Chapter ten

When Anne woke up hours later, it was already midday. Looking out from the window, she noticed the people talking in whispers, were a different group and were fewer than they had been before she went to bed, surprise written on their faces still. The sounds of siren which indicated the arrival of policemen was soon heard as the policemen made their way to the scene. Some of the uniformed men went across the street, where the robbers had stood last night while they threw stones at Anne's window, and a few others went into different compounds, taking notes and photos of the ruins caused by the robbers.

Their hushed conversations mixed with the distant wail of sirens created a tense atmosphere. The blazing sun did not deter them as they gathered clues aiming to piece together the puzzle that may lead them to the culprits behind the daring heist.

Although they could not gain entrance into Anne's home, they had succeeded in a few other houses within the neighborhood and had carted away some valuables.

Devotedly the policemen searched the areas concerned, looking for the smallest of clues while the clock ticked by.

After hours of combing the areas and homes that were affected, the policemen came up with some items that they suspected belonged to the robbers. The items included a wristwatch, a handmade gun, and a mask. It was a good start, they all agreed.

After searching for about thirty minutes more, and finding nothing else, they called it a day and rounded up their search.

Just when they were about to leave, one of the occupants of the affected homes came with a wallet, saying it was not his and it belonged to no one from his household. This discovery brought shimmers of hope to everybody. The wallet was brown colored, faded, and peeling off. The officer in charge opened the wallet and brought out the contents- a fake dollar note, a few hundred naira, and a few copies of a passport photograph. How unlucky of the robbers!

The passports were passed around, and in no time the name and address of the culprit were spilled out amidst wails of surprise and the policemen drove to the address, which was about three streets away. It was 04:20 p.m. when they left.

Anne fell lazily on the bed, after hours of looking out the window, she dreaded going back to her room and wished either of her sisters were around. The sounds of stones hitting her window and glass shattering was still fresh in her mind and she couldn't help being scared.

When the policemen got to the address, they showed the passport to the neighbors who pointed his apartment to the police. Roughly pushing open the door, they met the young man whose passport they had found, and three others, celebrating with bottles of beer. The unsuspecting young men had their spoils carelessly placed in front of them. They resisted arrest at first but when they were severely hit, they complied and were taken to the police station, along with the stolen items.

Words soon spread around that the culprits had been arrested and the victims were to come to the police station the next day, to lay claims to their stolen items.

Anne particularly was relieved to hear that the culprits had been arrested, at least she could sleep peacefully tonight knowing well that they were in prison. Not in her room though.

She journeyed quickly to her room and packed a few of her belongings to her mom's room where she will be staying for the time being. Not that she was scared, she told herself. She only needed a change of bedroom.

After arranging her things in the room, she went in search of her mom.

She went through the hallway and met her mom in the sitting room, with photos scattered around. She was so engrossed in a particular photo which she held in her right hand that she didn't notice when Anne walked in. Curious, Anne walked to her side and was surprised her simple movement startled her mom. She noticed her teary eyes and guessed who the person in the photo was.

Mrs Smith tactfully put the photo away but Anne was quick enough to browse through. It was a photo of the whole family, her Mom and dad, Felix, Samantha, Anne, and little Prisca on their father's shoulders.

It was a long time ago and she knew her guess was correct.

Not wanting to linger on sad memories, she complained of hunger, hoping to distract her mom, and it worked.

"Now that the culprits have been found and arrested, can I have my room back? " Mrs Smith asked, jokingly.

" I am very welcome to stay, besides I am only doing you a favor ". Anne defended.

"A favor?". She asked and they both chuckled.

Lightheartedly, they made their way to the kitchen after putting the photos away and together they prepared dinner.

Preparing dinner was fun, with two chefs in the kitchen. They argued through every part of the food preparation, the quantity of water, salt, seasoning, and spices, like two captains in charge of a ship. At a point, Anne begged her mom to exit the kitchen so she could complete the cooking on her own and she did.

After eating dinner, they both made their way to the bedroom they now shared and Mrs. Smith had a feat of laughter when she noticed some of Anne's belongings in the room.

Pretending not to notice, Anne went straight to her mother's bed and pulled the bedcovers over her. She got up shortly after to study and realized her books were in her room, and her phone too. She went back to bed but sleep eluded her.

In the stillness of the night, memories resurfaced with haunting persistence. Memories of her and her sisters hovering around their dad, going to school and church together. Memories of her talking with her dad, like some mature adult.

Looking towards her mother's direction and finding her fast asleep, she tiptoed out of the room and went back to the sitting room. She brought out the photos they had put away earlier from one of the drawers. Sitting on the floor in front of a couch, she looked through every one of the photos with glimpses of sad, happy memories flickering through her mind. She viewed some of the photos for longer minutes compared to others. By the time she finally put the photos away, it was past midnight and she was half asleep.

With sleepy eyes, she dragged herself to her room and eased on her bed just as her eyes caught the broken window and in the next second, she was on her feet, hastily walking towards her mother's room. She waited a little before stepping into the room to ease her breadth and act as normally as possible.

When she climbed into her mother's bed this time, she fell asleep almost immediately.