That night I went home feeling so excited I felt it was time to call home. Afterall I just hit a little jackpot. I took out the piece of paper containing mum's number and prayed to the heavens she hasn't changed her line. I dialed and to my relief, it went through.

      I spoke to mum for the first time in a month of Sundays. She was so happy to hear from me again and she shed tears of joy. I told her I was okay and everything was going fine. We spoke for a long time.

     She told me how she had fallen sick immediately after my departure and how Katie had stopped schooling to take care of her and the shop. Uncle Jimmy had still not had a change of heart. The scoundrel! The bloodsucking thief!

Mum told me about how Lizzy had come to the house intending to beg for my forgiveness but didn't meet me. She got worried sick when she was told I was nowhere to be found and she had not left mum's side ever since. So the little damsel still came back after all that crap. Could I really blame her for what she did?

       I also spoke with Katie on the phone and she sounded more mature now. It was obvious how much she missed me she never wanted me to drop the call. She even wanted me to tell her stories like I always did when she was much younger. Well, I told her about Italy and about the city of Florence, about the snow and the cold, and the Italians and their incomprehensible language. It felt so nice talking with family once more. I was sure my father was proud of me wherever he was.

      The next day I sent five hundred euros to mum though western union. She wondered how I got so much money because it was very substantial when converted to Naira, I just told her she shouldn't worry her pretty little head that all will be well from now on. Poverty will henceforth be a thing of the past.

      Two days later I rode down to Licado's villa to meet with my new boss. He was in a white suit again but a different one this time.

     "So, can you be trusted, my boy?" he asked sternly.

     "Absolutely, Boss."

     "But you are still in the dark as to what waters you are dipping your black feet into, are you not?"

     "I'm ready to do whatever it takes, boss."

He grinned with some air of satisfaction. "Then take us to the outskirts of the city. Hurry."

      Two hours later we stopped at an open field at the outskirts of the City. The place seemed desolate. We came out of the car.

     "Now, my dear fellow, this is where the good life begins for you."

      He moved to a spot in the field and cleared away the dirt and a metal sheet appeared. My God, it was a trap door. Anxiety was biting into me already and I gave a cry of surprise. I moved closer to the man and he opened the trap door. Beneath was a staircase leading underground.

     "After you, moolie," said the Boss.
     I was appalled but there was no going back now. Wherever this leads, I was ready to follow it to the end.

       I got in and climbed down while my companion followed and shut the trap door above his head. It was dark at first but then it lightened up. I looked around and there were hundreds of people working undistractedly. It was that large.

Machines, rooms and compartments and huge white plastic bags everywhere. It was as if I had just walked into a manufacturing company but I didn't know what it was they manufactured. When they looked up and saw us they all bellowed unanimously, "welcome Boss!" and went back to work.

       I saw some young men stacking something--powderish and white--into some bags. I didn't know what it was at first but then its sharp smell hit me. I had never used it in my life but I couldn't have mistaken it for anything. The white substance was cocaine!

       I gasped.

     "Now you've figured out by yourself what this is all about," said the Boss, "there's absolutely no going back now."

     I was too dumbfounded to reply. Never in my wildest dream did I see myself pushing drugs for a living. But here I was in a large factory below ground level surrounded by the white illegal powder.

     "You are going to be my new agent," he continued. "Your task is simple: convey my stuff in your cab wherever I tell you to."

     My wits were gradually returning. "But the risks... I mean, how--"

     "Your paycheck outweighs the risks," the Italian interjected. "You get to have as much cash as you desire, so long as you do not get caught. I repeat, you do not get caught for the moment you do, God help you, I must say. And do not even think for a second that you could rat us out. You would be a goner before you could say 'Jack Robinson'. To the outside world, this place literally does not exist." His voice was sterner now and his eyes glowed which showed he meant every word he said.

     "Alright, I'll do it," I resolved quite placidly.

I had already made up my mind to make it or die trying. This was my best shot so feet fail me not.

     "When do I start?"

     "When do you start? Why? You start today!"

     That was how I turned from a taxi driver to a drug smuggler. Well I did both simultaneously at first because I came up with a very good strategy. The driver's seat was detachable so what I did was remove the original seat, then replace it with one completely stuffed with cocaine. That way I went about confidently and unnoticed.

      I still worked for Antonio for a while but after sometime I gave it all up, thanked him and left to stand on my own feet. I bought a well furnished house in the middle of the city and began living the good life. I got a new cab which I began using for my missions by stuffing the seat with the hard drug and sealing it back up.

      I made sure Mum and Katie were living more than comfortably and promised them I'd come home when the time was right. I even asked for Katie's recent pictures. She seemed bigger and more beautiful now.

      They helped me obtain Mike's number and we talked on phone almost everyday. I couldn't disclose to Mum what truly I was involved in in Italy but trying to lie to Mike as well prove futile as he knew the trend when desperate guys like us go over there. So at the end I trusted him with my secret.

      Lizzy has been lovesick for weeks and was getting thinner, according to Mike. She wanted me back desperately but I was still so much pained from the manner in which she dumped me. I was always having this wicked thought of going back to Nigeria, riding up and showing off to her the man I've become. But after hearing about her condition from Mike, my heart melted and I gave her a phone call.

      Talking to her once again rekindled the love and passion that had once existed between us. I felt a part of me that has been empty for a long time being filled up again. She explained to me how she had broken up with the other guy she told me about when she discovered he was nothing but a player. The relationship didn't even survive beyond three months.

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Pedal to the metal, huh?
Let's see what becomes of our protagonist in the next chapter. Your votes and comments will be appreciated.