© Abdulrahman Muhammad
The First Lady had just entered the Vice Presidents residence, and to her surprise, Kemi approached her with a hug. “It’s alright. I’m here now. Pls stop all this crying, you’re making me emotional too.” Victoria said with one leg outside the car.
“I’m sorry,” Kemi released her, wiped her eyes with a white handkerchief and faked a smile. “I’m so happy you’re here.”
The First Lady finally came down from the tinted cruiser. “Let’s go in, you’ve spoiled your make up with all the tears. And not to talk of the guards who are watching.” She said and walked side by side with her into the house.
Back in the villa, the president was looking for Jack everywhere. “Is something wrong?” Jack ran into the sitting room.
“Where have you been Jack? You were supposed to be here by 6am.”
“I’m sorry sir, the traffic this morning is___”
“You know what,” he interrupted. “Tell me on the way.” He walked passed him.
“Uhm, where are we going sir?”
“We’re going to visit a friend who happens to be a rat. Do you know I had the Chief Justice here and to my surprise,” he paused again. “Let’s just go.” He said and Jack followed him out of the sitting room and into a car and drove out of the villa. They didn’t take any entourage so as not to bring up any suspicion.
Henrietta heard a knock on the door, she was in her former room, packing some things she needed before going back to her husband’s house. He was coming later in the night to pick her up. “Yes?” She looked to the door that was wide open and saw her brother, standing with his head down. “What is it.” She said.
“Can we talk?” He asked, coming inside.
“What do you want? And I didn’t ask you to come in!” She blurted.
“Come on guddy,” he reached for her hands. And she tried to resist.
“Don’t call me that, I’m not your guddy anymore, in fact, I’m not anyone’s guddy,” she said and they stood quietly for a minute.
“Are you kidding? You will always be our guddy, you’re the baby of the house and we all love you,” he drew her to the bed and they sat. “Okay listen, I’m very sorry I slapped you, I promise it’s going to be the first and last time.” He said and she bent her head to the side a little.
“I forgive you Jake. I mean, what do I do with you if I don’t. Unfortunately, you’re the only big brother I have and always will have,” she said and he rose his brows curiously. “Fine! The only sibling, I know it’s what you want to hear.” She said and they laughed a bit then come the silence again.
“Thank you very much.” He said.
“But, before I do. Remember you owe Mahmoud an apology too.” She said and he sat back down.
“Seriously, your husband punched me on the face and you still want me to apologize to him?”
“You punched him too remember, you punched each other. So you both need to straighten your relationship with one another. Besides, you know Mahmoud, he doesn’t have a problem.”
“Okay okay, fine. I’ll apologize to him. If it’ll make you happy.” They both shared a smile and he touched her cheek passionately.
Just as he was about to jump off the bed, she drew him back again. “Before you go,” she said and he groaned with his head high up the roof. “What are your intentions towards Taye?”
“How do you mean?” He asked.
“I mean, are you just friends with benefits. Is that all you two are? Or do you plan to, I don’t know, maybe, marry her?” Bisi said.
“You know what you’re right!” He looked to the left and right then added. “You see why I envy you. You’re too smart for your age. Wow! I mean, nobody has ever given me such advice.”
“Oh, it was just a question. But you’re welcome.” She replied.
“You must be feeling good about yourself right now, aren’t you?”
“I always feel good about myself.” She said pompously.
“Thank you so much again guddy, I’ll call her and ask her to meet me tonight.” He said.
“Wait, you’re not going to propose to her tonight, are you.” She said with wonderment.
“Nah! We’re just going to have a chat like normal adults.” He said and she nodded in understanding.
Jack kicked the red door open with one leg. Such power! Then they bashed in together with the president. They found Peter packing, he was about to leave his apartment, the state, or even the country. He never expected them to be at his place that early. “Going somewhere Peter?” Mr Adewale asked, entering the room.
“Mr president, how did you know where I live?” Peter asked back. Was that the answer to the question. No. Mr Adewale thought to himself and looked at him again, he was acting suspicious.
“No one is impossible for a man in my position to find,” the president sat on a table chair closed to the bed. “But I’m not here to chit chat with you Peter, so I’ll get to the point. Where’s the disk?” His face looked more serious now as if something had irritated him.
“What disk?” Peter asked and Mr Adewale looked away and back.
“You can play the long game if you want to. But I want you to know that I don’t have all day. And that is why I brought Jack with me,” he said and Jack moved closer with his broad chest, looking down at Peter.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Yes you do Peter, yes you do. You were the only person that knew about the disk and that is why it wasn’t hard to know who took it,” the president rubbed his hands on his face, he was tired of talking. “You know what, I’ll let you and Jack talk.”
“Thank you.” The First Lady said as Kemi offered her a small mug of hot coffee. “So, who else knows about this?” She asked and sipped from the cup.
“No one,” Kemi sat on the bed. “Except Jack, he was there, he saw everything. But he told me my secret was safe with him.”
“And he meant it,” Victoria interrupted and sipped the coffee again.
Kemi tried to understand why she was so sure about him keeping the secret to himself. “How are you so sure?” She asked.
“Oh, come on. You’re not the only one with skeletons in the closet,” Victoria said and Kemi sighed questioningly. “Not like I did what you did, no. It was a long time ago, when Wale was still a governor__” she began.
While at peters place, things were getting heated up, his room was torn upside down, he had suffered some broken nose and mouth from Jack’s beating. “Okay, okay. Okay!” He rose his palm to Jack for him to stop approaching him by the corner he was sitting. “I was contacted some days before I gave you the disk, I didn’t know what to do,” he said and spitted out blood on the floor.
“Who contacted you?” Mr Adewale seemed interested as he rests his elbows on his lap, leaning closer.
“Some dude, who claimed he works for General Tukur. Look I was doing this to save you and you and my mum.” He pointed at them.
“I don’t follow.” Mr Adewale said.
“When I got a call, I was threatened to give them the disk or the kill muscles here,” he eyed up at Jack. “And you and my mum, they even send me some photos of my mum when I didn’t want to believe. They have ur photo too.” Peter handed over his phone to Jack and he saw the picture he took with one of the guards on the night he drove the Vice President’s wife there.
“You should have come to me first, Peter!” Mr Adewale scolded.
“I didn’t have much choice, alright. I panicked, yes I panicked and I thought I was saving you both and my mum. I don’t want any harm to come to her.” He said.
“Where are you going now? Why’re you packing?” He asked.
“He said I should leave after everything is done, so no one catches me and try to make me tell them tell the truth. I was supposed to meet them at this location by 5am tomorrow morning, and they demanded I come alone.” He answered.
“Wait, where’s the disk?”
“I don’t have it.”
“What do you mean you don’t have it Peter! Where did the disk go!” Mr Adewale shouted.
“Someone in a black car collected it from me this morning.”
“Oh my god! Peter, do you have the idea of what you did? I’ll tell you, you just have the only proof I have that will get Tukur and his men arrested. Now we have nothing! I have nothing against him! What were you thinking?” Mr Adewale scratched his head with confusion and looked at them. “What were you packing for? Where were you planning to go?
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