₦airaland Forum

charytea:
Are you based in Kaduna

Yes.

ELEVEN


2008

It was a mud house with four rooms and two toilets located in the compound situated at Hayin Dan Jaki, a suburb in Kaduna City. The old zinc roof reminded him of Ibadan City. This was their new home, acquired miraculously. God! Ameer could hardly believe this. He remembered their mansion, the sophistication and luxury. Life was nothing and man was nothing.
Everything was gone! Fateema gone! Life gone!

It was his second month back home and he felt no direction in life. He was glad and thanked Allah for sparing his life. The trauma his mum and brother went through was severe and their joy new no bound.
That day in court, as the tough looking judge read the verdict, and exonerated him, and he heard acquitted, there was a lot of emotion in the court. Tears of joy flowed. Not just from his family members alone but from some of the audience.
And lawyers surrounded Maryam, congratulating her. Okorie met Barrister Bilkis Kankia, Fatima’s mother and said, “Madam, see what your little girl did?”

“Don’t mind her.” She replied. And he congratulated her and told Maryam how proud he was of her. A lady who witnessed this could not help tell her husband, “ look at the lawyers that just fought talking and laughing together.”

“ It is nothing personal.” The husband told her, “that is their job. They were not fighting. That is the battle of the job. The job is all about battling. A lawyer who seeks evidence or speak against you does not hate you, that is what he is trained to do and that is how he gets the money to put food on the table.”

People had come around Ameer, hugging him, congratulating him and Hajiya kept thanking Allah amid tears. Ameer saw pressmen gather round Maryam while she talked to them with her mum proudly beside her.
The message was established. Want your parents to be proud of you? Be positive! Faqat. The smile on Barrister Bilkis’ face stated it clearly: she is my daughter.

A beautiful teenager walked up to Maryam, when she got the rare chance, because Maryam was the cynosure and everyone wanted to get to her, trying to have a photo shot with her.
Maryam was intrigued with the cute teenager who walked up to her confidently.

“ Congratulations!” Said the young girl, “ you were impressive. I begged my aunty to always bring me for the trial.”

“Awwnnn, thank you darling. I am elated.” Maryam said with a genuine smile and warmth. “Why are you so interested in the trial?”

“ I want to become a lawyer insha Allah (God's willing). And now, I want to be like you.”

“You will be greater my dear, insha Allah. You are still in secondary school, I guess?”

The teenager nodded.

“ What is your name?”

She smiled, exposing her gap teeth.

“ Miss Julde.”



Ameer kept receiving congratulatory salutations but he never smiled for once. He was still stone cold and the image of Fateemah would not go away. The memories will not go and the pain lingered. He wondered what the future held for him.
Would he ever be happy again?

Maryam turned, she was in midst of people, and their eyes met. She saw the coldness in his eyes and some of her joy drifted out. She knew what was going on in that mind. She knew the story. Ameer wove at her and she felt like crying.
He looked pathetic, trying to show appreciation but his face looked granite hard. She wove back. After that day, two days later, Ameer, Amaar and Hajiya went to show appreciation to her, her parents and the organisation.

Ameer came out of the bathroom, which was a small place plastered with cement and covered with zinc. He rushed in and wore his clothes. It was a few minutes after 6:00AM.
He left home in a hurry then walked briskly to the main road. Most of the houses in the neighbourhood were mud houses with just a few ones built with blocks.

He boarded a bus and alighted at Kawo. The rest of the distance to Rafin guza was covered on foot. He got to the place a few minutes to 8:00 AM.
It was his new place of work.
He saw the foreman standing with a frown. The rest of the workers were standing before him. It was one of his prosaic sermons.

“ Boneface, why are you late?” He said rashly at Ameer.

“ I reside at…..”

“Shut up! everyday stories, look at his face like over-cooked kpomo!” He insulted, “can you see what I was just talking about? These are some of the things I was telling you. I don’t know if it is illiteracy that is worrying you people.

When I was in school, doing my diploma in business studies accounting, I was taught a course about respect for work and time and foremen.
I was the class monitor, in the polytechnic and later a prefect because of my good behaviour. That is what I want to teach you people. Look at you, most of you only stopped at primary school…”

A man quickly rose his finger.

“Yes?”

“ I stopped in JSS three.”

“Ohhhm, please clap for him.”

They all clapped except one person.

“ Boneface, are you mad? I said clap for him. Bakin ciki (malice). Did you pass primary school? I was the one who interviewed you, you stopped at Primary school. This is someone who went up to JSS and you can’t clap for him. Clap for him jooh!”

They all clapped. The man was smiling proudly. He was the most educated there. Ameer did not refuse to clap because he felt vainglorious. He was dazed by the lies this so-called foreman told the workers who were mostly illiterates. What course was business studies accounting, and when did polytechnics start appointing prefects? Maybe he would say he used to write the names of noisemakers.

“ You must come to work early. If they say 8:00am, come 7:30am because you have a lot to learn from me. When I was in school, in polytechnic, there was a house master who was jealous of me, because of my brilliance.
I used to come first every term. His brother was my classmate, and I will beat him in all the subjects so the house master wanted to distract me. He would make me be on duty for hours. But you know what? Our VC…do you know VC?”

“ VCD” The man who got to JSS said quickly.”

“ No!” Foreman said and laughed. “ Like you have principal in secondary school, we in the highest (higher) institution of polytechnic have VC. Vice councillor ( vice chancellor). Say vice councillor everybody.

“Vice councillor” They said in unison….including Ameer.

“ But, sir, I know one man who went to poly, he used to say our tractor (rector) every time he talks about their vice councillor.”

“Hehehehe!” Foreman laughed, “ Oh, daddy, thank you for sending me to highest institution. Illiteracy is a sickness. It is not tractor it is director.”

Chai!

Ameer wished this was been recorded. It will go viral within minutes. This was the new setting Ameer found himself. If the man knew he was a final year chemical engineering student before, he would not have employed him.
It was a job that needed no education so he made sure all the workers were illiterates. It was a block industry where they produced varieties of blocks and Ameer was one of his new labourers.

Their father’s friends abandoned them at the time of need, claiming they did not want to have anything to do with a murderer. Amaar graduated in 2006, was called to serve the next year. He was still doing that which made him live from hand to mouth.

Ameer had no option other than working here for now. At least he could feed himself and his mother. He still had not found a way to pick up his life. Jezebel! She destroyed him!

They usually closed around 4:00PM, then wash their bodies, wore their clean clothes before collecting their daily wage of one thousand naira.
Around 3:15 pm, a posh Toyota Camry was driven into the yard. The lady who alighted made eyes bulge. She was gorgeous and young. The foreman quickly got up, took some swaggering steps towards her.

“Hey do that thing well!” He shouted at a labourer who was diligently doing his work. That was just to show the lady that he was in command.
He produced that smile he felt was sexy.

“ You are welcome to Gamsuwa block industry. I am the chief foreman and General Manager of this place. You are highly welcome.”

“Thank you. I am sorry if I disappoint you. I am not here for business.” She said.

“Wao! Hear accent! Like baturiya(White woman).” He said in his mind.

“ Noh, noh, noh” he said trying to twist his tongue, “you know, life is a very simple, you know, I mean, it’s nothing. When I was in school….” he paused, this type could not be lied to. He changed direction. “ I learnt a lot about life so there is no problem if you have not come for business, you know, you know.”
Idiosyncratic!

“ I learnt Ameer Adam works here.”

“Oh….he is one of my labourers, hehehe, I am his boss, you know.”

“ You have made in life, I can see.”

“Hehehe. You see, you know, it is all about education. You know, most of them did not go to school, so they can only stop as labourers. But I like Ameer. He stopped only in primary school but I can make him a supervisor, you know, because of you.”

“ Thank you. May I see him?”

“ Who are you, please?”

“Tell him his acquaintance"

“ Chori!” He called authoritatively “ Tell Boneface that Mrs Akuntans is looking for him.”

Chai!

“ Come with me.” the foreman said after a second thought. He led her to where Ameer was busy using shovel to mix cement. The foreman did it on purpose. He did not know the relationship between them but he liked her. Wao! If she saw him at that state, she may beg him to make him a supervisor and they could get closer. She could not be his girlfriend. No! how could that be possible?

She saw him and she fought the urge not to cry. She tried and hide her pain, not wanting to make him feel worse.

“ That is him, right? Boneface! Come here! Now!”

“ Why do you call him boneface?”

“You know, he has never smiled. He hardly speaks to anyone, you know. Is he your worker or former houseboy?”

“ He is my boyfriend.”

“Kambalai !”

“What?”

“Emm..nothing. I just thought, you know, you know…..okay.”

Ameer came over and said, “ It’s nice to see you.”

“ I was just introducing myself to your BOSS as your girlfriend and he seems surprised. Did you tell them about me?”

“ I never got the chance to do that ”

She turned at the foreman.

“Please don’t let any girl snatch him from me. Amana.”

The foremen was still dazed.

“ It’s okay. Em….go and round up your work before you go. That cement must be mixed.”

Ameer nodded.

She followed him back to where he was working, pulled off her flat shoes and sat on the ground watching him. All attention was distorted. The foreman would pretend to be watching the workers while peeking at them. How did he get her? Kutuma!

“ You must be very strong.” She said with a smile. This was the fifth time she was visiting him after the case. The case was won, but he was still completely broken. He was like a walking corpse. She wanted him to have his life back and that she would consider as total victory.

“ About the girlfriend thing…” she started.

“I know. He is idiosyncratic. When he was in school right?”

She laughed but he did not. Not even a smile.

“ How did you locate me?”

“ Mama. She is such a darling.”

“ Yeah. You have already taken too much trouble for me, done a lot. I feel you are still doing that and I feel like a burden.”

“ You are not. I have done nothing for you.”

“ Hmm….don’t even start .”

“ Have you thought of what you did for me?”

“Yes. Took you through hell. Long journeys from Kaduna to Ibadan, Jigawa, Kebbi…”

“ And you made me a star. You brought the best in me. You showed me the Way to light. My first case, I am famous. My father’s chamber is now busier. I am getting more cases. Can’t you see that you are a light in my life. Don’t feel like a burden. Stop feeling like it is the end of life for you. Whatever happened is qadr (destiny). Even if Jezebel had not poisoned them, they would have still died that day by other means.
It is painful but we must bring Allah into our minds. You are not a burden but a light…..Fateema was right when she called you her noor (light). You are a noor to many…including this poor girl here. You have a purpose for living. Live it. Now, finish this work and let’s go. There is a place I want to show you and don’t be scared. I told mama about it.”

“Where?”

“ Surprise….but don’t think it is a big deal though. Just an ordinary place.”

“Boneface! Work ! Everybody work! Work!” Foreman said authoritatively. If Boneface, a mere primary school leaver and labourer could date her, then he who was a foreman and wrote WAEC six times……No! sorry, went to Polytechnic could get her.

He was bent on snatching her. He must have her. Boneface? Boneface? How?

“It seems this guy is falling for me. Am I not lucky?”

“ Hmm….. That guy is an act. You need to hear him talk to us.”

“ I have seen a lot already.”

“ I forgot that you are a lawyer. A shit-hot one.”

Ameer had finished mixing the cement and it was time to close. He washed his body, got dressed up.

It was time to pay.

Foreman held a bundle of cash swaggeringly. He had them standing before him while he glanced at Maryam time to time to see if she was watching him. She was. Good!

“ Okay. This is why I employed all of you. To help you, you know. “ He began. “ You know, If you keep working hard, I will increase your wages.”

Lie! He was just an ordinary employee. Well, that was for Maryam.

“ Now, line up and collect your money.”

After he paid them, he smiled at her.

“You know, goodbye.”

He walked to the manager’s car and posed like he was about going home but wanted to see everyone gone first. The laborers understood what he was doing. Melodramatic.

He watched Ameer get into the Camry while Maryam got under the wheel. She drove out without given him a second look.

“ Kambu!” A labourer exclaimed, “ Ashe boneface is a big boy! Check out the babe that came to pick him. See her body! See the car. And hin no dey yan ( and he doesn't make a noise) ”

“Shut up!” Foreman shouted. “ Go home!”

Twenty minutes later, Maryam was pulling the car at a parking lot.

Ameer fell in love with the place at once. It was so serene, and he felt an air of peace he had not felt for a long time. The greens and flowers, the arrangement and beauty of the pews all made him mesmerized.
They walked in to the park, then moved deeper.

“It is a new spot.” She said, looking round. They were sequestered from the rest of the people.

“ Chose a seat.” She said.

“Ladies first. Please do.”

She looked round then pointed at one which became their favourite. This was the first day they went to the new garden together. It was called Teekay garden and that was how Ameer fell in love with that pew. The pew he always sat on. The pew he was sitting on as he told Ameerah about his past. That was the beginning of the story of Ameer and Maryam.

pheezylyon:
oga why you know dea finish previous stories before starting new one.... you won be Jack of all trades bah issokay

Lol. Writing of all the stories started since last year. Rounding up, crossing the Ts and dotting the is is what is going on currently.

I am excited to announce that hard copies of Married To A Fink will be available from 4th October 2018.

[img]https://4.bp..com/-05nda9alNd0/W6jie4djPrI/AAAAAAAACKc/iBQR9P3Qbc0L3x8bblp7xxaBAUNjZVJlwCLcBGAs/s1600/proom.jpg[/img]

You can pre-order the book here

Beneath My Heart, The Root Of A cynosure and The Last Insurgent will also be available mid October 2018.

We are working towards publishing some of our books, so we want to get feedback from the public before doing so.

The following are excerpts from the unedited version of the book The Last Insurgent

A Bellan Fiction Books 2018. All rights reserved.

Toeyean1507:
Really? It is o, my brother. It's something so degrading in my dialect.

Sorry about that.

Born2Breed:
Soko is there?
Dobo is God?

Soko is God
Dobo can be translated as "present".
so Soko-Dobo means "God is Present" or "Their is God "

Toeyean1507:
To think I've been ignoring this story for a while now. This is superb, intriguing and deep.
No offense intended, op but your moniker in my dialect means something disgusting and that's d reason I've been ignoring but I know better now.
Well done, boss.

Thank you for the complement.

My moniker means "Their is God " in my mother tongue.

The world is indeed loaded with interesting diversities.

Criis:
Sokodobo, you're a fantastic writer

Thank you

2005

Extremely lassitude from famishment, hours of trekking, and psychological trauma, Ameena felt like crashing on the ground. She dragged her legs with an effort, putting extra effort to keep her eyes open.
The last time she ate was last afternoon before she escaped from that horrible house. She had been wandering about aimlessly, paranoid and scared of telling anyone about her plight. What if she was reported to the police and her aunty was looking for?
When it was night and she found nowhere to sleep, scared of molestation, she found a murky corner and sat down, in the cold, close to a masjid (Mosque), and cried.

At dawn, she hit the road. It just dawned on her that she had no one to turn to, or anywhere to go and she felt dejected, rejected and lonely in this world. Why would people not feel the travails of an orphan?
Why?
Now she sat down watching out. She read the sign post and was sure it was here. She prayed she was lucky. She did not know if she could take this anymore. She wiped off her tears.

Then she saw him. Alhamdulillah (Thank God)! He was walking towards her. He looked like he was in a good mood. Then her heart paused for a second. He was with a girl. The girl was pretty, slim and very attractive.
He held a folder while she carried a bag.
Ameena hesitated. Should she talk to him or just turn back? Turn to go where? She was scared she might crash in the next thirty minutes.

She summed up courage, hoped the girl who looked like his girlfriend would not misconceive her and mud-sling her.
She stood up with an effort and moved forward. He had seen her, he glanced at her then back at his girl who paused to redress her bag.

“ Good afternoon, uncle.” Ameena said quickly.

“ Afternoon my dear.” He replied and passed by her.

What just happened? He behaved as if he had never seen her! He denied her, ignored her! Oh God! She thought he cared. She almost believed him. So this was it!
Ameena had never felt more dejected and disillusioned. He was her last resort and he just proved to be like the rest. Maybe worse because of the pretense.

“ Come on, Teetee, let’s go. I am hungry.” He told his girlfriend.

Uncle Amaar! She was beginning to trust him, thinking he was different. Not in her wildest imagination did she ever felt he would treat her like this. She had taken pain staking steps to look for him. She remembered telling her he was a mechanical engineering student in UJ.
She has been here since morning, searching for him only to be denied. What a world! Should she go back to that house? At least she ate food and had a place to sleep. No! Anything was better than place.

Then she saw him walk out of a class hurriedly and she became confused. Was she hallucinating? Was hunger and exhaustion subjecting her to been under illusion?
She was sure Uncle Amaar just passed-by with his girlfriend, she even greeted him, and she could still sight them far away. How come she was imagining him here? No! Her condition was worsening. She was going insane. Ya Allah! Save my sanity.

Amaar and Ameer rarely wore the same kind of clothes though they used to do that a lot when they were kids. But today, they wore the same kind of clothes and that added more to her befuddlement.
The image was making a call, “ Haba Ameer! I was in the class. Couldn’t you wait?”
Ameer?
She saw the other ‘Amaar’ receiving a call. They were talking to each other. Ameer, Amaar, twins! Damn! He never told her he was a twin.

“ You can’t come back? …..Okay, we would meet at home. ”Amaar concluded.

Ameena got up again, walked towards him but he turned and saw her before she got to him.
Yes! This was Uncle Amaar. His sapphire eyes widened, his hands akimbo and surprise splashed on his handsome face.

“ Meena!” He said.

“ Uncle Amaar.”

He saw how crestfallen, and lassitude she looked. Her legs were dusty, her eyes sagged, and her face lost some of it’s colour. What the hell had she gone through?
No! He could not return this girl to them. Let her do her worse, even the worst. Seeing her, he assured himself again that he was not ready to part with her again. He did not know what exactly he felt for her, hardly admitting it was love, telling himself it was just compassion, kindness and gregariousness.
Whatever it was, he was attracted to her and she had an effect on him. He was ready to scarify his life for her. Damn forty-eight hours! Let the heaven fall.
He could see she was about to cry. She had been crying, Her eyes were messed up. She was all messed-up and he felt broken.

“ Don’t talk.” He said. “ Come here.”

He did not know when he held her hand and took her to sit on a concrete pew. Then it dawned on him that Jib or someone could see them.

“We need to get out of here first.”

As they walked out of the school premises, he fought the urge to carry her on his back. She was weak and at the verge of crashing. He knew without been told that she had been through a lot. He got a cab and took her to a restaurant.
She was glad he asked her not to talk. She did not have enough energy to do that, and she could not talk without crying. When she saw them go into a restaurant, she began salivating and her intestines cobble-wobbled.

“ What do you want to eat?”

“ Anything.” She replied.

Amaar turned at the waiter.

“ Two plates of white rice, egg, plantain and chicken.”

“Okay sir.”

“ And two bottles of malt drink.”

Ameena was shivering. The ten minutes wait was like a year to her. When the delicious food was brought, she pounced on it. They ate in silence, and she rarely raised her face. It was only when she went half way she relaxed and began to eat at a slower pace.

After the meal, and gulping chilled malt down her throat, she felt satiated and her vision sharpened. Alhamdulillah.

They left the restaurant and took a cab. Amaar was very careful, alert to make sure they were not been trailed. He had to keep this girl safe. And he could trust no one to help do this. He had no option than to take her to a hidden lodge.
When he was collecting the key to Room 15, the attender winked at him.

“Bros, I envy you o. Young and fresh. Chai!”

Amaar felt his bile rising. What did he think of him? Bringing a fifteen year old to a hotel to fornicate? But on a second thought, who wouldn’t think of that?

Amaar smiled.

“Thank you.” He said. Maybe it was better he gave such an impression to avoid suspicions.

The room was neat and fairly furnished with a very clean toilet.

“ You need a bath.” Amaar said. “ Give me a few minutes. Let me check if the heater is functioning.”

It was functioning.

“ Just give me a few minutes.”

He went out, rushed to Bauchi Road and withdrew two hundred thousand naira. The way things went, he needed cash at all times. And that was all he had in his account before the next rental fees is received. Emergency may arise. He took a bike to Main Market and got her a few clothes. He bought three Abayas, long skirts, tops and three veils and two niqabs.
He also bought two pairs of shoes, and under wears. He had looked a lady and asked, “please don’t feel offended. I want to buy pants and bra for someone of your size. May I know your size please.”

And she gladly told him. He also bought some snacks, drinks, Nokia phone and SIM card. on his way back. He met her lying on the bed. Hmmm….

“ I got you a few things. I think you can have a bath.” When she saw the things he bought for her, and the fact that someone cared for her, she began to cry. It has been long since someone showed her true love.

“ Come on, Meena. Just go and freshen up. I will give you some space. Let me keep myself busy outside by fixing your new phone. It needs to be charged.”

After taking her bath, she felt freshened up and back to life. She dressed up then asked him to come in. He plugged her phone for charging then sat on the chair which was placed before a reading table. He could see she was tired. She lay on the bed and within a few minutes she fell into a deep sleep. He would wait for her. He wanted to know more about her. What happened? She needed rest.

He called Ameer and told him he would not be coming back home. He would sleep in his friend’s house. After they had dinner, she told him a bit about herself.

Her name was Ameena Kamal. She was the first child of her parents and had two younger sisters. Sa’adat was ten years old while Aisha was five. Her mother used to give birth after five years and it was not as a result of family planning. They were natives of Gombe.
Her father was a civil servant and of middle class. He died in a fatal car accident a few months before Aisha was born. He was not that rich but a left a substantial amount to cater for their needs. Two years later, they lost their mother to cancer.

That was the beginning of her troubles. She was brought to Jos, to her father’s elder sister who maltreated her, subjected her to beatings, malnutrition and child-abuse. She treated her children differently. Her younger siblings were left in the village. When she went into details on how she was treated, Amaar could not help but shed tears. Ameena was shocked to see him trying to hide his tears. Was he crying for her? Was there anyone who would cry for her? Who was this guy?

“ Just put your trust in Allah. I pray you would live to get over it. You would be a saving grace and be the one to pull your siblings out that abyss.”

“Ameen.”

She looked at her phone.

“ I have never had a phone. I never even thought of it. I can’t believe this is mine. Thank you, Uncle Amaar.”

"Don’t mention.”

“ You are a nice person. Why are they your friends? I used to wonder a lot and it kept keeping me away from you. I felt everyone there was bad. You were the only one I ever saw performing ablution, or stayed away from alcohol and drugs.
But I kept wondering because my father used to say, ‘show me your friends and I will tell you who you are’, I was judging you from your relationship with them.”

“ Hmm…then why did you come to me after you ran away from them knowing they were my friends?”

“ I don’t know. Something in my mind kept telling me to look for you. I did not know how you would treat me, or react but I just felt…….you were the only person I had.”

Her last sentence nearly made him cry. Come on, man-up.

“ You will never regret your decision. I need you to trust me. I will always be there for you….once I am privileged to be alive, and able, then I will be there for you.”

“Thank you. I believe you.”

“ I never wished to be with them. I am been blackmailed. I think it is safer for you not to know the details. But I will get free insha Allah. If you noticed, I have no friend there, and never mingle with the girls there. I stayed back because of you.’

“Me?”

“Yes. I was about leaving the night you came. When I saw you…knowing they were deceiving you, making you believe you would go and work and school, I decided to hang on and …help you if you would give me the chance.
They intended to take you for prostitution. That is what they do. It is called women trafficking.”

“Subahanallah!”

“ I went back to the house for you and they maltreated me. They want me to get you back…but that will be after I am dead.”

God! So Gogo Uwale wanted to send her for prostitution! She knew they were not good, but she never thought it was this bad. How could she have known he was there for her? She knew he had a kind of interest in her, and she thought it just lust. But when he saved her from Jib, and refused to rape her even when he had the chance, she had a second thought about him. But the fact that he was their friend and hung with them kept disturbing her.
He was there for her, and went back for her, he was here for her and he was going to be there for her.
She now felt comfortable with him. And something inside her sparked a bond between them. She wanted him in her life. It might be platonic, or just that brother thing but she was sure she needed him in her life.

“ I am sorry I made you go through all these.”

“ Never say that again. It is my mission. Order from above.”

She chuckled. What? When was the last time she did that?

“ I never knew you had a twin brother. When I saw him, I thought you were the one….with your …your girlfriend. And when I greeted him, he just replied and left. I thought you ignored me, denied me because she was there or….did not want to see me. The world crumbled before my eyes then.”

“But I was there to mend it at once. That is my YOUNGER brother.”

“You over emphasised the word younger. Now ,I am suspicious. Twins always behave like that. I know the original Hassan and Hussein were not twins but in our context, who is Hassan and who is Hussein. He is the Hassan and I am the Hussein. He is the Taiye and I am the Kehinde, from Yoruba naming. He is the Peter and I am the Paul…”

she laughed.

“ He was born before you.’

“ I sent him to check what the world looked like.”

She laughed.

“ Is that his fiancée or school girlfriend. I heard there is what is called campus couples.”

“ Campus haram dai. Yes, that is Fateema, his heartthrob and he is about to go to Jigawa for formal introduction.”

“She is cute. You guys will get married the same day, right? So, who is your ……”

“ funny enough, I don’t have yet. The only girl I ever dated and it turned out to be a disaster was a girl called Tessy.”

“Disaster?”

“We would not talk about it. Part of the things you are not supposed to know. She was part of them.”

“ Ohhh…Allah kiyaye (God forbid).”

“Ameen.” He looked at her, he had never seen her looked this vivacious. Was he falling…..no. “ We need to talk about you. You said you were in SS2, right?”

She nodded.

“ How about continuing your education?”

“Kai! Who would sponsor me?”

“Allah will use me as a sabab (cause). But you have to leave this town. I have been thinking. I want to take you to Kaduna and enroll you into a school there. But I am thinking of where you would live. It has to be with a responsible family. The problem is what do I tell them?

A place where you will be safe. Then you would give me the address of your younger siblings . We will deduce a plan on how to help them. When I begin to visit them and giving your grandparents gifts, claiming to be a prospective farmer, I would then offer to send them to school, and help them with provisions and basic needs.
Then when the right time comes, you will come out of hiding.

“ Please tell me what you are? I don’t want to wake up and realise that you are a dream.”

“ I am for real, Meena.”

She smiled and lay her head on the pillow.

“ I will sleep on the floor, Uncle. Come and lie on the bed.”

“ I hate beds.”

“ Uncle, I am fifteen.”

“ Okay, there is something I need to do. I don’t need the bed. Just sleep.”

And he needed it really. He went into the restroom and performed ablution. Apart from Shafa’I and witr (voluntary prayers) he performed after Isha (obligatory night prayer), which is also considered as qiyama lail (standing at night for voluntary prayers), the last time he stood up late at night to perform tahajud (voluntary prayer) was during Ramadan.

He spread a polythene bag on the floor as mat and started performing nawafil. He needed it. Spending the night with this chubby, voluptuous girl was tempting and the only remedy was to invite angels of mercy and send iblis (satan) away.
Sallah, here we go.
Amaar kept praying, pausing for tasbih (meditation), Qur’anic recitation while she slept. At a point, he got tired then leaned against the wall and dozed off.

He came out of sleep with a start. Something nudged his brain. No, it was a dream or nightmare. But ….it was not. He heard voices. It was late. He did not put off the light. It was 3: 10 AM . He heard steps too. Ameena was sleeping peacefully. He quickly took his eyes off her.
Maybe it was a someone bringing a girl to the hotel after clubbing. He got up and peeped, then he saw them. Checking a door were two men. He recognised them at once: Jib and Black!

Innalillahi wa’ inna ilaihi raji’un! They found them!

" I studied the satellite system deeply." Adnan said. " We all know that communication satellites relay and amplifies radio telecommunications signals via transponder; it creates a communication channel between the transmitter and the receiver at different locations on Earth.
I became so interested in the receivers. As a kid, I used to ponder how satellites were used for television, telephone, radio, internet and military. Then I found out about electromagnetic waves which carried signals for wireless communications.
I studied how the satellites use radio and microwaves. This led me to buy various textbooks, watching documentaries, asking university students because I was snot privileged to study far.

I also studied the orbits used by communication satellites which are geostationary orbit, medium Earth orbit and Low Earth orbit. I began to notice some irregularities.
The radio waves travel through the air at the speed of light. You can see why you will speak now and the person in America would hear it now on phone, or watch a live football match. Imagine the speed at which the signals are transmitted. Is God not great?

I used to construct a lot of things as a young child and they were mostly electronics. I made remote controlled toys as a child. Then my apprenticeship in computer engineering at the roadside gave me more insight.
I now tried to make my receiver. I had no satellite in the orbit, and had no money to link up with any company or organization so I began to think of a way to tap.
I made a small metal rod dish which captured radio waves and turned it into electric signals. I added a panel which I made from old computer parts which could capture waves from any point without permission. I realised that I could catch many TV stations, listen to radio stations and use telephone.

I tapped into some mobile networks and I used to make free calls. I never bought recharge cards. I was too young to think of anything about it.
Then the big one came. I was trying to improve on the strength of my receiver and antenna so I studied chemistry for a long period and got some ideas which I will not reveal. I made a chip called IVT. I added it to my panel and fixed it to my antenna.
I discovered that my TV got burnt at once and my antenna was destroyed but I captured the strength on my wave-screen. I was shocked to what I discovered. There was something else. Natural occurring radio waves are generated by lighting or astronomical objects so I thought it was caused by lightning. But I was tapping from radio waves produced by radio transmitters. I studied the waves again and discovered that it was three times faster than the speed of light. Its frequency was about 1000 GHz and it could penetrate virtually every obstacle.

I discovered that it was a wave not known to man yet. Scientists had not discovered it. I deduced a way of controlling it and I did it. I dropped radio waves and needed not to tap into any place again. I had my waves.
And guess what my satellite was? ....Moon. The moon is not only there to light up the earth at night or show seasons. The gravitational pull of the moon control the rise and fall of the tides on earth and slows the planet's rotation. This effect on tide has an effect which transmits the strange wave. I manipulated my waves which I named OFA (One from above) Waves.

Only me knows the components of the receiver, the key panel, and the properties of the wave. I hack into any system with nothing to stop me.....for now. Knowledge is dynamic. I use it to make calls and cannot be traced. I can get all the stations I need without paying a dime. Now you know how I do it but don't even ask me of the PDA.

I am also a programmer so I created software for it and installed it in an ordinary PDA which is now extra ordinary. I think the rest remains a secret. I guess you can see why I never allow the world to know about it. If I wanted to become the richest criminal in the world, I could have done that. I only use it as a means of security.
I wire my house, and connect it to my phone which serves as a monitor, remote control and detector. With that strength, I can manipulate it from another country and release the waves which could electrocute someone if it persisted. I use it where I worked as a security guard."

" You are cursed!" Bas said. " You got all these and you are still a low life! "

" Bas, behave." Her brother said.

" Don't interfere." Adnan said to Bash. " That is how we play our love. Was that not romantic?"

Bash laughed.

"Seriously, I will be glad to have you as her husband."

" Nay!" Adnan said. " She needs a husband like Big Show or Undertaker. They can settle marital feud in the ring. Never marry her off to an ordinary guy or else, you will be arrested for murder conspiracy."

" Hahaha! My sister is not as brutal as she looks."

Naairah fell on his mind. Why? What was wrong with him? She was just an ex mummy.

" Adnan, I'm speechless." Bash said. " You are a genius with an exceptional IQ. You said you never had much formal education. I am mesmerized and dazed. Please come into our family and light us up."

Adnan got on his feet.

" I will give it a thought." He said. " And be ready to tell me what I want. It is not just for the money...I want to know who I am."

" But we got a job at hand now."

"Let it wait. I need to plan on how to deal with this."

He left but they made it a duty upon themselves keep an eye on him. They felt he was a genius who did not know his value and he was going to be their secret ingredients. Having him on their side would make them the greatest hackers in the world.
But the most important thing was to get the PDA. They may find it hard to get the source of waves, or the technical know how but having him work for them was the top priority now.

Bash had talked to Bas." Why don't you date this guy?" He had said. " That would help us a lot."

" He will never do that. I see the way he looks at that girl. He is in love with her even though they are not dating."

" Give it a try."

" No. Find another girl to do that. I have a boyfriend and you know it."

That was how they began trailing and stalking him. When Adnan showed hesitation, they kept pestering him. After Alhaji Mukhtar disgraced him and Naairah's brother beat him up, he decided to find his family and the only way to do this was working with them.
He did the first job for them. It took him just ten minutes to do it. They made three million out of that deal but Bash offered Adnan just one hundred thousand naira. Adnan collected the money because he needed to pay his hotel bills, and cater for his needs since he was out of job and did not want Naairah who was still a student to keep footing his bills.

But he was very skeptical. He only collected the data, then left to do the job at an unknown place. He would never let the PDA get close to them, or let them see how he did it.
Bash was a patient man. He obliged but kept an eye on him. They got a breakthrough when Bas was able to develop a signal detector that could locate the PDA. She could not hack into his system. All she could do was locate it and Adnan was not aware. If he had known, he would have deduced a way to make it untraceable for her.

He would have hacked into her system, find out the application then alter it. Unknown to them, Addy who was the one who introduced them to Dr Abbas was watching them. He became suspicious since he saw Adnan with them.

Addy did not know that Adnan was the brain behind the hacking. All that mattered to him was to kill Adnan who he felt was a threat to his position.
He was not even aware that Dr Abbas and his accomplices had decided not to kill Adnan. There was another discovery by a great scientist which they planned to use Adnan for and that would have gone a long way to cover their tracks.

When Adnan was sent to one of their secret Lodges in Lokoja, to hack into a system, Addy sent men after him and he was shot.

Now, his death was the least of Bash's worries once he could get the PDA and that was what they were going to get now.

She did not know where she was been taken to or who this man said they were that police could not get to them.
She was been moved further apart from the love of her life. Was this the end of it? Who was behind this saga? Who was the fink that took pleasure in implanting pains in people's lives?

He said her real parents were killed. When, where, how? That was their business! So they were alive all these while and never bothered to look for her. It was better that way. She never wanted to be associated with such criminals.
But she wanted to at least see them, see the people who gave birth to her. Maybe it was curiosity or the pain of not knowing your parents even when they were alive.

Now the police would start investigating, three cops shot dead. And their identity would be questioned. There was no way out. If they could escape these gangsters, they still had the law to reckon with. What a world!
Where was Damon? Was he alright? God, if I get killed, give him the fortitude to carry on, let him be save. She burst into tears.
The driver brought the car to a halt. He hissed then opened the car door.

" What is going on?" Bug asked.

" I got a flat tyre. Can fix that within a jiffy."

The native behind the truck was singing in Fulfude while he smoked. It was now dark and cold. She still had a fever but her mind was more sick than the body. She heard someone gave a short loud cry and stopped.
Bug removed his gun at once, his deadly eyes shifting dangerously.

" Hey, what's going on?" He asked but no one answered.

The guy who was singing was now mute. Bug turned back but saw no one. There was a dead silence. What was going on? Bug removed his phone, trying to make a call. He was a smart bastard. Calling for backup before stepping out. She did not know how she got so gutsy when she used her fingers to scratch his eyes and then pushed him.

" Christ!" He yelled as he lost balance. So he knew Christ! She did not know if it was of use, but it was better he shot her than take her to be abused.

She alighted with alacrity and broke into a run. But the bull had recovered and put up a chase. She had not gone far when he grabbed her, raised his hand and hit her cheeks. She screamed and fell down.

" I swear, I don't care about reprisal, I will kill you." He barked angrily." Let him do his worse" He raised his gun.
Boop!

She heard a smacking sound and he dropped on the floor. The person who had hit him was pugnacious. He held a stick and hit him hard on his head.

" Uurrrghh!!" Bug yelled in a voice that sounded bogey.

Everything about him was scary. The person kept hitting him until Bug stopped moving. Bug was dead.
This guy could use a stick. This guy? It was Salim. Damn! Salim!

" Can you stand up?" He asked quickly, " we have to leave quick. They will come here?"

She forced herself up, still panting. God! She was sick.

"Thank you. "

She heard the car start and she became scared.

" It is Damon. He was the one who took care of the driver while I took the Fulani guy. The bastard is a wanted cattle rustler."

Damon?

They ran to the car. Damon was behind the wheel. Even though she knew they had to leave there as soon as possible, she could not help holding him and crying.

" Are you alright?" He asked, his eyes showing fear, hurt, love and care. She nodded. He planted a kiss on her forehead and set the car in motion, made a quick reverse and pulled out.


They drove for about twenty minutes before he stopped the car.

" We cannot go back ." He said." These guys have a strong network and we don't want to meet the cops. I am wanted in America."

They abandoned the car and Salim who knew everywhere around led them through the hummocks.
She was exhausted, sick and agitated. She could not keep on. It was not time to talk. She had so many things to tell Damon. She also wanted to know what happened to him. He looked tattered. His clothes were blackened, rough and dirty. He looked sick and was only moving with a great effort.
When she could not move any longer, Damon carried her on his back. She knew he was tired and she protested but he wouldn't listen. They got to a point they felt was far enough. Salim was a jungle master. He cut bamboo sticks with his machete and made a hut using the sticks and thick grass.
He made sure it was protected from snakes. The speed at which he made it was amazing. They got in and it felt warm. He went out while Damon checked the gun he carried from the driver .

" I was worried." Alicia said, hugging him, touching his face. " I could not reach you on phone."

She told him what happened and he did not seem to be as surprised as she expected.

" I knew he was coming to you." He said, running his hands through her hair." I was in Doctor Billy's house when he came in. He killed Billy and his girl then set the house on fire. I almost died if not for Salim. The guy is brave. I passed out in the inferno and I don't know how he got me out. I asked him to keep watch but Billy beat him to it. He did not see him come back so he came in and saw Bug killing Billy and his girl. He hid, let them go before he came for me. I could have been roasted . I owe this guy."

Alicia could not hold it any longer. She held him tighter and cried. She could not imagine he almost died. Deep down she knew it was her problems. How would Salim feel if he knew her father killed his parents? He made them orphans at such a young age. Now Damon was going through all these because of her. He deserved someone better....

" It's not your fault and don't even start it." His deep voice brought her back to life."

" It's my...."

He shut her up with a passionate kiss. It sent fire into her, burning up her pains, warming her body, and she felt the sweetness of his lips and tongue as they explored her mouth. This guy knew how to thrill her, treat her and subdue her fears.

" I love you." He whispered.

" I love you more." She said softly.

" When we came to the hotel and saw him holding you, Salim said they were taking you away. He saw the Hilux and guessed which way they would take. I think it has to do with what Fahad told us about seeing a fleet of cars going into the hummocks the other night. They are connected to Bug's gang. There is something big going on around here. So we ran over the hill and set hooks to burst the tyres. Salim is our hero. But we have to leave immediately."

" Leave to where? Nowhere seems to be safe."

" We will cross over to Cameroon, then fly to Mexico, then sneak into the United States"

She raised her eyebrows.

" States? You are wanted."

" We can't keep running for life. The answers to our problems lie in the States. We gotta face it headlong. I found things, we must go back."
Salim came back with roasted meat. He caught a rabbit. Alicia was hungry and could not understand where she got her appetite these days. As they began to munch, someone called Damon.
It was Fahad..

" Set fire quick so I can locate you" He said. " The police are searching for you and it won't take long to get you."

2008

“ My name is Ameer. Ameer Ahmadu.” He said confidently. “ I work with Assurance Bank, Kano branch.”

“Thank you, Mr Ameer.” Maryam went on, “what was your relationship with the deceased?”

“ He was my uncle. My father’s younger brother.”

“My lord, the text message which was sent to my client was incomplete. But the complete message is with this gentleman. Late Mr. Uthman had mentioned that my client did not kill them intentionally. Uthman stated that it was not his fault. He got to realise it late. This was the doing of his late boss, Mallam Hamisu Barau and Hajiya Binta who was popularly known as Jezebel. My client did not know the beverage was poisoned. It was a set-up.”

When Okorie got up to cross examine Ameer Ahmadu, he wore that intimidating smile of his.

“ I appreciate your coming, Mr Ameer Ahmadu. you claim to have the full text of your late uncle. Did you get it from his phone via Bluetooth? I mean, how is it possible when the phone was found in his hand and taken as exhibit?”

“ He sent it to me.”

“ How? I mean why? Are you the real Ameer who allegedly killed him?”

“Objection my lord!” Maryam remonstrated.

“Objection overruled.” Said the judge.

“Thank you my lord. Yes, Mr Ameer Ahmadu. Tell us more about the so-called SMS.”

“I was in my room around after ten when I got a message alert from my uncle. When I opened the message, I saw what he wrote. I quote: The beverage you sent to us just killed us but it is not your fault. They used you. It is a set-up and I fell for it. It is Jezebel and my boss. I suspected him. Now I am dying. We are all dying. TeeTee XOB.”

“ Hmmm..”Okorie gave Ameer a searching glance, “ do you still have this message?”

“ I do and the lawyer has it as presented as evidence.”

“ How come the police did not find this complete version on his phone? The only version was the one sent to Ameer Adam. How do we believe that this is not an attempted perjury?”

“ I don’t know anything about that, my lord. This is all I know.”

“ Who did you report this to?”

Damn! Ameer was now feeling jittery. She assured him that he would not be in trouble. This lawyer was confusing him. Were lawyers thought how to distort a witness' sense of balance, make him confused and mix words?

“ I did not report to anyone.”

There was a little murmurings in the courtroom and this got Ameer Ahmadu regretting why he came.

“ You saw a text message from your uncle, saying you killed them with a beverage and you did not find it strange to report this bizarre message. It is two years now and this is the first time you are saying it this out. My Lord, “ He turned away from Ameer Ahmadu, “ it obvious that this man is not telling the truth. Whatever he claims to have in his phone, which was not found on the phone of the deceased, does not prove that the accused is not guilty of the offences neither does it prove that there is a certain Jewel….oh, Jezebel sorry who is behind all of these. Thank you, my lord.”

Maryam came up and looked a bit shaken. This expression she wore made her mother felt cold. But who felt more cold than Ameer Adam’s mother who could see her son getting hanged if she lost the case?

“ Ameer Ahmadu, You did not show the message to anyone because you were scared, am I right?”

“Yes, my lord.”

“Why were you scared?”

“ I know I did not give any beverage to them. I was not even in Abuja then because it was during holidays.. I was in Jigawa. But there was a little misunderstanding then, between me and his daughter who I hoped to marry before Ameer came and …snatched her away..”

There was laughter as he said it with a grimace.

“ So I was scared if anyone saw the message, I may be misconceived. When I heard that they were all dead, I became more scared. Then We heard that Ameer Adam was arrested for the murder. I now realized that the message was for him.
I then knew he did not kill them intentionally but I felt this message was not an evidence to prove his innocence.”

“Thank you. My lord,” she turned away from Ameer Ahamadu and faced the judge, “ Uthman had realized they were poisoned after consuming the beverage. This beverage was introduced to him by his boss.”

“ Objection my lord. Ameer Adam bought the beverage from a hawker.”

“ Objection overruled. Go on, Barrister Kankiya.”

“Thank you, my lord. Mr Uthman had his suspicions about his boss. He knew Jezebel had inside men, those who protect her at all cost. But he never knew the charade about wiping a family over an estate was a target to wipe out his family.
The perpetrators had it carefully planned. So when he discovered that they were dying, he sent a message. I saw the phone. And Ameer Ahmadu’s name was stored as A-m-e-e-r. The only capital letter is A while Ameer Adam was stored as A-M-E-E-R. All capital letters.
So after typing the message, he mistakenly sent it to Ameer Ahmadu. He realized this then typed another message to Ameer Adam. This was a dying man, probably in pains and agitation of death. Forwarding the message may have not crossed his mind.

In Mr Uthman’s phone, there was a message sent to Ameer Ahmadu but with no contents. It was sent a few minutes before the one sent to Ameer Adam. This aroused my suspicion and I began to investigate until I found Ameer Ahmadu.
It is worthy of note that all the evidence against my client look staged and the coincidences are…surreal. Who was the photographer who took the shots of Amaar climbing the hill? And why? Who was the photographer who took the shots of Ameer Adam as he went into Safyan’s house and why?

It all shows that it is a set-up. We should also look into some of the witnesses that died. The man who hawked and sold the poisoned Beverage died that same day: accident. Mallam Hamisu Barau was also killed that day.It was obvious it would be traced to him that he gave an order for the mysterious file to be retrieved illegally claiming it was covert operation. He died the same day in his guest house. They claimed his gatekeeper tried to rob him. Hmm.

The mastermind mind behind this is Hajiya Binta Yahuza. Mr Uthman had a file that exposed her criminal activities which also involves some top men in this country. She tried to get this file but failed. Mr Uthman hid the file under a code which made it impossible for her agents to find.
So she befriended Hamisu, and used him to get the file. Hamisu never made Uthman’s report officially known. While my client thought he was working undercover, they were setting him up.”

“ Barrister, do you have evidence to support this?” Asked the judge.

The court went in silence. Her next words determined the fate of the poor guy in the dock.

Tension.

Prayers.

“ Yes, my lord.” She said, “ and I got it from the text message sent to Ameer Ahmadu. The last words were Teetee xob. It was a puzzle. Ameer used to call his fiancée, Uthman’s daughter Teetee. Uthman sent a message to Ameer. The x-o-b meant box. So, I deduced Teetee’s box.
With the help of the family members, I got to her box and searched. Uthman hid the documents there. I have as evidence the duplicates of all the documents in the file Hajiya Binta was looking for. Uthman was a hero to the last.

He had a duplicate. He also kept all the reports he made to Hamisu, and recorded their conversations ,including video footages that substantiated that Ameer Adam was acting undercover under the auspices of the DSS director. I present to the court these items.”

Boom!

Okorie bowed his head in defeat. He did not need to wait for the jury to know that the case has been lost.

Maryam’s mother bowed her head as tears rolled down her cheeks. She could not believe her daughter did it. I am proud of you, daughter!
Amaar could feel his heart beating rapidly. So he would live to witness the day Jezebel was exposed.

The untouchable Jezebel. How could he forget what she made them go through? She had given him forty-eight hours to find Ameena. That was a hell of a thing………

Damon was as still as a pole, barely hearing his breathing. He could see the cadaverous eyes. What was Bug doing here? This man reeked of blood. He was an epitome of ghoul. He looked what he was: a cold blooded killer.
Damon remembered their last encounter. He had hit him and ran away. What would he do to him if he found him? Bug stared at Billy's body with satisfaction. Killing seemed to elate him, fulfill him and got him fed.

Bug must have killed Billy's black woman. He searched Billy and found the papers he took from Damon. He glanced through then picked his phone and dialled. He seemed not to be in a hurry.

" I got there, sir." He said " I just silenced Billy and his girlfriend had to go....."He listened.. " I think he was not only found by the kids but was planning something. I saw papers in his pocket, papers that stink....." He listened, " I have it set, Sir. I will do that now sir, then ...." He was saying and Damon saw a sudden glimpse of brightness in his deadly eyes, " I will kill the boy."

He ended the call.

I will kill the boy! And that boy is probably me. They found us. My God!
Alicia, where was she? Was she safe? He wanted to call her, call Fahad, tell him to move her out. You could not tell with these men. How did they find out they were here?
Bug's next line of action brought him out of his thoughts. He was not alone. He was with a tall, thin Fulani man who held a big can.
Bug ordered him to start spraying, pouring it's content round the study: Gasoline! What!
They wanted to burn the place up. The study had too many evidence against them. Billy and his father knew too much.
Satisfied, Bug brought out a stick of cigarette, struck a match stick, lit his cigarette and threw the flame on a pile of gasoline-soaked books. The books were not far from Damon’s hiding place. Damon watched in dismay as the fire gradually came closer to closer, the intensity of the heat increased.

Perspiration, perturbation, desperation, all came into play as he faced the farrago. The room was now full of smoke as the voracious fire devoured papers, plastics, wood and anything that came it's way. And Damon was on it's part. Damn!
He sprang up, made a move towards the door but came to a halt. He could not see the door. It was fire and smoke. My God! He began to cough, smoke filling his lungs. His eyes became watery and he felt pains.

He carried a chair, flung it towards where he thought was the door but realized it was a futile move. The flame increased, the heat intensified and he saw death smiling at him, calling him, telling it was alright, it was there for him. He knew that death was inevitable but he did not want to die now. He wanted to live, wanted to be there for Alicia. She left everything and everyone for him. He couldn't leave her now.
He grabbed a stool, climbed a shelf and hit the Plaster of Paris ceiling. He used the metal leg to gouge it, jumped and held an edge to tear it and then dropped on the floor like a thrown sack.

He ignored the pain, trying to open his eyes amid the smoke. He jumped on the shelf again, then sprang up and grabbed a wood . He pulled himself up. He wanted to rip off a roof and get out but this proved to be a Gordian knot.
The roof was too high and he needed to climb the planks . Oh no! The fire was now engulfing the ceiling. He had to hurry. The smoke, the heat, the fear all made him weaker. He could barely see. He bagan climbing up, the fire chased him, he felt weaker, and soaked in his sweat.
Damn! He was gasping, panting and trying to relax his brain, think but it was difficult. Alicia! He hoped she was safe. The gangstars were around. Only if he could get her to safety before he died. Alicia!

Mum ! I'm sorry I'm putting you in pain. I wish I made it, made you smile and made you forget your sufferings. Now, I am only adding to your pains ! Damn me! I am good for nothing.
He was up but could not rip off the roof. What was he thinking? He had no tool. He held on to the wood, the fire was coming closer, he could see it, feel it and saw no scintilla of hope. Now his grip was loosening, he could see no more, he could hardly breath. He felt his hands leave the wood, and let out a last cry as he felt himself drop.




Damon! Why was he not back? Why was he not answering her call? Alicia felt uncomfortable, jittery and scared.
She felt it was not well. Damon ! She loved him . She was sure life meant nothing without him, nothing was beautiful without him. Only he knew the secret of her joy, had the key to her heart and made her complete.

Why was she reminding herself these? What if something happened to him? No! She felt that nausea come back, her heart and head began to ache and her body shivered. The fever was coming back. She had better die before he did . God, keep him safe for me.

She heard a knock at the door.

Damon! She sprang up, ignoring the feverish feelings and rushed to the door. He is back. Back for me, to be with me and relieve me. Oh my Damon!
She peeped through the spy hole then cringed.
She saw a short stocky man with broad shoulders, dressed in black suit and a hat almost covering his cadaverous eyes.
Even though she had never met him, she could swear he was the man Damon called Bug. Bug in Nigeria? How? What was he doing here?
She began to shiver, felt her bile rise. She ran back, picked her phone and dialled Damon's number. He did not pick. As she dialled Fahad's number, she heard Bug knocking harder, and then heard a sound, like the door was been opend.

She was shaking profusely. Should I dial 911? 911? This was not America and she did not even know the emergency number. Fahad's number did not go through.
Then She saw the door open and he came in with a native behind him. God! He looked worse than she had thought.
The eyes were as cold as ice, glassy, red and cadaverous. The thin, dark lips twitched and when he tried to smile, he looked more deadly. She could imagine the images of Tyler, and hundreds of people he may have killed behind him.

" I knocked, Mrs. Damon." He said and bowed. " I was brought up with good manners so instead of keep knocking louder, I decided to come in silently. I am Bug. B-U-G. I am delighted to meet you."

" What do you want?" She asked with a useless effort to conceal her fear.

He put his hand in his pocket and removed a cigar.

" Please don't. " She protested. " I have a fever and the odour may make me puke."

He moved his lips in what he felt was a smile.

" Don't be shy, Ma'am. You can puke if you wish. That is not a faux pas." He brought out a lighter. " I am understanding."

He lit the cigar.

" I am here for your husband. I was told he is not around. I have been waiting patiently but he is not back." He inhaled and exhaled smoke. " So I felt I should get you to call him."

" Why do you want him?"

" Come on, it's bad for a woman to know that her husband impregnated another woman. That should be kept a secret, don't you think?"

It took a few seconds before she understood that he was trying to put up a joke.

" He won't be back until tomorrow." She said, knowing it was a shoddy lie.

" It doesn't matter when he plans to come back. You will tell him to come back now.......if he loves you."

" What do you mean?"

He looked at the native then at her.

" If he is not here in thirty minutes, " He puffed out smoke, then shrugged, " This Fulani man here said he has never had sex with a white woman. I was trying to get him a slot when we are through but he could get it now, no, thirty one minutes later, if your husband is not here. Can you tell him that? But it won't hurt. He looks like a gentle lover."

No! The thought of getting raped got her sick the more. It was better they killed her.

" If you make a noise....."He showed her a gun. This was the first time in her life anyone pointed a gun at her. She felt her heart pounding violently, her mouth went dry.

" Who do you work for?" She summed up the courage to ask.

" The man at the top." He said. " I know your hubby has been doing some jumping through the window and you know who I am. But all you think you know is fictitious. You can never know the real us."

" You knew my father."

" I knew him........before they were killed. Not in Vegas but years later in Chicago."

" Who killed them?"

" You have twenty minutes more. It seems you want this guy."

She felt a drumming sound in her head. What should she do? She could not bring Damon in for them. But she had to tell him. He could be on his way. And.....she could not let this animal touch her.

She dialled his number again. No one picked.

" Bad luck for you then." Said Bug. " I will wait for him but I swear, this guy will take you. Damon owes me."

" No, please.."

He produced that dangerous smile of his.

" I love it when people beg for what is irreversible. It makes it more interesting. "

It was at that moment the door burst open and three Nigerian police men barged in, holding gun and pointed it at Bug.
It was then she knew how dangerous Bug was. Within the twinkle of an eye, he shot two of them dead, sprang up like a spirit and jumped behind her, pulled her violently and held her neck with a gun pointed at her. He was breathing laboriously, hitting her with halitosis.

" Get back or I squeeze!" He threatened.

She had screamed and was now crying.

" Drop your weapon now!" He added.

The cop hesitated but the native flung his stick and hit his eye. Bug shot him at once and then dragged her.

" Let's get outta here." He said as they took her away. They led her out, people began to run away as they heard the gunshots. They took her to a Toyota Hilux with a man who covered his head and face with turban behind the wheel. She was forced inside, while she screamed and cried.

Bug slapped her across the face, she felt as if half of her face had fallen off.

" Move it!" He yelled and the car was set in motion.

" Relax Oga." The driver said. " The police can not chase us to our den. They know us."

Oh my god! Who were they? What was the connection with Bug? What was going to happen to her? Damon , please forgive me. I could do nothing about it. Damon, my Damon, they are taking me away from you.
She closed her eyes as hot tears cascaded. The driver pushed his leg on the gas pedal and the car roared, raising dust as they moved deeper into the hummocks.

NINE

To understand what has been going on, it is imperative we go back to the day the huge tomboy approached Adnan after he left Naairah and Nadia at the boutique.

“Listen to me you schnook! I must talk to you.” She had said.

“ I told you my wife is in the labour room and if you are one of my mummies, then congratulations, you are going to be a grandma.”
He turned to leave then gave a hard stare.

“ Don’t try to throw something at me or else……….” His face became a mask of horror, “ I will run away.”
She had to laugh.

“ Okay, Mr Clawn. You ain't got nowhere to hide.” She said. “ Don’t be a bitch.”

“ I won’t. You got that title already?”

“What?”

“ I said you are a swell and don’t try any bullshit. I am good at sprinting.”

“Now let us talk about the micro-chip era!”

Adnan felt a bang in his head.
What did she just say?

“ Who are you?” He asked.

“One of your unusual mummies” she said.“We have a lot to talk about. Your wife’s labour can wait.” She smirked.

“You can call me Bas.”

“ What offence did you commit to make your father give you such a name?”

“ You swine, it is Basirat.” She said.

“ Basirat..hmmm if it still means "insight" or "perception", then I still feel it is a wrong name for you…”

“What? What did you just say?”

“ Just a compliment.” He said. “ Bas!”

She grimaced.

“ I don’t think I have a sense of humour.”

“ Do you have any other sense?”

“ I will smack your face if you dare insult me again.”

“ Now she can’t even understand a simple statement. I asked a simple question. Just say yes or no, simple.”

“ I hope you have not forgotten what I said about micro-chip era.”

“I haven’t. I was hoping you have forgotten. But how did you come up with such a word. I guess you are onto the wrong person. I am in the production department and I don’t deal with micro-chips. I don’t know it.”

“ You must come with us now or else………the police would be all on you and The Spirit would be identified today.”

“ Bas! You are my bad luck, hope you know that?” He said but deep inside he was shocked. How on earth did she come up with that? “ Come with you? Where?”

“ It does not matter. You either come with us or the police will go with you.”

He grimaced.

“ Let us go.”

She opened the back door for him and he got behind. She got back under the wheel and started the car engine.
There was a tall, dark and slim guy sitting beside her. He turned and gave him a smile.

“ I am Daxy.” He offered a hand.

“ Correct man.” Adnan said. “ No, chop knuckles.”

Bas set the car in motion and they left.
Thirty minutes later, she was parking the car in front of a small bungalow in a quiet part of Kubwa. They alighted the car, she locked the doors then walked impressively to the front door. She knocked, waited before the door was opened after a click sound.

“ Come in.” She said.

“ Okay, Bas.”

“ What the hell is your problem with my name? fuc* you!”

Adnan turned at Daxy who was behind him.

“ It seems she is in love with me.”

“ Hey, come in.” A thick voice said from inside.

They walked into the moderately sized living room, which was well furnished. There was a guy, who Adnan saw as the male version of Bas. He was also very huge, brawny, and intimidating. He wore a pony tail, side burns and low moustache with an earring on his left ear.
The guy split his hard face into a grin and offered a big hand for a hand shake.

“ Finally, he is here.” He said with a voice that sounded like ten bass bands synchronized.

Adnan shook the hands, felt the strength then quickly prayed.

“ I am Bash. Bashir and that is my sister, Basira. We are not twins if that is what you think. I am two years older. The nigger there is Daxy. A real gee and I guess you gonna like him. I am delighted to meet you Adnan. Please sit down.”

“ Thank you.” Adnan said and sat down.

Bas sat on a sofa, her face as hard as diamond. Daxy was more of a placid guy, with a pacific expression.

“ What would you like to have? Beer, wine, ans cidar, Vodka,gin…….”

“BKT.”

“What?” Bash frowned.

“ BKT. Burukutu.”

Bash looked at Daxy.

“ Never heard of that.”

Daxy smiled.“ It is a locally brewed alcohol. I guess he does not take alcohol. My man seems to be a master jester.” Daxy said.

“ We don’t have such things though. Soft drink?”

“ No thanks. I only take tsimi.”

“Tsimi?” Bash shrugged. “ Well, I am sorry my sister is not too friendly. She have made you look like a foe. You are a friend indeed. I will go straight to the point. We are a family. We were born and brought up in USA but relocated three years ago.
We cover Africa. We lost our parents a long time ago so we had to survive and been with the family has been good. I hope you know what I am talking about is strictly confidential? If we fall, you fall but it is very difficult for us to fall. We are highly connected and powerful.
We are all around the world. Let me give you a brief history of us. We are a family of hackers. We are professional hackers, national and international.
We are experts in using vulnerable scanner, password cracking, spoofing attack, packet sniffer, viruses, Root kit, Trojan horse, and key loggers. There are a few legitimate hackers who use their skills to find flaws in company security system, preventing identity theft and other computer related crimes.

We are not them. We work just for money. We don’t give a fuc* about ethics. Ethics never paid our tuition fees and bills. We got a racket, a citadel of computer wizards, technological avant-garde with deepest knowledge of computers and networking.
There is a limit to which I can tell you about us. And that has been reached. We are contractors. No personal grudges. We have a network, though like every organization, there is always rivalry, cabals and cliques.

So we relocated to Africa years ago. We are Nigerians but don’t know shit about this country. Thank God we met niggers like Daxy and you know what, there are raw talents here. Then something happened.
We came across a hacker who we had never witnessed anything like his. He has no mate in the racket. He was brought to our notice by our FBI informant. There was a secret file belonging to National Financial Crime Agency.
It was a list of the bank details of seven hundred corrupt government officials. This file was impenetrable. Several hackers tried to reach it and this led to an integration of various master hackers to reach it but nothing was found.

Then it was realised that there was someone who got in, and crossed to the banks and was withdrawing ten dollars daily. This accounts had a lot of money in them running into millions. This happened for long and no one noticed the serial withdrawal because of the minute amount which was negligible and even when it was found, they thought it was a kind of error because it made no sense that someone would crack into such money and steal just ten dollars.
Until ICT expert, John Farreli raised an alarm that it was a heist. It took months to discover this. The first thing that got the world alarmed was how the file was cracked. The FBI invited a lot of ICT experts, hackers and black ones included.
No trace was found of the culprit. Then it was found that the heist was watching or following the moves made to crack him and he would send messages of humour, as trackless as the sea. He was named the spirit.

This became the biggest internet mystery. And he became a phenomena, a dream guy and set as an outstanding genius. The guy or girl stopped the stealing and vanished into thin air. Nothing was heard again and the case became an unsolved mystery even though we know they may still be on it.
Then you met Bas. I don’t know how you got her to buy food for you and collect money off her. She is not so approachable but you did it.
She saw you again doing the same thing to another girl so she became curious. She set eyes on you. This led to her finding out that you are a computer genius because she detected some radio waves which you tapped, enjoying anything and everything free on internet.
Bas is better than me. She is a connoisseur when it came to computers, and networking. A programming queen and hacking giant. She started programming since she was eleven but she could not hack into your system and could not identify the properties of your waves.
Your phones were not traceable, and she became very suspicious. She spent months working on you and found out that you used to go to Zone 4, near Sheraton to sell ten dollars every day and stopped when the heist stopped.

I could not believe it at first until the FBI discovered that the moneys were sent to Africa but they could go no further. I could not believe we found the spirit and you called the era the micro-chip era because all you took was a micro amount.
You set up a very complicated program which let this money out through circuitous ways that no one would ever suspect.
You used BQMN. But you vanished into thin air and we kept looking for you until she found you just a few months ago.”

Adnan was shocked. He never had the slightest idea that anything like this was going on. He had underestimated some things. Whoa! She must be a genius!

“ We are not your foes. We are not planning to report you. We want you to join us. We can’t understand why you chose not to take much. It seems you only stole to eat food. A foodie, right? We want you to come into our family and make some real cool cash. We don’t break into accounts, but we are hired to hack and get paid. You have what will make us the greatest hackers.”

Adnan was silent for a while.

“ Okay, there is no prevarication.” He said. “ I hacked into those accounts because I needed food and felt I could pick it from those corrupt officials. “ I did this for a while. Making an equivalent of one thousand six hundred naira daily. But at a point, I realized that it was not justifiable to steal from a thief. Thieving is thieving irrespective of who you thieve from. So I stopped and stopped using the App completely.
It was tempting but I never took more than ten dollars a day because my intention was not to get rich from it but survive and food was my main desideratum.
And that includes hacking. I do not want to get involved. I want to live a peaceful life. I am sorry I can’t concur.”

“ I think you must think of the prospects and what is at stake. We know about the micro-chip era and that would be a global gargantuan discovery.”

“ If you want to blackmail me, then go ahead. What do you think I have to lose? Do you think I find happiness in my existence? I don’t give a hoot. Maybe that would be chance to be famous.”

“ You are acting all stubborn.” Bash said. “ We know you. We will give you ten million naira.”

Adnan had smirked. “ Do not think such an amount can make me change my mind.” He had said. “ I have over one billion naira in my account, two houses in Victoria Garden City, two in Asokoro and a country house in Miami. So fuc* your ten mil.”

“ Where do you have all of these?” Bash had asked.

“ In my day dream.”

Bash had laughed.

“ They told me you were crazy, but you are crazier.”

“ I have to leave. I have got bread outside. Won’t you guys buy some? Our bread is delicious.”

“ We have another offer.” Bash had said. “ If you oblige, we would not reveal the micro-cheap era and you will have the chance of knowing who you are.”

Adnan had paused and turned.

“ What do you mean?”

“ You will have to tell us what we want, and do what we want and you will know what you need most in your life. We know all about you Adnan.”

“What do you know?”

“ You were not picked up from a dump site as claimed.”

“What are you talking about?”

“ You were brought there to be pictured.”

“Why would they do that? And who?”

“You can’t get that free. There is a price for it. He said. “ Your life is more complicated that you can imagine. You were brought for a purpose and something happened. Let me tell you this, there is someone living your life out there. A life that was meant to be yours. There is another Adnan Abbas. I guess you don’t know why they gave you the surname, Abbas. We got your cradle. Recognise this?”

He showed him a white fluffy cradle. Adnan saw it to be similar to the one in the picture.

“We were expecting your reaction.” Bash had said. “ And we were ready for you. You were not dumped. You were brought from somewhere. Now, I guess you would love to know where you came from, ICT boy. And when you do, you will be shocked. The mistake they made was leaving a tag on your cradle with the name, Adnan Abbas”

“ This sounds ridiculous. Who are you? What are you? How do you know these? You are about my age mate.”

“ I am twenty three, Adnan. But you don’t know shit about me. We know things because we looked for things. I give you three days to think about it. Have you heard that Nigerians prisons are so congested and yet they would still accommodate more inmates…..like the micro-chip guy? Then think about the freedom, money and a chance to know who you are.”

Adnan did not know why the image of Naairah came into his mind. It was not as if she liked him and he did not intend to ask her out but something kept attracting her to him, and now that prison was mentioned, he realized he may just have a reason to want to live.

“ How do you expect me to believe this? You can just get any cradle and tag it. But do not think the prison issue scares me.” He said, not convinced himself.

“ Have you heard of Dr Abbas?” He said and Adnan paused. “ He has a son called Adnan. Addy, huh? That is the guy living your life. You were with them as a kid. They claimed you were picked from a dump site and they adopted you. Now you know I know what I am talking about.”

Yes, he knew.

“How did you know this? You just came into country three years ago.”

“ That is how enigmatic we could get.” He said proudly. “ I hack for him and to be on the safer side, I peeped into his archives. I found you there. Are we not lucky dudes? And we matched it with what Bas found out, we had a gold mine. You were not picked from a dump site. That was a staged photograph.”

“Where do I come from? Who are my parents?”

Bash smiled.

“ See why you have to join us? We got a job right now, and no one has been able to crack it. We need you to come in but you must tell us how you do it. What do you use to hack? Why are you so unique? I am not asking you to give it to me, I guess it's your little secret but tell us how. I have never been more curious in my life. You are a world figure but you don’t know that.”

Adnan hesitated.

“ Okay, we will take it bit by bit.” He said. “ Let me give you an idea on how I hack. It is not the conventional way. It all began one day……..”

She walked briskly into the her big face very stern.

“ I guess there is a problem.” She said.

Bash sat up.

“What is wrong?”

“ Adnan did not arrive the lodge.” She said.

“ Why? I don’t trust that guy.”

“ It is not about trust. I picked his signals but as you know, you can never break into his system.”

“ What are you talking about?”

“ He is communicating with someone and they are using the it.”

“You mean he has another……”

“Adnan has a phone with him so what he has is the reflected version. Someone is using the PDA.”

“What?”

“ Yes and I think I can locate the place. It is less than thirty kilometres from here. Adnan is in Lokoja but.”

Bash’s face sullen in thoughts.

“ Call him.”

“ You know he hates my calls.”

“ Yeah. Let me call him.”

Bash called him. He called several times before Adnan picked.

“ Why are you not in the lodge?”

“ They found me.” He said. “ I am on the run.”

Bash frowned.

“ Addy got to you. I should have known this. I saw the sign.” He said and ended the call.

“ I am afraid Adnan is going to die tonight.”

She raised her eyebrow.

“ How?”

“ Addy tricked us. They had discovered Adnan.”

“So what is going to happen if Adnan dies?”

He shrugged.

“ We must locate the PDA now. If we can get it, then the world is ours! That son-of-a-bitch was so secretive with it. I never knew he could ever let someone have it.”

She nodded.

“ Bas.” He called.

“Yes.”

“We are going right away. Get Daxy.”

“ I think I know who has it.”

“Who?” he said with excitement splashed on his face.

“ His girl.” She said. “ I know where she lives.”

She said and went out with her tomboyish personality and intimidating huge body.




Adnan was running as fast as he could, hoping the darkness would cover him, and he saw a few men fishing on the vast river.

“ He is coming!” Naairah said in agitation,” Run!”

“ I am trying..” he managed to say, “ I hope I make it.”

“You will! You must!!”

He kept running,

His shoes making clefts on the sandy wet ground, sound of wind brushing his ears as he penetrated the wind, he could imagine Naairah, the girl who came to identify love for him, and made him see a side of life which he had never imagined.
Just a few months with her, his life was transformed and he almost asked why she did not surface before now. But destiny could not be surpassed. Now he wanted to live and be with her. He wanted to have the chance to find out who he was, and solve the mystery, and live a normal life.
He was running, knowing he was running out of stamina, the zeal to live kept him on. He moved then……

Bang!
Bang!!

“ Ahhhhhhh!!!” Adnan screamed as the bullet hit him. He missed steps and fell down, rolled on the sand then moved up again.

Naairah could not shout.
She heard the gun shot, heard him shout then saw him fall. She saw him running towards a cliff, he was now staggering, moaning in pains.

“ I am not going to make it.” he said with an effort. “ destroy the PDA. I -am - sorry, Miss Sunshine. I-I wanted to come back to you….”

She saw him at the edge of the cliff.

“ I love you…please pray for me. Never forget me. You are the only love I ever knew….thank you….” And he flung his phone inside the river after removing something. He could not let them get it. he knew he was not going to escape from them.

One of the thugs was talking to Addy.

“ There is a problem. It is too late. One of the boys just shot him.” He said as Adnan fell off the cliff, dropped into the water and his body was flushed away by the flowing river.

For a split second, Naairah sat still. She could not move or tell if her heart was beating or not. Everything seemed to be still, as if the world was frozen. The signal was gone and …Adnan gone?
Then she began to hear the drumming of her heart, but it felt like the pounding of yam. She was just trying to assimilate, assure herself that it was all a nightmare. She wanted to believe she was still on her bed, sleeping, and what she had here was just an image, illusion.
But her head was filled with his image. The ever happy funny young man. Those brown eyes of his, his cosmic smile and jokes. Did he just leave her?

Was that Adnan who got shot and fell into the river?
No!

Then the wind of reality hit her.

She let out a sharp scream that startled everyone in the house. The scream did not only startle the house members, even Bas, Bash and Daxy who were leaning by the fence of the house were shocked.

“ I think Adnan is dead.” Bash whispered . “ And the PDA is with her. Good news.”

Addy sat before a table, a bottle of wine in front of him, a Cuban cigar stuck between his teeth as he starred vacuously at Lori as she lay on the big bed.
He had a phone in his hand, with a number Dr Abbas did not have. He had to handle this like a man and he felt they were not doing just that.
The other day, Gajere came, saying the guy suspected to be Adnan had some strange things connected to his hotel room. Then the guy left the hotel and went into hiding. Addy was told that he was going out with Naairah so he got someone up to trail her.
They found him and he made them take photographs of him without his knowledge. They zoomed the pictures which was numerous and saw the mark.
That was disastrous.
Addy could not sleep that day. What got him angry was the slow rate at which they were handling it. Then news came that Adnan was needed alive.
What nonsense was that? What if they got to find out the truth? What would become of him? He looked at Lori’s body again. She was lying on her stomach, sleeping.
No!

He could not let that happen. So, he set up his killer squad and followed Adnan to Lokoja. And he was sure he would be dead tonight and that part would be obliterated.
He smiled evilly.
Then he heard a knock at the door.

“Who the hell is that?” He barked. “ It is almost 3:00am, fool!”

“ Open this door!”

He frowned.

Dr Abbas!

He got up, moved out, closed the bedroom door . He must not see Lori. How did he know he was here? What was he doing here? Has he found out? But he warned TJ not to talk.

He opened the door and saw Dr Abbas and Gajere standing.

Gajere! This short bastard!

“ Call it off now!” Dr Abbas said.

“ But, dad you know what is at stake.”

“ What you don’t know is that if he dies there will be reprisal.” Dr Abbas said as he forced his way in. “ I told you that you don’t know what is going on. You are living his life and there is something I never told you. We need him alive to keep the secret and make you real. If he dies, be sure that you will fall…we will fall.”

“What?”

“ We have plans. That is the only way you will remain the CO. You don’t have what it takes to cover the tracks, Addy. Call it off now!”
Addy quickly picked his phone, dialled a number.

“ Just get him alive!”

“ We can’t.” Someone replied. “ He is formidable. As slippery as ice.”

“ Get him!”

Dr Abbas shook his head.

“ I said call it off. You are not to handle it for us. We will get him at our own pace.”
Addy did not like this.

“ I need you guys to let it go……”

“ There is a problem…….”The thug began.

Naairah woke up with a start, she found herself breathing heavily, her heartbeat drumming, and her head seemed to ache. She yawned, wondered what woke her up. She sat up, allowing her fluffy blanket drop off her body, then she sent her hand to the bedside switch and put on the light.The wall clock told her it was twenty-three minutes after two o’clock in the morning. She ran her palms over her face, stretched then dropped her legs on the floor. She felt uneasy, and she could not remember having any nightmare.

Slipping her legs into her flip-flops, she went into the restroom, eased herself then came back. Adnan image fell on her mind. Well, he was always there though. Their relationship had become so sizzling her mother was in support of her.

Now, he was trying to gain admission into University of Abuja or Nasarawa State University to study computer science.
She was about going to bed when something told her to look at her phone. She felt like calling him, she wanted to hear his voice, and some of his jokes, perchance she would feel at ease. What if he was asleep? She did not want to wake him up.

She picked the phone then cringed. Sixteen missed calls from him. And the last call was twenty minutes ago. What was wrong?
She dialled his number, it kept ringing but he did not pick. She called again before he picked.

“ I have been calling you.” He said and she noticed that he was whispering.

“ I was asleep and left the phone on silent mode.” She said. “ I was just contemplating on calling you. What is wrong, you sound low?”

“ I need you to get that PDA, you must locate me and feed me on.”

Her heart sank.

“ Subahahllah! What is going on? Where are you?”

“ I am in Lokoja. I came this afternoon.”

“But you did not tell me! Are you in trouble?”

“ Can’t explain right now….”

Bang! She heard a gunshot and Adnan was interrupted, as if he was running.

“ Adnan ! Adnan !”

He was now panting.

“ They are trying to kill me!”

“ Oh my God! Who….” She paused, rushed down and got the PDA. Her hands were shaking, and the whole of her body began to tremble. She needed to calm sown. She had to calm down but it was difficult. That was Adnan being chased with a gun.
She got the PDA on. This was not the time for barrages of questions.

“ I am on.”she said with a trembling voice. “ I am searching for your location.”

“ Okay.” He said. “ When that is done, go to satellite tracking system, then connect to my system. I am using my phone. Take a three hundred metres perimeter range, mark ‘bio’, you would see all humans within that range around me. I will be communicating with you so I can know where they are.”

“Who are they?” She could not hold back the tears anymore.

“ They found out that I am alive.”He said. “ They know I am with you and I don’t want to get you in trouble. I will not give you details. If I do……”

“There is someone coming behind you….!” She said at once, and then a gunshot followed. Adnan lurched forward, docked then rolled down before he got up and broke into a run. “ Ya Allah! Ya Rahman!”

She zoomed, and saw blurry satellite images of moving persons.

“ The only way to keep you safe is by not telling you.” He said as he seemed to have found a hiding place. “ They might try to find out something from you…..in case I don’t make it, destroy that PDA at once.”
In case I don’t make it….

“ Inna lillahi wa inna ilaihi raji’un! Please don’t say that. You promised not to leave me. Can't we call the police?”

“ There is nothing they can do at this point.”

“ Hayati…you sound like you have given up!” She was crying.

“ Just being realistic.” He said. “ They followed me from Abuja. They are bent on killing me. Please, in case I don’t make it, I got no one to pray for my soul except you. “

“ Stop it! Stop it…you are not going to die…You promised me. What would become of me? What do they want? Give it to them, please!”

“ What they want is my life. I am a threat to something deep.”

“ There is someone coming towards you. I can see a river close to you.”

“ Yeah…I am around Rokongoma New Extension.” He whispered. “ It is close to the river.”

“ Please let me call Abba.” She said. “ Let him get help from the police. What matters most is your life.”

“ Just hang with me…how close is he?”

She punched and she read fifty feet.

“ Fifty feet. I think he is behind a car.”

Adnan was lying under a car, he crawled forward and saw the person’s legs. He was unarmed. They had guns. This was not good.




Gajere cursed under his breath.

“ Pick this phone!” He said to himself before the line connected.

“ What the hell are you doing?” he asked. “ You are supposed to be on deck.”

“ We are in Lokoja, have you forgotten?” TJ said from the other end.

“ Lokoja? What for?”

“ I thought you knew. We are taking Adnan out. We are on him right now. Just a matter of minutes more. We got him cornered.”

“ What are you talking about?”

“ I was summoned to join a seven man hit squad and we were taken to Lokoja.”

Gajere grimaced, felt his hands gripping the phone tighter.

“ Oh my God! Stop the operation, now!”

“ What?’

“I said call it off! We need him alive.”

“ I am sorry I can’t. The other men are not known to me and the leader is a ruthless killer.”

Gajere frowned.TJ calling someone a ruthless killer? Then the person must be very bad. Gajere ended the call and called another number at once.

“ Good morning, sir…….I am sorry, I called by this time.”

“ I know there must be a reason. What is it?”

“ I am afraid, he had sent a killer squad to kill Adnan. They are on him in Lokoja now.”

“What?” Dr Abbas.

“ Tj is there and he does not know the other men. I asked him to call it off but he said they would not listen to him. You need to talk to him, sir. We need him alive and if we can’t get him alive, we need his body. “

The silence told him that Dr Abbas was jittery and angry.

“ I will get to him.”

He ended the call and called another line.

It was switched off. He called another line, it was switched off. He did it on purpose. The idiot. He was dabbling into something he had little knowledge of. He was going to make a mess out of it.

He called Gajere again.

“ All his lines are switched off.” He said.

“ I think I know where we can find him.” Gajere said. “ And I hope Adnan is not dead before we get there.”

As Damon sat on a little hill waiting for Salim, he realised that the more they went deeper into the saga, the more obfuscating it became.
From the police file, there was no scintilla of indication that Professor Pliers was Ted's father. But why did they kill him? Did they double-cross their father? Did Professor Pliers try to chicken out and the young lads kill him?

Professor Pliers was said to be married with two daughters. No one ever mentioned a son. Was it a secret son? Damon was now very interested in this saga. He had to extricate himself from the deep hole he was in. And it seems they were digging up what the law could not see. The heist was no child's play. They really sat down to plan and what a patient wait. Years of planning but it seemed none of the masterminds enjoyed the money. Ted and his wife did and maybe still doing.

He saw Salim's silhouetted figure running towards him.

" He just left. He and his woman. We need to hurry ." He said sounding pell-melled.

They ran down the hill, passed through a narrow ambulatory path and arrived at the back of a duplex which stood alone in the hummocks. They jumped over the fence and landed at the backyard. This man lived in style. Situated in the quiet hummocks, there was a natural spring swimming pool at the back with clean, pellucid water with beautiful sand and pebbles underneath.

" There is a gate keeper at the front." Salim whispered, " We must hurry."

They hurriedly but silently walked to the backdoor, Damon used a master key to unlock the door, and they went in, closing the door gently behind them. They were there without an idea of what to look for, where to look for it, and how but instinct kept pushing. The doctor stunk .
Why fake his death? What did he do or know?

They rummaged through the house, checking from one room to another then finally stopped at where Damon thought was his study. There were books, and files stashed in shelves. This was the place to look.

" I suggest you go and climb the little hill and watch. If you see him coming back, call me."

Salim nodded, and left, holding his stick. This Fulanis never played with their long sticks. Damon began to check files. It took him just a few minutes to realise that the doctor was an obstetrician and a shit-hot one. He had handled the most complicated cases. He was doing well in the states.
Why then did he fake his death? Alicia said he was reported dead when she was just around seven. Then her father had gone to establish a company in Zimbabwe where he spent almost a year. Her mother used to go and visit him monthly. This was around twelve years ago. His real name as shown in some documents was Billy Hart.

Damon kept searching almost with a pell-mell, then he saw a picture that made him cringe. It was the picture of a man lying on bed, looking worn out with closed eyes.

He felt his legs shivering, his mouth went dried and brain tumultuous. What was this? How? No! This must have been photoshopped. He looked at the date, printed on the picture. Oh my God! What was going on? He put the picture in his pocket then moved on. There was nothing else he saw of special interest.

Then he noticed a part of the study that looked different. It seemed to be more obsolete. There were typewriters on a large desk, the chairs and style of furniture were old fashioned. He moved there and began to search. It was not Billy's. Rather it was for an older man. He saw some photographs that told him he was the original owner of the mansion.

Damon remembered Salim said the house had been there before his father was born. From the books Damon saw, the owner was Hart O'Brian. Hart? He was a first class surgeon .
Damon saw pictures of various surgeries. The man was a wizard when it came to surgery. This must be Billy's father.
Then he saw a file that looked different from the rest. He brought it out, dusted it then flipped open. He felt that chilly sensation as he began to see the nature of the operations. Was he doing this when the world did not know that such things were possible? My God! Then he got the biggest shock, he meant the real biggest shock of his life when he saw the record of an operation he performed many years ago. This was too much for him to handle. He tore the pages off and put it in his pocket.
He was done. He needed not to search further. He had discovered one of the biggest secrets in the world. He was perspiring at the same time feeling cold. He thought he just found a panacea to not just his problem but for America.

He moved out of the part and paused as he saw Billy standing with a gun in his hand.

" I am Doctor Hamgoy Warmer. Who are you?" He said in a flat cold voice.

" I am sorry about this...."

" Who are you ?"

" I am Michael ."

" You are American, right?"

" Yes."

" What are you doing here?"

" I am a tourist."

" A tourist? Hmmm....and my private property has become a tourist attraction, huh?'

" No."

" Then what are you doing here?"

" I - I ran out of money and ....thought I could get something here.'

" You are a thief then."

Damon said nothing.

" If claiming to be a thief is a way out for you, then your motive must be very pernicious. What kind of thief would leave all the rooms with expensive stuff and come into a study, you shoddy liar?"

" My grandfather once said 'if you want to hide money, hide it in a book"

"Your grandfather was a fool." He said with a twitch of lips. " Put your hands in the air. I served with the marine for three years. I got a prize for shooting. So don't feel like James Bond."

Damon raised his hands in the air. Billy came to him meticulously, his bleary eyes alert. The way he held the gun substantiated that his claim to have been a marine. Damon just got married and did not want to make his wife a widow so soon .

He ran his hands over Damon and took no time to find the papers on him.
Billy moved back, then glanced at the papers. He gave Damon an astonished look.
"Who are you?" He asked and seemed to be jittery."What the hell are you?"

" I said I am a tou....."

" Don't give me that crap !" He vituperated sounding very peeved. " I swear to God, I will shoot you at this very moment. You break into my study and tear off this? Tell me, are you a fed? What the fuc* are you, CIA, FBI? Talk to me, assho**!"

Damon was not finding this funny now. Why didn't Salim alert him?

" What do you know about this?" He said, pointing to the paper.

" Nothing...." He did not finish his sentence when they heard a lady scream from the livingroom, then a gunshot sound followed. Billy got shocked, then made a fast movement towards the door. Another gunshot emerged, Damon ran and hid behind a bookshelf.
He saw Billy stagger backwards, held his chest as his gun dropped. He seemed to be surprised. The person fired again and Billy dropped dead.

Damon was shivering. Who was it? Then silence, then footsteps and the killer came into the room, looking at Billy's fresh dead body.

Damon recognized the broad shoulders and macabre face at once: The man with the stripped suit. Bug!

TEN

2005

Amaar hesitated as he stood before the big bronze gate. Getting this girl out of here was going to be a Gordian knot. He did not know what Jib may have told her, or if he wanted for crushing those murderers.
Should he walk away? But Ameena was still in there, in midst of those devils. What would happen if he left her there? He had stayed there basically because of her. He would have a rest of mind if he left here. He had to take the risk.
He went in. God! How this house disgusted him. He ignored the girls and climbed upstairs.

“Mtwwwss! Lubabatu hissed, “ This guy feels too big. I don’t blame him. Hin don dey arrange that small girl.”

“ When did you start hating him?” Saratu asked with a smirk.

“ Have you not been told that there is a thin membrane between love and hate. Now, I hate him and the girl will suffer. Let Queen go back to Abuja.”

“ When are we leaving ?”

“Next month.”

“ O’boy! Those oyibos go hear whin!”

They laughed.
Amaar met Jezebel sitting on a rocking chair, a cigar between her fingers. With her were two men. Jib and a very dark looking man. Was this the man she called black?

“I have been waiting for you.” She said calmly. “Sit down.”

She wore a white skinny pant and singlet. She kept rocking the chair, looking up and puffing smoke.

Jib did not act as if he saw Amaar. He just sat, his big face set in grimace. The second man was sipping a bottle of dry gin. Amaar had never seen any of them perform ablution or pray. What kind of life were they living?

“ Where have you been?” she asked, still looking upwards.

“ I went to school.”

“But you were asked to go for a meeting. You climbed up and never came back. You left them waiting.”

“I never knew I was part of the quorum.” Amaar said.

“ Are you trying to be sarcastic? Do you know what I can do to you right now? Kasanni kuwa?” She retorted.

“ I climbed up and saw some people up there. They were trying to push a rock. They saw me and chased me.”

“ Go on….”she said, “ A nice start.”

“I ran down the hills and left the hummocks.”

“ Who were the people you saw?”

“ I don’t know them. They were guys though. Six of them.”

“ Did you know that seven people were killed there?”

“ No.”

Jib chuckled.

“ He killed them and he was not alone.” He said.

“What are you talking about?” Amaar made a face.

“ You know what we are talking about. Who are you? Which cabal do you role with? You are a humint!”

“Relax Jib.” Jezebel said. “ Don’t let Pu*** block your head. There are girls all around here so what is the Ameena stuff all about. Okay, you want a virgin ko?”

“It’s not about that!”

“Than let me be in control. He would talk to us.” She now faced Amaar. “ You belong to a secret gang. You have been tailing and marking Smalls and Murphy because they obtained your brother. You now organized their demise. You could not have done that alone. You belong, babane. Talk to me. Into which setting? This is Queen Jezebel, ruler of the coast, from beyond to the front, no shege for jungle! God punish awon ota! Who dem be? I paint my house in blood and cross it with skulls and bones.
Lucifer is freedom, banging is no fornication but emancipation of body and soul, so mallam and pastor park aside. The brain is not made to be light to upload into kaya, ganja.gbana,coki-coki and feel the breeze and sharpen your mind. No dulling, omoooh!
Gboom! Fire the bastard in the groin and bgim! Any obstacle is a goner. Oyyyoh! Bagudu baja dabaya. Qaryan karamin nyan-nyan .
Any jagbajantis is a barger. Tell me , which confra you dey represent? The mazaje you were in cahoots with that arranged the seven into crushing mode”

This lady was a devil. Amaar could not understand most of the occult incarnations which she just chanted. It seemed she was more dangerous than he thought.

“ I do not belong….”

But his words were cut short by a sudden slam of fist on his jaw. He dropped like a log of wood dropped for a truck.
Jib went after him again, his face as grim as a lion’s, the eyes now radiating grudge, he kicked him on the ribs.

“ Do you know who you are dealing with?” Jib said. “ Tell us who helped you tear those blankets.”

“ I did not do it!” Amaar said amid pains.

“ Stop !” Jezebel said. “ Let me talk to him.”

Amaar was still on the floor, feeling pains.

“ Where is Ameena?”

“Why are you asking me….?”

Jib made a move to hit him but Jezebel stopped him.

“ She ran away and she could not have done this without help. Who is the most suitable person to do this? You. You think we don’t know that you have a soft spot for her?”

“ Shege (bastard) ba !” Jib said, “ Paedophile!”

“ Jib kenen!” Jezebel laughed, “but when I asked you to baptize her, you were shaking like a slowpoke. Now that you did not get it, it has become paedophilia.”

“No, Queen. That was an order. In the line of duty.”

“Na ji (I have heard). Now, Amaar, tell me where the girl is…..if you want to leave here alive.”

“ You can do whatever you wish but…..I don’t know where she is.”

“ If I leave you to Jib, it won’t be nice . Tell me now.”

“I don’t know.”

“ I give you forty hour hours to find her.” She said, “if you fail to produce her, then…..Teks’ ghost will hunt you. Remember, I was told to report your behaviour. I will make sure you go back and tried for murder. Try me.”

She nodded.

“ Now get out my house and make sure you get her back within forty eight hours.”

Amaar stood up and gave Jib a glare. He would not forget what just happened. The smack and kick…a debt.

As he walked out of the house, he wondered where on earth he was going to find the girl. Ameena, why did you leave without telling me? He lamented.

TEN

From the moment Fahad told Damon and Alicia about his findings, his conversation with the old man, the honeymoon ended.
Within the one month they had been around, they had the greatest fun and the honeymoon was remarkable.
Nigeria was blessed with beauty. They visited Yankari National park, the acient Nok settlement, Olumo rock, The Tinata free zone and resort, The Giant Footprint of Ukhuse Oke, Awhum Waterfall, Obudu Mountain Resort, The Ibeno beach and lots more.
Fahad made it perfect, provided logistics, a reliable pilot and enough money.

All these while, they forgot about every other thing. They just caught fun, and explored the world of real love. Damon still hoped it was not a dream. He loved her more each day and never got enough of her, and he was addicted to her, stuck to her and hoped they would be together, live happily ever after like a fairy tale. But life wasn't a fairy tale. It had vicissitudes and now they had to face the facts. He was on the wanted list back home, Alicia was separated from her parents and friends, he had lost his job and had a result to check back in school. All these came into focus after Fahad's revelation.

" I am very curious about Richard or Ted's father." Damon said, sitting on the edge of a table in the hotel room. Alicia sat on a sofa, with Fahad and Salim.

" That should be my grandfather." Alicia said " Just when I thought it was over. Now I want to know more, I want to get my roots, so many mysteries surround me. Besides, we need to find out to exonerate you, Honey. You are innocent and it's inexpedient to be labelled a criminal."

"It seemed the whole thing was a long time planned job. It was done to obliterate tracks. A deliberate clandestine sinister to bamboozle the government and it was done in cahoots with some masked deils." Fahad said.

" Did you say Salim got the pictures from his grandfather?" Damon asked .

" Yep." Fahad said and Salim brought out a pack of pictures. Alicia bore her eyes into the pictures as she saw her father at a young age, he and her mother, then with Ardo. Salim did not know that she was Ted's daughter. He had been very helpful. He knew the locality and people. He was the main inside man.

" This is Dr Maxwell." Fahad said, " Ted's godfather."

" Dr Maxwell is said to be a biochemist, same as Ted's father.....and Profesor Pliers was also a biochemist. Is it a coincident or there is a connection between these men?" Alicia said thoughtfully.
That nudged Damon’s brain. It was like a wake up call. He quickly got his laptop, fixed a modem and began browsing. From the Case file he scrutinised, the scientist were working under the name of Project QPX. He browsed and got information about the project. It was sponsored by American project, but the true nature of the project was not stated, which was developing biological weapons. Project QPX was started in 1967, during the Vietnam war.
Then the picture of eight young Lecturers was displayed. He scrutinized them. Professor Pliers was among them. Looking closely, Salim said ,

"That is Dr Maxwell."

Damon felt a bang in his head. Dr Maxwell was part of the team. Then when and why did he relocate to Nigeria? So it did not start from Alicia's parents, it bagan with her grandparents. He felt that her paternal grandfather was here. Who amongs them? He ruled out two people out: Professor Pliers and Dr Maxwell. One of the remaining six must be Ted's father. They now began to check their individual profiles. They found nothing substantial.

The former team leader was Dr Alex Sean. He died four years after the project was started, then Professor Pliers, then referred to as Dr Pliers, took over until his gruesome murder. This was Damon’s theory: The projects involved a lot of money which the team leader is in charge of. Mr. X, Ted's father and Dr Maxwel had sinister motives and were in cahoots. They now planned a long term blueprint to steal money and leave as trackless as sea. So Ted's father gave birth to a son he groomed for the heist. Dr Maxwell had a daughter he presented and the duo became Richard Cliff and Maria Hudson.

Maria been employed by professor Pliers was part of the plan. They were in America for it, they were born to do it. Damn! Then they had backups. But Dr Maxwell could not live to enjoy the loot. They were buried in Nigeria. Jeez! They had it well laid out and Salim did not know that his parents were used as escape route.

" What did you get on the doctor?" Damon asked.

" Salim knows him" Fahad said.

" Yes, he has a hospital in Surte Village." Salim began. " He performs different types of operations. About twelve years ago, we were kids, a whiteman came with a swollen stomache. Doctor turned it into a child and cured him"

" What?" Damon exclaimed and they laughed " You were kids then, right? That's not possible."

" You don't know him." Salim said. " He did it. We saw the man go away with the child. He and his wife."

Damon winked at Fahad. There was no point of argument. Nothing would make them believe that.

"I think he is right. Some doctors can do that." Damon said roguishly.

Then Fahad's phone rang. He checked the number then picked it quickly and put it on loud speakers.

" Yes, Sani, any news?" He said.

" It was a hell of a job, sir. I had to borrow six hundred thousand naira to speed up ....."

" I will give you the money. Did you get it?"

" Yes, let me send it through Whatsapp."

"Good Sani. If it's worth it, I will reward you handsomely."

" What?" Damon asked.

" From the dates Baba gave me, I asked him to check the records of the year 1976. That was when Ted and his father came. " He said. " Yeah, it's here."

He opened it and stood gaping. Damon stood up and joined him then got the shock of his life. The young man with a four year old boy was Professor Pliers!