IMPORTANT NOTICE

There is a doubtful silver lining in the cloud. The anonymous note to Uncle Chris might not turn out to be the last piece in the puzzle. But it is strange why anybody would have slipped such a damaging note to Uncle Chris.  There is an ominous sign of danger in the tale. Someone must be cleverly covering their steps….

In the few days since Uncle Chris got involved in this criminal tango, he has become a hero of sorts.  He advocates for me and supposedly now a glimmer for the unknown agent who planted the incriminating note. The police say I'd appear in court soon. That possibility looks high as there are inmates who have been moved out recently. My fear is the surprise that these officers are known to spring. I don't want to be taken to a prison awaiting trial. An inmate said I've had it good so far. It's been tough sleeping on the cold hard floor in a mosquito infested cell. I have avoided the cell food and water so far.  I try not think too much of my predicament. Hopefully, Uncle Chris will brace all the odds and I'd be let off the hook.

Uncle Chris had mixed news for me this time. “Mr Kayode was found dead this morning,” he said. “His wrist was slashed and a dagger stuck in his heart. He was alone in his apartment when he was killed. What I don't understand is that his apartment was thoroughly ransacked by the killer” he added. Mr Kayode had probably evacuated his family out of harm's way before he was struck. It was still early in the morning and Uncle Chris had to go to work. He would involve the State Security Service without delay. But why would anybody have to delete Mr Kayode from the scene? The strange note had almost exonerated him and Madam Abike of the landlord's murder. Mr Kayode had spoken glowingly of Madam Abike's piety before he was killed. He had assured Uncle Chris that rumours about the woman's lifestyle were tall tales. Emeka thinks otherwise. Uncle Chris had also talked to him when he left Madam Abike's flat. Mr Kayode was pimping for the woman before his death, he says. The deceased policeman used his influence in the top echelon of the force to make Madam Abike happy. That connection was a remote motive for murder. Emeka swore Madam Abike must have planted that note in my flat. It was true they had a drink, but it was on the sly woman's invitation.

When Uncle Chris returned with two other agents of the service a few hours later, an empty compound awaited them. Madam Abike had also vanished from her apartment. The disappearance tale was narrated by one mai gida across the street. From his wooden kiosk, he saw Madam Abike leave hurriedly in a yellow taxi. Emeka had been whisked away by Mr Kayode's colleagues in the police force. A few minutes after she left, the police picked him up from his flat, said the gatekeeper and petty trader. They recovered a dagger and one service revolver from his apartment. Because the policemen believed that Emeka was the killer, they had not bothered to search Madam Abike's apartment. With her out of the way, the three agents could go through her two bedroom flat with a fine tooth comb. What they found was truly amazing. Madam Abike had rigged up cctv cameras to monitor the goings on in the landlords flat. With this she would know those who came to pay money to him. She then struck when the timing was right.  All this came to the fore as they watched the tape inside Madam Abike's bedroom.

Before long, someone opened the front door to the flat and the men in the bedroom paused the video system. They took different positions behind the door frame and wardrobe. The desperate figure soon approached and entered the bedroom.  From where they hid, the three men knew what had to be done if the visitor turned out to be their mark. They were rewarded as Madam Abike barged in. She must have sensed there was danger because her room was upturned from the search. She quickly turned around to flee out the door before one of the agents slammed it close before her. She was easily overpowered and handcuffed.

Once interrogations began, Madam Abike knew it was the end of the road. With a little torture, she literally broke down and confessed. She had robbed the landlord before she stabbed him to death, she said. Mr Kayode was her accomplice, but she had refused to honour their bargain. His greed for a greater share of the loot  led to their disagreement. When it became obvious that Mr Kayode had gotten hold of the tape from that night, her alibi was compromised. He had to be cleared out of the way; and cleared he was. Madam Abike confessed to planting the service revolver and dagger in Emeka's apartment. He had to be framed for Mr Kayode's murder like I was for the landlords'. The note planted in my apartment was drafted and planted by Mr Kayode under her tutelage. My involvement, she said, was rather unfortunate. It was not part of their plans and my decision to visit the landlord's apartment that morning was my undoing. It was Kayode's who thought I should be the scapegoat in the instance. She had returned to her flat one last time to pick her international passport when luck ran out on her! (Concluded.)