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Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 21

I had hoped and wished for freedom from

Prison all those years, believing the free

world is safer than being behind bars. When

freedom eventually came, I had challenges to

contend with in the real world.

The immediate issues where; where to go

and where to start from, as in how to get

my Job back, the second was how to take

care of mama and settle Baba Miko and

finally how to manage my budding romance

with Amaka in the midst of these challenges.

Mama had completely recovered and all bills

were settled before she was discharged

from the hospital. Baba Miko was fortunate

to have started getting acquainted with the

Hospital management immediately he came

to Abakaliki, he had been washing their Cars

and helping in fixing anything that needed

repairs in the building so it was just natural

they gave him a temporal job as a guard

when one of their old guards retired and

went back to his Village. He was to be on

shift duty. We decided that he stayed put at

Abakaliki for now, he said he would save up

some money to buy modern tools for his Job

before returning home or start life all over at

Abakaliki.

I discussed with mama and Amaka on my

next move and we both agreed that mama

stayed with Baba Miko in Abakaliki while I

go to Enugu and see my Commanding

Officer with the exoneration letter the Court

gave me.

It was at this juncture that I asked mama to

tell me what I do not know about his

relationship with Baba Miko.

Mama Miko told me that Baba Miko had

always loved her, he started pestering her

for marriage since she was a teenager long

before my Father came along with his sweet

tongue and wooed her. My Dad was very

handsome; he was popular with his dances

at social functions and church services. He

was more of an extrovert compared to Baba

Miko.

Every young girl at that time wanted to be

identified with my Dad so she could resist

him when he came for her because she felt

she was lucky to have him. But my dad had

turned out to be a disappointment. He was

very lazy, he loved fun and hates work, he

could sit over a keg of palm wine and talk

about his plans for a better future but it

ends there! He never moved a muscle

towards acquiring and developing Lands for

farming like his mates, instead he resorted

to selling off his lands to his mates and

drinking the money.

I asked my mother her age as at that time

and she said she was just sixteen years old

when she conceived me, which made her

forty one years old now, I had always

thought she would be older, I never knew

she had me at so tender an age.

Baba Miko had left the village out of

frustration and shame because our People

have a saying that “it is the brave man that

snatches the wife of a lazy man” every man

in the village at that time knew Baba Miko

was a strong and hard working man so for

a well known lazy and unserious man like

my Dad to collect a woman he was

interested in, was a big slap on his face so

he relocated to Ogbomosho.

He returned to the Village when I was ten

years old to find a wife only to discover that

my mother had been widowed for about a

decade, he did not marry again, and rather

he approached her and restated his love for

her but my mother told him she was afraid

of marrying again. But Baba Miko remained

in the Village so he could be around her and

he too refused to marry.

I told Mama to give him a chance; I told her

that no man can love a woman more. The

man had sacrificed everything for her, what

Man would abandon his work and Kinsmen

in the village and follow a Woman to a

strange land to start living in servitude. The

fact that he got here and sought out a

means of survival showed that he is a

determined and ambitious man. I told her to

stay with him so I can go and pursue my

own destiny. She prayed for me and Amaka

and we all slept at Baba Miko’s two rooms

Apartment and left early for Enugu the next

day.

We went straight to see my Commanding

Officer, Colonel Garba whom Amaka met the

last time she came for my Cheque book but

he had also been transferred and replaced

by a Colonel Akindele, a Yoruba man. We

discussed with him for about one hour

updating him on my case, he brought out

hand over files from his predecessors and

saw the copy of the letter the Police had

sent to the G.O.C to release me to them for

investigation, he called for a new file from

his secretary and he put the letter into the

new file, he then collected the exoneration

form the Court gave me and put in the file

too, he said he would take the new file and

explain to the new G.O.C. Amaka then told

him to make photocopies of the

exoneration letter and give us the original,

he obliged.

So you are very free now? He asked at last

Yes sir! I replied

And this lady here is your Lawyer? He asked

again

Yes sir! I replied

Good! Good! Boy! You would have gone

through a tough time! How come the

investigation took too long? He asked.

The Police abandoned the case immediately

he was moved to Abakaliki! They wanted

him to rot there. Amaka replied.

Kai! Sorry o! Not to worry, you will be

rejabbed into the Army, I will personally take

your case up, he promised.

When we left the C.O’s Office, I went to see

the new A.O and introduced myself, A.O is

the Admin Officer and second in command

to the C.O. he congratulated me and

welcomed me back.

I went and looked for the R.S.M who almost

jumped out of his skin when he saw me; he

was the same R.S.M seven years ago. He

asked silly questions that annoyed Amaka.

He was so pessimistic and incongruous

asking me if I was sure I was free indeed!

He asked if the family we robbed are aware

that I have been released from Prison; he

asked if I was sure I did not break out from

Prison; it was Amaka that cautioned him by

asking him he if he was scared that I was

back, she told him that everyone had been

happy to see me back except him, she asked

him that if I were his Son and have been to

jail for seven years, would he treat me the

way he had just done? He felt challenged

and demanded to know who she was. She

told him she was a Barrister and my legal

representative from Abuja. He turned and

hurriedly left us.

Something is wrong here! Amaka had said

that day: the way this man reacted shows

that he does not want you around, you need

to be careful Ojo, she had cautioned.

Our sergeant Korofo ran towards us as we

were about entering Amaka’s Car, he called

out my name and I turned to see him

running excitedly towards me, we

embraced.

Old boy them don release you? He asked

Yes sir! I replied

Ha! I happy for you o! Thank God! I talk am!

I talk am say you no guilty! I tell them say

you must to come back one day! He said. He

stretched his hands and we shook hands

like men, he pulled me close and we hugged,

then he whispered to my ears ‘wahala dey

o! Oga R.S.M no like as you return o! He say

Criminal na Criminal, he say him dey go tell

C.O not to allow a Criminal back into the unit,

so make you be careful o! I thanked him and

he left. I told Amaka what he said and she

advised that we be vigilant and careful.

We drove to the house of Saka my friend, he

had married with two Sons, and he was

shocked to see me. I greeted his Wife and

played with the Kids, I pulled him outside his

house and apologized for the incident that

happened seven years ago, he could not

accept my apology, he was dumb founded

because he knew I had come to show

myself to him that after he abandoned me

for seven years, I came out alive, after all

what are friends for? It could have been me

with him in a stolen Car he bought

ignorantly; I would not have abandoned him

like that.

Amaka and I later drove to the Mammy

market to eat, I pointed to her the shop I

had rented for mama seven years ago, and

someone now sells provision in it. I saw few

Soldiers that still remembered my face, some

thought I was posted out to another state,

some also thought I had been in Lagos with

the green Berets, the Army football team

while those that knew what actually

happened came and congratulated me, they

said they heard of Mr. Chike’s arrest and they

knew I would soon be free. I saw two of my

mates with the rank of Corporal hanging on

their arms; I congratulated them on their

promotion.

Amaka and I then drove to Dannic hotels at

new Haven and booked a room to spend the

night. We discussed in detail and planned on

the way forward together.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Amaka happened to be the only daughter of

her parents; she lost her mum to Cancer

when she was just fifteen. She has two elder

brothers both married to white women and

based abroad, the eldest is with the United

States marines Corp while the other is an

Architect. She studied law at the University

of Liverpool and came home for her national

youth service Corps and upon completion a

friend of her father’s helped her secured

employment into Gani Fawehinmi Chambers,

she was posted to the eastern region with

head office at Ziks Avenue Enugu, now she

has been posted to Abuja. She is twenty

three years old while I am twenty five now.

Her father is not a millionaire but he could

afford the basic necessities of life, he was a

Civil servant that grew through the ranks to

become a magistrate Court Judge before

retirement, he invested his money in

educating his Children and he had no

favourites amongst the Children.

I asked her how her father would react if he

got to know about us, she said her father

does not care, he is only interested in his

work and his books, if the mother were to

be alive, then we would have cause to

worry.

Amaka had been spending her savings and

salaries in pursuance of my freedom. I asked

her what made her to help me and went

through the hardship with me, she said it

was because of the passion with which I

begged her to help my mother, she said she

watched as death gradually ate her mother

up yet they could not help her, all her

father’s connections and monies could not

stop cancer from killing her mother whom

she had loved so much. She said it is hard to

see a man that would forget his own

problems and take risks to save another like

I did for mama.

I told her that most women of our time

would have run away from me once they

see how attached I am to my mother; they

prefer a man who has no mother at all. She

said she believes strongly in the law of

Karma that what goes around, comes

around. She is a woman, if she dislikes my

mother, her son’s spouse would dislike her

too in future, she said.

Finally we agreed that I rent a two- room

self contained apartment outside the

Barracks and wait till I am recalled into the

force. I had some money on me.

That night, she gave herself to me without

reservation. Making love to Amaka was

different, I was not paying for it so I was

not selfish and brutal, we had the whole

night to ourselves so I was not in a hurry,

and we made every minute count. I had to

increase the volume of the television so as

to douse her mourns and my grunts.

Three months after my release from Prison, I

was yet to hear from the Army. I realized

that the C.O was avoiding me, whenever I

went to see him, his secretary always gave

one reason or the other to prevent me from

seeing him, however I was patient, these

big men are always busy and I did not want

to choke him. Such things take time I

thought.

By March 1998, it was six months out of

Prison; I travelled to Abakaliki to see mama

and Baba Miko, I went to their house but it

was locked and no one was at home, then I

took a Bike to the Hospital to see Baba Miko.

He was so happy to see me after six months,

he was all over me with questions which I

answered as much as I could, he was

looking very healthy and happy in his work

uniform, and he took me round and

introduced me to People as his Son in the

Army.

I asked after mama and he said she went to

her Shop, he had opened a hairdressing

Shop for her very close to the a private Girls

Hostel for university students, he said mama

makes more money than him now, he said

she was waiting for me to come so she

could give me money if I have not resumed

work yet. He said there was something he

would have loved to tell me now but would

rather wait till I see it myself because he

does not know how I would react. I asked

him if he beat my Mother and he said no he

would never do that.

He was on day shift so we were together

until he closed at 6.PM and we took a bike

home together.

I could not help laughing when I saw mama,

I reeled with laughter as I entered their

house and she turned around from the

refrigerator to welcome Baba Miko home,

she was shocked to see me and the drugs in

her hands fell to the floor. I saw her bulging

stomach shooting out from her small frame,

it was strange to me because I never saw

her pregnant before, I laughed and fell on

the Couch in the Parlor while mama ran into

the other room ,she was shy.

Baba Miko just stood there grinning while I

hailed him; Baba O! Baba o! eku ise sir! Well

done sir!


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