LOVE AND LIES
SEVENTEEN
Kola drove out into the mist of the morning. A faint sun was already peeping out from the clouds. Fresh breezes coursed and careened through the open, whistling a distance off. A haze seemed to hang up in the sky blurring the clouds. Kola jarred off worriedly, speeding through a free bend that had few cars racing down. He slowed at the end and guarded the car to halt into a filling station. He filled his tank. Ibadan was an hour journey from Lagos. He wished he could get to his son’ s school before ten. He had promised to make this his particular birthday a surprise. Kola smiled as he imagined the events of the day unfolding. He could see the little boy smiling as he behold the birthday gifts and cake and drinks. He would indeed appreciate him as a good dad. Kola smiled as he thought. He paid the fuel attendant and jumped back into his car. He sat bolt upright as he made the car belched into life again. It moaned and rapped for a few seconds before spluttering out loudly, ready to course into the road. Kola guided it out of the filling station before veering off.
Kola was tearing up the express way while a few cars and bikes meandered and spluttered enjoying the breezes and the ease of traffic. He put on the transistor radio of his car and a male voice bawled out. The voice drifted on for a while before a song began to play. Kola enjoyed it keeping himself busy. He got to Shagamu and the traffic began. A few trailers and cars queued on the road. Hawkers gabbling, and blabbing at motorists and passengers. Kola motioned at a young girl hawking plantain chips. She pranced forward hurriedly, guarding the large tray of plantain on her head at the same time. He scanned through the trail before, picking his choice. He shove his hand into his b****t pocket and dug out a five hundred Naira note. He told the girl to bring his change first of all. She smiled. She realized Kola was one of the frequent road users who would not foolishly part away with their change. She hurriedly scavenged through her purse, dug out few dirty-creased notes and handed them to Kola. He managed to spread them before shoving them off into his pocket. The girl strayed off in haste, searching for another customer.
Noises were still everywhere. It had become a gridlock. Loud voices of drivers could be heard cursing angrily. Some got down from their cars while some could only duck out their heads to examine the situation of the road. The faulty car that led to the traffic was eventually pushed out and a maze of free road showed up. Kola turned the key and the car spluttered into life again. A bus skidded across him suddenly. A man in a dirty red shirt loped out his head. His face had a scar that bent his mouth and made him look scary.
” U no wan move. Ehh.” he raged angrily. “Gbe body e joor. Mumu”. His lips read the fact that he had spent a good number of his years smoking weed. Kola smiled and hurriedly beetled off to avoid more curses from him. Fresh breezes flooded in as he sped. His car AC hadn’t been in good shape. He had planned to fix that but had procrastinated. He crunched the plantain chips as he loosed his way freely into the road. A Toyota Sienna jostled across overtaking a truck roaring along. Impatiently it lost his way and the croaky truck slowed to avoid him. Kola who had been unconscious behind enjoying the speed, lost in and rammed into the truck. The Toyota skidded off avoiding the two of them. The driver in the croaky truck immediately sensed the danger, tried to avoid it by meandering his way but it was too late. Kola’s car wheeled round then looped off into the bush. The car was ravaged beyond recognition. Kola was bleeding everywhere. It was a fatal accident.FRSC was radioed immediately.
Few people around ran to the scene and broke into the car. Kola was brought out. His face covered with blood. His left leg was torn beyond recognition. LASEMA (Lagos State Emergency Management Authority) response team came to the scene. They tied their red and white ribbon across the road to block it. Kola was given some first aids and was immediately taken to a nearby hospital. The driver in the croaky truck got a little wound and was treated. Kola couldn’t say anything. LASEMA got his phone and documents from his car. The birthday cake and the gift for his son were totally destroyed beyond recognition. He was later wheeled into the hospital on a stretcher.
*******
Doctor Chuks was the doctor on duty at Amazing Grace hospital Shagamu. He was a tall athletic man in his forties. He was fair-skinned and hairy. He wore a blue- striped shirt over a pleated pair of trousers. He had a pair of glasses that added a little glow to his face. He was phoned immediately that there was an emergency. He rolled up his sleeves and stepped out of his office. He hurried with heavy footsteps into the emergency room. He examined Kola.
“He has lost so much blood. We need to staunch the blood flow first of all.” He told the nurses. Efforts were made to stop him from bleeding.
“Place him on a few pants of blood after you have sealed up the wounds. He needs tetanus injection and antibiotics. He needs the tetanus now then the antibiotics after a while. ”
He strolled out to meet the LASEMA officials that brought him.
“Can we talk in my office sirs?” He showed them to his office.
“He lost so much blood. Thank God we didn’t lose him.” Doctor Chuks intoned after he had flopped into his seat.
“We had to rush him here because it is close. We were scared not to lose him. “Mr Niyi an official of LASEMA told him.
“You need to contact his family. I hope arrangements have been made about that?”
“Yes. We found his phone but it is locked. We also found a few documents and few other things in his car. He had a cake and birthday gifts that were destroyed. I guessed he was going to celebrate the birthday of his son or wife.”
“That’s a pity!” Doctor Chuks shook his head. “Is there any number in the documents you found? Anyone could help now.”
“Yes. ” Mr Niyi scanned through the papers and found Lara’s number. It was called many times but she failed to pick. The officials were worried. They called the number again later in the day yet she failed to pick. They later found Nkiru’s number written somewhere. It was on a divorce paper. They doubted if the recipient would be nice enough to come.
“Hello” Nkiru picked up.
“I am Mr Niyi, an official of LASEMA. Do you know a man called Kola?
“Yes.” Nkiru replied at the other end.
“He was involved in a fatal accident. But thank God we didn’t lose him.”
“Oh my God!” Nkiru panicked at the other end.
“He is in Amazing Grace hospital in Shagamu.”
“Jesus!! I am coming right away.” Nkiru spoke worriedly and hung up.
Nkiru dressed up hurriedly. She called Dave, Kola’s business partner to inform him. She was confused. A thought told her to calm down. She ran here and there trying to get a few things.
“Why do you have to kill yourself because of a man who was going to meet his girlfriend? Does he also care about you this way?” A thought asked her.
Nkiru didn’t listen to that. Something seemed to run her around. She realized it was an unexplainable love. That was her before situation began to turn her the other way round. She got a taxi and hurried in, impatiently praying that she would get there on time.
To be continued……
©Emmanuel Erondu, 2019
