Twenty-four hours passed by before Nancy ordered a policeman to bring me out of my cell room. When he came, he handcuffed me and then lead me to her office. I got into her office and saw her looking out of the window.
The officer who brought me left and finally, we were alone. She stared at me. Then she walked up to me and shook her head.
"How did my best friend get to this point, Tola?" I bent my head as seeing her, tears started filling my eyes.
"There's no use crying, now that you've crossed the line from being the sincere friend I once had...,"
"Nancy, I am sincere. I still am." I interrupted her.
"And you want me to believe you when I saw you pointing a gun at an innocent man?" My face suddenly lit up. What was she driving at, telling me Ola was an innocent man?
With the handcuffs still on me, I used the back of my hands to wipe my tears. I then looked at her. Alone with her in her office, she had to really tell me what was going on.
"Nancy how sincere are you in all of this?" I asked her.
"What are you talking about?"
"Nancy you were there right from the beginning. You of all people knew my relationship with Ola. Now you see me as a criminal and Ola as an innocent man?" Nancy bent her head when I said that. When she raised it up she went to sit down.
"You and Ola are like family, Nancy. Maybe that's why you can't see beyond that, can you?"
"Tola, everyday I work to keep the streets of Lagos free of criminals. I do it for a living." I laughed when she said that. When I stopped laughing, I looked at her seriously.
"Yes, I know that. But you go after petty criminals, and not the big ones like Ola." With that she got up.
"Tola who are you to tell me how to do my job?!" She shouted. I had to shout back.
"Nancy go after big criminals like Ola! Go after them!" With that she came over to me and gave me another slap.
"Go on slap me! Slap me, you can even lock me up and throw away the keys! I told Miss K herself that I have nothing to lose!" Nancy folded her arms and stared at me in silence.
"Nancy, I have nothing to lose," I said shaking my head, " Since the day I found him in a pool of blood, everyone including you told me to forget about what happened and move on. Look at me here in handcuffs while the woman who pointed a gun at me is allowed to walk away freely. And you want me to believe you keep the streets of Lagos free of criminals? Nancy tell me a better lie!"
Nancy couldn't say a word but kept staring at me. Then she sighed and I knew she was about to say something.
"Tola, na your stubbornness carry you enter this wahala. See as you just dey shout dey talk to me anyhow."
"And how am I suppose to talk to you?"
"Na because I be your friend naim make you dey raise voice for me."
"Look even if it was another officer, I am only standing for my right."
"Tola, which right?" She asked me.
"Which right? Nancy are you taking me to be a fool?"
"Answer the question since you know you have rights."
This is where I found myself confused about what rights I really had. I had seen a woman who had pointed a gun at me not being arrested. What right did she have to walk away armed while I was arrested?
My silence didn't surprise her. She only smiled as she knew I wouldn't give her a satisfactory answer. Just then her phone rang and she picked it up. When she finished talking she looked at me.
"Tola, your parents are here. What do I tell them?" My eyes widened at the mention of my parents.
"Where are they?"
"They are out there in the reception room."
I closed my eyes as the sight of my parents seeing me in handcuffs was something I couldn't stand, especially my mother.
Knowing what had happened, she would start making a scene. I didn't want that happening, but I had no choice.
"Tell them they shouldn't worry about me. That I'll be fine." Nancy got up and excused me for a minute and went to open the door.
"Welcome sir, welcome madam."Â I turned and saw my parents walk in. I closed my eyes and bent my head down.
They came forward and stared at me. It was hard for me to look at them but I had to.
"Please have a seat sir, madam." Nancy pointed to the two empty seats beside me. They thanked her and sat down.
"Tola, how are you?" My father asked me.
"I'm fine dad. I really am." He kept quiet and then turned to Nancy.
"So what is the situation like?" He asked her.
"Well at the moment no charges have been laid against her yet. If anything, she will be charged for attempted murder and illegal possession of firearms. My only hope is that the charges will be dropped."
"Illegal possession of what?" My mother asked.
"She was found pointing a gun at someone." Nancy didn't want to mention Ola's name but knowing my mother, I knew she would ask. And she promptly did.
"And who is that person? And does that person have a name?" Nancy kept quiet. I had to speak up.
"Nancy it's best you tell her or I will tell her myself." My parents looked at me and then at Nancy.
"Sir, madam? She was pointing a gun at Ola."
"Ola her husband?" My mother asked, Nancy nodded.
"And where did she find him?" She asked terribly surprised. My father smiled when my mother asked that question. I guess by now he knew what had happened.
"Tola you fainted when you were about to sign those paper. We had to rush you to the hospital." My father said. "You didn't just faint. You saw something, didn't you?" Nancy stared at me surprised.
"Dad when I held the pen, I suddenly collapsed. I saw him, and I knew he was still alive."
"My God, Tola? So you dey see reach like that?" I looked at Nancy who had folded her hands and was looking curiously at me.
"Nancy forget." I simply told her.
"Ah no Tola, abeg, when all of this wahala finish, I go invite you come my house o." I had to laugh as I didn't know what I could help her see.
"And when will that be seeing I might spend some years in prison?" I asked.
"So officer, let's get back to our discussion. The two of you can settle yourselves later on." My father said, interrupting us.
"Well so far he has not come forward to press any charges yet. We are still waiting. Hopefully if no charges are made, she will be released in the next few hours."
"I don't understand. Why should he even think of pressing charges when he played her to be with another woman?" My mother asked Nancy.
To this Nancy sighed before she answered my mother's question.
"What they have together is their own business. They might see each other and resolve the issue. The law is only concerned about her seeking justice in her own way."
" Well Nancy as it is now and considering the fact that she is your friend, I'm counting on you to settle this issue." He told her.
I noticed both of them staring at each other strangely. What was going on between them.
"I will try my best sir. I mean she's my friend, we graduated together so I will try my best. The only problem is she can be quite stubborn sometimes."
"And who she take am resemble no be her mother?" My father asked. My mother eyed my father.
"So now that she is in this problem she take am resemble me abi?" My mother asked him.
"No worry, till we reach house." I could only smile my satisfaction at seeing my parents even in a moment like this joke with each other.
How they could maintain their relationship for such a long time and still be happy with each other was something I still had to figure out. They left a few minutes later and I was alone with Nancy again. She went to sit down and I couldn't help but ask her a question.
"Nancy we are alone now. Tell me why you made me go through all of this?"
"Tola don't blame me o. You were madly in love. Even the whole world couldn't have stopped you."
"Nancy, I still remember what Lanre said o. He said that babe level pass Ola own o. Shebi you don't forget?" Nancy sighed and bent her head down.
"Miss K was there even then and you knew it, Nancy."
"Look Tola back then you insisted on wanting to know his friends. Did I do anything wrong by introducing you to them?" I shook my head as I felt she was refusing to answer my question.
"Nancy forget about that. You knew about Ola and Miss K. Why didn't you tell me they were seeing each other?"
"And why should I have told you? I had no right interfering with their relationship." I looked at her wondering if she had anything against me.
"Nancy, you knew they were together. And you knew all along, that Ola was alive. But when you saw me pointing a gun at him it was easy for you to arrest me. Nancy what did I do to you to deserve being treated this way?"
"Look, Tola? You wanted it, and it is what you got. Don't blame me." I knew she was hiding something. This was something she wouldn't talk about even under pressure. But looking at her, I felt I knew what it was.