SHATTERED BLISS

Love, they say, is not the tree but the seed. The mustard tree is a product of the mustard seed…

Ten years had gone by, and just like yesterday, I recollect playing with Chike’s beards, chatting about beautiful nothings, and looking at the stars from his balcony.

Suddenly, he got up from my lap where he rested his head and placed his soft palm on my cheek. I blushed and look him in the eyes. This man had captured my whole existence…

“I want us to start a family,” he tells me and reaches for my hands. He caressed them and goes on to hold them tight.

“I want that too, but…”

“There’s no but, Peace…” He shushed me.

“It’s you I want by my side twenty years from now and even when I grow old, I want you there. I promise we’ll let go of everything and start our lives all over on a clean sheet” Chike spoke.

The moon looked down at us with a smile.

I felt so uneasy and constantly looked around us. I was scared and he noticed.

“What are you scared of? Is there something you want us to talk about?” He asked me. This time, he looked around too, but I remained mute.

Letting go of his hold, I looked down, sad. Then I started twisting my fingers, lost in thoughts.

“What is it? I mean, it’s been three long years already. What else do you want? Why do you keep avoiding this to…pic?” His voice cracked. I could hear his worry and desire to marry me.

“Chike, I love you so much. And I’ve tried countless times to…” Tears escaped my eyes and rolled down my cheeks. I looked at Chike with teary eyes.

“You don’t love me. Do you?”

“I want to tell you something. You have to listen carefully…” I said and looked around one more time. I heard sounds.

They were around. In Chike’s magnificent mansion, we were no longer alone. The moon had started moving slowly away from us, or as it is known, the world started moving away from it.

“ChikePleaseDon’tFightJustGiveUpAndSurrender…” I tried to speak as fast as possible.

The door handle cranked.

Alarmed, Chike swiftly turned to grab the gun next to him.

I make a hard fist and use it to weaken his wrist with a sharp punch.

He must have understood a little of what was going on as he immediately reach for my face, with his fist.

I dodge and force myself up.

He leaves me and attempts to get the gun again, but I clasp his right leg and pull him towards me.

Without hesitation, he turned to face me and used his left leg to kick me in the stomach…

“Fvck!” I exclaimed in pain. By the time I looked up, he had the gun pointed at me.

I chuckled.

My team had gained access already and had their guns and torches pointed at him. They were five in number, behind me, but around the compound, over twenty of them were at strategic spots.

“Why, peace?” Chike throws a question at me.

“Don’t move!” Peter, my fiance and teammate yelled at Chike.

“I did nothing but love you. Why?” He asked again.

“I’m sorry…” I mutter in tears. I stood there, cold to my bone marrow.

On an unfortunate Monday three years ago, I was commanded to serve as bait to bring in Chike Okeh alias Great Scorpio in. I served as a secret operations agent against human trafficking.

Peter and I were supposed to get married the coming Saturday. I remember trying on my wedding gown and crying. It felt so surreal that I was finally going to get married to the man of my dreams. Little did I know the players had to shuffle the cards, and as such, my fate.

Chike had been in the business for over ten years and somehow was able to stay afloat, without any incriminating evidence. We were sure who he was, but he seemed to be a step ahead all the time. He had an insider who kept deleting whatever evidence we gathered intended to pin him down. Not until she was caught and punished severely. Still, she could not give a good lead to nail him down.

“Agent 6, make sure not to ruin this. Take your time and ensure we get this guy…” My director had told me.

“Yes sir. I’ll try my best.” I replied

“Make sure your best counts…”

For the first two years, my sole aim was to bring Chike in at all costs. I had to pause and risk my life for that assignment. It was only necessary it ended in victory.

Chike was a very shrewd dealer. It was tug of war getting him to trust me enough to let me in on his shady deals. It took two whole years, and when he finally let down his defences, I saw a different man. The man I fell in love with.

He was a loving partner, and a baby at heart. When I noticed I had started falling for him, I called the office to have the mission aborted. They would not even hear of it.

I spent hours talking myself out of the feelings. Chike was a cold-blooded murderer. He was a wanted criminal. How can I have such a person as a partner? I asked myself.

Peter noticed and made sure I hastened up with the whole assignment.

So, there I was that night, speechless…

“ANSWER ME!” Chike screamed at me. I just could not find the right words to say at that moment.

Peter seemed not to be having any more of Chike’s nuisance.

“Drop your gun down and put your hands above your head!” Peter ordered.

Chike’s eyes were already filled with tears. He felt used and betrayed.

“I’m so sorry…”

“Aaaaarrrrggh!” His regret was evident in that exclamation.

Over twenty minutes gone and he was unyielding to surrender.

Then in the blink of an eye, and just when it was expected due to his increased rage, he fired the first shot at my teammates and subsequent shots after.

I took cover and watched as shots were fired at Chike.

“Nooooooooooooooooo!” I screamed from where I was and made an attempt to rush out and stop them. My teammate closest to me pulled me back and held me to ensure I did not get shot.

My eyes were fixed on Chike’s lifeless body in a pool of his blood. I remember touching my stomach and crying profusely.

Chike loved me in ways I could only have imagined.

Ten years later and I’m driving Chika, my little princess, to school. It was her first day at high school. Being a single mother all these years has not been easy, especially while earning a modest living.

I gazed at her and heaved a sigh of relief. One day, she would be old enough to know who her father was, and what transpired…or not. Because it is the deadliest risk to let anyone know that Chike has a child. They would come for my daughter, and I am scared old wounds may resurface and take me back to my past I never want reopened.

Love, truly, is a seed. Chike planted in me that seed, and yes, it’s blossoming into a tree.