ALL IN A CIRCLE Episode 149 by dy9ty7

ALL IN A CIRCLE Episode 149 by dy9ty7

Fifteen minutes later, Clement was on his way home. All his life, he never envisaged he could or would ever drive in the manner which he was driving presently was a major concern to his sub-conscious mind.
He matched the break for the first time as he swerved off the road into their estate road.
“Welcome oga.” Akpan said, but he was knocked away by his angry boss who marched on towards the house.
“What’s wrong with this man? Abi e don smoke ni?” Akpan asked himself as he returned to his house in pains.
He yanked the door open and immediately started shouting.
“Rachel!!!….. Rachel!.. Rach..” He screamed at the top of his voice.
The noice woke Rachel from her sleep as she quickly ran to the living room to know who the noise maker was.
“Sweetheart, it is you. Why are you shouting?” She asked the moment she saw him standing at the centre of the room.
“What are you doing at home by this time of the day? Don’t tell me you have closed for the day.” She continued.
“Hey! Save it.” Clement cut her short.
Suprise was an understatement, because what she felt that moment, she couldn’t explain. This was the first time she would be feeling such. Suprise coupled with embarrassment and the fear of the unknown was exaclty what she felt.

She had known Clement for over half a decade now and she has been married to him for a year and a half now and had lived under the same roof with him for more than two years now. She had wronged him, he had wronged her, but no one had ever shouted at the other. They settle any problem even before it becomes a problem. One party was always quick to accept the blame for any problem and the other in turn forgives. But, Clement raising his voice this moment with such a furious look on his face was not a good omen, but he is her husband, she should be able to clam him down.
“Darling, what’s the matter? Who wronged you?” She asked as she moved closer to him.
He kept mute and didn’t say a word or move an inch. His mind was preoccupied that moment, that all he could think about was the innocent look on his wife’s face. Could she have cheated on him? Certainly not. But pictures can’t lie. On the other hand, it could be photoshopped, but the pictures shown to him look real and alive. Moreso, Rapheal has nothing to gain in putting her(Rachel) into trouble.
“Sweetheart, talk to me.” She said, this time she was four steps away from him, but his next action suprised her the more. He raised his hand upward, a gestrue which meant she shouldn’t come any forward.
She wanted to talk, and even though no words came out, he had already told her not to say anything.
“What’s between you and Rapheal?” He asked.

Her heart flew away to only God knows where, and that moment, she could only think of one thing, who told him about her fling with Rapheal? She needed no soothsayer to know that it was either the handiwork of Dolapo or the nurses. But on a second thought, Dolapo is currently unstable and the nurses have no reason whatsoever to report her to Clement. These conclusions left her with only on thought which was yet to cross her mind, which is the possibility of Rapheal telling him. But who does that? Even a man who had lost his dignity a long time ago dare not confess his fling with another man’s wife to an outsider, not to talk of the lady in question’s husband.
“What are you talking about?” She asked, but her voice gave her away. She was not an expert liar. When they were much younger, Chidinma has always been there to save her a.ss anytime they did something wrong.
“Rachel, how dare you? How dare you cheat on me?…” He asked. Even though he wanted to continue, but his voice trailed off.
Rachel at once went down on her knees in a bid to explain herself that she only kissed Rapheal and nothing much, but Clement’s next line of action took her by suprise.

The latest stunt he pulled was driving him crazy. Did he just hit his wife? Did he just beat a woman? He asked himself as he looked at the woman sprawled on the ground at his feet crying and beging for forgiveness.
He wanted to kill himself that moment, but his anger was doing the reasoning for him.
“I want you out of my house with your useless baby before I return home today.” And with that he stormed out of the house.
At the gate, Akpan ran up to him.
“Oga, some men asked me to give this to you.” he started the sentence on his feet, but by the time he completed it, he was on the floor.
He walked outside the gate, entered his car and drove off.
——–
Two hundred metres away from Clement’s house, a black Infinity was parked.
“This is the perfect timing. Lets go in.” Kelvin said to Hakym who eased the car forward towards Clement’s house.

Ngozi just finished questioning Deoye and his gang as instructed by Clement. She was asked to lead a group of human right lawyers to their cells and they got enough informations off them, while their defence attorneys also did some questioning.
She was now seated in her office, thinking about the events of the previous night, how her fiancee’s house was attacked by hoodlums, whom she suspected to be members of the Khal corp because their main reason for coming was to get a map which is connected to Khal corp off her. She was thankful to God for giving her a man like Tobiloba, because if a man could even at the point of death hide his woman, then he loved the woman with all his heart and life. And in their case, she was not just any woman, a woman who was fresh from sleeping with another man. If he could do that for her and still forgive her of her offence, then her future is very bright with him.
She picked up her phone and searched for Tobiloba’s number.
“Hello sweety.” She said.
“Hello dear.” He replied with a grumpy bedroom voice.
“Are you sleeping?” She asked.
“Yeah.” He replied.
“Oh! Please, I am very sorry. I only called to check on you. Hoep the body pains had subsided?”She asked.
“No problems, and yes, I feel a lot more stronger now.” He replied.
“Thank God. Okay, see you later.” She said.
“Twelve o’clock you said. I am expecting you.” He said.
She giggled on hearing his last sentence. She was sure they would make a very good couple, only if she resigned from her job, something she planned doing after her wedding, but the image of Kelvin didn’t want to clear off her mind.

Even though she was not a promiscous type of girl, but from what she had read in magazines and her experiences with Tobiloba, she must confess, Kelvin really knew how to drive a woman crazy with his sensual touches and s.ex prowess. Even though, Tobiloba is not bad when it comes to s.ex, but Kelvin was in a class of his own. She knew she mst be contented with whatever Tobiloba has to offer and forget about Kelvin.
The thought of Kelvin brought back the memories of the previous night in her mind. Who could have tipped Khal corp off that she was with the map or had an idea of where and how the map could be gotten. She remembered, it was only Kelvin she talked to about a map, even though everyone knew she discovered the underground, only a few insiders knew by what means she discovered the underground.
It could be coincidental that the Khal corp knew about her having map and decided to come after her, but she remembered it was only Kelvin who knew she’ll be sleeping at Tobiloba’s apartment yesterday. But on a second thought, she concluded that she was followed right from the time she left work, but following her is impossible because she took public transport home from work. And considering the number of people in a Nigerian bus-stop, one could loose his trail.
Everything all points at Kelvin’s direction, but being hasty could prove to be a problem in the end. What if Kelvin turns out to be innocent, will she be able to look at him in the eye? Will she still remain in his good books?
If one considers the way he questioned and advised her the previous day, one would think he was part of the system(Khal corp) but his excuse of knowing so much about terrorism as a weapon of insurgency as a result of the films he had watched proved to be a good excuse.

Kelvin and his men walked into the living room after they had taken care of Akpan who was caught unawares and didn’t put up a bit a resistance as he was stangled and stabbed to death.
“Peace be unto this house.” Kelvin said, typical of Nigerian pastors.
Rachel quickly stood up and cleaned her face with the hem of her blouse, alas, it was an August visitor, the least expected person at the moment. Her brother-in-law.
“Kelv, whatsup?” She managed to ask with a smile. The smile which soon turned to a frown and a look of fright when she saw the men who walked in after Kelvin.
Their apearances was the reason why she was afraid, she knew they can’t possibly be here to harm her, when her only brother-in-law was among them.
“Have you sits. What can I offer you?” She asked. Maybe she thought they were here to congratulate her on her safe delivery.
“What do you all want guys?” Kelvin asked.
The guys numbering up to four, including Hakym voted and the majority voted for red wine which Rachel at once disapeeared towards the bar or the kitchen.
She returned two minutes later with a bottle of wine and five glass cups which she dropped on a stool before them.

“Do you mind if I open the drink for you guys?” She asked.
“Please do.” Hakym replied.
She bent down and carefully opened the wine bottle.
“So Kelv, what brings you here?” She asked after taking a sit opposite theirs.
“We came on the orders of some great people you have wronged in this country.” Kelvin began.
“I didn’t wrong anybody?” She asked.
“Well, let me break it down. You made a copy of a confidential file and you kept it to yourself with the aim of showing it to the police. We from Khal corp has been sent to punish you for tampering with Chief Obi Patrick’s privacy.” Kelvin explained.
Understanding where they were driving at. So Kelvin is a terrorist?
“Drop you phone here.” Hakym ordered pointing to the stool which had only a bottle of wine and five wine cups. She dropped her phone amidst the cups.
“We’ve been asked to kill you because you are an enemy and we’l do just that.” Kelvin said.
“I trust me Father-in-law, he won’t do such to me.” She replied confidently, even though she still thought it was a joke.
Until Kelvin pulled out his 9mm rovolver was when she knew they had a lot of strategies to get anybody they so wish. Just last week, Sylvester’s wife was killed and this week, its her turn afterall.
Kelvin inched closer towards her.
“Now, I can have my way with you before taking your miserable life.” He said as he began tearing off her cloth with over three guns pointed at her.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Clement brought his car to a halt at the entrance of the estate and thought about his actions in the last five minutes or more. Even if he was under the influence of a certain spell or the other it doesn’t warrant that he hit his wife, a resolution he had made right from the time he had reached puberty, which was why in his almost a decade of working as a professional police officer, he had never personally handled a female criminal case, because he knew there is no way you’d question a criminal without resorting to violence to make them confess. Now, he did not beat a criminal, but his own wife. And the last time he checked his Bio, he was from the East and not the North where ‘sharia’ permits a man to beat his wife if she offends him.
He needed to make things right immediately. He concluded as he ignited the car and drove forward to turn.
What was Akpan talking about when he was leaving? Was another question on his mind. Well, he’ll find out in due time.

Chief Obi Patrick was seated in his living room watching the tv, something he hadn’t done in months. He picked up the remote and tuned to his favourite channel, ‘The Parliament 1.’ A channel where live broadcast of the proceedings in the National and the state assemblies are being shown.
The first thing he noticed got his heart pumping excess amount of blood, it was a combined sitting of the two assemblies at the National level, that is, the senate and the house of reps members, presided over by the Senate president and deputised by the speaker, house of representatives.
What could have made them(the lawmakers) want to have a combined sitting? It only happens once in a blue moon, when an urgent decision, a matter of National security, development is about to be taken and they need the consent of the two chambers on the issue.
The sullen look on the lawmaker’s faces another thing he notice. Of the five hundred lawmakers sitting down in the house, the over three hundred lawmakers in both chambers from the ruling party wore the sullen look, including the senate president and the deputy senate president.
Even though his greatest fear is about to be taken care of, he had ordered some men to go and eliminate Rachel before she mouth whatever secret she has to someone else. He also had a considerable amount of men searching around for Onome, the runaway maid. And thanks to Abdul Maleek who released his men, and he instructed them to check from one motor park to the other, and even though there had been no significant success, he was convinced that Onome was still in Lagos.

Then his eyes fell on the special adviser to the president of media and publicity standing before the distinguished and honourable house representing the president of the federal republic of Nigeria, as well as the secretary to the federal government. No doubt, the president’s impeachment notice was being responded to.
He picked up his phone and dialled the president’s line.
“Hello, Mr President.” He said immediately the call was answered.
“The president is in the middle of something. He couldn’t recieve calls as we speak.” The president’s ever present handler of phones replied and hung up.
Chief Patrick thought he should have introduced himself first before any other thing, but there is no point crying over spilt milk.
He dialled another number and waited for it to get connected.
“Hello madam.” He said.
“Hello chief pat.” A feminine voice replied.
“I called the president now and I was told he couldn’t pick calls.” Chief Patrick said.
“Aren’t you watching? Everyone is in a bad mood presently, I even had to cancel my proposed trip to Bangkok for the annual communication summit, the minister for information would be representing me.” The lady explained.
“I am watching also, that was why I wanted to call the president. But madam, what are our chances?” Chief Patrick asked.
“Sincerly speaking I don’t know. He was charged with fifty seven impeachable offences, I don’t see him getting out of it, but the senate president gave us his word, things would work our way.” The woman explained.
“Alright. My regards to the president.” With this he hung up.
If the first lady, a woman of pride, an egocentric woman who would stop at nothing to get whatever she wanted, she doesn’t get worn out, she has been the one instilling confidence in the president, if she could speak that way, then something is wrong.
From the look of things in the house, the senate president seemed to have withdrawn into an invisible shell as he allowed the speaker of the house of representative to take charge and preside over the house, even though they still regarded him in every points raised, but he responded to none.
No doubt, the president would be impeached and everyone will be in trouble, because as soon as the president leaves office, he would be arrested and he would be forced to mention his accomplices, among which he was one. He needed to do something fast.

He picked his phone one again and dialled the vice president’s private residence line.
“Hello, are you watching proceedings from the house?” Chief Patrick asked.
The response he got suprised him even to the marrow. The vice president bursted into laughter and some other people from his end joined.
“Do you take me for a fool? Patrick! You and your boy sent and assassin after me at the stadium a few months ago. Do you think I will just sit back and watch?”
“Maybe they thought you have no political tactics.” Another familiar voice said.
“Gulak?” Chief Patrick asked.
“Give me one reason why my candidates won’t be at the senate next year and you in jail.” He mocked.
No doubt, Gulak and the vice president has been working together for a very long time.
Truely, politics is a game where trust is not needed, conscience is a sin, just play the game and make sure you are unhurt. Anyone who gets hurt is not your business.

Ngozi walked into Jay’s cell. And switched on the flourescent bulb thereby illuminating the whole room.
“Hey!” He said on sighting her.
Ngozi ignored him as he walked towards him on the chair where he was seated and binded.
“Won’t you answer my greeting?” Jay asked smiling.
What’s making him happy? What’s amusing his useless self? When you have been charged with murder and terrorism, whose punishment is death, you are here smiling. She thought as she walked towards him and started tearing of his shirt.
“What the hell do you think you are doing?” He asked, an alarmed look on his face, but there was nothing he could do. He was currently immobile.
“What does it look like?” She asked rhetorically, but suprisingly he managed and answer.
“You are tearing of my shirt? Do you want to strip me of my clothes?” He asked.
“Just watch me.” She said and with one mighty pull, the buttons on his shirt came down at once and his bare chest came into view.
Jay stared into his sister’s eyes for answers or clues on whatever she was looking for.
“What does this mark stand for?” She asked.
Since she concluded that Kelvin was somehow connected to the Khal corp, she had been tempted to call him and ask him if truely he knew anything about the emergence and existence of the largest and the richest insurgent group in Africa, according to forbes magazine. Its weird isn’t it? Why would a group of people sit down around a table and draft the list of richest terrorist groups in the continent Africa? They are jobless right? But mere sitting down and drafting the list is a job.
Even though she would still call Kelvin and interrogate him over the phone, she needed to get first hand knowledge about him from Jay, if truely he belonged to Khal corp. She knew it is unethical of her to ask a terrorist if he is one, who would be so silly to declare himself a terrorist to even his best friends, not to talk of a police officer.
“What does this mark represent?” She asked once again producing a sharp kitchen knife and flashing it accross his face.
“I won’t hesitate to us this on you. Tell me about the mark. I know it was given to you at the Khal corp, because I have seen it on Viktor’s body and something similar to it on Habeeb’s shoulder. Now tell me everything, and who is this Danger-kelv of a man?”
Since she had seen the acronym D-K on Kelvin’s singlets and she had heard of a terrorist who goes by the name Danger-kelv and had suspected Kelvin to be a terrorist, she had stringed up everything and had formed a perfect tactics to stop the Khal corp. But first things first, she needed to know more about the mark which she had seen something similar on Kelvin’s body and then know more about Danger-kelv. No doubt, the ‘Kelv’ stands for Kelvin.
But which Kelvin?

++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Clement pulled up in front of the gate and walked up to the pedestrian gate, but to his utmost suprise, the gate was left opened.
Where is Akpan? Why would he leave the gate unclosed? Were the questions on his mind as he walked into the compound where everything was normal except for the silence that enveloped the compound. It was quite unusual for the compound to be this silent at the time of the day, because the presence of Akpan alone in the compound will always produce sounds. He could either be whistiling or singing, at times, he listen to his transistor radio. Anything that could make sounds and keep everywhere lively can be found on Akpan.
“Akpan.” He called as he knocked on his door, but go no response, not even a sign of him sleeping, because Akpan was a loud sleeper who would snore from the moment he shut his eyes till when he opens it. And to say it is impossible for someone to have fallen asleep between the moment he left the house five minutes ago and now that he is back. So where could he have gone to?
He pushed the door into his house open and it was empty, save for his belongings, about five transistor radios, both functioning and malfunctioning ones, his phone, a television, a DVD, his bed, his bag of clothes and a bucket. He walked out of his room and made for the main house, then he got the shocker of his life when he saw Akpan’s lifeless body lying by the side of his house with blood oozing from the back of his neck.
Immediately he removed his gun and bent down beside the corpse. He felt his pulse, but it was lifeless. No doubt, Akpan is dead.

He picked up his phone and dialled Ngozi’s number.
“Hey Ngo, arrange a backup team and drive down to my house. My gateman has been killed by only God knows who…” He was saying, but a baby’s sharp cry made him drop the phone as he ran towards the main house.

Clement considered taking the kitchen door into the house to catch whoever was in the house unawares, but on a second thought, he realised that the kitchen door would probably be locked from inside, thereby making it impossible for him to enter.
He diverted towards the main entrance. He pushed the door open and eased himself in without making a sound. His fears was making him grow weak, because by this time, little Amanda’s cries were getting louder.
“Rachel.” He called.
Maybe Rachel had left him like he ordered when he was leaving the house five minutes ago.
He rubbed his eyes to confirm if he was dreaming or seeing it live. Rachel was lying down in her own pool of blood.
“Rachel, who did this to you?” He sreamed as he jumped a couch and squatted on the floor beside her.
“Tak to me, what happened?” He placed his left ear on her chest, but he couldn’t feel her heartbeat. He rememebered he has once damaged his left ear as a kid, maybe it was malfunctioning again, he placed his right ear, no difference still.

He violently shook his wife as tears rolled down his cheeks, so many thoughts ran through his mind that moment. He blamed himself for his wife’s death, how he wished he had stayed a bit longer with her, instead of walking out of the house, but he couldn’t stand another minute with her beside him which was why he left. How he wished he had taken his time to beat her some more, how he wished he had beaten her until she passed out, then he can drive her to the hospital and thereby making it impossible for her killers to get her. He felt empty that moment, he could feel his world crumbling at his feet, and he was watching without being able to do anything to probably avert the situation or reduce the damages done. If he as a police inspector who has been responsible for stopping many criminal activities, bringing law offenders to book, securing the lives of millions of Nigeria by foiling terrorist attack couldn’t save his wife. Just one person we are talking about here, the most important person to him, his life partner, the mother of his kids.
Who could have done this to him? Who could have shattered his hopes of a much better tomorrow? Who could have decided that killing his wife was the best way to get at him? Why not kill him instead and spare his wife so that she would be able to take care of the seven day old Amanda.

He thought about his life right from when he could differentiate between good and bad, right and wrong, evil and good. He remembered that the majority of his life was lived without a female companion, he was seperated from his mother and sister right very young, he attended a boys only secondary school in Nigeria, attended the University of Lagos from home, giving him no chance to make friends, he did his youth service in Lagos, all from home except the three weeks orientation camp which was a death camp for him. Then proceeded to a criminology and intelligence institution in the United states, where he met about a hundred classmates and friends, among which one hundred and seventy were boys and the megre thirty were girls who were tomboyish and acted like boys. So it was all living with boys in his three years stay in the states.
Sirens sounded in front of his house and a few seconds later, he could hear footsteps trottling towards the front and back doors of the house.
“Clement, what’s going on?” Ngozi asked.
Clement stood up and turned to face his greatest companions both in and out of work, the only trusted friends he had, the ones who understood him, even though he was about four years older than Ngozi, a total of seven years was seperating him and Mike.

“I just don’t understand.” He replied.
It was a wide believe among the yorubas, an ethnic group in the south-western Nigeria, that a man shouldn’t cry over any misfortune that befell him. But it seemed they forgot to give thorough explainations. A man who looses his mobile phone shouldn’t cry, but a man who looses his business has every reason to cry.
Ngozi left Clement and other police officers as well as the medical team which has been summoned immediately. She returned a few seconds later with a crying Amanda in her arms.
It was then Clement remembered he was a father, no one paid attention to the cries until Ngozi, the only woman present went in to bring her out.

—

Clement has refused to return home or go back to the office right after his wife was transported to a motuary. Efforts made by Mike and Ngozi to make him go with them or at least sit back at home died on arrival.
He couldn’t place the force that was controlling him, because the next minute after Ngozi came out with Amanda, he was out of the house and before anybody could catch up with him, he had driven off furiously with no plan of returning home or to his job anytime soon.
Truely, there seems to be solace in drinking. He felt peace in the past five hours since he had been sitting in the bar. His mind was less foggy and less occupied as he drank with reckless abandon, such that everyone in the bar looked at him in total dismay with the way he drank.
He knew he deserved a world recognition for the number of bottles he had consumed, for someone drinking bear for the first time in his life, it was a remarkable feat to achieve.
“Thank you very much sir for you kindness.” One of guys whose bill he footed came forward to thank him.
“Oh! Its.. nothing.” He said absent-mindedly.
“I still have to thank you.”
“Join me here.” Clement said.

The guy, as if being controlled quickly removed a chair and sat down opposite a well respected police officer who as a result of his tattered dressing, no one could identify him.
“Barman, give my friend something to drink.” He said at the top of his voice.
“Thank you sir. May God continue to bless you.” The guy said once again.
Clement smiled, who blessed him in the first place? Was it not God. Who blessed his job and made everything he did successful? Was it not this same God? Who made him meet Rachel? It was God. Who blessed their union? He could remember the day they were both exchanging marital vows in the presence of great people from far and near, including the president of the federal republic of Nigeria, about twenty one state governors and their deputies, about seventy senators, two hundred federal honourables, every minister in the president’s cabinet, even world leaders were all present at him wedding, those who couldn’t make it to church, either because they were sinners and are afraid to enter the church all made it up by gracing the reception. He could remember the priest calling on God to bless the union, bless the marriage and other prayers which all had the name of God in them. He didn’t remember the priest saying anything like God should take his wife after two years, so why should his wife die now?
“What’s your name my friend?” He asked.

“I am Roland.” The guy replied.
He had switched on his observative sense right from the time he entered the bar, there seemed to be equality between everybody. The way a man who came in his car would exchange pleasantries with a wretched looking man will make one wonder if they both owned the car or both are wretched.
With the little senses he had left in him, he knew he would be at least a decade older than the guy in front of him, but he doesn’t seem to care.
He thought about his little daughter. Did he just behave like the best dad he ought to be? He shouldn’t have left home that way and even if he wanted to leave home, he shouldn’t have driven himself to a bar to drink.
He was sure Amanda is fine, Ngozi will definitely take good care of her, but with what? He couldn’t say.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++

A family doesn’t neccessarily mean someone related to another by blood or by marriage. Family simply symbolises love and unity.
Dolapo might have lost the first family given to her by God, but she miraculously found herself in another family, all thanks to late Dayo, whose parents took her in and caterd for her until Dayo died. She lost her foster family too and miraculously, she found another family, all thank to Inspector Clement. Maybe her name should have been miracle.
Even if her relationship with Mrs Rachel Obi-Patrick has not been rossy, she still loved her because she made her feel at home the first time they met. She couldn’t fathom what took her out of the hospital, but the moment she heard that Rachel was killed, she took a cab and came home immediately where she had been with Ngozi and little Amanda.

“Hello darling. I won’t be coming home tonight. Clement is not home and I need to stay with his baby.” Ngozi said as she walked into the kitchen where an emotionally traumatised Dolapo was, boiling water with no idea of what she would do with the water. She just felt the need to boil water.
“That’s my fiancee.” She heard Ngozi say a minute later.
Really? But she didn’t remember asking her who the caller was. Maybe she had said something prior to her saying it was her fiancee. She must have lost her mind completely.
First, it was Darasimi, then Tolani and now Rachel in just seventy two hours. And God is somewhere up there watching.

Its now almost a week since the death of Rachel, and even though Clement is trying to adjust to life without her, he still couldn’t help but go into deep thoughts most times. His families didn’t help matters either, but there was nothing he could do to them, his father didn’t call to express his condolence neither did he picked his call. Kelvin avoided him like plague and made sure he cut off all possible means of communication.
Clement was driving towards the Murtala Muhammed international airport that morning with Dolapo seated at the backseat with little Amanda who has been christened amidst grief and sorrow in her arms.
“I know this will be hard for you, but once you arrive at the airport, my friend Vlad will come and picck you up. An apartment has been set up where you can live and do whatever you want to do, be it working or enrolling for your post graduate studies, just inform me of any plans you have.” Clement explained as he drove into the airport.
“And concerning Amanda’s case, you can always drop her with Vlad’s mum at the next door, she’ll take care of her until you return home.” Clement said.

Dolapo was just nodding her head like a lizard. Everything was happening at a faster pace, she never expected things to be in place this fast. It has been her dream to have her masters programme in the United states and possibly settle down there, but she knew she would have to work for maybe a year or two in Nigeria before being able actualise that dream, but with the situation of things in Nigeria, you dare not take permission to travel abroad all in the name of getting another certificate which the Manager of the company is yet to have, the moment you step out of the office, a vacancy board would be placed outside.
“Now lets go and do some major clearances.” He said as he brought his car to a halt.
The three of them headed into the airport building with their bags.
Fifteen minutes later, they were all sitting in the departures lounge waiting for the announcement of their flight.
“Uncle, how do you intend to live now that you are all alone?” Dolapo asked with tears in her eyes.
“I will definitely survive. Remember, we Nigerians learn things the hard way. And I have just learnt another lesson in the hardest possible way you could think of.” Clement replied smiling.

“Don’t you think you should join us in the states? Just to put all these behind you.” She asked.
“Well, the last time I spoke with Doctor Kolade, he made me understand that it is you that needed a change of environment. And we both concluded that you should travel to the US. And to put my daughter on the safer side, its not bad if she travelled with you. The doctor didn’t tell me anything about me changing environment and moreso, I want to personally handle my wife’s case. I want to bring her killers to book.” He said.
Dolapo thought for a minute before breaking the silence.
“Uncle, I think you should speak with Chidinma. There is a secret between her and Aunty Rachel which according to Aunty was about your dad. But unfortunately your dad saw the secret as a result of me sweeping her room and packing the papers where the secret was out. They didn’t tell me anything except that.” She began.
A voice echoed throughout the departures lounge announcing the next flight to the United States.
“I am not saying it has anything to do with Aunty Rachel’s death, but the way and manner they both handled the situation told me something was wrong and at stake. Just talk to Chidinma.” She said and picked up a small bag where all neccessary things were kept. Things that could be useful for Amanda during the long flight.
“Dolapo.” Clement called.

Dolapo stopped in her tracks and turned to face him.
“Thanks for everything. I don’t know what I could have done without you.” He said.
“You deserve more.” She said as she walked toward Clement and gave him a bear hug.
“You’ll be fine.” He said.
“You too.” She said and they both gave a short laugh, the first time in a week. Even little Amanda chuckled.

–to be continued–

LL IN A CIRCLE Episode 149
#OpraDre