TARASHA Episode 13 Pt 3 – Oyin Oluwatosin Emmanuel
Evelyn’ Henry called again when he got no response the first time. He placed his own palm against the door and noticed it was slightly opened. He pushed it gently and poked in his head first before stepping in.
Cole was still standing, not knowing if he should run or still continue to plead or if there was no need for the both anymore. Tarasha was standing also, she was mute, the bullet she picked on the floor was still held loosely. It was until she caught Henry’s eyes searching round her body that she covered the bullet in her palm.
‘I’m sorry for intruding’ Henry broke the silence apologetically on seeing Evelyn half unclad, ‘I’ll just wait outside for you’
‘You can wait inside’ Tarasha said with a stern voice. ‘Sit here’ she pointed at the sofa by the wall side and turned to walk into her room.
Henry and Cole stared at each other for some seconds. Cole let out a breath and made a strange eye movement at Cole before walking away, following the same direction Tarasha took. Henry moved forward and took the seat, staring around the house.
Tarasha inserted back the bullet into the gun and tapped her nose with it. She was undecided yet as to what to do with Henry, it was either she killed him that moment or fall for the strange feeling that she was having again. The feeling that returned that moment he entered and she saw his eyes again. There was this calmness that drove out from her heart it’s previous occupier, anger.
She finally dropped the gun on the bed and turned to the wardrobe. She took out a jacket from the hanger and remove two short knives from it.
**Few minutes later**
The silence between the duo was really awkward as Henry drove them in his car to the church. They drove into the church garage and parked. The Pastor’s message was already on and could be heard from the speakers placed outside for the security and Marshalls. Henry got out of the car first and turned to the other side to open the door for Evelyn. She didn’t come out immediately but was staring at the whole place. She stopped and stared at Henry’s face, he gave her a reassuring look and she stepped out slowly, in her shredded blue Jean trousers and black top.
++++
‘Henry Ekene George’ the IG shook his head thoughtfully. ‘The chap is an intelligent one really, but I don’t think he can do this’
‘I believe he can’ Dakolo insisted. ‘He’s determined to nab this assassin group, it shows in the way he’s been dedicated to stopping their manipulation of the camera system’
‘Well, I think we should have a concrete detail of the assassin gang first before we can continue with the undercover plan’ the IG said, waving his hand to signal that the undercover case was closed for the time being. He placed his arms on the table and rested his chin on his palms. ‘We would have a meeting with the President this coming Friday and we have to be ready to give him detailed plans. So we just have two days to fix the game plan, so we’ll be meeting again tomorrow. Let’s go back now and work, think and make researches and personal investigations, tomorrow we would return to pour out our ideas and fix the plan’ he said in conclusion.
****
Jefa stretched and turned to his left side on the bed, forgetting the injury he had sustained on his belly that side. He winced in pain and scowled, he sat up in the bed After yawning several times, his eyes was opened enough to see. The pounding headache brought to his remembrance the fight that occurred the last night. It was so violent that nobody in his shop including himself escaped unhurt.
He closed his eyes and groaned as he stood up, he walked to the cotton and rolled it up thereby allowing the entrance is sunlight into the room. He scratched his bare back and returned to sit in the bed. His spoilt phone was on the stool in front of him. He picked it from the stool and tried to power it on but his attempt was fruitless. He dropped it back; his promise to call Henry that morning had failed. The business card given to him was also lost in the struggle, which meant that the only way he could see Henry now was to go to his house.
~~~~
10.45am
Henry started the car engine and began to drove out of the church premises. He glanced at Evelyn’s face but she didn’t glance back, she had been mute all through the service,even when they were being attended to as first timers by the church officials. Henry had answered almost every question for her, making her look like a deaf and dumb person. She didn’t even stretch her hand to take the Bible gift they handed to her, Henry collected it for her.
Henry was not too surprised by her reaction to the activities in church, knowing that she wasn’t someone who believed in God nor wanted to hear the name mentioned.
‘Did you learn anything new today?’ Henry finally broke the silence after driving out of the church’s gate.
‘I’ve never heard such hogwash in my life’ she replied bluntly.
Henry felt bad at her reply but he smiled. ‘Thats no hogwash but reality’ he said.
Evelyn remained quiet. ‘Those things you heard were real, though they may sound impossible to the natural ears’ Henry added.
Tarasha glanced at him. ‘So you believed a god died for you?’ She asked, smacking her lips together.
‘Yes, I believe’
‘Do we still have st*pid people who could die for someone else?’ She asked mockingly
‘Come on, don’t talk like that’ he scolded her.
‘Hehe’ she made a brief laugh. ‘It’s pathetic that intelligent people could believe such tales by moonlight. When we were kids, we were forced to believe those stories but now everyone should be less stupid. I used to think people get wiser as they progress in age’
‘Evelyn!’ Henry called, she kept quiet. ‘Jesus Christ’s death on the cross is not a tale, it happened for real, on this earth were you live’
‘Yes, haha’ she scoffed. ‘The stubborn Jewish Messiah was killed by his people for disturbing their peace, that’s what we should do to those men we see on those platforms now who wants their followers to live by what somebody else wrote thousands of years ago’
Henry shook his head, struggling in his mind to figure out what to say. ‘For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish fooli…’ He tried to quote a scripture but she interrupted.
‘Foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. First Corinthians one verse eighteen’ she completed the verse for him.
Henry was dazed, he stared at her with his mouth agape. ‘Where did you learn that from?’ He asked in amazement. ‘I’m sure you didn’t learn it when you were still a kid.’
She gave no answer. ‘That means you must have left Christianity not too long ago, for you to quote a “not so popular” verse’ Henry added.
She still gave no response. If only he knew the amount of Bible, Qur’an and other religious books scriptures she had in her head, he would keep quiet and stop talking about God to her. She thought. Studying religion and religious patterns were also part of what she learnt during her training in the Nefary Clan.
‘Why did you leave God? Did you feel frustrated about a particular situation and you thought he could not help you out?’
Tarasha chuckled. Henry was sounding more like a joker to her now. ‘God loves you and fee always wants the best for you’ he continued.
‘Oh! Shut up’ she burst out angrily. ‘I guess that’s why he also kills those who do not serve him. And he even sends his servants to murder the ones who still serve him faithfully anytime he’s really blood thirsty’
‘God is not a murderer’
‘But I’ve seen him murder a lot of people and he’s still good at killing today.’
‘No Evelyn, God does not ki*ll. You didn’t see him murder anyone; he didn’t ki*ll your parents’
‘Oh Yes, he didn’t murder them himself. He sent his faithful followers to do it’
‘Those people lied, God did not send them. He loves us so much and wants the best for us’ Henry was talking with so much passion that he almost ran down a pedestrian crossing the narrow untarred road. He quickly recovered and they continued the journey in silence. Now few metres away from Tarasha’s Lodge.
‘Why did you come to look for me?’ Tarasha asked and stared into Henry’s face. The look on her eyes was cruel, immediately the atmosphere changed.
‘Can we stop to talk somewhere or do you think we can talk in your house?’ Henry replied calmly.
‘That’s not the answer to my question’ Tarasha slammed.
‘Yes, I’ll tell you. Let’s just go somewhere and talk’
‘We don’t have anything to discuss about’
‘We have a lot to talk about’ Henry retorted. He parked beside the gate of the house. ‘We have to talk about you’
Tarasha who had been feeling irritated by his discussion of God during the ride was getting more impatient. She began to prepare in her heart slowly to use the knives tied round her legs under the shredded Jean. Her heart began to beat faster, something that had not happened in years even when she had to ki*ll tougher people. But she had to end it all that day, else Henry would be her downfall, what she wanted now was to get some information from him.
‘How did you get to know that my name is also Tara?’ She enquired, expecting a simple answer. She was thinking that he had seen it somewhere around her when they stayed in the NSCC house together.
‘I’ll come to that’ Henry answered.
She crossed her legs and rubbed her palm on the left foot, her fingers touched the two knives hidden in an inner pocket under the shredded Jean. ‘Let’s drive into the compound please’ she said to Henry. He agreed and started the engine. Her plan was to lure him inside and force out truths from him since she was anticipating that he may be stubborn.
‘There’s no gateman here and the gate does not open automatically’ Tarasha said to Henry when be began to push the horn for someone to open the gate.
Henry got out of car and went to open the gate. Tarasha felt like bringing out her knives, in readiness to inflict pains on him but her mood changed again as he returned to the car and stared at her face for some seconds, there was this fire in his eyes that always seemed to calm her down.
He drove the car into the compound and stopped it beside the van.
‘Why did you come to see me?’ Tarasha asked again.
‘Calm down Evelyn, I’ve been searching for you since we parted last week’
‘I know’ Tarasha cut in impatiently. ‘So go straight to the point, why have you been searching for me?’
Henry took off the seat belt with a frown on his face, he didn’t like the way the conversation was going. ‘I was worried about you. I did not know if you were in safe hands’
‘Alright, I guess you can now see that I’m in safe hands’ she said and opened the door. Henry held her arm.
‘I love you Evelyn’ he said, looking straight into her eyes. She took her eyes off immediately, trying to avoid sparking off more emotions. Her heartbeat was increasing. That moment was the best to strike him dead according to the training she had got but she couldn’t just get herself to do it.
‘Thanks for loving me’ she said and tried to step out again. Henry gripped her more firmly.
‘Evelyn, we need to talk about you, us, your future and mine’
‘You don’t know me Henry, you want to plan my future for me?’
‘I know you’
‘You don’t, if you do you’ll leave here right now before I change my mind and do something bad to you’
‘I know what you can do. I saw that bullet in your hand, so I was expecting that you may come out with a gun’ Henry said without fear in his voice.
She paused and stared at the floor, thinking of what to do. ‘Get out of here immediately’ she stepped out of the car forcefully and began to walk towards the building.
Henry opened the door by his side and placed a leg outside, he stood from his seat and rested his arm on the top of the car. ‘I know you well Tara, I know who you are and what you do’
She paused at the balcony and turned to stare at him. ‘Who is Tara?’ She asked, trying to pretend.
‘You are’ he insisted.
It was getting out of hand now and she was getting more infuriated. It seemed he wasn’t going to leave. She bent and took out the knives from her trouser. She turned and began to proceed towards him, she was going to drain out every drop of liquid in his body.
‘Omotara Danjuma’ he called softly making her freeze in shock, the knife in her left hand cut through the skin on her palm.
Her eyes widened, she was convinced now that he was sure of his claims.
‘I met your elder brother, Jeffrey’ he added.
~~~
Jefa walked back into his two room apartment after visiting the phone repairer’s shop. He took off his sandals and dusted his feet on the foot mat at the door before proceeding to sit down. His living room was not too large and beautifully decorated but it was arranged in a neat manner despite the old furniture used. The TV was also a very old one, it was neat too and free from dust even though Jefa rarely used it. His eyes met with something as it wandered around, the diary and the photo on the centre table. He got up and went to pick it up.
He stared at the photo for a while, a brief smile formed on his face. He wiped off the small particles of dust on the photo and dropped it back on the table. He took the diary and returned to his seat. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, he was about doing something that he had never done. Their mum had told them during her lifetime that the diary contains secrets that they were not matured enough to handle. He flipped it open.
… To be continued
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