Must Read: Paradox Of Abel - Season 1 - Episode 28

Episode 7 years ago

Must Read: Paradox Of Abel - Season 1 - Episode 28

Daniel was closer to the detective than either Moses or Ayo, so he had the audacity to extend his hand towards Lot for a shake. The pressure with which the gumshoe grabbed his hand matched the snapping of a mousetrap. Daniel winced painfully, and he masked this agony in vain. He nearly cursed himself for extending the hand in the first place. He’d forgotten that the detective’s palms were as firm as Bash Ali’s jaw. Naturally, he’d have preferred a hug; for he’d missed Lot too much for just an agony-inducing hand-vibration. But it was too late for embrace. The two men momentarily stood staring at each other, taking brief moments to reminisce on their previous adventure.




Like eating a delicious cuisine, Daniel took his time to savour the delectable presence of the detective. Lot had grown quite bigger within the past three rainy seasons he had seen him. The gumshoe had gathered almost twice the calories he’d proudly fostered three years earlier. He was now considerably large, his shoulders appeared to possess the ability to tear steel doors off their hinges. The bulk of the belly was now straining along the circumference of the belt; a tremendous belly it was, which alone would have held up his pair of trousers, but cautious man that Lot was, he wore a belt to suspend the loops. What particularly fascinated Daniel most about the great man was his face. It was covered in hair.




The hair on his head, although greying, was enough for a parliament of owls to seek refuge. His eyebrows were so thick that a house painter would favour them over his brushes, if given a chance to swap. Then the beards and moustache were something else themselves. The detective’s face was so hairy that all Daniel could see were two blinking eyes, and this left the young footballer wondering how Lot lit his cigarettes without setting his face on fire. And if the beards caught fire, what a wildfire that would be!




In addition, the detective favoured thick socks and heavy shoes in which he waddled like a duck. All in all, to Daniel, Lot had a face strong and noble enough to be stamped in profile on ancient coins long ago out of circulation. Sometimes he seemed to be but an actor playing the role of a detective. Although if it was a performance, then it was of an award-winning calibre. At fifty-seven, he gave the impression that he was far wiser than his years, easily commanding respect and fear.






There was something of a psychologist and something of a priest in him – qualities everyone in his possession needed but few possessed. He was a rare person who enjoyed having power but did not abuse it, who exercised authority with good judgement and compassion, and he’d been a detective for almost twenty years without a hint of ineptitude or inefficiency in his profession. He now worked privately.




Both men had different tastes in things. Daniel was obsessed with football but Lot never really followed sports much because he had an acute sense of time slipping away and a reluctance to use his precious hours in too many passive activities. Daniel liked Nigerian Hip Hop songs while Lot preferred contemporary African songs. Daniel had no interest in politics but Lot was a PDP aficionado. In foreign movies, Lot’s guilty pleasure was in following every movie that starred Denzel Washington, while Daniel took fancy in watching the immortal Jackie Chan. But still, both men always stood immobile whenever and wherever the national anthem was being sung.


Realizing that the detective was beginning to glare at him for staring too long, he managed to speak, “I thought you’d never come.”
“I didn’t want to come,” he lied, “I am hiding out from the decoration crew that had promised to put up trees and stuff in my house today. They all wear this stupid Santa hats, and every time they see you they shout, ‘Merry Christmas!’ grinning like lunatics. Besides, I recently solved a case and I need another one to make me forget it. The case was another sad little one; brought another sniveling, cheating husband to ground like the big bad hero I am. I had made couple of bales by ruining a family with pictures of Daddy grunting in the backseat of their Mercedes with a woman who didn’t look anything like Mommy at all. I hope never to take up such ridiculous case again!” He paused and continued, “Besides, if you were left alone, I figured you’d complicate the crime committed here instead of solving it.






However, I must tell you that you’ve got the spirit of catching the least obvious clues, although I’ll still admit that you’re too dumb to notice this gift you have.”
“Oh, thank you, sir.” He smiled, he knew the detective’s polite vocabulary too much to take umbrage. Every of Lot’s praise always somehow came with a price.
“So, what have you done about the situation?” Lot demanded, “Or have you been engaging yourself in some less admirable ventures?”
“Less admirable ventures like what, sir?”
“Like falling in love again. What new crochet has possessed your excitable brain?’
“Is it wrong to fall in love?”
“I didn’t say that, but don’t tell me you’re in love again.” Lot placed a prominent emphasis on the word again. “Besides, what in heaven’s name brought you to this ranch? Were you shot out of a cannon and landed here?”
“It’s a long story.”
“When will your story ever be short?” Lot commented wearily, “So, what better things have you done besides calling those two layers of eggs?”





Daniel chuckled inwardly; he wondered what would become of a world where humans of the masculine proportionate resorted to the deposition of ovoid materials right from the region of their depletive sphincters. He’d rather not linger in such a world.
“Remember what you did in the former case,” explained Daniel, “after telling me that you’d not be coming I took it upon myself to investigate the case –”
Lot sighed.
“– with the assistance of the lay– with the assistance of Moses and Ayo. But before their arrival, after you terminated the call, right in the middle of the night when all the family members had retreated to their rooms, I stole out of the house to check the corpse again.





I searched every pocket on him just to find anything that could serve as a clue, a mobile phone perhaps.”
“And what did you find?”
“Nothing. I found nothing on the corpse.”
“What position was the corpse lying when you searched it?”
“The position he was the first time we saw him; he was lying on his belly.”
“What position did you leave him?”
“The same position I found him.”
Lot nodded his head, smiling. Then he walked out on Daniel towards the corpse and dipped his hand in its pocket. When he extracted his hand he came up with a folded sheet of foolscap paper. When he straightened it he realized that the paper had been burnt in half.









On the paper were some pieces of writing which would make better sense if the other half of the burnt paper was in handy. Lot searched the two other pockets without much succes.





Daniel, on the other hand, was open-mouthed, and evidently surprised at the detective’s discovery. He swore that the paper was not on the corpse when he searched it.
“You’ve got a lot to tell me, Daniel.” Lot declared

Daniel instantly brought to oral expression what he hoped would be. He said excitedly, “Does this mean we are going to solve the case together, you and me?”
Lot stared at him a short moment and shook his head, “That’s ungrammatical! It’s “You and I!” he thundered.