Too Precious Episode 22

TITLE: TOO PRECIOUS

WRITTEN BY: OGECHI ALABI

CHAPTER 22

PB picked up her bag and went out with the lawyer. She asked the lawyer to follow her in his car. As the driver drove out of the premises, her thoughts went to a million and one places. Did Biodun take pictures of her in uncompromising positions or even unclad and wanted to blackmail her with them? What could it possibly be? Is it her father? She was confused and anxious at the same time.

When they got to the prison, PB saw Biodun’s parents, his siblings and a heavily pregnant lady. She was the lady she saw in the picture. She walked past them without saying a word to them. She could feel the betrayal afresh.

She signed in at the prison reception and the lawyer asked for them to see Biodun. He was brought out to see them. Biodun seemed very happy to see her but PB kept a very straight face.

“Iyawo mi, I am sorry. I messed up and disappointed you. I am ashamed of what I have done. Please find it in your heart to forgive me. I know it is very difficult but the deed has been done and I betrayed your trust” he stood up and laid flat on the floor and continued, “anyway you would like to punish me, feel free to do so. I will take whatever punishment you mete out but please do not abandon me. Do not leave me. I love you and only you”

“If I believe that, how come you have children with another woman while stopping me from having my children?”

“I didn’t want you to spoil your figure; it trips me. I wanted us to enjoy ourselves while another person takes care of the child bearing. What belongs to me belongs to you”

“Really? Ok, I have heard you. What information do you have that can tarnish both my reputation and my grandfather’s?”

“It is not like that. I wanted you to come so I would apologise to you and also appeal for your help. If you talk to your grandfather, he will help me get out of here. All the money I collected from the wedding was invested in the house with four flats. I put all my money I made from trading there. I have invested nothing less than ten million of my own money. Why should I relinquish the house to the firm? Where will my family stay?”

“When you were embezzling the money didn’t this question cross your mind? You can’t determine how the firm will recover their money. If they are to sell the mall, it will be forced sale and they can’t get a good value for it. They will have to sell the house to recoup their money and I am not certain they will be able to. That is why the criminal proceeding was brought against you”

“Well, your grandfather can do something. They should take the mall and count their losses. I am not the first person to steal from them. The others ran away with the money and were never found. If I had done same nothing would have happened”

“You are right but you were not that smart. You were caught so easily. You had been under investigation for a very long time as I was informed. Well, since you have nothing to discuss with me, I have to take my leave now”

“Is that all you have to say? Precious, tell your grandfather to help me out of this mess otherwise I will expose him”

“Expose him? Expose him as what?”

“Just let him know I will expose him if he doesn’t help me”

“Let me call him and inform him then”

PB went outside and told her grandfather. She had to bribe the guards to allow Biodun talk to her grandfather on the phone. She put the phone on speaker.

Chief Adeoye spoke first, “Biodun, what information do you have that will tarnish my image and that of my granddaughter. Please go straight to the point, I don’t have time for merry-go-round-about.”

Biodun replied, “Sir, I didn’t want to do this but I am pushed to the wall. I also love Precious very much. I was informed she has moved out of our apartment. It wouldn’t have come to this if you had agreed to help me”

“Help you how? Pay the money you stole or cover your betrayal of our trust? I don’t understand”

“I made a mistake and I was abandoned to my fate. It is very unfair”

“I asked you several times if there was anything you were hiding from me. You swore to me there was nothing and I got the shocking revelations. You can never be trusted. Since you have no information to share with us, I have to leave you now as I have better things to do with my time”

“Well, I know you slept with Precious’ mother. You slept with your daughter-in-law and it was what drove your son insane”

There was silence. Chief Adeoye didn’t say a word for several minutes and then he said to Biodun, “Is that all? I was waiting for you to finish the story. If that is what you want to blackmail me with, please feel free. In return, I will splash your name and picture all over the news with the girl you have children with, the children, your parents, the amount you stole and what you did with the money. I will ensure you will see paper on the floor and call it money. You dare to try to blackmail me? I will teach you a lesson you won’t forget in a hurry. No org-nization in this country will employ you. No matter where you run too, I will find you there. No soul will agree to take up your case otherwise…” Chief ended the call.

This wasn’t the response Biodun expected from Chief Adeoye. He could hear the anger in his voice. He became scared. “Did I go too far?” he wondered. He looked at his lawyer and his lawyer just shook his head. Then he looked at PB. She was lost in her world.

PB couldn’t believe what she just heard. How could Biodun accuse her grandfather of having s€× with her mother? It sounded obscene. She didn’t know who to believe but for her grandfather to be this angry worried her. Usually, if such was a lie he would laugh over it and make mockery of the person but in this case, he was angry, very angry.

She stood up to leave. Biodun stopped her and said to her, “I am telling you the truth. I went to see your father in prison and he explained why he went into drugs to me. It is the same reason your grandfather doesn’t want to release your father from prison even though he is now hail and hearty. Ask your mother if I am lying; she knows the truth”

PB didn’t wait to hear anymore and walked away. As she walked to the car, Biodun’s father caught up with her and asked her how far.

“With what?” PB asked him not so nicely.

“When is he getting out?”

“I don’t know, you can ask him. I hope he rots there for a very long time.”

PB entered her car and the driver drove away.

She asked the driver to take her to her mother’s office. As she got there, she walked into the office and asked her mother to tell her secretary she shouldn’t be disturbed.

Seun was worried at PB’s countenance. She couldn’t read from her face what the problem was but she could see the hurt in her eyes.

“Mum, I want to know the truth. Tell me the truth. Did you ever sleep with my grandfather?”

Seun was shocked that she couldn’t speak for some time. She could see PB wanted an answer and wasn’t willing to back down. She was scared. How would she explain this to her daughter? How would she understand this?

“I am waiting; I don’t have all day”

“Precious, it is a long story. I didn’t sleep with your grandfather the way you are describing it. He was drunk and had his way with me. He is a big man, I couldn’t fight him off or even stop him. He didn’t even know what he did when he was through. As he stood up to dress up, Gbenga entered the sitting room and saw us. He was high when he saw us but he made a fuss about it calling me a pr-stitute that went for the highest bidder. Your grandfather saved me from being beaten to a pulp that night. He took me upstairs and gave me a room to sleep in. Gbenga was unruly that night. He made noise and accused us of having an affair behind his back. That was how Titi heard about it and hated me even more. When I tried to leave, Gbenga and Titi wouldn’t allow me. Gbenga raped me every night, I was his s€× toy to be used for his pleasures only. Your grandmother told your grandfather what he did the next day. He apologized to me, gave me some money to take care of myself. Gbenga collected the money from me. I have suffered for years with that family”

“But my father claims it was because he caught you with my grandfather that he became a drug addict”

“He was a drug addict before then. Their relationsh¡p became further strained after the incident. He came back from America an addict. He would force me to have s€× with him in front of Chief’s door so he can hear us. It is a long sad story and an experience I never want to remember. It is all in the past”

“Mum, I have left Biodun. I didn’t want to tell you until I was ready but I have. He betrayed me. He stole money from his firm to build a house for another girl who has two children for him and one on the way. He deliberately didn’t want me to get pregnant for him. I still don’t know how he did it that I never conceived. Is it possible I am barren? Biodun was my first and only lover, how is it possible I have infertility issues”

“Biodun did what? I don’t understand, explain to me”

She told her everything. Seun couldn’t believe her ears. If they had told her PB was unhappy in her marriage, she would have sworn it was impossible. But here she was, her daughter in her arms crying her heart out at the betrayal of a man she loved. To worsen it, he wasn’t remorseful for what he did, rather he was ready to blackmail them to have his freedom.

Seun consoled her daughter by telling her it wasn’t the end of the world. She promised her she could still find love and happiness after this horrible experience.

‘Look at me,” Seun said to her daughter “I survived being beaten, robbed and raped for many years. Now I have found a man who is very aware of my past and still loves me. He doesn’t care about my past, he wants us to have a future together. I love him but because of my negative experience, I am so scared of making it legal. He says we should legalise it before your father comes out of jail. With the harm Gbenga has done even in prison, I will do as Dami has said”

“I don’t know anything about this guy you want to marry”

“You have met him at my house before. He is a contractor, a building contractor. He is a widower and has two children. The children are with his late wife’s family because he is always on the move. He is good to me and takes care of me.”

“He sounds perfect. Are you sure he is the one?”

“Well, he hasn’t given me any cause to doubt him. We live together because he was based in Ibadan. It was jobs that brought him to Lagos. He stays with me when he Lagos. He pays the rent, he has paid it for three years now. He has never asked me for money instead he gives me. There is always foodstuff at home. He appreciates all I do for him and says ‘thank you’ without thinking twice. This is all new to me and I appreciate it. Precious, I have never been loved like this before and so I cherish it.”

“I wish I could find someone who will love me and be loyal, sincere and honest with me. Since you have found a man who will make an honest woman out of you, don’t let him go. I support your legalizing your relationsh¡p”

Tbc