(…continued…)
When they were done talking, Mabel hung up. She
hissed and sat down.
“So this girl was serious,”
she said in thought.
“Which girl?”
“Kemi.”
“What did she do?”
Mabel opened the
hate SMS 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.
“I thought it was just
baseless ranting. Now I know she actually meant what she said.”
“How sure are you that what
Mama Risi thought she saw means anything?”
“She doesn’t peddle rumours.
It must have been serious for her to pick up her phone and call.”
“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 she is the one.”
“Ok. What will you do about it
now?”
“I need to call some people
who know her so they can caution her.”
“Ok. After that we will find
something else to do as precaution.”
Mabel called
Coker and Margret and informed them. They were really angry and promised to
take care of the situation. Then 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
credit and pay later.”
“Ok.”
Mabel borrowed
the credit and called Mrs Biodun and told her the latest development. Mrs
Biodun promised to call Kemi to order. When they were done, Mabel hung up.
“Let me call mummy and tell
her,” Mabel said.
“It is not necessary. Let us
see how these people you have called will handle the issue first.”
“But you heard the way mummy
was sounding last night.”
“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 and Margret had also confronted Kemi who tried denying but they 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 alone,
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.”
“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 twenty 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 like three times.
“Ok.”
Mama Risi asked her whether she would still come
around.
“I don’t think I will come
there today. Just help me be on the lookout.”
Mama Risi told
her to be careful and Mabel hung up.
“I think it was Mrs Biodun who
sent the police people,” Mabel said when she hung up.
“She is that connected?”
“See what you are saying. She
is o.”
“Because it is only people who
know people who 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
movement. 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, but whether you will get the response you need when you call.”
“That one concerns them joor.
Let me face my own palava.”
Mrs Biodun called
her and told her she had taken care of the matter. Mabel couldn’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 that 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. I feel 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 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. Get dressed so we
can go.”
“It is too early. We will not
waste time in Dr Obinna’s hospital and we will go to see Pastor’s wife from
there. I don’t want us to just hang around aimlessly, waiting for the right
time to move.”
“Ok. Let me find something to
eat then.”
Mabel scraped the pot of the remaining yam
and ate. Then they watched an episode of the movie for a while. When they felt
it was time to go, they got ready to leave.
“Did you call Dr Obinna to
know if he is in the hospital?” 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 days.”
“Still call him. You never
know. I don’t want to wander about.”
“Ok.”
Mabel called Dr
Obinna who told them he was around. Then they left the house. As they got to
the road, a keke that was carrying three young men stopped in front of them.
(…to be continued…)
-©2015.Chinedu Isaac
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