End of days

Chapter 18

Chapter 18

"I don't care what you do or how you do it, I want my girl back!" Rayford barked out. The whole room was silent, everyone was afraid to speak for they all knew they were treading on eggshells with Rayford. Black nodded quietly as he paced the room trying to contact his agency for any feedback.

"Very well then, while we wait who would like something to eat? Perhaps a snack maybe?" Ming asked, trying to break the silence. " Rayford would you like something to eat?" She directed at Rayford when no other person answered.

"No I'm fine" Rayford grumbled as he slumped on a couch from fatigue.

"Forget I ever asked, it's not negotiable. Everyone is eating, so you all had better take your seats and be good boys. Including you Black, you are about to bore a hole into my rug with your constant pacing" with that said, Ming left the sitting room and went into the kitchen to get everyone some snacks.

Few minutes later, she came back to the sitting room carrying a tray with some peanuts and a glass of juice for everyone.

"Ming I just told you I'm fine, I really don't feel like eating anything right now" Rayford protested as she served him.

"That is the reason I am offering you snacks, and you had better eat it before I go bring you a main meal which you must eat. How do you intend to help Jane if you don't eat something? In no time you will run low on energy and what do you intend to save her with if you don't have enough energy to even help yourself? Please eat, while I go get the first aid kit to attend to your wound"

To avoid further argument, Rayford took a sip of his juice. "Good, now do well to eat the peanuts as well" Ming ordered as she came back to the sitting room carrying a first aid kit and started cleaning up his wound with some spirit. He obliged her and took some peanuts and just then, his phone rang. He quickly abandoned the peanuts and took his phone out of his pocket to find it was a private number calling.

Black quickly brought his laptop and connected Rayford's phone to it, and asked Rayford to pick the call and place it on speaker.

"Hello?" Rayford said.

"Good day Mr. Rayford, I believe you know who is talking?"

"No I don't, please who is this?"

"Well this is Timothy Okafor, the monster whom you have been trying to protect your girlfriend from"

Rayford's jaw was clinched, he wanted to yell at him, but then he knew better than that.

"Good day Timothy, I believe you have my girlfriend with you?"

"You are very correct, and I have no intention of holding her much longer if my demands are not met in the next 24hrs"

"What..what do you mean by that?"

"If by the next 24hrs, I'm not given 100million naira, then consider the last time you saw your girl to be the very last. And if you ever think of contacting the police, I will have her body chopped to pieces and delivered to your doorstep, you have 24hrs" With that said, Timothy ended the call.

"Did you get anything, were you able to trace his location?" Rayford asked Black.

"No, it kept showing several locations at once, that guy is quite smart, we would have keep him much longer on the phone when he calls, it will help.."

Black wasn't done talking when Rayford grabbed him by his shirt and pushed him to the wall. "Now listen to me, I don't have all day, my girlfriend is in danger of being killed by that lunatic, so you had better hurry up!" He said with gritted teeth. Michael and Dele had to pull Rayford away from Black.

" Rayford you need to calm down, we are going to get her back"

"Guy, the next time you ask me to calm down, I will have your teeth removed. Undermining you are my sister's husband,I will do it all the same!"

"No one is having their teeth removed. We all need to calm down, Rayford we are going to get Jane back alive, I need you to have faith" Ming said and turned to look at Black who was straightening his shirt that Rayford had ruffled up. "Black do you think you can work on the locations you got from the call and see if it would lead us to somewhere?"

"That's what I intend to do"

"Good, now you do that while we hope he calls again soon and we try to stall the call so his precise location can be gotten"

"This is rubbish, I need to call my bank" Rayford started typing on his phone.

"And do what?" Dele asked.

"What do you mean and do what? Didn't you hear what he said? I'm going to get him the money so he can release Jane"

"And you think, he is going to give her back once you give him the money? He is definitely not going to do that" Michael said.

" Rayford, I don't think giving him the money is good idea" Dele said

"The ransom is the only bait we have, once you hand it over to him, then we are powerless" Black said from a distance to avoid being punched.

"So what do you all suggest we do?" Rayford asked helpless.

"We wait, definitely he is going to call again soon to give you an address of where to bring the money" Black was already seated at the dining with his laptop.

Rayford felt so helpless, the wait is killing him. He walked up to Michael's bar at the corner of the sitting room and poured himself some scotch, which he downed immediately.

"I think there is something Jane would have wanted us to do at a time like this" Amaka who has been quiet all these while said.

"And what could that be? Rayford asked with so much hope in his voice"

"Pray, she would want us to pray. So let's all come together and pray for Jane's safety"

They all came together and held each other's hands, as Amaka led them in prayers.

"Amaka I think you need to go to the hospital and have those bruises checked, if not for anything, but to ascertain you didn't suffer any internal bleeding or something of sort" Rayford told her as they finished praying and waited for Mr. Okafor's son to call back again.

"I'm fine Rayford, you need not worry yourself"

" Rayford has a point, I think you should go to the hospital and have those bruises checked" Ming insisted.

"I will take her to the hospital" Dele offered.

"Good then, Amaka please allow Dele to take you to the hospital" Rayford pleaded.

Amaka who didn't want to argue any longer, decided to allow Dele take her to the hospital.

"You know you don't have to do this right?" Amaka asked as Dele drove her to the hospital.

"I want to, you need to have those bruises checked, so please allow me take you to the hospital"

"Why do you act like you care? There is no need to pretend, because we both know you don't care"

"Amaka I'm truly sorry for what happened between us" Dele said remorsefully.

"What are you talking about? Because I can't seem to figure out what you are saying" Amaka feigned ignorance of what Dele was talking about, she wasn't ready to have him creap into her life with another of his weak apologies.

"You know what I'm talking about Amaka, there's no need to pretend"

"Please focus on the road, I wouldn't want to add another injury to these ones already on my body"

Dele seeing she wasn't in the mood to speak to him, decided to keep quiet.