When it rains episode 13

~WHEN IT RAINS...IT POURS~
~PART13~

Barrister Mike Collins was a fifty-something year old man who looked kind and approachable. But looks can be deceiving. I thought to myself.

I walked in with baited breath and what I heard next changed my life yet all over again.

The real perpetrators of the fraud had been caught I was informed by the Barrister. One of them had been traced through his IP address on an entirely different case and on going through his confiscated laptop, evidence of the fraud done in my name had cropped up.

That had reopened the investigation and some arrests have been made. He also informed me that the last person to be arrested yesterday was the one who had brought my credentials to them as the confessions said. He had called me as soon as the last one was arrested.

Apparently they had written to me if I could assist with the whereabouts of the suspect. That means Chike was arrested a few minutes after I left him playing tonsil hockey with his dumb girlfriend. So if I had waited a few more minutes, I would have been arrested with him probably and the company would have thought I was as guilty as charged.

Chike had taken my credentials from my diary where I had written it down with other details I didn’t want to forget.

I guarded that diary religiously and was only comfortable leaving it at home because I believed Chike and I were reading from the same hymn book.

He had also forged my signature on a company cheque one of the junior accountants in his hacking ring had brought out and all those fraudulent transfers and withdrawals were made with me ~being in ~the dark. He knew he was guilty of the crime I had been arrested for and he had abandoned me to my fate and took his all ill-gotten wealth somewhere else.
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I cried tears of vindication and relief while the barrister smiled sadly at my tears. Life had just turned around once again.

It has been one year since I was reinstated *to my office at Zenith Constructions and Planning. In that time, I had seen my mother do a turnabout of her behaviour becoming this effusive, fake, attentive character that I did* not even recognize.

Chinyere had been beaten mercilessly by ~thugs purportedly sent by Mrs. Maduka. No one caught them but since then Mrs. Maduka had been walking around with~ a smirk on her face and Chinyere had become a shadow of herself. I took her in with me and we had a long soul baring talk.

She recently started an apprenticeship at a makeup studio. She likes it and has been very enthusiastic about it. I will definitely be opening up a place for her when she does her ‘freedom’.

Chike and his gang have been in prison custody since then. The case was called up two months ago and due to the possibility of them being flight risks, they were remanded in prison custody.

The case was adjourned till next month. I just sat in that court and shed tears all through the proceedings. Ironically, Chike’s brother Emeka who had introduced Chike to and convinced Chike to join the gang of hackers and ‘yahoo’ boys and get my credentials has not been caught till date.

I have moved on with my life and today I sat in the crowd watching my angel graduate into primary school. The company had paid me back all they took from me and I was very comfortable living alone with my son, a live-in nanny and his aunt Chinyere.

I have resolved to stay away from men for the rest of my life. I will never be in the situation of being cheated and lied to again. Fool me once shame on you but fool me twice, then it will be a definite shame on me.
THE END.