good in the last one and a half years that I worked with this company and it is all thanks to the Chief Executive Officer. The Almighty God will certainly bless you for your efforts,” he said with a steady gaze at his benefactor.

   “I wish to extend my gratitude to my colleagues for their support throughout my stay in this company. Your kindly relationship with me gave me a tremendous sense of belonging. I must say without exaggeration that I never felt alienated throughout my stay in this noble company.

   “To our numerous customers, I say thanks very much. Your patronage and co-operation made my stay in this company quite memorable. And to my friends, thank you very much for being there for me.

   “My prayer is that the Almighty God will shower bountiful blessings on you. I hope to reciprocate your kind gestures to me some day. One good turn they say, deserves another. So, don’t ever hesitate to pay me a visit whenever you come to Nigeria.  I’ll be happy to be your host.

   “As I am about leaving you, my heart is very heavy…, I have started missing you already. But I’m consoled when I remember that the world is now a global village…, thanks to the internet and GSM. We’ll always be in touch. I love you all. Shalom!”

 

******

 

    As the plane took off, Chike compared his journey back to Nigeria with the one he made to Ghana and concluded that there was nothing sweeter than freedom. He remembered how he suffered untold hardship on his way to Ghana…, how he rode in car boots…, suffered intimidation and brutality in the hands of the police, immigration officers, customs officers and foreigners…, slept under bridges, uncompleted buildings and churches…, and how he begged for food.

   But now that he was going back to freedom, he was aboard a plane…, no more hiding around…, no more intimidation and brutality…, no more homelessness…, and no more begging for food.

   “Life is very unpredictable,” he said aloud with a smile and his seatmate looked at him. “No condition is permanent,” he added, ignoring the curiosity on the face of his seatmate.

   He reflected on what life was like for him in Ghana, especially the first few weeks of arrival and gave God the praise for sparing him. For the remaining part of the journey, he busied himself singing praises to the Almighty and not even the disapproving glare from his co-passengers could stop him. He was happy in the Lord and nothing could stop his heart from brimming over with joy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PROLOGUE TO GHOST IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD

 

 

 

 

She was home alone. Her husband left very early in the morning for his usual Saturday morning exercise and he was not expected home until noon. The house was dead silent and that was exactly what she wanted. She had works to do and noise was the last thing she could tolerate.

She was deep in thought so she didn’t realize that music was playing in the living room located downstairs. By and by the music filtered into her ears as it got louder. Initially, she thought it was her imagination that was playing tricks on her, but with time it became obvious that it was real. She was home alone and therefore couldn’t understand how music would just start playing. Besides, it was Yanni and she wasn’t a fan. Her husband wasn’t, either. They actually hated yanni’s songs as they always sounded spine-chilling.

Gripped by fear and curiosity, she climbed out of bed and started downstairs on tiptoes. The music stopped playing and the lights went out the moment she stepped into the living room. She let out a muffled scream. She was so afraid that she couldn’t move a muscle. She closed her eyes and awaited her fate. She flinched when suddenly the music came back on, this time, at full blast. Then followed the lights.

She didn’t want to open her eyes. She didn’t want to see her assailant. She didn’t want to know what he was going to do to her. He should just go ahead and do it. But her curiosity got the better of her. And when she opened her eyes, she saw the message written in blood on the TV screen:

AVENGE MY DEATH!

SHE SCREAMED AND FAINTED.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER ONE

 

 

 

 

The ambulance was on full speed and the siren was blaring. The destination was Mainland hospital and the patient was Nneka who just fainted when the news of her fiancé’s demise broke. Chike was accused of character assassination; conspiracy; and bribery and corruption, prosecuted and sentenced to fifteen years in prison. But the young detective attempted to break the jail and was shot dead in the process.

On arrival in the hospital, she was quickly taken to the Emergency room where the doctors battled to save her life.

“How is she, doctor?” Nneka’s mother approached one of the doctors as he emerged from the E.R.

“She is fine, Madam,” the doctor answered, the smile on his face was reassuring.

“Can I see her now?” she asked anticipatorily.

“Sure,” Dr. Joe said and led the way. “She is yet to regain consciousness but like I said earlier, she is fine. Her vital signs are stable. I can assure you that it won’t be long before she wakes up,” the doctor said as they stood beside the patient’s bed.

“I hope so,” the woman prayed. “So, what’s wrong with my daughter?”

“She suffered what we refer to as neurocardiogenic syncope, which results when something triggers a short-term malfunction of the autonomous nervous system (ANS). This causes a drop in the blood pressure and heartbeat and pulse rate will slow down leading to a temporary interruption in the brain’s blood and oxygen supply.

“Possible triggers include sudden exposure to an unpleasant sight or experience; extreme embarrassment; sudden emotional upset, for example when receiving bad news; among others,” the doctor finished, and smiled when he noticed the confusion on the woman’s face. He had definitely confused her the more. “Bottom-line is that she is in good hands. You don’t need to worry yourself,” the doctor reassured and left.

True to the doctor’s words, Nneka regained consciousness two hours after arrival in the hospital. She was discharged the next day but her life was no longer the same.

In the days that followed, she avoided people, suffered mood swings, behavior changes, insomnia and nightmares whenever she managed to sleep. She lost her appetite and consequently grew very thin.

Her parents weren’t so worried initially because they believed that with time she would overcome the emotional breakdown but it persisted. In fact, her condition worsened prompting a second hospital visit. This time, she was reviewed by a psychiatrist who made a diagnosis of Posttraumatic Stress disorder (PTSD) and placed her on therapy. Her parents were advised never to leave her alone as she might attempt suicide.

With the antipsychotic drugs and regular home visits by her Psychiatrist, Nneka made a slow but steady recovery and after one year, she was ready to go back to work. Her doctor was even planning to wean her off drugs completely. Her life was back on track but there was an aspect that had been battered beyond repair. And that was her love life. She loved Chike so much that she couldn’t imagine loving another man. She had given Chike all her love but now that he was no more, she had to transfer that love to her work. Her father was yet to retire, so she worked as his deputy even though she did most of the work.

“Hello, dad!”

Chief looked up from the files on his desk and smiled. “Come,” he said as he stood to welcome his only daughter. He hugged her and scrutinized her with fatherly attention, then motioned her to sit down. “When did you come back?” he asked as he took his own seat.

“Just now.” Nneka replied.

“I am proud of you; very, very proud of you. I have always known that you would take this company to greater heights and you have always proved me right,” the old man said as Nneka handed the contract documents to him.

“Thanks, dad.”

Chief’s happiness knew no bounds as he flipped through the documents. His construction company had just won a multimillion naira contract to construct a dam in Adamawa State courtesy of Nneka’s hard work and ingenuity.

Chief smiled again after going through the contract details. “Wonderful! This calls for celebration,”

“We will celebrate later, dad. For now, I need to shower and sleep like never before. It has been very hectic,” Nneka said and made to stand.

“Just a minute,” Chief said and rose to his feet. He paced for a while and then faced his daughter. “You are a great asset to this company and I am very happy with you, but…,” he allowed his voice to tail off as he resumed pacing, “… my happiness won’t be complete until you are married. You aren’t getting any younger, my daughter. You will be thirty-four in August. Look, women are like flowers that blossom in the morning and whither in the evening. Men prefer morning flowers.”

“Am I supposed to catch a man and force him to marry me?” Nneka asked in a way that suggested that she didn’t like the topic

“You are not supposed to do that, my daughter but you need to give men the opportunity to approach you, woo you and court you. You need to loosen up a bit,” Chief advised. “I know you loved Chike with all your heart and that it would be difficult to transfer that love to another man, but you can’t shut down your life. You have to move on. I am sure that Chike would want you to be happy, but the truth is that a lonely heart can never find happiness. You need a man in your life to complement you, a man that will help you run this company.” He paused as slumped into his seat. “I am tired, my daughter,” he said suddenly and Nneka panicked.

“Should I call the family doctor?” she asked, reaching for her phone.

“I am not implying that I am sick,” he said, fixing his gaze at a distance. “I meant that I am getting old and need to retire. I have paid my dues. I deserve some rest.”

“But you can go ahead and retire, dad,” Nneka said with a shrug. “Or don’t you trust that I will be a good replacement?”

Chief thought for a while and sighed. “I trust you, my dear but I am worried that the demands of running the company alone would overwhelm you. That is why I want you to get married so that you will get the necessary help and support from your husband.” Chief explained.

“I see,” Nneka said and rose to her feet. If there was anything she detested so much, it was the pressure she got from her parents to get married. The way they were going about it, if she wasn’t careful, she would rush into the arms of the wrong man. “I will see you at home, dad,” she said over her shoulder as she exited the office.

It was already 2pm when Nneka got home. She met her mother in the sitting room. “Good afternoon, mom.”

“Good afternoon, my darling. Welcome home, hope your trip was comfortable” the older woman stood and welcomed her daughter with a hug. She sounded so excited that Nneka wondered what she was up to.

There was an aura of festivity about the house. The stewards were setting the dining table while the butler was refilling the bar. Everybody was obviously in high spirit. Nneka quickly scanned her brain for any anniversary but there was none.

“What’s going on, mom?” she asked. Her curiosity was palpable.

“We are expecting an august visitor,” her mother replied simply.

“Who?” Nneka asked curiously.

Her mother laughed briefly at her curiosity. “Chief Dunu.”

Nneka raised an eyebrow. “Chief Dunu is a regular visitor in this house. How come he is an august visitor all of a sudden?”

“He’s coming with his wife and son. Frank just came back from the States and they felt it would be nice for him to say hello.” There was a twinkle in her mother’s eye as she whispered the words.

Nneka shook her head slowly and started upstairs. She needed no more explanations. She already knew what the hustling and bustling in the house was all about. Another suitor was on the way. She hissed as she recalled her past suitors. She had had three suitors in the last six months, all arranged by her parents. In fact, the last one proposed to her on their first meeting. She had been so annoyed that she had gotten up and left, allowing the poor boy to kneel as long as he wanted. This happened about two months back. Her mother had been so mad at her that she fell out with her. They made up not too long ago and another suitor was already on the way. Nneka sincerely wished that she had allowed her faceoff with her mother to linger. If they hadn’t made up, her mother wouldn’t have sought another suitor for her. She hissed again and decided to cross the bridge at the appropriate time. For now, she needed cold shower and the comfort of her bed.

The first two knocks didn’t wake her, she was deeply asleep. She was, however, aroused by the third knock. She slowly climbed out of bed and staggered to the door. On opening the door, she saw her mother smiling boldly.

“They are here,” her mother said, rubbing her hands gleefully. “Make haste and come downstairs.”

Nneka wanted to protest but maturity got the better of her. She couldn’t afford another faceoff with her mother. She could always play along and say no at the appropriate time. She had never liked arranged relationships. Most of them usually hit the rocks. It was usually worse when the suitor in question lived abroad. To her most guys that lived abroad were not to be trusted. Many of them were into drugs, crimes, contract marriages among others. They could actually mess one’s life up and Nneka wasn’t ready to give anyone such an opportunity.

“Ok, mom, let me freshen up,’ she said.

“Make sure you look your best,” the older woman said, winked at her and left.

Nneka shook her head and closed the door.

Few minutes later, she joined her parents and the guests in the living room. Chief Dunu had come with his wife and son, Frank as expected.

A cursory look at Frank showed a young, handsome man with an air of affluence about him. Nneka really found him attractive and that was unlike her. Since Chike died, she rarely had time to look at men let alone fall for them. This was actually a good sign.

She exchanged pleasantries with them and took her seat. She barely sat down when her father spoke “Let me formally introduce Chief Dunu’s son to you,” he said, looking at Nneka. “His name is Frank. He just came back from the States where he has been living for the past 18 years. He is a Harvard-trained accountant. He also bagged both masters and PhD from the same institution. Until his return to Nigeria, he worked with Silicon Valley bank in New York. As the only son, he has returned to manage his father’s numerous investments as my friend here is not getting any younger.” He finished and smiled at Nneka.

“Your father forgot to mention that my son is single and searching but I know that his searching days would soon come to an end,” Chief Dunu added and all laughed except Nneka. It wasn’t funny.

“It is a pleasure meeting you,” Nneka said to Frank out of courtesy. Deep down, she was very uncomfortable and angry…, at everybody.

“The pleasure is mine,” Frank responded with a smile. And honestly, he sounded very refined and responsible. He wasn’t just handsome, but also a gentleman, if he wasn’t pretending.

After the introduction, Nneka’s mother invited everyone to the dining table where assorted foods and drinks had been served. They ate to their full and drank to their satisfaction.

Dinner over, the fathers went into Chief’s study while the mothers went to Nneka’s mother’s room thereby leaving Nneka and Frank all alone in the sitting room. The young chaps understood the game plan and didn’t disappoint their parents. They chatted and laughed like old friends.

Frank was really fun to be with. There was no dull moment with him and he was quite knowledgeable. Nneka couldn’t remember the last time she had so much fun chatting with a friend, especially, male friend. It must have been before Chike’s death.

It was around 8pm that their parents emerged from their different hiding places and it was time for the Dunus to depart. She escorted them to their car while her parents stopped at the porch.

Just before he entered the car, Frank kissed her hand. “I had a great time,” he whispered.

“Same here,” Nneka smiled. She was genuinely happy.

“Can we do this again,” Frank asked.

“Any time,” Nneka truly wanted to hang out with him.

“Thanks,” he said and entered the car.

Nneka waved him goodbye and waited till the car pulled out before she started back to the house. She was already thinking of a robust relationship with Frank. They seemed to be compatible but just one meeting wasn’t enough to draw conclusions. She reminded herself.

“What do you think?” her mother’s words cut into her thought as she approached the porch.

“About what?” Nneka asked, pretending not to understand.

“About Frank, of course,” her mother supplied.

“Oh!” Nneka smiled. “He’s handsome, smart, knowledgeable and most importantly, a very good company. His sense of humour is second to none. I must admit that I need a soothing balm for my ribs because I laughed like never before.”

Nneka’s mother looked at Chief and the couple smiled at each other.

“We should fix a date, then,” Chief said, looking at Nneka for approval.

“Date?” Nneka was truly confused. “Date for what?”

“Date for the introduction, of course,” it was her mother that answered.

“Mom!” Nneka’s eyes were huge with shock. She couldn’t believe her ears. How could her parents talk of introduction when she barely knew the suitor? Frank hadn’t even said anything.

“Frank hasn’t said anything and I don’t even know him.”

“But we know his parents, my daughter,” her father said, putting his arm round her shoulders. Nneka shrugged severally, indicating that he should take off his arm from her shoulders but he refused to yield.

“His parents are nice people. I am sure they raised him well. You don’t have any reason to worry. He will make a good husband,” Chief assured her daughter.

“I am neither getting married to his father nor mother. Any man that intends to marry me should woo me, court me and then propose to me. It is only when I say yes to his marriage proposal that we will start talking about dates. For now, I have works to do.” She shrugged off her father’s arm and stormed into the house.

The days that followed witnessed another faceoff between daughter and parents. Nneka wasn’t bothered in the least. She was already used to faceoff with them. If the only way she could be friends with them was to marry a total stranger, then she would rather be an enemy.

About a week after their meeting, Nneka got a call from Frank. He wanted to know if she would be chanced for dinner.

“Yes, I will,” she responded with undiluted excitement. She had waited impatiently for his call. There was no doubting the fact that she liked him but things must be done properly. The Cart must not be put before the horse.

Frank was supposed to pick her up at 6:30pm and he came on time. He scored another point as Nneka got the impression that he didn’t like standing ladies up.

He was exchanging pleasantries with Nneka’s parents in the living room when Nneka came downstairs and stood at the foot of the stairs.

Frank’s jaw dropped on sighting her. “Wow!” he exclaimed. “You look so beautiful,” he said and walked across the room to meet her.

He didn’t exaggerate. Nneka was indeed looking very beautiful. She was dressed in a red overflowing dinner gown. Her makeup was light, making her face to glow with natural beauty.

As he approached, Nneka stretched her hand for a handshake but he hugged her instead.

“Thanks for the compliment.” Nneka smiled.

“You are welcome,” Frank returned her smile. “Shall we?” he asked and Nneka nodded slightly.

The young couple said goodbye to Nneka’s parents and left. Their destination was DeChills restaurant. When they arrived at the restaurant around 7pm, it seemed the whole Lagos had decided not to eat at home that night. Nevertheless, they were able to secure a table at a good spot. They sat down and placed their orders which came without much delay and they began to eat.

“Do you like the food?” Frank asked after a brief moment of eating in silence.

Nneka nodded severally. “I love it. It’s quite delicious. How did you find here?”

“I was looking for a special place to take a queen like you to and a friend suggested here,” Frank explained.

“I owe that your friend,” Nneka said and Frank laughed. He stopped eating and fixed his gaze on his new friend. She was obviously enjoying her meal, so she didn’t notice that he was staring at her.

“You look so beautiful,” he said suddenly and Nneka’s spoon stopped half way to her mouth. She looked at him and smiled. “Thanks,” she said and resumed eating.

“My mom kept telling me how beautiful you were. I thought she was exaggerating but now, I can see she underrated you. You are a paragon of beauty.”

“I can see you also have a degree in flattery,” Nneka teased him. “Thanks, though.”

“I am not flattering you,” Frank said with sobriety. “It’s nothing but the truth. You are also intelligent, smart, humorous and down to earth. I like you and will be happy to be your man. Will you be my girl?”

Nneka kept awake that night reliving and analyzing the events at DeChills. Frank had stated his intentions in black and white. He didn’t mince words. He liked her and would want her to be his girlfriend. She liked him too and would cherish a relationship with him but she must be careful, very careful. All that glitters is not gold. She had always been suspicious of men that lived abroad. Most of them were wolves in sheep’s clothing. They would come with message of love, promising you paradise on earth while in reality they had nothing except heartbreak to offer you.

She had heard so many stories of how unsuspecting girls were scammed into marrying criminals, drug dealers and addicts, destitutes and men who were already married to white ladies to enable them naturalize in their countries of abode. Though Frank had relocated to Nigeria permanently, Nneka would still want to know the kind of life he lived in the U.S. He appeared to be responsible. Unlike his contemporaries, he didn’t have tattoos and didn’t wear earrings. He also didn’t weave his hair. But she must tread with caution.

She was also conscious of the fact that the relationship was arranged by their parents. If they eventually got married, theirs would be a marriage of convenience. Most of such marriages were not based on true love and hence never lasted. One of her friends actually got involved in such a marriage and now she was divorced. Nneka didn’t want that to be her case.

Furthermore, the way Frank brought his parents into every conversation was very alarming and disturbing. If it wasn’t ‘my mom said’, then it was ‘my dad suggested’.” She needed to be sure that the man she was going into a relationship with had a mind of his own. As the only child, it wasn’t surprising that his parents would monitor and interfere in his affairs but he must be his own man when necessary.

Despite Nneka’s concerns, she was ready to give the relationship a chance. She had to be positive and pray that things turned out well. Frank could be a different breed. It was better to give him a chance and later call it quits if he didn’t live up to expectations rather than reject him out of pessimism and eventually he turned out to be good.

The relationship blossomed within a short period and three months later, Frank proposed and Nneka happily accepted. The last three months had been so blissful for Nneka. Frank had proved to be a very responsible and loving man, and Nneka had looked forward to spending a fulfilled life with him. So, it was a dream come true when he proposed.

The wedding preparations started immediately. The couple wanted a low-key wedding but their parents wouldn’t hear of it. They wanted an elaborate ceremony. Frank was an only child while Nneka was the only daughter, so one would understand their parents’ stance.

A wedding planner was engaged with a mandate to organize the biggest and most grand wedding in recent times.

The guest list contained five ministers, two governors, and fifteen members of the National Assembly, captains of industries, relatives, friends and well-wishers. All the big wigs in Lagos were on the list.

Gucci was contracted to take care of the wedding dresses and accessories. Nneka’s father had completed arrangements for express importation of the latest Phantom Limousine. He had earlier bought a magnificent house in a choice area. His daughter deserved the best wedding gifts and he was equal to the task. The wedding venue was a one-thousand capacity hall, yet accommodation was going to be a problem as over one thousand, five hundred invitation cards had gone out and it seemed all the invitees were coming. Even Ben, who had not been to Nigeria for over ten years, sent words that he was coming with his wife and two boys.

“Oh my God! This wedding gown is so beautiful,” Chinwe enthused. Nneka had just taken delivery of her wedding dress and accessories.

Chinwe was her favourite cousin and best friend. Her mother was Nneka’s mother’s immediate younger sister. Her parents lived in Port Harcourt. Her father was an engineer with Shell while her mother was a business mogul.

Just like Nneka, she was the only girl of her family and therefore doted on exceedingly. Her friendship with Nneka started when she gained admission into Queen’s college, Lagos. Nneka was already in class two then, so she played the role of a big sister even though she wasn’t up to a year older than Chinwe. Eventually they became more of friends than cousins. Chinwe spent most of the holidays in Lagos. Even after secondary school, both attended university of Lagos. For over eleven years both women were rarely apart from each other. They were like Siamese twins, sharing escapades and secretes. Chinwe knew all the guys that made passes at Nneka from secondary school days and vice versa. They always confided and sought advice from each other. It was actually Chinwe that encouraged Nneka to date Chike and even the current relationship with Frank was endorsed by her before Nneka said yes. When Chike died, Chinwe took a month compassionate leave from her office in Abuja to stay with Nneka who had suffered depression.

So it was natural that Nneka would choose Chinwe as the maid of honour and two weeks to the wedding, she arrived in Lagos to assist in the wedding preparations.

Chinwe snatched the wedding gown from Nneka and looked it over. “Try it on. I am sure you will look like a queen in it,” Chinwe said as she removed the dress from the transparent garment bag.

Instead of doing Chinwe’s bidding, Nneka folded her arms and began to pace. She was obviously perturbed.

Chinwe raised an eyebrow, “What’s wrong. You look so disturbed.”

Nneka ignored her cousin and continued to pace. She later sat on the edge of the bed and covered her face with her hands.

“What is going on?” Chinwe panicked. She joined her cousin on the bed, put her arm around her shoulders and tried to uncover her face. Nneka resisted initially but later yielded. And when her hands were off her face, Chinwe noticed the tears.

“You are crying?” Chinwe couldn’t understand why Nneka should be crying instead of rejoicing. She was about having the biggest wedding in town and should be happy. “Is it Chike?” Chinwe asked, reasoning that probably Nneka remembered her dead fiancé and became depressed.

Nneka looked steadily at her cousin and shook her head. “I think I am about to make a big mistake.” More tears gushed out as she spoke.

“Mistake? How? You are scaring me.” Chinwe was truly scared.

Nneka wiped her tears with the back of her hands. “I saw Frank …,” she hesitated and Chinwe urged her on by nodding severally, “… at the church.”

“What!” Chinwe screamed as her jaw dropped. “What was he doing there?”

Nneka shook her head. “I have no idea but whatever it was calls for concern.” Though her voice was calm, the agony in it could not be missed.

The church was actually built as a place of worship. The pastor had taken a loan from the bank to finance the project but wasn’t able to pay back. So the bank auctioned the building to a powerful drug baron who later converted it to a casino. With time, it also became a crack house and a brothel. Even though the function had changed, the building was still referred to as the church and its patrons, referred to derogatorily, as the congregation. The church enjoyed a wide range of patronage and majority of the clients were prominent men and women of the society. They visited for various reasons but people had the same impression about them; they were all irresponsible folks.

One could therefore imagine how Nneka felt when she saw the man that would become her husband in about two weeks emerge from the most notorious building in town.

She had called Frank earlier in the day, requesting him to take her to DHL office to take delivery of her wedding dress and accessories but he declined, claiming that he had a meeting with his dad in his father’s office. Nneka had resorted to taking a cab since the route to the courier giant’s office was always gridlocked and she hated driving on such roads. She could easily engage in road range. So to avoid that, she called a taxi.

On her way back, the cab driver had used a rat run and the church was on the street they plied. Nneka wouldn’t have seen him if not that the cab slowed down at a speed-breaker in front of the church. Frank had emerged from the building, walked briskly and entered a waiting taxi. He wore a pair of jeans trousers, sneakers and a T-shirt. His face cap almost covered his face completely but Nneka knew him too well, besides his clothes were very familiar.

“I told the driver to follow him,” Nneka said and sighed

“Where did the cab take him?” Chinwe asked impatiently

“King David’s Mansion,” Nneka supplied. “He alighted from the cab and disappeared into the hotel, only to reappear about thirty minutes later. He then entered his own car and left. Meanwhile, when he reappeared from the hotel, he was wearing a suit, not Jeans and T-Shirt anymore.”

“So he drove to the hotel, parked his car and used a cab to avoid being identified,” Chinwe analyzed.

“Exactly,” Nneka concurred.

“What are you going to do?” Chinwe asked after a brief silence. She could suggest but she wanted her cousin to give her own opinion.

Nneka thought for a while. “I will engage a private investigator. I need to know who the man I am about to marry really is,” she said and Chinwe completely agreed with her.

When the investigation report came in ten day later, it was filled with shocking revelations:

 

Frank was a drug addict who was jailed in the U.S for ten years for illicit use of hard drugs. He was deported immediately after serving his jail terms. His parents knew that he went to jail but kept it a secret. They hoped that getting Frank married and giving him a prominent position in his father’s multimillion naira business would make him turn a new leaf. Initially, he didn’t agree to the marriage plan but with his father promising him a whopping sum of money if he agreed to marry, he had no choice as he needed a lot of money to carry out the plan he hatched with his U.S wife.

Iliana was a Mexican girl who worked as a striptease dancer in a club Frank frequented back in the States. His first visit to the club was while in his penultimate year in the university. He was introduced into club life by a Nigerian classmate, Tunde.

Iliana was so spectacular that Frank couldn’t help but fall for her. He had become a regular visitor to the club until he had gained Iliana’s attention. It was actually Iliana that introduced him to hard drugs. He had become so addicted that his education was affected. He didn’t graduate with his set and when he eventually did, his grades were nothing to write home about. By the time he graduated, his relationship with Iliana had grown so strong that she had quit strip dancing and moved in with him. She had become pregnant six months down the line, prompting the couple to have an urgent court marriage. In order to meet up with the financial demands of running his new family, Frank had to quit the Masters programme he had just commenced, converting his school fees to family upkeep money. Yet he had struggled to meet up as he had also been spending a lot on drugs. As the situation got tougher, he started peddling drugs. He was nabbed and jailed six months after his daughter was born.

Throughout the ten years he spent in jail, Iliana had been very supportive. She had visited him daily, periodically, bringing his child’s pictures along to enable him to be part of her development and growth.

Upon release from jail, Frank had been deported to Nigeria but he had maintained a strong link with his family and hoped to reunite with them someday. He couldn’t wait to achieve that. And the only way to make that happen was for the family to relocate to another country as he was already a fugitive in the United States. He therefore agreed with Iliana to move the family to Mexico. Iliana was from Mexico and he was married to her, therefore getting a Mexican visa wouldn’t be a problem. The only problem was raising enough money to accomplish the plan. But with his father’s promise to give him plenty of money after his marriage, all he needed to do was to play along, get married, then get the money, and elope with Iliana after the wedding.

 

Nneka was breathless by the time she finished reading the report. Chinwe was feeling likewise.

“Oh my God!” Nneka cried. “I almost made the mistake of a lifetime.”

“You can say that again,” Chinwe’s voice was choked. “What do we do now?”

“Call off the wedding without delay,” Nneka said emotionlessly. It was no time to cry. It was time to act. She had suffered the greatest shock of her life when Chike was murdered and had since developed a thick skin. She wasn’t given to breaking down easily anymore.

She quickly called a family meeting, intimated them on the current situation and requested that the wedding be called off officially for she had already called it off within her. Her family obliged her without hesitation. It was a difficult decision but Nneka’s interest and safety were paramount.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER TWO

 

 

 

 

There was a great cheer when the plane was spotted. The arrival time was 2pm but as early as 11am, a mammoth crowd had gathered at the airport. Story had leaked out that Chike was coming back to Nigeria from Ghana after over three years in exile. Initially people considered the news as fake. How could Chike be alive? He was killed as he attempted to escape from the prison. His death was in the news both locally and internationally. But over time it became obvious that Chike was still alive and well, and indeed coming back to Nigeria.

Friends and people that wished Chike well therefore trooped to the airport to welcome him. Even his parents came all the way from the village. Everybody was anxiously waiting for a great reunion. It was therefore not surprising that they became wild with joy when eventually the plane touched the ground. The cheers heightened as Chike emerged from the terminal and started towards them.

Nneka broke away from the crowd and ran to meet him. On sighting her, Chike dropped his luggage and ran to her as well. He had been looking forward to this reunion and was grateful to God for making it possible.

As they got close to each other, he spread his arms to hug her but the first bullet, which cut through his chest stopped him in his track. The second bullet shattered his head and he fell in a heap.

Nneka let out a loud cry and opened her eyes. She sat up in bed and heaved a deep sigh. She got out of bed and went into the bathroom. It was already 7am. She must hasten up as she was supposed to be at the cemetery by 8:30am. The mass usually started at 9am and she had never been late. The date was November second, a day set aside by the catholic faithful as the feast of All Souls. The nightmare about Chike’s death had become a kind of alarm clock in her head that reminded her to join other mourners who gathered at the cemetery on that day every year to pray for the souls of the faithful departed.

She showered quickly, dressed up and set out for Saint Michael’s cemetery located in Yaba. It was 8:35am when she arrived at her destination. She discovered that only few people had gathered. She chose her usual seat and waited. The cemetery would soon be filled and the mass started. The priest was always on time, so was the congregation.

 As always the mass started at 9am and was over two hours later. Most of the mourners dispersed immediately after the mass but Nneka and few others stayed back to say additional prayers and meditate.

She barely concluded her prayers when he spoke to her.

“Hello!”

Nneka looked up and saw a total stranger staring at her. She was sure that she had never seen him before. He was tall, dark skinned, athletically built and very handsome. Just like Nneka and other mourners, he was in black attire. Nneka noticed the camera in his hand and wondered why he came with that instead of a bible or a prayer book. It was supposed to be a sober event, not a picnic. Perhaps, he was a photographer. Most Nigerian photographers attended events uninvited, snapped guests without their permission and of course expected them to pay and collect the pictures.

The stranger was definitely one of them. And the last thing Nneka wanted was to take pictures. She only came to pray for the repose of the soul of a loved one; nothing more, nothing less.

“May I sit?” the stranger asked, cutting into Nneka’s thought. She answered with a shrug, implying that he should go ahead if he wanted. After all, the seat wasn’t hers.

He smiled and sat down. They were sitting side by side and not facing each other. Nneka’s gaze was on the ground as she waited for the stranger to make his mission known.

“Is it your husband?” the stranger asked casually as he gazed into space. Nneka looked at him and wondered why he wanted to know. He had kept the camera beside him and was now fiddling with a pen.

“Are you a detective or a journalist? Am I being investigated?” Nneka was not in the mood for questions and answers and she made it clear.

The stranger smiled and shook his head. “I am neither a detective nor a journalist and you are not being investigated,” he said and paused. He heaved a sigh after a while and continued. “I lost my brother over three years ago. He was assassinated.”

Nneka turned to face him. She wanted to sympathize with him but hesitated. It was possible that the stranger wanted to use the assassination story to win her attention. She had to be wary.

“Ever since he died, I have always come here on this day yearly to pray for the repose of his soul. I was very mournful the first time I came and I noticed that most of the people were, as well. When I got home that night, I had a dream. In my dream, my brother appeared to me. He told me that the best prayer I could say for him was to be happy, insisting that it was only happy people that could make others happy. I never believed in dreams, but that particular dream made so much sense to me and I resolved to spread the good news. So, I come here every year not just to pray for my brother but also to cheer mourners up …, to give them the message from my brother. Funny?” he laughed briefly. “See, my dear, the bible says that we should not mourn like the gentiles but like believers. Death is not the ultimate end but only a transformation to everlasting bliss. This is our faith, so instead of grieving without end, we should happily wait for a great reunion which is sure to happen on the last day.”

The stranger was right and Nneka couldn’t agree more.

“You are a pastor, right?” Nneka asked. She earlier mistook him for a photographer, later tagged him a detective or journalist but right now, she was sure that he was a pastor. Only a pastor could speak in the manner the stranger spoke to her. He was so articulate and knew his bible verses very well.

The stranger smiled at Nneka’s assertion that he was a pastor. He smiled a lot. Nneka could attest to that.

“I am not a pastor. I am an insurer,” he told her. “I run an insurance company.”

“Really?” Nneka said. “In that case, we should meet someday and discuss business.”

“That will be nice,” the stranger was happy to hear that. “So tell me; who are you praying for?” he asked again.

“My fiancé,” Nneka answered simply.

“What a pity!” the stranger said sympathetically. “What happened to him?”

“He died.” Nneka’s tone indicated that she didn’t want to discuss Chike’s death. No need bringing back bad memories.

There was a short silence. “You must have loved him so much to be coming here every year to pray for him” the stranger said as he tried to take a picture of a kit of pigeons flying about the cemetery.

Nneka wanted to ignore the stranger’s comment but she didn’t want to embarrass him. He seemed genuinely concerned and didn’t deserve any malicious treatment. “I loved him more than words could explain,” Nneka’s voice cracked as she spoke. “And he loved me too. He was a very good man…, a gentleman par excellence, an embodiment of Mr. Right. We shared many memorable moments together. It is very difficult to forget such a man,” From the way Nneka spoke about her relationship with her late fiancé, the stranger could deduce that though the man was dead, he was still very much alive in her heart.

After over two hours of chatting and laughing, they said goodbye. The stranger gave her his business card and she promised to call.

“I am sure we will do business together,” she said as she glanced through the business card.

“I will appreciate that,” he said, shook hands with her and walked away.

That night Nneka kept vigil, reminiscing on her encounter with the stranger.

…only happy people could make others happy.

The stranger was very correct. Her heart had been filled with anger and frustration. It just occurred to her that she had been complaining to God instead of praying for the repose of Chike’s soul. The stranger had really inspired her but beyond that, he had also swept her off her feet. She liked him. But which lady wouldn’t like such a handsome man with a very sound mind. He seemed to be godly as well.

She picked up the business card she had collected from him, looked at it and smiled. She had promised to call for a business meeting but she knew that she wanted much more than business. She wanted friendship and if possible, a relationship. She smiled again when she remembered that she was the one that initiated the only blissful relationship she ever had.

Chike had been the lead detective that investigated the case of embezzlement which took place in her father’s company. She had met Chike in her father’s office and it was love at first sight. Chike wasn’t just handsome, but equally bold and smart. Nneka wasn’t surprised that he solved the crime within the shortest possible time. She would have been disappointed if he didn’t. He was too smart not to have solved that case.

She had invited him for a drink to celebrate a job well done and that birthed a very wonderful relationship; a relationship that would have led to marriage but for Chike’s death.

She looked at the business card once again and that was when she saw the stranger’s name. She laughed when it occurred to her that there was no introduction between them and here she was crushing over him.

Samson was his name and she hoped to be the Delilah in his life. Not the Delilah that would bring him misery but the one that would bring him happiness and peace. She decided that she would call him the next morning but never did. She couldn’t muster enough courage. She dreaded rejection and embarrassment. It took over a month to make up her mind and when she finally called, it was the most awkward telephone conversation she ever had. She had to explain herself over and over again, yet Sam seemed not to have any iota of idea of who she was. She was so embarrassed and angry that for a fleeting moment she wished she could become the real Delilah in this Samson’s life just like in the days of old. She wished she could make him feel the kind of pain she felt at the moment.

She went through the conversation once again in her head and felt like crying:

“Hi! This is Nneka,” she had said into the mouthpiece with so much excitement.

“The only Nneka I know is a prostitute. Is it the same Nneka?” Sam had responded scornfully.

Nneka had been taken aback but she felt better when she remembered that he didn’t know her name. He didn’t ask her at their last meeting and she didn’t volunteer but that shouldn’t justify his reply. He was rude but nevertheless, she tried to explain herself.

“I am the lady you met at the cemetery about a month ago.”

“Are you a ghost, too,” Sam said with a laugh, “because the only people that live in the cemetery are ghosts?”

At that point, Nneka heard a female voice in the background, asking who was on the phone. “It is either a prostitute or a ghost or both. I am not sure yet.” Sam had said in response to the voice.

As Nneka angrily cut him off, she wondered whether the arrogant and rude folk she just spoke with on the phone, was the same handsome man with a very sound mind that inspired her a lot at the cemetery. She had already saved the number on her phone before making the call and the only option she had right now was to delete it and of course tear up the business card and trash it. She was close to doing that when an idea occurred to her. She could actually retain the number and pretend that nothing happened and wait patiently for revenge, for she was certain the Sam would call one day either by mistake or intentionally. Most brutes would do that. Some might even apologize, raise your hope and dash it one more time. Savagery was their stock-in-trade.

She retained the number but edited the name from Sam to Bastard.

Nneka’s prayer wasn’t answered as Sam neither called back nor texted. She was once tempted to go to his office and confront him but she later advised herself. She might be assaulted physically this time. Time was the ultimate healer. With time, Nneka healed and moved on. She still remembered Sam once in a while but she had become indifferent about him.

It was a Friday afternoon and as usual, Nneka had to close at 1pm instead of the official closing hour of 4pm. She was gathering her things to leave when her secretary announced that there was a man waiting to see her.

“Not now,” Nneka cried. She had already scheduled to see her hair stylist at 2pm and she had a dinner party at 8pm. “Who is he and what does he want?” she asked impatiently.

“I didn’t find out. I needed to be sure you could see him, bearing your schedules in mind,” the secretary said as she made to leave the office, probably to go and find out the visitor’s name and reason for coming.

“Just let him in,” Nneka said, feeling that protocols would waste more time. She reluctantly sat back and waited.

“Come in,” she said when someone knocked gently on the door. The frustration in her voice was unequivocal.

The visitor slowly opened the door and stepped in. On sighting him, Nneka instantly sprang to her feet. “You!” she screamed, pointing menacingly at the visitor. The confused visitor stopped in his track and looked back. He was sure that his hostess wasn’t addressing him. Someone else must have entered the office. But there was no one else. It was just the two of them.

“Are you talking to me?” he asked, pointing to himself.

“Is there any other person in this office?” she said as she circled her desk to approach him. “I can’t see any other person except you. Oh, why am I so forgetful,” she said, hitting her forehead with her left palm. “How could I forget that you see ghosts? And how could I also forget that you patronize ghost prostitutes?” She laughed and sobered up suddenly, “But this is not a cemetery. Please, go to the cemetery and meet your customers. They are not here.”

“What are you talking about?” the visitor honestly didn’t understand.

“You don’t understand?” Nneka smirked, as she circled around him slowly. “I will refresh your memory then. I am sure you are familiar with these sentences; ‘the only Nneka I know is a prostitute; … you must be a ghost because it only ghosts that live in the cemetery’. You even had the guts to tell someone in the background that I was either a prostitute or a ghost or both.” she halted in front of him and began to look him eyeball to eyeball as though it was a contest.

“How could I have said all these to you when you didn’t call me as you promised?” Sam had never felt so embarrassed in his life. He only came for marketing. He didn’t even know that the office he came to belonged to the lady he met at the cemetery and fell in love with. He had waited for her call day and night to no avail and one could image his happiness when he walked into the office and saw her. But she had succeeded in turning his happiness to sorrow by accusing him wrongly.

“I waited for your call. I truly did but it never came. I pined for you. I really did but you never called, probably because our meeting didn’t mean anything to you. The feeling I had was obviously not mutual.” He paused briefly. “I couldn’t call you because I didn’t have your phone number. I didn’t come looking for you because I didn’t have your address. So I resigned to fate. Then coincidentally, fate brought us back together but instead of a happy reunion, you are busy accusing me of something I know nothing about.”

“Does it mean I called the wrong number?” Nneka thought aloud and fell silent for a while. “But I copied the number from your business card,” she said to him. She sounded subdued. Even though she felt he could be lying, she had to give him the benefit of the doubt.

“Can I have your phone number?” Sam said as he pulled out his phone from his trousers’ pocket.

“What?” Nneka asked, wondering why he was asking for her phone number.

“Just give me your number,” he repeated. Nneka obliged him and he dialed the number. “Your phone is ringing,” he said, pointing at the phone lying on her desk. “I don’t know if you saved the number you called earlier. If you did check if it’s the same number that is calling now.”

Nneka reluctantly did as she was bidden and that was when she saw it. In her anxiety, she had replaced 6 in Sam’s phone number with 9 and of course ended up speaking to some tout, probably living in a certain ghetto. The mere thought that she could have spoken with a criminal sent shudders down her spine. She heaved a noisy sigh. “Look, I am very sorry. I thought you were the one I spoke with.”

“It is ok.” Sam smiled.

“Thank you so much for understanding.” Nneka said with relief and hugged him briefly. “Come,” she said as she dragged him to a seat. “Please, sit and make yourself at home, and tell me what I will offer you.”

“I am here for business not pleasure,” Sam reminded her as he sat down and crossed his legs.

“I know but we will discuss business later. I have a dinner party this evening at 8pm, we will discuss business then.”

“But I won’t be at the party,” Sam also reminded her.

“Why not?”

“Because I am not invited.”

“I am inviting you, then.”

They attended that party together and four months later, they announced their engagement. Both of them agreed on a quiet wedding. Only family members and few friends were invited. Sam had earlier met and adopted Chike’s parents as his since his own biological parents were dead.

The wedding reception held at Nneka’s parents’ house. Her parents had wanted a fanfare but Nneka insisted on a quiet reception. She had passed through a lot in the past few years and just wanted to get married to her former fiancé reincarnated in Sam. The only difference between Sam and Chike was their faces. Other attributes were exactly the same. She couldn’t thank God enough for gifting her with Sam. He was just a perfect replacement.

The event was low-key only in terms of the number of guests but grand in terms of other components. Everything was provided in excess; food, drinks and souvenirs. Famous musicians and comedians were on the ground to entertain the guests. The high point of the reception was the settlement of the new couple by Nneka’s parents. The couple got two brand new choice cars, a house, fifty percent of the equity of Nneka’s father’s conglomerate and of course a voucher for honeymoon in any part of the world. The initial plan was for the new couple to travel to Dubai but because of issues at work that needed Nneka’s presence, they decided to stay around.

They were therefore driven straight to Golden Tulip from the reception venue. They were to spend a month in the hotel before moving into their brand new mansion.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER THREE

 

 

 

 

There was great jubilation when the baby began to cry. Nneka had been in labour for hours and her mother and husband who were waiting at the lobby had run out of patience. Her mother particularly had been worried. She prayed her rosary while pacing up and down. She was well aware of the possible complications of labour. There had been many cases of maternal and neonatal deaths lately. The health sector had suffered many years of neglect and the hospitals had hence become death traps. One could therefore imagine their joy when the cry of the newborn baby wafted into the waiting area. Their happiness doubled when they were led into the ward to see mother and son. As Sam went straight to the cot where his son was kept, Nneka’s mother went into her daughter’s waiting arms and both women had a prolonged hug.

“Congratulations, dear,” The older woman smiled at her daughter.

“Thanks, Mom.”

“How are you?” her mother asked.

“I am fine, Mom,” Nneka looked disturbed and her mother wondered why.

“Are you sure you are okay? Did you bleed much? Are you in pains?” her mother couldn’t hide her fear as she scrutinized her.

Nneka tried a smile but ended up with a frown. “I am fine,” she insisted.

“If you say so,” her mother said as she joined Sam at the cot. She froze the moment she set eyes on her grandson. The baby in the cot looked every inch like Chike. Nneka’s heart stood still when her mother turned and gave her an accusing look. She could see so many questions on her mother’s face. She could also see accusation and confusion. The look on her mother’s face had confirmed her fears. She had seen the similarities between her son and late fiancé but hoped it was just a figment of her imagination. Maybe her psyche is playing a prank on her but the look on her mother’s face said otherwise.

She shuddered as the events of that night flashed through her mind. It was her wedding night. She had just arrived at the hotel in her husband’s company, when his phone rang. It was Mr. Ado, her husband’s friend and business associate from Ghana who was supposed to attend their wedding but couldn’t make it on time because of delayed flight. Sam had promised to go and pick him up at the airport and he had called to announce his arrival the moment they got to the hotel. They had barely moved in their luggage into their suite when Sam left for the airport but came back almost immediately and made love to her before eventually going to the airport to pick up his friend. The light in the room was out and all she could see was a silhouetted figure as the only source of light was the one radiating from the adjoining bathroom whose door was ajar. But she had no doubt that the man that made love to her that night was her husband. She knew his voice too well and could smell him from afar.

She was therefore shocked to get a call later that night from a private number. The caller claimed that he was Chike, her former fiancé and that he was the one that had made love to her. He had gone ahead to prove to her that he was alive; that he wasn’t killed in jail; and finally referred her to Mr. JJ for further clarifications. Nneka had tried to meet Mr. JJ but her effort yielded no result as the former prison comptroller was out of the country. Since her efforts to confirm the caller’s claim yielded no result, she decided not to discuss the incident with her husband or anyone.

Though she had loved Chike dearly and missed him when he had gone away, she had moved on. She had just married a wonderful man and wouldn’t want anybody to put asunder, not even Chike. She had prayed that he should go back to wherever he had been and let her be.

As if he heard her prayer, he never showed up again but nine months down the line, she gave birth to his replica. There was no doubt that he fathered her son.  Soon people would start asking questions and tongues would start wagging. Her mother had already started asking. She hadn’t voiced it out yet but the expression on her face had said it all. What if Sam became suspicious and decided to probe. What if he arrived at the truth? That would certainly break his heart and of course, their marriage as well.

“Congratulations to you, my darling wife!” Sam said cheerfully, interrupting Nnekaa’s brooding. He had left the cot and was standing close to her.

“Thanks and congratulations to you, too,” She looked up at him and smiled.

“What’s the matter?” Sam asked when he noticed the tears in Nneka’s eyes. He sat beside her on the bed and put his arm round her shoulders. “Are you okay?” he asked as he dried her eyes.

“I am fine. They are tears of joy. I don’t know how to thank God for this bundle of joy He has blessed us with,” she lied and her mother nodded sarcastically. The look on her face was that of dismay. She was highly disappointed in her daughter. How could she be so irresponsible? She knew she was already married to Sam yet agreed to have sex with Chike. That was adultery, infidelity of the highest magnitude. Now her stupidity had come to live with her and would be staring her in the face on daily basis. Her mother was sure that Chike was her grandson’s father. She had bumped into a man that looked exactly like him sometime in the past but concluded then that people could look alike but now, she knew better.

“He has indeed done a great thing and it’s marvelous in our eyes.” Sam affirmed. “Our son doesn’t look like either of us. He doesn’t take after our parents either.” Sam stated and Nneka’s heart skipped a beat. The moment she dreaded most was upon her already. Sam was already suspicious and the look on her mother’s face wasn’t helping matters at all. The older woman kept looking at her with resentment.

“But I am sure he takes after my grandfather or great grandfather. I didn’t meet them, so I don’t know what they looked like but I am sure that Ikem looks like one of them,” Sam said with confidence and that gave Nneka a level of relief. She knew it was a sort of postponing the evil day but better later, than now.

Her mother for her part decided to let the sleeping dog lie. She could smell a rat but could not substantiate whatever suspicious she nursed. Chike was dead or so it seemed to the world and therefore couldn’t have fathered her daughter’s son. But the resemblance was so significant that it would be difficult to gloss over it. Besides, she once saw a man that looked exactly like Chike. Maybe he wasn’t killed after all. Maybe some people played some trick on them. But nothing was hidden under the sun. The truth would come out one day.  She decided to keep calm and watched events as they unfolded. She would talk at the right time and to the right persons.

As the days went by, Ikem grew to become every bit like Chike and of course tongues began to wag but since none of the rumourmongers could substantiate the allegation, the rumour remained with them.

Their daughter came two years after Ikem was born. She was a very beautiful creature. She took after her mother but certainly more beautiful. She was christened Princess and she was really a Princess.

Life was good as long as Nneka was concerned. There was no word from Chike anymore and it was obvious that the wagging tongues had become fatigued. Her family was filled with love, peace and joy. Their businesses were doing very well and theirs was a perfect family. Sam was the best husband and father in the whole world. Nneka couldn’t ask for more. She was certainly not an ingrate.

She was equally a good wife and mother. Sam had on many occasions, openly expressed his gratitude to God for giving her to him.

Princess had just turned one and an elaborate party had been organized to celebrate her first birthday. Friends, family members and business associates turned out in their numbers to grace the occasion. Sam and Nneka didn’t disappoint. They were ready for their guests. Everyone ate and drank to their full and some even took food and drinks away.

Later that night, Nneka lay in bed counting her blessings and naming them one by one. She had a very caring and loving husband. Her children were very healthy and growing well. They were turning into beautiful and smart children. She was surrounded with caring relatives and friends. Their businesses were doing very well. God had been so faithful and she would forever be thankful to Him.

Sam for his own part was so disturbed. He had received an anonymous phone call requesting him to come to De Mangrove restaurant for an important message. He had excused himself from the party and honoured the invitation. He had met with a man who later introduced himself as Frank. Frank had gone ahead to reveal some secrets to Sam, convincing him that he wasn’t Ikem’s biological father. He had told Sam about Chike and the possibility that he was responsible for Nneka’s first pregnancy. He had claimed to know Nneka and most of her secrets too well, having been engaged to marry her in the past. Frank had ended by showing Sam pictures of Chike and pointing out the similarities between him and Ikem.

Frank was so convincing that Sam had no doubt that he had said the truth. Now that he knew the truth, he had two options, either confront Nneka or let her be but look for Chike.

He decided to take the second option. He reasoned that Chike was to blame. How could he take advantage of the love Nneka had for him and have sex with her even when he knew that she was married? Why did he establish contact with her when he knew that seeing him would bring back old memories and definitely lead her into temptation? Chike was solely to blame and Sam was ready to find him and pay him in his own coin. He must find him and send him back to the grave where he was supposed to be. After all, he was already dead, to the world. Nobody will raise an eyebrow when a dead man dies again, he said to himself. He visited some guys at the church the next day and the manhunt started.

Meanwhile, Sam maintained a cordial relationship with Nneka. He continued to carry out his duties as a good husband and father. There was no sign that he bore an enormous burden in his heart, a burden that only Chike’s death would lift and the sooner he died the better.

For Nneka, it was business as usual but little did she know that she now had regular companies. The assassins followed her around because they believed that she was the only one that would lead them to their target. Frank had informed Sam that Chike was still in contact with Nneka and Sam wanted the target to be spotted around his wife, either with her or stalking her, before killing him. That way, he would be able to justify his action.

As the hunt for the target continued, Sam took off to Ghana. His insurance company was an affiliate of the topmost insurance company in Ghana and as a tradition, the company’s annual general meetings held in Accra. It was Nneka that dropped him at the airport that morning. She stayed with him at the airport while he waited to board.

“I wish you would come with me,” Sam sobered up suddenly. Nneka had promised to attend that particular AGM with him but had to cancel at the last minute because of a dinner party she must attend the next day.

“I wish I could, too. In fact, I desire to be in Ghana more than anyone else but I need to be in that dinner. My absence would negatively affect our business relations with Chief Rufus,” she explained again. The first time she explained was the night before. It wasn’t like Sam didn’t understand but he had already told his business partners in Ghana that he was coming with his wife and they were all waiting to meet her. They would certainly be disappointed but Nneka had a cogent reason to cancel the trip and trying to coax her would be irrational.

“It’s okay,” he smiled at her, and she smiled back.

“What are you thinking about?” Nneka asked when she noticed that Sam was absentminded. They were sitting side by side, so he turned to look at her.

“I was just wondering when the dinner would end, must be very late in the night. I hope it would be safe to go home at that time.” He paused for a while. “I think it would be safer to have a company,” he concluded.

Nneka smiled and kissed him briefly. “I will be fine. Nothing will happen to me but that doesn’t mean that your idea of having a company isn’t good. I will look for a company,” she said and kissed him again.

At that point, it was announced that all the passengers going to Accra should proceed for boarding. The passengers had earlier checked in and were waiting to board. The couple stood immediately and hugged each other.

“What will you buy for me?” Nneka asked her husband.

“Whatever you want. Just mention it,” Sam said, holding her hand.

“Surprise me, darling,” Nneka said after a brief thought.

“Deal!” Sam said and kissed her on the forehead. “I love you,” he added as he began toward the boarding section.

“I love you, too,” she called and wave as he looked at her over his shoulder.

When Sam arrived in Ghana, Mr. Ado was at the airport to meet him. They hugged each other and exchanged pleasantries.

“Where is your wife?” Mr. Ado asked, a bit disappointed.

“She couldn’t make it,” Sam answered. “She has a business dinner to attend tonight. The dinner is very crucial to her business.” he explained.

“My wife will be so disappointed,” Mr. Ado said as he picked up one of Sam’s bags from the ground. “She has completed preparations to host her.”

“Oh damn!” Sam cried. “I am sorry that we couldn’t tell you earlier than now. The invitation to the dinner came last night. I am so sorry.” Sam apologized.

“It is okay,” Mr. Ado smiled and led the way. A chauffeur was waiting at the lots to take them to the hotel which would serve as the abode for the participants as well as venue for the AGM. Mr. Ado would also lodge in the hotel. He showed Sam to his room and left after a short while. They had a meeting the next day and needed time to prepare for the meeting. They would have time for social discussions after the meeting. After all, Sam would spend a week in Ghana.

The next day, the target waited in his car, parked outside Sam’s gate as Nneka prepared for the dinner scheduled for that evening. She wasn’t aware that someone was waiting for her. It was supposed to be a surprise.

Suddenly, the assassins, four of them, stormed the target, tied him up, put him in his car boot and drove him to a bush where a grave had been dug. Without much ado, they killed him and buried him in the waiting grave.

When Nneka arrived at the dinner venue around 8pm, Chinwe was already there. Nneka had heeded her husband’s advice of having a company and the only person that came to mind was her cousin, Chinwe. Chinwe had relocated to Lagos and was therefore at Nneka’s beck and call. They met on the court and walked into the venue together. The dinner afforded the cousins great opportunity to have fun. The last time they got together and gossiped was over three months earlier. There were many talking points but top on the list was Chinwe’s relationship. The son of a politician cum business tycoon started dating her about three months back and there was every indication that the lovebirds would soon walk down the aisle.

It all started when Chinwe gatecrashed a wedding reception. She was supposed to accompany a female colleague to a wedding reception on that fateful day. She neither knew the bride nor the groom. When she arrived at the venue, she discovered that her colleague hadn’t arrived yet. She had gone inside the venue, sat down and waited for her friend. A cursory look at her had shown a lady that was tensed up. She couldn’t relax as she knew nobody.

Bill had noticed her and decided to make her relax. “Hi!” he had said while showing a perfect dentition.

Chinwe had looked up and smiled apprehensively. Maybe the guy had come to find out if she was duly invited as the wedding reception was grand and attendance was most likely to be strictly on invitation. Bill had been one of the groom’s men and just like him, all the groom’s men were sons of the movers and shakers of the society.

“Hello!” She had replied and then waited for the embarrassing moment. But Bill’s next comment had made her heave a sigh of relief.

“You look harassed. I can deduce that you haven’t seen the person that invited you.” Bill had guessed right. He was a very observant and smart guy but most importantly, he was very handsome, every woman’s dream.

“You are very correct,” Chinwe had conceded.

“So, can I sit and keep you company as you wait for him to arrive,” Bill had suggested.

“Her actually,” Chinwe had corrected and the expression on Bill’s face showed that he liked the fact that Chinwe’s company was a lady.

“Okay! So can I sit?”

“I will appreciate it.”

The duo had chatted and laughed like old friends. Bill was full of life and Chinwe was his match. They were so engrossed in their discussion that Chinwe didn’t notice that her colleague had arrived at the venue and had been calling to know where she was. It was even Bill that noticed that her phone was beeping and pointed it out.

It was when she took the call that she discovered that she was in a wrong wedding. There were other halls in the hotel and Chinwe didn’t know that.

Time to say goodbye.

They had said goodbye but not without exchanging their phone numbers. Bill had called later that night, and ever since, their relationship had been growing from strength to strength. This happened about three months back and Nneka hadn’t seen Chinwe since then. They only talked about it on the phone on few occasions. So now that they were seeing one on one, it was a good opportunity for Nneka to get the full gist of the past, the present and even the future. And Chinwe was as excited as her cousin was. She couldn’t wait to give her every detail.

They were at it until a guy chose to distract them.

“Hello ladies,” the intruder was grinning from ear to ear. Nneka looked at him and wondered what gave him the guts to disturb the beautiful story her cousin was telling her. He probably mistook them as single ladies and came to try his luck. He had definitely met the wrong ladies. She had concluded and decided to ignore him. She hoped that her cousin would do the same, but on the contrary Chinwe screamed with joy, jumped to her feet and threw herself at the intruder. She hugged him tightly and kissed him passionately. Nneka was totally lost and the expression on her face said it all.

Chinwe saw the confusion on Nneka’s face and chuckled. “This is Bill, the topic of our discussion,” she said as she stood hand in hand with her heartthrob.

“Talk of the devil,” Nneka said, standing to greet her in-law to be. “At last, I meet the guy that swept my cousin off her feet,” she said, holding out her hand for a handshake. Bill laughed as he took her hand. She quickly studied the young man standing before her and saw Chinwe’s wisdom in falling for him. He was a prince charming from a rich and classy home. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“My pleasure, too,” he smiled at Nneka and turned to Chinwe.

“She’s my big cousin. Nnneka is her name. She is the CEO of Dikeson constructions LTD and mother of two. I am sure you couldn’t have guessed that she is married let alone have children,” Chinwe introduced her cousin.

“Wow! Mother of two? You are very correct, darling. I couldn’t have guessed right by just looking at her. She looks like a sweet sixteen,” Bill complimented.

“That’s pure flattery,” Nnneka said even though she knew that he was correct. People rarely believed that she had had children. Her figure was that of a beauty queen and she relished it a lot.

“Well, it’s not for you to say. It is for us who see you in three dimensions to say and we have told you,” Bill insisted as he pulled a seat for Chinwe. He waited for the ladies to sit before taking his own seat. “So tell me, what were you gossiping about me?” he asked with a laugh.

The ladies laughed instead of answering his question. He didn’t insist on an answer either. It was only a rhetorical question.

“You are supposed to be in Abuja,” Chinwe reminded Bill.

“Yes, but I came back this evening. My dad had insisted that I come for this dinner, so I had to cut short my trip,” Bill explained.

“And you didn’t bother to tell me?”Chinwe was calm but the disapproval in her voice was evident.

“Check your phone,” Bill instructed and Chinwe started fumbling in her bag in search of her phone. She found it, checked and noticed that she missed twenty-one calls. All the calls were from Bill. She looked up and started gaping at him.

“I started calling you the moment I confirmed my flight and I called over twenty times. I wanted to tell you about the change in plan and also to find out if you would be free to attend this dinner with me but little did I know that you would be here before me.” There was no sign of anger in Bill’s voice and that made Nneka nurse no doubt about his capability of being a good husband. Patience and benefit of the doubt were key ingredients in a marriage.

“I am so sorry, dear. My phone has been on silence,” Chinwe apologized sincerely.

“There’s nothing to be sorry about. Divine providence has accomplished my reason for calling you. So let’s forget the past and be merry.”

Bill was a chatterbox. He held Chinwe and her cousin spellbound with gist. He was so humorous and seemed to have a lot of gist to share. He could compete with Okey Bakassi and Basket mouth. He was so lively that Nneka lost track of the time. By the time she realized herself, it was few minutes to midnight. She jumped to her feet and announced her intention to leave immediately. She was tempted to stay till the end which would be at 2am but she had promised her husband that she would leave before 11pm. She had failed to keep her promise and was feeling guilty. Chinwe rose to her feet as well and kissed Bill goodnight. She must go with Nneka. After all, her sole reason for being at the dinner was to be Nneka’s companion during the dinner and while going home. She didn’t want to shirk that responsibility even though she was tempted to.

It was only when Nneka got home that she realized that Sam had called her severally. Her phone was on silence all through the time she spent at the dinner, so she didn’t know it was ringing. She had already dialed back before it occurred to her that it was too late. It was some minutes to 1am. Sam must be fast asleep. She shouldn’t disturb his sleep considering that he must have had a tough day and needed to rest. She must stop the call immediately but her decision came a bit late as Sam answered the call before she could stop it.

“Hello, love!” his voice was loud and clear. It was obvious that he was yet to near his bed let alone sleep. As a matter of fact, he was at the bar chatting over a drink with Mr. Ado. Their insurance company had been a huge success and they had to celebrate. It was also an opportunity to catch up socially. Sam had already told his friend and business partner about Chike, his affair with his wife and how he dealt with the situation. They were making jest of the topic when Nneka’s call came.

“Hi honey, you aren’t sleeping yet?” Nneka was surprised. Sam never joked with his sleep especially after a stressful day.

“Nope,” Sam answered simply.

“I thought your day was stressful,” Nneka wondered.

“It was but Mr. Ado and I have a lot of catching up to do.”

“I see but you have a whole week,” Nneka reasoned.

“I am not sure a week will suffice,” Sam joked and laughed.

Nneka laughed as well. She knew a joke when she heard one. She asked how the annual general meeting went.

“Wonderful! I won the manager of the year award,” Sam informed her.

“As usual,” Nneka enthused. “Congratulations! I am so proud of you.”

Sam had won that award for three consecutive years and he now saw it as his birthright. But he desired it. He had revolutionized the insurance business in Nigeria and Ghana. Mr. Ado never regretted partnering with him.

“Thanks!” Sam said. “How did the dinner go? Don’t tell me you just got home.”

“I am sorry,” Nneka apologized. “I went with Chinwe and we ran into her boyfriend at the dinner. He came with his father who happened to be one of the VIPs at the occasion. Chinwe had said so much about him, so I was excited to meet him. In the course of getting to know him and probing to know if he is the right man for my cousin. I lost track of time. I am really sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Sam said calmly. “I hope she walks down the aisle this time.”

Chinwe had had her fair share of disappointments with regard to relationships. The last man that dated her later got married to one of her friends. After that incident, she swore never to have anything to do with men. Nneka tried on many occasions to convince her that she had been meeting the wrong guys; that some men were good but her advice fell on deaf ears. Even Sam couldn’t make any headway when Nneka recruited him to try. She had made up her mind and that was final. There was no going back.

It was therefore gratifying that Chinwe was in another relationship which from all indications would lead to the altar. Only time would tell if that would happen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER FOUR

 

 

 

 

By the time Sam came back from Ghana, preparations for Chinwe’s engagement party were already in top gear. It was going to be a grand occasion. The banquet hall of the Sheraton hotel was chosen as the venue and many big names in town were on the guest list. Bill was the first son of a frontline politician, who had been a minister, ambassador and presently, a senator. Bill wanted a grand occasion and the senator had no reason to say no. The senator could do anything for his only son. Bill could actually sponsor a world class event on his own. His father owned an oil serving company which he managed. He had taken the company to greater heights since he became the manager about three years earlier. His salary, allowances and other fringe benefits could afford him any kind of event but his father insisted on footing the bills.

Sam and Nneka were among the first guests to arrive at the venue on the D day. The event was scheduled to start at 7pm but the couple arrived before 6:30pm. On arrival, they discovered that Chinwe’s immediate family was already present. They had come into town the night before. Everybody was in high spirit as they waited for the commencement of the engagement party. Chinwe had suffered many disappointments, so her family and friends couldn’t be happier that at last her engagement was holding. She wasn’t just engaging any man but every woman’s dream.

Nneka and her husband were chatting with Chinwe’s parents and siblings when her parents arrived.

“Dad!” Nneka screamed on sighting them. She quickly walked across the hall to meet them. As she hugged them, the rest of the group joined her. They all greeted Chief and Nneka’s mother with warm hugs and afterward the group selected a table and settled down for the day’s event.

“I heard that you won again, congratulations!” Chief said, facing his son-in-law.

“We are proud of you, dear,” Nneka’s mother added.

“What did he win?” Chinwe’s mother wanted to know. And Nneka answered without hesitation. She relished singing her husband’s praises and always did so even without prompting.

“He won his company’s manager of the year award. This is the third time in a row.” Nneka announced.

“Congratulations!” Chinwe’s parents and siblings said to Sam.

“Thanks,” said Sam as he shook hands with each of them.

“It seems someone just hit the jackpot,”

Everyone looked up and saw Chief Dunu grinning from ear to ear.

“Dunu Omekannia!” Chief hailed and stood to great his friend with the kind of handshake meant only for titled men in Igboland.

The rest of the group also stood to great Chief Dunu. While the men shook hands with him, the women genuflected and got pats on their backs.

“You are yet to tell me the person that hit the jackpot so that I would ask for my own share,” Chief Dunu said and they all laughed.

“There is no jackpot, Sir. My husband recently won his company’s manager of the year award for the third time.” Nneka explained.

“Congratulations!” Chief Dunu shook Sam’s hand firmly. “Excelling in one’s work is worth more than a jackpot. Congratulations once again!”

“Thank you, Sir,” Sam smiled stoically. He would certainly need a balm for his hand and shoulder after Chief Dunu’s pumping handshake.

As the group sat back, Chief Dunu spotted a friend. He then excused himself and went to meet his friend.

“Has his son been found?” Chinwe’s mother asked, and Nneka’s father answered by shaking his head.

“Frank is missing?” Sam asked, focusing his gaze on his wife. “And you didn’t tell me?”

“Sorry, honey. It slipped my memory,” Nneka apologized. “He disappeared the day you left for Ghana.”

“Damn it!” Sam cursed and kept quiet for a while. “Are you sure he hasn’t traveled out of the country to be with his family?” Sam reasoned. “Remember he has a wife and a daughter who are either in the US or Mexico.”

“I don’t think so,” it was Chief that spoke. “Why would he leave all his belongings behind? He also left his passport and not a dime in his bank account was touched. I believe he has been kidnapped and very soon, the kidnappers will call and name their price.”

Chief was right and Sam couldn’t agree more. Frank must have been kidnapped and he prayed that his kidnappers should make haste and establish contact with his family. His ransom would be paid in no time. Chief Dunu was equal to the task. Even as he believed strongly that Frank would soon be released, he bemoaned the high level of criminality going on in the country lately. The spate of insecurity in the country was worsening day by day and the government was doing little or nothing to arrest the situation. In fact, it seemed government officials were the ones sponsoring the criminals. Hundreds of people were either killed and maimed or kidnapped on daily basis yet nobody had been arrested let alone prosecuted.

Sam wished he could leave Nigeria for good but if everybody left, who would fight for the lowly? Who would fight for the emancipation of the masses from the shackles of oppression and tyranny? He must stay and be the voice of the voiceless. Nigeria must work again!

“Honey!” Nneka called, cutting into Sam’s thought. He was so engrossed in his thought about the bad governance in the country that he didn’t realize that Bill had proposed and Chinwe had happily accepted. When he looked up, all the guests but him were standing and clapping for the newly engaged. He stood immediately and joined other in clapping. It was Chinwe’s day. And he came to rejoice with her. That he must do. He must not allow the deplorable state of the country to mar the day for him.

People were sitting back when Sam noticed a familiar face approach Bill’s father. Both men discussed in low tones for a brief moment before exiting the hall. Sam didn’t hear what they were saying but it was obvious from their countenances and the way they gesticulated, that all wasn’t well. They obviously did not agree with each other on something. Sam curiously followed them and later found them in the bar. They were seated by the time Sam entered the bar. He pretended to be a customer, selected a seat that was within earshot and ordered a drink. He made sure that his identity wasn’t given away. He patiently sipped his drink as he eavesdropped on Bill’s father and his ‘friend’. It didn’t take him long to understand the bone of contention.

“I did my best to stop him but you know that children of nowadays are very stubborn.” Bill’s father pleaded.

“Your best wasn’t good enough,” the other man barked. “How could you betray me in this manner? So now that your ill-mannered son has engaged another woman, what becomes of my daughter? Answer me!” He said forcefully, hitting his fists on the table thereby setting the bottles and glasses dancing. The tone of his voice was so harsh that Bill’s father flinched. Even other customers were forced to look toward the duo’s table. “I wish to remind you that my daughter is still single because she was waiting for your stupid son.”

From the discussion, Sam could deduce that the two men had agreed that their children would marry each other but Bill didn’t subscribe to the arrangement. He had insisted on choosing his wife by himself despite his father’s efforts to get him to marry his friend’s daughter. Bill hadn’t any idea how much threat that singular decision posed to his father’s political career and business. But his father wasn’t as naïve as he was. And his father was ready to make things right. He didn’t have a choice.

“I am aware that she would have chosen from the numerous men that sought her hand in marriage if not that she was waiting for my son,” Bills father agreed. He thought for a while and heaved a noisy sigh. “The situation is not irredeemable. I am sure that we can still come up with a plan that will break up the ongoing engagement and of course bring your daughter and my son together. Nothing is impossible.” Bill’s father suggested and the other man smiled.

Suddenly the tension between the two men evaporated and for the remaining part of the discussion, they nodded and smiled at each other.   

So, while the newly engaged and their guests were having fun in the hall, the two men were at the bar plotting their breakup.

The wedding was fixed for the next one month. Everyone was in high spirit once again as the days rolled by. Chinwe would soon get married and live happily ever after with her husband. Her mother belonged to many women groups and all of them were willing to grace the wedding ceremony. Already ten different clothing materials had been purchased and shared to friends and associates for Asoebi but there would definitely be need for more materials.

Her father was equally excited. He had sent many invitation cards to his friends, business associates and relations. He had already contracted one of the best caterers in town to prepare special dishes for his own guests. He must not depend totally on his in-laws to offer refreshment to his guests, else he might disappoint them.

Bill’s parents were not left out. His father was a serving senator of the federal republic, a very influential one at that. Top government officials were sure to show up. The petroleum minister was selected to chair the reception while the president of the senate would be the special guest of honour.

The wedding planner was the best in Lagos and everything was working according to plan.

Bill had bought an exquisite house in a choice location. He had been living with his parents but now that he was getting married, he had to start a home independent of his parents’. He had to be his own man.

The interior decorators had done a perfect job but Chinwe needed to give the decoration the touch of the woman of the house. She needed to rearrange certain things to suite her taste. She convinced Bill and the couple decided to move in temporarily, five days to their wedding. This would accord Chinwe the opportunity to fix things the way she wanted them before the wedding.

With the help of her fiancé, she finished up within two days. They were meant to leave for the hotel immediately but it was postponed to the next morning since they were already very tired after many hours of toiling in the new house.

Tragedy struck that night. While they were asleep, assassins invaded the house and shot Bill severally, giving him no chance of surviving. In fact, he died on the spot. Chinwe knelt beside him, screaming and shaking him but he was already gone. He was dead! She could feel it but didn’t want to believe it. How could Bill die? They were meant to get married in few days’ time. They promised each other that they would grow old together. Why would he leave her? She broke down and cried hot tears. After a long period of crying, she calmed down, got up, went into the kitchen and grabbed a knife.

Their corpses were discovered the next day and the police was invited immediately. As the police commenced investigation to fish out the culprits, Bill’s father paced the floor of his hotel room as he impatiently waited for his boys. He already knew who killed his son. There was no need for investigation. It was Chief Lewis that killed Bill because he refused to marry his daughter.

“He must pay for killing my son,” the senator swore.

And the best reprisal was to kill his daughter. Tit for tat! An eye for an eye!

When his boys arrived, he mandated them to kill Chief Lewis’ daughter within two days. He had decided to bury his son on the day the deceased would have had his wedding and he didn’t want Angela to witness his lying in state. That would break his heart. The only thing that would gladden his heart was to see Angela’s dead body before Bill’s burial.

The hunt started immediately. Angela must die before Chinwe and Bill’s burial. That was the senator’s instruction and it must be carried out to the letter. But the task was a bit difficult to accomplish. They were able to track Angela down in no time but the senator wanted a neat job. Her death must not be linked to him. The assassins were mindful of that.

A mammoth crowd had gather at St. Michael cemetery, venue of Chinwe and Bill’s burial. Most of the guests that would have graced their wedding ceremony were in attendance.

When Nneka arrived at the cemetery, she was filled with nostalgia. It was like homecoming for her. She had been visiting that particular cemetery every year until she met her husband during one of those visits. She felt somewhat guilty that after her marriage to Sam, that she hadn’t visited again. She felt sad when it occurred to her that she had betrayed and disappointed Chike. She had promised to pray for him until her last breath but she had failed woefully to live up to her promise. She quickly dispelled her guilt when she remembered that Chike was very much alive. He didn’t die after all or maybe he came back from the dead. But instead of bringing her joy, he came back to cause trouble for her. He came back to sow his wild oat in her and the seed had germinated. The tree was without doubt the offshoot of the seed he sowed. As long as the tree lived, her guilt would continue to stare her in the face. Ironically, she didn’t want the tree to die.

As she waited for the burial rites to commence, she wished that Chinwe would get up, come to her and tell her that it was all a joke. That she was alive, hale and hearty. That she scammed her and the whole family with the prank of the century. If only wishes were horses, even beggar would fly. She knew that Chinwe was dead. She wasn’t coming back. She was gone forever. Unlike Chike whose corpse she saw only on newspapers and television, she saw Chinwe’s corpse one on one. Nneka closed her eyes momentarily to enable her suppress the tears that had welled up in her eyes.

 Angela came in the company of her parents. She was dressed in all black including her sunglasses. It was a black Saturday and indeed a harvest of tears.

Bill’s father was particularly devastated when it dawned on him that his boys had failed him.

Those incompetent fools! How could they not achieve a simple task? He wished he had a gun at the moment. He would have pointed it at Angela and pulled the trigger. At that point, all he desired was to see Angela’s lifeless body and even the fear of going to jail or getting a death sentence couldn’t deter him. But he didn’t have a gun or any other weapon on him.

His heart bled when a photographer called Angela out from the crowd for snapshots and she obliged him. Where did she think she was? In a carnival? She was even smiling to the camera. Bill’s father was staring at a gun tucked inside one of the policemen’s belt holster and considering snatching it for better use when it happened.

Angela suddenly started staggering, then fell in a heap and became still. People gathered around her to find out what happened and also to see how they could help.

“She has been shot,” someone screamed. “I think she is dead.” On hearing this, mourners scampered for safety while security men took strategic positions.

Bill’s father smiled and heaved a deep sigh. He had a perfect understanding of what just happened. His boys had struck at last and it seemed they chose the best time. The undertakers should better dig a third grave.

A sniper had just shot and killed Angela. The photographing was a mere decoy to bring her out of the crowd thereby clearing the way for the sniper, who was positioned in an uncompleted building some distance from the cemetery.

It was crystal clear that Angela was already dead, but she was nevertheless rushed to the hospital where she was confirmed dead by the doctors. It was a BID (brought in dead). She was later deposited in the hospital mortuary to enable her family plan for her burial.

Just like the past assassination cases, the police commenced another fruitless investigation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER FIVE

 

 

 

 

When the news of the President’s sudden death broke that morning, most Nigerians took it with a pinch of salt. They were already used to fake news. Propagandists had been using the social media to misinform gullible Nigerians. Even the regular media organizations had joined in spreading fake news. They had to join the bandwagon to remain in business since it was mainly bad and fake news that sold.

So, everyone went about their normal businesses without allowing the news to distract them. The president was alive, hale and hearty and would soon make public appearance. Hadn’t that happened on many occasions in the past? Rumuormongers would never tire!

But as the day progressed, the news gained momentum. Even the international media joined the conversation. By this time, people started feeling that there could be an element of truth in this particular rumour. Tension mounted gradually as people stood in small groups, discussing the possibility and implications of Mr. President’s demise.

There was no official statement from the presidency until 9pm when it was aired as breaking news on the NTA and other national television stations. The breaking news was greeted with shouts of joy from every nook and cranny of the country. Citizens trooped out in the streets, chanting and dancing. The last few years had been tough.

The economy was nothing to write home about. It was so bad that most foreign investors had withdrawn their monies from Nigeria. They had relocated their companies and businesses to neighbouring countries thereby throwing many Nigerians into the already saturated labour market. Even some Nigerian entrepreneurs also moved their companies out of the country as they were equally affected. Those that couldn’t relocate either retrenched most of their workers and cut down production or shut down completely.  

The growing economic hardship together with high level of unemployment worsened the insecurity in the land. Arm robbery, kidnapping, banditry, ritual killings and terrorism had become the order of the day. If suicide bombers were not detonating bombs in a market or a church, gunmen would be running riot in a certain town or village. Many people had been kidnapped and held in captivity for ransom. People died in their hundreds day by day but the government seemed uninterested and whenever they spoke, they sounded as though they had been overwhelmed. At other times, they would unequivocally talk in favour of the criminals.

What of the infrastructure? The roads were death traps and the rails were nonexistent. Power supply was so epileptic that five hours of power supply in a day was celebrated. The populace had therefore resorted to generating sets as the alternative source of power, with its attendant contribution to air and noise pollution. Nigeria had become a failed state and anarchy had become the custom.

The government was very intolerant of any form of criticism. They proscribed all the pressure groups, tagging them as hoodlums or terrorists, and deregistered all the political parties that challenged their policies.

The National Electoral Commission was at the beck and call of the party in power, closing their eyes to electoral malpractices such as vote buying; ballot snatching and stuffing; mutilation of results; intimidation  and harassment of electorate especially those perceived to belong to the opposition parties; and political killings. More people were killed in Nigeria during elections than in countries fighting a war.

Most times, security agents watched helplessly or even partook in the killings and violence in favour of the power that was. There was a time the National Electoral Commission shifted an election and someone said that some people’s death had just been shifted and indeed they died at the later date from election violence. And the judges who happened to be part of the society, witnessing all the malpractices and violence, would sit at the election tribunal and claim that election petitions lacked merit. The three arms of government had been collapsed into one – the executive. Democracy had given way to dictatorship.

The law enforcement agents were emboldened by lack of checks and balances. Those that used to be in the barracks had left the barracks. Those that used to be at the borders had also left the borders. Those that operated in the waters and air now preferred the land. They had all left their natural habitats for the streets. They mounted checkpoints everywhere, not to curtail criminals but to extort money from law-abiding citizens who hustled for their daily bread. Many road users had lost their lives to trigger happy security agents just because they refused to give bribes.  The civilians were even asked to show receipt for everything including clothes, shoes and phones, and woe betide you if you didn’t have the receipts. You automatically became a thief and only God knew what would happen to you afterwards.

Civil servants also capitalized on the lawlessness in the land, demanding bribes before rendering services to fellow citizens. Doctors in charge of managing government hospitals stole money allocated to the hospitals. Teachers stole money allocated to schools. Most teachers also exchanged marks for money and sex. Bankers ripped off their customers. Pharmacists in government establishments embezzled money meant for drugs, thereby leaving patients at the mercy of patent medicine dealers most of who dealt on adulterated and substandard drugs. More Nigerians died from fake drugs than from health conditions. All the sectors of the economy were bedeviled by corruption and inefficiency.

The fish had rotten from the head!

Nigerians who were genuinely concerned and dissatisfied with the bad governance in the country couldn’t talk because although freedom of speech was enshrined in the constitution, one’s freedom could not be guaranteed after speaking. Those that tried to talk ended up in DSS custody. Those that planned protest were either bought over or harassed by security agencies until they became deaf, dumb and even blind to the nefarious activities of the government.

The brave ones that insisted on antigovernment protests were arrested, detained and eventually charged with treason. The victims were detained beyond the period stipulated by law and even when courts of competent jurisdiction granted them bail, the deceased president and the cabal flouted the court orders. Followers and supporters of these political prisoners who staged protests for their release were dispersed with teargas and on many occasions shot and killed.

The worst part of the mess was that the parliament could do nothing to liberate the people. They were rubberstamp, saying aye to whatever the executive proposed or did.  But why would they go against the executive when they were birds of a feather that flocked together. They were all selfish, irresponsible and insensitive politicians who were more interested in enriching themselves at the expense of the masses. They stole the common wealth and stashed it abroad.

The judiciary for their part was talking out of both sides of their mouth. They would grant bail in the morning and deny it in the evening without new charges filed or new evidence tendered. They kept quiet when their judgments were flouted. In fact it was a public knowledge that the judiciary was in bed with the executive.

The last hope of the common man had become his nightmare.

So there was total clampdown on the judiciary, press, civil society, labour unions and opposition.

A tyrant was in power and everyone had been intimidated into silence. So the country slowly but steadily nosedived into the abyss, leaving the citizens in total despair.

One could therefore imagine the joy in the land when the tyrant and clueless president died of heart attack. He had been suffering from an undisclosed chronic disease for which he frequently traveled out of the country on medical tourism. Instead of fixing the hospitals so that the citizens would have access to quality health care, he would rather use taxpayers’ money to travel abroad to treat even minor ailments.

The vice president was sworn in immediately as the president, in line with the constitution. In his acceptance speech, he emphasized on his intention to fix the economy, fight insecurity and corruption and of course fix the infrastructure. He promised to select the best hands to help him achieve his goals without minding their tribes, creeds or political affiliations. He would put square pegs in square holes and round pegs in round holes. He vowed to pay particular attention to human capital development. He hoped to achieve this by revamping the educational sector through adequate funding, training and retraining of teachers. He would also ensure a better welfare package for teachers at all levels and good scholarship schemes for indigent but brilliant students.

He banned political office holders from accessing medical treatment abroad; sending their children to foreign schools; and the use of foreign cars as official vehicles.

“We must patronize our own. That’s the only way we can move this country forward.” He stated vehemently.

The new president’s broadcast was a message of hope to Nigerians. Better days were not ahead. They were here already!

The days that followed saw the new President sack all the ministers and the appointees of the former president. He quickly replaced them with men of honour and integrity; men who had proved themselves worthy both locally and internationally.

“Irresponsible, unresponsive and incompetent people should have no business in government,” he reiterated.  

Because the new president led by example, the judiciary and legislature joined hands with him and Nigeria started changing for the better.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER SIX

 

 

 

 

Nneka was home alone. Her husband left very early in the morning for his usual Saturday morning exercise and he wasn’t expected home until noon. The house was dead silent and that was exactly what she wanted. She had works to do, so noise was the last thing she could tolerate.

She was so engrossed in her work that she didn’t realize that music was playing in the living room located downstairs. By and by, the music wafted into her ears as it became louder. Initially, she thought it was her imagination, but with time she became convinced that music was actually playing in their living room. She was alone in the house and therefore couldn’t understand how music would just start playing. Besides, it was Enya’s song and she was not a fan. Her husband wasn’t either. She actually hated Enya’s songs as they always sounded spine-chilling.

Gripped with fear and curiosity, she noiselessly climbed out of bed and started downstairs on tiptoes.

The music stopped playing and the lights went out the moment she stepped into the sitting room. She let out a muffled scream. She was so afraid that she couldn’t move a muscle. She flinched when suddenly the music came back on, this time at full blast; then followed the lights.

She closed her eyes tightly. She never wanted to open them again. She didn’t want to see her assailant. She neither wanted to see his face nor know what he was going to do to her. He should just go ahead and do it. But her curiosity got the better of her. And when she opened her eyes, she saw the message written in blood on the TV screen:

AVENGE MY DEATH!

Nneka screamed and fainted.

When Sam came home about ten minutes later, she was still unconscious. He panicked as he knelt by her side to ascertain that she was still alive. He was relieved when he noticed that she was still breathing. “What happened to her?” he wondered as he looked around to be sure that there was no danger lurking around the sitting room. There was no sign of break in and entry, and there was no sign that Nneka ingested poison or any harmful substance. She was hale and hearty when he left the house so what then happened to her? He decided to quit asking questions and take her to the hospital first. She might be able to recount what happened upon waking up. But right now, she needed to be reviewed by the doctors.

“Where am I?” Nneka asked when she regained consciousness.

“You are awake. To God be the glory!” Sam who had been sitting on the edge of her bed said with so much relief. He held Nneka’s hand and squeezed it tenderly.

“Where am I?” Nneka repeated, as she tried to sit up in bed but her husband restrained her.

“Relax, my dear. You will be fine,” Sam assured her.

“Okay,” Nneka said after a moment of silence, “But where am I?”

“In the hospital,” Sam answered simply and her eyes popped out.

“What am I doing in the hospital, Samson?” The panic and surprise on her face didn’t reflect in her voice. She sounded very calm and tired. She sat up and started looking around her. She later focused her gaze on her husband’s face as she waited for an answer to her question.

“I came back home and found you unconscious, so I brought you here,” Sam explained.

“Really?” Nneka said and flinched. She seemed to have been hit by an invisible force. She obviously remembered something – something nasty. She huddled up and began to cry

“What is the matter?” Sam asked as he tried to hold her hands but she drew away.

Sam turned to stare at the doctor, confused. The doctor gesticulated that he should let her be for a while to enable her sort herself out. The doctor had earlier made a diagnosis of vasovagal attack and added that bad news and fear were among the major causes.

She cried for a long time and then became quiet and started gazing into space.

“Did you see it?” She asked suddenly, neither looking at her husband nor the doctor.

Sam glanced at the doctor. “Are you asking me?” he asked. He knew she was asking him but he didn’t understand the question.

“Yes, did you see it?” she repeated.

“See what?” Sam asked, getting more confused.

“The message on the screen,” Nneka said simply.

“Which message?” Sam was becoming very impatient and it was evident on his face and in his voice.

“The message was written in blood…”

“Written in blood?” Sam said and sprang to his feet. He was trembling with fear. “Where?”

Nneka hesitated. “On the TV screen,” she said at last and fixed her gaze on Sam’s face as if the answer she sought resided there.

“What are you talking about, darling? I don’t understand you.” Sam’s patience had obviously been stretched to the limits.

Nneka closed her eyes and pursed her lips and silence followed. She opened her eyes after a while and hissed. She then narrated what happened to her husband. “I saw the message. It was clearly written on the TV screen.” She said, clasping her hands between her thighs.

Sam sat close to her and held her across the shoulders. “There was no message on the TV screen, honey,” he sounded very soft and reassuring. “I think it was your imagination.”

Nneka glared at her husband. “How can you say that it was my imagination?” she asked angrily. “It wasn’t my imagination, dear. I saw the message in clear consciousness.” She paused and then continued. “I think it is Chinwe.” She said as she nodded repeatedly. “Yes, Chinwe wants me to avenge her death. She wants me to bring her killers to justice.”

Sam wanted to argue further but the doctor’s raised hand stopped him. The doctor pulled a seat close to Nneka and sat down “Can you repeat the story you just told us?” he asked and Nneka wasted no time in narrating her experience once more. “I think it was Chinwe. She wants me to avenge her death,” she concluded with a cry.

The doctor looked steadily at Sam and said, “I think she has relapsed. The doctor knew Nneka’s psychiatric history. It was the same hospital she was taken to the first time she had psychiatric breakdown following chike’s death. It was also the same doctor that attended to her and later invited a psychiatrist to review and take over her management.

Sam was also aware of Nneka’s psychiatric history. She never kept anything from him.

“She will need her psychiatrist,” the doctor added.

“I don’t need any psychiatrist,” Nneka said slowly but sternly.

“Honey…,” Sam made to persuade her but she interrupted him by raising her hand.

“I don’t need a psychiatrist. I am not mad,” this time she screamed the words as her eyes glowed with anger.

“Nobody says you are mad, my daughter.”

Everyone in the room turned toward the door and saw Nneka’s mother standing at the doorway. Her husband was right behind her. Nobody knew how long they had been standing there but the old woman’s contribution showed that they must have stood long enough to understand what the matter was. Sam had earlier called to inform them of Nneka’s condition.

“You are not mad,” Nneka’s mother repeated as she walked into the private room and sat on her daughter’s hospital bed. Sam had to get up for her. Her father stood at the foot of the bed with arms folded, he was visibly disturbed. His daughter’s mental problem started over ten years back following her fiancé’s death. It lingered for about six months after which she had occasional nightmares for another six months. But for the past nine years, she had been free from psychiatric events and everybody thought it was over. Why the relapse? He wondered. Was it Chinwe’s death? But Chinwe died over three years earlier. He reminded himself. Why would she relapse now when the precipitant occurred long time ago? Maybe it wasn’t Chinwe’s death after all. But if not why would Nneka say that Chinwe wanted her to avenge her death?

“Sweetheart…,” her mother called softly, “how are you?” she asked while scrutinizing her face and smoothing her hair.

“I am fine, mom,” her answer was standoffish.

“Good, but you have to allow the doctors do their job. They know better. If they think you need a psychiatric review, that doesn’t mean you are mad. It only means that you might be stressed out or depressed. Remember you suffered PTSD after Chike’s death. Maybe the relapse is because of Chinwe’s death. You said she wants you to avenge her death. That means you have been thinking a lot about her lately. Please, my daughter, cooperate with the doctors,” the older woman pleaded.

“I am fine,” Nneka insisted after a brief moment of silence, “and I want to be discharged right now” she commanded. “Why is it difficult for you people to believe me?” she was screaming again. “I said I had an encounter with a ghost. I said I saw a message written in blood on the TV screen. How is that difficult to understand?”

The doctor excused himself at this point and later sent for Sam and Nneka’s father. Shortly after, they joined the doctor in his office.

“I sent for you because we can’t continue to argue with her. I can assure you that this argument will never end. She needs help and we have to help her willy-nilly. She won’t give consent because she lacks insight. Lack of insight is the hallmark of mental disorders. I need your consent to sedate her while we wait for the psychiatrist to arrive.

The patient’s relatives were yet to make a decision when a nurse barged into the doctor’s office. “Doctor…,” she called amidst pants, “the patient is threatening to leave the hospital. In fact she has removed her drip and pulled out the canula. Please, come with me.” The nurse hardly finished before running out of the office with Sam, Chief and the doctor on her heels. Nneka was half way out of the room when they entered. Her mother was doing her best to restrain her but her best wasn’t good enough. Nneka was determined to leave the hospital and the sooner she left the better for her.

With the men back in the room, it was easier to take her back to the bed and the doctor quickly administered a sedative. Her sleep wasn’t long as the doctor just needed her to be calm until the psychiatrist arrived. When she opened her eyes, the psychiatrist smiled at her. “Good afternoon, Mrs. Nneka. How are you today?”

She stared at him for a while and then looked away without uttering a word. She was very angry. She felt so violated. Why would they keep her in the hospital against her wish? Wasn’t she old enough to make her own decisions?

“You don’t want to talk to me? You are not even looking at me,” the Psychiatrist said with a laugh and Nneka wondered what was funny. She marveled at how insensitive humanity had become. She just had an encounter with a ghost and all that people could do was to declare her mad and make jest of her. What a wicked world! She resolved neither to talk to the psychiatrist nor anybody. Talking to them was of no use. It would amount to a mere waste of time and energy. Their minds were already made up. They should just go ahead and do with her whatever they wanted.

Since she wasn’t ready to talk, the psychiatrist turned to her relatives to get the history of the recent event. He later prescribed some oral medications and threatened to convert to injections if she refused to take them.

“It will be in your own interest to take your drugs. The more compliant you are, the faster you recover. Or do you want to remain like this?” The psychiatrist asked. She didn’t bother to answer and the psychiatrist wasn’t even expecting an answer. “Like I said earlier, if you refuse your drugs I will be forced to convert them to injections and rest assured that we would restrain you and give them to you. It is your choice.” With those words, the psychiatrist majestically walked out of the room.

Dr. Dan was a very proud psychiatrist. His manner of approach was very poor. Unlike many other doctors who petted their patients, he was full of threats, making jest of his patients at any slight opportunity. Nneka resented his attitude so much that she almost threw a party to celebrate the end of her consultations with him when she had her first episode of psychiatric disorder. In the days that followed her last visit to his clinic, she had prayed fervently that nothing should take her to him ever again but it seemed she hadn’t prayed enough in the past few years.

And here she was again at Dr. Dan’s mercy. He shouldn’t have been a doctor. Being an undertaker would have suited him better. Nneka hissed so loudly that her husband approached to see what the problem was.

“What is the matter, honey?” he asked, trying to take her hand but she snatched it away.

“Leave me alone,” she barked.

Nobody should pretend to love or care for her. They were all pretenders. They ganged up against her to the extent that they kept her in the hospital against her will. They even restrained her and forcefully injected her. They humiliated her and Sam had the guts to act ‘Mr. nice man’ to her. She was really disappointed in him. She had thought that even if others didn’t understand that Sam would. But he chose to betray her.

Nneka was discharged home after a week in the hospital. She had heeded Dr. Dan’s advice and complied with her medications. She had reasoned that it was better to play along since defiance would give the doctors the impression that she wasn’t yet well. And it wasn’t like revolting would solve anything. Instead, it would attract more embarrassing moments and long hospital stay. So she took her drugs religiously and answered all questions posed to her without much ado. She even joined in social discussions at times.

It wasn’t surprising therefore that Dr. Dan found her stable enough to go home after a week rather than a month as he projected earlier.

Shortly after she came home, her parents visited. They came along with her children who had been staying with them since their mother was hospitalized. Nneka was excited to see them. She hugged and kissed them severally. She inspected them closely to be sure that her parents took good care of them and noticed that they did. They looked quite good. In fact, they looked better than the last time she saw them. She must acknowledge that her parents did a great job.

After what seemed like a very short visit, even though they spent hours, her parents announced their intention to leave and they would still take the children with them. Nneka protested. She wanted her children back, claiming that she was well enough to take care of them. But her mother could neither be hoodwinked nor sweet talked into leaving the children behind. Nneka needed time to recover and that was final. Without waiting for her daughter’s permission, she matched her grandchildren out of the house and into the car. She even took more of the children’s clothes, suggesting that they weren’t returning any time soon.

The arrangement suited Sam perfectly. The children could be difficult to handle at times and with their mother’s condition, having them around would make things more difficult for him. He was going to miss them but staying with their grandparents was best for everyone at the moment.

Nneka could not hold back her tears as she watched the car depart. She continued to wave until the car was out of sight. Sam took her into the living room where he sat down and made her sit on his laps.

“Don’t worry, honey, they will soon return,” he cooed into her ear. “They will come back the moment you are strong enough. You hear?” he said and Nneka nodded slightly.

Apart from missing her children, she had another issue to contain with and that was the memory of her encounter with the ghost. Suddenly, the house became eerie and she was sure that she couldn’t stay alone in the house anymore. She had the feeling that the ghost was associated with the house and would appear again once she was home alone. The fear waxed with every passing minute and she felt like staying away from the house for a while, in fact, forever but she advised herself appropriately. She was sure that requesting to move house would give people especially Dr. Dan the impression that she had not recovered adequately. Dr. Dan would argue that he discharged her in error. He would certainly take her back into the hospital and who knew how long she would be hospitalized this time. He would definitely keep her for long and ruin her life with overdose of antipsychotics. A shudder ran down her spine at the mere thought of that.

“I don’t ever want to see Dr. Dan again,” Nneka cried. “Will you promise that you won’t take me to him again?” she pleaded.

Sam turned her to face him and then planted a kiss on her lips. “We will see another psychiatrist if need be,” he assured her.

“I neither want to see Dr. Dan nor any other psychiatrist. Their drugs make me sick.” She whined as tears rolled down her cheeks.

“What if you have need for them tomorrow?” Sam tried to reason with his wife. It wouldn’t be wise to agree to what Nneka was asking for but refusing to promise her would break her heart.

“I am fine. I will never need them again. I know I suffered post-traumatic stress disorder after Chike died but I am fine now. I have been fine for the past nine years and even as I speak right now, I am very fine. I only had an encounter with a ghost. That doesn’t mean madness.” She suddenly knelt before her husband and clasped her hands together. “Please, don’t ever take me to the psychiatrists. I beg of you in the name of God.”

The sight of her kneeling before him broke Sam’s heart. He stood and dragged her to a standing position. He held her in a tight embrace. “I will never take you to them again.” He whispered. There was a lump in his throat and it was obvious that he was fighting back tears.

Nneka bounced back to life after about a month after discharge from the hospital. She hadn’t been sick actually. She only had an encounter with a ghost as she had always claimed. And whatever she suffered was temporarily. But the drugs prescribed by Dr. Dan was what really made her sick. But now that she had finished taking those poisons, she had her life back. Her children had returned to the house and she had gone back to work. The ghost never harassed her again. It seemed that it had rested in peace. The eeriness hanging over her house had disappeared though once in a while she overreacted to unexpected sounds and images.

The psychiatrist had in addition to drugs, prescribed regular recreations and Sam had made it a duty to take her out no fewer than once in a week. Within three months, they had been to almost all the tourist centres in town and even beyond. Sam had promised to take her on a vacation to Ghana.  They needed to explore and if possible exploit the world. They had both worked so hard. They deserved to enjoy the fruit of their labour in their youth. They didn’t have to wait till old age. Sam had already contacted Mr. Ado to make some reservations for them. To make the trip memorable, Mr. Ado and his wife had also scheduled their leaves to coincide with the vacation of Sam and his wife.

One week before their trip to Ghana, they went to the mall to watch Genevieve’s Lion heart that just started showing on cinema. The movie was the best in town and Netflix was already negotiating to buy the franchise. “Genevieve would soon become the richest film maker in Nigeria.” Nneka said to her husband as they exited the cinema hall.

Sam nodded his agreement. “She is good. I love her.” Sam said and Nneka jokingly glared at him.

He noticed how she looked at him and burst into a laugh. “Jealous woman,” he said and Nneka punched him in the stomach.

“Ouch!” he screamed, grabbing his stomach. “That was hard. You are not just jealous, you are wicked, too.” He said and sprang away from her to avoid more punches. In fact, he narrowly escaped.

“You are lucky,” she laughed.

They walked into Joachin and Joan boutique. They had already shopped for their trip but Nneka wanted two more gowns, a pair of shoes and a black handbag. Joachin and Joan stocked the best designer’s collections in Lagos. They were consequently very expensive but Sam and Nneka had more money than they needed. They didn’t waste time in the boutique since Nneka had previously checked out their collections online and picked out those she wanted. So, she only fitted them, paid and off they went. They were about exiting the mall when Sam ran into an old friend. After pleasantries and introductions, Nneka left the two old friends to catch up. She was packing the items they bought into the car when a girl of about ten years approached and handed her a postcard.

She collected the card, “Thanks!” she smiled at the girl as she wondered who sent the gift and what for.

“He asked me to give it to you,” the girl turned and pointed but Nneka could see no one in the direction the girl pointed. She could see the confusion in the girl’s face. “He was standing right there,” the girl tried to explain. “Where did he go? How could he vanish so quickly like a ghost?” the girl wondered aloud.

At the mention of the word ‘ghost’, Nneka’s heart stopped momentarily. A shudder ran down her entire body and she suddenly started sweating profusely. Her whole body was shaking as she weighed the options of either checking out the write up on the postcard or throwing it away outright. She yielded to her curiosity and opened the postcard and the write up read:

AVENGE MY DEATH!

She hurriedly dropped the card and started screaming with her eyes shut tightly. Most of the passers-by ran away while some others rushed to her to see how they could help. But how could they help when they had no idea of what the problem was? Nneka would not answer any questions instead she was busy screaming; “Ghost! Ghost! Ghost! There is a ghost here and he is after me.”

Sam was still chatting with his friend when the pandemonium started. He had no idea of what was happening. He decided to find out from a lady that came from that direction.

“A woman just went mad. I learnt she killed her husband and inherited his wealth. Now the ghost of her late husband is haunting her. Serves her right!” she finished and walked away.

A woman just went mad…., … the ghost of her late husband is haunting her.

Sam ran off immediately. He was so dramatic that his friend wondered if he thought he was the ghost in question. As Sam got closer to the scene, he was sure that Nneka had had another relapse.

“Please God, let it not be what I am thinking,” he prayed but that prayer was belated and of no effect.

Nneka was frantically jumping about and screaming “Ghost! Ghost! Ghost!” Her eyes were still shut tightly.

Sam grabbed her around the waist and shook her vigorously, calling out her name in the process. On hearing her husband’s voice, she became still, opened her eyes and collapsed into his arms.

With the help of some men, Sam took her into the car. He then jumped into the driver’s seat and zoomed off. His destination was the hospital but half way, he remembered his promise never to take her to the psychiatrist ever again. But he was taking her to the regular hospital not a psychiatric hospital. Even as he tried to justify his decision, he knew that any good doctor would invite a psychiatrist to review her. He must not renege on his promise. The only option was to take her home. He was sure she would be fine. He made a U- turn and headed home. His mind pricked him as he thought he could be making a grave mistake but he must keep this one promise. The picture of her kneeling down, clasping her hands and begging him never to take her to the psychiatrists flashed through his mind and broke his heart.

He reflected on the countless speculations from people that gathered at the scene. Some said his wife killed her rich husband and inherited his wealth and now the ghost of the poor man was haunting her. Some others speculated that he, being her boyfriend, was the person that encouraged her to kill her husband to pave way for him. There was yet another group who believed that he, being her husband, had used Nneka for money ritual. People said all manner of damning stuffs but Sam wasn’t bothered. His only concern was his wife’s wellbeing. He just prayed that he wouldn’t have any reason to regret his decision to take her home instead of the hospital.

By the time they got home, Nneka had already regained consciousness and was calm and stable. When he wanted to help her out of the car, she refused.

“Stop treating me like an invalid,” she said tiredly as she alighted from the car. “I am fine,” she insisted as she walked towards the front door.

Sam locked the car and followed her into the house. She was seated in the living room when her husband entered.  He squatted before her and took her hands in his.

“How are you, honey?” he asked tenderly, squeezing her hands gently.

Nneka answered by nodding slightly. Sam noticed that though she was stable, she was very tired. She expended so much energy at the mall as she jumped about. All she needed at the moment was a cold shower and good rest, not question and answer session. Her children were on holiday and had already gone to stay with their grandparents to pave way for their trip to Ghana. The house was quiet and that was perfect for her. Her rest would suffer no disturbance. She got up swiftly and staggered, prompting Sam to reach out to catch her.

“I am fine,” she whispered and matched upstairs, while Sam watched with his heart in his mouth as he prayed that she wouldn’t trip and fall. He decided to remain in the sitting room, reasoning that she needed space. He had to accord her that. Even though he knew that leaving her alone might be risky as she could do something funny, but fussing around her wouldn’t help matters either.

Nneka wasn’t fine and she knew it. Nobody would have an encounter with a ghost and be fine. She was scared to death, but she decided to be strong to convince her husband that she was fine otherwise he might consider taking her back to the psychiatrists. As long as she was concerned, it was better to have an encounter with a ghost than to encounter Dr. Dan or any other psychiatrist.

Sam didn’t follow her upstairs but his mind did. He kept his ear to the ground as he listened for strange sounds and movements.

When eventually he came up to the bedroom, Nneka had tucked herself into bed and was fast asleep. He sat on the edge of the bed and waited on her. Her sleep was surprisingly peaceful. She was even smiling in her sleep. Sam was happy that whatever that was happening to his wife in the physical didn’t follow her to the spiritual realm.

“But why is she having these visual and auditory hallucinations?” Sam wondered aloud. He stood and started pacing. The psychiatrist called it schizophrenia and explained that the causes included genetics, environment and altered brain chemistry and structure. Since no one else in Nneka’s entire lineage had suffered schizophrenia or any other mental disorder, Sam reasoned that the cause of Nneka’s condition was environmental. He must take her away immediately. Their trip to Ghana was scheduled for a week’s time but there was no need to wait that long. They had to leave the next day.

He reached for his phone and called Mr. Ado. “There is change in plan,” he said the moment his friend answered. “We are coming tomorrow.”

“Why? Hope there is no problem.” Mr. Ado asked, surprised. He couldn’t understand the sudden change in plan.

“I will explain everything when we get there,” Sam assured him. “For now, go ahead and make necessary arrangements. We will be in Accra before noon tomorrow. Thank you,” Sam muttered and hung up. He glanced at Nneka and noticed that she had just started smiling again.

“You are so peaceful outside this environment, my dear,” Sam said, stroking her cheek. “I promise to take you away from here tomorrow. I promise you that, my dear. Tomorrow morning,” he repeated. “And if you find enduring peace in Ghana, we will relocate for good.”

When Sam and his wife arrived at the Kotoka international airport, Mr. Ado and his wife were waiting for them. The airport which was the only international airport in Ghana was located in the capital city, Accra. It was originally a military airport used by the British Royal Air force during the Second World War. The airport was later handed over to the civilian authorities after the war. In 1956, President Kwame Nkrumah launched a development project that reconfigured the facility into a terminal building. The project was completed in 1958 and named Accra international airport. But in 1969, the airport was renamed Kotoka international airport in honour of Lieutenant General Emmanuel Kwasi Kotoka, a member of the National Liberation Council, who was killed in an abortive coup attempt at a location which later became the forecourt of the airport.

Mr. Ado and his wife smiled boldly when Sam and Nneka emerged from the Terminal. Nneka had met Mr. Ado before but hadn’t met his wife, nevertheless, she recognized her instantly, having seen several pictures of her. The couples greeted one another with hugs.

“Here she is at last,” Sam introduced his wife to Mrs. Ado.

“Welcome to the land of Gold,” Mrs. Ado said to Nneka with a warm smile.

“The land of gold?” Nneka laughed.

“Yes, we were called Gold Coast from fifteenth century to 1957 when we became Ghana at independence. “ Mr. Ado interjected. Gold Coast originated from the large deposit of gold in our land. We are the world’s seventh largest producer of gold and second in Africa behind South Africa. We also have the ninth largest reserves of Diamond in the world. So we are going to spoil you with gold and diamond.” Mr. Ado ended with a laugh.

Wow! Nneka exclaimed. “I didn’t know that. Did you?” she asked, looking at her husband.

“The Ados have not started with you yet. You will hear much more about Ghana in the coming days. Get your jotter and pen ready,” was all Sam said.

Nneka was sure to enjoy her stay in Ghana. The vacation promised to be entertaining, informative and educative. The educative aspect had actually started. She hadn’t spent up to an hour in Ghana but she had already learnt a lot about the country. She would no doubt become a Ghanaian historian before the end of her vacation.

Mr. Ado had already booked a suite for them at the Fiesta Royale hotel which was about five minutes’ drive from the airport and fifteen minutes away from the Accra city centre.

The hotel rooms were luxuriously appointed and elegant, with contemporary décor. It haboured all facilities expected from a first class hotel, such as swimming pool, a gym, business centre and much more. The hotel offered unrivaled combination of hospitality, delightful amenities, efficient services and modern luxury.

When they were shown to their suite, Nneka marveled at the refined architectural details and rich fabrics which created an aura that was inviting, opulent and relaxing. The room facilities included direct internet access, direct dial telephone, multi-channel television, mini-bar, and room and laundry services. The hotel was indeed a home away from home.

The Ados left shortly after. The visitors needed to settle in and get some rest before heading to Mr. Ado’s house for a welcome dinner. Mr. Ado had also invited some other friends to the dinner.

The hotel offered a car rental service, so Sam decided to rent one. He opted for self-drive because he found driving pleasurable and he hated leaving his driver in the car, waiting for him hours on end.

“That is a waste of man power”, he would always argue. He was familiar with Accra, having lived in the city in the past, so locating his destinations wouldn’t be a problem.

The dinner was scheduled for 7pm but Sam and Nneka left the hotel at 6:30pm and at 6:50pm, they were ushered into the massive living room where the dinner would hold. Most of the other guests were already seated by the time the Nigerians arrived. They all stood to welcome Sam and Nneka who happened to be the special guests. There were over 40 guests both men and women, present. Mr. Ado introduced them one by one, and Sam and his wife shook hands with each of them. Sam knew some of them as he had met them during his previous visits but it was a whole new world to Nneka. This was her first time in Ghana and she loved everything about the country and the people.

The dinner was grand and the other guests were fun loving people. They were full of jokes. By the time the dinner was over, Nneka needed urgent massage with balm as her ribs ached severely.

When they returned to the hotel, it was few minutes to 10pm. “Oh my God!” Nneka exclaimed as she undressed.

Sam’s heart stood still as he turned to see what the problem was. He feared that the ghost might have traveled with them.

Nneka noticed Sam’s fear and smiled. “I am sorry, dear. I didn’t mean to scare you. I just remembered that we are yet to call mom and tell her that we had a safe trip and of course find out how the children are doing.” She said as she swept across the room to her husband and brushed his lips with hers and Sam heaved a noisy sigh of relief.

“I spoke with her when I went out to rent the car. Sorry that I forgot to tell you.” Sam apologized.

“Oh, thank God,” Nneka was relieved. “They must have slept by now. We will call them in the morning so we can talk with the children.” She said and Sam answered with a nod.

They showered and later strolled through the open terrace of the hotel. They embraced the evening breeze and caught a panoramic view of the beautifully manicured lawns and landscaped swimming pool. They eventually sat at the pool side, holding hands, chatting and laughing like a newlywed on honeymoon.

The sun had risen when Nneka woke up the next morning. She opened her eyes and saw her husband staring at her and smiling. He was sitting on the edge of the bed.

“What?” she asked with a fake frown.

“Hm?” Sam pretended not to understand her.

“Why are you staring at me?”

“Is it an offense for a husband to admire his wife?” he asked with a fake seriousness. “Anyway, you were so peaceful and beautiful while you slept and I couldn’t help admiring you,” he explained and Nneka sat up and spread her arms for a hug. She held him tightly and whispered into his ear, “thank you.”

“You are welcome,” Sam said as he freed himself from her strangulating hug. “Eat your breakfast quickly. We have many places to go and the day is no longer young.” Sam said, pointing at the breakfast on the nightstand. He had earlier called room service for their breakfast.

“Oh my God!” Nneka screamed with joy. “This is so romantic,” she threw her arms open once again and hugged her husband tightly. “Thank you so much!” she whispered again.

It wasn’t Nneka’s first breakfast in bed. Her husband used to serve her breakfast in bed in the early days of their relationship but the stress of work and children had made that impossible lately.

She was no doubt enjoying this vacation. The day before, she had a good time at the Ados and laughed like never before. Her husband even had to massage her ribs to ease off pain because she really cracked her ribs. After dinner at the Ados, she had strolled the open terrace of the hotel, savouring the cool breeze and panoramic view of the landscape. She later had the most peaceful sleep she had ever had in recent times. On waking up in the morning, her husband served her breakfast in bed. Her encounter with the ghost seemed to be a blessing in disguise. Maybe, she should see more ghosts whenever her husband started being too busy to show her love. She smiled and attacked her breakfast.

In the days that followed, Nneka toured Accra in the company of her husband. They visited almost all the tourist sites including Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum and memorial park; the independence square; the national theatre; Jamestown; Osu castle; W.E.B Dubois memorial centre; Artists Alliance Gallery; Labadi Beach among others. They even traveled to Cape Coast to visit the Cape Coast castle. The castle in question was used to hold slaves before they were loaded onto ships and sold in the Americas especially the Caribbean. It was tagged the gate of no return as it was the last stop before crossing the Atlantic Ocean.

The couple took lots of pictures and bought so many art works and jewelries.

“I think we should stay here for good. We seem to be better off here,” Sam thought aloud and Nneka looked up at him. He was standing by the window and looking out.

“Hm?” She heard him but didn’t understand what he meant.

Sam looked admiringly at her. “Look at how you glow. You shine like a star in the firmament. You have been so at peace since we arrived in this country,” he walked across the room to join her on the bed. “Would it sound unreasonable if I suggested that we relocate to Accra for good?”

Nneka burst into a laugh after few minutes of husband and wife staring at each other in silence. “Are you kidding me?”

Sam shook his head severally, “I am serious, very serious.”

“No!” Nneka sprang out of bed and started pacing the floor. “Are you suggesting that we leave everything and come and stay in Ghana?” She stopped pacing and stared at Sam with disbelief. “You want us to leave our businesses, our family, friends and neighbours – in fact our whole world, behind and come and stay here? Why?” She was rooted at a spot as she waited for her husband’s answer.

Sam got up, walked to where she was standing, held her in his arms and kissed her passionately. He then led her to the bed where they both sat down.

“Honey…,” he started, cupping her cheeks with his hands, “businesses and friends or even family ties don’t matter to me. The only thing that matters to me right now is you. My only interest is your health and happiness. This place seems to offer you both.” He paused for a while. “We can move our businesses to this place and our parents can come and stay here with us, but if they refuse, we will visit them regularly and vice versa.” He concluded.

Nneka made to protest but he hushed her lovingly, placing a finger across her lips. “Sh! Please, don’t argue with me on this. Just sleep over it.” Nneka nodded slightly. She didn’t like the idea but her husband had urged her to give it a thought and she had to respect him. But at the right time, she would maintain her stand.

When the music drifted into Nneka’s ears, she thought it was a dream. She was probably having a nightmare. Yes, a nightmare because that was what Enya’s music represented. She wished the nightmare would stop but instead, the music got louder. She had to wake up and end the nightmare.

But why was she having a nightmare about the ghost, again? Her stay in Ghana had been very peaceful and her husband was already considering relocating the family to Ghana for good. Why would this ghost follow her around the world? She began to toss about as she struggled to wake up and end the nightmare. She eventually succeeded and opened her eyes. But when she did open her eyes, she wished she never did. Because standing at the foot of the bed was a man dressed in a white robe, staring at her. The light in the room was dimmed, so she couldn’t decipher his face properly. She also realized that the music wasn’t a dream. It was real. She quickly closed her eyes, believing that the waking up was part of her nightmare. She was still dreaming. When she opened her eyes the second time, the man was gone and the music wasn’t playing anymore. She sat up and covered her face with her hands as she pondered on the significance of the event that just played out. When she removed her hands from her face, she looked at her husband and discovered that the young man was sleeping soundly. That further convinced her that all she saw and heard was in a dream, otherwise Sam would have been awoken by the music. He was such a light sleeper. She climbed out of bed and stretched, patting her mouth as she yawned elaborately. She needed to ease herself, so she switched on the brighter lights and was heading to the toilet adjoining the room when the tail of her eye got a glimpse of it. She stopped suddenly and slowly turned to face the mirror. Just like the first encounter, the message was written in blood:

AVENGE MY DEATH!

Nneka let out a loud scream that caused Sam to jump out of bed and in his poor wakefulness, staggered for a while before becoming fully awake. Fully alert, he discovered that Nneka was jumping about, screaming; Ghost! Ghost! Ghost!

He reached for her and grabbed her by the waist. “What is it honey?” he asked, shaking her vigorously. He thought she was having a nightmare and decided to shake her to wakefulness.

She pointed at the mirror and Sam focused his gaze on it but couldn’t see anything other than their images.

“What are you showing me?” Sam panicked. “I can’t see anything.” There was frustration in his voice.

She continued to point and suddenly, she passed out and collapsed into Sam’s arms.

He carried her to the bed and quickly checked to ensure that she wasn’t in danger. With her respiration and heartbeat appearing to be normal, he sat beside her and awaited her recovery of consciousness.

Taking her to the hospital wasn’t an option as he had earlier promised never to take her to the hospital for such incidents. She would be okay. He was startled of the bed when his phone rang. He snatched it from the nightstand and answered at the first ring. He didn’t even bother to check who the caller was. But that wasn’t a problem because he recognized the voice immediately. It was Mr. Ado.

“Hello!” Mr. Ado said urgently. There was panic and fright in his voice. “Who is Chike?”

“I don’t understand.” Sam was very confused and it showed in his voice.

“I just got a call from someone who introduced himself as Chike and claimed that he died some years ago. He said that I should tell Nneka to avenge his death. He added that he would make her life miserable if she failed to do his bidding.” Mr. Ado explained. “Please, give Nneka the phone so that I will deliver the message to her by myself. I don’t want some ghosts calling my line and scaring the daylights out of me.” Mr. Ado was sweating profusely.

“As I am talking to you, Nneka is unconscious,” Sam stated. His voice was surprising calm. He was already used to her dramas. Though he was concerned, he was no more frantic.

“What!” Mr. Ado screamed. “What happened to her?” he asked.

“She woke up a short while ago and started screaming, calling ghost severally. She later passed out. Before she passed out, she tried to show me something on the mirror but I didn’t see anything,” Sam explained and Mr. Ado could see the connection between the story Sam just told him and the phone call he received. A certain ghost was on the rampage, trying to get his death avenged. And he knew that the only way to assuage the ghost was to do his bidding.

Mr. Ado was only patient for the crack of dawn before running to the hotel to meet Sam and Nneka. By the time he got there, Nneka had recovered consciousness. He narrated his encounter with the ghost once again. He added more details, such as the evidence to nail the ghost’s killers and where to find it; and the people to invite as witnesses in court. He ended by encouraging Nneka to avenge Chike’s death, if not for the time and love she shared with him, at least to get him off her back. He also encouraged Sam to give Nneka all the support she might need, and she would sure need lots of it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER SEVEN

 

 

 

 

Sam and Nneka left Ghana two days after. As they came back to Nigeria, they had only one mandate and that was to find Chike’s killers and put them away for life. Nneka was determined to do all in her power to achieve that and her husband was solidly behind her. They were not only interested in avenging Chike’s death, but they also wanted the society to be rid of criminals and corrupt people. Who knew who the next victim would be?

When they arrived at Murtala Mohammed international Airport, they noticed a lot of changes. The airport now had a serene and welcoming ambiance. The environment was very clean unlike what it used to be. Sam had dreaded using the conveniences at the airport in the past because they were always very dirty, irritating and nauseating. But this time, the convenience he used was so neat that he wouldn’t mind having a meal therein. He also noticed that the usual harassment and extortion of travelers by immigration officers and other security agents were missing.

“There is so much decorum in this airport today,” Sam said to Nneka as they entered the cab that would take them home.

“I was just going to say that,” Nneka concurred. “Everywhere is so clean and orderly.”

“That’s because there is a new sheriff in town,” the taxi driver interjected as he set the vehicle in motion, glancing at the couple through the rear mirror. “Ever since the current president took over, things have changed for the better. Security has improved and corruption has reduced to the barest minimum. There is no more police extortion on our roads. The national Assembly has passed a bill that criminalizes extortion by police officers. The president has since assented to that bill. So far, more than a hundred policemen have been discharged from the force and jailed for extortion.” The driver was quite happy with the positive changes taking place in the country and he relished sharing the good news with Sam and Nneka who were delighted to hear that things were getting better. “I am sure you won’t want to go back to your base after spending few days in Nigeria,” the driver said, thinking that his passengers were living abroad. “You will prefer to stay here now. Naija don better,” he conluded happily.

True to the driver’s words, the policemen they saw on the roads carried themselves with lots of dignity. They had passed many checkpoints and no policeman had demanded for bribe. They only asked for vehicular particulars when necessary and they were very professional. Right now the police had truly become the friends of the citizens.

Sam and Nneka were so surprised at the transformations. They couldn’t believe it. “How did they get the police to become this professional within a very short time? We have only been away for about two months.” Sam wondered.

The driver looked at him through the rear mirror and smiled. “Our new president has thought us that it doesn’t take so long to effect positive changes. All that a leader needs is technical knowhow and political will. Our man has these attributes and much more.” That the citizens were happy with the president wasn’t in doubt. Sam and Nneka could see it through the cab driver.

“He sacked the rank and file of the police and asked them to reapply,” the driver continued. “Those that had the requisite qualifications, experiences and clean records were re-engaged while the rest were paid off. The current minimum qualification to be enlisted into the Nigeria police force is OND. He raised their salaries and because they are now comfortable, they don’t need our fifty naira anymore. Besides, no one wants to lose a well-paying job and don’t forget that that take bribes might also go to jail.” The driver was indeed very current with regard to happenings in the country. Sam was quite impressed.

The shocker of them all came when they drove into a filling station to buy fuel. Sam noticed the #50 on the metre and thought that he only saw part of the price for a litre of PMS which used to be #150 before they left for Ghana. But on a closer look, he discovered that it was actually #50. He barely waited for the driver to set the cab in motion before trying to confirm the pump price.

“Yes, a litre of petrol now sells for #50,” the driver responded, glancing back at his passengers.

“What?” Sam couldn’t believe it. Just before the former president died, the GMD of NNPC had claimed that the landing price of PMS was #265 and suggested the need to hike the pump price.

What had happened within the last few months that caused a drastic reduction instead of a hike?

“Shortly after the swearing in, the president contracted some experts to assess the capacity of our refineries. After a painstaking and meticulous exercise, they discovered that the refineries could produce enough petrol for local use and much more. They also realized that it would cost just #41 to produce a litre of petrol in our refineries,” the driver explained.

“So, these guys have been lying to us. They claimed that the refineries were not working at full capacity so they could continue to loot the country through subsidy,” Nneka analyzed.

“Exactly!” Sam and the driver chorused.

“All the former petroleum ministers since 1999, the former NNPC group managing directors, and top ranking officials of NNPC and ministry of petroleum resources have been arrested. They are currently awaiting trial for economic sabotage and embezzlement,” the driver supplied.

“I hope they rot in jail. Selfish, evil men!” Sam cursed. “They must pay for all the hardship they caused Nigerians all these years.” Sam’s anger was not in doubt.

By the time Sam and Nneka got home, they had no doubt that Nigeria was on its way to Eldorado. Hitherto, the journey from the airport to their house took more than four hours, not because of distance but due to gridlock mainly caused by recklessness on the part of drivers coupled with police activities and blockage of part of the roads by trucks. But it took them less than 40 minutes to get home. They noticed that the trucks that used to line the roads had been evacuated. And of course policemen no longer blocked the roads unnecessarily and Nigerian drivers now obeyed traffic rules. With Sam’s observations within the short time he had been in Nigeria since his return, he concluded that Nigerians were good followers. All they needed was good leadership.

Just as Mr. Ado said, there were three manila envelopes waiting for them on the centre table in the sitting room. A shudder ran down Nneka’s spine when she saw the envelopes, which was a confirmation that she had been encountering a ghost. She hadn’t been hallucinating about it after all. Her body was filled with goose bumps when she remembered that she was supposed to handle some documents kept by a ghost. She wished she had an option but there was none. She had to do the ghost’s bidding otherwise he would torment her to her early death.

She summoned up courage and picked up the envelopes. The first contained a letter in which the ghost apologized for putting Nneka through both mental and physical torture, promising to let her be once his killers were brought to book. The second envelope contained names and contacts of all the witnesses she would need in order to win the case for him. And the last envelope contained the investigation report in which Chike had indicted the inspector general of police, an action that led to his victimization and exile.

Tears welled up in Nneka’s eyes as she relived the psychological and emotional trauma she endured as a result of Chike’s travail and eventual death. Sam noticed the tears and took her in his arms and held her in a tight embrace.

“I am so sapped …, and afraid,” she confessed to her husband. “I hope I can pull through this,” she cried, clinging tightly to Sam.

“You will,” Sam assured her. “Remember you are not alone. I am solidly behind you and together, we will pull through this.”

“Are you sure?” she asked, looking up at him.

“Very sure,” he nodded.

Nneka and her husband arrived at Mr. Jerry Jacob’s house around 11am the next morning. When they asked to see the retired comptroller, they were ushered into a modest but tastefully furnished sitting room. The old man who was seated at the far corner of the room, watching TV, stood to welcome his guests with handshakes. He was expecting them as they called earlier to book an appointment.

“Please, do sit down and make yourselves comfortable.” He said, motioning them to the chairs.

“Thank you, Sir,” the couple said as they sat down and within a split second, Nneka had taken inventory of the sitting room. Sam felt uneasy when he noticed how she was scanning the entire room with her eyes. She was so open about it that Sam feared that their host would notice what she was doing. In the end, Nneka concluded from her findings that JJ was a very honest man. His house was very modest and it was obvious that he lived a very simple and decent life. An attribute that was rare for a man in his position, considering the government under which he served.

“What do I offer you,” JJ asked, indicating the small bar in the room.

“Nothing, Sir,” Sam said as Nneka shook her head. “We didn’t come for a drink, Sir. We are here to obtain some pieces of information from you. We must thank you again for giving us this opportunity. Most people in your position would have said no but you made it seem like nothing. We appreciate, Sir.”

“Thank you, Sir,” Nneka interjected.

“You are welcome,” JJ smiled. “Those that make a big deal out of nothing do not understand that life is meaningless and miserable when you fail to see your neighbour as your brother. I believe in the communion of men,” JJ said and smiled again.

What a nice old man. Nneka said to herself. With people like JJ, realizing the ghost’s bidding would be very easy.

“Thank you, Sir,” Nneka said again and cleared her throat. “Just as my husband said earlier, we are here to hunt for information.” She paused for a while and then continued. “About ten years ago, a certain young prisoner was shot dead at the Kirikiri Maximum Security Prison when you were the comptroller of that prison. The reason given by the prison’s authorities for killing him was that he tried to escape from the prison. Do you remember that case?”

Mr. Jacob narrowed his eyes and caressed his beard. He had a bushy beard and he liked caressing it especially when in a difficult or emotional situation. His gaze was at a distance and it was obvious that he was trying to remember the case Nneka was referring to.

“The young man was a detective, who was arrested, prosecuted and convicted, and jailed by a compromised judge after he was accused by the IGP of character assassination, conspiracy, and bribery and …,”

“Oh! Oh! Oh!” Mr. Jacob exclaimed, cutting Nneka off. “I now remember. How could I have forgotten a fine young man like Chike, the best our CID had ever produced,” he said and Nneka was proud to hear that. JJ shook his head ruefully and thought briefly. “It is so unfortunate that such a brilliant and brave officer existed during our dark days as a country; an era when wolves were masquerading as our leaders. Those vampires wanted to kill him because he exposed their evil deeds. I am sure you know all that happened until he was sent to jail but what you might not know is that he was never shot dead while in prison.” JJ said and Nneka and her husband stared at each other.

“Yes, he wasn’t killed,” JJ reaffirmed. “You see, after he was convicted and sentenced, the IGP wanted him dead at all cost. So he approached me and requested that I kill him and claim that he tried to break the jail. I couldn’t say no to him because I knew what that would portend. A no would have meant my end. But I couldn’t do what he wanted since I believed in the sanctity of human life, especially the life of an innocent man.” Mr. Jacob went on to narrate to the couple how he faked Chike’s death and smuggled him out of the country. “I hope he comes back now that we have God fearing men at the helm of affairs.”

Nneka and her husband glanced at each other again.  

“He is dead, Sir” Nneka said and heaved loudly.

“What?” JJ screamed, exploding out of his seat. Though he was old and retired, he still had lots of energy in him. He paced around for a while. “What happened to him -, accident?”

“He didn’t have and accident, Sir,” Nneka answered. “He was assassinated.”

“Assassinated? How, when and where?” JJ was standing akimbo with his head drooping. “Is it possible that the secret leaked out and they followed him to the country he sought asylum and killed him?”

“They didn’t follow him, Sir. They killed him here,” Sam said and JJ raised an eyebrow.

“Yes, Sir,” Sam continued, “he came back to the country after about three years in exile. I think someone saw him and informed the IGP who sent his boys after him. And this time they succeeded.

“What a waste!” JJ cried. “He shouldn’t have come back. I told him never to.”

“I guess he got tired of missing his friends and family. Remember he had aged parents and his only sibling was killed in the course of the investigation that ruined him.” Nneka defended her one time heartthrob. She still loved him and missed him occasionally. It could have been worse but Sam was a perfect replacement. Sometimes she found it difficult to believe that it wasn’t Chike that reincarnated in Sam and came back to her. Both men were similar in many ways. The only differences were in their physical characteristics.

“I understand,” JJ agreed. “Poor him!” he said mournfully, as he sat down heavily.

“Thanks for your time, Sir,” Nneka said and rose to her feet. Sam stood too. We really appreciate your cooperation and hope that you would appear in court as a witness if need be. We are planning to reopen Chike’s case against the former IGP. Justice is the only thing that will make him rest in peace.”

“You can always count on me,” JJ said, rising to his feet as well. “Call me any day, any time, and I won’t hesitate to come,” he added as he walked his guests to the door.

“We are happy to hear that, Sir,” Sam said and shook hands with their host. Nneka genuflected and they left.

Nneka was very happy that their first move yielded a huge result. Mr. Jacob knew a lot and he was ready to testify in court. Despite her excitement at the revelations by JJ, she couldn’t deny the fact that her fear concerning who fathered her first child also heightened. After she got that phone call on her wedding night, she continued to believe that somehow someone was playing a prank on her until the child came and happened to be a spitting image of Chike. That was enough confirmation that Chike was the person that made love to her that night but a small place in her mind still had doubts. Chike was killed while trying to escape from jail. It was in the news and his corpse was identified and captured by the cameras. So how could he be alive? How could he have made love to her? As a ghost?

But with the revelations coming from Mr. Jacob, she was now fully convinced beyond doubts that Chike was Ikem’s father. She glanced at her husband and felt guilty. How could she have slept with another man especially on her wedding night? It wasn’t my fault. I thought it was my husband. She reminded herself. But even as she tried to exonerate herself, she quickly reminded herself that ignorance was no excuse. Besides, excusing herself wouldn’t undo the wrong that had been done. Her child was fathered by a man other than her husband and that was the fact of the matter. Even if Sam never found out, she would have to live with that secret and guilt for the rest of her life. It wasn’t fair to keep it from Sam but telling him would wreck her world and that of her children, and even Sam’s. Sam would feel so disappointed and devastated. She had no option other than to seal her lips and hope that he never found out. Not revealing the truth would put her conscience in a perpetual turmoil but she would rather suffer alone than allow her whole family to suffer.

From Mr. Jacob’s house, the couple went straight to Mr. Okoli’s office. The former C.I.D boss had retired voluntarily following the injustice meted out to Chike coupled with the fact that his conscience continually pricked him for pushing Chike to his early death. He later established a security guard company which had become the best in town. Given his experience and former position, it was very easy for him to make a name for his company and himself.

He met Nneka and her husband at the reception and invited them into his office.

“What do I offer you?” he asked as they sat down. “I have some hotdogs in the fridge. My secretary would microwave it for you if you don’t mind.”

Nneka looked at her husband and saw hunger on his face. She was equally very hungry. They had left the house without eating breakfast and it was 2:30pm already. Sam’s body language showed that he wanted to eat and she had no problem with that. Mr. Okoli was Chike’s boss but beyond being his boss, the two men had a very cordial relationship which Nneka as Chike’s fiancé was part of. Mr. Okoli was like a father to them. Nneka was always very comfortable around him and wouldn’t mind a hotdog and a drink.

“We will appreciate it,” Nneka answered at last.

Mr. Okoli informed the secretary and after a short wait, she served them some steaming hotdogs and some chilled fruit juice. Sam pounced on the snack and Nneka followed suit. There was no doubt that they were very hungry. They had thought of grabbing something to eat after their meeting with Mr. Jacob but couldn’t risk missing their appointment with Mr. Okoli.

“Though belated, I still need to apologize for playing a role in snatching your love from you. I am very sorry,” Mr. Okoli said in a voice filled with regret. “I could have come to commiserate with you immediately after the incident but you were indisposed, besides, I couldn’t face you. My conscience tortured me for months. Even as I am talking to you, I am still heartbroken. I still feel a pang of pain whenever I remember that incident. I wish I never called him back from his vacation. If I didn’t, maybe, he would still be alive today. Those evil men wouldn’t have jailed and later killed him. I know he didn’t try to escape from the prison. They only used it as an excuse to eliminate him because he was a threat to them.”

“He wasn’t killed in jail, uncle,” Nneka informed Mr. Okoli and he jumped to his feet jubilantly.

“But they later killed him, Sir,” Sam added, cutting short Mr. Okoli’s celebration.

The old man returned to his desk, supported his elbows on the desk and covered his face with his hands.

“You see, uncle,” Sam continued. They had finished eating and the secretary had cleared the table. “After Chike was found guilty and sentenced to prison, the former IGP wanted him dead at all cost. So he mandated the comptroller of the prison where Chike was serving his jail terms to kill him. The comptroller’s conscience wouldn’t let him do that but he mustn’t disobey the IGP. He therefore smuggled Chike out of the country, procured an unclaimed corpse and poured some blood on the corpse’s head and face. He then fired some shots in the air and convinced the world that the corpse was Chike’s remains and that he was shot dead because he was trying to escape.

“How did you get that information?” Mr. Okoli asked, surprised.

“We just finished talking with Mr. Jacob. We came straight from his house. And he told us everything,” Nneka explained.

“Mr. Jacob?” Mr. Okoli said repeatedly as he tried to remember who he was.

“The immediate past comptroller of the Kirikiri Maximum Security Prison.” Sam supplied

“The man that smuggled chike out?”

“Yes, Sir,” Sam concurred.

“So how did they kill him later if he was smuggled out of the country? Did they follow him?” Mr. Okoli wondered.

They didn’t follow him. In fact everybody thought he was dead,” Nneka answered.

“So how did they kill him?” Mr. Okoli was getting more confused.

“He came back to Nigeria after three years of exile. That was when they killed him. Someone probably saw him and informed the former IGP, who then sent his boys to kill him and this time, they succeeded.” Sam clarified.

“Why did he come back?” Mr. Okoli cried. “He should have remained wherever he was. Those bloodsucking demons! I hope that one day they will meet their waterloo.” Mr. Okoli wished.

“That’s exactly why we are here,” Nneka said as she folded her arms on Mr. Okoli’s desk and leaned forward. “You may not believe it but it was Chike that sent us to you.”

“I don’t understand,” Mr. Okoli was totally lost. “I thought he was dead.”

“He is dead but his spirit is very much around,” Nneka said and hesitated for a while. “His ghost has been appearing to me,” she said suddenly and Mr. Okoli started looking around him probably to ensure that Chike’s ghost wasn’t lurking somewhere in his office.

“His ghost has been appearing to you?” Mr. Okoli has never seen a ghost. In fact, he was so afraid of ghosts that when he was younger he always had difficulty sleeping after watching horror films in which ghosts were involved. “Is he here?” He asked, still looking around.

“No, sir,” Nneka said with a laugh. “When I encountered him the first time, no one believed me. They thought I was mad. They even invited a psychiatrist to review me. They gave me drugs that made me sick, yet I played along because I knew that insisting that I was alright would make them think I was really losing it. I later had another encounter, this time at a shopping mall. And as before, everyone thought I had gone mad. My husband narrated to me how people speculated that I killed my rich husband in order to inherit his wealth. I wasn’t taken to the psychiatrists after the second encounter. My husband had earlier promised never to take me to them again. Instead he took me on a vacation in Ghana. He felt that my problem was caused by an environmental factor, that with a change of environment, I would recover. And true to his suggestion and belief, I had a peaceful stay in Ghana. I was so at peace that my husband had already started planning to relocate us to Ghana for good.

“But funnily enough, the ghost came back the night we had that discussion. So, I had a total of three encounters and each time the message was the same…, ‘AVENGE MY DEATH’! He never gave me a clue to who he was. At first, I thought it was my cousin, Chinwe, who was assassinated few days to her wedding. It was in Ghana that we learnt the identity of the ghost. He revealed himself to Mr. Ado and he told us.”

“Who is Mr. Ado?” Mr. Okoli asked, interrupting Nneka’s story.

“He is my husband’s Ghanaian friend and business partner.” Nneka explained. “He received a phone call from the ghost and the ghost told him to warn me against ignoring his message; that the earlier I brought his killers to justice, the better for me.” Nneka heaved a heavy sigh and paused as Mr. Okoli gaped at her.

“We had to return to Nigeria immediately and when we came back, we saw three envelopes containing all the information we need to reopen Chike’s case against the former IGP, prosecute it and finally give him justice. He wants the former IGP to be brought to book as soon as possible. He was the one that directed us to Mr. Jacob. There are many more people that he directed us to for more information and we hope that they will all accept to testify in his favour when the case comes up in court. I hope you won’t mind standing as a witness when eventually the need arises,” Nneka pleaded.

“It would be my pleasure to do that,” Mr. Okoli said without hesitation. He could do anything in his power to appease his conscience and also placate Chike’s spirit. That young man needs to rest in peace, he said to himself. He was happy that this was happening when the judiciary had been rid of corrupt judges. Chike would surely get justice, albeit, posthumously. Better late than never!

Emeka heaved a deep sigh and then resumed pacing. He had been pacing since Nneka finished narrating her encounter with the ghost. Nneka and her husband had gone straight to his office after speaking with Mr. Okoli. The office was just next door. Emeka had closed from work but stayed back to receive Nneka and her husband. He needed to see them as much as they needed to see him.

“I also had an encounter with him”, Emeka said suddenly and Nneka’s jaw dropped.

“You did?” Nneka asked, looking from Emeka to Sam.

Emeka nodded as he went back to his seat. “Yes, I encountered the ghost three days ago. That was my first time of seeing a ghost and I must say it was a terrifying experience.” He heaved a noisy sigh again. “Yes it was”, he emphasized. “You can imagine waking up in the morning and seeing a ghost standing at the foot of your bed. Initially, I thought I was imagining it; that I was hallucinating because when I closed my eyes and later opened them again, the ghost was nowhere to be found. But I later saw a message on my mirror, written in blood, urging me to advise you to avenge his death. Few moments later, I got a call from a private number and the caller claimed to be Chike. He said that I should advise you,” Emeka said fixing his gaze at Nneka, “to avenge his death. He said that you would never have peace until his killers were brought to book.”

“Really,” Nneka said.

Emeka nodded. “I didn’t call you because I didn’t know how to call and begin to talk about a message from some ghost. You can then imagine how relieved I was when you called to say you would stop by the office. I knew it wasn’t a mere coincidence. I believed that you already got a hint.”

“We are planning to reopen Chike’s case,” Sam said, “and we hope you will join hands with us to ensure that those that killed him and his brother face the full wrath of the law.”

“It will be my pleasure,” Emeka responded. “Chike wasn’t just a colleague, but also a mentor and a friend. In fact, he was like an elder brother to me. Bringing his killers to justice will be a dream come true.”

“Thank you very much,” chorused Nneka and Sam. “We will really appreciate that,” Nneka added as they stood to leave.

“One more thing …,” Emeka said, stopping the couple in their track, “please, sit back.”

The couple looked at each other and did as they were bidden.

Emeka sighed as he cracked his knuckles. “You see, after Chike was convicted and jailed, the former IGP mandated the comptroller of the prison to kill him and claim that he attempted to escape from the prison. But the comptroller’s conscience wouldn’t allow him to do that. So he smuggled Chike out of the country and faked his death so as to satisfy the blood-thirsty IGP. Chike later found his way to Ghana where he lived for close to three years before coming back to the country.”

“How did you know that?” Nneka asked, surprised. From the revelations so far, it was evident that Chike wasn’t killed in the prison as they were made to believe. It was very clear that he was smuggled out of the country to save his life and that he came back after some years, but Nneka couldn’t believe that Emeka knew all this while and kept mute. She had been in touch with him.

The ghost must have made those revelations to Emeka, Nneka reasoned. “Was it the ghost that told you all that?”

Emeka smiled and shook his head. “I am sorry to have kept this from you all these years,” he said with remorse and paused for a while. “Chike called me when he returned to Nigeria and I went to his hotel room to see him. That was when he told me everything that happened – how Mr. Jacob saved his life. He pleaded with me not to tell anyone about him as the secret might leak out and hence put his life as well as those of his loved ones in danger. His plan was to stay incognito until he eliminated the IGP and his cohorts but unfortunately they found him first and killed him,” Emeka paused to suppress the tears in his voice. “I got an urgent call from him the night he was killed,” Emeka said as he pulled out a desk drawer. He brought out a phone and pressed some buttons and the voice filled the room:

 

Chike’s voice: Hello! They have come for me. The hotel is surrounded by angry-looking, arm-bearing men.

Emeka’s voice: How do you know that you are their target?

Chike’s voice: Who else is? Well I called to let you know that they have come to kill me. They have preempted me. Don’t bother looking for me because you won’t find me but you will find this phone. I am recording our conversation and I am going to hide the phone in a flower vase beside the TV.  Please, make sure you get hold of it. This conversation might be necessary someday.

(Banging on the door)

Strange voice: Open this door!

Chike’s voice: Who is there and what do you want?

(Some gunshots and sound of door opening. Then more gunshots)

Strange voice: Bastard! Take him out and bury him in a bush. Let’s see how he comes back this time.

 

Nneka was practically crying by the time Emeka clicked the stop button. She had already known what happened but hearing Chike’s voice and the pain therein; and the gunshots tore her heart out. Her husband tried to console her but to no avail.

“Can you send the recording to my phone?” Nneka requested when she was calm enough to talk.

“Right away,” Emeka said and began to press on the phone.

After a short while, Nneka confirmed the receipt of the recording on her phone.

As they left Emeka’s office that evening, Nneka’s mind was occupied by the implication of Emeka’s testament that Chike came back to Nigeria. That he came back to Nigeria had remained in the realm of speculation as no one had claimed to have seen him. She preferred to let it remain a speculation, knowing full well that accepting that Chike came back to Nigeria also meant accepting that he was the one that slept with her on her wedding night and indeed fathered Ikem. She sincerely wished that Chike’s return to Nigeria wasn’t part of the unfolding story. Now, Emeka had succeeded in deepening her conviction that her first child was a bastard. Even though she had made up her mind to fight for Chike’s justice, not just to have peace of mind but also for the love she shared with him, she was sure she wouldn’t forgive him for giving her a bastard; for taking advantage of her.

She would get her own justice from him someday. She didn’t know how that would happen but she was convinced it would happen anyway.

Within two weeks of their return to Nigeria, Nneka and her husband had met all the people on the ghost’s list, including David who was also Chike’s colleague at the C.I.D. At last, they met the lead lawyer recommended by the ghost.

The lawyer laughed after listening to the story of a certain ghost on the rampage as told by Nneka. “I feel highly honoured to be recommended by a ghost to lead a case but I must tell you that ghosts do not stand as witnesses in court. The court doesn’t also accept any evidence from ghosts,” The lawyer told the couple.

“You are neither going to put some ghost in the witness box nor tender any evidence from a ghost in court. All we are doing is to gather evidence using the help of the ghost. We won’t let the court know that a ghost is involved in this case,” Sam said, looking at Nneka for corroboration and she nodded.

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER EIGHT

 

 

 

 

When Mr. Lewis got home, it was already 11pm. He was very tired as he had been meeting with his business associates since morning. He owned an oil servicing company which was one of the biggest in the country. His clients included Shell, Chevron, Total, among other top oil companies in the country. His company recently added a new client to their list, so the meeting was aimed at dotting the ‘’i”s and crossing the ‘t”s.

He undressed quickly and went into the bathroom. He needed to shower and seek the comfort of his bed. He had been awake for the greater part of the night before, as he was busy getting ready for the meeting.

His phone started ringing immediately he started bathing, so he couldn’t come out to take the call. He would call back after his shower. But the phone started ringing for the second time, then, third…, it continued as though the caller’s phone was on automatic redial. Mr. Lewis was fuming with anger. Why would anybody call more than twice? Was the caller trying to wake him up from the dead? Mr. Lewis hated it so much when people dialed him more than twice without giving a reasonable interval. Whoever that was calling should know that he couldn’t take the call if he didn’t do that at the second ring. “Idiot!” he cursed and decided not to be bothered by the call.

But as the phone continued to ring, his anger was replaced with panic. Maybe someone was in danger or had urgent message for him. He quickly rounded off and dashed out of the bathroom. The phone started ringing for the fifteenth time as he stepped into the room. He practically ran and grabbed the phone off the nightstand and picked the call without checking to find out who the caller was.

“Hello!” he said urgently.

“They are coming for you,” the caller said huskily.

Mr. Lewis quickly checked the screen of his phone to find out who the caller was. Maybe he called a wrong number. When he checked, he noticed that it was a private number.

“Who is this?” he asked angrily. He was sure it was one idiot looking for attention and money that was disturbing his life. After a stressful day, some lunatic would think that it was funny to play pranks on him. He hung up and threw the phone on the bed. He hissed and went to the wardrobe to fetch his night dress. What he desperately needed was some rest. He wasn’t ready to listen to some crazy folk. He was half way to the wardrobe when the phone started ringing again. He allowed it to ring, making up his mind to allow the caller dial as many times as he wanted. He contemplated switching off the phone but decided against that. He might miss important calls.

By the time he was done putting on his dress, the caller had called eleven more times. When the phone started ringing for the twelfth time, he decided to answer again. Maybe this desperate caller had a good reason for running down his battery. It would be better to hear the nonsense than miss important message.

“Why are you disturbing me, my friend?” he asked, surprisingly sounding calm.

“I am not your friend. I am just concerned,” the caller said acidly. “I am trying to save your life and you are ignoring my calls. I can see that you don’t want to be saved. I apologize for disturbing you. Have a good night rest,” the caller said and hung up before Mr. Lewis could stop him.

Mr. Lewis just made a grievous mistake and he knew he did. He should have given the caller the opportunity to explain himself. What if some people were actually after him? He must call the caller back, apologize to him and possibly promise him some financial reward. He grabbed his phone to dial the caller and that was when it struck him that the caller had called with a private number.

“Damn it!” he cursed, throwing the phone on the bed, this time very hard. The phone would have shattered if it was thrown on a hard surface. He really messed up. Someone wanted to volunteer information to him but he arrogantly discouraged him. Now he was going to live in suspense, hoping that the caller would have a change of mind and call again. He sincerely hoped he would.

It was a long night. He tossed about in bed, getting up at intervals to pace as he considered the consequences of his action. What if those killers the caller was referring to, were coming that night? Would it not be better to flee? “No!” he shook his head vigorously. “It is better to stay here,” he tried to convince himself. As a former Inspector General of Police, he had many policemen patrolling the perimeter of his house. They were equal to the challenge.

He eventually slept but that was his most restless sleep ever. When he woke up in the morning, he felt as though he wrestled with giants in his sleep. His whole body ached badly. Instinctively, he reached for his phone hoping to have missed the caller’s calls but he never did. He felt so depressed and helpless. Throughout the day, he kept close to his phone, anticipating the caller’s call but it never came. Each time his phone rang, he hastily reached for it, hoping that it was the caller but his hope was always dashed.

When eventually the caller called, his heart leaped for joy. At last he would get the information the caller had for him. His joy was quickly replaced with a mixed feeling. The caller could be a messenger of doom. But it would be better to get the information as that would equip him for the challenges ahead.

“I am sorry for being rude to you yesterday,” Mr. Lewis apologized.

The caller ignored his apology. “They are coming for you,” he told him just like the night before. The coldness in his voice made Mr. Lewis’ heart to stop momentarily. There was something sinister about the caller’s voice.

“Who are they and why are they coming for me?” Mr. Lewis asked, pretending not to be frightened. He was actually never given to fear but since his daughter, Angela was killed in the broad daylight he became afraid at the slightest stimulation. He had learnt from his daughter’s assassination that no man was invincible no matter the number of security men around.  

“This time you won’t escape,” It seemed the caller enjoyed teasing people. “You need to do something urgently or you will live to regret it or die a painful death. Disaster is looming, and it is hovering over you.”

‘Please make me understand what you are talking about. The suspense is killing me,” Mr. Lewis could no longer pretend that all was well. His imagination was running wild. Who was after him? He had stepped on so many toes in the past, so it was difficult to guess who amongst them was trying to take his pound of flesh. He was sure to beat the avenger to his game only if the caller would give him a clue as to who he was.

“About ten years ago, a young detective indicted you in a case of counterfeiting, money laundering and several assassinations. Instead of turning yourself in to be tried, you used your position as the IGP and turned the case against the young man. You connived with Aso rock, got him arrested, prosecuted him before a judge chosen and anointed by you, convicted him and of course sentenced him to fifteen year in prison. Still not satisfied, you approached the comptroller of the prison where he was serving his jail terms and asked him to kill him and claim that he tried to escape from the prison. Instead of killing him, the comptroller, a man with a good heart, faked the young man’s death and smuggled him out of the country. He stayed in exile for two and half years before he came back. Somehow you got wind of it and sent your boys who finally killed him.” The caller paused for a while. He was having fun at the expense of the former IGP who was sweating profusely. “I believe you thought you never left a trace,” the caller continued, “but I am happy to inform you that his ghost is on a revenge mission. His ghost has come to haunt you and unless you do something drastic, it would hunt you down. As I speak with you right now, a couple has concluded all arrangements to reopen that case and I can assure you that they have all the evidence required to nail you,” he paused again, as Mr. Lewis furiously paced the floor. He knew the implication of the event that was playing out. He couldn’t doubt the caller. How could he doubt a man that had so much information? He must act fast. He only hoped that the caller could reveal the identity of the couple. The rest would be history.

“You should find them and eliminate them before they eliminate you. That’s the only way out. Strike before they apply for the reopening of that case because the moment they do, if anything happens to them, all fingers will point at you.” The caller didn’t need to tell the former police boss what to do, how to do it and when to do it. The former IGP was an expert in that field. He knew what to do but what he didn’t know was why the caller was concerned about him. He didn’t even know who the caller was.

“Who are you and why are you concerned about me? Or are you trying to exchange information for money?” the former IGP wondered. “Go ahead and name your price. I am ready to pay you any amount but I need you to give me the identity of the couple.”

“I neither want your money nor any favour from you.” The caller sounded embarrassed. “But one day you will understand why I am doing this,” he said and the line went dead.

Mr. Lewis sat in silence pondering over the information that was just made available to him. Everything the caller said was correct. In fact, he knew too much. After a long period of thinking, he penciled three persons down for immediate assassination. He must send his hit men after the said couple and Mr. Jacob. It was a Friday night and he didn’t see any reason why the couple should live till Monday. According to the caller, the application for the reopening of Chike’s case would be filed on the Monday of the following week. The couple would surely be dead before then. He would then look for JJ and kill him as well. He wouldn’t cheat death this time.

The first time the former IGP tried to kill JJ was about seven years back when he learnt that Chike was alive, that JJ smuggled him out of the country instead of killing him as agreed. The former IGP had felt so betrayed, fooled and angered that he had sent his boys to kill JJ immediately but unfortunately for him, JJ was out of the country at that moment. They had kept following up on him so as to track him down and kill him upon his return but he never returned. Maybe he had relocated to Canada for good and to the former IGP that was good riddance to bad rubbish. But with the current turn of events, it was obvious the JJ had returned to Nigeria.

“He has finally returned to cause havoc for me,” Mr. Lewis soliloquized as he poured himself some brandy. He usually calmed himself down with brandy whenever he was tensed up. “This time nothing will save him. His days are numbered.” The soliloquy continued as he sipped his brandy.

After killing the couple and Mr. Jacob, his men must fish out the caller and kill him. “That boy knows too much.” He concluded.

When the assassins arrived at Sam’s house that Saturday night, the couple had gone to bed. The last few weeks had been so hectic for them. They had met scores of individuals, visited lots of institutions, made and received uncountable phone calls, did a lot of researches on the internet, and of course, spent so much money. They had just submitted all the documents needed for effective prosecution of the case to the lawyer and were trying to get some rest. They were mindful of the fact that the case would soon take off and from every indication more hectic days were ahead. So they were trying to get all the rest they could get before the commencement of the case. It was therefore, not surprising that as early as 7pm, they had gone to bed. Their children were still with Nneka’s parents, so there was no disturbance whatsoever.

As they slept peacefully, the assassins scaled the fence, caught the gate keeper and tied his limbs. They were matching to the front door when the hitherto dark compound suddenly became lit.

“Freeze!” a voice instructed as the assassins made to take cover. “Just stay where you are. You are surrounded and rest assured that you will be shot down if you make any wrong move,” the voice warned.

The assassins were shocked at the turn of events. It seemed that the hunter had become the hunted. But what went wrong? They did their background checks very well and discovered no danger. It was a setup. Someone had set them up. Someone had betrayed them. But who could that be? Whoever it was had messed them up and even the former police boss was in trouble too.

“Drop your weapons, kick them out of reach and put your hands in the air. This is an instruction, not a plea,” the voice came again. It was over and the assassins knew it. Any wrong move would attract disaster. They didn’t have a choice but to comply. They did as they were instructed and within a split second, they were rounded up by a combined team of military and police personnel. They were handcuffed and taken away in police vans.

As the police van sped off, Nneka jumped into Sam’s waiting arms and the couple had a tight and prolonged embrace. “You are a master planner, honey,” Nneka said happily and Sam smiled with pride.

Just as Nneka said, the whole plan was Sam’s. He was the one that called Mr. Lewis and informed him about the couple that was planning to reopen Chike’s case. He knew that the former IGP would send assassins after them, so he arranged with the military and police to send their men to arrest the assassins. Everything had worked according to plan and now Chike’s case would be easy to win. The assassins would soon name their paymaster and by the time the assassination attempt was linked to Chike’s case, the former IGP would have no hiding place.

As expected, the assassins confessed immediately, indicting the former IGP in the process. Mr. Lewis was arrested the next morning and arraigned in court two weeks later. The charges leveled against him included; counterfeiting, money laundering, intimidation, abuse of power, massacre and attempted assassination. He pleaded not guilty to all the charges and the legal tussle began. He engaged the services of a senior advocate of Nigeria, who happened to be one of the best lawyers of his time. The lawyer did all in his power to save the former IGP but the evidence against him was overwhelming.

After three months of intensive legal battle, Mr. Lewis was convicted as charged and sentenced to death by hanging. As he was led to the prison van stationed outside the court room, Sam appealed to the prison guard to allow him few minutes with the convict and they obliged him. Sam approached him, whispered into his ear and smiled. Mr. Lewis staggered and would have slumped if not for the timely intervention of the guards who caught and steadied him for a while before he proceeded to the waiting van. He kept looking back at Sam as he walked to the van; the look on his face was that of confusion and fear. Even when the van pulled out, he continued to stare at Sam through the small window in the vehicle. The expression on his face remained the same till the van was out of sight.

“What did you tell him that got him so stunned?” Nneka asked her husband.

Sam smiled at his lovely wife. “I told him to say hi to Lucifer when he gets to hell,” he said and laughed

“That was mean,” Nneka said, laughing as well. She sobered up suddenly and started staring at her husband.

“What?” Sam asked, sobering up, too. “Is anything the matter?”

“Thank you,” Nneka said, as tears welled up in her eyes.

“For what?” Sam asked.

“For everything,” Nneka’s voice shook with emotion and the tears began to roll down her cheeks. “I don’t know what I would have done if I weren’t blessed with a man like you,” Thank you. Thank you, so much,” she sobbed.

Sam pulled her into his arms and hugged her. “You don’t have to thank me for anything. What I did was what I was supposed to do. Whatever I do for you, I do it for myself. We are one, remember?” he stepped from their embrace to look her in the face. He dried her tears tenderly and that made Nneka to cry some more. We should owe all the thanks to the Almighty God who won this case for us. Without Him, this feat wouldn’t have been possible. Chike can now rest in peace and that also means peace for you…, for us.” He caressed her hair and kissed her on the forehead. “Honey, smile for this is the day the Lord has made and we must rejoice and be glad in it.”

Nneka smiled amidst her tears and kissed her husband passionately.

The former IGP later appealed his judgment but his conviction was upheld even up to the Supreme Court. He was executed a month after the Supreme Court delivered judgment. His accomplices were sentenced to life imprisonment.

 

*****

 

The international conference centre, Abuja was filled to capacity. Dignitaries had gathered from all walks of life to witness the posthumous conferment of national award of Commander of the Federal Republic on Chike Agu. The honours award on Chike was at the instance of the President who felt that the detective should be honoured and immortalized for paying the ultimate price while fighting for justice in Nigeria. The award would be administered by the president himself and Sam had been chosen to receive it on Chike’s behalf. It was a very special day in the lives of Chike’s parents, friends, former colleagues at work and those that wished him well. Mr. Okoli, the former C.I.D boss was highly elated. At last, Chike had gotten the well-deserved justice that had eluded him over the years. Chike could now rest in peace while the former C.I.D boss would be at peace with his conscience, knowing full well that he played a role in securing justice for the slain detective.

Emeka and David were equally elated. Chike had suffered so much injustice while trying to give justice to the downtrodden. Today, he was being honoured for all his efforts…, by the president himself. More gladdening was the fact that they had been listed for recognition by the president. The President might not just recognize them; he might reward them financially, too. After the treatment Chike got from the state, Emeka and David, just like Mr. Okoli, had resigned their jobs in solidarity. They had gone into partnership with Mr. Okoli in his security Guard business and had succeeded immensely. But even at that, they wouldn’t mind financial reward from the country they worked so hard to rid of criminals.

Nneka for her part was on top of the world. Her happiness was immeasurable. Justice for Chike was what she had prayed fervently for since his death. Now Chike could rest in peace and she too could have peace of mind. As far as she was concerned she had done all that she promised to do for him. First she and her husband had adopted his parents and treated them like their own. And they had finally secured justice for him and hence attracted national honour his way, though posthumously. Chike must be very happy wherever he was at the moment.

The event started as soon as the President and his entourage arrived at the venue. The president was on time and that had been the situation since he took over the reins of power. He believed that time was very valuable and must not be wasted.

Mr. Okoli was given the honour of presenting a citation to Chike as Sam stepped forward to receive the investiture on the detective’s behalf. Chike was no doubt the best detective that worked under Mr. Okoli and the former C.I.D boss ensured that the best moments of the awardee at the C.I.D were captured. Sam relished the moment and it was evident on his face. His face glowed like a star in the firmament. A cursory look at him revealed a fulfilled man. If not that it was clearly stated that the awardee was dead, that the award was posthumous, most guests would have believed that Sam was Chike. He was indeed the proudest representative of an awardee in the history of mankind.

Shortly after decorating Sam with the medal, the President mounted the podium:

 

Let me start by apologizing on behalf of the government and people of Nigeria to the family and friends of late Mr. Chike Agu for the injustice done them. It was very unfortunate that those that he was trying to protect were the people that ganged up and killed him. Please accept my apologies. I also wish to apologize for all the hardship you have passed through sequel to his death, be it financial, emotional or otherwise. My happiness is that he got justice at last, though I must add that it was belated. But it is better late than never. It is true that the justice will not bring him back but, at least it would give succour to you and also restore your confidence and hope in this country. It feels good to know that one day evil men would face the law. It is a source of hope to the law abiding citizens and a deterrent to criminals.

(Applause)

Apart from the national honours award posthumously bestowed on him, we have also decided to compensate his family financially. In the first place, the federal government will pay a compensation of one hundred million naira to the family. We know that no amount of money is equal to life but this is the least we can do. Secondly, we have decided to promote him and from the day he received his last salary till date, his new salary will be calculated and paid with interest. His family will also be entitled to his salary for the next twenty years.

(Thunderous applause)

 

I want to thank Mr. Samson and Mrs. Nneka Okeke for fighting for Chike’s justice. I am sure that wherever the detective is right now, he will be very happy. I was told that you also adopted his parents as yours. I can assure you that your good deeds will not go unrewarded. Even if man fails to reward you, the Almighty God won’t. He never forsakes people of goodwill. Please may Mr. and Mrs. Okeke and Chike’s parents stand for acknowledgement?

(There was a standing ovation when they stood.)

I will not fail to recognize those that helped him to succeed as a detective. First on the list is Mr. Okoli who happened to be his boss. Please stand so that we can appreciate you.

(There was a loud applause as Mr. Okoli stood briefly.)

Chike succeeded because of your mentorship and support and to that, we say thank you. I understand you resigned your job as a protest to the injustice meted out to him. That was a clear demonstration of comradeship. You are truly a man of honour and this government has decided to reward you. You will get an instant reward of twenty million naira and your salary will be restored till you die.

(There was another thunderous applause.)

Same goes for Mr. Emeka and David. Please, can they stand for recognition?

(The two young men stood up amidst cheers and applause.)

You will get fifteen million naira each and salaries for life even though you no longer work with the C.I.D and if for any reason you wish to come back, I have instructed the IGP to reabsorb you with immediate effect. And if that is the case, you will be promoted to suit your current status.

(Another deafening applause.)

The choice is yours.

And finally, I wish to eulogize Mr. Jacob for being a man with some milk of humanness. Please can you stand for recognition?

(Mr. Jacob stood amidst applause.)

This man saved Chike’s life. He didn’t succumb to the former IGP and I must commend his wizardly in smuggling Chike out of the country without leaving a trace. The Almighty God will continue to protect you and yours. You will be rewarded by this government. I promise you.

Finally, let me thank all of you for making out time to come. God bless you all!

    

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER NINE

 

 

 

 

The years that followed saw Nneka lead a very peaceful life. There was no ghost to deal with anymore. Chike’s soul had been assuaged and he had rested in peace. Nneka had really bounced back to life. The family business she managed had suffered a major setback during her doomsdays but now that she was back to life, the business had started picking up once again. And judging by the rate of growth, they would soon outdo their former peak.

Her husband was equally doing well in his insurance business. It seemed all the big companies in town wanted to do business with Pacific insurance. The company’s clientele had grown astronomically and Nneka could attribute it to the new wave of popularity her husband enjoyed. His profile started soaring when Chike’s case was reopened and blossomed when Chike got justice. Sam played a very big role in the case. At a time, he carried on as though it was his own case. At last chike got justice albeit posthumously but it was Sam that won the popularity.

The fact that Sam built a foundation in Chike’s honour with the compensation the family received, further portrayed him as a humanitarian. He had suggested to Nneka that it would be nice to honour Chike by building a foundation in his name. Nneka had jumped at the idea and within a year, the foundation was commissioned by Mr. President. The foundation was aimed at ensuring justice for all since that was what Chike stood for.

Sam reasoned that the best way to ensure people got justice was to give them quality education. An educated man would always fight for his right. The current government had done a lot in the educational sector but government could not do it alone. So the foundation was designed to award scholarships to indigent but brilliant and enthusiastic students. So far one hundred students from all parts of the country were benefitting and many more would benefit with time. There was no discrimination or favoritism in selecting the beneficiaries. Merit was the watchword.

Apart from securing justice for Chike and building a foundation in his memory, people were also impressed that Sam adopted chike’s parents as his own and took care of them till they died. He equally gave them befitting burials. Even his enemies would agree that Sam had a heart of gold. There was no doubt that he was a trustworthy man. And only trustworthy men could succeed in the insurance industry.

Ikem and Princess had grown into adulthood and Nneka couldn’t be happier. They were now more mature and responsible unlike during their teenage days. Teenage period was the most difficult for parents to handle. Teenagers were very inquisitive. They were adventurous. They would want to walk, run, swim and fly, all at the same time. They would want to climb the mountain tops and descend into the valleys. They were ready to explore and exploit. Nothing was out of bounds as far as they were concerned.

Nneka was happy that her children had grown past this sensitive age group. But she was frightened by the fact that her son had grown to be every inch like Chike. In fact he was Chike’s carbon copy. Anyone that knew Chike wouldn’t think twice before believing that Ikem was a product of his wild oat. She hated that her secret was staring her in the face on daily basis. Even though tongues weren’t wagging anymore, her conscience was torturing her terribly. Wouldn’t it be better to confide in Sam? That would heal her conscience but she was mindful of the calamity such a move would bring to her family. It would definitely shatter her family.

“Oh my God!” she cried aloud. “Why did Chike put me in this difficult situation?”

“Are you talking to me, honey?” Sam asked as he walked into the bedroom. He had been in his study since morning. His company would be having her annual general meeting, this time, in Nigeria instead of Ghana. So, he was saddled with the responsibility of organizing the event. That was the first time he would organize an event of such magnitude and it hadn’t been easy for him. Though he hired an event planner, he still had to supervise her every move. Apart from organizing the event, he had to prepare an annual report of the company’s business activities in Nigeria for the past one year. Pacific insurance company had expanded impressively in Nigeria. It started with a branch located in Lagos but now there were branches across the thirty-six states including Abuja, the federal capital territory. In fact, there were more than five branches in Lagos alone. Preparing an annual report for the Nigerian company was therefore no longer an easy task. Nneka and Ikem were helping but uneasy laid the head that wore the crown.

Nneka raised a quizzical eyebrow. “Did I talk now?” she knew she talked aloud but was shocked that it was loud enough for Sam to hear. She just hoped that he didn’t understand what she said.

Sam walked across the room to the bed where she sat with her laptop on her laps and squatted before her. “Are you alright?” he asked in a voice filled with concern.

“Yes? Why?” she tried to smile but her facial muscles failed her. She was apprehensive. No doubts about that.

“Because you look worried,” Sam said softly. “And you now talk to yourself a lot and also speak in your sleep.”

“I talk in my sleep?” Nneka panicked. Who knew what she said in her sleep? What if she had leaked her secret and Sam was only pretending, waiting for more details? Even as she considered that possibility, her instinct told her that Sam didn’t know anything. If he heard something and wanted more details, he wouldn’t have mentioned that she spoke in her sleep. That would make her more cautious and Sam wasn’t a fool. She heaved a sigh of relief after convincing herself that her secret was safe.

“Yes,” he nodded severally. “It has happened about three times.”

“Really? What did I say?” she wanted to confirm that she hadn’t let out her secret.

“The words were always difficult to decipher but on one occasion I heard you mention Chike’s name,” Sam said with a smile and Nneka’s heart skipped a beat because what she saw on Sam’s face wasn’t a smile but a sneer. Did Sam actually sneer at her or was it her imagination? If Sam actually sneered at her, then there was trouble but she quickly realized that it was her mind’s eye that saw a sneer. What was on Sam’s face was a genuine smile.

“I think you need some rest,” Sam said, breaking into her thought. “We will go on vacation the moment this AGM is over. But in the meantime, you need to stay off work for now, please.”

Nneka answered with a nod. Vacation wouldn’t be a bad idea. Apart from according her the rest and recreation she deserved, it would also take her son out of sight. And that would somehow reduce her anxiety because if she saw less of him, she would think less of her past.

As planned, the annual general meeting held on the 15^th of December. It was a huge success. In fact, it succeeded beyond expectations and Sam couldn’t be more excited and impressed. The guests were equally impressed not just with the organization of the event but also with the quality of services provided by Pacific Insurance Company. The company was recently declared the best insurance company in Nigeria by the regulatory body. Quality services meant more customers and more customers meant more income. And that was evident in the profit after tax declared by the company. And more profit meant more dividends for investors. Pacific Insurance was a public liability company with many shareholders. Nonetheless, Mr. Ado and Sam owned over sixty percent of the company’s shares. Therefore the company technically belonged to the duo. Sam managed the company in Nigeria while Mr. Ado managed the one in Ghana. They knew that the only way to grow the business was to provide quality services which would in turn bring in more profit. This way, shareholders would smile to the bank just as they would, shortly.

With the meeting over, Sam felt so relieved. He was relaxing in his bar, sipping a brandy and chatting with his business partner. He had invited Mr. Ado, his wife and children for a dinner the day after the AGM. Mrs. Ado and her children unlike Mr. Ado were visiting Nigeria for the first time and Sam felt it would be nice to host them to a dinner. They had just finished with their meals, so the old men sat at the bar for a chat while sipping brandy.

“I think we should split the company,” Mr. Ado said suddenly. “Remember that we went into this partnership because you needed some level of support to succeed. You have not only succeeded, you have taken over the insurance industry in Nigeria. In fact, you are doing better than the parent company in Ghana.” He paused for a while and then sighed. “I am planning to retire. I think I have paid my dues. My children can continue from where I stopped. They have mastered the business even better than I.” He paused again, as he sipped his brandy. He coughed briefly and then continued. “It would have been nice to continue to run the companies in Nigeria and Ghana as one but I fear that our children might not enjoy the kind of understanding we shared. They might not understand that the bond between us is beyond business partnership. So, to prevent future misunderstanding with its attendant squabbles, it would be better to spilt now that we are still alive. I will take the company in Ghana and you will take the one here.” He finished and turned to face Sam. The surprise he saw on Sam’s face was unequivocal. Sam wasn’t disappointed. He was only astonished at how their minds worked together. Mr. Ado practically took those words out of his mouth.

His son, Ikem had been working as his deputy for the past five years. He joined the company upon returning from the United Kingdom where he obtained Master’s Degree in Accounting, having bagged a Bachelor’s Degree in the same discipline In a Nigerian University earlier. Ever since he joined the company, Sam had had little or nothing to do. Ikem knew the insurance business like the back of his hand. He was a very dedicated, hardworking and efficient deputy. With him at the helm of affairs, Pacific Insurance Nigeria PLC would be in better hands. So, why would Sam continue to work? He had paid his dues just as Mr. Ado and therefore deserved some rest now that age wasn’t on his side anymore. He would be sixty-six the next year. It had always been his dream to retire at six-five but couldn’t because he wanted the Nigerian company to be independent of that in Ghana before quitting. He had nursed the fear that his children and Mr. Ado’s children might not enjoy the kind of understanding and maturity that existed between Mr. Ado and him. He dreaded spending his retirement settling rifts that were sure to set in with time if the company was allowed to continue the way it was. He had been having difficulty broaching the splitting idea but had decided to summon up courage and discuss it during the dinner he hosted for the Ados. But just like in a dream, Mr. Ado preempted him. Sam couldn’t be happier. Both of them wanted the company to split.

“Thanks a lot for bringing this issue up,” Sam said, heaving a noisy sigh. “I must say that I have been thinking in that direction. Thanks again.” Sam’s heart brimmed over with happiness and he couldn’t hide it.

For the rest of the evening, the old men went down memory lane, relishing each moment they shared together.

Meanwhile, Ikem and Dofi were at the balcony chatting away. There was no hiding the fact that the two youngsters liked each other dearly. It was love at first sight. Ikem had gone to the airport in the company of his father to receive the Ados the day they arrived in Nigeria. From the moment Mr. Ado introduced that gorgeous lady to Ikem and they shook hands, Ikem had refused to let go. And it was the same for Dofi. Throughout their stay in Nigeria, Ikem visited their hotel on daily basis. He couldn’t stand a day without seeing her. Dofi for her part was full of life, a delight to be with. She was very beautiful and intelligent, a combination of beauty and brain. Ikem had learnt a lot from her, especially about Ghana. He had learnt that the Ados were from the ewe tribe. Apart from Ghana, Ewe people were also found in good number in Togo and Benin Republic.

Her name was derived from Ewe language. A baby girl was named Dofi if she was the second child after a set of twins.

Meeting Dofi was the best thing that happened to Ikem in years. The Ados would go back to Ghana the next day and he was truly going to miss her. In fact, he had started missing her already. Though Ikem had eyes for good things, he was never a womanizer. He had had only one relationship which lasted about six months and that was back in the university. Ever since, he hadn’t considered another relationship until he met Dofi. She actually swept him off his feet and the feeling was mutual.

The next morning, Ikem was at the airport to say goodbye to the Ados but particularly to his new found love. They stood in a long embrace just before boarding. “I will miss you…, so much,” he whispered.

“Same here,” she said softly. “But not to worry, because I will come back to you as soon as possible.”

Ikem quickly step from their embrace to look at her in the face. “Are you serious?”

“Yes, I am,” She nodded and smiled

“Promise?”

“I promise!” she assured him.

He was excited to hear that and it was evident on his face. He hugged her one more time and kissed her goodbye. That was their first kiss and Dofi cherished it greatly. It was a special goodbye gift, more like a souvenir. Throughout the journey back to Ghana and even afterwards, she reminisced on that kiss, touching her lips and smiling. It was obvious that she loved Ikem. Her parents and brothers deduced that from the first day they arrived in Nigeria. They didn’t disprove. Why would they? Ikem was a responsible, hardworking young man, from a good and successful home. He was very handsome, just a perfect match for Dofi.

As promised, six months after her departure, Dofi returned to where her heart belonged. This time, it was for good.

 

 

CHAPTER TEN

 

 

 

 

When Nneka woke up that morning, she was in high spirit. It was her husband’s eightieth birthday and a grand dinner night had been planned to celebrate it. Everybody was coming. Ikem and Princess and their families had already arrived. Other relatives, contemporaries, friends and well-wishers had been invited and majority of them would grace the occasion.

She quickly climbed out of bed and checked the time. It was 7:30am. She screamed and headed to the bathroom where she hastily freshened up. She didn’t go to bed early enough the previous night because she wouldn’t allow the event planner to do the work she was paid for without interfering. She was a perfectionist, who always crosschecked what others did to ensure that they were properly done. At seventy-two, her children believed that she should have some rest, that she should allow the stewards take care of her needs but she wouldn’t hear of that. She still did most things by herself, saying that she hated to be treated like an invalid.

When she came downstairs, the organizers were all over the place setting up the venue. They had a very big compound, so they decided to use it as the venue. The chilling vans had already taken their places and assorted drinks were being loaded inside them. The tents had been mounted and the chairs and tables were set. The venue was taking shape. No doubt about that.

“What about the cake?” Nneka asked the event planner who was busy directing activities. “And the DJ is nowhere to be found.” There was disappointment in her voice.

“They will soon be here. Remember that this event is scheduled for 6pm and it is yet to be 10am. Don’t worry, Mama, we are on top of the situation.” The event planner tried to calm her down.

“I hope you are really on top of the situation as you claim,” She said with sarcasm. She was never sarcastic when she was younger but some characters came with old age.

“Mom!” Nneka whirled to face Princess. “I haven’t seen dad this morning. It’s almost 10am and he is yet to come downstairs. Won’t he eat breakfast?”

“Oh my God!” Nneka screamed as she hurried into the house and went upstairs. She had totally forgotten to attend to her husband. She had been distracted by the forthcoming event. When she got to the bedroom, she discovered that Sam was still asleep. She frowned. That was unusual. Since she married him, he hadn’t been in bed beyond 8am. It used to be 5:30am but with age taking its toll on him, though he was still strong and agile, he now woke up between 7am and 8am.

But it was already 10am and he was still in bed. Something must be wrong. Maybe he was sick. But why would he take ill on his birthday? “Today of all days?” Nneka was angered by the thought that her husband could be sick on his birthday. What if he needed hospitalization? How would he be absent in his own birthday dinner? They would certainly not cancel. Everything was already in place. She said a brief prayer, begging God to restore her husband to good health.

“Sweetheart, do you want to sleep all day? It is your birthday, remember?” she said as she stood beside the bed. Sam was at the far corner of the bed with his back to her, so she climbed on the bed to shake him to wakefulness. The moment she touch him, she knew that something was wrong. Sam was abnormally cold and stiff. When she rolled him over, the situation became obvious. Sam was dead!

Nneka’s cry of anguish reverberated around the entire house and soon the news was everywhere. A thick cloud of grief descended over the whole household and quickly consumed it. A onetime happy home, which was in a celebration mood, suddenly became a house of sorrow and the guests to a birthday party were converted to mourners.

Sam’s death broke Nneka completely but she took solace in the fact that her husband lived a successful and fulfilled life. He lived a long and healthy life. In all the years that she was married to him, he was never sick enough to be admitted in the hospital. He was a superman. Why would Nneka grieve so much when Sam lived to see his grandchildren? Ikem and Dofi had three beautiful children while Princess and her husband had two.

Sam lived a peaceful and godly life. And Nneka was sure that he had taken his place amongst the saints. He deserved it. Hopefully, Nneka would reunite with him on the last day to part no more. That was her hope and she drew a lot of consolation and fortitude from that.

A brief family meeting held immediately and it was decided that the funeral rites should hold the same day. After all, all roads already led to his house. The arrangement made for his birthday would now serve for his funeral. His parish priest was contacted and a requiem mass was celebrated in the deceased house at 3pm. The interment followed at Saint Michael’s cemetery, Yaba, immediately after the mass. After the interment, most of the mourners followed the bereaved home.

It was around 11:45pm that the last group of guests left and that was when Nneka retired to her room. The events of the day had sapped her both physically and psychologically. She showered and sought the comfort of her bed. Only a sound sleep could calm her nerves. She lay in bed and closed her eyes but sleep wouldn’t come. Her mind was running amok. She kept thinking about Sam and all the memories they shared. Their marriage was made in heaven. Sam was a gentleman. He never raised his voice let alone his hand against her, even though she could be naughty at times. He neither spoke nor acted in the heat of anger. Nneka had thought that Chike was the only man in the whole world that could have perfect control of his emotions. But Sam proved her wrong.

She finally slept in the early hours of the morning but the sleep didn’t last long. She woke up after about two hours. When she opened her eyes, Sam was standing beside the bed. She became excited instead of afraid but she quickly realized it was a mirage. She hissed and climbed out of bed. It was already 6am, so she knelt beside the bed for her morning prayers. As she crossed herself, tears stung her eyes and began to roll down her cheeks. She couldn’t remember the last time she knelt down alone for prayers. It must have been more than a decade. She had always gone to bed and woken up with her husband. Ever since he retired over a decade back, they had never been apart from each other. One could then understand how awkward and devastating it was for her to be without him…, for good.

After a while, she braced up, wiped her tears and offered her prayers to the Almighty. She thanked Him for all His blessings on Sam while he lived and prayed for the repose of his gentle soul. She also prayed for the grace and fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.

Later that morning, she sat in the sitting room to receive mourners who continued to troop in. Most of them couldn’t attend the burial due to the suddenness while the rest were at the burial but just came to check on her and her children. She sincerely wished that the mourners would stop coming. She wanted to be left alone. That would be better for her. The presence of the mourners, instead of making her feel better, actually worsened her grief. Their presence constantly reminded her of her loss. But despite her feeling and wishes, she stayed on. It was a duty she must perform. It was a rite!

Sam’s lawyer arrived at 5pm bearing a brown manila envelope. “This is for you,” the barrister said, extending the envelope to the widow.

She looked at him for an uncomfortably long period before accepting the envelope.

“Your husband said I should give it to you upon his death,” the barrister explained.

“Why give it to me? I thought you were supposed to gather his family members and read it out to everyone. Isn’t that how it’s done?” Nnaka said, confused. She thought it was Sam’s will that was handed to her.

The barrister shook his head. “That’s not his will.”

“What’s it, then?” Nneka asked impatiently. She was becoming more confused.

“I sincerely do not know,” the barrister said honestly. “But I am sure you will find out when you go through it.”

Nneka stared at the barrister and then at the envelope in her hand, shrugged and kept it on the table beside her. Her curiosity had been pricked and she wished she could go through the content of the envelope without delay. But she still had visitors and it would be rude to leave them.

She barely waited for the last visitor to leave before she disappeared into her room. The envelope was sealed, so she tore it open and brought out the letter therein. She sat on the bed and began to read:

 

My dear wife,

If you are reading this letter, it means you are alive and I am dead. I instructed my lawyer to give this letter to you upon my death, meaning that if you had died before me, the secret I am about to disclose to you would remain and die with me.

I wish to apologize for holding this information back till now. I am truly sorry but I had no choice. Thanks for your anticipated understanding and forgiveness as always.

Before I get to the point, I need to advise you to brace yourself as the revelations I am about to make will shock you to your marrows.

I lied to you. In fact, I was a living lie from the first day we met till I passed on. I wasn’t who you thought I was. I wasn’t Sam. I was Chike. Yes! I was the same Chike that was a detective; the same Chike that was your heartthrob; the same Chike that promised you the world; the same Chike that indicted the IGP for counterfeiting, money laundering and massacre. The same Chike that was prosecuted and put in jail by the power that was; the same Chike that was pronounced dead many years ago.

Yes! It was me that lived with you all these years as Sam.

You see, after Mr. Jacob smuggled me out of the country, I found my way to Ghana where I met an angel. The angel saved my life. He gave me a top position in his company and became family to me. That angel was Mr. Solomon Ado, the founder of Pacific insurance company PLC. Yes! The same Mr. Ado that you knew. He gave me all the good things life could offer but I wasn’t happy. I wasn’t happy because I couldn’t be in touch with my parents. Remember I was the breadwinner of my family and Okechukwu my only sibling was dead. It was a very difficult time for me. I had the options of inviting them over to Ghana or send money to them on regular basis. But any of the options could be risky as those who wanted me dead might get wind of what really happened and that would spell doom for Mr. Jacob. And that wouldn’t have been the best reward for a man that saved my life. I was a stranger yet he risked it all to save me.

It was for this same reason that I couldn’t establish any contact with you even though I died on daily basis to at least hear your voice. I pined for you every day and night.

As days rolled into weeks and weeks became months and months added up to years, I became fed up. I reasoned that death was better than a life of misery and agony. What was death if not the removal of an individual from their loved ones? I therefore decided to come back to Nigeria.

Mr. Solomon tried to discourage me but my mind was made up. It was better to die a happy man than live in hell on earth. So it came to pass that I came back to Nigeria. Top on my mind on arrival was to see you and I did. My joy knew no bounds when I saw you. You were as beautiful as ever and full of life. I became happier when I realized that you were still single. That meant I still had a chance with you.

For days, I stalked you, relishing your sight. But I couldn’t approach you. I realized too late that approaching you could equally put your life in danger. With time, I became frustrated. I became more miserable than I was in Ghana. I could be likened to Tantalus, a mythical god who was condemned to Tartalus in the underworld, where he had to stand for eternity in water that receded from him when he stooped to drink and beneath, fruit trees whose branches were always out of reach when he wanted to pluck the fruits. That was because you were near yet very far away and out of my reach. You were more like a mirage. It broke me and I was losing it until Mr. Solomon came up with a plan. He advised me to have a plastic surgery to change my looks. That way I would become incognito to my enemies and family and friends, but I would have a chance of building a new relationship with family and friends but dump my enemies in the past where they belonged.

I jumped at the idea and two months later, I changed from Chike to Sam. I became a free man once again. I could now interact with whoever I wanted and whenever I wanted. That gave me so much joy. I started following you again until we met at the cemetery. After giving you my business card, I waited impatiently for your call but it didn’t come. So, I decided to pay you a visit. I pretended not to know that it was your company. The truth was that I needed to see you. I needed us to get together and rekindle our relationship once again. Eventually, we came back together and got married.

But just before our wedding, my doctor in the USA raised an important point. He reminded me that I only changed my looks, not my genes. He made it clear that my children could still look exactly like the real me. I panicked because you would become suspicious and that might expose my secret. We then came up with the little drama that occurred on our wedding night. I lied when I told you that Mr. Ado came in late, that I needed to pick him up from the airport. It was all a plan. Mr. Ado came into Nigeria a day before our wedding. I just wanted to create confusion in your mind. Immediately after leaving for the airport as I claimed, I came back and made love to you, then called later and made you think it was Chike that made love to you. I noticed your discomfort when Ikem was born and he looked every bit like me. I mean the real me. It was a confirmation that it was indeed Chike that slept with you that fateful night. It was obvious that little secret continued to haunt you as Ikem grew up. I apologize for putting you through such a psychological trauma. I am truly sorry. I wish I could help it.

I wish to apologize for Chinwe’s death. I didn’t kill her but I take responsibility for her death. I wanted to protect her by killing Bill. Yes, I killed Bill but that was because his father had connived with Chief Lewis, the former IGP to kill Chinwe. They wanted her out of the way to enable Bill marry Chief Lewis’ daughter. The plan to kill Chinwe was hatched the day Bill engaged her. It was actually Bill’s father that came up with that evil idea, insisting that since Bill couldn’t listen to him and break up with Chinwe, the only way out was to kill Chinwe. I reasoned that the only way to save Chinwe was to kill Bill but unfortunately, Chinwe was with him that fateful day and she committed suicide.

Frank was not kidnapped and he didn’t elope with Iliana, either. I killed him. And that was because he was planning to kill you as a revenge for all the embarrassment you caused him. The day he got missing was the day he wanted to kill you. He was actually waiting outside our gate so that the moment you came out to attend Chief Rufus’ dinner night, he would kill you. While he waited, my men rounded him up, took him to a bush, killed him and buried him in an already dug grave. He was declared missing the next day.

Then came the ghost that tormented you. I am sorry to inform you that it was orchestrated by Mr. Ado and me. There was no ghost. It was all a make belief. When the tyrant president died and his vice took over, I saw an opportunity to take my pound of flesh from the former IGP and his partners in crime. I desperately needed to get back at them and you were the only person that could help me achieve that. So, Mr. Solomon Ado and I decided to use the encounter with the ghost to make you to start the legal process that could ensure justice for me.

Getting you to believe that I actually came back to Nigeria was needed to erase any doubt whatsoever from your mind concerning who slept with you on that wedding night. Convincing you that the IGP later succeeded in killing me was also necessary otherwise the ghost part of the plan wouldn’t make sense. You shouldn’t be avenging my death when it wasn’t clear that I was dead and even if I was, it wasn’t clear who killed me. So I paid Emeka a visit, revealed myself to him and we recorded the conversation you listened to in his office.

Remember that I whispered something into the former IGP’s ear after his conviction. I believe you remember how stunned he became. And when you asked me what I told him, I said I asked him to say hi to Lucifer when he got to hell. I lied. I actually reminded him of my words to him when he won the first round of our legal battle when I said to him then that ‘tomorrow may be mine’, so I had told him that tomorrow had come and that it belonged to me. That was why he staggered and became so stunned. He had realized that it was me and that I had beaten him at his own game.

I am so sorry for all the trouble I caused you. I wish I didn’t have to do all that I did. I was frustrated and miserable. I didn’t have a voice. I didn’t have a body. I was just like a ghost in the neigbourhood. And it was the former IGP that put me in that situation, a situation where I was trapped in a stranger’s body. There were times that I considered suicide but I didn’t want to make you a widow and our children fatherless. I had already caused enough problems for you and didn’t wish to cause more.

I know you will be wondering why I didn’t reveal myself to you after the former IGP was executed. I wanted to but I discovered that you were deeply in love with Sam. I didn’t want to upset your relationship with Sam. Even though Sam was Chike and Chike was Sam, they were different individuals to you. I reasoned that revealing myself to you might end up creating doubts about my personality and I didn’t want that to happen. So I resigned to fate.

But thank God I am free at last. Death has emancipated me from a strange body. I can’t be happier. It is true that I miss you and my children and all that were dear to me but nothing equals freedom.

I am indeed a free man now. As I bask in my newly found freedom, I wish you good health, happiness and peace. Someday we will meet again to part no more.

From your love,

Chike Agu.

 

 

By the time Nneka was done reading, a pool of tears had formed on the floor. She had cried throughout the period she read Chike’s letter. How come she never suspected that it was Chike that she lived with all these years? Sam was everything Chike was but for looks. The similarities were too many to be mere coincidences. She could swear that it was Chike that spoke whenever Sam spoke. It wasn’t just that ‘their’ voices sounded alike, ‘their’ dictions and intonations were exactly the same. How come it never occurred to her that she was still with her first love?

As she tried to digest the letter, ambivalence set in. She was sad that Chike didn’t confide in her. She was sad that she mourned the man she lived with thinking he was dead. She was sad that Chike allowed her to live with a guilty conscience as she believed that she betrayed him by giving her love to another man. She was also sad that her children didn’t know their father. Yes, because the man they called father wasn’t actually their father.

In fact, there were many things to be sad about.

But she wasn’t angry with Chike. He was equally a victim. He did all he did because he loved her and he proved to be the best husband any woman could ask for. She smiled amidst her tears when she remembered the extent Chike had to go in order to be with her. That was love in its purest form.

“He really loved me,” she muttered to herself. Most men would have started seeing other woman as soon as they arrived and settled in Ghana. But she was constantly in his thought.

Nneka wiped her tears with the back of her hands and went downstairs. She gathered her children and grandchildren and even her stewards and told them about the letter she just read.

“Get ready, we are going to visit my husband tomorrow morning.” She announced in the end.

When they arrived at the cemetery, nobody was surprised to see that the epitaph inscribed on Sam’s tombstone was now; RIP Chike Agu instead of RIP Sam Okeke. Nneka had ensured that the change was effected first thing in the morning. They laid the wreaths they came along with, starting from the youngest amongst them. Nneka was the last to lay her wreath.

“Thank you, my love,” she muttered. She closed her eyes as tears filled her eyes and began to stream down her cheeks.

 

 

 

THE END