On the other side of the line, he heard the slow, calculated laugh of Asibi.

Asibi Abugri.

What the absolute hell??

“Mr. Willem Doku. Good evening to you, sir. How are you doing? You’re alright, I can see. I trust the family’s doing great as well. You know, It’s been a while, hasn’t it? I missed you… oh wait, am I allowed to say that? I sure hope I’m allowed to say that. Because it’s true, you know…”

Breathing in and out with loud breaths, Willem seethed at her chatter. She sounded playful, yet he could hear the tints of malice lacing her tone.

“Stop the foolish games!” he roared. “What the hell is wrong with you, woman? What the hell have you done? Why have you hacked my accounts? What type of stupidity is this? Do you know what you’re doing??”

“Now, now,” she replied, her tone maddeningly calm, as though they were old friends catching up over coffee. “Is that any way to talk to me? Calm down, Mr. Doku. I was thinking you’d be a little more…grateful, you know. At least you know the source of your little… predicament…”

“Grateful?!” Willem thundered, his free hand clenching into a fist on the desk. “Are you normal at all? Grateful for what? Don’t you realize you’re putting my company and my livelihood in jeopardy? Huh? Do you know the damage you could cause? Huhh?”

“Oh, please relax, Mr. Doku, I know all that. And don’t be so worked up, the company’s gonna be fine. It’s just about you and me, you know. There’s something we need to discuss-“

“You and I have nothing to discuss, Asibi! Absolutely nothing! As far as I’m concerned, I need you to restore my stuff to me straight away. And I’m calling the police to have you arrested straight away because it’s clear you’re one hell of a deranged psychopath! What is the meaning of this? We owe you nothing! Absolutely nothing! Now goodbye, and get ready to explain to the police how you hacked my accounts!”

“Hmm,” Asibi hummed, her voice still infuriatingly sweet. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

“Go to hell!”

With that, he ended the call with a forceful tap, his chest heaving with rage. “Unbelievable,” he muttered under his breath, the heat of anger coursing through him. “I can’t believe this. She’s been sick all along! Chale, let me get one of my friends to go arrest her…”

The echoes of her voice, mocking and calm, lingered in his ears as he scrolled through his contacts, searching for the number of Inspector-General Boadu, a top police officer he trusted. His lips were pressed into a hard line as he searched for the phone number.

“Nonsense. Stupid woman. How do you do something this devious to your former… oh, good, here it is!”

He nodded as his thumb hovered over the contact, ready to call the officer to deal with Asibi.

Then a notification popped up at the top of his phone screen: New WhatsApp Message.

His heart couldn’t help but skip a beat. He had a strong feeling it was from Asibi.

He opened the messaging app. The number that appeared was an unknown number. Another message appeared before he could even open the first. This one made his blood run cold: “Thought you’d like a trip down memory lane.”

“What the hell is this woman up to?” he wondered, frowning as he opened the chat.

A video file awaited him, its thumbnail blurred but ominous. But even with the blurs, it looked oddly… familiar.

This video file looked a bit like it was taken in an office. And as he squinted at it, the setup of that office looked familiar.

It was the very office he was sitting in.

Suddenly, his stomach turned, a deep unease settling in his chest.

“No… No, no, no,” he whispered as his thumb hesitated over the download button. “Please, please, don’t let it be what I think it is. Please…”

He hovered for a few minutes, then tapped it. The video began to download, the progress bar inching forward at a pace that, in that moment, felt torturous. When it finished, he pressed play.

The screen lit up, and his worst fears materialized before his eyes.

The video was unmistakable; it was secret footage meant for his eyes alone.

How in the world did it land in her laps?

As the video’s contents continued to play on, his other phone buzzed on his table. It was Asibi again.

For a moment, he considered rejecting it, but the newly found dread in his heart compelled him to answer.

He raised the phone to his ear. “Asibi…” His voice was no longer firm and commanding; it was shaky, almost pleading. “Asibi, please…”

“Hellloooooo, Mr. Doku! Nothing like a passionate trip down memory lane to set things straight, innit?”

Willem sat there, speechless as Asibi laughed. He looked down at the video, then found his voice. “Asibi… Asibi…”

“Oh relax, relax! I can see you’re quite… taken aback by what you see. I understand, take your time, wai. I’m here for you, you get me. At least, now you understand one important thing in this little exchange of ours.

“I know all about you, and I have all your secrets in my hand. Like you see right now, I know you’re having an affair with Rosemary.”

***

Willem continued to sit in stunned silence as the video on his phone continued to play on, explicit sounds rising from it.

This was meant to be for his consumption! Him and him alone! Not even Rosemary knew he had his phone hidden in the bookshelf whenever she came for some action. This was supposed to be his secret!

Now it was in the hands of this clearly psycho woman. A woman he had never expected this level of hacking from.

This is unbelievable. What kind of hacking is this that she accessed my videos on my phone? Like, how is this coming from her in the first place?

“You know, I’m not into this type of… well, stuff. Matter of fact, I haven’t gotten laid in five years now. Yep, five long years of forced celibacy. Sad, isn’t it? Anyways, I’m not into this stuff, but… honestly, if a man folded me the way you did Rosemary in this video… good lord have mercy, I’m marrying him the next day! Whattt!”

The cackles of Asibi were like pins in his ears. Sure, watching it on his own, he felt proud to have plowed through Rosemary with that ferocity. At that moment, though, he could not feel more humiliated.

“You know what, though? I’m not too shocked, to be honest. I always knew that bitch was fake, the way she presents herself as some innocent girl who zips between home, work and church. I knew someone was playing with that sweet body of hers. I just didn’t think it would be you. But it is, and herrrrrh! My respect just went up for you. I see why Rosemary came back like… 6 more times or something like that. And yes, I have those videos too. I haven’t watched them, though. Like I said, I’m not into this stuff.”

Willem winced. The sarcasm in her voice at the ‘respect’ was thinly veiled, but he could hear it loud and clear.

“Like, you really know how to drive a girl crazy with those skills of yours. The way she’s happily collecting diɛɛ, chale, you really are a beast in bed. Ei, then Madam Eugenia has been enjoying paaa oh, herh! Two decades of enjoying this kind of action? Kaish! No wonder she glows so much!”

The anvil in his belly sank even deeper.

Of course, Eugenia. That was the reason he was so terrified.

“Makes you wonder, though, doesn’t it, how sweet Mrs. Eugenia Doku would feel about this. Seeing her husband of 23 years hungrily kissing his secretary, pulling down her panties, bending her over and destroying her from behind like there’s no tomorrow. She’s going to be… a little upset, don’t you think?”

A deliberate understatement. Willem knew too well that hellfire would feel like winter compared to Eugenia’s wrath if she ever discovered this.

“Oh, and what about Billy and Wilma? They certainly wouldn’t be very excited to see their honourable, distinguished daddy hungrily clapping his secretary’s cheeks now, would they?”

His heart pounded faster. Sweat began to form on his brow.

He still had no idea how she got a hold of these, but that didn’t matter now. What mattered was that she had them, and one wrong move would cause devastating consequences.

He swallowed hard.

“Asibi, listen… whatever you…”

“Hol’ up, hol’ up, hol’ up! Don’t skip the script, Mr. Doku! You’re talking ahead of time. Please, I’m the director of this show. Let me direct it as it ought to be directed.”

That sounded ridiculous, but he certainly could not say anything. The balance of power had shifted to her; he was entirely in her hands and had to watch himself.

“You see, as I already mentioned, I know all about you, so this is just one of many things I know. I just wanted to drop this on your lap to really catch your attention, but if you think that’s all I have in store for you… hah! Mr. Willem Doku… I’m just getting started…” 

Well damn! She’s just getting started? Coz this is incriminating enough. What else does she know? And why is she doing this?