AM (Chapter 6)
If it weren’t for hopes, the heart would break – Thomas Fuller
2:28 pm
We’d been driving for thirty minutes without a word.
I’m guessing we needed time to percolate what had just happened.
For me, I fixed my eyes on the side view mirror, having set it to reflect the back and continued to wonder how the minions had found us even out of town.
I imagined Gabriel was thinking of how true his cousin’s story about his dad had been. It then occurred to me that I should tell him.
“It’s true,” I said, not turning to look at him. “Uto’s story is true.”
He didn’t answer immediately, “I know.”
“You do?” I turned then to gaze at his grim profile. “How?”
“He’s been travelling a lot and has barely been home,” he ground out angrily.
I supposed he had a right to be angry at his dad. From the story, he obviously had made Gabriel feel insane and had turned around and believed what he’d insisted be disbelieved. As a human being, Gabriel might not be smarting about being called crazy or treated as one, but he’d be pissed because his dad hadn’t called him to say he’d been right all along.
“So, what are we going to do now?” I asked quietly.
“We are going to find the bunker,” he ground out again, his hand tightening on the steering.
“So, you know where it is?” He’d better know, because I didn’t, one picture didn’t make a map.
“I don’t.”
His reply was curt, I didn’t want to sound like an insistent five-year-old but there was no helping it.
“So, how are we getting there, if you don’t know the way?”
His hand tightened again; he was really angry. “My dad should have something in his study.”
“Should, like you aren’t sure?” he was taking us back into the mouth of the beast, in Uyo, on a whim?
Gabriel groaned as though controlling himself, “Babe,” was the only thing he said, and his tone was warning, plus he called me babe. The effect was always the same, it melted my limbs and gave me gushy feelings in my stomach.
“It’s okay,” I sighed in mock exasperation and leaned back tiredly on the seat, leaving him to his thoughts, I hoped he was right.
He’s on point.
Hope is patience with the lamp lit - Tertullian.
2:49 pm
In 2016, Ifa and its neighboring villages had basically been virgin lands; this meant that people were just beginning to buy and develop lands at the time, consequently expanding the Uyo metropolis.
His father had joined the rush and had gotten several different plots of land. And when the recession had necessitated cheap apartment buildings, a friend had advised his dad to build the humongous apartment buildings which had begun trending.
Gabriel had followed in his father’s footsteps and had ended up building where Meems lived. He had not been proud of the house because he believed he would have done better, but with the extreme rise in prices and the unavailability of bathroom and toilet fixings, his contractor had forced him to purchase fairly used ones from defunct hotels.
He had no idea how that had been managed; he’d only paid and ascertained that the fixed toilets and bathrooms in his building were working.
Though the streets were free, in fact deserted, hitting Uto’s gate off its hinges had taken a toll on his car. He’d spent a long time on the road before getting into their neighborhood. He’d have to take his father’s Infiniti when going to Ikot Abasi, the tank was always full; in fact, all their tanks never lacked fuel, his father had affiliations with the high and mighty in government. That was one of the reasons he’d shut him up about the dreams, it would have been a scandal.
Shaking his head, he refused to think in that line.
Due to his work, it had been convenient to stay at his parent’s home, even though he had a different apartment at the back, separate from his parents’ building. But the house was situated in the same neighborhood as his cheap apartment building.
It had also made it easy to confirm every day that Meems wasn’t a figment of his imagination like he’d once been made to believe about the other dreams. Even though she’d continuously rebuffed him, he’d been happy to just hear her snide remarks, see her ride away on her bicycle and he’d be ready for the day.
Although, when he’d arrived the building this morning, he could have parked outside the gate, seeing as he’d not wanted to waste time in his meeting with the caretaker. But he’d driven in and had been in time to save Meems.
He wondered what her real name was, and he wondered what would have made her not want her name. He could have checked the tenants’ register for her name, but he’d held onto a romantic hope that she’d tell him at some point.
Her lips were imprinted on his and all he could think as an explanation for his strange behavior was that it was a moment of madness. The allotted five minutes every human is expected to have; now he wondered if the five minutes were given yearly, monthly or hopefully daily, Gabriel was sure to make use of all of them kissing Meems.
It wasn’t a time for fanciful thoughts; he needed his head in the game. He wanted to remain angry at his father, but a deep-seated conviction in his gut alluded to his father knowing about today, which meant he might have left clues in his office for him to follow.
Gabriel refused to entertain the possibility of this being wrong, as his dreams those times had encouraged, faith was the key.
Meems first instinct as they entered her neighborhood was to slide down the seat and hide; after everything that had happened, she expected people to give her strange looks.
But on second thought, she realized that the citizenry of Uyo were unaware of the higher war fought on their behalf. She recalled the catatonic tenant who’d hadn’t been conscious of the four men attacking a lady. She recalled that no one had seen her jump the balcony…except Gabriel.
She turned to give him a side glance, he didn’t look overly angry anymore, just plain determined. She realized that he was here, right now, helping her because it was pre-arranged, destiny, fate.
Meems hadn’t noticed they’d stopped until Gabriel jumped out of the car and moved swiftly to open the high gate of his home. She couldn’t deny the excitement burning in her belly at having to see his space, where he lived.
As he pushed the obviously heavy gate to the side, his muscles rippled in his shirt and unconsciously, her mouth watered at the sight. She was instantly reminded of the kiss he’d given her and consequently her imagination flashed a very graphic picture of her being pressed against him skin to skin.
It wasn’t an imagination; it was a vision.
She knew this because she could feel the heat emanating from his hard flesh as her palm caressed his contoured back. Moist, hot moist pooled heavily in between her legs as he grasped her breast, gave it a contemplative look before latching on fiercely on her nipple.
Her mouth dropped open in a silent gasp as he laved, licked and bit her nipple. He looked up then, his eyes looking heavy and dark with desire, then he chuckled, it was a very manly chuckle, almost arrogant in tone because of her intense reaction when his fingers focused on rolling her clits. She arched her waist to feel his fingers more deeply and…
“Are you going to come out of the car soon?”
Gabriel’s voice was like sudden cold water thrown in her face. She jerked and swiveled to face him, he had obviously driven in, parked the car, locked the gate and was about to go inside when he noticed she’d not move.
How could she? She’d been busy enjoying a future she wasn’t even sure would happen.
Gabriel stared at her with impatience. He wanted to get started in his father’s study. If he had left clues or a message, he probably won’t have left it in the open and so time was of the essence.
“I…yes…of course,” she mumbled and stumbled out of the car.
He frowned at her strange behavior, not that the whole day had been normal in the least, but Meems presently looked shell shocked, like she’d seen a ghost.
“Are you okay?” he asked as he led her into the house.
She turned and looked at him fixedly for a while, like she was trying to figure out who he was. Her eyes dropped to his mouth and then quickly swiveled away with a guilty expression.
Gabriel frowned at her behavior; he would have wanted to find out but at that moment he could only allow one thing on his mind, and it wasn’t kissing Meems.
Finally, she nodded and followed him through the cool interior of the house.
Story continues.