TOLANI 34
© Esther Charles
EPISODE 34
Just immediately after Linda called out the informant’s name, the investigator dropped the electrical device on the desk next to us, instructed the policeman standing there to handcuff Linda as he requested we followed him.
Getting out of the investigation room, the investigator had a lengthy conversation with the IG. Afterwards, some policemen were drafted to go for the arrest of Drake.
I felt it was a dream; I had to poke myself to be certain I wasn’t dreaming. I tried my best to resonate all that had transpired between Ruth and I.
“Were those just mere coincidence?”
Although I knew how close Drake and Chimaobi were and how hardly they kept things from each other, but I had never in my weirdest dream envisaged Drake giving up his best friend’s fiancée. Why would he do that, I thought to myself? He was never into me and was in a relationship a while back to the best of my knowledge; although the relationship failed, Chimaobi and I have been very supportive. I rattled my mind in vain to place hands on why he decided to play the Judas in our tale.
Ruth and Drake were absolutely the only two I felt knew everything about us, but to say Drake was the suspect was inadmissible.
Ruth was absolutely in the way, like she was not happy with my relationship.
The IG instructed Chimaobi to call Drake to know where he was, for the policemen to go with him.
Immediately, Chimaobi put a call to Drake.
“Guy, how far na? How you de?” Chimaobi asked him.
“I de o, how your girl? I have been calling you for 2 days now, but you’ve not been picking.” Drake said over the phone.
“Yes, I have been despicably cumbered with the whole thing, hence my inability to pick calls.”
“So, what is the update? Do you intend letting her go to meet Linda? What are your plans? Oh! Wait a minute, you said it should be on Saturday, right? How far, how did it go? Was Linda caught?” He asked anxiously.
“You know that girl, na, she is just as wise as a serpent and as cruel as a brute beast. She wasn’t caught, although we were able to apprehend her informant,” Chimaobi lied.
“Who is that?”
” Ruth, Tolani’s friend.” Chimaobi answered.
“Omo! People are dangerous o… Why will someone be this wicked?” Drake said as Chimaobi shifted in the discussion.
“It’s well, I’m just stressed out, where you de make we hang out? The Tolani girl too don de bore me. Las Las, na to wash hand for this matter na him remain,” Chimaobi deceived him.
“My man, finally, you too done try give her, on a normal, me no fit carry woman matter for head like this, say na she be Queen Elizabeth? I be de drive home but make I reverse, so we can meet at five-star restaurants,” He said.
“Oya na, when I reach, I go hala you.”
That was it. Chimaobi and I drove in his car, while the policemen drove in theirs behind us.
Approaching the restaurant, the policemen halted their car a mile away while we drove into the restaurant.
I remained in the car to join at the time of the arrest, while Chimaobi got into the restaurant.
Few minutes later, Chimaobi sent a text message, asking me to call on the police and I did immediately.
When the policemen got into the restaurant, I got down from the car and followed them.
Getting into the restaurant and to their seats, Drake stood up, looking so confused.
He set out to run, but one of the policemen dragged him and handcuffed him.
“Chimaobi!” He shouted at Chimaobi.
“You did this to me?” He queried Chimaobi as Chimaobi slapped him by the forehead.
“I should be asking you that.”
Drake was taken to the police station and into the investigation room with Linda.
“How much were you given?” The investigator asked him, but Drake would not talk.
As expected, the investigator tormented him with the plier and the electrical device that Drake threw up profusely, laying his head on the desk, crying and sweating.
“How much were you given?” The investigator asked again.
“Nothing! She didn’t pay me. I rejected the offer,” Drake said, and my jaw dropped.
“I don’t need money to get my revenge. It was just an opportunity on a platter to pay the fool back.” Drake said, referring to Chimaobi.
“What do you mean? What revenge?” Chimaobi asked, looking perplexed and confused.
“Shut the f*uck up, you fool! When you played me and snatched her from me, didn’t you know it got me? Answer me!” He shouted at Chimaobi as Chimaobi held his breath in shock, looking like a man frozen by the Atlantic snows.
Chimaobi had to give us all a flashback to the very day he met me.
You all remember my postutme registration where Chimaobi met me for the first time and reached out to me, Drake was the first to see me.
“Omo! See this girl standing at the registration point, I have been looking at her for a while now, she’s so beautiful. I don fall for her already.” Chimaobi narrated what Drake told him when he saw me.
Looking sideways to see the girl Drake was referring to, I saw her and fell for her too.
“She fine o, see cuteness overload. I will go for her right away.” Chimaobi said to him and motioned in her direction as Drake pulled him back.
“You de craze? No, be me first see her?”
“I tie your leg? Go meet her if you want to jaree.” Chimaobi hit Drake’s hand and walked up to me.
I was never told of this until this moment in the police station.
“Hello” Chimaobi tried to talk to me, but I ignored him, he didn’t give up. He kept pestering me until I gave him my contact that day.
Getting back to Drake, Drake was hurt and quiet, but Chimaobi asked him to go try his luck.
“Life is choice, let her choose who she would want to roll with. I am not stopping you.” He said, as Drake walked happily to where I was.
Now, I didn’t even give Drake a listening ear. I barely looked at his face even. Hence, I had no idea it was Drake that came. I had had numerous guys stopping me and requesting for my contact. Chimaobi was just lucky, crafty and hypnotizing with his words to have got me to give him my contact.
“I was watching at the both of you and saw how everything transpired that day. How you snubbed him and gave him a stern warning when he tried to grab you by the arm, Chimaobi said.
“I can’t remember.”
“He was deeply hurt, but I didn’t know he held it this deep. When he came back to where I was, I began to laugh at him, and throwing jabs at him.”
Although, we laughed over it, I didn’t know it cut him this bad.
“Why weren’t you man enough to tell me how you felt?” Chimaobi attacked Drake.
“You and I went to her, I didn’t stop you. I didn’t force her, she gave her number to me. Why would you choose to be a coward?”
“And you? A traitor who has no respect to the ‘brother code’,” Drake attacked back.
“What useless brother code? Aren’t you a man? Don’t you have balls? Did I hinder you from knowing how to get into a woman, you simp.” Chimaobi fired at him as the police dragged him out the room.
To be continued!
