The van of the anti-fraud unit of Police C division sped away on
the narrow asphalt road that led to the police station. Mr Douglas sat inside
with the heads of the other seven workers. The “prisoners” sat in silence and
exchanged furtive glances at each other, deliberating in their minds on the
fastest way to get themselves out of the present difficult predicament. They
were all visibly shaken by the events of the last twenty minutes. It was only
Mr Coker Ajasin the head of the Personnel unit who appeared unruffled by the
turn of events and maintained a dignified look with no creases on his brow.
“Please remove these handcuffs, we are not going to run away” Mr
Coker Ajasin broke the silence as he appealed to the policeman who sat next to
the door of the vehicle, his gun held in combat position.
“Oga you dey under arrest, when we reach station we go talk that
one” the stern looking policeman responded in pidgin.
Douglas looked at the cuffs on his hands and gave a little tug,
the steel clamps felt surprisingly light on his arms but it was doing its work
as an object of restraint. He shook his head as he wondered how he managed to
get himself involved in the whole muddle. It all started when Mr Morgan
his unit head approached him for some financial assistance….
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
“Darling what happened in your work place today? What is all
these about?”
The anxious eyes of Ann wandered all over her husband’s body from
the other side of the counter inside the police station as the paper work for
his release was being prepared. She had come to bail him out.
On arrival at the station Douglas and his colleagues were taken to
a holding cell in the police station and thereafter transferred to a large room
for interrogation by officials of the anti-fraud unit.
Douglas was tired and simply wanted to go home after five hours of
questioning and cross examinations. He had told them all he knew. They were
allowed to make two calls to friends and family to see if they could make the
bail conditions.
Earlier on in the day Ann had rushed to the station as soon as she
got a call from Monique, her husband’s secretary earlier on in the day. Austin
had been discharged and they were on their way out of the hospital when
Monique’s call came in. She dialed Douglas’s number but it was switched off.
This put her into a panicky state and she rushed to his workplace only to be
informed that he had been arrested and taken to the C-division police station.
“There must have been a mix-up somewhere”, she reasoned in her
mind. The Douglas she knew will never commit fraud.
She got to the police station only to be told by the officers on
duty that she couldn’t have access to her husband as he was undergoing
interrogation.
“Interrogation!”
That word sent shivers down her spine. Interrogation wasn’t a good
word. It conjured up images of torture and beatings in her mind eyes.
“I hope nothing happens to Douglas!
The officer talked about the possibility of getting Douglas out on
bail. The fraud case was a high profile case that was being handled by the
Divisional police officer. She would have to talk to the Dpo. Before then she
had to seek external help and chief Agama came to her mind . She then dialed
Chief Agama’s number.
Chief Agama was a Lagos socialite and business tycoon with
connections in high places. He was a family friend of the Douglas and had
gotten and executed some contracts from Magnum oil firm through the assistance
of Douglas.
Ann contacted him and he agreed to stand in as a surety for
Douglas. He pulled some strings through a series of phone calls and the Dpo was
ordered to release Douglas on bail.
Douglas walked out of the police den hand in hand with his
wife. Some of his colleagues had gotten their freedom. Others were still
inside making last minute efforts to get out. He was grateful to breathe the
air of freedom as he couldn’t imagine himself spending a night in the tiny
cramped cell.
As part of the bail conditions his two bank accounts were frozen
by his bank at the request of the company. He had signed an undertaking to
co-operate fully with the investigations and to report to the DPO four times in
a week. His residential house was all what he had left. The little money
he had kept at home won’t last long. Survival will be difficult. It never rains
but it pours.
“What really happened? Ann insisted.
“Dear it is a fraud case. Some of our directors were siphoning the
company’s money secretly, an audit of the company’s accounts was done and they
managed to rope me in and a few innocent colleagues.
“I swear I am innocent! It is a setup, I am just the fall guy and
I will do everything to clear my name”.
He took her hands in his
trying to reassure her. “We will talk more at home, how is Austin doing?”
“He was discharged this morning and was sleeping peacefully when I
left home for the police station. Mercy is taking care of him. Don’t worry I
settled his medical bills”.
“Thanks dear what would I do without you”
They got into her blue camry and drove away.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
“I cover myself with the blood of Jesus! I cover this entire house
with the blood of Jesus! I come against every evil manipulation by the devil
and his agents! The gates of hell shall not prevail!!…….”
Mercy was up on her feet pacing across her room praying. It was 3AM
and she had woken up gasping for breath from a horrible dream experience where
she had felt strange movements all over her body. Someone or something was
clutching her neck trying to strangle her. As she prayed she burst out
into tongues …….not caring if Mr Douglas or anyone else heard her.
She strongly felt the presence of something evil and sinister
lurking around the house.
Pastor Timothy had told them back in the youth fellowship in her
home church that the devil does not understand what you are saying when you are
speaking in tongues, speak in tongues when you have life threatening issues
because it gives you direct access to God.
“Aunty Mercy I heard you praying this morning” Wendy whispered to
Mercy in the bedroom while getting dressed up for school.
“Yes I had a bad dream” I had to pray about it.
“Does God hear and answers your prayers?”
“Yes the bible says if you have faith like a mustard seed when you
pray, you will have whatever you ask God”.
“What is a mustard seed?” Wendy inquired.
“It is a very tiny seed that has no weight. It can be blown away
by the wind but when you plant and take good care of it, it grows up to become
a big tree”.
“I will like to go to church. All my friends in school go to
church”.
Mercy gave a sigh of joy. God was working out something on the
mind of the girl.
“You should tell mummy, just keep on asking her everyday. Maybe
she will let us go next Sunday morning”.
The kids sat with their mom on the dining table devouring the
golden morn cereal breakfast. Mr Douglas walked in, pulled a seat and joined
them.
“Who else heard someone talking last night? He asked.
Wendy quickly replied.
“Yes it was Mercy! She was talking to God, Daddy i want to talk to
God too!
The couple exchanged worried looks. Douglas gave a slight laugh
and patted Wendy’s braided hair.
“Wendy dear, don’t believe all that crap you hear in school. There
is no God. You have been talking with Mercy huh? Don’t believe whatever she
tells you about God”
Wendy frowned. She didn’t believe her parents this time around.
The seeds of belief in God had been planted in her little mind. She wanted to
talk to God.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
“Wendy hurry up! Why are you so sluggish this morning? You are
late to school!”
Mercy queried as she stood by the front door waiting for Wendy to
join her and Austin at the car. She was slightly annoyed at the slow pace at
which the girl was moving down the stairs. She suddenly heard a thud on the
floor and rushed in time to see Wendy lying spread-eagled on the floor.
Mercy’s loud scream brought in Mr and Mrs Douglas who came running
down the staircase to the scene. Wendy eyes were firmly closed, she laid on the
floor still, she seemed lifeless. It was an emergency. They bundled her up into
the car and made a furious dash for Dr Kpangolo’s clinic.
“Damn!!! Why this recent spate of misfortunes?
Douglas hit at the car steering in frustration. What could cause
my 6 years old baby girl to suddenly slump?”
He questioned himself as he drove back from ”Bright Lads
academy where he had gone to drop off Austin. He had left his wife and Mercy in
the waiting room of the clinic. Wendy had been admitted in the intensive care
unit and was currently being attended to by the medics.
“Aunty I think we should go to church, I don’t think this is
ordinary. There is a God who knows everything and we need his help. I had a
strange dream last night”. Mercy narrated her dream experience to her mistress.
“Mercy i don’t believe in your God and neither does my husband but
if attending the church will change anything then I may come with you. Look at
me, my expensive jewelry is gone, Douglas is in deep trouble at his workplace.
Now Wendy’s is in a coma. This is the third day I have been absent from work, I
am just tired.” She gave a sigh of despair.
“Aunty you should cast your burdens upon Jesus for he cares for
you”.
Dr Eze breezed in with Douglas and invited them to his office.
“There is really nothing wrong with her, we only detected a slight
case of anemia. The treatment will make her fine. She is awake now”.
Can we see her? Ann asked anxiously.
They were led into the room where Wendy laid, her body draped with
white sheets. She gave a weak smile when she sighted her parents.
“She will need a lot of iron complex tablets daily to guide
against reoccurrence, the doctor informed them.
“Can i pray for her?” Mercy asked the doctor but before he
could reply Mr Douglas had butted in.
“This is not a place for your religious display, this is a
hospital!.
“Come on Douglas let her pray”, we doctors only try our best to
cure, it is God that heals!
Exodus 15:26 says i am the
lord that healeth thee. “Dear Jesus please heal Wendy of whatever sickness
is disturbing her, she is your daughter oh lord, i commit her into your care,
heavenly father let your mighty hands rest upon her……..”
Mr Douglas had turned away from the group and faced the door with
a frown on his face, his hands stuck in his pockets protesting the intrusion of
religion into his family’s privacy. His wife stood there quietly watching Mercy
while the Doctor and Mercy bowed their heads in prayer.
Two days later Wendy was discharged.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Don’t think for a moment I never felt the pain/you can’t imagine
the hurt and the shame/they put the nails through my hands/pierce my sides
/please understand it wasn’t easy but it was worth it/I really loved you so
much I took your place/ I died for your sins, yes I am the one/don’t take it
lightly what I have done…..
Ann was seating on the sofa flipping through the channels on the
Dstv decoder when she landed on One
Gospel channel. It was a Sunday morning and the video of Cece Winans’s It wasn’t easy was on the air. The
imagery of the crucifixion of Christ that was showing on the screen and the
lyrics of the song got to her and struck a chord within her. It brought back
early memories of her childhood. In a short while she couldn’t control herself.
She dropped the remote control and went straight to the bedroom.
“Dear we are going to church today” She announced to her husband
who was lying on the bed scrolling through Vanguard online newspaper on his
iPad reading his favourite political column.
He looked up at her with amazement written on his face.
Why are your eyes moist? He queried.
She didn’t answer but continued “We are attending the second
service by 9am, I am going with the kids, you should join us! I have a
spiritual reawakening.
Douglas stared at her. Religion has finally gotten into her
after all these years!!! Women were truly the weaker sex!
“Are you serious Ann? You want to join the religious folks now?
You want to pray and dance to an invisible sky daddy? You want to go and
deposit your hard earned money to some Italian suit wearing, Ferrari driving,
mansion living pastor? You want to be a bible thumper? Can’t you take the kids
to the amusement park if you want a breath of fresh air?
“Dear its not like that. The kids have been indicating interest in
going to church throughout this week. Wendy in particular wants to meet her
friends in church. We could meet new people there. Let’s see it as a form of
socialization”.
Mr Douglas shook his head and shrugged his shoulders.
“You are free to go to
wherever you want but you all should be back before 12 noon!”
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Rhema city was one of the mega churches in Lagos. It was a
7,000 seating capacity sprawling edifice pastored by the firebrand Pastor
Charles Zuzu who was a popular face on billboards and on television. His weekly
30 minutes with Jesus program on Skyline Tv had a huge viewership.
Ann Douglas together with Mercy and the kids walked into the
auditorium for the second service. The service had already begun and the
congregation was in the praise and worship session led by a young female choir
member.
The choir members were seated in their section adjacent to
the altar and opposite the ministers. They looked exquisite in their blue and
white choir robes. It was a mass choir with top class musical instruments.
Trumpets, clarinets, bass guitars, piano, brass drum sets and talking drums
were all used to make melodious music. Almost all the rows of white
plastic seats were filled up. The congregation danced vigorously, showcasing
different dance steps; etighi, azonto and alanta.
Ann stood still gawking at the crowd around her. It was a total
new experience to her. The last time she had been in church was 10 years ago.
Mercy was dancing alongside with others. She was free at last to worship God
openly!
Mr Douglas strolled aimlessly outside the house. He still couldn’t
come to terms with the fact that Ann finally decided to attend a church
service. She was a more dedicated atheist than himself. That was one of the qualities
that influenced his decision to marry her. Her decision to go to church could
be a response to the stress she had encountered during the week. Psychologists
have a word for that. He would look up the word in the dictionary soon.
Mercy was proving to be the ultimate influence on Ann. That 19
years old girl had guts. He admired her for her religious conviction.
He pushed open the front door and got inside the house. He needed
to drink a little cup of coffee.
Douglas what happened to you? Are you not
the small boy who used to walk the narrow earthen footpath every evening in the
village with your mum for the evening church service? Were you not the boy who
used to sweep the church every Saturday morning? What happened to you? A still small voice sounded in his head.
Why did you allow America to change you?
Why did you allow your Christian faith to be destroyed by the devil?
Douglas go to the church now! The voice sounded once again.
“I must be crazy, I am going delusional, a cold shower will clear
my head”. Douglas said out loud. He dropped the teacup and walked to the bedroom.
“Douglas do you know
that your mother prays for your salvation everyday, go to church now! There
was no respite from the voice.
Go to church now! Go to church now!
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Pastor Zuzu was preaching on the Pulpit when a man sneaked into
the church from the back and went straight for a seat on the last row. An usher
came and moved him forward to fill a gap two rows ahead.
Douglas was slightly uncomfortable as few pairs of eyes turned
momentarily in his direction. He looked around and saw the faces of the
congregation. They looked joyful and peaceful.
“Why are they so joyful?” He wondered. Are they not passing
through the daily stresses of life?
Pator Zuzu’s message was on God’s love. Douglas listened with rapt
attention while looking out to see if he could catch a glimpse of his wife and
the kids. He wondered what Ann would say if she saw him now.
He was impressed with the young man with a smooth chin preaching
on the altar making prophetic declarations with all amounts of confidence and
power. He looked like a man in his late 30’s
“Brethren this is the time for those who want to give their lives
to Christ. Don’t miss this golden opportunity to reconcile yourself back to God
your father”. Come and drop all your shattered dreams, wounded heart, broken
toils, God will turn your sorrow to joy”. The pastor appealed gazing into the
sea of faces.
The choir struck up a solemn piece.
My lifetime, I will give God my lifetime/When I give God my lifetime
He will take care of me/He will never ever let me down/When I give
him my lifetime
Douglas you know what to do! The voice in his head returned.
“No I can’t go out” he countered.
He looked on as a man on a suit walked towards the altar followed
by a young lady on a miniskirt that exposed her fleshy laps.
Douglas move to the altar now….the voice in his head demanded.
“I can’t, I am jobless, why should I join them when I have been
suspended from work?”
Two more people followed suit joining the sizeable crowd at the
front.
He let out a gasp when he saw Ann walking with Wendy & Austin
down the aisle.
Look at your wife and children out there.
What are you waiting for? Join them now. The voice demanded.
“I am an atheist!”.
“Someone is still out there debating and arguing with the voice of
the spirit, come out and give your life to Christ. Tomorrow might be too late”
The pastor made a last appeal on the altar.
That was for you!…the voice said.
As the pastor and congregation stretched forth their hands to pray
for the new converts Douglas found himself hurrying down towards the altar to
join his family.
Hallelujah! Oghene doh!!! Mercy exclaimed when she saw her master
and mistress with their kids in front.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Three weeks after the Douglas family converted to Christianity the
investigations into fraud at Magnum oil group was concluded. Mr Douglas
alongside five of the suspended directors were absolved of the charges and
recalled to the company. His bank accounts were unfrozen. When he got the
letter of recall he informed his wife and dropped a bombshell.
“Darling I have a confession to make to you. I know God has
forgiven me but I need you to forgive me. I took the missing Jewelry. I was
with the paintings the night before you discovered the loss of the jewelries”.
“What! Where is the jewelry?” Ann shouted with a shocked look in
her eyes.
“Dear it was just a coincidence. I was just looking up at the
paintings and checking them when i noticed a slight depression on the back of
the De’saille portrait. I dug into the groove and found the jewelry. I should
have put it back into its place. But I was looking for money and I knew that
the jewel could be financially valuable.
You see I discovered earlier on that Mr Morgan the director of the
Sales unit had been stealing money from the company’s coffers. I confronted him
with my discovery and he broke down and told me in confidence that he took the
money for the treatment for his 14 years old daughter who was suffering from
cancer. She needed to have an expensive operation in India. He promised to
refund the money in three weeks time. He was expecting a substantial amount
from one of his debtors. I went with him to visit his daughter to confirm if it
was true and sadly it was so. I saw the young girl suffering and her condition
almost broke my heart. I couldn’t imagine Wendy or Austin being in such a
condition.
I kept his secret but as the deadline approached, he couldn’t
refund as the debtor wasn’t forthcoming with the debt. That was when I
accidentally saw your jewelry. I showed it to Morgan. We took it to a trust
worthy jewel valuer/dealer who estimated it to be worth at least 4 million
naira. He offered to buy it but I didn’t want to sell it without your
permission so we kept it with him as collateral and collected the money from
him. Morgan used the money to replace the funds he had taken from the company
but it was a bit too late as several financial rackets were ongoing in different
units of the company leading to a secret audit of the company’s account. We
were both arrested for fraud. Morgan confessed to taking money and also
showed evidence of having replaced it. That was when he and I were let off the
hook.
The jewelry is still with the dealer and we will get it back once
Mr Morgan raises the money to retrieve it”
“You should have told me all this earlier!”
“Yes I should have but I was afraid you wouldn’t see it my way and
I didn’t know you will notice the loss so soon. I am really sorry dear you know
we have not have trust issues in this marriage, I need to apologize to Mercy too”.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
It was Youth week at Rhema
city cathedral. Mercy had joined the choreography dance group in the
church. The choreography group looked dazzling in their white gowns and suede
shoes as they came up for their presentation. The Douglas family were
seated at the second row. They were now full time members of the church never
missing a single service.
Pastor Donnie MCclurkin’s “Days
of Elijah” was the theme of the choreography dance. The song was playing on
the church’s central sound system.
Behold he comes riding on the cloud/shining like the
sun/at the trumpets call/lift your voice/it’s a year of jubilee/out of Zion’s
hills salvation comes!
Mercy jumped and twirled round on the stage in a special move that
drew rapturous applause from the congregation. This was her happiest moment.
She was performing to a 7000 capacity church crowd! It was a dream come true.
She could see the happy faces of her master and mistress in the congregation
looking up at her. They were both on their feet clapping.
Not a single soul was sitting down in the church as the
congregation danced with the choreography dancers and chanted with a feverish
pitch.
“There is no God like Jehovah!
There is no God like Jehovah!
There is no God like Jehovah!
There is no God like our God!
There is no God like our God!
Out of Zion’s hills salvation comes!!!!!”.
THE END.
Music credits: Kurt carr, Cece winans, Donnie MCclurkin .
