Episode 25
Deolu knocked on Tejuâs door the next day. He hadnât been able to get her to open the door the previous day and he had called for dinner to be sent to her room. He was already dressed for the day ahead and he wondered if Teju was awake yet. He wanted to confirm what she would take for breakfast so they could eat together and possibly talk about her heartbreak.
The door opened and Teju stood before him â fully dressed. âYou are awake?â he managed to murmur.
âObviouslyâ she grinned. âGood morning Deeâ she looked him over with the same grin on her face.
âLemon looks good on you Teju, so muchâ Deolu said with an appreciative look in his eyes.
âAnything would look good on meâ she dropped.
âObviouslyâ Deolu mimicked and Teju smiled. âWhy do I feel that you are dressed to sÂŁduce?â He raised his eyebrow.
Teju feigned a look of innocence. âCanât say I know what you are talking aboutâ the look he gave her forced her to drop the pretense. âAlright, fine. Looking good and appealing is part of my tactic today. No one refuses a beautiful lady anything, thanks to God, I have a lot of beauty at my disposalâ. She landed and Deolu grinned.
âWonât you invite me in?â
Teju opened the door wide enough for him to enter. As he entered, she grinned again mischievously and Deolu became nervous. âSpill itâ he dropped.
Teju laughed. âI never knew that you could dress so erm⊠so normally.â
He blanched. âNormalâ he repeated.
âYes. I mean, no suit and tie that makes you look like a pastor or a banker. You look like a guy in this outfit of jeans and T shirtâ she said, tongue in cheek.
âWow⊠I never knew that the suit made me look so cheesy and seriousâ
She laughed. âNot so serious. They all look good on you. You wonât be Lucianaâs guy if you were anything lessâ she grinned.
He cleared his throat, sitting down. âThought she didnât care about the physical appearanceâ.
âAll ladies do. We like to show off our manâ she picked up her shoes and started putting them on.
He saw the tray on the table. âYou have eaten?â
âYeah. Had to do so in order for me to get to business early enoughâ she was done with her shoes.
âCan we talkâ
Teju glanced at him, and without even looking, she knew what was coming. âMaybe when I come back; time is against meâ
He frowned. âWe are going togetherâ
She shook her head. âNo Dee. I have to do this on my own. You people did not understand me when I talked then. It wonât work well if they see you there now. They donât know me, especially the DPO who is our target. It would be easier for me being a lawyer and I donât want you to ruin everything with your presence. Donât get me wrong, the DPO might see you afar off and flee. That is what I am againstâ. She smiled at him. âI can take care of myself, you donât have to bodyguard meâ.
âI would love to take you up on that but-â
âBut I am late. The earlier the betterâ she concluded. Deolu knew he would get nowhere by arguing with her. He would get her later, but for now, she needed to have her way. He stood up as his tummy grumbled for attention. âGuess I would be eating alone then. Be carefulâ he murmured when he got to the door.
She smiled as she lifted her bag. âNo mortal can do anything to Teju except God allows itâ. She smiled at her own words, remembering Tunde and the fact that she had not yet accepted that his leaving her was Godâs will.
âI canât believe she is goneâ Vicky murmured as she sat on the couch facing Raymond. She had just arrived from her friendâs place and after dropping her things, she discovered that Lucy was not in. Raymond broke the news of her departure to her.
âThe earlier you believe it, the better for youâ Rayâs eyes were fixed on the flat screen TV.
She sighed. âI must have scared her off; and to think I imagined that she accepted me for who I am⊠should have known that no one canâ she was sober.
âWhat are you talking aboutâ Rayâs attention turned to her instantly.
âI told her about my sexualityâ
âYou did what?â Raymond yelled as he jumped to his feet. âWhat were you thinking? Were you daft or somethingâ
âI was perfectly ok. Just did not want someone to like me and later become disappointed when they find out the truthâ
Ray did not know why he yelled that way but he was furious. He had been the only one in their family to accept Vicky unconditionally even though her acts irritated him terribly. âWhen did you tell her?â
âThe day after I arrivedâ
Ray looked at her like she had gone mad but he held his tongue. He wondered why he did not see the trace of hate in Lucy towards Vicky.
Not everyone would accept a lÂŁsb!an that easily except if they believed in them, which he found ridiculous. âWell, she left for her family.
She even said in her letter that she wished you guys were sistersâ. Vicky was stunned but she did not have the opportunity to probe him further because they heard the gate open and Ray knew who to expect.
He opened the door and met Duke who was walking majestically towards him. The guy could be a charmer any time any day without even trying.
âHey manâ he greeted Duke with a smile and they gave themselves the usual manly hug. âTo what do I owe the honour?â
âIs it a crime to visit my best friend?â
âJudging by the last time you visited me, I would bet this yearâs salary that you are not here specifically for meâ
âI would be ready to take that bet anytimeâ he grinned.
They entered the sitting room and Vicky who had been watching a movie turned round. Dukeâs heart skipped a beat as he stared at the only woman he had ever loved. He had fallen in love with her long ago but when he bore his heart to her, she had in turn told him that she saw him as someone of the same s-x with her and the only people that appealed to her were females. Being in love with a lÂŁsb!an was the last thing he ever imagined would happen to him. The incident would have affected his relationship with Raymond but he did not allow it. It took a long time for him to forget her even though she was already out of the country.
Vicky swallowed and smiled tightly at Duke. If she had known that he would be visiting, she would have stayed back at her friendâs place, besides, she was also a lÂŁsb!an.
âHello Vicâ Duke finally broke the silence. Ray just stood still, watching the drama. âI can see that you are still as sexy as everâ his eyes roamed Vicky and Raymond frowned protectively.
âAnd you are even more of a flirtâ Vicky replied with a corny smile.
âAmen to thatâ Dukeâs eyes held no smile even though his smile portrayed them.
âOKâ Ray cut in. âVicky, could you please get us juice?â
Vicky left without a reply and Ray fixed Duke a warning glare. As they sat, Ray faced Duke. âI think I am ready for that bet nowâ Duke hissed and he laughed.
Lucy washed the dishes and her mum kept on pestering her. She wondered why the questions her mum was asking were affecting her comfort; but she knew. She knew why she felt uncomfortable.
âAnswer me Lucy, I am your mum. You should not be shy to tell me about your love life. Knowing how long you stayed without a single boy in your life, I bet Deolu did what all those guys could not do. Tell me, how did you meet?â Bewaji glued herself to the side of the zinc, grinning like a teenager.
Luciana sighed. âWork brought us together mum. We needed a supply of some furniture and I had to meet with Deolu for negotiation.â
Bewaji smiled. âAt least something good came out of that job. Now I am happy that you took the job because if you did not, you would probably remain single forever. Tell me: was it love at first sight or did it grow on you?â
Lucianaâs stomach turned so much that she felt she might throw up. She became whiter than she already was but Bewaji mistook her reaction for embarrassment. Luckily for Lucy, Bewajiâs phone rang and she went for it, leaving her to breathe in a free air again.
Teju walked stylishly into the police station with a faint and feminine smile on her face. She saw the way the policemen had their eyes on her with every step she took. Deolu had been right. The dress made her feel feminine and in control.
She got to the counter. âGood morning, please I am here to see the DPOâ she said with an irresistible smile on her face.
The three policemen were grinning foolishly and she felt the urge to punch them in the face.
âI would give anything to be the reason for your visitâ the one facing her said.
She half laughed. âYou wonât betray your DPO now, would you? Even if you are this handsomeâ she could not believe her own words.
Another policeman pushed the other away. âWhat? I am more handsomeâ he grinned.
Teju laughed. âSure. You all are. Now I want to see your DPO, when I am through, I would see you guysâ.
They all smiled. G âYou dey lucky say e dey officeâ[/b] the last one said in pidgin and Teju wondered if his earlier silence was because he could not speak proper English. He left for the DPOâs office after asking of her name while Teju continued chatting with the other two.
âYou fit go insideâ
Teju thanked him with a smile and walked to the office, knocking slightly before entering.
âHello DPO⊠Mr. Chuks?â
âYes. Please have your seat.â His eyes lit with appreciation at her beauty and she smiled internally. After she was seated, she placed her small purse on the table. âPlease, I donât know you; how may I help you?â
âThe question should be: how may âIâ help youâ she countered.
Chris frowned. âI donât understand ladyâ
Teju smiled menacingly. âLetâs just say I have the power to destroy youâ Chris gasped. âThe power to break you and shatter all you have ever worked forâ.
Chris composed himself. âAre you here to threaten me?â
Tejuâs smile did not leave its place. âI am not here to threaten. I am here to assure you of what I would doâ. When she saw that a certain level of fear had been implanted, she slowly picked her purse and opened. âI have something that would interest youâ she took out the carefully folded newspaper, opened it and gave it to the DPO. His hands and eyes froze when she stared at the same girl she had seen in the picture given to him by Deolu. The truth was already out, he knew it. âWhat⊠what⊠what is⊠this? And who the hell are youâ he yelled as his palms began to sweat.
Teju deliberately took out the smile on her face slowly, leaving her face serious and blank. âThat signified that Luciana was murdered and I am Barrister Teju Bello, Deoluâs lawyerâ she dropped.
Chrisâ mouth fell open as he tried to gather what was happening to him. His life was now completely ruined. He would be behind bars, all for helping that Fred. His wife⊠his two daughters⊠he could not imagine it.
Teju smiled and got up slowly, roaming the office slowly. âWhen Deolu had told me that no move was taken in Abuja concerning the search of the murderer, I decided to dig. I wondered which DPO would be at peace knowing that a murderer was roaming the FCT of Nigeria. Then I discovered the reason: he knows, or should I say well acquainted with the murderer.â She faced him as his eyes watered. âHow would you love to be charged for treason sir? You know, you could as well be his accomplice.â
âNo maâam. Please for Godâs sake. I did not do anything, please. My children are still very small, pleaseâ he begged, getting up.
âI know you are a good man, just donât know why you are protecting this murderer.
He murdered that innocent girl in cold blood, what makes you think he canât do the same with you or your children? Listen, I would give you the chance to right this mistake.
Produce Fred and I would not press any charges against you. My client does not know about your betrayal but believe me; he would not hesitate to ruin your life and career if he found out that you are in any way connected with Fred.
The guy killed his fiancĂ©e!â she exclaimed as fury sliced through her. âYou have 24 hours to think about itâ she dropped a tiny card on the table and picked up the newspaper which had fallen carelessly out of Chrisâ hands. âGive me a call when you have made up your mind and donât think of doing anything foolish. You donât want to mess with Teju Bello, believe meâ her eyes held meaning as they burned fire.
She straightened and smiled mischievously. âHave a nice dayâ she walked quietly out of the office, leaving Chris shaken.
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