Who is Anisa Haque?

Chapter 28 - 10 pieces of Chicken

I spotted her trudging uphill as soon as I turned the corner, I knew had to be quick.

I got in the car to find my passenger frowning, but hey, what else is new?

'Did you record everything?' I asked without looking at him.

He nodded sullenly and that was all I needed to hear.

We'll deal with his PMS later.

I had barely buckled my seatbelt as I stepped on the pedal and cranked the car up the busy street.

I had to reach her before she disappeared.

'Kssss, Kssssssssss!' I didn't want to say her name, but I needed her attention. 'Yo! Sssssssss! Pink atamfa!'

Nothing? She simply walked on as though she were zoned out of this world.

How on earth do you say Zainab without actually saying Zainab?

'Yo, Zee!' I yelled. ZEEEEEEEEE!'

JACKPOT!

She turned.

And then hissed when she saw her caller.

'It's you. What do you want?'

'Get in the car, we'll talk.'

'So the humiliation from inside the house isn't enough? You want to humiliate me more in public?'

'No, but it seems you want to humiliate yourself even further by being rude to the ONLY person in Nigeria that can get you your job back!'

She stopped. 'How?' she looked from my young face to the faded paintwork on my 2005 Honda and laughed condescendingly, folding her arms. 'Again, how?'

'Look Zainab, I'm a busy woman, I haven't peed all day! There are many things I, Anisa would rather do right now than chase a disgraced banker up and down a busy Utako Street, so let me tell you one last time.

If you, Zainab Mando want your job at CAM back, hop in the back seat of my old, but very air conditioned Honda Civic. I'll give you a minute to decide while I cruise on neutral to that traffic light. That should take maybe two minutes, I don't know, I suck at physics.

If you don't enter, I'll just turn the corner and forget you ever existed while you go back to sharing a one bedroom apartment with 7 girls in Lekki.'

She eyed me fiercely, her dainty ebony face contorting into a stupefied frown.

'Oops,' I smiled. 'My bad. You didn't know I knew that, did you Zee Zee?

'Well all that can change in a minute. That's if you want it to! The choice is yours.'

I wound up my window and raised my foot slightly off the break, allowing the car to roll down steadily while checking for her in the rear view mirror.

'Why isn't she moving?' I asked out loud, not that I was expecting an answer.

'Really?' groaned Squidward. 'You insult her and then wonder why she isn't diving into the car?'

'Firstly, I did NOT insult her. Secondly, how come you're talking to me now? I thought you had taken Kramer's vow of silence?'

'Of course, you'd prefer it me being silent while you taunt the poor woman. And by the way didn't you just meet her in Sakinah's house? How do you know her last name?'