SOLOMON'S BRIDGE {Part I}

THE SECRET THINGS *28*

"It took him two weeks to get there, and by then, Benin had fallen captive to the Nigerian army. It was a sad story-I believe his young wife was trapped there when the Biafran war began. Ah, thank you." He accepted the hot mug of coffee, "Won't you have some yourself?"

"I've had nothing but coffee all day."

Hiram Duke shrugs his wide shoulders, placing the coffee mug on a book before stretching a little to put it on the table. Fleetingly, Collins wonders if it is rude to give a governor coffee in a Mickey Mouse mug, without any saucer. He doesn't have any saucers; here or at home.

This is as good as it gets.

"She didn't survive the siege, Agent Red, but the stories he had to tell after his return," he chews on the cigar, bringing out a folded piece of paper from his pocket, "were somewhat inconsequential then, and quite crucial to our solution, now." The paper obviously disturbs him, because he keeps tapping it against his knee, "He said he was saved by an industrious Ibibio lady called Idorenyin Kate Aydee, whose daughter is Inyang Aydee,  and whose mother was Unyime Aydee, the daughter of Idarabong Aydee Hatta..."

Collins walks round the table to a glass globe of the world standing on a file cabinet beside the bookshelf. Peering at countries carved inside the glass, he tries to sound interested, "Wow! He found the lineage of Aydee's eh?" Hiram Duke does not laugh. His squarish temple creases into parallel lines, his hands folding and unfolding the piece of paper repeatedly,

"How much Canaan City history do you know, Agent?"

"Uh... It was carved out of Okoyong in 1885 by Nsidung Edet Hogan Bassey of the Aka-Nso-Ko clan, defended and commemorated in 1890 by Augustus Earl Eyam Attah of the Eyam Attah clan, and finally it became the political seat of the Tripod King in 1891 under the traditionally recognized leadership of his eminence- Obong Meticulous Trombone the first, who ceded power to his son, his eminence, Obong Meticulous Trombone the second, in uh, 1901."

"You've captured the highlights of our political catastrophe in that brief summary. Canaan City is the border state between Cross River and Akwa-Ibom; between the Efiks and the Ibibio's; and it was ceded to Cross River by the Federal Government last year. And yet, the ruling house of Eyam Attah is from a long line of Ibibio Canaan Kings, since 1845. I have to say, Agent, that you've come highly recommended from your superior."

Interesting. "Yes Sir!"

This is it. No more dawdling; the governor is finally going to crack up. Collins hastily reclaims his seat, while Hiram Duke unfolds that worrisome piece of paper... staring at it for the longest time, "This is complicated," he murmurs, "I don't know where to begin..."

Collins sits up straighter, "How about at the beginning?"

A wry laugh escapes from the governor's lips, "-there is no beginning; that's the problem." His gaze deadpan, he asks, "Do you know what the name, 'Efik' means?" Collins eyes the governor's untouched cup of coffee, his throat feeling parched, he focused for the hundredth time, on what this special visit meant. It is an honour, a privilege, a reward to be of personal service to the state governor. It is his promotion.

"It means oppressor, I think."

"Well, agent, they say that the Ibibio dubbed us that uncomplimentary title and its effect over the years has been quite tedious, but there are things that I can't tell you about this case, because I don't want to be oppressed."

Collins' eyebrows knot together, "Come again, Sir?"

"Agent, don't let one person's tears become infectious. For now, allow me to introduce you to some real Canaan history-the kind that doesn't stay written down- there is a missionary, Mary Wallace, there's a Navy Commander, Lord Hall, there are others. The others didn't want to let go of the secret things," he hesitates. Collins took a pen from a cache in front of him and wrote down the words secret things in his jotter. The governor continues, "Lord Hall was arrested by British forces,and taken to London to be tried for his multiple crimes; ranging from murder to conspiracy and treason against the British Crown. The others fought over the secret things, forming groups of opposition and creating pockets of wild fanaticism..."