THE PHOTOGRAPHER 16 --by Rose

(Image source: www.gettyimages.com)

Duncan couldn’t believe what Udeme had just told him, he was astonished at the behavior of Mrs. Thomas. How could a woman be so cruel? Maybe she blamed Udeme and suspected her of having something to do with the attack. He couldn’t bear to see her cry, but he knew from the beginning that a man like Bode was always bad news and couldn’t be kept in a cage. He tried comforting her but it was quite pointless as she couldn’t be pacified, he left her and rose to get her some brandy, at least, alcohol was handy in situations like this. 

“UD, have this,” he handed her the tumbler while staring at her teary face. She gulped the liquid down and felt her throat burn. “Has Nadie returned any of your calls?” She asked, looking worried. Maybe she was busy at the hospital. He shook his head in response. He was awed by her nature. Even in her situation, she still showed so much concern for her friend Nadine who hadn’t responded to their calls and messages. “It’s okay, I would just get some sleep then I’ll go to the hospital for the last time.” Duncan felt her pain, she looked so hurt and helpless. “Are you sure about that Udeme?” He inquired gently. For a woman to reject her son’s girlfriend meant such a relationship couldn’t amount to anything in future and it was best to walk away in good time and that is what he thought his friend should do. She had suffered enough in the hands of Bode but she loved him so much and he feared this could break down her spirit. “I’m sure Dee, let me just see him one more time before I walk away for good, apparently we aren’t meant to be together. If we were, things would’ve worked out.” She sniffled as fresh tears poured down her face. “Now Adenike has him, she is free to take him and others. He is no longer mine.” She continued, leaving Duncan confused. 

“Who is Adenike?” She blinked and swallowed. “His ex girlfriend. She works in the company and wasn’t quite nice to me. She was the lady you saw in the hospital.” He nodded “Oh, I think I remember her, just stop worrying about this issue, I know it’s not easy but I know you’ll get over Bode soon,” he assured her while rubbing her shoulders. She checked the time and saw it was getting late, she had to go to the hospital again as she had received a text from Nadie who confirmed Mrs. Thomas had left. “You know what Dee?” She began, as she picked up her purse and straitened her skirt. “I think I should go now, Nadie just texted me and it’s all good.” “Okay, let me pick up the keys, I will drop you so I could bring some supplies for Nadie.” He offered but she declined. She felt like being alone, you know, she wanted space to take in all that had happened to her and the next action to take. “I’ll be fine so also Nadie, just take care of yourself. Goodnight.” She whispered and left. 

Duncan shook his head sadly, wondering if Nadine loved him the way Udeme loved Bode. Lately she had begun acting strange, he felt something change. They had lost their connection. In the beginning, he attributed it to the stress of planning a wedding but he had his suspicions and he hoped his guts weren’t right. He felt it kind of strange for her sudden devotion to her friend’s boyfriend, the Nadie he knew was self centered and had nothing to offer people except it benefited her but he loved her still. He had noticed how she treated her friend sometimes, like Udeme didn’t really matter and all that but he ignored it. It was all getting to him now. Could he cope with such a woman when they got married eventually? He shook his head, Nadine couldn’t be having an affair with Bode, maybe she just liked him because he was Ud’s guy but that feeling crept up his spine again as he remembered the condoms he had seen in her bag some time ago and once again he wondered if getting married to her was the right decision. Just as his thoughts were speaking to him, his phone rang, he sighed and decided he had to talk to someone, a relationship expert, he needed to air out his feelings, he needed some advice. 

“Good evening Engineer Duncan,” the cool female voice greeted and he checked the number to see who it was, but it wasn’t familiar. “Strange,” he muttered. “Hello, who am I speaking with please?” He inquired rolling his eyes. “Someone who cares about you,” she answered and it startled him. “Who could that be?” He was getting a bit impatient. He needed some sleep because the next day was going to be super hectic. “Okay, call me Love Doctor,” she said sweetly. He stretched his full length on the cushion chair. This was getting interesting. “Love doctor.” For a moment, he wondered if his wish had come true because he had wished to speak with a relationship expert. He took a deep breath wondering what to reply next but he heard some noise at the background, the line was breaking. “Bad network. Hello? Miss? Are you there?” But the line went dead. 

He tried calling her back but to no avail, that was no coincidence he felt it strongly. Something bad was going on in his life and he was being kept in the dark. He rose up and made for the stairs hoping to find out whatever it was. 

**** 

Adenike quickly rushed to the door to see who it was that had interrupted her call with Duncan. She had devised a cool strategy to deal with Nadine, she would expose her to the whole world for who she was and she was nothing but a cheap whore. She leaned by the glass windows and peeped, feeling a little bit startled as no one was there but she maintained her cool because she’d heard loud knocks on the door. 

She shivered and began dialing the number of James, her gateman. What if it were robbers? She looked at the clock and prayed against such an ungodly visit. It was getting very late. “Shit!” She exclaimed as she tossed the phone aside. That fool didn’t pick up. Something fishy was going on in her compound, she felt it strongly. Could Nadine send thugs to her? She thought of this possibility and shook the idea off. Although she was a cheat, she didn’t think Nadine had it in her to kill someone but how was she to know. Nadie didn’t look that smart, she was quite sure of that but right now she had to find whoever it was that pounced on her door.

She made for her room to pick up her pistol which she kept for safety and protection in situations as this. But immediately she reached the entrance of her room, she felt something cold on her back and she knew it was too late for her. She felt the weight of the gun of her attacker while he roughly pushed her into her bedroom and threw her on the bed. She turned around to see his face and was quite surprised as her captor hadn’t worn a mask. She smiled mischievously and felt her plans fall into place. “Yakubu!” She yelled his name. She was surprised to see him because she thought he was dead. She had paid him and the other boys to waste Barrister Edwards but they had shot Bode instead and they had lost their lives in the process. At least, that was what she was made to understand. “I thought you were—” She halted as he completed the word. “Dead?” He paced around the room a little bit. “Madam Nike, I barely escaped death on the mission to waste Barrister Edwards, the other two weren’t quite lucky and somehow the police got to know we were three in number. So I had to be careful while visiting you.” Nike watched the young man carefully, Yakubu was one of the top assassins in the country. She knew very little about him and she was quite sure ‘Yakubu’ wasn’t his real name. From what she’d gathered, he was a graduate of Microbiology from the University of Illorin, Kwara, and like other graduates from Nigerian institutions he was unemployed for about seven years. He had no other option than to train himself and do something worthwhile to survive. She was happy to see him. She would employ his services well in her battle with Nadine. He was the best hitman in town. “So what are your plans?” Nike asked eagerly. He contemplated for a minute “I need jobs so I can get enough cash and flee the country.” She smiled slowly at him and he understood the smile. She offered him a job, of course, he wasn’t wrong to pay his long standing customer a visit. He was instructed to terminate Nadine in a week’s time and that job was quite lucrative. “I have to go now, I have a job to carry out tonight.” He gasped while checking his phone for notifications. He rose up and melted into the thick darkness for the girl he was about to silent.