Onyedikachi loved hearing the name "ogo" (my in-law) from the villagers. It meant he had solidified his stance as a suitor even though their traditional marriage was still in view.

The old women he had greeted along the way had waved excitedly at him and called their in-law. He had driven out in search of dry meat as Papa Nnukwu had requested but got dry fish instead. His search was futile even though he had visited most of the local bars.

For some who recognized him at Nwanyi Ugo's bar, he had paid for their drinks, leaving his name resounding from their lips. Onyedikachi knew it was better to make friends with the village youth as some of them constituted as part of the village council. The young men had spoken briefly about a fire that had ravaged the home of one of the locals but Onyedikachi wasn't interested in the story.

Papa Nnukwu was displeased by Onyedikachi's return to the village without what he had requested but Obanma's presence assuaged his anger.

She had walked in on his childish tirade about not being able to eat what he craved. Everybody knew the old man favored Obanma and even Olivia had teased Onyedikachi of finding his grandfather a new wife before leaving with Arinze.

Arinze had insisted that Olivia would be staying with him at his shop because of how quickly her due date approached. It was a precautionary move on his part as he wanted to be around his wife till the delivery.

She had come to inform Onyedikachi of Adaugo's arrival because she had promised him that. Chidiogo had excused herself scarcely moments after Obanma's arrival, leaving a disapproving scowl on the old man's face.

"Sooner than later she'd learn just how alike the two of you are and maybe she wouldn't act like a child anymore" Papa Nnukwu had opined as he received the cup of palm wine, Onyedikachi had placed in his hands.

"Nne bia kene! Come and sit right here"  Papa had gestured as he was seated close to Onyedikachi and Obanma obliged with a smile. He reached out and held Obanma's hand before rendering an apology on Chidiogo's behalf.

Onyedikachi's pleading look had spoken just in measures as well but Obanma had taken no offense at Chidiogo's behavior. Instead she understood perfectly how flawed their relationship was .

"Onyedika pour her some wine" The old man had instructed which Onyedikachi quickly obliged with a smile.

He handed a glass of the freshly tapped palm wine that his grandfather had been gulping greedily.

Onyedikachi sat beside Obanma and gave a kiss on her forehead before he proceeded with separating the bone from the dried fish which he fed his blind grandfather.

"The fish is not that bad after all " He had declared as he ate more.

Obanma took a straight gulp of the liquid and relished the way the cold drink slithered satisfactorily along her throat and into her belly. She loved the taste but most especially how cold it was.

The second gulp lasted a while as she slowed her swallowing while Onyedikachi watched on in amusement.

He handed her a piece of the fish and watched excitedly as she chewed in amazement.

"It is very sweet" she tried whispering to Onyedikachi but Papa's boisterous laughed told her that she hadn't whispered after all.

"This one knows good things" he opined as he urged Onyedikachi to give Obanma more wine.

"You're going to get my bride drunk biko..ozugo"

Onyedikachi declared as he pulled Obanma to her feet whose feet wobbled slightly causing Onyedikachi to chuckle. "See who you want to feed more wine to, she can't even stand straight"

"I don't think I have much tolerance for alcohol" She had whispered chuckling while Papa Nnukwu fell into bouts of endless laughter.

"Mma you have no tolerance at all"

He enjoyed how much Obanma entertained him and how happy his grandchild seemed to be with her.

"Adaugo is around, Chijioke lef..left this morning because of the site. I think something happened but he wouldn't tell anyone. Our mother left with him, she insisted because she's scared for him. Almost losing your only son is a traumatic experience."

"I'll call him very soon, I hope everything turns out fine"

"Onyi I feel very weird today" Obanma began anew with her words drawling

"Mma you're tipsy, It's a weird feeling"

"No! Onyi it's different ..I can tell because of the way the air smells. I feel so sad " She continued struggling to maintain focus on her thoughts.

"Okay... now you're really drunk! my goodness just 2 glasses and you sound like Okwudili. I'm taking you inside to rest before bringing you home"

"It was more than 2 glasses, I....took some at the house before coming. Uncle Nnamdi gave me some"

"I don't want you to leave me..biko" She had pleaded as they arrived at his bedroom'

"Mma I'd never leave you. The only thing that can keep me away from you is death" He answered with a smile as he cuddled her on his bed.

"I'm never letting my grandfather feed you so much palm wine again"

When Chijioke got the news about his building being razed to the ground, He panicked.

He had always been very careful about his business of constructing his gas station. His mother had suspected from the onset that something was amiss when one of the men he had hired for protection had relayed the information to him.

"What about the guards!" He had thundered feeling disappointed

"They barely made out with their lives"

"How come? What were they doing? They're supposed to be watching the place for God's sake!"
All he could think of was the money he had invested into the construction and how much he had lost.

"Why would this happen now of all times?"

He had tried to mask his pain when his mother had asked him about the issue and had even lied to Obanma when she opted to follow him too.

Chijioke knew he was a target not just by his uncles but also Arinze with Chidiogo whom he fairly had begun to relate with once more.

When they arrived the site, his eyes saw the horror that had gone on. The smoke that still emanated from the parts of the building that barely stood told him how devastating it was.

His mother could barely recognise the same place she had visited not long ago with Obanma. Some of the buildings had even collapsed with the sooth covering the whole place.

One of the guards had even been hospitalised because he had inhaled so much smoke while his mates tried to get him outside.

Ngozi practically ran out of the gates to get some air as the news she was receiving was too overwhelming.

She let out a sob knowing that her son was still suffering from the hatred borne for her husband and her.

Her eyes caught a shrub by the side of the road where they had once told her was the spot Chijioke was stabbed and she couldn't help but stare.

The words came pouring in like loud echoes causing her head to pound.

"He doesn't treat you right, he doesn't deserve you Ngozi"

She watched her hands which were confiscated by the man and tried to pull away while he chuckled.

"I will make you feel like a woman trust me! I can already imagine how those breasts of yours would taste in my mouth"

Ngozi had barely finished retorting with a resounding slap on the man's cheek before Iheanyị had pounced on the man and started pounding his fists angrily into his face.

Ngozi had begged for him to stop but he pushed her aside and continued until the man could hardly move.

He tried to move but staggered so much that he fell on the shrub.

Ngozi watched on as people taunted the man as they had gathered when Iheanyị had dealt with him.

Her husband on the hand pulled her angrily away from the crowd and when they got home, he also dealt with her after claiming she had been the one who seduced the man. He had threatened to throw her out and made sure the council treated that man accordingly with the law. He was immediately stripped of his title and banned from the council.

Ngozi gasped as the memories came flooding back and the memories of the same face stalking the hospital where she was came flooding back.

The man had been stalking her and had even visited when she woke up from her coma.

"Oh my God!"

His voice echoed so loudly in her head with memories of Chidozie trying to protect her the day he died. She knew the voice of the thief so well, it was the same man who Iheanyị had beaten.

Chijioke met his mother with even worse news. One of the guards had claimed that they suspected themselves being drugged which was why they couldn't react quickly and the only thing they remembered eating was the food a young boy who had begun to work at the site helped purchase for them.

"Someone was behind all this!"

On the other end of the town, Arinze had gone to secure a trade with a partner as he thought of diversifying the family business by starting the importation of tiles for houses. He seemed thrilled as his bargain for partnership with a renowned importer had worked well.

He had noticed a thick cloud of smoke going upwards from afar and wondered what was involved in such fire. His mind went straight to his shops and he drove quite speedily to know if what he feared had happened.

Arinze was devastated when he saw the thick flames that had engulfed his shops. The heavy smoke that emanated and the group of men who struggled to quench the fire.

He knew the efforts made were to prevent the fire from burning the other shops. The men had claimed they had contacted the fire service but were yet to see their vans.

Most of the men were shirtless and kept throwing buckets of water mixed with detergent at the shop that wouldn't stop burning.

"Oga abeg! My wife! Where is she?" Arinze questioned one of the men as his voice shook out of fear.

"Oga I no sabi anybody here! I just see as dem dey pour water here come join them."

Arinze approached a trader who was also familiar and the man was displeased because they had been trying to reach him.

"I left that phone here with my wife Olivia, it's my business line. Please have you seen her? Do you know if she left the shop!"

The man was overwhelmed with fear as the questions got to him.

None of them had seen Arinze's wife leave and one of the apprentices who had been badly injured had claimed he last saw her sleeping.

Arinze's hand began to shake as he dialled his wife's number. He had called his mother immediately and she had told him that Olivia had not come home.

The traders claimed some masked boys came and threw bottles of petrol with fire into and around the shop and had driven out scarcely minutes after they did.

Arinze didn't care much about the story as his wife's whereabouts was unknown.

"I heard someone scream but oga I don't think anyone could have gone in there. Those plastics aided this fire, it became scary in a matter of minutes"

The words tore at Arinze's heart and he struggled to breathe. He didn't want to believe that his pregnant wife was burnt alive.

He tried to run into the shop but the men around held and pushed him aside.

"My wife! My wife! She could be in there!"

He kept screaming as they held him in place.

"If she's there then she's dead , Arinze nobody can survive this furnace of a fire! Do you want to die too! We tried to get everyone out at the beginning!"

Arinze staggered aimlessly as the moments he shared with Olivia replayed in his head. He had been insistent when she had almost changed her mind about coming to the shop with him. The man's words only made it worse.

"What had he done?"

Tears clogged his throat and the liquid slipped out of his eyes as he kept calling Olivia's phone. She had to have escaped somehow for his sake

He felt his world crumble bit by bit and a loud scream left his lips.

"Olivia please be alive! You can't do this to me please."

He ran back into his vehicle and had almost left when a young man stopped his car.

"I know who did this to you" He had opined with conviction.

"Who?" Arinze enquired raging, his eyes with a demonic look in them

"It was Chijioke"

Arinze acknowledged the man's words with a nod and sped off into the village.

A smile crept unto a man's face as he saw the after deal of his actions and gloried in how perfectly executed his plans were.

"Osisioma is just a coward, Chijioke will be out of the picture before he knows it. Where is your brother Ekene?"

The man asked his son who was filled with guilt as he watched Arinze drive off. His father had just made them murder the poor man's wife because of his madness.

"He just left...Ekene left ... We killed her ! Don't you even have a conscience!"

He stared at his son with disappointment as tears fell from the boy's eyes.

"They said she was pregnant!"

"Your mother should be worth those lives. She is at a house close to my hideout. You will see her tonight"

Hello Everyone!

How are we?

Hope we enjoyed the chapter

I feel so sad about Olivia , what do you think will happen now?

Please do not forget out date by 5pm today🙏🤗❤️