EPISODE 16.
💫THE BODYGUARD💫
(c) Judytex_Stories
“Why? Do I look familiar to you? Well, you don’t have to bother yourself by wondering if we have met before or not. Because we might be seeing each other more often from now on” Micheal said with a mischievous smile.
Hearing this, Chief Anthony couldn’t help but wonder what Micheal meant by what he just said to him. And this made him curious.
“And, what do you mean by we will be seeing each other more often from now on?” Chief Anthony asked staring steadily at Micheal who did the same.
And immediately, Alisha responded.
“He meant that, since he is my bodyguard and you are my uncle, then it’s pretty obvious that you two will be seeing each other more often from now on” Alisha quickly responded.
Hearing this, Chief Anthony then smiled and said,
“Oh…! Was that what he meant? And here I was thinking he meant something else. Well, in that case, I will be looking forward to meeting you more often from now” Chief Anthony said stretching forth his hand towards Micheal for a handshake.
Micheal then took his hand and said,
“Same here. And I hope to create beautiful memories with you” He said smiling brightly at Chief Anthony who found his choice of words weird and disturbing.
“Alright.” He said quickly freeing his hand from Micheal’s grip. Then turning to Alisha, he asked, “Is your father at home?”
“Uncle, I’m just returning now. So I’m not sure if he is at home or not” Alisha said.
“Hmmmmmm! Okay. Let me go in and check for myself” Chief Anthony said adjusting his Agbada.
After that, his boys went on to knock on the gate until the gate man finally let them in. And immediately they went in through the gate, Alisha quickly turned to Micheal and slapped him very hard on his left arm,
“Ouch! What was that for?” He screamed out rubbing his arm with shock in his eyes.
“What was that all about huh? Why were you throwing challenging words at my uncle? Don’t you know that making him suspicious of you will only ruin our plans? Or do you want to expose yourself to early danger?” Alisha asked all at once glaring at Micheal like a mother cautioning her child.
“Was that what you hit me that hard? You sure act like am your child” Micheal said still rubbing his arm.
Hearing this, Alisha increased her glare as she began rolling her eyes at him. Then pointing at him, she said,
“If you try that nonsense ever again, then, I will make sure to beat the hell out of you” She threatened raising her hand as if trying to slap Micheal who immediately raised both hands to shield his face from being slapped.
“What has gotten into you?” He asked trying so hard to avoid her slap.
“Your quest is a dangerous one so stop making it more difficult and dangerous than it already is. And Learn to control that temper of yours because it won’t do us any good in fulfilling your quest” Alisha said.
After that, she angrily turned and walked into her compound leaving Micheal in utter confusion.
“Wow. She sure has grown some nerves” He said still in disbelief at what just happened.
While he was about to enter his car, he saw Alisha’s phone on his car seat.
“Now look at this. I’m sure going to ground her for this. It’s high time I took my revenge on her” He said quickly grabbing the phone from the car seat.
And with haste, he stormed into the compound and was about to enter the living room when he overheard Chief Anthony raising his voice at Mr Nicholas. And as such, he stood there eavesdropping on their conversation.
“Anthony, I won’t have you come into my house and insult me like a little boy. I deserve some respect” Mr Nicholas yelled.
“Hahahahahaha. Respect my foot! If you know what’s best for you, then you shouldn’t attend the board of directors meeting that will be coming up this weekend. Otherwise, you will have yourself to blame. Don’t say I didn’t warn you, Nicholas. Because heaven will bear me witness that I gave you the grace to do the needful before this month runs out and this month is equally running out this weekend. Yet, you still haven’t attempted to give back what belongs to me. Rather, you are planning to attend the board of directors meeting to take full control of dad’s company but that won’t work. Read my lips Nicholas it won’t work. Except I seize to be Chief Anthony Akindele” Chief Anthony blew hot.
A few moments later, while Micheal was still eavesdropping outside the door, the door immediately swung open with full force almost knocking him down. He then quickly struggled to regain his balance which he did.
And as Chief Anthony stepped out, he stopped and cast a long and steady gaze at Micheal who simply wore a fake smile until he finally left with his boys.
Then taking a deep breath, Micheal said,
“That was close”
(Inside Mr Nicholas’s living room)
Alisha and her mother were both consoling Mr Nicholas when Micheal slowly walked into the living room not knowing what to say. And as soon as Alisha saw him, she gave him a weak smile filled with sadness and this got to Micheal who could see the sadness in her eyes.
“Good…..evening,” Micheal greeted Alisha’s parents not knowing if they would respond to him or not.
But as soon as Mr Nicholas heard his voice, he quickly stood up and walked up to Micheal and grabbed his hands.
“Micheal?” He called out with fear in his eyes.
“Yes….sir” Micheal responded staring confusedly at him.
“Please I need your help,” He said.
The next day, Micheal received a text from Ifemi holdings telling him the time and place he was to come for the children he ordered.
And after reading the text, Micheal said,
“Let the game begin,” Micheal said smiling from ear to ear.
That night, while Mrs Ifemi was impatiently waiting in a secluded area for Micheal to arrive and sign the adoption papers before taking the kids with him, she suddenly began to hear the sound of police sirens outside the vicinity.
Then turning to her assistant, she quickly asked,
“What’s that sound?”
“Let me go and check. I will be right back” Her assistant responded.
After which, he walked out to go verify what was going on. A minute later, Mrs ifemi saw him running back to where she was while gasping for breath.
“What’s going on? And why are you panting?” Mrs Ifemi asked.
“Ma’am, the police. The police are here. They have surrounded the entire place” He managed to speak.
Hearing this, Mrs Ifemi quickly stood to her feet with shock in her eyes.
“What? How come?” She asked with her eyes widened in shock.
Then turning to her personal assistant, she said,
“You know what, look for a way to hide. I will go to the police and face whatever comes with it. All you have to do is make sure to inform Chief Anthony about this. And I’m sure he will come to my rescue as usual” Mrs Ifemi said.
“But ma’am, have you forgotten that these children are not from his orphanage home? He will get upset that you went behind him to carry out such a transaction simply because you didn’t want to share the profit with him” He said.
“No, you are wrong. He won’t hesitate to come to my rescue and that’s because he knows that he will be doomed once I open my mouth to confess to his involvement in this” Mrs Ifemi said.
“Alright then, I will deliver the message to him. But until he comes to get you out, please remain safe” He said.
“Sure. I will. Now run along” Mrs Ifemi said slightly pushing him to move forward.
Just as her assistant left, some policemen entered with guns pointing at her.
Seeing them, Mrs Ifemi raised her hands above her head surrendering to them.
Some of the policemen went on to search the remaining rooms in the uncompleted building and in that process, one of them stumbled on the innocent kids that were supposed to be sold to Micheal that night in one of the rooms.
“The kids are here sir” The policeman alerted their leader who quickly went ahead to confirm with his own eyes.
Bringing the children in front of Mrs Ifemi, the leader squatted before them and asked,
“Are you alright?” He asked.
But one of the kids simply broke into tears saying he wants to return home to his mother. And with anger, the policeman stood up and instructed his boys to handcuff Mrs Ifemi and take her to the station.
“Woman, you are under arrest for the abduction and attempted trafficking of these innocent children. You have the right to remain silent as whatever you say will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to a lawyer and if you can’t provide a lawyer, one will be provided for you” He said. Then turning to his boys, he instructed, “Handcuff her and move her to the station immediately” He said.
Early the next day, news broke out that the C.E.O of ifemi holdings was involved in abduction and child trafficking and she is currently in police custody awaiting to be tried in court.
Seeing the news pop up on his news feed the next morning, Micheal couldn’t help but feel fulfilled and excited. The three of them popped up an expensive wine and hosted a mini party to celebrate their first win.
“I am so grateful to you all for being part of this plan. I honestly wouldn’t have successfully executed this plan without your support” Micheal said with gratitude in his heart.
“Come on Micheal, we didn’t do much. You were the master planner and the brain behind the success of this plan. And I must say, I was able to learn one or two from working with you” Samson said.
“Yeah. Same here” Alisha said smiling helplessly.
“Cheers to more interesting outcomes,” Micheal said raising his glass in the air.
“Cheers,” Alisha and Samson said. Each clicking their glass cups against each other’s cup.
(Back at Chief Anthony’s office that morning)
Chief Anthony was in his office scrolling through the news of Mrs Ifemi’s arrest on his tablet when his secretary knocked and walked in.
“Yes, Abike what’s it?” He asked dropping his tablet and resting his clenched palms on his table.
“Sir, someone is here to see you,” She said.
“Who is that?” He asked.
“He said he is from Ifemi holdings. sir,” His Secretary said.
“Please let him in,” He said.
“Alright sir,” She said with a slight bow.
A moment after she left, Mrs Ifemi’s personal assistant walked in with fear in his eyes.
“Good morning sir” He greeted.
“And what is good about this morning?” Chief Anthony yelled hitting both palms on his table.
“Sir” The young man called out with fear.
“What exactly was she thinking when she went behind my back to run such a transaction?” Chief Anthony asked with anger in his tone.
“I tried talking her out of it but she was so engrossed in the money involved that she didn’t even listen to me,” the young man said.
“Then you should have tried harder. Now, look at the mess she has gotten herself into” Chief Anthony Lamented.
“Chief what should we do? We have to get her out of there” The young man said.
“That might not be easy this time because of the strong evidence they have against her. And I was told by an insider that a record of her running the transaction was given to the police by someone who witnessed the transaction,” Chief Anthony said.
“That’s weird because no one witnessed the transaction take place in Mrs Ifemi’s office. It was just Mrs Ifemi and the two clients who were present in her office that day. So how did the video of the transaction get to the police?” The young man asked.
“Hmmmm. Then who sent a video clip of the transaction to the police?” Chief Anthony asked rubbing his beard.
“What if the foreign client was not a client but a spy in disguise?” The young man asked.
“I think you have a point there. Go get me the information he entered in the form that was given to him during the transaction” Chief Anthony said.
“Okay sir,” The young man said with a bow.
And when he left, Chief Anthony couldn’t help but wonder who it was that was behind Mrs Ifemi’s arrest.
(Back at the hospital)
Micheal happily went to his mother and showed her the news of Mrs Ifemi being arrested for child trafficking and kidnapping.
And with exceeding joy in her heart, she said,
“Finally, her evil deeds have caught up with her. This shows that there is still a God in heaven that answers prayers. And there is still karma that repays people with their coins” Bunmi said with a smile on her lips.
“Mother, all I want from you now is to write down all the things you’ve always wanted to do and experience with your son all these while. And I promise to grant all your wishes,” Micheal said.
And with gladness in her heart, Bunmi made a bucket list of the ten most important things she would like to experience with her son before she leaves the world.
And one after the other, Micheal took each day fulfilling her wishes. They celebrated birthdays together for the first time even though it wasn’t their actual birth date.
And In a wheelchair, Micheal took her around the hospital as they both chatted and spent time with each other.
He took pictures with her and made a portrait which he placed beside her hospital bed.
He granted all her wishes until it got to the last two which were to see her son get married and to see her grandchildren before she leaves the world.
When Micheal discussed this with Alisha and Samson, Alisha then volunteered to grant her second-to-last wish by becoming Micheal’s fake bride.
And together, they both went to a bridal shop and bought a wedding dress for the fake wedding party. When Alisha stepped out of the fitting room all dressed in her wedding dress, Micheal was completely smitten with how beautiful she looked in the wedding dress that he couldn’t take his eyes off her for a long while.
“Why the long stare? Do I look weird?” Alisha asked feeling awkward.
“No, you look extremely beautiful in that dress. And I must say, you will indeed make a beautiful bride” Micheal said with longing in his eyes.
“Thank you,” Alisha said blushing effortlessly.
Micheal went on to rent a hall in the hospital where he held a fake mini and quiet wedding with Alisha and some of the patients as guests.
Alisha’s parents who already knew what was going on, were also there to help fulfil Bunmi’s wish as they were now aware of her condition.
At the wedding, Samson played the role of Micheal’s best man while Jane stood in as Alisha’s chief bridesmaid and the doctor played the role of a priest who officiated the wedding.
And together, they were able to fulfil Bunmi’s wish of helping her witness her son’s wedding before she dies.
After exchanging the fake marriage vows and rings, the audience who were the patients in the hospital began urging the newly wedded couple to kiss.
Micheal wasn’t cool with their request and was trying to calm them down saying it wasn’t necessary when Alisha held his hand and asked.
“If they want a kiss, why don’t we give it to them?” She asked.
“No Alisha. I can’t do that knowing that this wedding is fake and we don’t have a relationship that warrants us kissing” Micheal insisted.
“Well, there’s no wedding without a groom kissing his bride. So whether fake or real, I’m definitely not leaving here without finishing what I started” She said.
And before Micheal could say yet another word, Alisha leaned in and pressed her lips against his.
This is beautiful I wish micheal also had feelings for her also