As Philip took the phone receiver on his own side to speak with Omar, he heard Ame's voice distinctly cry out his name. He paused, as he was momentarily shaken, then he looked around him briefly, hoping, in his wildest imagination, that he would see her behind him, but only the prison guards hovered not too far from him so he only shrugged as he faced Omar, who frowned slightly in concern as he studied Philip."Everything okay?" Omar spoke into his phone receiver, carefully appraising Philip who looked at him from the other side blankly, not answering. "English?" Omar asked further.Philip nodded and smiled apologetically at Omar. "Yes, I'm sorry, please. My name is Philip.""Omar," came the reply at the other end. "I'm a lawyer, Philip," he began. "Pueba told me y..." he continued but Philip cut him short."Pueba?" he asked, looking at Omar in sheer confusion.Omar shook h
Osaro's head was bowed with worries as he headed back to the bedroom but he stopped short, shocked, to see Rosa leaning like a sentinel in the bedroom doorway, looking like an angel sent to him with a message.He didn't have to wonder how long she had been standing there."Is our daughter now sleeping with Dapo?" she asked calmly as she folded her arms across her breasts.Osaro hastened to her, his arms outstretched. "God forbid it, my love!" He reached her side and tried to lead her back to the bed but she declined."Let's talk about it now!" she insisted stubbornly, not budging as she looked at her husband in the dim interior of their bedroom."Alright," Osaro conceded, leading her towards the living room. "Let me make a little snack while we talk, okay, my love?" He said as he helped her into a seat comfortably.He headed for their little kitchenette
"I don't think that Ame slept at Ego's place last night," Osaro began as he sat, facing his wife. Rosa looked on silently as her husband continued. "Now, I don't know whether Ego is covering up for her or not, that will be sorted out when I speak with Ame myself." He looked up at his wife and smiled. "That is all there is to it, my dear, so there's no need to worry, you see?" He spread out his hands in a sideways gesture."Then where did she sleep, Osaro?" his wife asked him.Osaro shrugged. "Only Ame can answer that, my dear."Rosa frowned. "At least with this Philip out of the way, she can concentrate on better and more promising relationships," she said."Ah, Rosa! Ame won't thank you for that!" Osaro scolded his wife. He ate one of the sandwiches too.Rosa looked at her husband seriously. "Osaro, I don't like the idea of Ame sleeping out in a man's house. It doesn't show that
Abiola Adejare gave her husband a warm, welcoming hug as he entered their private living room."Welcome, Otunba," she greeted as she took in his unsmiling demeanor.Chief Adejare collapsed tiredly on one of the plush leather sofas in the room and closed his eyes as his wife knelt on the seat near him and smoothed his brows for him.He heard the sound of a knock at the door."Enter," his wife commanded.Chief Adejare turned his head slightly as a uniformed maid entered with a tray of fruit drink and an ice pack. She genuflected to him and his wife respectfully as she placed the tray of drink on a side stool that his wife pointed to.The maid soon left after being given some instructions by her madam.Abiola brought the drink to her husband and made him drink it from off her hand."E pele, oko mi, take
Chief Adejare put on his shirt back. Their family doctor, Dr. Aghogho Idahosa, had just finished examining him.Dr. Idahosa put his instruments back into his portable carry-on bag as Abiola Adejare entered with a tray of chamomile tea for the three of them.Dr. Idahosa gratefully accepted his mug of tea and sipped it. "Thanks, Abiola," he said gratefully. He was on a first name basis with the Adejares, being a long time family doctor as well as their friend."You're welcome, Doctor,"she smiled back in return. "How is he?" she asked, gesturing at her husband. The doctor merely shook his head."I told you that your fuss was unnecessary, look. I'm as fit as a fiddle! Even Aghogho didn't find anything wrong with me!" Chief Adejare laughed as he first blew cool air at his tea before he sipped from the mug.Dr. Idahosa turned to look at Chief Adejare where he sat, sipping h
Ame slowly opened her tired eyes. She had been in and out of oblivion for five weeks now; five weeks in which life had ground to a halt for her loved ones. Even Ego and her fiancé, Jide, had understandably put a stop to their wedding preparations so as to show their solidarity as Ame recuperated.Since their return, Segun had overseen the renovation of the house while Osaro had had the entire security systems in the house beefed up. The whole house had been given a face lift generally in preparation to receive her princess, in the person of Ame.Osaro had had to force his boys, Segun and Osahon, back to their respective stations after three weeks of inactive moping about, waiting for Ame, who kept slipping in and out of consciousness, to respond positively to the gentlest care being given to her by the matronly nurse who had since replaced the young nurse whom Dapo had made a pass at. That was the only criteria Segun had given for his
Abiola Adejare entered her husband's study. It was dark and poorly illuminated as the blinds were not drawn and her husband had not bothered to turn on the lights. Soft jazz music filled the room, making it romantically enticing."Don't switch on the lights," her husband's terse voice instructed."Otunba!" Abiola cried as she walked hastily to where her husband sat at his desk, a glass of alcoholic drink in his hand. She pried the drink out of his hand and put it on the desk as she knelt before her husband, her head on his laps, sobbing."Otunba, not again! Please think of me too!" she wailed as the tears fell freely now.Chief Adejare laughed softly as he brushed his wife's head placed on his laps, lightly. He bent down to look into her wet, beautiful face as he smiled at her. "I haven't come to drink myself into a stupor, my dear wife. I have come to take account of my life, my love!" he said
Philip walked hastily to the reception area. Omar's message had been insistent and urgent. They had been to court earlier that week and Omar had proved to be a lawyer worth his weight in gold as he had argued Philip's case brilliantly, knocking out every evidence against Philip that the state had presented.Philip had been so impressed that he had believed without an iota of doubt that he would be granted his freedom right there and then and walk out a freed man and had been outrightly disappointed when he had been told by Omar that he would still have to go back to the prison.Although since he came back to the prison, he had been allocated another cell which was reasonably much better than where he had come from. And, he was also out of the janitor's grasp for demeaning duties, although Leonard still made sure that no letters were sent outside by the 'bad nigga'.Julius was due for parole very soon, thanks to the coaching by Omar as well as Julius' well-behaved mannerisms of late, no