Culprit
.
Continues..
“Looks like I arrived just in time to save the
next victim.”
***
Raheem and I burst into the sickbay, with
Sir Amadi right behind us, his breath erratic.
With a weight like his, I wondered how he
managed to keep up with us.
The room, quiet as a graveyard, held no sign
of the drama we had missed, save for the
student sat in bed with her back to the door.
Wrapping her fingers around her thin ankles,
she propped up her head on her raised
knees.
“Whathappened?” Sir Amadi asked,
advancing to her.
“It’s no use,” Stella said. Her nonchalance
baffled me, but I barely had a moment to
dwell on it. “She won’t speak to you. She’s
been like this ever since she came to. She
says to only speak to Victoria and a certain
Raheem Kadir.”
“I am he,” Raheem said.
Stella didn’t turn to acknowledge him. “If
these crazy kids don’t quit this Bloody Miri
act, I swear, the me they’ll be seeing will be
way scarier than any so-called ghost.”
“I understand how you feel,” Sir Amadi said.
Did he? For a man who could crash into
someone and not feel sorry, I doubted he
knew the ABC of sympathy. “But you must
calm down.”
Raheem walked to Stella, his eyes mirroring
her pain. “I can’t pretend to know how you
feel. But know that I will not let this game
continue. You have my word.”
His words, like a charm, danced their way
into her heart, shutting the door out on Sir
Amadi’s words.
“But what can you do?” Stella asked.
“Whatever it takes,” Raheem said. “Once I
talk to Mark Etto, he will see the need for
CCTVs in the restrooms, and whoever goes
on to Bloody Miri will be expelled.”
I cringed at the thought of having cameras
in the restroom. Weren’t restrooms meant to
be private places?
I voiced out my indignation. “Cameras? Are
you crazy?”
“Do you have a better option?” Raheem
asked, although he apparently didn’t expect
me to have any.
“The idea of cameras in the restroom just
unnerves me,” I said. “It’s a restroom for
heaven’s sake!”
“His idea is perfect,” Sir Amadi said. “The
CCTVs will only be installed outside the
stalls. So everything is fine as long as
nobody leaves her stall undressed.”
“Hell, my idea is perfect and I don’t need
you telling me that,” Raheem said.
Nengi sniffled, drawing our attention to her.
Shooting Sir Amadi a cold stare, Raheem
wordlessly ordered him to back off. Sir
Amadi complied, giving Raheem and I room
to approach her.
“Can you tell us what happened?” Raheem
asked.
“I was a fool not to believe Dory,” Nengi
said. Her body trembled as she sobbed, and
I feared she would break down. “I was a
fool.”
Raheem reached out his hand as though to
touch her. But he never did. He just let his
hand hover in midair as though that simple
gesture could halt her tears.
In a decidedly slow voice, he said, “Please
calm down. We need you to calm down.”
Shuddering, Nengi raised her face to look at
us. Her eyes were puffy from crying. She
smoothed her palms over her legs and
swept frantic eyes around the room.
“She’ll be back,” she said between hiccups
and gasps. “She’ll kill me. She’s pissed off
because I saw her. She wants to kill me.
Help me. Please. I don’t want to die. I don’t
want to.”
I lowered myself to the bed and pulled her
into a hug. “You’re safe. It’s okay now.”
Clinging to me like a child, she trembled in
my arms. Her innocence, her pain, her
distress, it all melted my heart. A girl with
such innocence could never hurt another.
She’d be mortified if she knew I had
suspected her of attacking her friend.
She gulped down her fears. “What if she
comes back?”
“Did you see the person who attacked you?”
I asked.
“Yes.”
“Canyou tell us what she looks like?”
“It’s Bloody Miri. I swear. She’s real. She—”
With an ear-splitting shriek, she sprang to
her feet and hid behind Raheem as Stella
launched at her. Sir Amadi gripped Stella’s
arms, restraining her. She writhed to break
free, but he held on to her.
Stella’s nose flared with indignation. “Say
one word about my sister, and you’re it.”
With Raheem as a shield between Stella and
her, Nengi felt confident enough to speak
again. “I swear it. I saw her. I saw the girl in
the picture.”
“Not one more word!” Sir Amadi said. “Have
you gone crazy or what?”
Bursting into tears, Nengi darted out of the
sickbay. I rose to my feet and made to
follow, but Sir Amadi held out a hand to stop
me.
“I’ll handle this,” he said. Hush descended
upon the sickbay as he dashed after her.
Moments passed and I waited for someone
to break the silence, but nobody did. Nobody
but me. “I can’t believe she struck again.
What’s she aiming at, serial killer wannabe?”
A wave of silence accompanied my
question. Raheem folded his hands and
sauntered to the other side of the room, his
face pensive. He stood motionless, digging
deep into his thoughts. I looked over to the
counter where Stella stood, fuming over the
twenty-one-year-old game.
“Rah—” I called.
“I’m trying to think,” he said, his voice
slightly raised.
Our number two suspect had become a
victim. Just when I thought we were making
progress, this happened. I should have
known our sleuthing had only turned easy
because we were headed in the wrong
direction.
“What is your observation thus far, Miss
Brown?” Raheem’s asked, his voice like the
calmness of the oceans. “What does today’s
incident add, or take away, from our case?”
“Nengi is definitely not the culprit,” I blurted
out. How was that even a question?
Raheem nodded. “Typical observation. What
gives, though?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” I asked. “She was
attacked. Surely, she couldn’t have hurt
herself. What would she gain?”
Once the question left my lips, Raheem
turned around and his eyes met mine. He
seemed ready to flaunt his intelligence. I
could tell from the smug smile on his face
and the twinkle in his eyes. The expression
that said ‘I know something you don’t.’
“Self-victimization is a word you should look
into, Miss Brown,” he said. “Allow me be
your lexicon for now. It refers to the
fabrication of victimhood for reasons such
as diverting attention, manipulating people,
soliciting sympathy, and the rest of them. If
you want to sleuth and sleuth right, you
must never wave off any possibility unless
there is proof of its unlikelihood.”
Of course I didn’t know the ABC of
sleuthing, and although he’d probably known
this from the start, he had asked me to be
his sidekick anyway. So far, I didn’t even
see how I contributed to his crime solving
exercise. Why had he chosen to work with
me when he could go it alone and do it
right?
“She’s a suspect?” Stella asked. “Even after
she’s been attacked?”
“I don’t see why we should get her off the
list just yet,” Raheem said.
“Shouldn’t this be handled by the police?”
she asked. “I’m not saying you aren’t
capable of finding the culprit on your own,
but I’m not okay with you two putting your
life on the line.”
“We’ve been told this a million times,”
Raheem said.
“If Victoria comes to any harm because of
this—”
Raheem cut in. “I will keep her safe.
I rolled my eyes. Who said I needed his
protection?
“I shall hold you to your word,” Stella said.
She fetched my bag of drips from the
counter. One down. Two to go.
“Give me a moment,” I said. I needed to
visit the restroom, but telling them would
only break them into panic, since a potential
killer lurked around that territory. No harm
would come to me, though. The serial killer
wannabe only struck during recess.
“Where are you going?” Stella asked.
According to Raheem, to sleuth right, one
must never wave off any possibility unless
there exists proof of its unlikelihood. And for
this reason, I would play Bloody Miri and
see for myself.
***
My heart pounded as I neared the restroom.
What if I ended up like Doreen and Nengi?
Did I really have to take this risk?
I didn’t believe in Bloody Miri, and I wouldn’t
start now. Swallowing my fear, I reached
out to grab the door handle.
“Vicky!” a shrill of a voice pierced my
eardrums. My heart flew to my mouth, and a
gasp escaped my lips. But it only took a
moment for me to regain composure.
I whirled around to find Confidence jogging
toward me. I hoped she hadn’t witnessed my
moment of fright. Blinded by her own fright,
she definitely hadn’t.
“I’m super glad you came to my aid,” she
said. “I need to use the toilet so bad, but I
don’t want to go in alone. I don’t want to
end up like those girls.”
Barely giving me a moment to decide, she
clung to my arm and ushered me in.
“Please wait.” She swept big, frantic eyes
around the restroom. “I’ll be out in a jiffy.”
Taking one last look around, she dashed into
the first stall.
Of course I would wait. I had plans of
spending time in the restroom. I knew
Bloody Miring would freak her out. But what
did I care about the s–t?
I sauntered toward the rectangular mirror
that almost covered the full breadth of the
wall. My heart raced with every step I took.
Time seemed to slow down, waiting for me
to become the next victim. Taking a deep
breath, I shoved off my fears and trained my
eyes on the mirror opposite me. I secured
the sink and turned on the faucet.
“Bloody Miri,” I said, my voice merely a
breath. I took a step back and looked around
for a sign of anything out of place. Finding
nothing, I returned my focus to the mirror.
A lump formed in my throat, constricting it.
But I wouldn’t back out. “Bloody Miri.
Bloody Miri. Bloody Miri. Bloody Miri.”
Confidence burst out of the stall, her eyes
wide with fear. “What are you doing? Stop!
Stop it!”
I kept my eyes trained on the mirror.
“Bloody Miri. Bloody Miri. Bloody Miri—”
“You’re crazy,” Confidence screamed,
sprinting out of the restroom. The door
slammed after her.
“Crazy!” her fading voice screamed on.
The emotions I thought I’d overcome fought
to consume me. Every fiber of my being told
me to drop this silliness and drag myself out
of the restroom, but I stood my ground. I
would not let fear take the best of me.
Blinking sweat away from my eyes, I
secured the other sinks and turned on the
faucets.
“Bloody Miri,” I called. “Bloody Miri. Bloody
Miri. Bloody Miri. Bloody Miri. Bloody Miri…”
I chanted on and on, barely giving myself a
moment to breathe. I listened for anything
out of place, but could only hear my voice
and the drip-drop of water. I didn’t believe in
ghosts and never would.
Ghosts didn’t exist. If they did, mum and
dad would have saved me from my
stepmother’s depravity. They’d haunt her till
she lost her sanity. But they didn’t. This
only meant ghosts did not exist. And Miriam
Adewale was no exception.
“I don’t believe in ghosts,” I muttered,
hoping it quelled my racing heart. “I’m only
doing this for the benefit of doubt. Bloody
Miri? Hah! What a joke!”
A knock on the main door forced me to
punctuate my words with a gasp. Although
my mind screamed ‘Bloody Miri’, I tried not
to think of it. I did not believe in ghosts!
I could feel my heart pounding in my throat.
Water overflowed from the sinks, but I
couldn’t move a muscle. Fear rooted me to
the spot.
The slow, haunting knocking on the door
continued. My stomach clenched into a fist.
Had Doreen and Nengi felt like this moments
before it happened? Would I end up like
them?
Terror held me in a death grip. But once the
grip loosened, I made for the door, only to
hear a door behind me slam shut. My heart
fell to the pit of my stomach. A scream
escaped my lips.
The main door jerked open, forcing me to
take a step back. I toppled over and lost my
footing. My body met the watery floor with a
thud. Scrambling to my feet, I led my gaze
to the door and found Raheem staring at me
with amusement in his eyes.
He smirked. “Looks like I arrived just in time
to save the next victim.”
I blinked. Once. Twice. I gaped at the door
that had slammed shut, and then it occurred
to me that Confidence had left it ajar. Blast
that jerk.
Raheem bit his lips to stifle a laugh, but
despite his efforts, a bubble of laughter
sailed across the room.
“Are you done laughing?” I asked. It took
much effort not to join in his amusement.
“Just what were you thinking?” he asked.
I ignored his question. “How did you know I
was here?”
His face still crinkled with laughter.
“Instincts.”
Instincts? He sure had ran into Confidence. I
curled my lips at the thought of that s–t
checking him out with those dirty eyes.
Reflecting back on how she’d dashed out of
sight brought a smile to my lips, and despite
my efforts to hold back my amusement, I
heard myself chuckle.
Raheem moved to turn off the faucets,
giving me a chance to sneak out of the
restroom. I walked down the hallway, my
lips curving into a smile as I thought back to
my newest embarrassment. Why did I
always end up embarrassing myself in front
of him? How would I explain my wet uniform
to Stella? How would she react if she knew I
had played the game she despised with
every fiber of her being?
It took a moment before Raheem’s
footsteps joined mine. Lagging a great
distance behind me, he walked calmly,
apparently having no intentions to catch up
with me.
***
Stella’s eyes widened at my drenched
uniform. Sat on a bed, she prepared to
administer my IV drip. “What happened to
you? Were you attacked as well?”
“No,” I said. “I’m fine. The floor was watery,
so I slipped.”
“Why did you visit the toilet?” she asked.
“It’s not like you don’t know the sickbay has
its own toilet. Is there something you’re not
telling me?”
“We had to rush to the crime scene in
search of evidence,” Raheem said.
Stella gestured me over and helped me out
of my wet jacket. Undoing the first two
buttons on my shirt, I slackened my tie and
rolled up my sleeves. My eyes zeroed in on
the syringe in her hand. Forcing my
attention away from it, I lay supine on the
bed.
“I honestly wish I could be of help in this
case,” Stella said, her eyes roaming the
length of my half-unclothed arm. “It’s sick
that someone attacks people in the name of
my sister.”
Finding the administration site, she
tightened the tourniquet around my arm. I
shut my eyes and willed my mind away from
the needle. Amidst the darkness in my mind,
I scrambled for a worthwhile distraction. I
trained my attention on my non-dominant
arm and tricked myself into believing the
needle would sting it and not the other. And
to an extent, it worked. The needle bit into
my skin and slipped into my vein with
minimal pain.
“I want the culprit to be brought to justice,”
Stella said.
“I want that more than anything,” I said.
She advanced to the counter and picked up
her tote bag. Digging into it, she said, “I
don’t see how this helps, but I found this on
the floor after the first victim was brought
here.”
She returned to me, her fist clenched over
an object. Raheem walked over to us. His
breath caught in his throat as Stella’s fist
unclenched, exposing the object.
“Let me see,” I said. Stella lowered her palm
to my line of sight. On it sat a lone earring:
Nengi’s missing earring. Something didn’t
seem right. Raheem’s pensive eyes
confirmed this.
Stella placed the earring in Raheem’s
demanding palm. “Whose is it?”
“Did Nengi visit this place yesterday?”
Raheem asked.
“No,” Stella said. Recollecting the details of
the previous day, she added, “Vicky was my
only patient, until Doreen came along. I’m
sure no one else came in except you and
the principal.”
“And the day before?” Raheem asked. “Did
Nengi come?”
“Some students have no idea what this
place looks like,” Stella said. “Nengi is one
of such students. Until today’s incident
forced her here.”
“So how did it get here?” I asked.
“Isn’t it clear already?” Raheem asked.
“Even a master serial killer makes one
mistake that though seemingly insignificant,
could lead to his downfall. How much more
this amateur?”
Without a doubt, we had discovered the
culprit. Nengi had attacked Doreen. Doreen
had tried to struggle, and so the earring had
fallen off Nengi’s ear and got stuck in
Doreen’s jacket. But why would Nengi try to
kill her best friend?
Unlike me, Raheem didn’t seem stunned by
this revelation. He seemed to have known
this from the start.
“Now that the culprit has been identified,
what next?” I asked.
“I like to toy with my playthings for a bit,”
Raheem said, giving me the impression he’d
solved other cases in the past. “We will
have her return to the crime scene on her
own. And we will have her confess her
crime voluntarily.”
“How?” Stella stole my question.
“Here’s the plan,” Raheem said. “While I go
speak to Nengi, Miss Brown will hide in one
of the stalls, waiting for her to walk into the
trap. Once we have her, it’s all done.”
With a sigh, I looked up at the bag of fluid.
“I’m confined to this bed.”
Moving to me, Stella paused the drip. She
pulled out the needle and placed a cotton
wool over where it had been. “Be back once
it’s done.”
I nodded. I made to stand, but memories of
yesterday’s vertigo drifted past my mind,
forcing me to remain in the bed for a
second too long. After a few moments, I
slowly raised myself to my feet. Standing
still as a statue, I gauged my reaction.
Everything seemed fine.
“You ready?” Raheem asked.
“Yeah,” I said. Stella smiled at us as we
walked out of the sickbay and toward our
plan. “You seem so confident that she’ll go
to the restroom on her own.”
“Of course,” Raheem said. After a moment,
he explained, “It’s simple. I only have to
inform her of an earring the janitor came
across in the restroom. Of course it’s a
pretty expensive piece and it would be a
shame for the owner to lose it forever. And
so I’ll ask her to go check it out, and if it
isn’t hers, she could spread the word so the
owner and the jewelry can finally reunite.”
“That’s brilliant,” I said. “You really think
she’ll fall for it?”
“Positive.” He thought for a moment. “Trust
me, she won’t suspect a thing and will race
here to retrieve the evidence ASAP. She is
that stupid.”
Reaching into his pocket, he brought out
Nengi’s earring and placed it on my palm.
“Drop it on the third sink and stay in position
until she comes to retrieve it.”
Without another word, he walked away,
leaving me to walk in the opposite direction.
***
Once in the restroom, I placed the earring
on the third sink. I made to back away from
the sinks when the girl in the mirror caught
my eye. Over the past few years I’d lost a
few pounds, which didn’t look too healthy,
considering that I had always looked
anorexic from the start. I ran my fingers
along my clavicle peeking out from behind
my shirt. Dad had always complained about
it being too obvious. What would he say if
he saw it now?
Turning away from the mirror, I headed into
the stall nearest to me and shut the door. I
wouldn’t want to risk letting my legs show
from underneath the door, so I backed
away. There I stood, waiting.
It didn’t take long for the door to swing
open. Our girl of interest walked in. Her
interrupted footsteps told me she took a
moment to scan the room for the item of
interest, and for any threats. Still as a
statue, I barely even drew in a breath.
The sound of rushing footsteps stole over
the silence. I could tell she’d spotted her
earring and walked over to retrieve it. I
yanked open the door, just in time to see her
pick up the controversial piece of jewelry.
Her face paled at the sight of me, wiping off
any happiness she’d felt to be reunited with
her earring.
I put up my hands in mock defense. “What?
I’m not Bloody Miri.”
She chuckled uneasily. I could tell she knew
something had gone out of plan. Eying the
exit, she said, “I’ve…got…class.”
Raheem stepped in, blocking the exit.
Nengi’s gaze flickered between Raheem and
I. “What’s he doing here?”
When I didn’t answer, she turned to look at
Raheem. “Why are you here? This place is
strictly for females. The male restroom is on
the other side.”
Raheem folded his hands. “And I thought
only murderers return to the scene of their
crime. It appears even those who failed at
being murderers do too.”
Again, Nengi laughed uneasily. “Nice joke.”
She stepped toward the door, but with
Raheem standing guard, she knew failure
even from a distance. “Step away. I have
class.”
“There’s no need pretending now,” I said.
“We know everything.”
Her fist tightened on the earring.
“Everything?”
“Like I said, even master criminals make
their mistakes,” Raheem said. “This one is
just too immature in the act, and has made
tons of them.”
“I don’t understand,” Nengi said. “What are
you talking about? What’s this about?”
I gestured at her clenched fist. “The
earring. You said you didn’t come here
yesterday. But then you hear news of a
missing earring and you run here ASAP to
get it. And surprisingly, it’s yours. So, how
did it get here? Last time I checked, earrings
didn’t have wings.”
“It must have fallen off when Bloody Miri
attacked me,” she said, the innocence in her
voice almost fooling me.
“You were attacked today,” Raheem
reminded. “It fell yesterday.”
“You’ve got it all wrong,” she said. “I admit
there was only one earring yesterday, but
then I got home and found it on my bed. So
I wore it to school and then it fell off during
the attack.”
“So you’re positive it fell off during the
attack?” Raheem asked.
“That’s the only logical explanation,” she
said.
“I hate to burst your bubble,” Raheem said.
“But that piece of jewelry wasn’t found here.
But in the sickbay. And it wasn’t found
today, but yesterday. You’re probably
wondering how it got there. And I will tell
you. Here’s how it happened. When
attacked, the victim tried to fight back.
More stories @ www.chorusman.com
During the struggle, this little piece of
jewelry fell off your ear and got stuck in the
victim’s jacket. And there it stayed until I
rushed her to the sickbay. And then it fell to
the floor when my partner unbuttoned the
victim’s jacket to start the mouth-to-mouth
resuscitation, but neither of us noticed
because we were caught up in the drama.
You had this all planned, perhaps as a way
to get back at your friend for something she
doesn’t even suspect. I doubt one would do
this without a motive, and a very strong one
at that. You knew she would leave for the
designated place at the designated time.
“And since I found the victim around eleven
forty three, I believe she visited the
restroom after she had lunch. So while you
made her believe you’d be staying back to
do a certain technical drawing assignment,
you snuck off to the restroom, where you
hid in a stall, patiently waiting.”
“And then you applied the perfume to frame
Annabel Lambert,” I said. Nengi whirled
around to watch me speak. “For this reason
you refrained from mentioning Henry. You
painted Annabel as a jealous girlfriend who
would commit murder to keep her
boyfriend.”
Raheem concluded our findings, “And when
we came to question you about Henry, you
knew if you didn’t act fast, it would only be
a moment before we discovered your game.
Thus, you made to divert attention from
yourself by playing the victim.”
“Please let me go,” Nengi said. “I didn’t do
anything. Why would I hurt my friend?”
“We were hoping you would tell us,” Raheem
said.
“I didn’t do anything!” she insisted.
“Okay, that’s fine,” Raheem said. He moved
away from the door and made a sweeping
gesture as though to usher her out. “If you
say you didn’t, that’s fine. I’m sure the other
evidence will lead us to the culprit.”
“What evidence?” she asked, mystified.
“You see, when I saw Doreen lying helplessly
on the floor, I knew it was no accident. It
was clear she’d been attacked. And when
attacked, will you just stand still? Of course
you must fight back. One or two strands of
hair underneath her fingernail revealed a
serious struggle with her attacker. I didn’t
want to lose vital evidence, so I cut the
fingernail and kept it safe. You know,
there’s probably sweat underneath the
fingernail. And sweat, as we know, consists
of naturally shed skin cells. A DNA test
should point us to the culprit. What do you
think?”
“DNA?” Nengi asked.
“For heaven’s sake, Nengi, just tell us if you
did it!” I said. “Everything points to you.”
“Why would I confess to a crime I didn’t
commit?” she asked.
Raheem leaned in toward her. Holding her
shoulders, he said in a low voice, “Look, we
all make mistakes. To err is human after all.
I understand something must have moved
you to do that to your friend. But luckily,
she’s still alive. We don’t know what
interrupted the process. Maybe you got
scared someone might see you, or maybe
when she lost consciousness you believed
she was dead, and you ran off. Whatever
the reason was, it doesn’t matter right now.
All that matters is she’s alive. We’re not
going to judge you or anything. Can you just
stop lying to us?”
“I did not do anything,” she said.
“I know you’re scared,” Raheem said. “And I
understand. But if you tell us now, we will
find a way to deliver you from justice. If you
insist on lying, we have enough biological
materials for a DNA test, and when the
result is out, we will be in no position to
interfere. Nengi, you’re a bright girl, smart
and beautiful. You have a wonderful future.
Do you want to spend it in jail? Is that what
you want?”
Raheem’s words seemed to have hit home.
Maybe if he pressed on, he could squeeze
the truth out of her. Hopeful, he went on,
“You can trust us. If you tell the truth and
tell it all we’ll spare you. But if you don’t,
well, like I said, the DNA will point us in the
right direction.”
Nengi shook her head as though trying to
shake off Raheem’s words. “I didn’t do
anything.”
Simmering with rage, Raheem tore his hands
away from her and stepped away. “Fine! I
only have to make a call for this to be police
case.”
He turned toward the door and took his
phone from his pocket. While he dialed, I
stepped in toward Nengi. Her eyes misted
over.
“Do you know what it’s like to be in jail?” I
asked. “Do you know how many years you
are going to spend there? Here we are
trying to help cover up your crime and you
take us for fools?”
“There’s no point trying to let her see
reason anymore, Miss Brown,” Raheem said.
“I guess it’s a police case now.”
And to Nengi, he said, “For your information,
I called your supposed boyfriend a while
ago. Got his number off Facebook.”
Raheem’s words brought a noticeable
shudder slipping down Nengi’s spine. He
went on, “He told me everything. You’re not
together anymore, thanks to your best friend
leaking a very sacred secret. I understand
this is your way to get even. It’s hard to
forgive someone who’s broken your trust.
But did you have to go that far? Oh well, I
guess the police can take it from here.”
After a moment of silence, he moved his
phone to his ear. “Detective constable
James.”
Nengi gasped as the seriousness of the
situation seeped in. “Wait!”
When Raheem didn’t turn to look at her, she
tugged at my arm, forcing me to stare into
her eyes. I watched her burst into tears.
Tempted to feel sorry, I looked away. I
would not sympathize with someone who
had tried to take away the life of another.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I did it. It isn’t like I
wanted to kill her or anything. I only wanted
to scare her.”
My struggle to ignore her grief proved futile.
Slowly, my gaze returned to her. My eyes
watered at her helplessness. My heart bled
at the thought of her spending a slice of her
life in jail. But what could I do? Justice
must be served.
With his phone pressed to his ear, Raheem
strode out of his restroom, slamming the
door behind him.
“Go after him,” I said, blinking back my
emotions.
I watched a frantic Nengi sprint to the door,
and to her doom. Once she yanked it open,
a palm connected with her cheek, its sound
reverberating around the room. Knocked off
balance by the suddenness of the slap, she
staggered backward. I held her so she didn’t
crash into me.
“That’s for Doreen,” Stella said, glaring at
her. “And this is for using my sister’s name
to cover up your evil.”
With a force greater than the first, Stella’s
palm flew to Nengi’s cheek, colliding with it
with an impact that jerked her face
sideways. Nengi whimpered, clutching her
sore cheek.
My eyes adjusted to the hallway, finding Sir
Amadi, Raheem, and another man. He had
to be the policeman Sir Amadi had sent for.
They’d all put faith in our plan and had been
waiting here for this moment.
“Nengi Oruene?” the man called. “You are
charged with the attempted murder of
Doreen Chukwu. You have the right to
remain silent. Whatever you say can be used
against you in the court of law.”
Raheem smirked. “It is done.”
Nengi choked on her sob. “You said you
would… You said… You lied to me.”
“Of course,” Raheem said. “Now that you’ve
confessed, it’ll be much easier for the cops
to do the rest. Oh, and about the biological
materials, I lied about that too.”
Still smirking, he saluted her. My throat
constricted as I watched the policeman lead
her away.
To be continued