Chapter 45: Chapter 45

Chapter 45

Honestly speaking, how could he send me my address? Is Clarita at home? Has she gone back to speak to me? Right on cue, Anita walks in and she hugs Aliana who has obviously sensed that something isn’t right.

‘’Are you okay, brother?’’ she asks worriedly.

‘’Year I have to go’’ I say after sighing tiredly.

‘’I am coming with you.’’ She says and I shrug. I know she cannot be told otherwise.

‘’Are you sure of that?’’ She doesn’t respond. Instead, she stands up and walks out holding Nita’s hand. I follow them closely.

‘’I am driving.’’ She says opening my driver’s door and skipping in there. I don’t remember giving her my car keys but that’s when you remember that big sisters exist.

I swear I don’t like it but I totally have no energy to argue, not especially with Aliana. I jump shotgun as Nita sits back left.

Aliana is the driver of the day. We are literally going against jam but I feel like there is traffic towards where we’re headed. I feel like I should get out of the car and walk or maybe literally run home. Clarita’s phone has been tracked home that’s not very safe for me, for her and for us. I hope she’s alright.

A few minutes later, Aliana pulls up at our compound. The first person I see is the watchman with a nicely parked gift box in his hand. I skip out immediately and everyone follows suit. I am about to ask if Clarita is here when the guy cuts me off.

‘’Someone left this here for you, sir.’’ He says jovially and I force a smile. I hate it, I don’t like being given gifts because the only gifts I have ever received in life are those that were never meant for any good. When I was fighting my addiction, I kept getting very addictive drugs from people who never cared to introduce themselves or even about me and wanted to ruin me and to date, I have never known who used to do that. The person or maybe the people sent me drugs on several occasions and trust me, in the beginning, I was happy but along the way, I felt used.

‘’Who left that?’’ I ask with concern on my face.

‘’Some rider dropped it. I wanted to ask which company they are working for but they weren’t revealing that. In fact, I think he was just …’’

‘’Give it to me. Was Clarita here by any chance?’’

‘’Who is …’’

‘’The girl that was here earlier. Did she come back?’’

‘’Sir, that girl, when she left here running, she fainted when she got to the car that was waiting for her out here. I don’t know what might have happened to her but I hope they were rushing her to the hospital.’’

My head spins involuntarily. I have heard and seen so much within a day. These are too much information and I hope Clarita is fine. May God heal her for me. Aliana senses my discomfort and the only thing I want right now is to stay sane.

I feel my eyes turn teary and I know I have to try as much as I can to avoid crying.

Big men don’t cry.

She moves closer and holds me on the shoulder.

Life is a bitch!

We walk slowly to the house and since we do not want to see mum at the moment, we go straight to my bedroom. Anita looks stranded, terrified and alarmed. I have no idea what to do make her feel better at the moment.

I ask her to go to her room but she declines, claiming that she isn’t an infant.

I carefully unwrap the gift, I have never gotten flustered like I am right now. I hope this is not about one of those niggas who used to send me drugs.

Wow! She sent the phone back. Clarita has sent back the phone! I look at the phone several times then I nod. ‘’This is the reason why the phone was tracked back here.’’

‘’We need to check on her, but how would we know the hospital she has been taken to?’’ Aliana asks. Without thinking I pick my phone to dial the hospital's number.

My dad’s hospital.

I need to know exactly where she is so that I can go and beg for her forgiveness. Returning this shows a lot of things. She hasn’t sent a note or anything but that’s just sent the phone. Maybe I am mistaken, she fainted, right? Is she awake? Maybe. That only means she’s okay.

A seconds later, Remy’s voice flows in gently. She is one of the receptionists at the hospital. ‘’Remy speaking.’’

‘’Remy please I need you to do me a favour, I want you to check if someone by the name Clara has been admitted to the hospital like a few hours ago.’’

‘’No sir, we haven’t admitted anyone like that here.’’

‘’Listen and listen well, Remy. If I ask that same question to another person and I actually find out that she is in the hospital then guess what will happen to you.’’ She doesn’t respond. ‘’I will ask my dad to fire your ass there and then. Do whatever you can to get me what I want to know. Call different hospitals just let me know where she is okay?’’ I disconnect the call and leave her to her task.

‘’Calm down, brother. Threatening people will not take you anywhere. You should know better how these things work.’’ Alia says angrily ad I storm out of the room. When I get to the pavement, I see Diana passing by and I decide that this should be my cue to speak to her.

I am going to milk the truth out of her.

I am literally going to pour my anger on her. All these are happening simply because she has caused it. This girl is wicked.

I grip her hand and pull her towards my room.

‘’You hurting me, Harry,’’ she whines loudly and I don’t care. I keep pulling her until I step feet in my bedroom and Aliana and Anita are still in here. She holds the edge of the door and refuses to move but I pull her harder. I swear I don’t give a hoot if she hurts herself because literally that’s what she needs.

Aliana opens her eyes wide when I start to speak to Diana but she doesn’t say anything. I like that because right now I can jump on anyone who doesn’t want to listen to me.

‘’You got to tell me what you are trying to do. You want me to marry you, right?’’ she nods. ‘’What has happened to the many men that you have been dating all your life? Those that you literally had at your mercy?’’

‘’I don’t love them.’’

‘’Don’t give me that crap, Diana! I hate to hear people speak like about other people like they are speaking about clothes. Give me an answer, now!’’ she cowers when I shout.

‘’I don’t know Harry …’’

‘’Don’t Harry me, Diana. If you insist on marrying me, then I need to know why and what happened to the guys you claimed you loved so much. I remember you didn’t want anything to do with me and you left me because I was an addict. Care to explain what changed?’’

‘’I …’’

‘’Just talk! I want to hear everything.’’

‘’You are hurting me, Harry. How do you expect me to speak when you are not letting me go? Don’t you think you are being too ruthless.’’

I don’t listen to her. I keep fastening the grip on her and this time I fasten it so hard that she wails and when the door flies open, he mum is standing at the entrance looking like she could swallow someone on the spot.

‘’Let her go! You don’t have the authority to do that to her. My daughter is sick and all you can do is to hurt her? Who the hell does that to a sick woman?’’

‘’Can we talk, Harry?’’ mum calls and I sneer before looking at the cry baby next to me. I push the arm I have been holding and she totters but her mum holds her preventing her from falling. I wonder why they haven’t left yet.

‘’About what?’’ I ask her rudely.

‘’To my office! Now!’’ the authoritative her shouts making me want to throw up. She turns on her heels and I follow suit but not before warning mother and daughter that I will have to suck the truth out of them. I will do it whether they like it or not

‘’Listen here, Harry.’’ I incline my face towards her, raising an eyebrow to the demanding and authoritative sound coming from her. ‘’Do you remember that girl, Ellen? Do you remember how she died? Well, you were the last person who was seen with her and don’t even try to joke around because you are seen in a photo trying to shoot that girl. You are evil, Harry Williams.’’

I shake my head, I think my mum just lost her bearing. How would she even tell me that? Is it even in order that she says that to me?

‘’What are you saying, mum? What are you driving at?’’ I ask tiredly. I am so tired that I wonder how I am going to survive these things. My own mum has turned against me and is making sure that I go down the road that I am not supposed to trail.

What the heck!

She killed that girl and now she is blaming it on me? Really?

‘’Ehe! That’s how I like it. That you man up and ask questions as you should. This her, Harry. Isn’t this you?’’ my energy is drained. And I mean totally drained. I am totally aware that whatever she is saying or rather showing me isn’t even what I should be worried about because it isn’t true deep inside me but to the eyes, this is perfect. It is the only thing that is going to bring me down.

‘’This isn’t true! Mum.’’ I say in a confused manner. ‘’Are you really my mum? Did you really sire me?’’ she bursts into evil laughter.

‘’You think it is not true? What about this one?’’ she shows me another photo and boom! She just caught me there. ‘’Well, to cut the long story short, I have myriad of photos of you and her the previous day and the day she died and when she was killed. I wonder what you were doing in the scene but guess what?’’ I shake my head, my eyes on her. ‘’I will not repeat twice that you should be marrying that girl by all means. Just make sure that the police don’t put their hands on these photos because,’’ she pauses a little and laughs loudly and dryly. ‘’You will not like what I will do. I will not be close defending you, I will make sure that you rot in jail and I will be one of the key witnesses.’’

I shake my head in confusion. ‘’That’s absurd, mum.’’

‘’Hey, and don’t forget that the police are really hungry to get the information. This particular one.’’

‘’that’s a false accusation and you aren’t going to do that at …’’

‘’Watch me. Now, go and take care of your wife to be and ….’’ I lift my head which is sagging downwards high. ‘’Your marriage is in a week. And don’t try otherwise.’’

I turn on my heels and walk away. That is when you say that you are ‘fucked up for real.’ If I come out of this without dying, then I will know that I am a strong man.

My phone chimes in my pocket and I look at the screen wondering who could be calling me. I am about to press the answer button when I hear a sound.

‘’Harry! Please hurry up! Diana has just fainted and we need you to take care of her.’’ I drop my phone and run towards Anita