Swapping Places Chapter 18

Sorry about the late release of this chapter. Had a super busy week and was too tired to create something new. I know you’ve been looking forward to it so did my best to draft something last night amidst me dozing off every five minutes.  Hope you enjoy it!

Read Chapter 17 here.

*

You seem to forget I’m a twin, Del’s words kept ringing in Kobby’s ears. What did that even mean? Perhaps he could guess but he didn’t want to bring himself to do that. Delphine was just talking smart. Daphne didn’t seem to know Seth that well judging from her reaction. Or was she pretending? No, he won’t subject himself to such pointless torture. Seth was Delphine’s problem and not Daphne’s.

 

Daphne got up with a smile plastered on her face as she stretched her hand toward the man who had walked to her.

“Miss Coleman?”
“Yes please. You must be Chris Quartey.” They shook hands.

“Call me Chris.” They sat.

“So I hear you have an offer for me,” he said, rubbing his palms.

“Yes, I do,” Daphne said, sliding a brochure over to him.

A guy sitting two tables away from them raised his phone and tapped the capture button on the screen.

That’s the one, he typed and sent as text message.

*

Daphne entered and began whistling loudly. She entered the kitchen when she heard the sizzling sound of oil on fire.

“Tell me I’m the best sister in the world.”

“Unless you’ve gone to the moon and back with a rose in your hand, I’m sorry I can’t,” Delphine said and took out some of the fried chicken out of the pan.

“What if I told you that I have?” Daphne said, fanning herself with a file.

“Are you still on that business? I thought you were done.”
“I was but I got this client all on my own. And trust me, it’s been hectic. But I’ll say it has been worth it because I know you’ll like what you see.” She handed it to her. Delphine opened it and gasped. She looked at her sister who smiled. Delphine stared at the document and blinked to make sure she was seeing right.

“Daph, who is this guy? He’s not a drug lord, is he?” Daphne laughed.

“No, he sells cars and their spare parts. He’s stinking rich.”
“I can smell that from here. Wow…Daph, I don’t know what to say.”
“You can start by saying I’m the best sister in the world.”

“You definitely are.” They hugged. Their mother entered.

“So because you two have made up, you want to burn my chicken and this house, eh?”
“Not at all, ma,” Del said as she took the fork and resumed taking out the fried pieces. Daphne attempted to take a piece out of the strainer but Doreen hit the back of her hand with hers and Daphne dropped it.

“Oh mummy, that hurt!” she groaned.

“Have you washed your hands?”
“Wash your hands with soap and water, yeah!” Delphine said in a childish tone just as the ad of old used to say it. Daphne turned to the sink to wash her hands.

“And what is that?” Doreen asked, pointing to the file.

“Work stuff. Daph, could you put it on my bed before I soil it?” Del asked, handing it to her. She took it from her and then took a piece of chicken and bit into it.

“My sweet mama,” she said coaxingly noticing the look her mother was giving her. She walked out of the kitchen. Her sister was pleased with her. All was forgiven. She could sleep better now.

*

 She stared at the photo on her phone. So she was the one; the slut threatening to bring her years of hard work to ruin. Did she know how far she had to go to grab Chris and keep him all to herself? She envied her pretty face. She used to be that pretty too but her life of ‘hustle’ had roughened that feature a bit but it was worth it as long as she had Chris all to herself. But this pretty banker had set her eyes on her man and she was in for trouble. Chris has always had a thing for pretty faces. Maybe if she took care of her pretty face, she wouldn’t be a threat anymore. She chewed on her lip as she considered it.

She touched the face on her phone. Her face was too pretty for her own good.

*

Delphine felt restless out of delight as she kept tossing in bed. Showing her boss Daph’s ‘catch’ would make him very happy and would earn her a huge bonus. Daphne had really cleared all her debt with this. She picked her phone and texted Seth.

Care to join me celebrate a big win tomorrow? She texted. A reply dropped a few seconds later.

Sure, what are we celebrating?

A huge win. Prep for a toast.

Sure babe. Delphine smiled. Tomorrow was going to be a great day.

 

The next morning, the family was having breakfast when Daphne’s phone beeped. She took it and read the message. She smiled and forwarded it to Delphine. Delphine read it and glanced at her curiously. Daphne texted, It’s Chris Quartey, the client I signed on yesterday. He wants to meet you.

Oh ok. Then you meet him since you already have a rapport with him.

Oh nah, this is for you. You take over from here whiles I get you more. They shared a look and a smile.

Okay. Thanks love.

Anytime, sweet.

“So can’t you two put your phones down for a minute and eat your breakfast?” Doreen chided. The twins dropped their phones on to the table at the same time. Their father chuckled and shook his head.

“They now chat over the phone instead talking right to each other across the table,” their father said.

“Modern civilization indeed,” their mother added. The twins chuckled.

After breakfast, the twins hugged as they said their goodbyes.

“Thanks, sis,” she muttered.

“My pleasure, love.” She kissed her cheek. Daphne joined her dad in his car whiles Delphine joined her mum in hers.

“You seem to be in a good mood today. Any news?” Doreen asked Del.

“Got a new client, mum.”
“Oh congratulations. I thought you were going to tell me you got a real ring this time.”
“Don’t worry, mum. It will be in soon. It hasn’t arrived at the port yet,” she said lightheartedly and laughed. Doreen chuckled. It felt good to see her daughter this cheerful.

*

She smiled when the reply came in. Sure, that’s fine with me. See you there.

This was going to be a good day.

 

“I’m so proud of you, Delphine. You’ve proven yourself to be a valuable asset to this bank. Keep this up and you might get an early promotion,” her boss complimented. Delphine beamed.

“Thanks, sir. I’m going to meet him again today to go over a few details. Just waiting for some confirmation.”
“Sure, take care of yourself out there, okay? I can’t have anything happening to you.”
“Yes sir. I’ll be at my desk,” she said and excused herself. She saw that Daphne had texted her with the meetup details. She texted back thanking her. She heaved a huge sigh.

She packed up her things at 2:45pm and left the office after bidding farewell to her colleagues.

The street was quite empty when she stepped out. She hummed to herself. She felt a tap on her shoulder. As she turned, she felt something heavy hit her head and she blacked out.

*

Daphne lay on the couch, scrolling down her Facebook timeline whiles Kobby worked on his computer. There was music playing in the background, creating a cozy atmosphere in his office.

“Babe?”

“Yeah?”
“I’ll be done in a jiffy, okay? Hope you’re not bored.”
“No, I’m not. Take your time, yeah? I’m good.”
“Are you sure?”
“Uh huh.” There was silence for a moment. Daphne suddenly sat up with her hand on her chest heaving with every breath.

“Are you okay?” Kobby asked.

“I don’t know…I just felt something…like a sharp pain.”
“Like chest pain?”
“No, it felt different…it was like…” She gasped and took her phone.

“What is it?” Kobby asked, sounding worried. Daphne waited on the line only to be told the number was unreachable. She winced. Kobby got up and went to her.

“Are you okay? You’re not falling ill, are you?”
“Not me. Delphine.” Kobby’s heart missed a beat at the sound of her sister’s name.

“What do you mean?” Daphne was calling her number again but no success.

“Something is wrong.”
“How do you know?”
“I can feel it,” Daphne said, her hand still on her chest. She listened keenly to her heartbeat.

“You’re sweating,” Kobby noticed.

“I feel pains all over. Oh gosh, where’s Del?!” She called another number.

“Mum, it’s me, Panyin.”
“Yes dear, what is it?”
“Mum, I feel pains all over and I can’t reach Del. I think something is wrong with her.”
“Calm down. What do you mean?”

“I feel something is going on with her. She’s not answering my calls, mum.”
“Okay calm down. Have you called her office? I’m sure she left her phone on her desk or something.”
“No mum, this feels different. My sister is in trouble. I know it.”
“Okay, I’ll also try her number and we’ll see what we can do, alright? Don’t panic, okay? Your sister is fine.”

“Yes mum,” Daphne said.

“I’ll call you back.” The line went dead.

“How can you know that something is wrong with your sister?” Kobby asked.

“I just do. We’re twins, we’re connected.” Daphne tapped her feet anxiously. She answered her phone on the first ring.

“Mum?”
“I couldn’t reach her too. Maybe you should go to her workplace and find out. I’m taking care of a critically-ill patient at the moment. I’ll call you the minute I’m done, okay?”
“Yes mum. I’ll call you if I hear anything. Take care, bye.” She got up.

“Sorry I’ve to leave. I’ll call you,” Daphne said and attempted to walk away but Kobby stopped her. He hugged her.

“You’ll be fine, ok?” He whispered in her ear as he rocked her. He kissed her forehead.

“Let’s go together.”
“But you’re not done with your work.”
“I can always come back to it. For now, let’s go and find your sister.”
“Thanks, Kobby.”
Doreen was disturbed over her daughter’s call. She knew better than to ignore it. It reminded her of an incident during their childhood. They shared a deeper bond which transcended their identical looks. She silently prayed for God to protect her daughter wherever she was and take her home safely.

*

Delphine screamed as she was being subjected to some brutal assault.

“You think you can encroach one someone’s possession and get away with it, huh? You call yourself a banking marketer but only God knows what you do on the field. Chris is mine including the money he sent you but I’m going to let that slide. There will definitely be more money coming in. But I have to make sure you don’t come near my man any longer. A little redesign of your face might teach you a lesson. Get me the bottle from the car.”
Delphine began to plead with the woman stranger in tears to spare her but they all fell on deaf ears. She watched in horror as the man gave her a bottle. Was it what she thought it was?
She heard some footsteps approaching. She screamed.

“Who’s there?” The lady and the two guys with her exchanged quick looks, quickly got into the car and sped away. Delphine continued to scream till the security officer arrived. He gasped when he saw how badly she had been beaten. He helped her up and slowly got her out of the damp place.

She was rushed to the hospital and her boss checked her emergency contact and called.

 

“Hello?” Daph said after she had answered the call.

“Am I speaking with Daphne Coleman?”
“Yes, may I know with whom I’m speaking?”
“I’m William, Delphine’s boss. I believe she’s your sister.”
“Yes please. Is she at the office?”
“I’m afraid she is being rushed to the hospital as we speak. She was attacked not too far away from our office. She was on her way to meet a client. Here is the hospital’s address…”
“Thank you; I’ll be right there,” Daphne said and ended the call.

“What was that about?”
“Delphine’s boss just informed me that my sister was attacked and is being taken to the hospital.”
“What? How? So you were right,” Kobby said.

“I wished I wasn’t.” Who could have done this to her sister, she wondered.

*

Daphne gasped when she saw her sister’s condition as she lay on the hospital bed. Her pretty face was all swollen and her skin bruised. Tears filled her eyes as she took her hands in hers. Kobby was shocked to see her in such a state.

Delphine opened her eyes weakly.

“Daph,” she said weakly. “You came.”
“Of course, I did. Who did this to you?” Daphne asked. Delphine signaled her to bring her ears closer to her. Daphne leaned in closely.

“What did you do with Chris?” Daphne looked at her sister, confused at the question.

Doreen came in and rushed to her side. Daphne stepped back and froze at the realization of what had happened to her sister.

“Kakra, what happened?! Who did this to you?”
“I don’t know, mum.” Delphine swallowed with much difficulty. She glanced at her sister who had gone pale in the face. She should have known that Chris Quartey’s signup was too good to be true. Now there she lay, having narrowly escaped death but beaten to a pulp.

Kobby wondered what Delphine could have told Daphne to make her look this upset. What was going on between them?

(c) Josephine Amoako 2017

***Kindly subscribe to my newsletter. Thanks!***