Sewa hadn’t stopped wailing despite the repeated warnings by one of the men in the room, Sege as the other called him. The second man, Chike, held his neck, pinning him against the wall. Both men he recognized from the barbing Salon. Ugo’s men.
‘How long had they been here before he arrived?’ he wondered. ‘Had they hurt Sewa?’ His throat clenched in pain at the thought. ‘How did they find his house? How did they get here before him? He had no answers but it was clear that he was in a hot mess.
‘Oga abeg, no vex. Don’t be angry. I’m just a struggling unemployed graduate that was afraid. I thought your oga was testing me.’
‘Shhh, we didn’t come here to hear you speak English. Just tell us where Ugo’s bag is, with the money?
‘Which money?’ he choked. Chike squeezed his neck tighter and lifted him off the floor.
Sewa screamed again. ‘Please don’t hurt him. He doesn’t know anything. You have the wrong person!’
His stomach turned over at the leery way Chike stared at Sewa when he turned. He wanted to kill him right there, but Chike was the stronger man.
Chike turned back to Kolade and sneered at him.
‘Do you want your sister to watch you die?’ If you talk now, we’ll let both of you go. You can choose to play innocent, but I know boys like you. You delivered the bag, collected the money that you were to return to Ugo then pocketed it right? Where is the money?’ he spoke now through clenched teeth.
‘I swear, I didn’t collect any money. As for the bag you’re asking about, I don’t even know where it is.’
‘Liar!’
‘Chike,’ Sege called. ‘Let him go. He doesn’t have anything. Look at his face, he’s telling the truth.’
Chike’s face squeezed into an ugly angry expression, but he let Kolade go.
‘What are you talking about? Ugo sent us here, because this guy took something important from him. If nothing, there must be money involved.’
‘Chike,’ Sege called again firmly but now with a sinister undertone. ‘I followed you here because you told me Ugo sent us here. You’ve not answered any other question I’ve asked. We’ve checked and haven’t found anything; the boy also doesn’t have anything. So, call Ugo and tell him we didn’t find anything. He’ll tell us what next to do.
Kolade scooted over to his sister as the two men faced off.
Chike walked up to Sege until he was face to face with him.
‘I don’t like your tone, so watch it. If not that Ugo is yet to see how much more I’m worth to him than just for errands, I won’t even be here with you.’
Sege raised his shoulders and pushed his chest out, daring Chike. ‘Oga I say make you call Ugo, you dey yarn dust.’
Chike stared at him for a few moments but moved back eventually. He pulled his phone out of this pocket, and it rang almost immediately. He picked the call and spoke.
‘Hello Ugo,’ he paused to listen. ‘Okay boss, we’ll be right there.’
‘Ugo wants us at the office ASAP.’
Sege looked confused but before he voiced his thoughts, Chike stormed out of the room. Sege took one last confused look at the shaking duo huddled on the floor.
‘God saved you today, but don’t think you’ve escaped. You crossed Ugo, there’s nowhere for you to hide.’ He left.
Kolade pulled his crying sister into a tight hug.
Sewa I’m so sorry. Did they hurt you?
‘No they didn’t,’ she said, trembling. Wiping tears from her face, she looked at him. Bro Kola. What did you do?’
Before he could answer the front door swung open and Chike stepped in hurriedly, brandishing a gun. He rushed to Kolade, squatted, leaned forward, his neck craned slightly such that his nose almost touched Kolade’s. Then he placed the gun on his temple. Sewa screamed and terror shot through Kolade’s nerves, through his head, down to his arms.
‘Did you open the bag?’ Chike questioned, he looked back at the door as if to check that no one followed him.
‘Answer me! Did you open the bag?’
‘Ye…Yes,’ Kolade stuttered,’ but there was nothing inside.
‘What do you mean there was nothing inside? Where’s the money and where did Ugo send you to?’
Kolade felt raw terror, but Ugo’s warning to not tell anyone anything rang through his mind. He’d betrayed him once, at the least, he owed him silence. The cold metal pressed against his head and he squeezed his eyes shut.
‘I…I…Kolade stuttered,’ I tossed the paper that had the address. It was somewhere on Lagos Island, but I don’t remember.
‘What’s going on?’ a voice interrupted. ‘I thought you wanted to use the toilet.’
Chike straightened up immediately and turned to Sege who watched from the door, his own gun trained on Chike.
‘Nothing’s going on.’ Just thought to shake the boy up a bit so that he doesn’t get any funny ideas. I’m sure he’s clear now.’
Chike lowered his gun and Sege followed suit. They both left without another word.
After a few minutes, Sewa stopped crying, but the shakes didn’t stop. She looked up at him.
‘Bro Kola, please tell me what you did. Whose money did you steal?’ Kolade’s eyes were locked on the Sewa’s frightful ones. She wouldn’t believe his story if he told her, but she deserved to hear it.
‘It’s a little complicated than that,’ he started, then in 3 short minutes, he gave her the summarized version.
***
At almost 10pm, Kolade was at the hospital where his mother was admitted. He hadn’t been able to see her, because the doctors had kept him and Sewa waiting. They were yet to give him the full details of what was wrong. After sitting restlessly for some minutes, she’d gone for a walk. So, he sat by himself in the waiting area, watching detachedly the bustle, his mind turning through the event of the past days, asking questions that no one could answer.
What was going on? How did his life fall apart in the space of three days? What conspiracy had the universe formed against him. What had he done wrong? And what could he do right? He breathed deeply, his exhaustion taking over his mind. He started to doze off but soon jolted awake with the thought of the note in his pocket. The one he’d picked from the apartment. He pulled the note out and stared at the scribbled number. If he were to guess, this was Ugo’s number. Maybe he could redeem himself with an apology. It was bad enough that he’d got himself into trouble, now he’d brought it to his family. He held his phone and the note tightly in each hand, his last connections to hope for Ugo’s mercy and his family’s safety
He dialed the number. It rang only once.
‘Hello…’ a voice responded. It was Ugo’s.
‘Hello Sir. It’s Kolade Sir.’
There was no response, but he continued.
‘Sir I just wanted to beg you to please spare my family. Everything that I’ve done is not their fault. My mother is sick, and my sister is just a young girl. I honestly didn’t know what was in the bag, so I mishandled it. It’s not like I wanted to dupe you sir. Please I beg. Spare me. See anything you want me to do I would do. I got your message from your boys, but please don’t hurt my family.
‘Which boys?’ Ugo finally spoke.
‘Your boys, Sege and Chike that you sent to my family’s house in Osogbo.’
‘Kolade,’ Ugo spat angrily, ‘you can stop the lies now. I’m not the monster in this scenario. I trusted you with my daughter’s life and you couldn’t fulfill one promise. Just watch your back, because when I come for you, you wouldn’t see it coming.’
‘But sir please, I know what you’re capable of. But if I knew where the bag was, I’d have told Chike. But I don’t sir. See anything you want me to do to redeem myself, I would do.’
The phone beeped. Ugo had ended the call.
‘Eh God,’ he cried out!
His phone rang again almost immediately. It was Amaka. He picked up.
‘Hello Amaka.’
‘Bro K!’ her cheery voice greeted over the phone.
‘How are you?’ Kolade asked with forced calm.
‘I’m fine o. You won’t believe it,’ she screamed, ‘Daddy brought the toy bag back from the airport. For some reason it didn’t go through security.’
‘What?’ Kolade shot up from the bench? ‘The bag is with you?’
‘Yes, it’s here.’
‘He jumped and let out a victorious yell! He quieted down when the people around him shot scathing looks at him.
‘Amaka, I always say you don’t disappoint, but you’ve outdone yourself this time. Please I beg you, keep that bag like your life depends on it, and don’t give anybody or mention it to anybody.’
‘Ha-ha, why so serious,’ she teased. It’s okay sha, I’ll keep it for you.’
‘Thanks, Amaka.’
A female doctor walked up to him as the call ended.
‘Kolade Ojo?’ she asked.
‘Yes Ma, that’s me.’
‘Your mother is awake now. You can come see her.
Kolade couldn’t hold his emotions in check anymore as he burst into quiet tears and followed the doctor to his mothers’ ward.
Simi Joel 
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