Sales girl episode 15

*Recap: Daniel was involved in an accident after
he and Dami fought but was later released.
Natasha’s involvement with Inspector James was
discovered by Andre and she was severely
punished for it. After being locked away for many
days without food or water, Rashida was able to
get to her and they came up with a plan to help
Natasha and contact Inspector James.*
9:35am, 7th April 2016,
Tuesday morning,
Lagos.

It was my first day back on campus after being
kidnapped. I avoided classes for that day and kept
a very low profile on campus. No one was around
when I got in and I noticed that Chioma’s side of
the room was suspiciously empty. I shrugged it off
and set my bag down, glad for some time to
myself. I noticed there was a white envelope on
my desk and went to open it. Inside, I found a
letter.
Dami,
By the time you get this, I’m not likely to be
around. I’ve asked the management to grant me
permission to transfer to another room. I’m sorry
but being around you will simply remind me of
how I almost lost my bother and all that we went
through to get him back. I hope you understand.
Chioma.
I let the letter fall back unto the table. I couldn’t
believe that she would do something like that. It
was like she didn’t consider the fact that I suffered
too. I decided to get out of the room and take a
stroll to clear my mind. It was filled with thoughts
of all that had transpired during the past few weeks
and I was barely aware of my surrounding. All of a
sudden, I tripped over a stone and fell against
someone’s back. The person turned around and I
felt my heart leap in my chest when the face
registered.
“Nonso…” I said in surprise. “You’re alright! I was
worried so about you, especially after how things
turned out.”
I felt relieved at seeing him looking healthy again
and waited expectantly for a reply. But my smile
dropped when I saw the expression on his face.
His face hardened and the look he gave me sent
my blood running cold.
“Wh-what’s wrong?” I stammered.
“Are you really asking me that? It’s because of you
Dami, that I almost got killed. Do you know what
that crazy man told me when he tied me to a chair
and beat the living daylights out of me? He said
that I was used as bait for you despite the fact that
I had nothing to do with what was going on. I
should have listened to my sister when she told
me to stay away from you. But that’s what I get for
ignoring her.”
I was too shocked to speak. I had to take a few
moments to gather my words.
“What are you talking about Nonso? Immediately I
heard, I went to the Police and came after you. Do
you think I knew things were going to turn out this
way? Or that I planned to be stalked and sold off
into-”
“Into what?” He asked curiously.
“Never mind, you don’t care anyway.”
I turned to leave but he grabbed my arm.
“Dami, what are you saying?”
I broke out of his hold and looked him in the eye.
“I’m saying that you’re not the only one who
suffered as a result of what happened.”
His eyes softened a bit and he took a step back.
“Listen, I’m sorry okay but I don’t want to have
anything to do with you anymore.”
As painful as it was to hear those words, I decided
to keep my face straight and let him walk away. I
realised that not everyone you hold unto plans to
stay and sometimes, the people you push away are
the ones who were always meant to be by your
side.

***
7:42pm, 7th April 2016,
Tuesday evening.

Natasha felt like she couldn’t take anymore. She
was nearly close to cracking under the pressure of
Andre’s torture and the rate at which her body was
weakening became alarming. She raised her head
slowly as the door opened and Andre’s heavy
footfalls could be heard.
“Natasha, why do you punish yourself in this
manner?” He asked in a taunting voice. “I’ve
already given you the option to tell me all you
know about this man and then I’ll let you go. Or
do you not think your life is important?”
She gave him a blank stare that seemed to enrage
him further. He kicked a chair out of the way and
let it crash into the wall, creating a startling noise
that made her wince.
“Oh, look at that. You’re not as fearless as you
act.” He smiled. “I wonder if you will react this
way if I help relieve you off maybe… a few fingers.”
Natasha gulped nervously in fear but refused to
change her expression. Andre snapped once and
one of his men came forward holding a small
knife. He took it and stooped down to where she
sat in the corner of the room.
“You still have the chance now, Natasha. I hate to
do this to you but you brought it upon yourself.”
He whispered.
She looked him in the eye and parted her lips
slightly. Her words came out as mere breaths of
air.
“Do your worst.”
Andre erupted in a rage as he grabbed her by the
neck and shoved her against the wall. Her head
bounced off the hard surface, creating an audible
crack and her vision went dim. Natasha could feel
energy draining out of her with the overwhelming
pain she felt. It seemed to consume her and wipe
out all other emotions. She could barely gather the
strength to even shed a tear when the knife sliced
through the first layer of skin. In defeat, she gave a
little inaudible sigh and let her eyes drift shut,
blocking out the rest of the world.
***



“She lost a lot of blood. Right now, her body needs
all the rest it can get. She has endured a lot of
pain but she is recovering. All we can do now is
pray.” A solemn voice said.
“It’s my fault. I should have known that Andre has
no patience.” The second voice was Rashida’s.
She sat slumped in the seat next to the bed while
Inspector James stood in the corner of the room
with his head bowed. He hadn’t said a word for all
the time he had been there, except to speak to the
Doctor. Long after the Doctor left, Rashida was still
bem0an!ng the fact that Natasha could have been
long dead by then. When her cries became too
much to handle, he quietly walked up behind her
and placed his hand gently on her neck. In
seconds, he applied pressure on a specific point
and Rashida was fast asleep, finally granting the
room some quiet.
“Did you really have to do that?”
James froze and turned to look at the bed where
Natasha now sat up, watching him.
“You’re awake…” He said quietly, taking a step
closer to the bed.
She smiled gently, although it was filled with
exhaustion. James shook his head and looked
away.
“I don’t understand how you can act this way.”
“In what way?” Natasha’s eyebrows wrinkled in
confusion.
“Like you didn’t almost lose your life in the
process of helping me, I asked you to do this and I
didn’t pause to think about the consequences or
the danger I was putting you in.” His voice was
low and solemn.
“I had to do it. Not just so I could clear my name
or because you told me. I realised that if no one
did anything about it, more girls would end up in
my situation and more lives would be destroyed
while those animals would just sit back and watch
the money roll in.” Tears sprang up in her eyes
and it felt like all the emotions that had been
locked up during the torture she went through in
Andre’s hands had resurfaced.
Before James could comprehend his actions, he
began to wipe them away slowly with the palm of
his hand. Natasha looked up out of shock and her
eyes met his with a slight look of confusion. He
glanced down at his hand as if it had a mind of its
own and took a step back, clearing his throat.
“I’m sorry, I…”
“No, it’s okay…”
They stopped at the same time and waited for the
other to continue. When it seemed like no one was
going to say a word, Natasha spoke up.
“So has there been any progress with closing the
case?”
“Yes actually,” He looked relieved that she spoke
up first. “As we speak, my men are rounding up
everyone that was on that recording you gave me.
Some are being evasive but we would catch up to
them soon. In the meantime, you have nothing to
fear, no information about you was given out.
You’re completely anonymous and safe from the
public eye.”
“Thank you.” She smiled.
“In fact, a similar report was made about this same
group of men in another part of the state. It seems
you are not the only one who wished to put a stop
to their business.”
His gaze saddened suddenly as he noticed her
bruises and scars once again.
“I’m really sorry about this Natasha.”
“I’ll heal… eventually. It was worth it.”
“You’re very brave.”
She lowered her eyes, not sure how to take the
compliment. She certainly didn’t feel brave when
Andre’s knife had pierced through layers of skin
and drawn blood. Frankly, she’d just wanted to get
through the pain and at a point, it became so
unbearable that she couldn’t feel again.
Inspector James’s phone rang just then and he
looked down at the caller ID before picking up.
“Yes officer, what do you have for me?” His voice
deepened with authority that came from being high
up in the ranks.
“That’s good news.” He nodded briefly. “Is that
so? Yes, I’ll be there.”
He ended the call and looked at Natasha with the
hint of a smile visible in his eyes.
“They’ve found two more men on the mainland
and Andre has been arrested along with the brain
behind the operations; Mr Phillips who was found
hiding out on the Island. The girls have also been
released and sent back to their homes.”
With those words, Natasha felt like a heavy weight
had been lifted off her chest. She shut her eyes in
relief and leaned back against the headboard. Her
eyes opened again when she heard movement
from where he stood.
“You’re leaving?” She sat up again.
“Yes, I have to get back to the headquarters.”
“Oh…” She wasn’t sure what else to say.
“Have a smooth recovery Natasha.” He said as he
walked closer to the door. “I’ll be in touch.”
That was the last she heard of him in a long time.
***
10th April 2016,
Friday Morning.
Lagos Island.
I switched on the TV and sat down, waiting
expectantly for the headlines to come up. Nothing
caught my attention until I saw it. I finally let
myself breath in relief. He had been caught and the
Police had also taken Kayla in for questioning after
Daniel who had been discharged and I had given
our statement on all that happened. In another part
of the state, other suspects who had something to
do with the case of human trafficking and
prostitution had been rounded up and Mr Phillip’s
company which he had used as a cover for his
underground business had been shut down.
I switched the TV off and smiled to myself.
With a sudden bout of courage, I picked up my
phone and made a call. At first I was scared he would ignore my calls like he did ever since we left
the Police station but he picked up on the second
ring.
“Daniel, it’s me.”
“I know.”
So, that wasn’t encouraging. I sighed and rubbed
my forehead tiredly. I was just trying to get my
best friend back.
“Look, I don’t want to start a fight. I just want to
see you.”
I waited with bated breath for his reply.
“I’m on the way.”
I sighed in relief and ended the call. I mentally
prepared myself for the next phase of my plan and
hoped to God that it would mend our friendship. It
wasn’t elaborate but I hoped it meant something to
him.

***
Daniel knocked several times on Dami’s door and
waited for a response but none came. He then
tried the door handle to find that it was unlocked.
He frowned and stepped in cautiously, unsure of
what he would find. As he shut the door behind
him, he noticed the yellow post-it note stuck to the
door handle.
Before you go further, I just wanted to let you
know…

The note ended there and Daniel looked around
curiously for the next one, he knew there had to be
more. Truly, he found a second note stuck to the
wall beside the door.

I’m sorry. I know I always seem to be apologizing
but it seems I’m always doing something wrong…

Daniel went round the room looking for the next
one which he found stuck to the mirror.
I didn’t mean to throw your words back in your
face. You just took me by surprise…
The fourth and final note said: