Wale had three rules for work, One, never steal from a man who was in a hurry, never steal from a woman who had a baby, never ever work to Oshodi on a Monday because Monday people were angry people.
It was Tuesday so he was fine.
The danfo to Ikeja was packed tight, someones elbow touching someone ribs. Wale stood near the door pretending to read on his phone, which had no credit and a broken screen, his real attention was on the woman in the second row....Yellow Ankara gele tied like a crown and a big black handbag sitting on her lap like a baby.
Bag Wale thought, Heavy bag meant money, his stomach, which had not had food since Sunday agreed.
The danfo hit a pothole and everyone swayed,Wale swayed too, when he straightened up, the bag was under his shirt and the old woman was still looking out of the window like nothing had happened.
"Ikeja Along! Who dey drop?" the conductor shouted.
"Me " said Wale and he dropped.
He walked fast turned into a side street and hid behind a kiosk, his hands were shaking,. It was the good kind of shaking and so he unzipped the bag.
No money.
A Bible, A flask, A plastic bowl wrapped in a towel still warm, he lifted the lid, Jollof rice, fried plantain and two big pieces of chicken.
Wale looked at it for three seconds, then he ate with his hands standing up like a man who had forgotten God was watching....
When the bowl was empty he searched the bag properly, under the Bible was a paper and a business card, the paper said, in handwriting: "If you are hungry eat, If you are tired. See me." The card said, Mama Chidinma Generator Repairs, 14 Obafemi Awolowo Way.
"Ah!" Wale said to nobody, "She knew?"
Any sensible thief would have thrown the bag in the gutter, Instead he stood there with rice on his chin doing bad maths in his head....
An hour later he pushed open a gate, the compound was full of generators like a hospital for machines , under a mango tree the old woman sat on a stool with her feet in a basin of water fanning herself with a paper plate.
"You're slow " she said, without looking up, "The last one came in twenty minutes."
Wales mouth went dry, "The last one?"
"Jide, Tobi, that one with the bad teeth I forget his name." She waved the plate, "Come, sit."
"Madam, I..." He held out the bag with both hands like it was hot, "I came to return your bag."
"With the rice finished."
"I was hungry!"
"I know, that is why I put it there." She finally looked at him, her eyes were sharp and amused and tired all once, "Thirty years I have sold generators in this town, every boy who ever broke into my shop was hungry first and a thief second, so now I just cook."
Wale frowned, "So na trap?"
"Na invitation," She pointed at a coil of wire by his foot, "Your hands are quick, I saw, you can use them for something other than my handbag."
"Madam, I no sabi anything about generator."
"Nobody does at first, even me, my husband, God rest him, taught me with a hammer and a lot of shouting." She sniffed, "Fix that coil, i'll pay you three thousand naira today, spoil it. I'll deduct the chicken."
Wale looked at the coil, he looked at the woman, he looked at the gate behind him still open, Lagos waiting on the side with its same old hunger.
"Madam you no fear say I fit just carry the bag and disappear?"
"You already carried it once, and came back." She dug into her wrapper, pulled out a small scratch card, "Here. I buy one every day. Thirty years, never won anything, go on try."
He scratched with his thumbnail. Silver dust floated off, three different symbols, none matching.
"Loser " the woman said cheerfully. "Better luck time." She leaned forward, her voice dropped. "Listen, my son, luck is for people with no skills, i'm offering you a skill, Take the spanner."
Wale laughed, it surprised him a laugh, the kind he hadn't made in months.
He crouched beside the coil, he picked up the spanner, It was heavier than he expected, the metal was warm from the sun.
"Which end do I hold?"
"The end that is not hitting you " said Mama Chidinma. Went back, to fanning herself.
Behind him the gate stayed open, he never once looked at it again.
Image Is Generate With Chatgpt.
