THE MONEY OR YOUR LIFE
CHAPTER 6
THE END
I met Chris the following day at his shop. Chris sold electronics or passed for an electronics seller. However, his real merchandise were security gadgets, primarily guns and ammunition. It was an illegal business, but he still thrived because even the top security personnel in the city patronized him. He was also well connected. He had friends in high places and in most of the government agencies.
“You have the money ready?” He asked as soon as we had finished exchanging pleasantries.
“Yes, Bro. I have it in Dollars.”
“In Dollars?”
“Yeah”
“Is it the same money those guys were after you for?”
“Yeah”
“Alright, let me have it.”
I gave him the money, and he told me to bring my wife the following day for the biometric process. I was very happy, thanked him and went back to the hotel. Back at the hotel, I got my stuff together and checked out. I boarded a taxi and went to my house. I hadn’t been there in almost a week. It felt good being at home again. I had really missed home. After I had bathed and had a change of clothes, I went to my mother’s place to see my wife.
My wife was very happy to see me. She had missed me terribly. She had told my mum that I was being hunted by some men, and it had got the poor woman terribly worried. My mum, however, was not at home when I got there, which was a good thing too. I wasn’t prepared for her wahala.
“Where have you been husband?” She asked.
“I am sorry, babe. Those guys were after me. I had to lie low for a while.”
“The guys who were after you, was it for business or pleasure?”
“Both”
“Tell me exactly what could make you abandon your pregnant wife for almost a week.”
“I am sorry. Don’t bother about it. It’s over now. I am free again and I have come to get you home.” I spoke.
“Thank God. You really got me worried and scared. You know I shouldn’t be in that kind of situation because of my condition.” She complained.
“It’s alright, babe. Please, forgive me. Everything will be fine henceforth.”
“Okay, if you say so. However, I am not going with you. I will stay here for about a month before coming home. Your mum has been taking very good care of me.” She spoke.
“Just say that you don’t want to miss your usual gossips. You and my mum? Who doesn’t know you girls? I can imagine how you have belaboured my name these past days.” I said, laughing.
“I beg, leave us jor. Is it your business. No one forced you to be a male.” We both laughed.
My wife and I were scheduled to go see Chris in two days’ time for the biometric process. However, before that, Chris had to go pay the money for the processing of the passports at a bank. When he got there, he presented the money at the counter and filled the necessary forms. The cashier looked at him suspiciously, asked him to hold on a little, and then called the police. He couldn’t understand what was happening. However, he was told that the money was counterfeit. They were fake dollar bills, and he was accused of trying to defraud the bank, and of circulating fake bank notes. He was at the bank with the same three guys he had sent to help me get the money from Olivia. One of them was with him inside the bank and the other two were waiting by the car outside.
Chris was now at the police station. He asked to make a call and was granted the permission to. He called some of his big friends in high places. However, he was told by every one of them that since it involved counterfeit money, it was a bit more complicated. They told him to be patient while they work things out. Some of them didn’t even take their calls. He called me twice, but I didn’t take my calls. I was not around my phone. He assumed that I was not taking my calls deliberately. He assumed that I knew all along that the money was fake and I had set him up. He grew enraged and saw me as a traitor. Because he was angry with me, he refused to take my calls when I saw he missed calls and called back. Instead, he sent the other two guys to come and deal with me.
Back in my home, I was all alone in the sitting room, watching The Equalizer, starring Denzel Washington. I was completely oblivious of all the happenings at the bank. When I saw Chris’ missed calls, I thought he was calling me to give positive news, or he wanted additional information. I didn’t know that trouble was brewing. I heard my doorbell ring, and stealthily went to the peephole and looked. I was not expecting anybody, that’s why I was suspicious. I couldn’t believe what I saw. I saw two men at my door, their faces masked, and their guns drawn. I tiptoed back to my bedroom, got my gun, checked to see that it was loaded and came back to the living room.
The two guys had rung the bell several times without any response from me. They got angry and decided to force the door open. As they were struggling to do so, I fired twice through the door. They both fell on the ground. One was killed instantly because the bullet had got him in the head. The other was hit on his right shoulder, causing him to drop his gun. I quickly walked to the door and opened it. I saw both of them. One was dead and the other was lying on the floor, holding his injured shoulder and writhing in pains. I went to him, picked up his gun, took the other one’s gun too and dragged him into my house and tied him up. When I was sure that he was secured, I went back outside and pulled the dead one behind the house.
I got back to the living room with my gun still in my hand and took off his mask. I was shocked by what I saw. It was Ryan, Chris’ man and the guy who had helped me before.
“What’s the meaning of this, Ryan?” I asked, vexed. “Why are you guys after me?”
“Chris sent us. You betrayed him. You betrayed our boss. He sent us to teach you a lesson.”
“What do you mean? Chris is my friend. We have been friends for ages. I can never betray him. Where is he? I have tried to call him, but he isn’t taking my calls.”
“He is in jail.”
“What?”
“Yes, he is in jail with another colleague of mine. He is in jail because you set him up. You are a traitor, Phil.” Ryan cursed.
“My friend watch what you say. The next time you call me a traitor will be the last time. So, better be careful.” I warned him.
I got my phone, stepped away from Ryan and dialed Chris’ number. It rang for a long time, but no one picked. I was confused, angry and frustrated. I didn’t know what to make of the situation. I thought I was done shooting and killing people. I thought I was a free man again. Now, killers were still after me. What made it worse was the fact that my new hunters were people who had previously been my allies.
I got back to Ryan and asked.
“What happened? Please tell me everything.” I urged.
“Go to hell”
“I don’t want to get hard on you. I know there is a mix up somewhere. Since I can’t get to Chris, you are the only one who can tell me what happened.” I explained to him.
He stayed quiet and refused to speak. Instead, he raised his head and looked at me with hostility. He was a hardened gunman, but he didn’t know that he was dealing with a desperate man. With all the force in me, I gave him a hard punch in his stomach. He growled in pains, and saliva started dripping from his mouth. I raised my gun and pointed directly to his head.
“Last chance, Ryan. Last chance.”
“Okay, I will talk. I will talk. Please, don’t kill me.”
“Get on with it, then.” I barked.
“It’s the money, the money. He was arrested because of the money.”
“What money? The dollar bills?” I asked.
“Yes”
“Why”
“They said it was fake.”
I felt my world coming to an end. I felt my knees weakening, my head spinning, my eyes turning. No!!! It could not be. It could never be. This money was my ticket to my new life, a new and better life. I had killed people, lost my job, be on the run just for this money, and now it has turned out to be all for nothing? I couldn’t believe. In fact, I refused to believe.
“Are you sure of what you are talking about, Ryan?” I asked.
“Damn sure”
I got my remote and turned on the TV. To my surprise the news was on TV. The reporter was explaining what had happened.
“The mystery about all the recent killings in the city these past days has been revealed. The killings at the railway terminal, the one in the premises of Dreamland Hotel and the one at the building close to Boulangerie Menos are all linked to one and the same incident. It was all because of some fake dollar bills that were brought into the country by the former railway boss. It was a kickback given to him by the minister of transport for facilitating his own man to get the railway contract. The minister himself didn’t know the dollars were fake. After he had given the railway boss the money, he sent his men to go get the money back and wipe out the railway boss and his men. That was what caused the killing at the terminal.
Unfortunately for them, one of the railways boss’ men escaped the shooting and took the money with him.
No one knows what happened, but the money got into another person’s hand. It was in the quest to get the money from its new keeper which caused all those deaths. The police had been investigating all this while, and today, they caught someone with some of the dollar bills. He is currently under investigation. The minister has already been arrested. The police spokesman said, he was sure that by the end of this week, the case will be closed because they are very close to the man keeping the rest of the dollar bills.
Reporting for Comway News. This is Megan Ncube”
I turned off the TV in anger. My life was finished. Oh!! My poor wife. I wondered how she would cope without me. My selfishness and greed had led me into this. I had abandoned my job and went on the run because of fake money. Oh God!! Please help me. I sat on the couch and started thinking of my next move. I didn’t have time for that however, because my door was kicked open and the special branch of the police walked in. They were four of them.
I was handcuffed, my rights read to me and taken to the police van. An ambulance was called for Ryan. As we drove to the police station, I begged God to forgive my sins and take care of my wife and my unborn baby for me.
THE END
Oh, sad ending