I swallowed an inexplicable lumP in my
hroat and looked down to the floor. "Was he trying to remind me of my father's death so that I would cry before hinm?" I thought.
"He died of HIV, sir," I replied incoherently
trying my best to look normal.
He beamed me a smile and archeda brow. "I
mean do you know how your father really died, boy?
His pitch increased and his eyes hardened.
"What are you talking about? You remind me
of my father's death, yet you smile about it like there
18 Something you think I'm hiding. Tell me, then, how
my father died!" I spoke without panic or fear this
ime, knowing that, probably, this was a sort of trap
Was he going to tell me how he had given Mummy poison to terminate Daddy's life?
Mr Alex managed a short laugh and kept looking at me with that dark intent gaze, "Why would
someone want my wife dead?" Mr Alex asked changing the subject with an ineredilous expression on his tace.

"I don't know; we live in a wcked world,"l said simply, carefally picking the words I used, to
avoid implicatng myself.
"A wicked world indeed!"he lamented,
nodding his head in assent. Now, somehow, I feel
my daughters are also in danger, he added, looking
up to the ceiling as if searching for & answers there.
My jaw clenched hard. Was this man a ghost or something weirder? I wondered.
"Why would you feel that way I asked casually, trying my best to play along without letting
him know that I was behaving strange.

"Is that just a feeling or actually something that I know would happen, he said and turned to me, staring deeply into my eyes.

Shaking with trepidation, looked away
quickly. My heart throbbed much faster now and
was scared it he could hear my heartbeat. "You are being pessimistic and that is not good, l stammered and he smiled at me again and bowed his face.
"Your mum told me that you belong to a cult
Are you still a member of that group? he further asked.

Wasn't it just easier if I killed him here without anyone knowng it, except for his daughters
who knewI was in here with him?" I thought. His questions were going too far and I couldn't keep up
any longer. l cant answer that and if you dont mind, I must retire to bed now," I said, reflecting on
what Daddy had told me about Mr Alex being a
cultist and using his first son for a "ritual", l
wondered how true that was seeing that he had no
other son; only daughters.

"You know you could just shoot me dead now so easily without questions with that stuff in your pocket, he said. His eyes grew round and he smiled
tightly.

I forced myself to look blank. "What stuff in my pocket? And why would I want to do that?" I
asked, touching my pockets to see it anything was in there.

"Don't know; think you should tell me."
"You seem to have lost your mind and I can understand that your wife means a lot to you.I think you should have some rest; that will do," I said finally
and then walked out of his room just immediately. l overheard him loudly as he shouted"I didn't
kill your father: your mother did."

I stopped abruptly on hearing that and, then, instantaneously, ran towards the gate. "How on earth
did this man know about that, as if he had watched me listen to the conversation he had with his wife?
I said to myself. The gateman was fast asleep and I
collected his bunch of keys carefully trying to open
the gate with the appropriate key.

A sepulchral voice froze my legs at the gate;
I stood rooted to a spot. "Mark my words, you would
pay with your life sooner or later for this, "Mr Alex said with a hoarse voice.

I was still battling with the keys. The gate opened at the instant andI fled.

It was 1:00p.m. the next day; I was already at James place. James kept drinking and smoking
carelessly as we conversed.

"Brother, it seems that girl is invincible oh,

we haven't been able to capture her."
"I'm not surprised. He must have put charms all over her body to make her disappear. The man is
a wizard; if not so, how did he know everything he said last night," I said disappointingly.

"The man is still a mortal; he still can be killed."

My eyes met Jame's and I looked away. There was a bit of silence as I remained pensive for some minutes. I wasn't sure if I still wanted to kill him. He had threatened me with death; that alone had scared
me. Angry lumps clumped my throat as I thought of
Daddy's death and how Mummy had cried and even fainted as though she knew nothing about Daddy's death. I never knew Mum was a good actress, with the whole drama she had displayed in the hospital since the tears in her eyes were not genuine.
"What if Mr Alex was bluffing? What if he concocted this whole thing? What if this is all one big fat lie, James? I asked after much thinking.
"William, you know as well as I do that he wasn't bluffing, this is real, man," James replied.

"Hmm,I just don't get it.

"Now, what about that babe, Crystal, abi?"James asked as he waited patiently to hear to my reply

Just then, my mind flashed back to the past when Mummy had accused Crystal of being HIV
positive, but it was now clear that Mama had lied, probably to cover up for herself.

"My man, you haven't given me a reply on the question I just asked you."

"I haven't heard from her, at least for some months now," I answered.

"Well, that babe looks older than you; how did you get her?" James asked with a grin on his face and I chuckled, remembering how it had all begun fromom home when she had seduced me in the absence of everyone.