What was the waitress doing here? How did she know where I worked? How could she have even got to the extent of bringing the police here? What was going on? I was confused, and I was shivering with fear. What would I do now? I was going to be arrested, charged with the demise of the lady, and finally thrown into jail for a very long time. I might even be kpaied. Oh no, I would never allow myself to get caught. I would never. I had to escape.
I hid myself behind a huge flower vase that was at the end of the hallway and waited until the policemen and the waitress had gone to the area that contained the CEOs office. As soon as they went out of view, I ran out of the building and went to a small bush at the back of the building. When I got there, I looked around to make sure that I was not being followed. No one had followed me. So, I started running into the bush.
I didn't know where I was running to, and I didn't even care. I just wanted to be as far as from everyone as possible. I just wanted to be alone. My freedom was all I wanted, and I decided that I would do everything to preserve it even if it meant staying in the bush like an animal. I ran until I got close to a very big and frightening river. The river looked dark and mysterious in the eerie quietness of the forest. There was no way to cross it. So, I stopped there, panting seriously.
I looked around me and saw a huge tree. I walked to the tree and sat by it, leaning on its trunk. I started assessing the whole situation and marvelled at how fast my life had changed. Just about an hour ago, I was a free man with a good job and decent income. Now, here I was, hiding in a forest with no companion and in perpetual loneliness.
I heard the sound of feet rustling in the leaves and thought the police men had followed me. I got up from where I was sitting and bolted off but soon realized that it was just a deer. The poor animal, startled by my manners, was surprised to see a well-dressed human deep in the forest at that time of the day. For almost thirty seconds, we looked at each other. Then, the deer, at a loss as to what to make of the whole situation, decided to leave. At that same moment, my phone rang.
I almost jumped out of my skin when the phone rang. Except for the sporadic noises made by some wild animals and the birds, the forest was otherwise quiet and calm. With my hands visibly trembling, I put my hands in my pocket and removed the phone. I checked, and it was my colleague, Mr. Maxwell. I picked.
"Hello, hello, Maxwell." I spoke with a shaky voice.
"Ben, Ben, can you hear me? Ben Samuel, are you there?" He didn't seem to be hearing me. But the truth was that I was not speaking. I was waiting to hear if there was someone in the background with him. When I was sure that there wasn't, I decided to speak.
"Yes, Maxwell, I am here." I spoke.
"Bo, where are you? You left the office suddenly without telling anyone. Everyone is looking for you."
"Everyone? What do you mean by everyone? What have I done that everyone is looking for me?" I was very scared now.
"Who said you have done something? And by the way, why do you sound so apprehensive?"
"Why are you asking?"
"Because it is not yet closing time. You know how central your office is to this company. So, you not being around has put many things on hold. Please, where are you?"
"I am somewhere not very close, but don't worry. I am coming soon." I spoke, but I had no intentions of going back. I just wanted Maxwell to get off my phone so that I could be all by myself, but he wouldn't let me be.
"Alright, please, be fast. Anyway, before I forget, do you know that that waitress at Double Dose you were chatting last night came to the company today?" Maxwell asked.
"Really? What did she come to do?" I asked, afraid of the answer.
"She was in the company of some policemen. That girl is a real player."
"How do you mean?"
"It was after she had left that I realized that she came with her boyfriend, who is a commissioner of police. They came to see the CEO. That man is very powerful. He came with about five bodyguards."
"Oh! That is good for her."
"Are you jealous?"
"Why would I be? Is she my girlfriend?" I asked.
"No, but she ate your money last night when she had another person." He laughed.
"I don't care. That was no money."
"Anyway, please, come back quick. We need you at the office. Bye."
"Bye, Mr. Maxwell."
When the call ended, I stood for a while, thinking deeply. What was that I was hearing about the waitress coming to the office with her police boss of a boyfriend? Didn't they come for me? I thought they had come for me. Wait!! What is going on? So, all that marathon I did was just for nothing? So, me being in this lonely forest now was just for nothing? If that was the case, then maybe I should just go back. I was just being paranoid for nothing.
But as I started walking back to the city, a new thought came to my mind. What if Maxwell was lying? Yes, it was possible that it was all a setup. They could have used Maxwell to try to find out where I was so that they could arrest me. Yes, I believed that was exactly what they were doing. Maxwell, it will never be well with you. So, you really wanted me to get caught. NO doubt he was hurrying me to come back to the office so that I could be arrested. I was very, very convinced that it was all a setup.
Haven made up my mind that it was all a setup, I decided that they were all going to wait for me forever. I was not going back. I switched off my phone and started walking on the banks of the river, afraid that some mysterious river demons could emerge at any time and take me with it to the bottom of the river.
I stayed in the forest until it started getting to late evening. The forest had become lonelier and scarier than it was in the day. The animal sounds in the day had changed to those of nocturnal animals. It was getting scarry. So, I decided that it was time to go home. I wanted to go home, sneak into my house, and get a few important items like my documents and passport. I wanted to leave town, and I couldn't do so without those items.
When I got back to the city, it was already 9:00 PM. Tired, exhausted, and hungry, I managed to get a bike and told the bike man to take me to my neighbourhood. About thirty minutes later, we rounded a bend, and my neighbourhood came into full view, but all was not okay. There were two police cars parked in front of the gate of my compound.
"Turn around, turn around quickly." I told the bike man. There was urgency in my voice.
"What is the matter, Sir." He asked.
"Just do as I say."
He turned the bike and asked.
"Sir, so, where are we going now?"
"Just keep going. I will tell you. Just get me out of here quickly."
"Okay, Sir."
The bike man stepped on the gas and increased speed. We were going to nowhere in particular. So, he asked again.
"Where exactly are you going, Sir."
"You know what? Just take me to the park."
"Ok, Sir."
Some ten minutes later, we got to the park, and I paid him off. I stood on a dark corner of the place and looked at the entrance of the park. It was very late now, but there was still activity going on. I didn't want to go into the park. I was afraid that they could be looking for me, and someone might recognize me and call the police. So, I stayed in the shadows and slowly observed my surroundings. After a while, the hunger in my stomach told me to go to one of the small shops around and get something to eat.
I approached the shop cautiously and went to the counter. I ordered a loaf of bread and fruit juice. When it was handed to me, I quickly paid the shopkeeper and went back to the shadows. After haven filled my stomach, some of my energy returned. I saw a bus that was almost full driving out of the gate of the park. That was my opportunity, and I took it. I ran to the road and waited and as the bus came close, I hailed it, and it stopped.
"Where to?" The driver asked.
"Please, take me to the next town."
"That's okay. It's three thousand."
"Okay."
I got on the bus, and the journey began. For the first time since that day, I felt a bit safe. I wanted to go to the neighbouring town because my sister lived there. My plan was to go there, explain the whole thing to her, lie low for a while and then, disappear to a new location, with her help, of course, but it seemed that was not to be.
After about an hour, our bus came to a sudden halt.
"What is the matter?" One passenger asked the driver. "Why are we stopping?"
"It's a police checkpoint."
My heart started beating fast. My first intuition was to bolt out of the car and make a run for it. What if they had already distributed my pictures to all police checkpoints, and they were already looking for me? However, I decided against it and remained calm.
A young policeman approached our bus and asked the driver some questions. After that, he turned on his flash light and pointed it at the passengers. He moved around the bus as if he were looking for something or someone. When he came to where I was sitting, he looked past me without even noticing me. I maintained a straight face, trying as much as possible not to look guilty. Soon, another policeman joined him. Then, they gave the all clear and spoke to the driver again.
"You can go now." One of they said.
The driver was about to take off when the other policeman who had just joined his friend saw me.
"Wait!" He ordered the driver, looking at me intently and suspiciously. "You, come down."
"What?! Me?" I asked, afraid.
"Yes, you. Come down immediately."
TO BE CONTINUED…