TREACHEROUS ORDEAL

CHAPTER 3

It was as if Mr. Patrick suspected that something was going on in his matrimonial home, meanwhile, it was just him reacting to having a bad day. 

She quickly tidied up the room and ran downstairs, remaining as calm as possible.  

Mike had already escaped through the window. He did it so perfectly that one would think he's a trained burglar. He jumped down and hid himself in the backyard waiting for Mr. Patrick to get in. 

"Honey, I'm so sorry I was deep asleep", she said, pretentiously looking like someone who's been sleeping.

"It's okay sweetheart. Come here," he gave her a warm hug.  

They went straight to the dining room. He was famished.  

Few minutes into eating, Mike ran in, 

"Good evening sir. Welcome sir. I hope your trip was fine."

"Oh my dear, thank you. Yes my trip went well but had a minor glitch, never mind. How are you? You were not around when I came back, I knew you had gone out to buy something."

"Yes sir, I went to buy something", heaved out a wry smile.

Mike and Mrs Patrick acted so perfectly normal that there's no way a well trained investigator would figure any form of abnormalities in their body language. 

"Sir, I was intending to call you on the phone tonight to tell you about my intention to travel tomorrow. My plan was to alert madam as soon as I returned only to find your car parked outside."

Mrs Patrick was provoked to anger,  "Why are you just just telling us now?"

"I'm sorry ma, it's urgent. It's a family matter and I have to go."

"Okay no problem. Just make sure you return next week as promised", Mr. Patrick said. 

"Thank you sir.  I am grateful."

Mrs Patrick was obviously not in support of this bit her husband has given him a go-ahead. 

Before bed,  his boss sent him twenty thousand naira to support his transportation to wherever he was going.  

The next day, Mike left Asaba and headed for Lagos.  He maintained constant communication with Kazeem to help him stop where he'd pick him. On arrival from Ijebu-ode to Ajah, he contacted Kazeem and was told the last bus stop where he'd be picked.  

While in the bus at Ajah garage, Mike was seated at the front seat, waiting for the bus to get filled with passengers. Just about reading a message from his boss's wife, someone grabbed his phone from outside and took off with it. Before he could say 'Jack', the thief disappeared into the crowd.  

"What? My phone! My phone!!", he shook to his bones.

"Oga weytin happen?" The driver asked in pidgin English.

"One guy just snatched my phone and ran into this crowd now...", he explained, pointing at the ever increasing crowd. 

Everyone in the bus bursted into a loud round of laughter, including the driver.

"What's funny?  I said my phone was snatched and you all are laughing, are you people normal?!", Mike was losing it.  

"E be like say dem never welcome you well since wey you come Lagos. My brother, you are welcome to the centre of excellence. Feel at home", a passenger jokingly said while others laughed.  

Mike was surprised that instead of getting sympathy for losing his property they made mockery of him.  

"This is strange. I hope I didn't take a bus meant for psychiatric patients."

He turned back glancing through their faces to be sure he wasn't making a mistake. 

He was quite lucky it was the last bus to his destination, else,  there wouldn't have been another means to reach Kazeem. His friend was already waiting at a bus stop in Ikoyi to pick him up.  

Just before they drove off, the bus conductor was engaged in a fistfight with another man who dared to extort his boss.  They were still throwing punches at each other when the driver zoomed off and  immediately,  his conductor jumped and hung perfectly at the entrance of the bus.  

"Wow!" he screamed.

It was like Mike left earth for another planet. He didn't understand where he was and what was going on. He was praying to safely arrive at his destination. His missing phone was the last thing he worried about but his own safety.

"Lord, I'll praise you once I get home safely.  Please protect me from this careless driver", he silently prayed.  

As they journey through Lekki to Ikoyi,  he was surprised that many drivers ignored the red traffic light and drove past two zebra crossings as they felt the road was empty enough.  

Driving and cursing all other drivers at every stop. 

"So all those things I've heard about Lagos are true. Nawa..."

He finally got to the bus stop.  Now he had no means to let Kazeem know his where about so he walked to one end of the bus stop, yelling into the crowd;

"Kazeem, Mike is here from Delta!, Kazeem, Mike is here from Delta!!", yelling like a mad man.  

He was halfway to the other end when he heard, "Mike! I am here!", Kazeem grabbed his hand.  

"What happened to your phone, I've been calling and you're not picking up?"

They hugged each other as they walked down the next road. Mike narrated how his phone was snatched and the reaction he got from the passengers. 

"Next time, you will shine your eyes. Besides, you just displayed some madness by yelling out your name at the bus stop. Didn't you see the way people were looking at you? It's funny how you were quickly inducted into the hall of madness, Ikoyi branch", he joked.  

"Once again bro, welcome to Lagos."