Chapter 10

he would not allow his wife know what's going on, if only he will convince Olivia to keep their affair secret. But where would he be taking her to? Hotels would be a bad idea, it will cause a scene. He is known in town and most people know Pat because of her supply business. He gulped the beer in his cup and poured another from the bottle.

Yeah! That's it; he shouted in a soft voice.

That was when he remembered that Brains house is available and he has the spare keys. After all, Brains had earlier given him a go ahead to use his house for the game. Why hadn't he thought of this all these while. Poor me he thought to himself. He would make sure he don't waste much time to speak out and tell Olivia how he feel and what he feel for her. It was at this point that he heard the gun shot and the roudy noise from the inside of the garden. He quietly left his seat and hid at the back of the space housing the snooker board. From there he could see the entire front view of the garden. It wasn't up to 20 minutes that he saw a man jump the fence leaving blood trail on the wall and something fell out of the man's pocket. He picked up his phone and called the police emergency number. He dropped the call, he couldn't believe the next sight, being held and helped towards a car is Olivia. 

What is she doing here? He queried himself. 

He was moving towards them when the police car arrived and his cell phone rang, it was the police they are calling to ascertain his position and get information. He answered and went with them to the fence to show them where the man jumped from. One of the police officers then saw it, the silver coloured pistol was lying on the floor with stains of blood. He took out a handkerchief and picked it up to avoid tampering with the finger prints.

Thank you Mr? The tall police officer said to Mike

Mike is the name, replied Mike.

Inspector Benson, he said his name with a Zulu accent. If there is anything we need we will reach you, meanwhile feel free to call me Incase you see anything else, he said handing Mike his compliment card.

The police left him and went into the graden.

He was still wondering what may have brought Olivia to the garden park, is the guy he saw her with, her boyfriend? If that's the case, he is loosing out already, he has to be fast enough before it's too late. He entered his car and took off towards home.

Brains got to the airport early enough to check in, he has only a hand luggage which made it light for him. He sat at a corner, brought out his phone and called Mike. He had earlier heard the news of a kidnapping case that failed at garden park. The name Olivia rings a bell, it may be the lady Mike is seeing or he thinks so. He dialed Mike's number;

Hello Brains

Hello Mike, just a quick one, have you heard the news?

Yes I actually was there when the would be kidnpper jumped the fencé.

Mike told him what happened.Brains was shocked but shrugged it off as his mind is preoccupied with his trip.

I will call you once I get to Paris, I am about to board. 

Ok, safe trip 

With that, he got up from his seat as the voice from the microphone echoed the readiness of his flight. Within the next few minutes, he was boarded and ready to go.

Meanwhile, Olivia had got home took a pill of profene and lay down on the bed, it didn't take a while when she dosed off. She woke up and sat down thinking of the whole incident. Who has she offended, who would want her dead or kidnapped, could it be a mistaking identity? All these questions need an urgent answer. She thought of her life in Paris, she hadn't in anyway known to her, offended nor stepped on anyone's toe. What next would she do? Her stay in this town does not seem safe again. Everything seem to be happening so fast, even though Chase has promised to get to the root of the case, how sure is she that the person or people would not strike again. It was a stroke of luck that  Chase came to her rescue at the park. She may not be lucky next time. She thought of her family, they do not know where she is, she only told her Mom she was traveling, without mentioning where and who she is going to see. She stood up and went to the kitchen to take a cup of juice, there he is standing alone, Mike had come in, and went straight to the kitchen took a cup of cold water and say down thinking. 

Hi,

Hi Mike replied

How long have you been around? questioned Mike

I have been sleeping in the room, got home tired.

Mike had wanted to ask her what happened but  a second thought, he held back. He decided to avoid that rather he should tell her how he feel about her, especially now that the opportunity has presented itself.

Honey! Are you in? Came Pats voice.

Sorry I have got to go, Mike told Olivia and without waiting for her response, he dashed out of the kitchen to answer the wife.

 There she is left alone once again. She took a cup, rinsed it, opened the fridge and took a pack of orange juice, she filled the cup and stepped to the balcony where she took a seat. She could hear Pat and Mike arguing although she can't make out what it is all about. That isn't her concern now. She sipped her drink and took her phone, dialled her moms number o wassap. The phone rang for a while but no one picked, she tried again, to no avial. She then dropped a message telling her mom to get back to her ASAP.

Chase had driven back to his house at the mountain and hills estate. It is an estate built on the high topography of the town, it is reserved for the rich class although some of the average middle class are found there, most of them rent the quarters behind the main building. As soon as he got home, he took a glass of whiskey and rushed to the bathroom where he turned on the shower and allowed water run on him for some minutes. He then took a quick shower and came out to his sitting room. He poured another glass of whiskey, brought out his laptop and put it on. He turned on his WiFi and clicked on Google search engine. He then typed Olivia, he paused for while, he doesn't know her surame, neither has he asked. What will he do now? He picked his phone and called her, she picked;

How are you doing Olivia? He asked

I am alright, though still going through the shock.

So sorry, you will get over it, just be calm and don't hesitate to call me if need be.

Thanks so much she replied.

He could not ask her surname though he had wanted to, he didn't want her to suspect anything. He then remembered her phone number. Just as they dropped the call, he opened his contact list, wrote out her number and clicked on Google search again and typed the number on the querry bar. Google brought out over 1 million options including suggestions. He thought of how he would go through all these. He decided to take his time. He began to go through them one after the other. As at the 150th option there is no clue as regards the number, just suggestions on what the number could either be or stand for. He got tired and left it. He opened his Facebook page, typed in Olivia and clicked o search, Facebook brought out over 100 million Olivia, he narrowed down his search to Paris alone, the number reduced to 20 million. He allowed the pictures to download while he turned on the TV to watch. In the news, the incident at garden park was mentioned, no much details was given except that the police is on it and option given with phone numbers for anyone with a useful information. Chase put off the T.V and went to the room to take a nap.

Pat have noticed her husband's behaviour recently and she is becoming more confused as to what might be the problem. He is no longer the Mike that she knew. She married him to free herself from the parents troubles and because he is not the inquisitive type, which makes her feel at ease with her wired life. She came from a decent family and her parents have them good upbringing, teaching them morals but she grew up and turn away from those morals. It all started while in the high school, she has these few friends whose orientation about boys is different. She joined them and since then she has been initiated into the clique. She has been dating different girls from then which prompted her parents doubts on her lifestyle and probability of marriage. She couldn't stand them nor could she dare combining them that she has made her choice to live the way she feels, hence her acceptance to marry. Nature she believe brought the right man to her and since then she has been enjoying herself without issues. It is only the childessness that has come to be a pain in her neck. She had thought and tried many ways to make sure she covered her trails, this includes the bribing of her doctor friends who also unknown to her husband is her playmate. If only she can find a way to bring in Olivia to accept giving her husband a child, she will be at peace. She has already made up her mind that she will not have children and there is nothing anyone can do about that. It is her life and she will live it to the fullest. Even though sometimes she feel bad that the innocent young man is passing through the trauma and challenge of not having a child yet, she has always had a way of shrugging off such feeling and move on. 

She remebered she has an appointment when she answered that call, it was from one of her client, she is a very rich woman and she introduced her into the supply business to make it easy for her to always be on the go instead of being stuck in either an office or at home. Supply business is good for their kind of game, even as you are meeting clients for supplies, you can a well meet your clients for a good time, she could remember those words of advice from the woman and since then her life not remained the same. If only Mike had made a wrong move of having an affair outside the marriage or even done anything suspicious of flirting or mingling with women, that is known to her, her plan would have been an easy one to execute. She picked up her phone and called to verify the address and time, her joy knows no bounds as the response came positive. She hurriedly went in to take her shower.

Brains flight was a cool one, he had time to sleep and rest. The fight landed safely though there were turbulence but the pilot told to be at peace. He picked up his hand luggage and stepped down to the beautiful scene of Paris, this is his second visit to this beautiful city, only that he difference is clear, he had been here previously to unwind but this time, he is here for a mission. His instinct tells him it is not going to be a easy one, a lot must have happened since the last time they spoke. He stepped out of the airport to the Car hire service where he got a taxi to the hotel. At the reception he handed in his printed reservation and in a few minutes he was checked into his room. He loved the room as it is on the 4th floor and it is facing the beach. He slides the window doors and shifted the blinds to allow for fresh air. He placed his little box in the wardrobe, took the remote and turned on the TV. He removed his t-shirt and unbuckled his trouser belt and threw himself on the sofa. The music from MTV base was fascinating that he did not know when he slept off.

Brains woke up after the few minutes of that rest, he rushed to the bathroom and took a quick shower as the day is set for the reason f the trip. He quickly brought out his pocket diary and scribble down few places he is to visit that day. His first point of visit will be the famous eatery where he and Olivia went for french fries. He remembered that she was a regular there as almost all the staff knew her. It would be the first point of call. He also wrote down other places to visit including some offices that trade on crypto.

Pat booked.an Uber, she was set for the deal, she then went to tell Olivia that she is off for a business. When she got to Olivia, she noticed that her countenance isn't good. She was looking disturbed and drinking whiskey more than usual. She enquired from her what the problem might be, Olivia didn't respond, rather she took the bottle and.poured herself another cup of the drink. This would be her 3rd cup. The way she dropped the bottle sent a message to Pats head and she immediately got hold.of the cup;

What is it, why are you drinking this way, is anything the matter? She asked almost shouting

Olivia stammered a little though what she uttered doesn't sound meaningful.Pat helped her get to her feet and assisted her to the room. She wouldn't want to miss her appointment, so she told Olivia to have a rest until she comes back. She reached out for the pillow,.pushed her head up and pushed the pillow under her head. She then covered her with a sheet. By this time, Olivia had slept off, so she quietly left and closed the door slowly. The Uber driver arrived the gate and sent a message while waiting for Pat. Immediately she saw the message, she took her hand bag looked herself in the mirror at the dinning section to see how she looked. She was dressed in a pair of black jean with a white Fendi t-shirt.