I backed away and moved from shelf to shelf, checking out the collections of books. I selected a book from the ‘African mythology’ section and started reading.
“I figured I would find you here.”
I didn’t know time had flown by so fast. Aiden adjusted his tie.
“I never knew stories like these existed. There are so many myths and legends here, enough to wrinkle my brain.”
“We learn as we go.”
We stared at each other without saying anything.
“Your mother was here.”
“I know.”
His right hand settled in one pocket.
“And even if Henry hadn’t told me I would know. The smell of Chanel still hangs in the air.”
“She is stunning.”
“Yes, she is.”
His eyes narrowed.
“You’re sad.”
His conclusion made me jittery. I was trying so hard to come off as composed.
“What did she do?”
“She said a few things which I agree with. You’re spoken for and ...”
“Spoken for?” He grimaced.
“Yes.”
“If I was, then I should have known.”
“Your mother... Well, it doesn’t matter. I have thought about it, and we shouldn’t be together any longer than we need to be.”
“What?” He clenched his jaw.
“I think it is best...”
“Don’t you dare say that,” he snapped. I thought he was going to hit the desk, but he circumnavigated it to reach me and sat on the table, leaving me no room to move away.
“Do you actually think I would let my mother dictate my life?”
Ignoring his obviously rhetorical question I said almost undaunted by his reaction, “I’m going to send in my resignation and move to Ghana. My godfather runs a private hospital there. He’ll be more than happy to have me.”
Aiden’s features softened. “Don’t leave me, please.”
My heart skipped a beat.
“I have to.”
“Why? Because of something that is clearly a lie?”
“No, it’s not that alone. They are going to come for me whoever they are. And when they do they’ll come for you too. Femi said they needed us both. Don’t you get it?”
“No, I don’t. But I can defend myself.” He tried to assure me.
“How can you protect yourself when you could not fight me off, and I know nothing about being a witch?”
“Because I love you.”
He went on his knees and pulled the swivel chair closer, so I faced him directly. His hands rested on my thighs. I resisted the urge to rake my fingers through his hair and then kiss him silly if only to take away his sadness.
He continued talking. “I cannot let you go. Don’t condemn me to another hell.”
“That’s not what I want.”
“Then say you’ll stay.” His hands encircled me with ease. “No one in their right minds will ever let you go. I am yours and no one else’s.”
I was physically and emotionally paralysed. He took my face in his hands and kissed me for a brief moment.
“I’ll protect you even if it costs me my life.”
I collapsed against his body, and he held on real tight. But doing that failed to drive away all my doubts. Those mixed feelings were still there.
Chapter 14
Femi and I were having lunch on a bright Tuesday afternoon at his place, and he kept on talking about how he wanted to get a new car and give me his current one.
“I don’t want your car. Don’t be offended.”
“I’m not. I just don’t understand why you don't want one.”
He reached for his glass of wine. He did not give up his quest, “the Nissan still runs great. If you change your mind, I’ll be ready to give it to you.”
"I forget, aren’t you here temporarily?”
“I’ve changed my mind. I’ve transferred to the agency here in Orient city.”
He cleaned his hands with a napkin.
“Still on the serial abduction case?” I asked, giving up on the food in front of me and focused on the orange juice.
“Yes.”
“No news on the kidnappers?”
“Not yet, but I do have a connection.”
“What connection?”
He lowered his voice to a whisper.
“Ever since that night you were attacked, no one else has gone missing.”
“That’s odd.”
“I know. Although the other women have not been found, I’m ninety per cent sure their abductors were your attackers. It’s just strange that the random kidnappings stopped.”
“You mean they were seeking me out?”
“Yes.”
My thoughts became frenzied as I digested what Femi told me. The innocent women who knew nothing and still were abducted could be dead and all of it just to get to me.
“Have you told anyone about this?”
“No.”
He straightened up and looked out the window.
“Why not?”
“You want me to tell my boss that an occult group needs you to revive a two-century-old witch who’s gonna go on a killing spree once she’s released? He may be superstitious but not that superstitious.”
I relaxed my aching shoulders.
“Then what are you going to do?”
“See to your safety.”
“Well, you’re doing a good job.”
He turned on the television, and the eloquent beauty who hosted the afternoon show came on.
“Would it be appropriate to ask why you did not kill Aiden when you had the chance? I’m sure you must have had chances or the chance to create one.”
He waited a while before answering.
“Because... Because I changed. When I started working with Zeppelin agency, I was entrusted with lives, to protect them. I could not bring myself to take a life, although I knew the pain I was going through was unbearable.” His voice became unsteady. “And I can’t kill him even though now I hate his guts. I’ve seen the way you look at him, he makes you happy, and I will not be the one responsible for taking away your happiness.”
I hesitated before saying, “thank you.”
“But why him? You loved me once.”
“Perhaps, but he is the one. Every fibre of my being knows it.”
“I don’t understand.”
“It’s not meant to be understood. I know you’ll find someone else who will make you feel the same way Aiden makes me feel,'’ I told him placing both my hands on the table.
“And what if I told you I want no one else?” he asked, his broken smile almost erasing the sullen look shadowing his face.
“Femi...”
My phone started to ring.
“Mrs Eneje.”
“Simi.....”
Her voice made it clear she had been crying.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s Jessica. She’s in St. Louis.”
“What’s she doing in the hospital?”
She sniffed in before answering.
“There was an accident. It was my fault, my fault.”
“Is she alright?”
“Yes. The doctor said she’ll be fine.”
“I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”
Femi, who had been keenly watching me, asked, “What’s happened?”
“It’s my niece. Can you take me to St. Louis?”
“Sure. Is she okay?’‘
“She will be.”
Femi got me to the hospital in record time, and we were directed to the Dolphin ward for children. My sister sat on the wicker chair besides Lisa, and she looked ten times her age. Her eyes were reddened and swollen. She stood up and hugged me as I walked in with Femi. There was a nurse giving drugs to a young boy in the next cubicle, and she turned around to face us.
“It’s alright," she told us. "She’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”
I took a careful look at
Lisa, who had an IV on her left arm and bandages on her legs. There were cuts and scrapes on her face and hands, and her hair had been completely shaved off. I was betrayed by the tears I was trying to hold back.
“Femi,” Ava finally acknowledged his presence as if she had just seen him.
Femi replied, “Don’t cry anymore. She’ll be fine.”
Ava gave a weak smile, which quickly disappeared just as it had come.
“What happened?”
Ava explained slowly but not without difficulty. She had been so busy at the spa she forgot to go pick up her daughters up from school, and Lisa had wanted to get lunch from a restaurant only to get run down by a car.
“The driver sped away and could not be identified.” Ava clasped her hands together.
“I’ll get to the bottom of this I promise you,'’ Femi assured her.
“Thank you,'’ I muttered with a shaky voice.
I took the next day off work, promising to make up for it in full and joined my sister at the hospital to keep watch over my niece. I must have slept off because I was stirred back to reality by warm hands around mine.
“I’m sorry I woke you up," Aiden apologised.
I sat up yawning.
“It’s alright.” I looked around but could not find Ava.
“Where’s my sister?”
“She’s downstairs getting something to eat. I had to force her down there. She’s forgotten she has to take care of herself too.”
“She worries a lot. Even over simple things.”
I glanced at Lisa, who was sound asleep.
“Thanks.”
“How’s she?”
“She’s fine. She woke up for a few seconds and called for Mona.” A smile found its way to my lips.
“How did you know I was here?”
“Jephery.”
“Oh.”
He removed a hair strand hanging loose from my face.
“I’m glad you’re here.”
“You have to get something to eat.”
“I will.”
“I have to go. Got urgent business to attend to. Please eat,” he added as an afterthought.
“That’s fine by me.”
Ava came back into the ward a short while after Aiden left and brought me a sandwich and a bottle of water.
“Thank you.”
“Did you see Aiden?”
“Yes.”
She dragged a plastic chair closer and slumped into it, fatigue written all over her.
“It appears you have two men competing over your heart.”
“Is it that obvious?” I asked, removing the bottle top.
“Yes. Anyone can see that.”
“Well, I just have to make a choice now don’t I?”
“I don’t think so. From my point of view, you’ve already made that choice.”
No more valid words had ever been spoken to me.
I spent all day the next day covering up for the shifts I had forfeited. The amount of work left me so tired I slept at the hospital. My next rota was in the morning after which I went home, took a long needed bath and changed into some comfy clothes. On getting to the children’s ward at St. Louis, I was met with an empty bed.
My heart stopped. What had happened? A wave of nausea hit me as I pictured the worse. I took two steps at a time back to the admissions office only to be waylaid by Aiden.
“I can’t find my sister or my niece.”
“Don’t worry love, they’re still here.”
“What do you mean?”
“I had your niece moved to a private room.”
I felt relieved, only to become worried again.
“Why a private room? What happened?”
“I was here yesterday. Your sister was complaining about the noise from the other patients, so I made a call.”
I had nothing to say. It was either I thanked him for making my niece more comfortable or scold him for using his influence to get what he wanted.
“Your sister is happy, which I know in turn will definitely make you happy.” I gave up my quest to protest.
He led me to a different section of the hospital, where the crowd was considerably less. The room was painted blue with a variety of animals on every corner, and the window was closed to keep in all the cold air. An assortment of flowers neatly arranged nearly covered half the room. Lisa was awake and by her side was Mona playing with her bald head. My sister and her husband occupied the sofa next to the bed.
We exchanged greetings, and I went over to Jessica’s side and kissed her forehead.
“You gave us quite a scare, missy,” I told her.
“Sorry.” She apologised, smiling sheepishly. “Thank you, Mr Aiden, for the flowers. They are beautiful.”
I watched as Jephery and my sister thanked Aiden and watched them laugh over a silly joke Mona made. It gave me a warm feeling right in my gut and heart. My phone rang. It was Doctor Osayande. His shaky voice conveyed a rather short and brusque message. He wanted me in his office immediately. I had to leave for St. Cloud even though I wanted to stay.
“I’m needed at the hospital.”
Aiden looked up at me with laughing eyes.
“I’ll take you there,” he said, standing up. Ava and Jephery exchanged a look. She winked at me and smiled awkwardly.
“Can’t you stay a little longer?” Lisa asked Aiden. “You can stay until it’s time for visitors to leave.”
Aiden looked my way.
“Far be it from me to make a beautiful girl sad. I’ll stay,” he told a happy Jessica.
“And I’ll take a cab. I’ll call you when I get off work.”
I said my goodbyes to everyone and rushed out. It took me a while to get a cab, and when I arrived at St. Cloud, I was praying not to get a scolding from the Medical Director. His bloodshot eyes when he was angry made even the strongest of hearts uncomfortable.
“Hold it!” I screamed at Doctor Warren, who just entered the elevator. He quickly barred the closing doors. “Thank you,” I said, hand on my heaving chest.
“Nurse Oladeji, why are you in such a hurry?”
“I’ve been summoned by the boss. That was thirty minutes ago.”
I punched in the floor number and breathed slowly.
I got off the elevator when it reached the fourth floor, and half ran to the end of the west corridor. I knocked on the door that had the Director’s name boldly written in a nondescript font.
“Come in,” a voice ordered.
I opened the door, and every breath in me got sucked from my lungs. I knew who they were immediately. There was one in the chair meant for the Medical director and three others, but I only recognised the one they had called Bode. Doctor Osayande was standing there beside him, looking like a scared ram about to be slaughtered for Sallah.
“Welcome Nurse, we’ve been expecting you,” the man in the chair said, smiling a wicked smile. I swallowed hard and felt the hair on my hands stand up.
“Come on in.”
I had a mind to run out, but he guessed what I was about to do and slammed the table with his fist. “You had better come in and close the door.”
“Simi, I’m sorry, but they threatened my family if I didn’t get you here.”
“Keep quiet.” The man spoke quietly to Doctor Osayande. “I’m Kolade. Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way I’ll get straight to the point. We’re going to leave this hospital together and if anyone questions you on the way, tell them I’m your relative or come up with a better excuse.”
“We’ll never leave without alerting suspicion,” I said, taking a careful perusal of the faces of the men.
“Oh, you mean your bodyguards? They are but little fishes, and we fried them without wasting time. But they’re still alive if you’re worried, just not very conscious.”
I reached for the door. Bode was at my side in quick motions. He grabbed my hand, and I grabbed his back, a burning rage filling my stomach. My body and mind were no longer mine. Bode’s arm
caught on fire. He ran from me, hitting it against the wall. The two other men fell on the ground coughing up blood while the medical director cowered on the floor and called on God to save him.
With a wave of my hand, I picked up a surprised Kolade from his chair and pulled him toward me. He held on to his neck, struggling to get free. He stopped fighting despite the pain he was in and let go of his neck. He dug out a beaded string from his pocket which he threw around my wrist. It burnt me badly, and my grip on Kolade loosened. I could feel the power within me restrained.
The men stopped coughing, and Kolade regained his stance. I tried to run out again, but Kolade held my hair and pulled me back. He laughed joyously. “You really are the one. But you try that again or try to escape,” Kolade cautioned, “we’ll start breaking every bone in your body just like your Meje beast of a saviour did to my arm.”
My eyes flew up in surprise. I should have known they would find out about Aiden.
“What...”
“Bode stand up!”
Bode managed to put out the fire and stood up.
Kolade ordered them to wait for us in the car.
“Be a good girl and behave,” he whispered as we walked out of the room.
We were almost through the waiting room and out the front door when Nadia yelled my name.
“Oladeji, where are you off to? “
“I’m helping Mr Kolade to his car.”
“I should have known, always helping people when it’s not even required of you.”
The man threw Nadia a smile. I tried to communicate with Nadia with my eyes, but she did not see it. Kolade gave me a nudge, and I smiled along.
“I’ll be back soon.”
“What was that all about?” Kolade asked in a ruthless tone as soon as Nadia was out of earshot.
“Just two friends talking. I wasn't trying anything.”
I was thrown into the back a jaguar and forced to drink a white substance. The entire car began spinning, and I felt sick in my stomach. I was losing consciousness fast.
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