His reluctance deterred me from asking any further. I didn’t want to reveal how much Okem’s disappearance affected me. My love for Okem was still alive, but it was not immediately apparent. It existed in my dreams and in the innermost crevices of my heart where no one could reach for it without first prying me open. It was safe.
* * *
“As the wedding planning intensifies, I find myself thinking more and more about Okem,” I said to Amah one sunny afternoon when she came to visit. She came by often to assist me with wedding preparations while she waited for her applications to a Master’s Program to come through.
“In what sense?” she asked, raising her brows as she stepped forward to sit beside me on the bed. As she waited for me to respond, she crossed her legs and adjusted her back to face me directly.
“Oh. It’s not what you think,” I said, waving my hand abruptly. “Albert had been searching for him, and he claims there’s no word on his whereabouts—”
“Is that a fact? Albert was searching for Okem?” she asked, wide-eyed.
“He told me so himself, which surprised me. I always thought Okem infuriated him.”
“Hmm! Then leave it alone and focus on Albert. I can’t believe soon you’ll be the Queen of Ide. Will I have to bow to you then?” She asked with a disapproving look.”
“You don’t have to bow to me, but you can feed me grapes,” I responded, winking and pulling a long hiss from her.
“In your dreams.”
“But on a serious note,” I continued. “I can’t pretend Okem never existed after my conversation with Albert. What if Okem is in danger? We are all he has after all.”
“You make a good point. And you say Albert has found nothing?”
“Nothing so far.”
“That’s serious then, Ona. Knowing Albert, he would have used the best available resource for his search. If that did not produce any results, then Okem must be seriously lost. In that case, it’s your responsibility to find him.”
I sat upright to improve my focus as I came to the sudden realization that I may have neglected my responsibility towards Okem.
“I’ll ask Albert again,” I said, trying my best to sound calmer than I was feeling. “The problem is, he shuts down whenever I bring up Okem. I’ll try again, though.”
Amah shook her head. “Albert may not be your best bet, for obvious reasons. If this is so important to you, I’d say you should try to find Okem on your own.”
“When he first disappeared, I actually thought about hiring a private investigator to look for him,” I confided.
“Hian!” Amah exclaimed. “Do you think we’re in a Hollywood movie? Which money would you have used then to hire a private investigator? You were still a student when Okem left. And since graduating, you’ve proudly refused to accept any pocket money from your parents. To add to that, you’re not working yet, and you don’t get an income until you resume your new role, and even then, e get as e be.”
“I have some money set aside. I don’t think it’s a big deal.”
“Save your money for a rainy day. I can ask my Uncle in Ajidi to help. He can ask the Ntebe people there if anyone has heard of Okem. Believe me, I’m sure he’s hiding somewhere in Ajidi. That’s where all the runaways go.”
“Don’t talk about Okem like that,” I chided.
“Okay o,” she said, shrugging her shoulders. “Seriously, my uncle is your best bet. Do you have a picture of Okem? I can send it to him, and he can contact you directly if he finds anything since I may soon be leaving for London.”
“Thank you so much Amah. I’d really appreciate that. Hmm! With all this talk about London, I hope you’ll be around for the wedding.”
“You should know by now that I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” she said with a smirk.
“I believe you, but make sure you get someone before you leave,” I teased.
“Why do I need to?” she scoffed. “There are many fishes in the part of the Atlantic that crosses the United Kingdom.”
“But your parents will like you to marry an Ntebe man. What about that boy you’re seeing? The one that just moved back from the states?”
Amah chuckled.
“That one? Do you know what he said to me the other day?”
“What?” I asked, adjusting myself on the bed.
“That if I like we can do it.”
“Do what?” I asked, laughing and pounding my fists on the pillow when I finally understood what she meant. “Amah, please don’t kill me!”
“Ehen. That’s the one you want me to stake my life on. Please, I want a prince like Albert. I’m sure Albert doesn’t ask you to ‘do it.’ If he did, I’d have known by now.”
* * *
Amah kept her end of the bargain and contacted her Uncle in Ajidi on my behalf. He sent me updates at intervals, but the search revealed nothing for weeks. The last time I heard from him, he had concluded that Okem could not be in Ajidi at all. The other alternative he offered was that he had either changed his name to stay anonymous or had died a while ago. I refused to believe that Okem was dead. Had that been the case, I would have felt it in my soul. Our hearts were still intertwined.
* * *
One month to the wedding, Albert invited me to dinner. It was in June, the weekend after the Children’s Day celebration. He agreed to pick me up early so we could avoid driving home in the dark. The boundary clashes had subsided, although there were still rumors of robbers and ne’er-do-wells in the streets. I took some time to apply my makeup, hoping to impress him as I hadn’t seen
