Pregnant and Divorced: The Billionaire Begs For Forgiveness

Chapter 19: Fire In The Night

After police handcuffed Vanessa with pistol at our new house in Ewet Housing Estate, they carried her to police station and locked her inside cell.

Cell was dark and smelly with no AC, only small fan.

Mosquitoes were biting her everywhere.

Vanessa was crying and shouting, my mother is Margaret Knight, I am American citizen, you cannot lock me here.

Police said madam, American citizen or Nigerian citizen, if you carry pistol to steal one month old baby, you will sleep in cell.

Inside same cell, fake Ministry woman was still there with her driver and fake nurse.

Fake Ministry woman saw Vanessa and laughed.

She said madam, you sent us to steal boy twin with fifty thousand naira and we entered cell, now you also entered cell with pistol?

Vanessa shouted shut up, I did not send you.

Fake woman said you sent us, we have your transfer and your picture on our phone, police have seen it.

Vanessa sat on floor and started thinking.

She said even if I am in cell, I will still burn Elena house tonight.

She called one police man and said oga please give me phone, I want to call my lawyer.

Police man said no phone in cell.

Vanessa said please, I will give you twenty thousand naira.

Police man collected twenty thousand and gave her his phone for two minutes.

Vanessa called Tunde, the same man she paid in Lagos to scatter our introduction before.

She said Tunde, I am in police cell in Uyo, but I have job for you tonight, go and burn Elena new house in Ewet Housing Estate, house number 12.

Tunde said madam, burn house? That is serious, police will catch me.

Vanessa said I will give you three hundred thousand naira, two hundred thousand now, one hundred thousand after you burn.

Tunde said okay madam, send money.

Vanessa sent him two hundred thousand naira from her bank app using police man phone.

Tunde said I will go tonight by 2am with petrol and matches.

Vanessa said make sure house burns well, especially room where twins sleep.

She returned phone to police man and smiled.

She said Elena, tonight your house will burn and your twins will run.

She slept on floor happy.

In Ewet Housing Estate that night, we did not know about burn plan.

We were happy that Vanessa was in cell.

Margaret said we must thank God, Vanessa with pistol did not shoot.

Adrian said Mama, we need to put more security, two police men with guns outside gate.

Margaret called Commissioner and said Commissioner, please send two more police men to house number 12 Ewet Housing Estate, my daughter with pistol was arrested today but her boys may still come.

Commissioner said okay madam, I am sending two armed police men now with rifles.

By 8pm, two police men came with rifles and stayed outside gate with torchlight.

My mother did night prayer with anointing oil.

She poured oil around twins beds and said no fire shall burn these babies, no evil shall touch them.

I held twins and breastfed them.

Boy twin Adrian Junior was sucking fine.

Girl twin Elena Margaret was sleeping fine.

We slept by 11pm with all doors locked and CCTV on.

By 2am, Tunde came with two boys and one jerry can of petrol.

They wore black clothes and face masks.

They walked around Ewet Housing Estate fence and jumped inside our compound from back fence where there is small bush.

They did not see police men because police men were in front of gate pressing phone.

Tunde poured petrol around our back wall near twins room window.

He poured petrol on window curtain from outside.

He brought out matches and lit fire.

Fire caught quickly, wooooo, big fire started at back of house.

Smoke entered twins room through window.

Fire alarm and CCTV beeped.

I woke up because smoke entered my nose.

I shouted fire, fire, house don burn, fire.

Adrian jumped and shouted Jesus, fire dey back window.

My mother shouted holy ghost fire.

Margaret shouted my grandchildren, carry my grandchildren.

Police men outside heard shouting and ran to back with guns.

They saw three men with jerry can running to jump fence.

Police men shouted stop, stop or we shoot.

Tunde and his boys tried to jump fence but one police man shot leg of one boy.

Boy fell down and shouted.

Tunde and other boy jumped fence and ran away with fear, leaving jerry can and matches.

Police men carried boy with shot leg and handcuffed him.

Fire was burning window curtain and back wall.

Adrian carried bucket of water and poured on fire.

Margaret carried fire extinguisher from kitchen and sprayed fire.

I carried twins and ran outside with mother.

Twins started crying because smoke entered their nose.

We ran outside to front of house.

Neighbors in Ewet Housing Estate woke up and came with buckets.

More than ten neighbors came with water and helped us quench fire.

Within twenty minutes, fire was off.

Back window burnt black, curtain burnt, but house did not burn fully because we quenched quick.

Police Commissioner came again by 2:45am with siren.

He said what happened?

Police man said three men came with petrol to burn house, we shot one, two ran.

Commissioner said carry the one we shot to station, he will confess who sent him.

They carried boy to police van.

Boy with shot leg was crying and said sir, one madam Vanessa paid us three hundred thousand to burn house number 12.

Commissioner said which Vanessa?

Boy said Vanessa Knight, she is in your cell, she called us tonight and sent two hundred thousand.

Commissioner said Jesus, Vanessa inside cell still sends people to burn house?

He said this girl is dangerous, we must not release her tomorrow.

He called station and said do not release Vanessa Knight tomorrow, she is mastermind of arson and attempted murder.

At station, police collected Vanessa phone record and saw she made call to Tunde by 6pm using police man phone.

Police man who gave her phone was arrested and dismissed.

Vanessa was charged with new case, arson and attempted murder.

By 5am, house was safe but smoky.

Twins were crying and coughing small.

Adrian called Doctor and Doctor came and checked twins and said they inhaled small smoke but they are okay, give them small oxygen.

Margaret said we cannot stay in this house again tonight, we will go to Ibom Icon Hotel till morning.

We packed twins and went to Ibom Icon Hotel by 6am with police escort.

I was crying and saying they want to burn my twins alive, they want to kill my twins.

My mother said God has saved them again.

At 7am, Vanessa was inside cell hearing news that her boys failed to burn house and one was caught and confessed.

She shouted and beat cell wall and said Tunde you are fool, you collected money and failed.

Fake Ministry woman laughed and said madam, your plans always fail because you fight against innocent mother and twins.

Vanessa said I will not stop, even if I stay in cell for one year, I will still kill Elena.

That morning in Ibom Icon Hotel, Margaret said Elena, we must travel to America next week, Uyo is not safe again for twins.

Adrian said Mama, how will we travel? Twins are only one month.

Margaret said I will arrange private doctor and private flight to America, twins will stay with me in my mansion in Texas, with CCTV and many security, Vanessa cannot enter Texas.

I said Mama, I agree, let us go to America, because if we stay in Uyo, Vanessa will keep sending people to kill us even from inside cell.

Adrian said yes, let us go to America next week, we will be safe there.

But Vanessa inside cell that morning was writing letter to one big cult man in Ikot Ekpene with promise of one million naira to go and kill Elena inside Ibom Icon Hotel tonight before we travel to America tomorrow.