#NovemberConnectz...26.11.16

UPCOMING EVENT!!!!!!

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CAPTION IT YOURSELF

RANDOM AFRICAN THOUGHTS.

Script Title: Caption it yourself

Director: Edwin Oko Lamptey 

Location: Inside A "trotro" (Commercial bus)

Imagine yourself in a trotro. The main occupants are usually the driver and his conductor. You join the bus at a bus stop. The conductor employs a few "delay tactics" to get more occupants into his car. Note: It is rush hour and traffic is building up; very fast! It's past five minutes; the car is still at the bus stop. The driver makes knee-jerking movements, as if he is moving the car. 

The occupants start to complain. He calls out to his conductor who pretends not to hear him. Ten minutes in, a couple of passengers get off the bus and hurriedly join another car going towards their destination. The conductor does not want more passengers getting off so he quickly runs back and joins the car. He shuts the door and exchanges words with a few irate passengers. The driver intervenes and calm is restored. Immediately, the conductor starts collecting fares. Your fare is proportional to the distance you want to travel (even though it doesn't make so much sense sometimes judging by our pricing methods). A few passengers argue it out with the conductor. A well-dressed man pays his fare but the conductor informs him that he has to add some more to equal his destination. The man pleads; the conductor disagrees so a "Good Samaritan", saves the well-dressed man from embarrassment by paying the difference. 

A woman hands the conductor somewhat of a huge denomination. The conductor complains of not having enough change. He hands the woman her change; but not the exact change. The conductor needs to add the same amount he was asking from the well-dressed man to make the woman's change accurate but he struggles to get it. A few stops ahead, the woman gets off and does not take the rest of the change. The driver moves the car. 

A passenger seated at the back alerts the conductor that he would alight at the next bus stop. The conductor nods and pulls his head out of the car to prospect for more customers. The driver zooms past the proposed bus stop and stops the car at another bus stop way ahead. The passenger at the back is fuming because he has to walk backwards to reach his original stop point. He insults the driver and his conductor. The driver pleads and says he can only stop at designated bus stops so he had to do the right thing once he has missed the chance to stop at the desired bus stop. The conductor doesn't see what he has done wrong. A few seconds after the passenger at the back alights, the driver stops right in front of a "NO PARKING...NO STOPPING", sign post to pick another "customer". The other customers in the car accuse the driver and his conductor of being bias. The driver and his conductor "shut them up" by saying; they had to pick that customer because any of them could have been in that same situation when they were in a hurry. The whole bus is quiet. 

The driver makes another stop before the main lorry station (which is supposed to be the last stop) and says that is his last stop. Many passengers fume and accuse the driver and his conductor of deception. No matter how much they complain, the driver doesn't budge, he even turns off the ignition to tell them how serious he is. On the other hand, some passengers are happy because the driver has actually saved them some walking time because their destination is pretty much closer to their current stop than from the main lorry station. They gleefully thank the driver and get off without saying anything foul to either the driver or his conductor. You are one of these "happy bunch", you get off too and start walking towards your destination...

Now, let’s edit this script through the lens of REALITY....

Life has a way of offering all of us a "levelled playground" for success regardless of your family background, occupational status, educational background or financial standing i.e (the bus stop)

When the bus of success pulls over at the bus stop, most of us get on. The "hungry ones" (the people with the get-rich-quick mentality, those with ideas that need to be swiftly put into action and the like) cannot stand the long wait so they get off and join a faster bandwagon to success i.e (their destination). 

Life will still go on whether you are in a hurry or not.

Life demands from everyone exactly what it wants; you cannot shortchange life if you expect to get to your destination. No matter how much you put on appearances, life would always have a way of exposing pretence. There are days when the pocket is genuinely 'not good' but life and success don’t care. They will take from you exactly what you must give to reach your destination i.e (the fight over the fare)

In life, you are bound to meet many "Good Samaritans". The mistake we sometimes make is that, we confuse the role of our helpers and make them our sole source of financial and other forms of support. We should sometimes learn to be dependent on our own resources no matter how little they may be.

Life would always demand whatever it wants from you but there are times that what you give out would not reflect what you expect in return. Life can sometimes short-change your efforts i.e (the woman with the "big" currency denomination being short-changed by the conductor).

You need to constantly remind yourself of your future and how big (or small) you want it to be. Life won't offer you success on a golden platter if you ask for it just once. You need to constantly work on it and make people aware of it. If you don't do it, you would miss your destination and none other but yourself would have to pay for it; sometimes even after you put in your best and meet all the requirements.

Life can stop you at any point naturally and take something from you but you cannot stop life or even ask for a timeout to get ready for success. You need to make yourself relevant and strive to be significant i.e (the drop off and pick up scene).

Life can sometimes decide how far you can go. It would be entirely up to you to decide at that point what lessons you've learnt and what the way forward would be. Life might throw many shots at you. Always make sure that should life decide to "dump" you off at a point you didn't plan on getting off, you would get off at least with a smile on your face. 

THIS IS A RANDOM AFRICAN THOUGHT. EDWIN WROTE IT!

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THE SCENT OF YOUR HEART...EPISODE EIGHT (8).

"What is it?", Henry asked. "I know you have your own misconceptions about all that has happened and I won't be surprised if you are biased in your judgment", Johnson started. "Sandra is not who she claims to be", Johnson revealed. "So who is she?", Henry enquired. "She told you a concocted story of how I tried to rape her before our wedding and how her father wanted to take me to court for harming her daughter", Johnson continued.

"None of what she said is true because she made me do something and when I started questioning her motives, she framed me and had our wedding called off.

At this point, Henry appeared to be very interested because he wanted to know what was really going on. He was now convinced that he had to take steps to withdraw from the web he was trying to get himself into.

"Johnson, before you continue, I really appreciate what you are doing but the information would be of no use to me because I have made my decision to stay away from Sandra for good", Henry started. "If she had told me early on that you guys had something going on, I wouldn't have started seeing her in the first place", Henry said. "I am really sorry for what has happened between the two of you but I'd rather stay out of all this than get myself entwined with such stuff, honestly", Henry added.

"You might think that saying this would absolve you from any future turn of events”, Johnson said. “I don't think you know it yet but you are in too deep to back out now", Johnson revealed.

"What is that supposed to mean?", Henry asked.

"I know Sandra has told you about the dark secrets of Kaprisky Law Firm including all the underhand and shady deals and has also told you about her father's incestuous tendencies towards her right?", Johnson enquired.

"How did you know all of this?", Henry asked in shock.

"Let's leave that question for another day", Johnson said.

"Why are you doing all of this and telling me all these things?", Henry asked. "What do you stand to achieve?", Henry quizzed.

"I just want to prevent what happened to me from happening to another person, more so, someone like you who has a bright future ahead of you", Johnson said.

"Wow!", Henry exclaimed.

"Listen to me carefully", Johnson started.

"Wait!", Henry exclaimed. "Right now I am confused, I don't know who to believe; you or Sandra", Henry revealed. "Can I ask you something?", Henry enquired.

"Sure...go on", Johnson answered.

"Do you still love Sandra?", Henry asked.

Johnson looked at Henry without saying anything.

"So I take it from your silence that you still care about her and love her", Henry said

Johnson nodded his head.

"Do you want Sandra back?", Henry went on to ask.

"I would give anything to be with Sandra", Johnson finally spoke.

"Let me get something clear, the same person you are asking me to steer clear off as if my life depended on it is the same person you'd give anything to be with?", Henry enquired. "Where is the correlation in this?", Henry interrogated.

"You won't understand", Johnson cut in. "Despite what has transpired between us and the misinterpretation of facts, I still love Sandra and I know that deep within her, she still harbours some feelings for me", Johnson explained.

"So what is stopping you guys from getting back together?", Henry  queried. "Sandra thinks I am back here to get back at her for what she did to me", Johnson said.

"You keep talking about what she did to you but you are refusing to tell me exactly what she made you do”, Henry said. “Can I ask another question?”, Henry asked. “Yes you can”, Johnson answered. “Did the two of you ever make love?”, Henry asked.

“Yes we did”, Johnson answered. “Several times”, Johnson added.

“So how come you were accused of trying to rape her if you had already made love to her?”, Henry asked. “That is where the complication is”, Johnson answered. “This is really serious”, Henry said. “You know what, I have to go now” Henry said. “You can take my number and call me”, Henry suggested. “But before I go, I want you to understand that Sandra and I are done”, Henry revealed. “You can have her for all I care”, Henry conceded. “The truth is that, I don’t know which of the accounts to believe and like you rightly said, I am too young to get myself involved in all of these things”, Henry said. “I wish you luck in life and goodbye”, Henry finally said and exited the main gates of Kaprisky Law Firm…

That night, Henry lay in his bed and thought about the countless romantic chats he had had with Sandra nights before. He was missing her but he had to fight off the urge of getting involved with her in any way. He was in love with Sandra but he didn’t want to get hurt. He thought about Julius and his advances, he was fighting wars on many unusual fronts. He wanted to stand up to Johnson and call his bluff so he could fight for Sandra’s love. He was madly in love with her but he could not fathom why Johnson spoke with so much authority and he felt the sense of suspense around whatever that transpired between himself and Sandra prior to his meeting her.

“Edwin and Kennedy would know what to do in times like this”, Henry said to himself in the middle of the night. He picked up his phone to call one of his friends only to find out that he had missed several calls from Sandra and another strange number. He refused returning any of the missed calls. He called Kennedy’s number.

“Hello”, Henry said as Kennedy answered the call.

“Finally, you have remembered that I exist”, Kennedy complained. “I wonder why you always say that”, Henry rebutted. “You can also call me when the need arises but you expect me to be always doing the calling as if I am your girlfriend of some sort”, Henry continued. “Anyway, that is not why I called”, Henry said.

“You are in some form of trouble with your girlfriend I guess”, Kennedy said sarcastically.

“This in more than trouble, Ken”, Henry said. “This is the most messed up case I have ever heard in my few years on this earth”, Henry started. “What is the matter this time”, Kennedy asked inquisitively.

Henry narrated Johnson’s part and involvement in the story to Kennedy.

“This is unbelievably horrifying”, Kennedy said after Henry finished his narration. “I knew that this girl was up to something fishy”, Kennedy confirmed. “Henry, please stay away from her for your own good and the welfare of your entire family”, Kennedy advised. “You are like my brother and I don’t like the way this is going one bit”, Kennedy said. “You know that as for Edwin, he would not ascribe to all this bullshit so it would be best if you don’t inform him about this”, Kennedy advised. “You can tell him about it when all of this blows over and you get this girl and all her troubles out of your life”, Kennedy added.

“I would take your advice”, Henry said.

“You better do because should you make any false move, you’d face the punishment and backlash alone, trust me!”, Kennedy warned.

“Thanks, Ken”, Henry said. “I need to get some sleep now”, Henry added. “Goodbye, Kennedy”…


Ben was sitting in his gigantic living room; the lights were off. He was drinking from a glass that contained some shots of whiskey. He heard some footsteps and quickly turned on the table lamp beside him.

“You startled me!”, Sandra said. “Why are you still not in bed?”, Ben asked. “I can’t sleep”, Sandra responded. “Stop lying to me”, Ben started.

“Dad, do you love me?”, Sandra asked. “What is that supposed to mean?”, Ben asked. “Are you saying this because of Johnson?”, Ben asked. “Exactly!”, Sandra exclaimed. “You accepted him back because you want to have your way”, Sandra accused her dad. “You know full well what his presence can do to me”, Sandra said. “If anyone gets to hear what I did, you know it is going to end me in jail and I know you would not want that to happen so why did you accept him back at the firm when you know how much of a threat he is to me and all of us”, Sandra complained.

“I am your father and I know what’s best for you but if you push me to the wall, I would destroy you without even thinking about it”, Ben said. “So you are doing all of this because of Henry?”, Sandra inquired.

“Yes!”, Ben exclaimed.

“What has he done to you?”, Sandra asked. “I just don’t like him and I don’t want you to have anything to do with him!”, Ben screamed. “You belong to me and only me!”, Ben added. “Is that why you influenced the pastor to say that we could not get married?”, Sandra enquired. “Ha-Ha”, Ben laughed. “Money gets a lot of things done nowadays”, Ben responded. “And is it for the same reason you accepted Johnson back just to blackmail me into doing your bidding by forcing me with threats so I can stay away from Henry?”, Sandra asked. “Yes!”, Ben exclaimed.

“What kind of man are you?”, Sandra asked. “The kind that would do anything to ensure the safety of his only daughter”, Ben responded. “I am beginning to hate you, dad!”, Sandra said and walked out of the living room in tears…

For a whole week, Henry did whatever possible to avoid an encounter with Sandra or Johnson. He gave Sandra the excuse that he was engrossed with work and could not talk much. During that week, he came an hour earlier for his lunch and ate it in his cubicle. Anytime Johnson wanted to talk, he gave him the excuse that he had gotten over Sandra and did not want to be reminded of anything that would arouse his feelings for her anymore. Sandra always tried whatever means to get to speak to Henry. “Henry, I really appreciate what you are doing”, Johnson said in one such encounter. “You don’t have to thank me”, Henry said. “You have what you want and I have to live with that”, Henry added. “I still don’t have Sandra back yet”, Johnson said. “It doesn’t really matter, now that I am out of the way, you can have her”, Henry said and asked to be excused to avoid talking too much.

“Henry, why are you acting this way?”, Sandra asked Henry when it had become obvious that he was avoiding her. “The story might have been different if you were able to muster the courage to tell me about Johnson and the fact that you were about getting married to him”, Henry revealed. “Is that why you are acting up?”, Sandra enquired. “Is that why you are refusing to answer any of my messages or return any of my calls?”, Sandra asked. “Sandra, I am trying to stay away from trouble and it is quite obvious that you and Johnson have some unfinished business which is actually no business of mine”, Henry explained.

“What did Johnson tell you about me?”, Sandra asked Henry. “I don’t know what he holds against you but I would rather you speak to him yourself”, Henry answered. “Come on Henry”, Sandra pleaded. “Please tell me what he told you about me”, Sandra reiterated. “He just said you did something that he took the fall for”, Henry, said. “Don’t mind that liar”, Sandra said. “He is a schemer just like my dad”, Sandra revealed. “I think this conversation has run its course”, Henry said and parted ways with Sandra…

That weekend, Henry was at home in his room when there was a knock on his door. It was his mother. She had come to inform him that there was someone at the gate who wanted to see him. Henry rushed outside bare-chested thinking it was Edwin or Kennedy. He got the shock of his life when he arrived in the hall and saw Sandra sitting in the sofa.

“What are you doing here?”, Henry asked in shock. “And how did you find my house?”, he enquired. “Is that how you welcome your visitors?”, Henry’s mother queried as she was getting acquainted with Sandra. “I came to see you”, Sandra said politely. “I hear she is the daughter of the owner of the firm you are working at”, Henry’s mother said.

“It is national service, mama”, Henry corrected his mother. “Why don’t I leave you two alone”, Henry’s mother said. “I hope you would stay for lunch”, Henry’s mother asked Sandra.

“Maybe”, Sandra answered.

Henry’s mother smiled and rushed to the kitchen to continue with the cooking. In a matter of minutes, she was screaming out Henry’s name. Henry rushed to the kitchen to find out what the noise was all about.

“This is an opportunity for you to be made a permanent worker at the law firm after your national service”, Henry’s mother started. “From the way I see things, the lady likes you, I am a woman and I can tell if a woman is in love”, Henry’s mother continued. “Please be nice to her and always bear in mind that one good turn deserves another”, Henry’s mother added.

“Mama, I don’t want to wade in this kind of conversation with you for now”, Henry said. “When she leaves, we would talk about it”, Henry said and left the kitchen to join Sandra in the living room.

“Let’s go to your room”, Sandra suggested. “I have never taken any girl to my room before”, Henry replied. “There is always a first time”, Sandra rebutted. Sandra managed to convince Henry and he led the way to his room with Sandra following close behind.

She made herself comfortable on his bed and took off her shoes and stretched out her legs fully on Henry’s bed. It was the first time Henry was seeing Sandra’s legs; fully bare, long, slender and spotless. He sat in the only chair in the room and stole glances at her.

“What are you doing here?”, Henry asked. “Like I said, I came to see you so we could talk things over”, Sandra said. “There is nothing to talk about”, Henry fired back. “Of course there is”, Sandra rebutted. “Henry, can’t you see that I love you so much and that I am willing to do anything to see us together?”, Sandra asked. “That kind of talk doesn’t move me anymore”, Henry said. Sandra approached Henry and knelt down in front of him. “Henry, please don’t do this to me”, Sandra pleaded. “Make love to me if that would make you see how serious I am”, Sandra pleaded.

“What?”, Henry exclaimed.

“I mean it, Henry”, Sandra reiterated. “Make love to me”.

“My mum is here”, Henry said.

“Don’t worry, I won’t scream”, Sandra assured and started touching Henry’s nipples. In a matter of seconds, Henry could not resist Sandra’s touches. He headed straight for Sandra’s breasts and grabbed them. “I feel terribly aroused”, Sandra moaned. “I am starting to feel dampness in between my thighs”, Sandra added.


“I feel so horny”. Henry huffed…


WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT? WILL HENRY BECOME ANOTHER VICTIM OF CIRCUMSTANCE? WHAT HAS SANDRA DONE? WHY IS SHE KEEPING SECRETS? YOUR GUESS IS AS GOOD AS MINE. FOLLOW THE STORY FOR MORE TWISTS AND TURNS. MY NAME IS EDWIN OKO LAMPTEY AND THIS IS A RANDOM AFRICAN THOUGHTS PRODUCTION.


FOLLOW THE EPISODES HERE:


EPISODE SEVEN:   http://randomafricanthoughts.blogspot.com/2016/09/the-scent-of-your-heartepisode-seven-7.html



EPISODE SIX:  http://randomafricanthoughts.blogspot.com/2016/07/the-scent-of-your-heartepisode-six.html


EPISODE FIVE:  http://randomafricanthoughts.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-scent-of-your-heartepisode-five.html


EPISODE FOUR:  http://randomafricanthoughts.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-scent-of-your-heartepisode-four.html


EPISODE THREE:  http://randomafricanthoughts.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-scent-of-your-heartepisode-three.html


EPISODE TWO:  http://randomafricanthoughts.blogspot.com/2016/05/the-scent-of-your-heartepisode-two.html


EPISODE ONE:  http://randomafricanthoughts.blogspot.com/2016/05/the-scent-of-your-heartepisode-one-1.html




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THE SCENT OF YOUR HEART...EPISODE SEVEN (7).

Henry looked at Sandra in bewilderment as she introduced Johnson as her ex-fiance. He was left in shock. He could not believe that Ben would be so wicked to want to marry his daughter off at such a young age. “Hi, I am Henry”, Henry said as he extended a warm handshake to Johnson but he was met with rivalry; as was to be expected.

 “Nice to meet you”, Johnson left Henry's hand hanging in mid-air without responding to his gesture. Sandra, feeling somewhat embarrassed held Henry's hand and dragged him towards the elevator leaving Johnson standing alone in the lobby as the two of them walked off.

"Your ex-fiance?". "Like seriously?". Henry asked as the elevator dinged signalling them to enter. "It's a long story; a story I don't want to recount because of the painful memories it brings up", Sandra said.

 "Are you kidding me, Sandra", Henry rebutted. "You thought an ex-fiance was not an issue worth discussing because it brought back bad memories?". "That is quite unfair; very unfair to me, Sandra", Henry lamented. "I expected you to tell me what I was getting myself into", Henry started. "I put all my cards on the table and I expected you to do same but not telling me that you were about getting married to someone and making me find out myself and in such a cold manner is so not cool", Henry said.

“Henry, that part of my life is a part I am trying so hard to leave right where it belongs; in the past and so I didn’t think it was worth bringing up”, Sandra defended herself. “Moreover, I didn’t want to complicate matters for us because we had things going on perfectly”, Sandra added as she warmed her way up to Henry and placed a kiss on his lips.

“That is beside the point, Sandra”, Henry insisted.

“How did you expect me to tell you this?”, Sandra enquired. “You wanted me to walk up to you and say, ‘Oh Henry, I was about to get married to someone which turned out not to work out?”, Sandra enquired

“That would have been a good start”, Henry cut in.

“I was scared and I didn’t want you to see this differently”, Sandra said. “Well, congratulations, you’ve succeeded in tricking me”, Henry said

“Henry please don’t do this”, Sandra pleaded.

"What else are you keeping from me aside this bombshell of an ex- fiance?", Henry asked.

"Nothing!" Sandra screamed.

"I don't believe it; I am being very honest", Henry said

"Henry, what is that supposed to mean?", Sandra started. "Are you going to let this news tear us apart?" Sandra asked.

"Tear us apart?", Henry asked sarcastically. "We've already been torn apart by the things that have happened ever since I decided to go out with you", Henry said. "All the forces of good and evil are against this relationship", Henry said. "Even men of God are against this union", Henry continued. "I really think the time has come for us to end all of this once and for all and move on separately with our lives", Henry said.

"Are you in any way insinuating that all that has happened and all that is happening now has something to do with me?", Sandra asked

"Obviously!", Henry answered. “We don’t need a soothsayer to tell us what is very obvious”, Henry added

"Wow!", Sandra exclaimed. "I can't believe that you have come to such a conclusion without hearing me out first", Sandra said.

"What is there to hear out after this?", Henry asked. "Is it the fact that you forgot to tell me that you were almost married?", Henry asked. "Or the fact that your dad thinks we are the worst match or the fact that God spoke through your pastor warning us of getting together?", Henry asked. "All these are clear indications that we cannot be together, can't you see it?", Henry quizzed.

"I can't believe you are also thinking like them", Sandra said. “I should have seen this coming”, Sandra added

"Don't deal me these cards, Sandra!", Henry cut in. "You knew what you were getting me into but you chose to keep me in the dark by not telling me all I needed to know", Henry said

"I have to say that I am rather disappointed that you have fallen for these lies and schemes obviously being orchestrated by my father and his stooges with the hopes of tearing us apart", Sandra said

"Oh, so it's a lie that Johnson is your ex-fiance?", Henry quizzed.

"Why are you so quick to judge me?", Sandra sobbed. "Why are you allowing all of these things to get to you?", Sandra said.

"Sandra, I think we should stop seeing each other for our own good", Henry said as the elevator dinged as it got to his floor.

"Don't do this to me, Henry, I love you", Sandra said as she held Henry from stepping out of the elevator.

"I think it is the best thing to do in light of all these circumstances", Henry said. “Love is not enough to sustain this relationship”, Henry added

"No, Henry, we cannot be separated; I won't allow it to happen!", Sandra said.

They both looked intently at each other.

"Henry, forgive me for not telling you about Johnson", Sandra said softly looking deeply into his eyes. “But please don’t let this be the reason we are going to get separated over.  "I have my own reasons", Sandra continued.

"Which are?", Henry asked.

"Johnson tried to rape me before our wedding", Sandra revealed.

"What?", Henry exclaimed. "Isn't that rather absurd?", Henry asked. "But why would he want to do that if you were going to be his wife sooner than later?", Henry asked further

"One of many of my dad's schemes", Sandra replied. He was overprotective as always and didn't even give us a chance to be on our own", Sandra started. "He always had people watching us and was jealous of the fact that I was finally warming up to Johnson", Sandra explained. "As this went on, it infuriated Johnson so much so that when he finally got the two of us to be alone, he tried to have sex with me to get back at my dad for being overprotective", Sandra narrated. "We struggled and I pleaded with him to take it easy because we were going to get married soon and he could have me to himself but he just wouldn't listen", Sandra explained.

 "I got injured during the struggle and to my surprise, my father showed up", Sandra said. "To cut the long story short, I tried to defend Johnson and tried to convince my dad that what he saw was a misinterpretation of Johnson's feelings towards me but my dad would have none of that", Sandra said. "So he quickly called off the wedding and filed a lawsuit against Johnson for trying to rape me", Sandra said.

"That is why I didn't get married to Johnson", Sandra added. "I have to go now, and you also have to get going before you lose your job my love", let's chat during lunch time", Sandra said and pushed Henry out of the elevator...

A few hours later, Henry and Sandra were seated together at the plush cafeteria of Kaprisky Law Firm having lunch.

"I am sorry for judging you earlier today", Henry said. "I didn't know you had to go through such an ordeal", Henry said.

"Henry, there is something inside so strong that keeps telling me that both of us can be together regardless of the opposition that comes our way", Sandra said.

"Sometimes, I believe that all these things are meant to happen to make our bond stronger but on the other hand too, I believe we cannot be anything more than friends because of the opposition we face; first it was your dad, then your pastor and now Johnson, your ex-fiance", Henry recounted.

As they spoke, Johnson entered the cafeteria and headed straight for their table.

"Hello Sandra", Johnson said.

 "I was in your office and I was told you were having lunch so I was hoping we could use this time to talk", Johnson added.

"And who said I wanted to talk to you?", Sandra asked.

Henry got up from his seat and started his way towards the exit.

"Henry, where are you going?", Sandra asked. "We haven't finished talking", Sandra added.

"I have to head back to my office; I have some work I need to finish", Henry said. "Moreover, you guys have some catching up to do", Henry added.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

“Come on Sandra”, Henry said. “You haven’t seen Johnson in a while and it would be good for you two to get along”, Henry said. “Okay, call me when you close, I want to see you and talk to you about something”, Sandra said, sensing tension between the two men. “Sure, I will”, Henry added and walked away.

“What do you want from me Johnson?”, Sandra queried

“I hope you didn’t sell him the story about me wanting to rape you before our wedding and that your dad wanted to have me imprisoned”, Johnson said as he sat down.

“Isn’t that what you tried to do to me after I refused to give into your sexual desires?”, Sandra accused Johnson.. “Why have you come back here, Johnson?”, Sandra queried. “I thought we agreed that you were not going to show your face here anymore”, Sandra added.

“Yes, I agreed not to come here anymore but I just couldn’t help it anymore”, Johnson started. “I am tired of living with the fact that I am the beast when in actual sense, you who portray yourself as the victim; the weaker one is worse than the devil”, Johnson said.

“How dare you speak of me in such a manner?”, Sandra fumed.

“Isn’t that exactly what you are?”, Johnson said.

“I won’t sit here and have you spew garbage against me for no reason, Johnson”, Sandra said and got up to leave. “You will definitely be exposed come what may, and that is a promise”, Johnson called after her

“And who is going to see to that?”, Sandra queried. “You?...Very funny”, Sandra added. “You are going to live with the ‘rapist’ tag forever. “I can assure you that it won’t be long before everyone knows who you truly are Sandra”, Johnson said and drew closer to Sandra and held her by the arm.

“Let go of me!” Sandra exclaimed. “In case you have forgotten so soon, let me remind you of who I am”, Sandra started. “My name is Sandra and I will always have my way”, Sandra said. “Let me also assure you that before you even think of selling me out, you’d be out of here and this time, I am going to ensure that you disappear for good”, Sandra said. "I don’t even have to worry my head over you because no one is going to believe you because when it goes down to the wire, it’s going to be your word against mine and I need not tell you how it is going to turn out”, Sandra added and gave out a cold laughter

“You don’t know what is coming, Sandra”, Johnson said.

“Ha-ha”, Sandra laughed.

“I do know what is coming Johnson; I always do”, Sandra added.

“Despite all that has happened between us, I still love you Sandra”, Johnson said as he stood in front of Sandra. “I thought you said you could never love a snake like me after all I put you through”, Sandra rebutted. “What you made me do was strange but just so you know, I did it out of love and I did it because I wanted to save you from the implications of your action”, Johnson added. “Stop brushing it in my face”, Sandra rebutted.

“You should be worshipping me by now because I saved you from disgrace and jail”, Johnson said. “Yeah right”, Sandra rebutted. “This secret must remain with us and die with us”, Sandra said.

“Then you are going to have to do exactly what I tell you to do”, Johnson said. “Is that a threat or something?”, Sandra asked. “You can call it whatever you want”, Johnson responded and left Sandra standing alone in the cafeteria…

Sandra rushed to her father’s office after leaving the cafeteria to find out why he had agreed to take Johnson back after her ordeal with him. “Why did you accept to take Johnson back here?”, Sandra queried. “Ha-ha”, Ben laughed. “Did you expect me to consult you before recruiting staff members?”, Ben queried. “You and I know that Johnson is no ordinary staff member”, Sandra said. “His presence here makes me feel very uncomfortable and reminds me of the torture I had to go through because of him”, Sandra said. “Are you in any way asking me to fire him because you feel uncomfortable?”, Ben asked

“Maybe”, Sandra answered.

“Sandy, both of us know that Johnson is one of the bright minds we have here at Kaprisky Law firm. “Well, I beg to differ”, Sandra rebutted. “I think you should not mix work with pleasure and you both would get along just fine”, Ben insisted. “Sorry but I cannot give in to your demands of cutting Johnson off because we need him here”, Ben said.

“Fine!”, Sandra said and walked out of the office.

At 5:00 P.M that day, Johnson went in search of Henry and found him at the  entrance of the law firm.

“Henry…Henry…Henry!”, Johnson called out as he drew closer to Henry. “Hi”, Henry said as Johnson approached him. “Sorry for ignoring you earlier today, I was being a complete jerk because I was jealous”, Johnson started. “Don’t worry, I would have done the same thing if I were in your shoes”, Henry said. “Do you want to say something?”, Henry queried.

“Yeah”, Johnson answered.

“What is it?”, Henry enquired.

“I need to tell you something about Sandra; something only known to Sandra and myself and it is going to change your perception of Sandra going forward…

WHAT HAS SANDRA DONE? WHAT DID SHE MAKE JOHNSON DO? WHY WOULD JOHNSON SACRIFICE THE TRUTH OF WHAT REALLY HAPPENED?.... FIND OUT THIS AND MORE IN THE NEXT EPISODE OF  “THE SCENT OF YOUR HEART” . MY NAME IS EDWIN OKO LAMPTEY AND THIS IS RANDOM AFRICAN THOUGHTS RELOADED! HAPPY NEW MONTH Y'ALL!!!!!

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THE SCENT OF YOUR HEART...EPISODE SIX

Henry got out of Ben's car even more confused than before. He walked across the face of the currently stationary car and met Sandra standing at the other side of the car. She was all smiles.

"Things are beginning to look up", Sandra said, still beaming with smiles.

Henry looked at her and feigned a smile.

"What is that supposed to mean?", Sandra asked after deciphering the look on Henry's face.

"What is what supposed to mean?", Henry asked feigning ignorance.

"The smile", Sandra started. "It didn't look genuine at all", Sandra added.

"Really?", Henry asked. "That's how I smile all the time", Henry said.

"That is a lie", Sandra said. "Did my father threaten you in any way?", Sandra asked, drawing closer to Henry.

"Honk-Honk-Honk", Ben's car horn sounded, signaling for the two of them to break it up as the driver revved the car's engine.

"Get in the car!", Ben ordered Sandra as he rolled down the car's tinted glass window.

"Let's talk during lunch time", Sandra said and quietly got on board the car.

Henry stood there for a while as he watched Ben's car slowly zoom past him and vanish into the clear.

"What is all this?", Henry asked himself as he pondered over what had just happened. As he stood there, he remembered that he had to fetch the evidence of threat on his life from Julius's office.

"Oh my God!", Henry exclaimed as he made his way into the building and into Julius's office. He zoomed past the reception without saying his normal "good morning" and chatting with  Audrey, the beautiful receptionist. Audrey looked on in disbelief as Henry walked past her desk and stood in front of the elevator door waiting for it to open so that he could go up.

"Henry!", Audrey called out. "Is everything alright?", she asked.

Henry turned and looked in her direction.

"Everything is fine, Audrey", Henry answered. "I am just running late for an important discussion with my boss", Henry answered.

"Okay", Audrey replied. "I thought you were quarrelling with me because I know your first point of call when you come to work is my desk", Audrey explained.

"Yeah, but I hope I can be pardoned just for today", Henry said as the elevator door flew open. "I would come down for a chat during lunchtime", Henry said and hurriedly entered the elevator before it got full.

Henry immediately head for Julius's office when he got to the floor of his department.

He was so much in a hurry to get into Julius's office and get his hand on the only piece of evidence that he could use as proof of the threat on his life.

Henry was shaking like a leaf as he walked towards Julius's door. There were a handful of people on the floor so he timed his entry to synchronize with the blind spot of all who were present. He lurked around the entrance to Julius's office till the conditions were right for him.

Once he saw that the coast was clear, he barged into the office with alacrity so as not to be spotted by anyone and banged the door behind him.


"What is the meaning of this nonsense?", Julius yelled as he quickly retracted his hand from the front zip compartment of the trouser of one of the male workers at the firm.

Henry froze at the sight.

"What are you doing here?", Julius barked.

"I...I...I...I...", Henry stammered as he was taken by surprise both by Julius's miraculous presence and current posture. The young and handsome worker jumped out of his seat and struggled to remain calm as if nothing was happening but his efforts were a little too late. "I...I...I didn't know you were in here", Henry said.

"That is beside the point", Julius barked angrily. "Is this your office?", Julius asked rhetorically. "This is not your office therefore you cannot come barging in here without permission", Julius continued as he fumed. He was almost going into a fit of rage.

Henry pressed himself against the door not knowing whether to go out of the office or stay and take the bashing. He was literally rooted to the spot where he stood and searched the desk for the piece of paper. The other worker looked on timidly as Julius threw verbal punches at Henry.

"I didn't know you were in here", Henry spoke. "I came in to check if the place was clean enough", Henry said.

"Nonsense!", Julius fired back. "Is that your job?", Julius asked.

Henry stood there in silence.

"Answer me!", Julius screamed.

"No, please sir", Henry answered. "But...", Henry wanted to explain further when Julius shut him up.

"I don't want to hear another word from you", Julius said and turned to speak to the young man. "Fred, I am sorry for the inconvenience but I guess we have to finish this meeting a bit later in the day", Julius said, signalling for the young man to take his leave.

As the young man made the effort to leave, he stared at Henry and whispered "Not a word to anyone or else you are dead", before shoving Henry away from the entrance and walking out of the office, shutting the door behind him.

Immediately the young man left, Julius composed himself.

"Lock the door and take a seat", Julius said calmly and pointed to the seat in front of him.

Henry could not believe what he just heard. He could not believe that Julius could switch from throwing tantrums to becoming so gentle within seconds. He walked slowly to the designated seat after he had locked the door and sat down, crossing his right leg firmly over his left leg for security reasons.

Julius took his seat and placed both hands on the desk to make them visible to Henry.

"I know why you came running in here", Julius started. "I thought you would be smart enough to keep the piece of paper as evidence so I also came in very early today to cover my tracks", I was surprised to find the note still here", Julius continued. He pulled out his drawer, took out a piece of paper and immediately put it into the little paper shredder that was fixed on his desk. "Your evidence is gone", Julius said, with a smile on his face.

"I can tell from the look on your face that you met Ben", Julius started. "And I don't need a soothsayer to tell me that your encounter with him was not pleasant", Julius added.

Henry sat across Julius with his head bowed down and looking very timid but alert to any suspicious move.

"I can protect you, Henry", Julius said wooingly. "I can make all of your fears and frustrations disappear and I can speak to Ben on your behalf to grant you genuine blessings to be with his daughter, Sandra", Julius counted. "All you need to do is to allow me have you and I promise you, all your troubles would vanish", Julius said. "I am your friend and as it stands  now, you need me more than I do you, so giving in to my request would be the most humane thing to do", Julius courted. "It is actually your only option if you asked me", Julius continued. "What do you say?", Julius asked

"Sir", Henry started. "I never thought that it would come to this", he said. "I am really desperate right now and I really need a solution to all of this mess but even in my desperation, I still cannot come to terms with what you are asking of me", Henry explained. "If I give in to your demands, it would mean I'd have to be with you and be with Sandra at the same time...". "Exactly my point!", Julius exclaimed. "I am not prepared for that kind of commitment", Henry said, shivering like a leaf.


"I am sorry sir, but I can't see myself playing such a role", Henry said.

"Then I don't think you are also prepared to have your peace of mind because I know Ben and I know he can make your life a living hell if you want him to", Julius stated.


Henry's heart sank.

"Sir, please understand me", Henry pleaded.

"This is what I am going to do",  Julius started. "Like I did the last time we had such an encounter, I am going to allow you to have a couple of days to think this over", Julius suggested. "I am the only friend you have left and I can promise you one thing, if you give in to my demands, I would be really gentle with you", Julius added. "Have a nice day, young man", Julius said and asked Henry to leave the office. Henry had a disgusted and disappointed look on his face as he walked out of the office

At lunchtime, Henry met up with Audrey. Immediately he was done, he walked back to the office. As he stood in front of the elevator, waiting for it to open, Sandra came running towards him.

"Guess what?", Sandra started, looking very giddy.

"I am not in the guessing mood right, Sandra", Henry replied looking and sounding very indifferent. "I spoke to my dad and he wants the three of us to have dinner together this weekend",

"You did what?", Henry asked out of shock.

"Relax, young man", Sandra said jokingly. "He won't bite", Sandra teased. "He just wants to get to know you", Sandra exclaimed. "What do you say?", Sandra asked.

"It sounds too sudden and I think we should take things slow", Henry said, thinking about the threats he had to recon with.

"It's fine", Sandra reassured. "We are going to have a thrill time together, trust me", Sandra said as the doors of the elevator parted. "Call me", Henry signalled and walked into the elevator leaving Sandra standing alone in front of it.


After a lot of persuasion, Sandra finally got to convince Henry to come over for dinner at her house that weekend. Henry dressed up smartly and arrived at Sandra's house at exactly 6:05 PM.

"You are looking dashing!", Sandra remarked as she ushered Henry into her house.

"Honestly, my nerves are killing me right now", Henry confessed.

"Ha-ha", Sandra laughed. "Is that why you are coming in here all dressed up as if you are going for an interview for the world's most important job?", Sandra teased.

"You can have your laugh", Henry said. "After all, I am in your lion's den", he added.

"Henry, like I told you over the phone, I have spoken to my dad at length and I know this is very genuine, trust me", Sandra reaffirmed.

"If you say so", Henry said and they both walked into the main house.

Dinner was brief. They all ate their food in silence. Henry ate his food in silence and with fear. After dinner the three of them moved into the living room to chat.

Ben kept a close eye on Henry's moves and made sure he kept eye contact with him to make him aware that he was not in any way doing Henry any favours. Henry sat across Ben in a couch and Sandra sat close to her father but not on the same couch.

"Are you a christian, Henry?", Ben asked.

"This is the weirdest question ever for such an occasion", Henry thought to himself.

"Yes, please Sir, I am", Henry started. "My parents are devout Christians and they made sure to bring us up in a god-fearing manner, sir", Henry answered as if his life depended on it.

"Call me Ben", Sandra's father requested.

"Okay sir...sorry...Ben", Henry fumbled.

"This might sound a little bit forward and a bit rush but I want you to accompany us to church tomorrow", Ben suggested.

"Wow, this sounds very rush indeed", Henry said. "I have a program at church tomorrow and...", Henry said and looked at Sandra.

Sandra returned Henry's stare with a stern look and mimed the words, "Don't mess this opportunity up"

"But on second thoughts, I think I'll pass on the program and go with you to church, sir...sorry...Ben", Henry said and looked at Sandra again who was now beaming with smiles from temple to temple.

"Great!", Ben exclaimed. "Then I guess you should take your leave now so you go home to prepare for tomorrow", Ben suggested.

Sandra saw Henry off and as they walked down the long, decorated aisle leading to the main gate, he engaged her in one last conversation as Ben stood on the corridor watching their every move. "What is the name of your church?", Ben asked. "I don't know why my father made us stop attending our church to attend this new church", Sandra said to evade the question. "It is one of these newly created one-man, prophetic, charismatic churches with those funny string of names", Sandra continued. "Ha-ha", Henry laughed. "It can't be that bad", Henry said. "What is the name of the church, Sandra?", Henry insisted. "Promise me that you won't laugh if I tell you the name", Sandra pleaded. "Come on Sandra, you should know me by now, moreover, I have no right to question your religious preference", Henry affirmed.

"Okay", Sandra said.

"Living Streams Of Flaming Grace International Church", Sandra revealed.

"I beg your pardon?", Henry asked as he burst out in uncontrollable laughter.

"Living Streams Of Flaming Grace International Church", Sandra repeated.

Henry could not control his laughter and struggled to hold his breath to cease the laughter. "That is a mouthful!", Henry exclaimed. "You promised not to laugh", Sandra complained.

"I just couldn't help it", Henry pleaded.

"Just so you know, my father is the financial secretary and head of protocol at the church and he is held in high regard", Sandra revealed.

"Why am I not surprised?", Henry started. "Your holy prophet is going to milk him dry with financing of church projects", Henry teased. "Get out of my house and don't be late tomorrow", Sandra teased and playfully shoved Henry out of the house.

The next day, Henry reported early at Sandra's house even though he knew they were to attend the second service which was not bound to start until 10:00AM. At half past 9AM, they all left for the church.

Living Streams Of Flaming Grace International Church was a small church with a seating capacity of not more than 200 people. The church was expensively decorated as imagined by Henry and had many pretty young girls. More than half of the congregation was made up of women of all ages. The atmosphere was charged with songs and different dance styles as Henry watched on. There was a brief sermon and then announcements were made. After the pretty announcer finished her piece, the man who gave the sermon took over the microphone and started speaking, "Today's service is a special anointing service and I would like to invite our financial secretary and his family to the altar for special blessings".

Ben and Sandra started their way towards the altar but Sandra signalled Henry to follow them up the altar. Immediately all three of them were standing in front of the congregation, the prophet went into a trance.

"The spirit is speaking to me", the prophet started. He walked towards Henry and spoke. "Young man, you are in love with this young lady, am I right?", the prophet said, pointing to Sandra.

Henry nodded. Ben's eyes were firmly shut.

The whole church went into an uproar after Henry's confirmation.

The prophet continued. "The spirit is telling me something", the man of God said. "The spirit says that you two will get married but not for long because you are going to divorce this young sister over here and marry another lady", the prophet revealed. "But we as a church will stand in the gap to break and loose the hold of divorce in your lives in the name of Jesus!", the prophet screamed and began to pray and the entire church followed his lead. After about five minutes of loud prayers, the prophet signalled for the congregation to be quiet, said a separate prayer for each of them and sent the three of them back to their seats. As they sat, Ben leaned in and whispered to both Henry and Sandra, "The voice of the prophet is the voice of God and God cannot lie, so I would leave you two to ponder over what you want to start". "God reveals to redeem, Dad", Sandra whispered back to her father. "We would find a way around this", she added.  Sandra looked at Ben but Ben shook his head in disbelief and disappointment. "I think we should heed the caution from your prophet because I once received a similar warning from another prophet when I was younger", Henry said.

Sandra's eyes began to fill up with tears.

After the service, Sandra rushed back to the car leaving Ben and Henry behind. She did not say a word on the drive back to the house. Henry requested to be dropped off at a bus terminal to continue his journey home. Ben gladly granted his request.

"Baby", Ben started as he drove both of them home. "I know you are disappointed but it is better to be safe than to be sorry", Ben added.

"Why do I have the feeling that this is just one of your manipulative strategies to rid me of my own happiness?", Sandra said.

"Are you calling the prophet a liar?", Ben asked.

"I know what you are capable of doing and I know that you can buy the conscience of any man", Sandra said

"Including the conscience of a man of God?", Ben asked.

"Let's just drop this topic for now", Ben suggested.

"Before we do, just know that I love Henry and we will fight this together", Sandra said.

"Ha-ha", Ben laughed.

"Didn't you see the look on that young man's face as the prophet spoke?"

"I don't want to be a part of these schemes anymore!", Sandra exclaimed and disembarked the car to open the gate to their mansion.


For the rest of that day, Sandra  failed in all her attempts to speak to Henry because he refused to answer any of her calls or reply any of her messages.

The next day, Sandra pressured her father into waking up early so they could go to the firm. Ben obeyed Sandra's command and by 7:00 AM, they were already leaving the house. As the driver of the car  moved into the car park, Sandra saw a man standing at the entrance of the  building

"What is he doing here?", she turned and asked her father.

Ben had already realized Sandra wanted to say something.

"He called the office last week and requested that we give him a space to do a project and I agreed", Ben answered.

"You hate him with passion so why did you agree to help him now?", Sandra asked.

"Let's just say I changed my mind about him and I am prepared to give him another chance", Ben said.

"Well that is your choice but I hope our paths don't cross", Sandra said and opened the door to alight. "Just be nice", Ben pleaded.

Sandra alighted and made her way into the office.

She walked past the man without saying a word.

"That was to be expected", the  man said and followed Sandra into the building.

Henry was having his usual chat with Audrey when Sandra walked in with the man following closely behind.

Sandra stopped at the receptionist's desk and smiled at Henry. "Henry, we need to talk", Sandra said. Henry said his final words to Audrey and walked with Sandra towards the elevator with the man still following closely. As they waited for the elevator doors to open, the young man caught up with them. "I am trying to be nice so at least you should hear me out", the young man said.

Henry was startled.

"Can you just stop following me?", Sandra pleaded as she spoke to the man. "I can't really do this right now", Sandra added.

"But just so we are clear, I would like you to meet this young man", Sandra said as she pointed to Henry. "Johnson, meet Henry, my boyfriend", Sandra said before she continued, "Henry, this is Johnson, my ex-fiance...

YOU DON'T NEED TO BE TOLD! THIS IS SURELY A RECIPE FOR DISASTER. MY NAME IS EDWIN OKO LAMPTEY AND I AM BACK!







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THE SCENT OF YOUR HEART...EPISODE FIVE.

Henry's was startled and confused on seeing the man. The man stood in the doorway to  signal to Henry that he knew exactly what he was doing and sent the indication that he was not lost but was standing there for a reason.

"What do you want?", a scared Henry asked as he walked backwards and found himself on the other side of Julius's desk. "You are the one I directed to the conference room yesterday, aren't you?".

The man was silent as Henry asked him questions but only looked intently at Henry.

"What do you want?", Henry screamed to signal to anyone who was in the building that he might be in trouble and needed assistance.

"You remember me from yesterday, don't you?", the man finally spoke.

Henry nodded. “The conference room guy”, Henry said.

"What are you doing here?", Henry asked.

"Yesterday's meeting was not our first encounter", the man revealed. "I have been watching and following you these past two days", the man revealed. "I followed you back home two days ago", the man said. "I know where you live, I know your family members and I know you would not want any harm to befall them", the man continued. "I stayed here all day because of you so you should know how serious what you are doing is affecting the one who hired me", the man said.

"Someone hired you to follow me?", Henry enquired.

"Don't be stupid, Henry", the man started. "I believe you know better than this", the man added. "Let me explain things to you briefly", the man said as he walked up to the desk Henry stood behind and took a seat.

"I want you to stop seeing Sandra for your own good", the man started. "I was hired to scare you off but I guess our encounter yesterday was enough", the man recalled.

Henry nodded timidly.

"Now tell me, how far did you think this could go?", the man asked Henry as he placed his hands on the table revealing some scars on the back of his hand.

"How far? ", the man asked. "Just so you know, I am willing to do anything to see to it that my client is happy and I wouldn't mind breaking a few bones to ensure that I achieve my goal", the man added.

"There is nothing going on between Sandra and I", Henry rebutted as he stood his ground.

"I beg to differ but that is not what my client thinks", the man said.

"Henry, this thing is bigger and messed up than you think", the man tried to explain. "You are like a very tiny dot in this chain and it would take very little effort to erase you and believe me, the world won't lose sleep over your disappearance", the man added. "You are not the first person I have been asked to come after", the man revealed.

"Henry, I chose to be gentle with you because I realized you were scared senseless yesterday as you are today", the man said with a smirk on his face. "I'd expect that you listened to me and do exactly as I have instructed", he added. "Just steer clear off Sandra and we all go home happy", the man said. "You get to keep your job and if you are dedicated to not having this encounter with me in the foreseeable future, you would do what we have agreed on right now", the man said and got up to leave. As he got to the doorway, he turned, looked intently at Henry one more time and said. "I am not this gentle and pleasant often so should there be another encounter, you would see my unpleasant tendencies", the man said sternly. "It's a free world Henry, so the choice is yours", the man added and left  the office.

Henry stood at Julius's side of the desk with his legs quivering with fear and tension as the man finally left the room.

"I am now fully convinced that Sandra was the girl in the pastor's vision", Henry said as he tiptoed to the door to check if the man had truly left. He slowly pushed his head out of the doorway and looked in all directions for signs of the man. When he could not sight him anywhere, he quickly withdrew into Julius's office, shut the door and turned the key twice.

He leaned with his back against the door.

"All of this was real after all", Henry said to himself.  "What am I going to do now?". "Do I have to inform my dad that my life and possibly that of my family's could be in danger should I fail in staying away from Sandra?", Henry thought out loud. "Should I opt out of this national service and apply next year at another institution?", Henry said to himself. "Should I involve the police into this matter?", Henry  soliloquized.

"I think I should seek counsel from Edwin and Kennedy", Henry said and reached for his phone from his left breast pocket. He dialed Kennedy's number first and waited for it to ring. As the phone rang for the first time, there was a sudden forceful crank of the door knob leading into Julius's office. The sound frightened Henry so much that out of reflex, he dropped his phone unto the tiled floor, cracking the screen and causing it to go off due to the impact.

Henry started to back away from the door and the feeling he felt in the presence of his "assassin", began to come back to him. There was a number of forceful cranks on the knob. When the cranking stopped, the person behind the door started banging on the door.

At this point, Henry knew his assassin had definitely returned to harm him this time. He quickly took cover behind Julius's desk and frantically looked around the room for something to arm himself with.

Typically of the room he found himself in were stacks of books placed neatly in their shelves. In one swirl movement, he looked on Julius's desk as the banging on the door continued and armed himself with a stapler and a small statue of  Atlas holding the globe.

He placed his weapons behind him and asked, "Who is there?". There was no answer but the knocking continued, this time louder.

"Who is that?", Henry reiterated as he tightened his grip on the stapler in his right hand.

The banging stopped.

There was a brief moment of silence and suddenly, there was a very gentle knock on the door.

Henry began to sweat.

"Please, who is it?", Henry asked one more time.

"It is me Sir, the janitor", the voice from the other side revealed. "I want to come and clean the place sir, the voice added.

As Henry recognized the voice, he heaved a sigh of relief as his confidence returned to him and he mustered courage to answer the door. Before he got to the door, he dropped his "weapons" from where he picked them, picked up his cell phone from where it had fallen and unlocked the door for the janitor to come in and go about his business.

"I thought Mr. Julius was here", the janitor said as Henry unlocked the door.

"No he is not", Henry said. "He asked me to do something for him early this morning and since I didn't want to get distracted, I locked myself in here", Henry explained. "But on your way here, did you chance upon any strange looking man?", Henry enquired. "No please", the janitor answered. "I see many strange faces here every day but I don't pay attention to them because that is not what I was hired to do", the cleaner said sarcastically. "My job is throw the rubbish away", he added.

"Alright", Henry answered.

As Henry exited the office, he remembered the wording in Julius's warning in the file and it sent shivers down his spine...


That day too, Julius, Sandra and Ben didn't show up at the office. When the day was over, Henry left the office for the house but this time, he gave every little occurrence on the way back to his house grave attention. He flawlessly made the effort to ensure that he was not being followed by anyone. When he got home, he went straight to his room and locked himself inside...


Sandra was under a mild form of house arrest by her father. He had taken her cell phone from her so that her contact with Henry could be minimized. She lay on the bed with tears in her eyes and memories of Henry in her mind. Every thought of him made her heart miss several beats and sent sweet tingling feelings through her entire body. The feeling gave her a sense of reassurance that she was meant to be with Henry.

She was now convinced that she was madly in love with Henry.

As she lay in her bed, there was a gentle sound and the door to her room slowly flew open. Ben, appeared standing in the door way with the light from the lobby assisting in casting his shadow unto Sandra's bed.

Ben had dark brown hair, which was thick and lustrous. His eyes were mesmerizing. His face was strong and defined, his features molded from granite. He did not look as old as he really was. He had dark eye brows, which sloped downwards in a serious expression. He usually put on a playful smile which sometimes drew a hard line across his face. He possessed strong hands which had become slightly rough from working hard jobs as a young man.

He walked into the room and shut the door. His voice was deep, with a serious tone.

"Sandra, are you still crying?", Ben asked as he walked up to her and took a seat at the edge of the bed.

"No, I am not crying", Sandra said in the most sorrowful tone of voice imaginable. "So why are you sounding that way?", Ben asked.

"It's nothing, I am fine", Sandra responded.

"Sandra, ever since you were born, I have made it a point to protect you in the best way that I know how", Ben started.

"Your way has been wrong all this while!", Sandra rebutted as she sat up on her bed revealing her red, sunken eyes.

"What we are doing is wrong, daddy", Sandra said as she wiped away tears from her eyes. "I want us to stop it", "I want to have a normal life", Sandra started. "I want to be free to choose my friends and not have you interfere with it". Sandra revealed. "I want to talk to someone", Sandra said as she started crying. "I want to be free", Sandra added.

"Sandra", Ben started. "The world is full of liars, cheats, gold diggers and opportunists", Ben said. "They are just waiting in the shadows to pounce on you once they realize how vulnerable you are", Ben revealed. "This young man you are getting yourself attached to falls within the category of people I am talking about", Ben said. "Because he knows whose daughter you are, he wants to take advantage of you, can't you see?", Ben said. "I don't want you making the mistake of entrusting your future to such a person", Ben continued.

"How can I tell who is good for me or who is not if you don't allow me to go out there and experience things for myself?", Sandra questioned. "Allow me to make my own mistakes and then I would concede defeat that you have always been right", Sandra pleaded. "Just this once dad, allow me to do this on my own without your interference", Sandra begged as the tears flowed freely from her eyes. "Are you asking me to wait till you get hurt before I protect you?", Ben enquired.

"Daddy, people get hurt, cheated on, lied to and betrayed once a while and they eventually get over it", Sandra explained. "Should I get hurt along the line, I would cry but trust me, I would get over it no matter what", Sandra preached.

"In all the years we have been together, I have never seen you this adamant and strong-willed", Ben disclosed. "What has come over you?", Ben queried.

"Nothing", Sandra answered.

"But let's just say something I have never felt before has been awakened inside of me", Sandra said with pride written all over her face.

 Ben was adamant when he spoke.

"There is no telling that no matter how many times I try to convince you, your mind has obviously been made up and my words are going to mean virtually nothing to you", Ben opined. "

"I have never been so sure in my life", Sandra said. "Daddy, please give me this chance to prove to you that I can do this and that I am strong enough to face the world on my own", Sandra added. "I just want to fall in love like every other normal young lady", Sandra stressed. "Even if I don't find peace while I am at it, I would know that I was advised against it and I refused to listen", Sandra revealed.

Ben looked at  Sandra with awe. "That's a first", Ben said. "I have never seen my little girl so happy like this in a long while", he added. "I am convinced that you know what you are getting yourself involved in and I am prepared to let you have just one shot at this", Ben explained. "But let me throw this caution to the wind, should I get word of any foul play, that young man would be as good as dead", Ben added.

"None of that is going to happen", Sandra said confidently.

Her father went further up the bed and hugged her. "I know what is best for you and I would expect that you listen to me", Ben said.

"I can do this", Sandra assured him.

"You know I would always be here for you when things go bad right?", Ben said as he began to caress her.

Sandra's first instinct was to break his hold but she didn't want to do anything that would jeopardize her being together with Henry. So without putting up a fight or showing any signs of disgust, Sandra quietly  sat on the bed as Ben caressed and fondled her breasts. He soon took off her clothes, placed her on the bed and gently parted her skinny thighs. As soon as he was on top of her, she closed her eyes and all she could imagine was how making love with Henry was going to feel like. Tears run down her cheeks as she lay there, motionless. She clinched the bed sheet firmly and whispered, "I love you Henry, I really do"...




The next day, Henry was almost running late for work. He spent the whole night on the phone with Kennedy and Edwin updating them on the happenings at work that day involving the alleged assassin. Edwin advised that Henry stay away from Sandra for good per the man's instructions. Kennedy even wanted to have the matter reported first to Henry's parents and then the police to ensure their safety but Edwin and Henry vehemently disagreed. "I would have none of that!", Henry remarked. "I don't want to get my parents involved in this thing", Henry added. "Moreover, the people we are fighting are far more powerful and wealthy so the police would deem it a foolish case at best", Henry explained. "Even if I really wanted to get the police involved, what sort of evidence do I have to back my claims with?", Henry asked.

"You can use the note from Julius's office", Edwin suggested. "I don't have it", Henry said. "Where is it?", Kennedy asked. "I left it in the file on Julius's desk", Henry answered. "Are you kidding me?", Edwin asked. "You have to get that file before Julius or anyone gets it and ends up destroying it eventually.

"Okay", Henry started. "My boss didn't turn up at the office yesterday so I would wake up very early and go and pick it up before anyone else does", Henry said.

It was that same morning that Henry was running late for work.

When he entered the premises of Kaprisky, it was almost half past seven in the morning. As he hurriedly made his way to the main entrance to the building, he had a shock of his life as Ben's car pulled up right beside him.

Henry kept walking.

The driver was ordered to follow him. When the car got close to him, the left back door of the car flew open, "Henry, get in!", Ben ordered. Henry declined the offer and slowly backed away out of fear.

"Get in!", Ben ordered, this time very sternly.

"I can't sir", Henry said.

"Henry please get into the car for Christ's sake", a female voice spoke from the passenger seat in the front. Sandra pushed her head through the seats and signaled for Henry to get into the car. On seeing Sandra, Henry was at ease and slowly entered the car, although all of his confidence had deserted him in the process.

Immediately Henry entered the vehicle, he was ordered to shut the door. "My daughter has spoken to me at length about you", Ben started. "Even though I have my own reservations, I am going to allow the two of you to be just friends and nothing more", Ben explained. "She seems to have a lot of faith and confidence in your friendship and I hope that you have the endurance to keep it that way", Ben continued. "Therefore, I give you permission to be her friend but be warned, should she come complaining about your attitude, be sure to brace yourself because you will witness hell on earth", Ben promised.

"Stop it Daddy", Sandra screamed.


Henry sat in the back seat of the range rover like a newly-confirmed mute.

He did not say a word.

"Can you excuse us while I have a word with Henry?", Ben asked politely looking at Sandra.

Sandra knew that she would not like what her dad would say to Henry but she had to obey him. "Every worthy venture comes with great risks", Sandra said to herself and disembarked the sports car.

"Sir please I don't understand all of this", Henry started as Sandra shut the door. "If you care to know, I was threatened yesterday by some guy who was asking me to stay away from your daughter", Henry remarked. "Today, you are telling me to do the very thing I was threatened not to do", Henry added. "I just don't get what is happening".

"I am glad you received that message yesterday and I hope you would know what is best for you to do what is expected of you", Ben said.

"So why are you asking me to go against your warning just to put my life and that of others in danger?", Henry queried.

"My daughter seems to believe that she is in love with you and so are you", Ben said. "She doesn't want to listen to me, her father, who knows what's best for her so I am letting her hear what she wants theoretically but in practice, I would never allow it to happen", Ben added.

"Now I am confused", Henry said. "What exactly do you want me to do?", Henry asked.

"I want you to make her believe that all is well between you two", Ben said. "Again, I would expect that you say nothing of what ensued yesterday with our mutual friend or details of this conversation to Sandra", Ben warned. "I hope you can do that without any difficulty", Ben said.

"Yes sir, Henry replied.

"You are a smart young man and I know you would figure out what's best for all of us and not cross the line", Ben said. "I think we are done here so get the hell out of my car", Ben ordered...MORE SOON

CAN HENRY KEEP UP APPEARANCE? NOW THAT SANDRAIS MADLY IN LOVE WITH HIM, WOULD HE SUCCEED IN GETTING HER TO STAY AWAY FROM HIM? THE WEB OF SCHEMES IS JUST ABOUT TO BEGIN…STAY TUNED. THIS IS A MASTERPIECE FROM THE STABLES OF RANDOM AFRICAN THOUGHTS. MY NAME IS EDWIN OKO LAMPTEY.




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