Don't! Look Closer - Episode 17

 

Idowu excitedly led the family out from the back of the house. They thought they were smart but he caught them hurdled up in a corner of the house. Chief George made many claims about him calling his army of lawyers but Idowu knew from what they planned, the case was a done deal.

Of all the criminals on their watchlist, Chief George was always evasive. They have tried imprisoning him several times but their efforts have always been futile . When Kike proposed the idea to him, he never guessed it would work. Now, they were pushing the family to the van.

He looked at everyone in the compound and couldn’t see Kike anywhere. That shouldn’t be. The way things had gone and had been planned, Kike should be with the family. That spurred Idowu to hurry towards the family members that were led away. They looked stunned.

“Where’s Kike?” He asked Chief George.

“We don’t know”, Chief George replied. He turned to the other members of the family but met a negative response. Chief George held on to a key. Idowu found it absurd.

“What’s that?” He asked and grabbed the key off Chief George’s hand before he could react.

“That’s nothing…” Mrs George snapped.

Idowu looked from one person to another and couldn’t help but catch the cold look Mrs George threw at Chief. A strong feeling of helplessness overwhelmed Idowu

All episodes of this story can be found here >> https://www.ebonystory.com/story/don-t-look-closer

. Kike couldn’t possibly disappear on the brink of her harvest. The situation spelt danger.

Idowu spun his fingers in the air. “Guys! Take them away!”

When they were gone, he rushed back into the house. The house remained silent and brought back memories of some evil they have encountered in their line of duty as policemen especially in the area of empty huge houses. Some of his colleagues had given their lives to prove cases. Kike shouldn’t undergo the same pain. He warned her against confronting the family but she adamantly wanted to accuse them to satisfy her ego about being right.

“Kike! Where are you? He called out and brought out his phone to call her. Not wasting any time, he climbed the stairs to the top of the house. She must be somewhere in the house and that should have been the best news. Yet, the nagging feeling that he should hurry couldn’t leave him. Could it be that the family had done something wicked to her? The phone kept ringing but she didn’t pick it up.

By this time, Jones, the one they had placed in the security rushed in to join him. The security team had delayed them when they first arrived and that made Jones lose his cover as one of them.

‘Boss, we should join them at the station’, Jones said.

“Have you seen Kike?” He asked. Jones shook his head.

“She didn’t come out!” Jones said and stopped as if he realized something. “That’s true. She didn’t come with them. Everything happened so fast”.

“Why are you her partner? You were supposed to keep an eye on her. Not this freaking gate”, Idowu yelled and stormed to the gate to meet the other guards. They weren’t part of their team but they could be assets. “Guys, spread out and find Kike. She is somewhere in this place”.

They looked at him as if they couldn’t understand the language he spoke. Jones, who had been coming behind him, noticed their hesitation to heed his command.

“Una deaf?” Jones shouted. “Find Kike. You, move towards that side. Yes, that side. And you Mike, join for the other side”.

Idowu ran into the house and was followed by Jones. They went separate ways in search of her. The house became too big for him but he just had to move into the house to search for Kike. His eyes roamed everywhere he went.

“Kike!!!” He shouted and dialed her phone number again. She couldn’t have left the house. Her instructions had kept them outside the whole time. How could she be nowhere?

Suddenly, he heard a muffled grown from a room. That could be it. He sped off and felt dizzy the moment he got to the door of the room. But the door was locked. He pushed it hard but it didn’t budge. That rattled him that he raised his gun to shoot the door. Then, he remembered the key he was holding and with that, he unlocked the door.

“Kike!!!” He yelled when he met her tied and her chair on the floor. Even his eyes were trying to shut themselves from the stuffiness of the house. He removed her gag. Her breath was shallow.

“The can. Gas… Cylinder”, Kike m*aned weakly.

Idowu, not wasting another second, scrambled to the place the cylinder was kept. He switched it off. Then, with he himself becoming weak, he dragged the chair out of the room. Like a drunken man, he barely saw things in the right way. When they were in the passage, he slammed the door and shouted for Jones. He untied her and hit the floor the moment he was sure she was safe. By this time, they were both weak and he couldn’t talk much.

Jones rushed towards them. Idowu weakly pointed at Kike and Jones understood him. He lifted her and took her outside the house. They weren’t equipped with the necessary things to resuscitate someone that had been exposed to such gas but he understood that with fresh air, Kike would be fine.

Idowu dragged himself away from the passage. The gas still filtered into the passage and had a negative effect on him. Only God can save the George family now. They have added a murder charge to their case. He would ensure they served their life in prison. Killing them outrightly would be abysmal as well as merciful. They needed to suffer the pain and wallow in the regrets of their actions.

Jones rushed to help him too. Soon, he was placed near Kike, who had tears in her eyes. Fresh air flung themselves at his nose and he couldn’t help but appreciate God for such opportunity to survive.

“They did this?” Idowu asked.

“They all!” Kike replied and coughed.

“They all?

She coughed again. “I recorded....”

He patted her shoulders.

Read " Purified Tomorrow: The Mad Awakening " by the same author ( Akíntayo Akinjide )

. “Careful! Careful…Did he take the bait? It’s his confession we need.

She nodded. “He has recorded all his atrocity. Stop the video. It’s inside”.

“Don’t worry”, Jones replied. “ I’ll get it”.

Idowu felt relieved. The haziness that overtook his body system had died down. “We will edit it. Has he awarded the document to you?

“Yes. Thank you”, Kike said and shifted to hug him. Not minding the presence of Jones, he kissed her and she reciprocated. They would have to make it official later but for now, they had to savor the moment.

{)(}