IMPORTANT NOTICE

Initially, my landlord's daughters were quite cheerful and moving into their father's home was a dream come true for me. When he noticed that his young daughters were particularly fond of me, he even teased me asking which of them I wanted to marry. However, it was a rude awakening when one of my co-tenants disclosed to me that the landlord was fond of using his daughters to hoodwink his young and single male tenants. So when Rita walked half-naked into my apartment one evening, I knew I had to run for my dear life...

Rita's grip to my trousers was strong and because I didn't want to cause a scene in the compound, I agreed to stay behind with her in my flat. With the look in her eyes, I knew she was serious about her intentions of forcing me to sleep with her. There had to be a better way of escape from this temptation than taking flight. I tried to chat up my unwanted visitor as I had always done when the going was still good; when we all used to play and watch movies in my apartment. While Rita was still engrossed in a television show in the living room, I excused myself to use the bathroom. While there, I composed a hurried text to one of my female co-tenant; the one with whom I had arranged to accommodate our landlord's daughter for the night. I hoped she understood the text message because in a few abbreviated words, I had asked her to come over to my apartment without delay. As soon as I replaced the phone in my pocket and returned to the living room, Rita was already “missing” me. She said she tired and wanted us to go to bed right away. Her night clothes were too revealing and I had begun to regret sending the text inviting my co-tenant. I drew Rita close and before long we were smooching and kissing on the carpet in my living room. I knew this was trouble, but my emotions had taken over my sense of proportion. Just then, someone tapped on my front door and I literarily froze where we were cuddled.  My plans were working and before there was a second tap on my door, I was there to open it. I didn't bother to look through the peep hole in the door because I had expected to see my co-tenant, but standing in front of me was my Rita's father.

Before I could muster any word of greetings, my landlord brushed me aside to make his entry into my apartment. He was a bit furious as he called out to his daughter. He didn't have to look too long because Rita was sprawled in my living room, stark naked. She only made an attempt to move when she came face to face with her father. Her movement was not without incidence, because she began to sob as soon as she could cover her naked body. Her father and my landlord wanted to know what she was doing in my house at that time of the night. Without much ado, Rita said I had invited her over and forced her to do it; whatever she meant by “it”.  On hearing her story, her father charged at me like a bear robbed of her cubs. Too scared to withstand the landlord's onslaught, I ran out of the room into the badly-lit night and I must have scared someone who was approaching my place because she also took to her heels. When I saw that it was my co-tenant, I called out after her. She stopped in her tracks and on the top of my breath; I was able to explain my predicament. She had just gotten the text message and thought it was the best thing I could have done, at least in the circumstance. Behind us, the landlord was threatening fire and brimstone with his daughter in tow. He swore that I would pay for defiling his youngest daughter and my co-tenant's efforts to intervene were rebuffed by him. I couldn't believe the events as they played out before me. Lights began to come on in the different flats in the compound and I knew this was going to be one long night to remember.

I was right because in the morning, our landlord had some plain-clothes police officers over. I was already dressed for work, but they wanted me to come along with them to the station to give a statement of what actually transpired the night before. Fortunately, my co-tenant who was privy to the matter volunteered to accompany me to the police station. She was acquainted with the Divisional Police Officer of the neighbourhood police station where they were taking me.

The landlord protested and threatening to evict her, but there was nothing he could do to stop her from coming behind us. While I gave my statement, my co-tenant waited to have audience with the DPO. I was supposed to be remanded in police custody, but the intervention of the DPO saved the day. He asked me to be freed on bail and mandated his men to carry out a thorough investigation. The testimony and “text message” evidence of my co-tenant was plausible enough because of her relationship with the DPO. In the end, our landlord was asked to wait behind to answer a few questions. It was true that he was in the habit of using his daughters to hoodwink young and single male tenants. The DPO asked his men to detain the landlord pending when their investigations were completed. I was jubilant, but I resolved there and then that I would run away from my landlord and his daughters, as soon as my rent comes up for renewal!