Priceless One – Episode 11

Shalewa stood in front of the gate and noticed it was locked. Luckily for her, she had a spare key.

“But why would Folake lock the outside gate?….. Is it even possible for her to lock the outside gate while she’s inside the house….. or could it be that something had happened?”  Shalewa kept thinking to herself.

Anyway she wouldn’t know until she gets in and find out.

She opened the outside gate and entered. Then slotted her key into the keyhole of the entrance door, but found out the door was unlocked. 

Pushing the door open, she entered and switched on the lights. 

The parlour was empty. 

“ They must have been deeply asleep.” She said to herself and entered the rooms, 

all the rooms were empty!

Her heart began to beat faster while she took her phone and dialed her sister’s number, it was unreachable.

She couldn’t ignore the nagging feeling that something terrible had happened. 

But where are her siblings?

“ Shalewa calm down and check mummy Nkems place.” She said to herself and dashed to her neighbors apartment, but found the gate locked.

She dialed Folake’s number again but got no response. So she dialed Tayo’s number, to tell him of what happened.

Tayo picked on the third ring.

“ Hello Tayo…. Tayo I’m in trouble…. I can’t find…..” Shalewa was saying, but Tayo interrupted her.

“ I smashed the car!!!…. Shalewa I caused an accident with the car and I’m not even sure if the driver of the car I clashed with is still alive!!…..” Tayo said amidst sobs.

“ What?….. How!!…. I mean….How did it happened.” Shalewa stuttered.

“ I’m in deep trouble now Shalewa….. the car is heavily dented and I just left it outside our gate and sneaked in, because if I drive in, I will be caught by my mother and she will raise an alarm.” Tayo continued.

Shalewa shivered in nervousness.

“ What do we do now?” She asked in fear.

“ There is nothing we can do….. my dad will find out what I have done when the day gets brighter…..oh Shalewa!….. This is totally your fault…..you forced me to go to that stupid party and look at the outcome……” Tayo said in regrets.

“…I wish I had not followed you….. Shalewa you have put me in deep trouble now and i don’t even know how to come out of this.” Tayo continued in tears and hung up the call.

She sat on the floor, gazing into the thin air.

What a night!!

A night she would never forget so soon. A night she would forever remember and tell her grandchildren.

“ Oh how else can a night go worse!!” She murmured in tears.

“ Sandra!!!….. Sandra!! you put me into this mess.” Shalewa said, biting her fingers and crying.

After 15 more minutes elapsed, she glanced at her wrist watch. It was almost 4am.

“ I must go and look for my sister.” She said to herself and managed to get up, cleaning the tears from her swollen eyes. On getting to the junction, she became confused on whether to follow left or right.

“ Oh God!!…. please help me…. I’m so sorry for my misbehavior tonight.” She muttered tearfully.

After waiting in confusion for like two minutes, she followed right and walked on with no destination in mind.

Ten minutes elapsed and she saw a familiar face. It was the security man who watched over her area. Shalewa approached him.

“ Good morning sir.” She greeted.

The man glanced at her in surprise.

“ Shalewa!….. Shalewa where have you been since yesterday?…… Your sister has combed the area looking for you….. she even went to the vigil you told her you were going to, but she didn’t see you there!!” 

The security man angrily said to her.

“ I was at a friend’s place.” Shalewa replied weakly.

“…Please sir…..I didn’t see my sister at home…. Do you know where she went with my brother?” She asked him quickly.

He looked at her and shook his head pitifully.

“Your brother was rushed to the hospital some hours ago…… and from the looks of things, it was very serious, he looked like he was almost dead, when I saw him….. I don’t have your sister’s number, if not, I would have called her to ask how it went…..”

Shalewa clasped her hands on her head in sheer anxiety.

“ Oh God….. please help me….. please!! I won’t misbehave again!!” She cried painfully.

 

Turning sharply to the man again, she said.

“ I’ve been calling my sister but she’s not picking up….. do you know the hospital he was taken to?” She asked the security man.

“ No I don’t….. but I know she went with your Igbo neighbor and her husband…..you can call their number to find out where they took him to.” The Man replied.

“…But Shalewa….. you are a very irresponsible girl o!!…. If not that your father is a pastor and I respect him very well…..I won’t have bothered to answer you at all!!!…… I didn’t know you are a bad girl o….. so you left your father’s house and went to your boyfriend’s place late in the night…..” The man was saying but Shalewa did not wait to hear the rest of it. She continued to run to no where in particular as she dialed mummy Nkem’s number.

Mummy Nkem picked up at the second ring.

“ Shalewa where have you been all this while?” She shouted into the phone.

Shalewa continued to sob aloud.

“ Please ma….. please tell me the hospital you took my brother to….. I will explain everything when I get there.” She begged.

There was a slight pause as mummy Nkem calmed her nerves.

“ We are in Zion Hospital right now…. So come as fast as you can…. You have a lot of explanation to do!!” She said.

“ Ok ma….. how is my brother….. is he alright now?” Shalewa asked but mummy Nkem hung up.

Zion Hospital is a popular hospital in her area but was still quite a lot of distance from where she was. She quickened her steps and walked the long distance till she got to the hospital.

Immediately she entered the hospital, she saw them sitting at the reception area and quickened her steps.

“ How is Toun….. is he ok?…. Please tell me that he is ok?” Shalewa said shakily.

They all looked at her and shook their head.

“ Shalewa where did you go?” Daddy Nkem questioned her with so much anger in his eyes.

Shalewa knelt down.

“ I’m sorry sir…. I’m sorry ma….. I went to a friend’s birthday party and I really regret it….. please tell me….is my brother ok?” She begged looking from the couple to Folake who stared at her angrily.

“ This is an act of irresponsibility Shalewa!!!….. How can you abandon your siblings in the house to go for a night party because you know that your parents are not around?” Mummy Nkem fired ângríly but was tapped softly by her husband.

“ This is not the time for chastisement now….. please let us get through this first….. before anything else.” He turned to Shalewa.

“…Your brother is alive and ok….. Although he was admitted by the doctor for close monitoring…. The doctor said he had an asthmatic attack for the first time……. So he needs to be monitored……” Daddy Nkem informed her.

She heaved a sigh of relief and thanked him profusely. 

Taking a seat beside her sister. She whispered.

“ I’m so sorry Folake….I really regret my actions….. please do not tell Daddy and mummy what I did.” She begged her quietly.

Folake turned to her and scoffed.

“ As I speak to you right now….. dad and mom are on the next flight to Lagos and will be arriving this morning…..they are aware of everything and including how you abandoned us and lied that you were going for a vigil.” Folake informed her sister.

Shalewa swallowed hard, 

Her parents will k!ll her.

Oh! This must be the beginning of the end.

(Do not take credit or Plagiarize AMAH’S HEART stories)