The following happened between 10am and 11am
The doorbell rang. Ding. Ding. Kim gulped the last drop of her coffee and covered the flask where she put Angel’s tea so that she could drink it when she woke up.
The bell rang again. Who is that? She wondered. The police had left her property even though the guest house was still sealed. She unscrewed the cap of a bottle of water, drank the liquid and swallowed her medication.
It seemed as if she was not only forgetting things but she was now imagining them like that investigative report. It seemed so real. If it was, how then did it disappear? No other person apart from her and Angel were in the mansion currently. And Angel has been sleeping for hours now.
The doorbell started to ring loudly again when she opened the door.
Connor.
Her lips dropped open. He was still as handsome as ever. Seeing his face with the sun shining behind him made him look more handsome than he was nine hours ago when she saw him for the first time in almost eight years.
“Mrs Kimberly Harrison, may I ask you some questions?” He said with a stony expression that made him look like a gorgeous angry Lucifer.
Mrs Kimberly Harrison.
He had purposely said ‘Harrison’. Connor. She thought. He was a master at holding grudges and acting as if he didn’t know you, even though he was your first love.
“May I enter?” He asked.
She nodded, not finding her voice and waited for him to enter after which she closed the door.
“Can I offer you…?”
“Don’t worry, ma” He replied.
“You can sit” She said.
He sat down and pulled out a pen and jotter from his pocket. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to know where you were between 11 and 11:30pm yesterday” He said.
“In my bed” She answered.
“What time did you arrive home after dropping your daughter at her friend’s place?” He asked. “Before 10:30pm” She said after a long while.
“Are you sure, ma? ‘Cause I will still find out if you’re lying to me” He said “Around eleven pm” stressing each word he said, “Where were you? Can you prove you were nowhere near your guest quarters?” He asked harshly as if he thought she was hiding something “And can anyone support your claim?” He added.
“Connor. I didn’t kill him” She said quietly.
“I’m Inspector Connor, ma” He said. And looked at his jotter. “Was it after you dropped…?”
“I didn’t kill him!” She yelled. She was standing on her feet now, fuming and extremely ready to scream some more.
She could tolerate the female Inspector, Jasmine thinking that she was a suspect but she couldn’t take it from Connor. Their relationship may have ended miserably. Still, she knew there were certain things Connor could do and would never ever do.
“Mrs. Harrison, I didn’t say you killed…”
“It’s the same thing” She said. “You came back here again because you guess…”
“I’m not guessing! I know you can do it.” His voice rose.
And Kim nearly fled from her own sitting room.
“If you could kill your own child, who is to say that you can’t kill you husband”.
His voice lowered as he probably realized he was shouting. Connor never shouted. He had to be very very angry to do so. His icy eyes moved away from hers. “Please sit down, ma. I still have more questions” He said, his voice sounding calm.
But she wasn’t fooled. Connor had neither forgotten nor forgiven her. She and Connor first met when she was nineteen. And he was twenty one. It was at a JAMB tutorial centre.
At first, they started off as competitors. He was the best male student in the tutorial. And she was the best female student. The icing on the cake was that he was the guy every girl had a crush on and she was the girl every boy in the class dreamt of. Nonetheless, she never went out with any of them until Connor…
“Kimberly!”
She stopped in her tracks as the person who called her ran up to her.
“Your money. It fell out of the book you’re holding”.
She looked at him and the money in his hand. N10 note. It wasn’t hers. She couldn’t even remember the last time she held that currency note ever since she started living with her wealthy father. “It’s not mine” she said and turned around.
“Kimberly…”
“My name is Kim”
“I give up. It’s not yours. I only wanted to hear your voice” He smiled. “I love it. It makes me think of angels” He said.
And so, it became his habit that wherever she went, Connor made one or more attempts to talk to her and make her talk to him. Soon, she started smiling whenever she saw him.
He bought her flowers he had planted, perfumes, and took her to the nicest places, not to expensive spots the way some of the sons of her father’s friends did but to places that connected with her heart. Her emotions. Basically, what was a big deal to her, he made a big deal for himself too.
One time, he led her to the top of a hill. And when they were almost at the top, he covered her eyes and later he let her open it. The sun was rising at that moment. So, its rays fell on a solar board he had hung there. The dark board turned gold and the secret words on it appeared slowly, shining like the fiery red hair of a goddess. It read:
WITH ALL MY HEART, I LOVE YOU, KIM.
Then, he pulled out a hand band from his trousers and wore it on her hand. “It’s yours” He said.
She looked at it. On the band, were the words: No One Loves Me Like Connor.
Right then and there, she kissed him. And as the kiss went on, she heard guitar and violin playing in the background but, she couldn’t stop herself from kissing his lips like he was the air she needed to avoid drowning.
It was the first time she ever initiated any intimate contact between them. They had been dating for a year now, and were yet to have sex because she wasn’t ready for that big step. However, that wasn’t the whole truth. There was more to it.
She was terrified of sex. Afraid to ever be involved in it after she was abused by a male tenant in the boarding house her mother, Natalie (whom she recently discovered was not her mother but her birth mother’s sister who raised her after her mum died and until the time, she located her father) ran.
Since that incident, she had never dared to have sex again. And interestingly, Connor was patient with her even though she didn’t tell him the season behind her unwillingness.
“It’s you I love. Not your body” He said even as he stared at her curves as if she were the goddess of lust and temptation.
Two years after they met, on her twenty-first birthday, by then they were both already in the university. And for the first time, they had sex together. It was explosive. Like heaven was shaking right between her legs. Connor used his tongue to give her multiple orgasms, as he licked her like a desert-thirsty man.
And then, he entered her. Gradually at first. Sweet and tender. When her body adjusted to his size, he began thrusting like a man who wanted to collect all the debt that had been owed him over the years. Indeed, she owed him and received the punishment for being a debtor joyfully.
After then, they made love almost everywhere. They moved in together and made love in the kitchen, bedroom, shower, living room. Every part of their apartment must have been filled with the joys and screams of their orgasms.
And then, the terrible day came, like it often comes for every love story. In their final year in school, she got pregnant. Connor was excited. And she was ecstatic.
Together, she and Connor went to meet her father, Hugo Jacobs, CEO and President of Jacobs and Sons Architecture. Hugo roared and even hurled a glass vase against the wall.
“You gold digger!” Hugo yelled. “Coming to reap where you did not sow”.
“You son of a mechanic! And a gardener!” He spat out like those were the most horrifying occupations he had ever heard. And at that moment, to have been the son of a terrorist and the most wanted criminal in the world might have been more pleasing to his ears.
“My parents are hardworking citi…”
“I don’t care! You’ve nothing to offer Kimberly. You are just a pretty face with no future” Hugo thundered.
Kim sat there, shivering. Afraid to speak against Hugo. Connor kept quiet. His fist and teeth clenched in anger but, he remained seated. This is Kim’s father. He told himself. I’ll respect him.
“You’ll abort that bastard” Hugo said.
And at once, Connor was on his feet, “she’ll do no such thing”.
“You can’t even take care of a child” Hugo said condescendingly.
“I’ll work hard. Even if I’ve to toil day and night, my child and Kim will never go hungry” Connor said. He already had a job he combined with his schoolwork. Besides that, he was prudent and had lots of savings he had put aside for years.
Hugo glared at him and then faced the work on his desk as though he had dismissed them. When Kim and Connor were at the door about to leave his office. “If you don’t wish to lose your inheritance, Kimberly, abort that bastard”.
Three days later, one of Connor’s friends saw Kim being rushed to the Health Centre as she bled out. And so, he told Connor who ran there with his heart in his mouth.
He probably raced to the medical centre at one mile in four minutes. For at that time, it was as if he was running to save his own life. He arrived at the centre and had to lie that he was Kim’s brother before he was told her condition.
Kim had taken mifepristone. An abortion pill. To terminate her pregnancy. And he almost fell on the floor.
The previous night, Kim vowed to him that she would go through thick and thin with him. That she would keep their baby. A representation of their love. She had said that her inheritance meant nothing to her, if she couldn’t have him and their baby.
She lied. She looked me in the eyes and lied! What else did she lie about? Did she ever even love him? The times she gazed at him and professed her love, was she fooling him? Tears flowed from his eyes.
He wasn’t against anyone doing whatever they wanted with their bodies but this, was Kim. She deceived him. Made him hope for the dream of partaking in parenthood with her. Obviously, her inheritance meant more to her than him or their baby.
“You can see your sister now. She’ll be fine” the nurse said.
He went to Kim’s room, stayed with her until she was discharged. He didn’t say a word to her. Simply gave her all the help she needed up until she was hale and fit again.
And one afternoon when she returned to their apartment, she discovered that Connor had gone. Disappeared forever until…today.
“Did you or did you not kill your husband?” Connor asked calmly, with a straight face like he was asking her if she ate egg and bread for breakfast.
You are mean. Was what she wanted to scream instead she stared daggers at him. And he returned the look unwaveringly. And resolutely. It was like a ‘staring war’ had begun. Who will win? A battle of wills. And pent up anger burning in the air.
“Mummy”
Kim’s concentration broke and her eyes went to her daughter who stood on top of the stairs.
“Stay there, honey. I’m coming over” Kim said, as she stood up and marched towards the stairs.
“Who is he?” Angel asked, pointing at Connor.
“He’s…”
“I’m Connor” Connor said, smiling at Angel.
“I like you” Angel said, “but don’t make mummy shout again” Angel added.
“I won’t” He replied.
Kim reached the top of the stairs and lifted Angel into her arms. “Kindly use the door. Inspector” Kim said.
As he was about leaving, Angel waved at him, “bye”.
“Bye” Connor responded, smiling at the most beautiful seven years old girl he had ever seen.
****
Kim sat in her office, trying to draw a possible sketch for the Kever building that was about to be erected in Nigeria. Every member of her team was also working on it.
Five days from now, she would call a meeting to see what each person had done and for the several individual ideas that had to be combined. She drew vertical and horizontal lines. Then dropped her drafting pencil.
Her mind wasn’t in architectural work today. She looked at Angel who was seated on the tiled floor of her office using crayons to draw Richard’s face into her sketchbook, from his picture that lay in front of her.
“Madam. I’ve arrived” Meryl said as she entered into the room.
Kim looked up. “Are you better now?” Kim asked.
Meryl nodded.
“Good morning, Mrs Maina” Angel said.
“Good morning, dear”.
Kim took her car key and left her home office while Meryl followed her. “I’ll be back soon. Don’t let your eyes move away from Angel” Kim said. Immediately, she found out that Richard was dead, she sent an employee to pick Angel from her best friend’s place. And since Angel found out about Richard, she wanted her to remain under watchful eyes.
“Yes, ma” Meryl replied.
Kim opened the door to leave her home when she heard loud voices.
“They are worth a lot”.
“You should’ve been careful I warned…
The speakers turned to look at her.
“Kim” Jean said.
“We came to spend the day with you. We thought you’d be lonely” Arnold added as he and Jean walked away from Kim’s car and moved towards her.
“No” Kim said, watching them. They look nervous. “I decided to go out. I need to do certain things” Kim said.
“So, you’ll be selling those paintings?” Arnold asked.
“Yes. But first, I’ll head to the Art Centre to get proof that they are the original” Kim said.
“Do you need to do that?” Jean asked. “I could handle it for…”
Kim walked towards her car “No. Since I’m stepping out of the house, I might as well do it now” Kim replied.
Jean and Arnold entered their car while Kim entered theirs as her best friend and her husband drove out of the compound.
Why does she always ruin my plan? Someone thought.
The paintings.
Anyway, it won’t be for long that she’ll keep ruining my plans.
Soon. Soon, I’ll end her.