She saw Chris step out of the plaza where his office was located and hurriedly dashed for his car. He was on a call and looked really disturbed.
“Follow him,” She told the uber driver, as Chris started to drive out of the premises
They followed him as he drove through the traffic of people and vehicles characteristic of the central business district on Fridays as Muslim faithfuls observe their Jumaat prayers.
Suddenly there was pandemonium as the sound of heavy gunshots rent the air. People were shouting and running in all directions. Some were going flat on their stomachs – and someone was asking others to do the same.
The sound of impatient sirens faint against the heavy noise of gunshots, people opening their cars and fleeing, the scream of people frantically trying to escape – it all looked surreal to her as she looked ahead – at the place where just now, Chris’s car was speeding through.
“Chris...Chris..” she muttered
“madam, madam, oya come down let’s take cover” the uber driver was saying to her impatiently
“My husband..he…” she stammered
“Madam abeg come down,” he said pleadingly this time. He opened the car carefully and opened the passenger door for her. She got down slowly, placing her hands over her head as though they could shield her.
The driver snatched one of her hands and they started to run with the others, some of who had their bags and hands over their heads.
They took cover in an uncompleted building as the crisis continued. The gunshots were coming intermittently now and everyone else inside the building had different stories about what was going on.
Some said it was a gun duel between some political thugs and the police, others said it was kidnappers trying to make away with an important personality, yet others said a bank was being robbed – non was certain yet.
The building was quite crowded. It was a mix of people. There were women in colourful hijabs and Lauren saw them trying to comfort a woman who said her child was missing.
There were men trying to make an analysis and some had already broken into a bitter conversation on the growing insecurity in the country and the state of the nation.
Lauren stood observing with her eyes bloodshot from crying. She had her back to the wall, and standing close to her was the uber driver. He had decided to stay close to her after she attempted to run out of the building to go search for her husband.
Now she leaves to go and stand at one of the open windows of the building. All that was visible from here was a swampy plantain farm and the back view of some buildings that housed important offices in the central business district. She wasn’t exactly sure what part of the area they were in.
She brought out her phone and dialled Chris’ number again and for the umpteenth time, it rang through but he never picked up. She was afraid, to say the least.
She couldn’t stop herself from imagining what could have gone wrong
The Uber driver came and stood by her, trying to get into a conversation
“Don’t worry madam. I’m very sure your husband is fine”
She looked at him. She needed to hear those words so badly, but not from someone who had been here with her since they fled.
She wanted to ask him if he had heard anything or if he was just trying to comfort her. She thanked him instead, trying to acknowledge him
“But ma..why were you trying to follow him? Why were you trying to follow your husband?”
she welcomed this question, surprised at herself for how much she was ready to speak with someone.
Lauren, a vivacious young Christian girl is married to the love of her life, Chris, who is the choirmaster in their local church
Everything was rosy until she stumbled upon a string of conversations on her husband's phone that led to heart-shattering discoveries
Will Lauren ever forgive?
Find out what Lauren did that almost ruined her life and her marriage in this suspense-filled contemporary Christian romance novella
