The LONGEST WAIT

Chapter 3

THE LONGEST WAIT

CHAPTER 3

On CNN, they were broadcasting a program called CNN Freedom Project. This program talked about stories of people who had been trafficked and how they got their freedom and how they were living their lives. On this particular edition of that program, they were talking and showing a group of Sub-Saharan Africans who had been held hostage in Lybia. They were actually being actioned like cattle, and people were bidding and buying them. That was where I saw Chisom, my wife. She was among the Nigerians being bought and sold.

The CNN journalist who was anchoring the program was CNN Chief International Correspondent Nima Elbagir. She had to go undercover to uncover that story, which in itself was a very risky venture. However, I was thankful and grateful to her. For the first time in many months, because of her, I had been able to have some information about my wife. Chisom was in Lybia, and she was under very terrible conditions. Something had to be done, and whatever had to be done had to be done immediately.

I turned off my TV and called Chima.

"Nna, did you see what I saw?" Chima asked me.

"Yes, Chima, I did. I saw Chisom, my wife. She was in terrible condition. She needs help, Chima, and she needs help."

"Yes, and that is why I called you so that you should see things for yourself. Chisom has been trafficked. We need to do something while she is still in Africa. Once she gets to Europe, it will become very complicated."

"That's true, Chima. We need to act fast. So, where do we begin?"

"Well, for a start, we need to go see that pastor and try to get some info on the agent. From there, we will know how to proceed."

"That's true. I even have an unsavoury appointment with him tomorrow. However, from the look of things, that appointment will be brought back to today. Let's go immediately. I am waiting for you at home. Please, come immediately. I can't go to bed today without having a headway."

"On my way, Buchi, on my way."

In about thirty minutes time, Chima showed up, and together, we walked to the mission compound to see Chisom's pastor. We talked while we walked.

"Buchi, this human trafficking thing is very real and very dangerous. We have to act fast."

"What are we going to do, Chima? I am lost. I am just so confused. Chisom would have remained here, oh. My wife would have remained here. Together, we would have made something out of life. We would have grown, Chima. We were happy together, very happy until that pastor brought that his jappa proposal."

"Don't worry, everything will be fine. Let's see the pastor first. One has to be very careful these days. A female friend of mine too was almost trafficked last month."

"Really? Tell me what happened." I was very curious.

"She was invited out by a female friend of hers for a drink at one popular snack bar in Lagos. It was kind of a lady's night out. What she didn't know was that it was all a set-up, and her own friend was a co-conspirator."

"Jesus!! This world is wicked."

"Yeah. While they were drinking, a black Lincoln parked outside, and three guys came out of it and strolled into the bar. You needed to see the guys. They were fresh, handsome, and looked rich. They walked up to the girls' table and asked if they could join them. The girls accepted, and the guys sat down with them and bought them another round of drinks."

"Is that all?"

"Wait until you hear the rest of the story, Buchi, my good friend. Now that my friend thought those three guys were strange guys who just wanted to hit on her and her friend. What she didn't know was that her friend knew those guys and was actually working with them. They plan was to traffic her to one of these Southeast Asian countries where human trafficking is very rife."

"Did they succeed?"

"I am coming to that. So, while they were drinking, my friend excused herself to go pee and left her half-finished drink in the care of her friend. She trusted her friend blindly and thought that because they were friends, her drink would be safe with her. That was her error. She had barely gone to the washroom when one of the guys produced a substance and poured it in her drink. When she got back, she unsuspectingly took her drink and wanted to drink it without knowing that it had been spiked."

"Oh my God!!" I exclaimed.

"Luckily for her, there were some other guys sitting on another table at the far end of the bar and had seen everything. One of these guys rushed forward and stopped my friend from drinking. He told her that her drink had been spiked by those guys she was drinking with. Pandemonium soon broke out because the guys refused. They didn't do anything. The commotion that followed drew the attention of more people, and finally, the police were called, and all three guys and their female accomplice were arrested and taken downtown."

"Good, they got what they deserved. Hope they all rot in jail for the rest of their lives." I spoke.

"That is not the end of the story. After they were taken to the police station, they were interrogated, and they confessed their crimes. They said that was their line of business, and my friend was not going to be the last victim, and neither was she the first. They said they had already trafficked many people, girls specifically."

"Jesus Christ!!"

"Yes, when they were asked how they carried out their activities, they said that there was a ship always docked somewhere in the high seas. When they drugged their victims, they took them to the shore, put them in a boat, and took them to the ship, waiting somewhere on the ocean. By the time the girls wake up, they may already be in another country, trafficked, enslaved, and never to return."

"So, why do they traffic mostly girls?" I asked Chima.

"They said girls are more vulnerable because they easily get carried away by the good life. Girls love flashy things and an expensive lifestyle. So, once a girl gets attracted to these things, she becomes an easy prey for them. The guys are still in custody as we speak."

"Good, they should all rot in jail and never leave. In fact, they should die there. They are very, very evil."

"For real. They deserve the ultimate punishment. You can imagine for yourself how many lives they have destroyed. That is how young girls go missing every day in this city. They just vanish into thin air, and no one can trace their whereabouts."

"My brother!! May God help us all. Anyway, how did you know the story?"

"My friend told me herself. Her name is Ngozi. She was a very hot girl in town. However, that incident was a life-changing experience to her. She has now amended her life, and she is a good girl now."

"Thank God for preserving her life."

We were now at the gate of Chisom's church, and at that exact same moment, we saw the pastor. He was leaving the compound in his car. I wondered where he was going to. We blocked his way, and he came out of the car. As soon as he did that, I ran forward and grabbed him by his throat, pushing him against the car.

"Pastor, do you know that my wife has been kidn*pped?" I asked angrily, but the pastor remained silent. He had nothing to say, and that got me more incense. "Answer me!!"

"I am sorry, Mr. Buchi. I had no idea things would turn out like this. I am so, so sorry." The pastor was begging desperately.

"Wait, wait, wait." That was Chima speaking. So, pastor, you made an announcement in your church about something without doing proper verification and validation? How can you be so callous?"

"I am so sorry. Please, you guys should not kill me, please." The pastor was seriously sweating now.

"For now, no one is going to kill you, pastor. However, that might change very fast, very, very fast. Whether I kill you or not, next time I show up here depends on what has happened to my wife. If she dies, and may God forbid that for both of our sakes, know that you are a dead man. If she goes missing and can not be found, the penalty remains the same. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Sir. Yes, Mr. Buchi."

"Good, so the onus is now on you. You have to pray fervently for my wife's safety. In fact, pray and fast like you have never prayed and fasted before. You are now her main intercessor, pastor. Pray nothing happens to my wife or so God help me, I will send you to the world beyond. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Now let me have that foolish agent's number."

"I need to stand properly on my feet in order to give you the number."

I looked at Chima, and he nodded his head, indicating that I should release my grip around his neck.

"Do it," I ordered, releasing my chokehold on his neck.

"Thank you, Sir."

Struggling to catch his breath and his hands trembling, he brought out his mobile phone from his pocket and read out the agent's number while Chima copied it. After he had finished copying it, he dialled it.

"The number doesn't seem to be going through, Buchi. The operator said the number is not available at the moment and that I should try again later. Chima spoke.

"We don't have time for later, Chima. Dial it again."

Once again, Chima dialled the agent's number, and once again, it didn't go through. We were both terribly vexed and frustrated.

"Now, pastor. We will be leaving. Try to get to your foolish agent. If and when you succeed in getting to him, please let us know immediately. As for you, don't leave town. Don't attempt to escape. If you try, I will know, and when I do, I will hunt you down and shoot out your heart. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Sir."

"I hate to say that to you, being a man of God and all that. But the fact remains. Your life is in danger as long as my wife remains missing and incommunicado. You were the one who orchestrated the whole thing. Chima, let's go."

Chima and I left the pastor shivering and went back towards my house. We were both silent as we didn't even know what to say to each other. When we got to my compound, Chima said goodbye and left. I went into the compound to meet my children and be prepared for another long night of grieving. As soon as I entered my living room, my phone rang, and it was the pastor. He gave me some information and asked me to work on it.

The following day, I packed two bags for my two daughters and went to my mother's place. I was going to leave my kids there for some time. I knew Chidinma would miss me and feel very bad in my absence. But it was something I had to do. When I got to my mother's place, I was glad to find her at home. She too was very pleased that we had come but she was alarmed at the sudden nature of the visit.

"What is the matter, Buchi. What is going on?" She asked, worried.

"I have come to leave my children with you for a while, Mum."

"Why? What is the matter?"

"I will be travelling for a while, and I don't know how soon I shall return."

"Where are you travelling to?"

"To Cotonou, Benin, Mum. I am going to find my wife."

TO BE CONTINUED...