EIGHTY
On Friday morning, bathing in the afterglow of the successful meeting with Godfather, Nii texted Ponsu that things had gone very well. Hours later, the priest, not the fastest texter in the world, replied to say Nii should come to his compound that afternoon before Ponsu headed to Atimpoku for the weekend.
“Okay, Daddy,” Nii said.
As was typical for Ponsu, he kept Nii waiting at the compound for an eternity before showing up. He had been to a funeral and was resplendent in crimson and black cloth. He seemed unusually preoccupied as Nii followed him into the house.
“Have a seat,” Ponsu said, casting around for the remote for his new air-conditioning unit. To his annoyance, he couldn’t locate it, so he sat down on the bed. “So, talk about Godfather. How is he?”
“He’s fine. He was happy to see us.”
Ponsu rolled down his cloth to his waist to help cool off. “What about Bruno? Did Godfather say something about him?”
“He was praising Bruno. Very happy. And Godfather blessed the two of us.”
“Good, good. Now, Bruno will see the money flowing.”
“Yes please,” Nii said. “Daddy, I want to ask you about a certain woman who was at my house yesterday—”
“One of your girlfriends?”
Nii laughed a little. “No, this one is just a friend. Bruno’s sister.”
“Eh-heh? And what?”
“Please, she wants to do sakawa too.”
“Is that so? Bruno trusts her?”
“Yes please.”
“Her name?”
“Emma.”
“You have a photo?”
“Yes please.” Nii went to his recent pics. “Here.”
Ponsu took the phone and studied the photo. “It seems I know her,” he said.
“Please, spiritually?”
“No,” Ponsu said. “I’ve seen her before somewhere.”
“Oh, okay.”
Ponsu rubbed his forehead. “Wait, wait. It’s coming.” His head snapped up. “This girl is a detective.”
Nii stiffened. “Please, you say what? A detective? What kind of detective?”
“She’s something like an apprentice with that guy’s private investigator agency—Yemo Sowah. Both came to see me in May asking me about the white man, the one who was your mugu. This is the woman you say wants to be sakawa?”
Nii was in state of confusion. “Please, are you sure this is the same woman?”
Ponsu looked one more time and returned Nii’s phone. “Yes, it’s her. What did you tell her?”
“Bruno trusts her,” Nii said, “so I told them it’s okay for her to come inside with us and I can start to show her things.”
Ponsu’s eyes narrowed. “And what else?”
Nii said, “She asked me if I ever used a woman before to get money from a mugu and I told her yes.”
Ponsu leaned forward and slapped him hard. “Kwasea!”
Nii jumped not only at the impact of the priest’s hand but the very idea that Ponsu had struck him. It had never happened before, and he felt tears prick his eyes.
“You should know better,” Ponsu said. “This woman is investigating you, don’t you see? Because she’s fine, she has blinded you. You know you have to consult me first about these things.”
Emotionally wounded, Nii was almost crying. “Please, I think she’s real. Even if she was a detective, she wants to do the sakawa.”
Ponsu seemed to halfway consider that as a possibility but then he returned to his preceding stance. “Don’t talk to that girl anymore. Do you still trust Bruno? Why didn’t he tell you the girl is a detective?”
“Please, I don’t think he even knows the kind of job she does. They don’t see each other often.”
Ponsu was skeptical. “Find out about her, you understand?”
“Yes please. I will do that.”
“Okay, look,” Ponsu said, softening. “I’m sorry for slapping you, eh?”
“No problem.” Nii managed a smile.
“Just be careful in the future.”
“Yes please.”
“And I think you have some cash for me today.”
Nii Kwei met DI Doris Damptey at their usual spot, and as always, he treated her to a massive meal, this time of fufu and groundnut soup. The woman’s appetite was boundless, and she ate with relish.
“I want to ask you something, Auntie,” Nii said.
“What?”
He showed her his selfie with Emma and Bruno. “Do you know this woman?”
She sucked her fingers. “Emma Djan. She used to be with CID.”
“What does she do for a living?”
“Private investigator now. With Yemo Sowah. She’s too inquisitive. I don’t like her at all.”
“You’re sure she’s still a private detective?”
“Yes, isn’t that what I said? Are you doubting me?”
Nii grinned. “I would never doubt such a wondrous woman as yourself, Auntie.”
“Please.” Damptey rolled her eyes. “So, what about Emma?”
“She was at my house yesterday asking questions about how she can become a sakawa girl. Kweku Ponsu thinks she’s investigating something about me.”
“And he’s right!” Damptey said heatedly. “This girl a sakawa? Don’t mind her! She and Sowah were looking into what happened to that white man who drowned in the Volta River. Once they found the body, Sowah told my boss that they won’t be trying to investigate this any longer. So why is this girl still doing it? And Bruno, too—what is he doing with her?”
“I don’t know,” Nii said. “I thought I trusted him, but I’m not so sure now. What should we do?”
“I’m going to report that girl to our DCOP Laryea. He’ll take it from there.” Damptey sucked her fingers and smacked her lips.
“As for Bruno, well, find out if he’s working with that girl and warn him to stop.”
In the morning, Damptey found out DCOP Laryea was out of town and otherwise unavailable. She wasn’t sure what to do, so she consulted DCS Quaino. But he didn’t want to get involved.
“Mr. Sowah was my father’s mate,” he said. “How do you think I’m going to call him with a complaint about his employee? That’s disrespectful.”
“Yes, sir,” Damptey said. After lunch, she decided to take it to the top and put in a request to Sergeant Thelma for a meeting with Director-General Andoh. He saw Damptey a couple of hours later in his office and listened without comment while she described the problem of meddlesome Emma Djan.
“Why didn’t you report this to DCOP Laryea?” Andoh asked.
“Please, he’s not in. I think he has left for the weekend.”
The DG eyed her with disfavor. “And this couldn’t wait until Monday when he returns?”
“Please, I thought one of my superiors should be alerted.”
Andoh scowled at her and heaved a sigh. “You let the DCOP know when he returns on Monday. Don’t trouble me with this kind of trivial issue. You are dismissed.”
Damptey left feeling useless and embarrassed. In retrospect, it did seem a petty issue to take to the director-general, but to her, it was still very important. Damptey strongly resented Emma Djan. She needed to be silenced.
Back in his office, Andoh got on his phone and called the IGP. “Good morning, sir. Yes, sir, thank you, sir. I wanted to keep you updated regarding the sakawa investigation. No, sir, not exactly a new development, but it seems the lady investigator from the Sowah Detective Agency is continuing the inquiries. Yes, Emma Djan. As far as I was aware, sir, her boss informed DCOP Laryea that they would relinquish the investigation to us. Yes, sir. So, I’m not sure if Sowah was telling us a lie, or has changed his mind, or whether the girl is doing this on her own accord . . . Okay, sir. Yes, sir. Thank you, sir. I’ll take care of it.”