OBIANUJU
*
Written by Princess Juliet
*
Episode 32
*
Peace at last
*
Ademilade

The moment I opened my eyes, I felt the colour drain from my face. I was paralysed to the spot, the menacing aura holding me in a tightening grip.

“Obianuju”. I mumbled and disengaged from the hug to stare at her .

Her face , which had been flushed , was now ashy pale , and her lips were compressed.

“Baby”. she smiled weakly. “are…you…..al…alright?” she spoke with difficulty.

I nodded slowly, my eyes moving up and down her body and only then did I notice the gunshot wound on her right shoulder.

My whole body shook with terror and cold sweat poured down my body.

she took the bullet ,my girlfriend took a bullet for me!

“Why?” I asked in whispers

” I ….couldn’t…..bear … to ….. see ….. you ….die”

“Sh*t!” I mumbled under my breathe and faced the bas***d who had been watching us in silence , an odd expression on his face.

“you are satisfied hun?” I fired at him.

He opened his mouth to speak , and then clamped it shut.

“have you seen what you have caused?”I half yelled

“Obianuju “. his lips quivered. “she is bleeding”

I looked down at her bleeding shoulder wound and held her close to me.

“Please we need to take her to the hospital”. I screamed

“Sure”. Dave agreed and then faced Prince.

“Take the girl to the nearest hospital”

“No”. Obianuju clutched desperately at me . “I …want .. to….stay … with you, I ..want to be sure… you are….safe”.

Is she kidding me?

“I will be fine”. I assured, not sure of my self.

She gasped out loud as more blood gushed out from her wound.

“help…

is …. coming”

Panicking, I carried her in my arms and laid her gently on the floor; then I pulled off my sweatshirt, tore out a piece and wrapped it around her shoulder, careful not to hurt her.

Her face grimaced with pain at the process.

“Sorry!” I said softly.

She gaze into my eyes for a while, and then she drew a deep breath.

“help … is … coming”. she repeated, breathing evenly.

help is coming! what is she trying to say? or wait! are the police on ……..I let my thoughts trailed off when I noticed Prince standing in front of us.

“What do you want?” I asked coldly

“I need to take her to the hospital”. he replied with a scoff

“No way”. I retorted . “I can’t leave her with a cold-blooded murderer like you”

“And what is that suppose to mean?” Dave butted in and I slowly shifted my attention to him.

“Do

you want her to bleed to death?”

“why do you care?” I looked daggers at him. “you were the one who shot her right?”

He faltered and wiped his face

“I didn’t do that on purpose and you know it.

“Like seriously!” I scoffed . “Is that the best defence you have got?”

“Shut up!” he barked . “Obianuju is a girl I cherish and I wi……..

“Cherish!” I cut in , clearly confused.

why in the world would he cherish my girlfriend?

“Yes! he said boldly . “and that is more reason why I want you out of the way”. his voice was filled with raw anger and hatred.

I stayed motionless, staring at him in disbelief

so he hated me all along!

He continued. “so please do me a favour and die”

with that, he lifted the rifle and cocked it as quietly as he could .

“Prince!” he called , his gaze still fixed on me . “take the girl out of here, I wouldn’t want her to witness her boyfriend’s death”

“no! no!no! Demi… please … don’t .. let … him….kill….you”. Obianuju pleaded weakly

I bit my lips and clenched my fist tightly, avoiding her gaze.

I couldn’t let her see the tears in my eyes.

“Coward!” I cursed at Dave, seething with anger.

Surprise, then disbelief crossed his features.

“what did you just call me?”

“A coward”. I repeated,yelling even louder.

To tell the truth,i was so scared, but I couldn’t just die like a chicken , I wanted to fight for my life .

He scoffed. “Do you even understand what it means to die?”

“Of

course I do”. I retorted ,bolting upright. “but what I don’t understand is why you betrayed a member of your gang”

“For money and for love”. he stated , glancing at Obianuju

“Love”. I laughed bitterly. “and do you think she will ever love you? no Dave , you are only being delusional”.

“You bas***d”. he rushed to me and held my throat so tight that I could hardly breathe, pinning me hard against the wall.

“Call me delusional one more time and i would give you the slowest and most painful death”

“You are delusional”. I grinned , daring him to do his worst.

His eyes sparkled fire and he punched me hard on the face .

I felt a sharp cut , and the warm blood tricked slowly down my cheek.I gave a short, bitter laugh and struggled in vain to free myself , his grip on me was firm.

“Let… go…. of …. me”. I gasped , unable to breathe properly.

He smirked and aimed the the gun at my head.

“Good bye Ademilade”

All of a sudden , we heard the wail of a police siren and about five to seven gunshots went off.

“The police”. Dave muttered and let go of me in an instant.

I fell to the floor , coughing and retching , to catch my breath and when I did , I crawled all the way to Obianuju.

“Uju! I called her name softly, holding her in my arms, but there was no response.

Her eyes were closed , her skin warm still and her breathing slow and ——Faint ..

I became alarmed. is she loosing unconsciousness? no! no! It can’t be .

More gunshots sounded in the air , causing panic between Dave and Prince.

“What are we going to do?” Prince half-yelled “Escape”. Dave plainly answered

“That is not possible”. Prince retorted. “the whole building is f**king surrounded by the f**king police .

Despite my dark mood , I smiled inwardly.

so this is the help “my baby” was talking about!

Impulsively, I picked her up in my arms and began walking to the entrance.

“And where do you think you are going?”Dave thundered.

I stopped short, facing him

“The police are already here , you should surrender”

“Over my dead body will I do that”. he yelled hysterically . “we are all going to die in here together”.

“No boy , you are going to die alone”. a voice said behind me.

quickly, I turned around and saw two scary—looking police officers with big guns.

One was short , and the other tall.

“Put down your gun”. the short one barked, pointing his gun at Dave.

“Never”. Dave raised his gun instead, aiming it at the man

“Dave!please don’t do this”. Prince begged and put both hands up in surrender. “Let us just go quietly with them”

” I am going to go down fighting”.Dave rasped through gritted teeth.

The police officers exchanged glances and smirked .

“Go outside”. the tall one told me and I nodded ,without complaints .

I urgently needed to the take my girlfriend to the hospital!

With a heavy sigh, I rushed out of the room and that was when the gunshot sounded.

it was so loud that it shook the whole building,but I didn’t stop ,i kept on running till I got outside the building and saw a large number of police men lying in wait .

Unbelievable! did they all come for me!!!

“Demi! Demi!”two police women called as they ran to me. “Are you all right?

I stood frightened,staring into Obianuju’s face.

“Please help my girlfriend”. I muttered, my voice barely audible.

“Sure”. one of the women stooped and touched her forehead . “Jeez! she is burning up, what happened to her?”

“She got shot in the shoulder “. I grunted my response.

“Oh dear! I think she is unconscious”. the woman stated , stretching her arms wide . “Hand her over , I will get her to the hospital”

“No

thanks , I will do that myself

She smiled lightly. “I understand how you feel, but this is not the time for emotional sentiments. Your girlfriend is loosing blood and needs ……..

“Fine! Fine!”I cut in and gently placed Uju in her arms.

Loosing blood! I didn’t like the sound of it!

“Blessed hospital right?”

“Yes!” she nodded , and with that, she scurried off.

“and please make sure the doctor attends to her on time”. I called after her

“Okay ooooo”

I followed her with my eyes and watched her place Obianuju inside one of the van rear seat; then I looked down at my hands , my bloody hands.

Oh God! Please protect my girlfriend!!

“It must have been tough for you”. a familiar voice said behind me——-Tobi!!!

I turned around , facing him

“Hey!” I smiled lightly

He returned the smile . “how serious is the injury?”

“not that bad”. I retorted, looking on at the van as it drove out of the bushy compound.

“Sh*t!” he bit his lips . “I never knew Dave was such a beast . I mean how could he hurt an innocent helpless girl”.

“He didn’t hurt her”. I said in a levelled voice. “he loves her too much to do that”

“Love!” Tobi repeated, clearly confused.

“Yes , the bas***d told me himself”

“If he truly loves her”. he continued,a look of disbelief on his face . “why then did he shoot her?”

I looked away , not knowing how to tell him that she took the bullet for me , that she is in pains because of me.

“Demi!”

“what!”I huffed , meeting his gaze.

He smirked. “she took the bullet meant for you right?”

D**n! why must he be so smart!

“Yes!” I let out a deep breathe and his Jaws dropped.

“Mehn! that little girl is one of a kind. Firstly, she used my brains and now this”.

“Used your brains! as in how?” I asked curiously.

“She deceived me into coming here”

Oh! so that is why she came here all alone!

“You with my phone right?” I changed the topic

I needed to call my dad and inform him about his so-called wife .

“No”. he shook his head slightly. “It is with Susanna”

Susanna! that b**ch! I heard a loud bang in my head.

“What the hell is she doing with my phone?”

“She saved you man”. he said calmly . “that girl is the reason why you are still alive”

I stared blankly at him, what the heck is he talking about?

He continued. “she was the one who told me Dave’s whereabout, she was the one who saved the day. she wanted to bring the bas***d down so she pretended to be his personal b**ch”

“Oh! was the only thing I could say as I was so d**n speechless.

She took a huge risk for me!

“you should thank her”

“Of course i will do that”. I nodded slowly. “Can I Please make use of phone?”

“Sure”. he reached into his pocket , unlocked the phone and handed it to me.

Sharply, I typed in my dad’s number and dialled it .

he picked it halfway through the third ring!

“Hello! who am I speaking with please? he asked politely

“It is me Ade”.

“Ha! Ade! My son! Thank God! How are you? Are you hurting? Is your stomach hurting? chest nko? are you ………

“Yes! Yes! Yes!” I cut in , dryly . “where are you?”

“I just got to the Lagos airport”

“F**k!” I cursed silently

“Hen! I didn’t hear you, what did you say?” he asked

“You should go back home”. I said, ignoring his question

“why?Is it because of Moremi?” his voice was so low.

“Yes”. I answered. “but how did you get to know?”

There was a pause and then he cleared he throat.

“I got a call from Asokoro Police station that Moremi confessed to plotting your death”

“Okay!” I urged him to continue as I was still confused.

Moremi! why was he calling his “precious wife” by her first name? who made her confess? how did she even end up in Asokoro police station.

My Dad continued. “erm the private detective I hired finally solved the mystery behind your mum”s death. The rat poison used in killing her is lethal and can only be found in a particular store, the store keeper was questioned and she confessed selling the poison to……erm ….. to…….erm

“To who?” I screamed into the phone, I was already getting impatient.

“your step -mother”.

My head literally exploded and a deep feeling of anger and hatred surge through me.

“where is she?” I asked coldly

“Asokoro police station”. he replied. “she was arrested very early this morning and…..I hung the call on him.

I couldn’t listen to him any longer , I was so pained and hurt .

“Mum”. I screamed loudly, alerting Tobi who was still beside me…

“hey! hey! Demi”. he held my shoulders, trying to calm me down. “what is wrong? what happened to your late mum?”

I whimpered and my legs collapsed underneath me

“My step mum killed my mum”

“What!” he retorted in shock

“and also planned on killing me”. I completed , hitting my chest to calm down my panic.

He let out a deep breathe and squatted down in front of me.

“I know it is painful, but you should be grateful that the truth is finally out , at least your mum can rest in peace now”

His words burn into my heart and a light smile escaped from my lips.

“Thanks man”

“It is nothing” he patted my shoulders lightly . “so put yourself together and let’s go to the police station”

“why?” I asked calmly

“To give out statement and also to…..he stopped mid sentence, his gaze behind me.

“Aha! Aha! the bas***ds are finally out”

I looked back just in time to see Dave collapse on the ground, his hands on his right leg as he tried to control the heavy bleeding.

so he is not dead!

A good thing though, as I would love to see the bas***d spend the rest of his life behind bars.

“Will you stand up my friend”. a police officer barked at him .

“Officer Abeg na , make he rest small”. Prince who in tears begged .

“rest hun!” the officer repeated , and what followed next was a thunderous slap across his face.

“Blood of Zachariah!” Prince exclaimed, holding his hand to his cheek.

I said move”. the officer repeated and began dragging Dave…..

Tobi laughed loudly. “That serves them right”

“Exactly”. I got off from the floor and dusted my trousers

” let us go”

“like this”. he retorted, staring at my chest.

Jeez! I completely forgot I was bare chested, no wonder those female cops were staring at me!

He pulled off his sweater and handed to me

“Wear this”.

I shot him a grateful look and hurriedly wore the sweater.

“Now we can go”. he smirked and led the way , as we walked toward a black Camry.

“whose car is this?” I asked

“My uncle”

“Oh! Is he here?”

“Nope”. he popped the p. “he stayed back at the police station”

“what about my car?”I looked around

“at the station”

“Okay”

Opening the car door, I slid into the passenger seat and he also did the same at his own end.

“erm can we please go to the hospital first?” I Pleaded

“because of your babe right?”

I nodded . ” I am so worried about her”

He smiled lightly. “she will be fine , I already messaged my girlfriend to go stay with her”

“Thanks”. I muttered, leaning back on the seat.

“You are most welcome”

With that , he started the car and drove out of the bushy compound, heading to the police station, Abobi police station.

*

The police station was jam packed with people and cars, such that there was no space to park.

Tobi had to squeeze in between two Honda jeeps to park.

“Nawa ! why this many people?”he asked , his hands on the steering wheel as he parked properly.

“I wonder oooo”

Alighting from the car , Kewe and Bola rushed to us

so they are even part of the people!

“Demi! Tobi! Awfar na?” Bola greeted , looking at me , Tobi and then back at me.

“I am fine jare”

“Juliet nko?”

“She is in the hospital”. Tobi answered and then both sighed in relief

“Chai! if you see the way my heart dey beat ehen”. Kewe rasped , holding unto his chest . “Abeg I no wan hear this kind news again”

“You won’t”. I assured, smiling.

“but how did you get to know about it?”

“Social media”. Bola waved his phone,

“Han!han!so fast”. Tobi retorted and Kewe Chuckled

“Demi is the son to a top politician so what do you expect”

I smiled weakly and leaned against a random car.

Tobi continued. “Tony and Kunlezy nko?”

“They are inside giving their statement”. Bola replied . “Everyone is so happy , we are finally free from the clutches of Dave….

“Yes oooo, no more cultism”. Tobi’s stated . “we can now……he trailed off, looking around the compound.

“Obianuju’s car nko?”

“Did she make use of it? I asked and he nodded slowly.

“oh! then it should be at the camp”

“I will go get it”. Bola volunteered and I shot him a grateful look

“but what of the keys to the car?”he asked me

“erm”. I ran my fingers through my hair . “It would be erm ….. inside her…. yes …..her bag”…

“Okay”. he nodded . “where is her bag?”

“Tobi and I exchanged confused looks

her bag!!where is her bag?

“erm it … should … be inside the car”. Tobi answered

“Yes, inside the car”. I supported him.

“You both are crazy”. Kewe smirked and then Faced Bola

“should incase you did not find her car Key , make use of mine”. he took his car key out of his pocket and handed it to Bola .

“It is a master key and can open all doors”. he boasted , grinning from ear to ear.

“Okay oooooo”. Bola rolled his eyes and walked past me to his car.

“Thanks man”. I appreciated Kewe.

he shook his head slightly. “I should be the one thanking you, your brought us out of bondage”

“No I didn’t , Susanna did”. I corrected

Speaking of which, my eyes wandered around for her and I saw her leaning against a Toyota hilux black jeep, her gaze on us.

“A minute please”. I excused myself and walked up to her

“Hey!” I greeted

“Demi”. she smiled shyly

An awkward silence occurs for more than ten minutes occurs, and then she asked

“Juliet nko?”

“she is fine”

“Okay”

I exhaled deeply. “Thanks for saving me”

“Oh that”. she blushed shyly. “I only did what had to be done”.

I stared at the “pretty girl”in front of me and the only thing I felt for her was pity.

She has really been through a lot!

“erm I just signed a deal with Topnotch modelling agency, do you mind modelling with me?”

Her eyes grew wide in surprise. “Can I really do that? I mean will they accept me?

“Of course”. I nodded . “I have the right to pick my partner and I choose you”.

“Yeeeeeessss!” She screamed excitedly and hugged me.

I hugged her back and patted her back lightly.

I knew how much modelling means to her and I hope this helps her stay happy .

“But why didn’t you tell me Dave forced you into cultism?”she suddenly asked

I pulled out of the hug to stare at her

“And who told you that?”

“Erm ..I kind of overheard it”

I smiled lightly. “I was never a cultist, and will never be one”

I am free at last!!!!

*

*

OBIANUJU

*

*

 

I opened my eyes slowly allowing them time to adjust to the blinding light coming through the window.

Where am I? I wondered .

I tried to raise my hand to rub off the sleep from my eyes , but couldn’t , the pain was unbearable.

“Oouh”. I winced

“she is finally awake ooo”. I heard the whispers of familiar voices and only then did I notice the two girls in the room—-Funmi and Shakirat.

“Hey!” I smiled lightly.

“Juliet!”Shakirat called my name softly, staring into my face . “how are you?”

“Fine!”. I nodded slowly, looking around.

“where is this place?”

“Blessed hospital”. Funmi replied

The word “hospital” made my brain clicked and the memory of all what happened came flooding back.

I sat up in a huff, not minding the pains

“Demi! where is he?”

Shakirat laughed . “E be like say you see am for dream”

“Where is he?” I repeated, ignoring her sneer

“he will soon be here”. Funmi replied, a light smile on my face

“Really?” My eyes lit up and she nodded

“Dave nko?” I probed on

“The bas***d should be in Abeokuta kirikiri by now”. Shakirat rolled her eyes and we all laughed.

Thank goodness! I sighed in relief

“but Juliet what really happened?” Shakirat continued. “I mean what business does the bas***d have with Demi?”

Funmi and I exchanged quick glances

“I don’t know oooo”. I lied

Fine! She is my best friend, but I couldn’t bring myself to tell her that Demi is a cultist and …….. wait a minute! he is now free!!!

“Yippee”. I bounced on the bed excitedly

“What is doing this one?” Shakirat retorted , giving me a playful glare

“Pbbst”. I stuck my tongue out to her and she touched my bandaged shoulder lightly.

“I just like the style they used in bandaging it!

Mumu! she have seen toy!

“Ehen hen”. Funmi cleared her throat ,changing the topic

“have you seen Faith face?”

“Yes”. I nodded . “I saw it this morning”

“Not the morning face Jare, I mean the afternoon face”

Afternoon face kwa! which one is that one again?

She continued. “she came to the hostel this afternoon and was asking after you. If you see the face ehen, you will pick race”

“What happened to the face?” Shakirat asked. “Is it that bad?”

“Yes oooo, the two eyes have almost remove”

“hmmmmmh… Funmi, I give you three gbosa”. I wrinkled my nose in disbelief.

“I am serious oooo, her two eyes are now very small”

“Okay oooo I don hear”. I brushed it aside. “Did you see Arinze today? I asked her

“Yes na”. Shakirat butted in. “he was even here , he left not quite long”

“what did he say? was he angry? did he look angry?” I asked in a rush .

Funmi shrugged lightly. “not really ,he was just worried”

“Okay”. I sighed softly.

Suddenly, the door creaked opened , and Demi and Tobi walked in .

“Demi!” I smiled widely.

He paused for a moment to stare at me , and then rushed to me , giving me a thousand kisses.

I chuckled and leaned in close to him

“Are you alright?”

“Sure”. he replied , searching through my gaze . “What about you?”

“I am fine, it is just the pain in my shoulder”

“It will go soon”. he assured, brushing my cheeks lightly and I nodded slowly

“but what took you so long”. I queried him

“I am really sorry , i had to see my dad off”

“Your Dad was here?” I retorted with wide open eyes

“Yes. he wanted to come check on you, but time was against him”

“Oh!” I exclaimed softly

“I hope you are not angry”. he asked, staring into my eyes

Angry kwa! why would I be?

“No”.I simply answered.

“uhm!uhm”. Tobi cleared his throat and I shifted my attention to him.

“Tobi!”

“Uju! how are you?”

I smiled lightly. “As you can see, I am fine”

“Obviously”. he stated . “well!well! let me take my leave so you both can have a quiet couple time”

“Exactly”. Demi agreed and Tobi laughed

“See you later”. he leaned in to peck my forehead and then faced his girlfriend.

“Let’s us go”

“Bye”. Funmi waved ,and with that, they left the room.

“erm” . Shakirat twisted her fingers. “I think I should get going too”

“Alright! I will call you”

“No, I will call you”. She winked at me and scurried out of the room.

“Now I am all alone with my Princess”. Demi remarked , smiling.

I blushed lightly and placed my head on his chest, listening to his heart beat

“Thanks for saving me”. he whispered into my ears .

I nodded my head slowly. “what will happen to Dave now?” I asked softly.

“As per my dad request , he and prince would be transferred to Abuja prison. My dad promise to deal with three of them mercilessly”

“Three?” I repeated , confused

“Yes”. he said softly. “Including my step-mom”

“Why?” I raised my head to look at him . “Did she do anything wrong?”

He stared at me blankly, as if contemplating if he should tell me or not

“Please baby , talk to me”

“Fine”. he sighed. “she was the one behind everything that happened today”

“What! was the only thing I could say as I was short of words.

how could a woman try to kill a boy who is more or less like her own son!

He continued. “she is also my mum’s murderer”

“As in she killed your mum?” I retorted in shock

“Yes”. he nodded slowly

“but how is that possible? I mean I thought your mum died of asthma”

“That is what I was made to believe”. his voice was controlled and levelled

“Oh dear! It must be so hard for you to bear”

“Not really”. he shrugged lightly. “being with you healed up all of my old wounds, and lightened up my heart and soul. I love you OBIANUJU and I have no regret whatsoever falling for you.

A warm feeling settled in my stomach , contentment, that he was mine and mine alone …..

*

Be there. Be open. Be honest. Be kind. Be willing to listen , understand , accept , support, and forgive. This is what it means to love.

*

*

THE END

*

Stay tuned for epilogue….