“Ayo, what kind of nonsense is this nau? You just disappeared last night without as much as a phone call. What could be more important than the reason we are here?” Olayemi exploded in anger the moment he appeared at the Car Park.

“Guy, I am so sorry. Please forgive me.” Opening the passenger’s side door, he slid into the Car seat and sighed. His heart was heavy. He just wanted to look for somewhere silent and howled his pain to the world. 

“You are even smelling of woman wash. Na because of a mere woman you left me, bah?”

“Watch your tongue, Oga.” Bristling for a fight, he turned and glared at his friend. “ I said I am  sorry. What else do you want to hear? Don’t ever talk about her in that tone ever again in your life.”

“Woah!” Olayemi raised his hand in surrender, then peered at his face closely. “If she is that important to you, why haven’t you married her?”

“It is complicated.” With a hiss, he slumped back in his seat and stared morosely out of the Car. “I wish I knew what to do. If she will have me, I will marry her right now at this moment.”

“Is it that bad? Who is she?” Olayemi was obviously curious and concerned for him.

Before he could respond, his phone rang and he looked at his phone. It was an unknown number but something about it made his heart beat faster than usual and he sat up to pick the call. It was Evelyn’s lawyer and they were willing to fully fund the project. He was in a daze as he narrated the short conversation to Olayemi who had been giving him a curious look. 

“Wow. This is nothing short of a miracle.” Olayemi screamed in excitement. He got out of the Car and danced around the Car Park. He came back a few seconds later.  “When are we signing the contract?” 

“As soon as we are ready. They are waiting for us in Lagos.” 

“What are we still waiting for? Let’s start going nah.” Olayemi turned the ignition key, then proceeded to drive out of the hotel compound. “You don’t look so happy. What is wrong?” He glanced sideways at him.

Ayoola looked towards the hotel and saw her,standing at the window, watching them. She moved away from the window immediately their gazes met across the distance and pain threatened to shut down his system. She was floating out of his reach and he was at a loss of what to do to bring her back. His throat hurt and he coughed slightly to ease the pain. He was losing her and the mere thought coloured his world in black. 

The two nights he slept in her arms were the most restful nights he could remember in his adult life. He had always had trouble sleeping at night. After several trips to the hospital, medications and therapies, he had resigned himself to fate and stopped worrying about it. In the night when the sleep eluded him, he got productive and made more money. 

Was the universe trying to tell him something? Could it just come out straight and let him know what he needed to bring this woman fully into his life?

“She is responsible for the funding of the project.” His voice was low as he looked out through the window. 

“Really?” Whistling in shock, Olayemi gave him a long stare. “What is going with you, guy? I don’t need the name. I just need the facts. Talk to me as if I am a stranger. Stop keeping things to yourself. Maybe you just need an outsider opinion or fresh perspective on things.”

“Okay.” Taking a deep breath, he told him.

“Please do a DNA test for your ex before you start taking care of a child that doesn’t belong to you.”

“You are right. Funny that I just dish out the same advice to her now, I will do that. Thank you.”

“As for the love of your life, there is really nothing you can do about it. The decision to be with you lies solely with her and a woman will move mountains if she really wants to stay with her. The question is can you wait for her?”

Yes, he could wait but the question was if she would ever choose to be with him?

*******

“Can you repeat what you told me a moment ago?” Jonathan’s voice was neutral as he watched Kelvin stroll into his office.

He had taken several deep breaths since his conversation with his son-in-law. He didn’t hear him right. His precious only daughter couldn’t be missing for days and Kelvin would keep it to himself.

“I…” Kelvin took a deep breath and visibly squared his shoulder. “ She left the house about 3 days ago and all effort to reach her has proved abortive. I was about to go and report to the police when you called me, sir.”  He didn’t quite meet his eyes.

He was not saying the entire truth. Was everything Evelyn said about him true? Had he been abusing her emotionally? Or even physically? What exactly was going on?

“I see.” He gave him a long stare until Kelvin began to move restlessly from one foot to another. “Did it occur to you to inform us first? Did you guys have a fight or an argument?”

“No, sir.”

“So what happened? She just woke up and decided to leave her matrimonial home without any reason?”  

“Sir, we had no argument. Our domestic staff can bear me witness. I was told she came home in the middle of the day, packed a bag and left in her Car. I honestly don’t know what is going on with her and I am worried.”

“Hmmm.” Jonathan tapped his fingers rhythmically against the table. “That is strange and unlike her. We both know that. I am giving you the opportunity to tell me the truth right now. Otherwise, If I find out you are responsible for her disappearance in any way…” His lips stretched in a nasty smile and he took great joy in realising the younger man was trying not to tremble in his shoes.

“I swear to God, I know nothing about why she left and I have been trying my best to find her whereabouts.” 

“You may leave please.” Jonathan turned away as he punched a number on the phone on his desk. Kelvin left his office after a slight pause. It rang for a while before it was picked up. “My daughter is missing. I want everything you can find about her and her husband.”

“Consider it done, sir.”

“Thank you.” What was he going to tell his wife when he got home? He should have listened to Evelyn when she complained about her marriage. His daughter was not a quitter. If she ran, there was a reason behind it. 

After attending a few compulsory meetings, he cancelled the rest of his appointments and went home. 

Rebecca was in her greenhouse, supervising a delivery process as her precious plants were being moved from the greenhouse to the delivery van to be delivered to a hotel. The moment he appeared at the entrance, she took one look at him and abandoned her task.

“What is wrong, ifunnaya mm?” She took his hand and led him back into the house. 

“Our daughter is missing.” His voice was defeated as he dropped on the closest seat and his wife sat beside him, then cradled his trembling hand in her own. “I feel responsible. I should have listened to her when she complained about her marriage and supported her decision to leave. Now she is gone and I am not even sure where she is. I have been trying to reach her but her line wasn’t reachable.” His eyes were bleak as he stared at his wife. 

“Ifunnaya mm, you didn’t do anything wrong. It is what every responsible father should do. You can’t encourage your daughter to leave her matrimonial home at the first sign of trouble.” Patting his hand in reassurance, she brought out her phone from the pocket of her Apron. “She called me about two days ago. We just spoke for a while and that was all. She sounded okay and the background was a bit noisy. I didn’t even look at the phone number.” There was a frown on her face as she scrolled through her phone, looking for the number.

“It was a strange number. I think it is this one. Let me try it.” There was confusion on her face as she tried the number and there was a hopeful expression on Jonathan’s face but it fell when the number didn’t go through. “It is switched off. She is alright. She is doing fine. She just needs the space to put things into perspective.” 

“My daughter is not a quitter. What is that bastard doing to her to make her run away? I shouldn’t have encouraged them in any way.” Struggling to his feet, he paced in slow paces in front of her, favouring his left leg. “If I find out he was hurting her in any way, he and his miserable family will pay dearly for it.”

“Calm down, Di’ m..Everything will be alright. Please come and sit down.” She reached for his hand and pulled him down beside her gently. He sat down with a defeated sigh. She cleared her throat quietly. “Do you know how we can contact that Cabman?”

“What?” Jonathan couldn’t believe his ears as he turned to stare at his wife. Which Cabman? Was she encouraging adultery?

“Ifunnaya mm , I am not saying our daughter is fornicating or sleeping around but the way the children of nowadays think is different from the way we do. I don’t know what exactly is going on with her or in her marriage but she is not happy. That is certain. Now, she is missing and we have to employ every means to find her. That is my only concern for now.”

Releasing a sigh of relief, he bowed his head in contemplation, “You are right. I have only seen him once or twice in the office lobby. I don’t know his name or how to find him.”

“It’s alright. I will find a way around it. Oya, what do you want to eat? I will bring you a light refreshment. Go and freshen up.” She pulled him up and pushed him towards the bedroom.

“Thank you, Rebecca.” There was a smile of relief on his face as he moved towards their bedroom. Reflecting on his over three decades old marriage, he counted himself lucky to be married to his Becky. She was his strong tower at all times. He also wished his only child would be that lucky too. He sighed.

The following morning, the report on Kelvin Ikeduba and Evelyn landed on his desk.  Evelyn was somewhere in the middle of Olumo Rock Town, moving from one hotel to another but she was fine and hearty. Jonathan believed she would return when she was ready. 

The report  on Kelvin made his blood run cold and his heart leapt with fear. He had numerous girlfriends out of his matrimonial home and two illegitimate children. Even though it made Jonathan sad, he wasn’t completely surprised. What shocked him was the fact that he loved to hurt women before having sex with them. He either beat them or drugged them. Do these women consent to these treatments before agreeing to have sex with him or did he do it against their will? Most of all, was this what his daughter was running from? 

The possible answer to this question made his heart beat with fear for his child. What had he pushed his daughter into? He shouldn’t have interfered in her affairs. God! What had he done? 

Pushing open his locked drawer, he brought out the signed contract and stared at it. His hands trembled and his eyes grew blurry. If anything bad happened to his only child, he had himself solely to blame.

He wept quietly in the privacy of his office.

Apologies for not posting last week.

I am battling with some personal challenges and hopefully would be back on track soon.

Don’t forget to leave a comment.

Thank you!