Must Read: Sinister Affections

Episode 7 years ago

Must Read: Sinister Affections

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Gen okafor was deep in thoughts throughout the ride to Kano. Firstly, Trina wasn’t responding like he expected her to. Wasn’t she the woman that always wanted him around anymore? Here he was, falling for her gradually and now she’s just laying waste to his efforts. worst of all, she seemed to care for another man.


‘just see the way she shed tears instantly because Henry was injured. If I died now, would she even wince?’



He decided to intensify his efforts on her. He had to….. Atleast, to save his alreaady broken marriage.


He sighed and studied the driver from the rear view mirror. The guy was driving too fast.
“don’t get us killed yet. Slow down” He corrected the driver and felth the G-wagon slow down.




Secondly, Henry’s case. He sensed something fishy. Henry was too qualified and trained to get hit in battle. Something definitely wasn’t right.
They’d already goten to Kano. The early morning sun was as hot as an oven. In a thirty minutes, he was driven into the clean compound of the hospital. After asking his body guards to wait outside, he walked into the reception where some scared nurses attended to him. No one needed to tell them he was there for Henry’s case. He was led straight to Henry’s room where he met Shindara and the other soldier whose name turned out to be matthew. They promptly stood up and saluted. Okafor acknowledged them with a nod.


“How is he?”Okafor asked deeply concerned.
“Still comatose sir. Nothing has changed since yesterday” Shindara replied while stiffling a yawn.
Okafor nodded and studied Shindara. Her eyes were red and baggy. Surely, she didn’t sleep all night. Matthew on the other had was as refreshed as a clean health baby. His snores on the bench they slept on was loud enough to scare a whale.
“you didn’t sleep all night, did you? Get some sleep. My boys will guard him.”



Shindara shrugged stubbornly. She felt it was her responsibility to watch him, afterall, she dragged him into the danger zone and indirectly aided the sniper in shooting him. Bet yet again, she had to obey Okafor. She turned to leave when she saw the doctor walk briskly towards Gen. Okafor with a smile.
“ah. General, it’s nice to see you. I’m Doctor Toba, the doctor in charge of Lt. Henry.” He blabbed. Shindara shook her head.. She’d been there for close to 18hrs and he didn’t tell her his name. What a twat he was
“Doctor, I was coming to your office now. Shall we go now?” Gen. Okafor replied with a smile and walked off with the doctor.



“Seems like the lieutenant will be transferred to the camp clinic” Matthew said while playing with his phone.
“They’d better”Shindara replied and took her seat.


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“General, why would you want to take him away from us? He’ll be taken care of here.” Doctor Toba pleaded the cause of the hospital. He couldn’t believe the general really wanted to move Henry out of the hospital.
“we aren’t doubting your competence doctor. The young man there is one of us and its only logical that we take care of our own. This place is for civilians” was Okafor’s candid reply. He stood up to leave. Time wasn’t on his side one bit. He had a lot to do today. The doctor stood up too.



“okay. Neccessary arrangements will be made to transport him back you you” The doctor said, dissapointed that Gen. Okafor didn’t agree to his thoughts.
“Thank you doctor, good day” Okafor walked out of the office and wove his way through the labrynth of passages and doors to Henry’s room. He walked past Shindara and Matthew, not sparing them a glance and walked into Henry’s room.
There was Henry, lying peacefully in the bed clothed in the blue uniform patients of the hospital wore. A drip was passed into his wrist and anoxygen mask was fixed on his face which meant he either had breathing complications or a punctured lung. His skin was rough and dry with his veins threathening to burst out of its place. His eye lids were a darker shade of yellow. Okafor shook his head at the frame that was an agile man some hours ago. He walked out of the room.



“Where are the rest of the squad?” Okafor asked Matthew.
“They’re on their way here. Sir” Matthew replied.
A call from Trina came into Okafor’s phone. He smilled, she was calling to ask about his welfare.
“excuse me, it’s my wife” He said proudly before walikng away to pick the call.
“Hello Trina”
“Hello, is Henry alright? is he goimg to make it?” Trina jabbered ceaselessly into the phone.
“Goodbye” Okafor dropped the call angrily.



What kind of woman did he marry?
“I’m sorry,” Okafor walked to the duo standing at Henry’s door ”Sergeant Shindara, tell me the details of everything,you were with him when he was shot” He ordered and started walking away, Shindara walked by him telling her tale from the very beginning. They walked straight out of the hospital only to be greeted by a flood of journalists holding up microphones and cameras clamourung to get attention from Gen. Okafor and Shindara. Okafors two body guards were doing a great job by pushing the journalists back with a wave of their guns.
“General sir, is it true that lieutenant Henry is here, wounded and comatose?” A bushy haired man creamed out. The others became silent to take notes.



Okafor look at the man for a while then spoke. “It is so and he’s responding well to treatment”

Another clamour came again from the journalists but a lady with the loudest voice and sharpest tongue spoke up. “General, How many soldiers were killed during this operation”
“We don’t know yet” Okafor replied.
“wasn’t if foolhardy of the military to send recruits into combat against trained rebel soldiers? Is it their incapabilities that made lieutenant Henry an easy target?” The lady shouted again. Okafor frowned very hard now.




“firstly, these recruits we are talking about are having just three weeks before they become full fleged soldiers. They’ve been trained enough and by our best lieutenant, Henry. The mission is a success according to the field report we just got.” Okafor ignored the later part of the journalists question.


Just then a military van drove into the compound claiming the ever curious eyes of the journalists.



Danladi stepped out along with officer Nuru who was baandaged by Shindara along with a soldier who drove..




The journalists immediately flooded him.
“lieutenant, are these the only men you survived with?”
Danladi laughed. ” no. The rest have driven the ammunitions to our soldiers in the creeks.”
“How did the rebel soldiers know you were on your way to Kano yesterday, lieutenant?”
Danladi was silent for a minute. “We had a mole amidsts us. He was a rebel soldier. He turned against his nation and gave intelligence to the rebels. We later found out the rebels were working together with the militants here in Kano” Danladi replied.
“where’s the mole now lieutenant and who’s he?”
“Oh, he’s dead. We had to kill him for our safety after he fixed a bullet into my leg. He’s a recruit. Sergeant Clement Okoro” Danladi knew he was defying protocols but his evil heartt wouldn’t let him keep shut. He had vowed to make Clement pay for shooting him even in death.




Clements family would be forced to walk in shame all their life.
Shindara stared in disbelief after hearing Danladi speak. Clement was dead and was a mole at that. No! The Clement she knew loved his country and was very commited and deligent. She didn’t want to believe it.



Gen. Okafor boiled in anger. Danladi ought to have kept shut. Danladi was surely going to pay for his folly

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