“So this girl was
serious,” she said, with her hand on her waist.
“Which girl?”
Cynthia asked.
“Kemi.”
“What did she do?”
Mabel opened the hate SMS from Kemi
and showed Cynthia. Cynthia read it and pretended that was her first time of
seeing it.
“Why didn’t you tell
us last night?” she asked Mabel, handing over the phone back to her.
“I thought it was
just baseless ranting,” Mabel replied. “Now I know she actually meant what she
said.”
“What was Mama Risi’s
call about?”
Mabel
told her what Mama Risi had observed.
“How sure are you that
what Mama Risi observed means anything?” she asked Mabel.
“She doesn’t peddle
rumours,” Mabel said. “It must have been serious for her to pick up her phone
and call me. Moreover, they kept asking people after me, so it is a serious matter.”
“Even if it is true,
how sure are you that Kemi is behind it? Don’t you think it could be Segun, or
even someone else?”
“I have evidence in
my phone to prove Kemi is the one.”
“Ok. What will you
do about it now?”
“I need to call some
people who know her so they can call her to order.”
“Ok. Do we need to
inform the police of something?”
“I will let Coker and
Margret handle that part.”
Mabel
called Coker and Margret and informed them. They were really angry and promised
to take care of the situation.
“Let me also inform
Mrs. Biodun,” Mabel said. “Kemi was once her staff.”
She was about calling Mrs Biodun
when she was told that her airtime had been exhausted.
“Let me help you buy
airtime,” Cynthia offered.
“Don’t worry. I can borrow airtime and pay later.”
“Ok.”
Mabel
borrowed the airtime, called Mrs Biodun and told her the latest development.
Mrs Biodun promised to call Kemi to order and do something about the threat.
When they were done, Mabel hung up.
“Let me call mummy
and tell her,” Mabel said.
“It is not
necessary,” Cynthia said. “Let us see how these people you have called will
handle the issue first.”
“But you heard the
way mummy was sounding last night. Like we always keep her in the dark until
things get out of hand.”
“And so? There are
things we handle by ourselves. We will still inform her.”
“Ok. Let me dress
up.”
“Where are you going
to?”
“Am not going
anywhere. Will I wear towel all day?”
“Ok.”
Mabel
went in and wore a casual cloth. Then she came out to the parlour and sat down,
analyzing the situation with Cynthia. About an hour later, Coker called her
back and told her that he had spoken to Segun who denied knowing anything about
the incident. He had also confronted Kemi who tried denying but he warned her
sternly to desist from her plans and call her boys back.
“Does that mean I am
free to go to my house?” Mabel asked him.
He told
her to hang on for a while.
“I need to see my
family doctor and my pastor’s wife today.”
Coker
told her that he would have loved to drop her but he was traveling out of town
that morning to come back late in the evening. He told her not to go out alone,
and reassured her that all would be well. Then he hung up.
Almost
immediately, Margret called her too and said the same thing Coker had told her
but with more details. Then she hung up.
“You are sure these
two people can handle this matter?” Cynthia asked her.
“Yes they can,”
Mabel said.
“Call Mama Risi and
find out whether those people are still there.”
“Ok.”
Mabel called Mama Risi. She told
her to hang up so she could look around the neighbourhood for strange faces.
Mabel hung up. About ten minutes later, Mama Risi called back. Mabel rejected
the call and called her back. She told Mabel that she didn’t see them. She said
one of their neighbours told her he saw a police vehicle pass slowly along that
road about three times.
“Ok,” Mabel said.
Mama Risi asked her whether she
would still come.
“I don’t think I will
come there today,” she said. “Just help me be on the lookout.”
Mama
Risi told her to be careful wherever she went and then Mabel hung up.
“I think Mrs Biodun
sent police people to my street,” Mabel said when she hung up.
“Is she that
connected?” Cynthia asked.
“See what you are
saying. She is o.”
“Only people who know people can make the
police do that. That is how it is in this country.”
“She knows people
sha. But I heard there are dedicated lines to inform the police of any
suspicious movements in your neighbourhood. Anybody can call them.”
“For where? Are the
lines working?”
“I don’t know. I
have not tried any of them before, but they should be working for them to make
the lines public.”
“I don’t mean
whether the lines are going through, but whether you will get the response you
need when you call.”
“That one concerns
them joor. Let me face my own palava.”
Mabel’s
phone rang. It was Mrs Biodun. She told Mabel that she had taken care of the
matter. Mabel didn’t ask her what exactly she did but just thanked her and told
her she would resume the following day, as she had said before. Mrs Biodun told
her she could take the rest of the week off. Mabel insisted, saying she was
tired of staying at home, that she needed the engagement and distraction the
work place offered. Mrs Biodun said “Ok” and hung up.
“Thank God for
people like this,” Cynthia said.
“Yes o,” Mabel said.
“I feel some kind of relief.”
“What do we do now?”
“I will still have
to see Dr Obinna and pastor’s wife.”
“We will go together
then. I will call Chidinma and tell her I will not be available.”
“Ok.”
Cynthia
called Chidinma who told her that something came up and she would also not be
able to come. They talked for a while and Cynthia hung up.
“She has a date,”
Cynthia said and laughed.
“As usual,” Mabel
said. “Get dressed so we can go.”
“It is too early to
go. We will probably not waste time in Dr Obinna’s hospital and your
appointment with Pastor’s wife is towards evening. I don’t want us to just hang
around aimlessly, waiting for the right time to leave for the church office.”
“It is better we go
early and finish up with hospital stuff on time. We can wait in the church
office until Pastor’s wife is ready to see me.”
“Ok.”
“Let me eat then we
can go.”
Mabel dished yam and ate. While she
ate, Cynthia put the movie she was watching the night before. Mabel joined her
and they watched one episode.
“Let’s dress up and
leave,” Mabel said.
“Did you call Dr
Obinna to know if he is around?” Cynthia asked Mabel.
“I spoke with him
yesterday.”
“Don’t you think we
should call him to know if he is around?”
“Even if he has
cause to leave the hospital, not on a Wednesday; his main consultation day.”
“Still call him. You
never know. I don’t want to wander about.”
“Ok.”
Mabel called Dr Obinna and he told
them he was around. They got dressed, locked the house and left. As they got to
the road, a keke that was carrying three young men suddenly stopped in front of
them.
(...to be continued)
Nedu Isaac
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