Chapter 7

Mr Mireku ruffled his hair, panicked, perambulated the living room, put his hands all over his head, sweating profusely. Frema was the gold treasure he had just lost. Where could Frema be? Where was her mother too? Why would the two be missing at the same time? Did someone hate them so much as to make them disappear or it was all planned? But why would they want to leave this blissful haven? Where were they going to? What did they have in mind?

"What do we do, Esi?" As soon as he asked that question, it dawned on him that it was totally unnecessary because Esi had been looking up to him all this while for answers. It would be debilitating to look up to her now.

"Let's bring in the investigators then," she quickly replied, drowning his doubts in the waves of the sea.

"I fear it might be too early to do so. If we involve them and it was something trivial that has kept them away from us, it would have been an effort in futility. Let's find another temporary solution first."

"Sir. Forgive me if I disagree. What if we bring them in too late and it's something serious too. We would blame ourselves forever for such misjudgment." Mr Mireku bit his right middle finger like a little child. " Sir?"

"Yes, Esi. I need to think."

"Sorry Sir," she said, bowing her head. Just as they had shifted into the silent mode, Bertha seemed to have overheard their conversation and gathered enough courage to get close to both of them.

"Master Mireku, I greet you," she said, courtesying.

"How are you? Bertha? I hope all is well?"

"Yes, Master. All is well with me but I wish it was so with you too."

" Well, we'll overcome if we get the best help we can."

" Okay. Let me make things easier for you then." Bertha whispered something in his ear.

" My God!" he exclaimed, holding his head in agony. "That's not good." Esi gawked at both of them, lost. " Esi, can you excuse us for a moment?" Esi nodded and excused the two of them. Mr Mireku took her outside to the porch and put her through a gruelling time of questioning.

" Did you see their faces?"

" No." Mireku snapped his fingers. " They were in masks and warned that we tell no one. I risked my life and reputation to tell you this because I know it will pay off." So he was the one they were after? Why would his girlfriend and daughter suffer for his mistake? This was more than a dilemma. He had to choose between the devil and the deep blue sea." They almost took me along because they didn't want to leave any witnesses behind."

" Why didn't they do so?"

" One of the men dissuaded them from doing so."

" I'm grateful you were kept alive to tell me this."

Back in the dark room, the men slapped her and called her names and asked her to crawl on the floor.

"You took away our inheritance and you're going to pay for it!" Frema knew nothing about what they were insinuating. She would never take what did not rightfully belong to her. As tears fell from her eyes, all the men began to run helter-skelter and hide in dismay. Terror had landed.

"All hail our king!" they said and bowed in obeisance.

" What do you mean by this act?" he asked in fury.

" We had no other way of bringing you here, King! You vowed never to have anything to do with us!"

" Of course! Why would I? I don't agree with your ways?"

" We need you and the only way is this way."

" So what's my stake?"

" Either you come back or your daughter stays with us." Not my daughter! I don't want her to lead such a life. Frema heard his voice and hushed. What was her father doing here? Was he the reason why she had been captured? Who was he? going to do to help her? The blindfold could not keep hope far away from her.

" Let her go! I will stay!" Frema hated the fact that her father was going to stay in a place with such conditions although she had no idea he was the brain behind it in the first place. It was expedient that she didn't disrupt the men's conversation because it would be wise to first understand the nature and style of conversation and receive some information from the codes in the words they spoke. Her father must have been involved in some illegal business and was paying dearly for it. The men, realising that Frema was listening to their every word, led Frema away into another room. A woman was sobbing there. The sound of her cry was familiar. Upon listening attentively for a minute or two, Frema knew it was her mother. Her desperate cry caught her ears immediately.

" Let me take off your blindfolds, my daughter. This may be the last time you will be seeing my face."

" Don't say so, mother. Please don't scare me. We will come through this."

"You don't know the kind of people you're dealing with, Frema. You never come in and go out the same."

"Why are you saying that? Mum? We shall surely leave here whole." Both of them held each other and cried their hearts out. It could truly be their final moment.