The border security officer who arrested Adesuwa shoved her into a waiting van. The security officer had handcuffed Ada and left her at the back of the van. The security officer was all alone that night. After shoving Adesuwa into the van, he started driving to the station where he was to hand her over for proper questioning. The vehicle was speeding very fast, but Adesuwa was busy planning how she was going to jump out. She was determined that she was not going to reach the station with the border security officer. She wants to escape, but she knew it was too risky to jump from a vehicle that was moving very fast. She bided her time and waited for the right moment.

“I can’t go to jail and I will not allow these people to deport me. After suffering so much to get here, I can’t just be deported like that. I will escape and find my way into the streets of America. I’m now in America and there is no one that will stop from living here. I will not allow this man to take me to the station where they will start questioning me as if I’m a common criminal. I’m just a woman looking for opportunities.” Adesuwa said. Her mind was alert and she was looking around to see if she would get an opportunity to jump off the vehicle despite the handcuff in her hands.

Adesuwa finally saw her chance to run away when the border security officer stopped for the traffic light when it turned red. There were so many vehicles in the area and Adesuwa knew that was her last chance to escape from the back of the van. If she could safely step down, the border control officer would likely not notice because his eyes were focused on the traffic light. The mistake the man made was to have left Adesuwa alone at the back of the van.

“This man thinks he is dealing with a child. I’m a full-grown adult and he can’t confine me to the back of this van even with his handcuffs. I’m going to get off this van and run away. I will show him that I came here determined to make it. I did not come here to spend the rest of my life in prison. I did not come here to be arrested and taken to the station. I came here to hustle in an honest way. There are many opportunities here and this is why I came here. I did not come here to spoil the country. I came here to make money and become rich and I will not allow him to take me to a place where he would lock me up.” Adesuwa said while planning how she would jump off the back of the van. She started moving gradually. She turned and jumped off and landed on the tarred road. She started running into the streets.

Before the border officer would realize that Adesuwa was no longer at the back of the van, she had gone very far. The man came down from the van and started pursuing her. But she was very fast. She ran into the streets in a way that would make it difficult for the security officer to catch her. Adesuwa was running very fast despite the fact that her hands were cuffed.

“You are not going to catch me. I will show you that I’m a Nigerian. I’m not here to cause any harm. I’m only here to make money the right way.” Adesuwa said as she continued to run.

When Adesuwa entered the inner streets, it became nearly impossible to catch her, but the border security officer had called for backup and others had joined her in pursuit of Adesuwa. Suddenly, Adesuwa started seeing a lot of the border security men around her. They were trying to surround her. In every direction she turned, she would see security people standing before her. She was at the verge of being caught, but she was determined to escape.

“No matter how many of you are pursuing me, you are not going to catch me. I’m going escape.” Adesuwa said. The handcuff is still preventing her from running as fast as she should but she was running with wisdom. But despite her efforts to escape, it became clear to her that she would be caught if she didn’t use another strategy. Adesuwa looked around and saw a house which had the gate open. She sneaked into the compound before the border security officials could see her.

When she entered the compound, she saw a white man who appeared to be the owner of the house. The man was resting under a shade in the compound. Adesuwa did not talk to the man neither did she behave as if she saw him. She just ran into the house when she saw that the door was open. Once inside the house, she sat down in the living room to catch her breath. She was panting as if she had pursued a rabbit. When the white man saw what happened, she stood up and followed Adesuwa into the house.

“Who are you and what are you doing in my house? Why did you just run into my house without permission? If you don’t start talking immediately, I will call the police to have you arrested.” The white man said with anger in his voice. He was surprised that Adesuwa did not say anything in response to his questions.

“I asked who are you? And why are you in my house? What is pursuing you? If you don’t talk, I will have no choice but to call the police and hand you over to them without delay.” The white man said. Still, Adesuwa did not say anything. The man was scared because he could see the handcuffs in Adesuwa’s hand.

As the Oyinbo man continued to question Adesuwa, trying to get her to talk to him and identify herself, they heard a knock at the door. Adesuwa ran into the Oyinbo man’s inner room as he went to open the door. When he opened the door, he saw border security officials.

“Where is the lady that ran into your house?” They asked.

Adesuwa refused to come out from where she was hiding in the white man’s room. She knew that if she dared to come out, the security men would arrest her immediately. She just stayed there and listened to the conversation that the man was having with the security people. They were questioning the man and asking him about a young lady that entered his compound. At first, the man wanted to expose Adesuwa but he changed his mind. He decided to protect her from arrest. He knew he was taking a big risk because he does not know Adesuwa very well or the nature of the crime she committed.

“We are looking for a young lady who ran into your compound. We have been pursuing her for several minutes and she is trying to evade arrest. If she came into your house, we demand that you bring her out so we can arrest her. Do not try to hide her because if you hide her and we discover, we will arrest the two of you.” The security officials warned. Their warning was very clear but the Oyinbo man still decided to risk it.

“I’m sorry officers, but I did not see any young woman in my house. As a matter of fact, I have been alone in this house all day. I did not see anybody, black or white. No stranger entered my house. If anyone I don’t know entered my house, I would be the first to call the police. Trust me, I will not even wait for you people to ask me before reporting such strange movement. I mean, it is even for my own safety that I should report such strange people to the authorities. So please, you might want to check the next compound because I did not see anyone here.” The Oyinbo man said with a smile on his face.

“We don’t believe you. We have to search your house. We saw clearly when the young lady entered your house. You are just trying to hide her in your room. Is she your lover? Why are you trying to hide a stranger who committed a crime? Step aside and allow us to search your house. You are telling lies to law enforcement officials and we may have to get you arrested. Please, step aside and don’t say more.” The security men said, but the Oyinbo man paid them no attention. He blocked their way and refused to allow them into his house.

“I’m sorry officers, but you have to show me a search warrant before I will allow you entry into my house. You cannot search my house without a search warrant. You have to get a search a warrant from a court before you can enter my house and ransack it. Without that, you are not entering my house. I just told you I committed no crime. I’m innocent. I have not seen any woman in my house. If I had seen anyone, I would be the one to personally call you. Please, leave my house. If you enter my house without a search warrant, I will sue you. Mind you, I’m a lawyer.” The Oyinbo man said.

The security men had no option but to back out. They had no warrant. They were very angry because the man had refused to allow them do what they wanted. They started thinking that Adesuwa may have entered another compound. It could be that they did not see well. However, one of them was so sure that he saw Adesuwa entering the Oyinbo man’s compound but there was nothing they could do because they had no search warrant.

“We will leave, but will be watching you. Don’t think you have won. We have our eyes on you and we will be back to have you arrested if at any point in time we see suspicious movements in your house. Your house is now marked by security men. We will keep watching you. You will be in deep problem if we later find out that you kept that lady in your house. We will arrest her and we will arrest you as well. But for now, we shall go.” The security men said. They left the house disappointed.

It was after they left that the man started searching around his house and looking for Adesuwa. He did not know where Adesuwa was. He searched almost everywhere, including the toilet but he did not find her. He decided to search his room which he shares with his wife. That was when he saw Adesuwa. The Oyinbo man’s wife was very sick and she had not gone out for several weeks. She had suffered stroke some days back and her doctors had said she had to stay at home and continue to recover. At the time that Adesuwa ran into the house, the woman was going through a crisis because the time she was supposed to take her medication had passed and her husband was not immediately close. She was in a wheelchair as if she was becoming unconscious. Luckily for her, that was when Adesuwa ran into the room with the intention to hide from the security people pursuing her. She helped the woman with her medicine. Adesuwa had small knowledge of medicine because she studied physical and health education at the university.

After giving the Oyinbo woman her medicine, she helped her get up from the wheelchair. She started teaching her how to walk. The woman was paralyzed on one side of her body. She had undergone surgery after the stroke but she would need exercise for the rest of the healing to take place. Adesuwa knew this. This was exactly what she studied in school. So she and the woman were practicing how to walk when the Oyinbo man walked into the room.

“What are you doing in my room? You think you can just walk in here and start playing with my wife? Who are you and what are you doing in my house?” The Oyinbo man asked when he entered the room.

“Let her be honey! She basically saved me from becoming unconscious just moments ago. She has been helping me a lot. She has good knowledge of physical exercise. The other day, you told me you were going to employ someone who would teach me taking care of me at home, and also teach me how to recover using physical exercise. Why not just give her the job? She is good and she has a degree in physical and health education.” The Oyinbo man’s wife said. But the Oyinbo man said nothing. He just left the place silently.

“Don’t worry, I will tell him to give you the job. Thank you for coming in at the right time to help me with my medicine.” The Oyinbo woman said as Adesuwa continued to train her on how to work.

Adesuwa has lived two three days in the Oyinbo man’s house and his wife turned out to love her so much. The relationship she established with the man’s wife ensured that he had no option but to discuss with Adesuwa. The man does not have much time to take care of his sick wife and he always left her at home alone whenever he was going to work. The coming of Adesuwa into the house was therefore a relieve for the man who is a busy lawyer. Besides, he did not know how to take care of someone who is suffering from stroke. The doctors have insisted that his wife needs close supervision.

One morning when he was about to go to work, the man called Adesuwa into the living room of the house and started asking her the same questions he had asked on the day she ran into the house in a bid to escape from the security people that were pursuing her that day. It was not just that she has become helpful and very useful to the man, he also noticed that his wife’s health had improved since the arrival of Adesuwa. So, he decided to have an important conversation with Adesuwa.

“First of all, I just want to know how you removed the handcuffs on your hands the day you ran into my house. I saw you clearly. You should tell me the truth in every question I’m asking you because I really want us to be in good terms, seeing that you are helping my wife. How did you remove the handcuffs in your hands? Did you cut it or you had the keys?” The Oyinbo man asked. He wanted clear and honest answers from Adesuwa.

“I removed it with a spoon I found in your wife’s kitchen. When I got into your wife’s room that day, she showed me to her kitchen and told me where to find one spoon with a specific kind of shape. The spoon could fit into the keyhole of the handcuffs. She said it could be used to unlock the handcuffs. I did not believe her until it worked. Your wife helped me remove it with her right hand. You know she could move her right hand. She seems skilled with these kinds of things.” Adesuwa said.

“Yea! My wife served in the military for a few years before going back to college to study. So, it is not surprising that she knows how to unlock handcuffs. Well, that’s good to hear. So, why are you in my house? What are you doing here and why were they pursuing you? What crime did you commit? You look like a decent person to me and you possess good skills, so why were the security agencies be pursuing you in that manner?” The Oyinbo man asked.

“First, my name is Adesuwa and I came from Nigeria. I’m not here to cause you any harm. I’m just an ambitious young lady who is seeking to make something meaningful from her life. I’m just looking for a job. I want to make money in the legitimate way. I would like to live and work in America. I had applied for visa severally but I did not get it. I took a lot of risks and travelled for many days to arrive the US. I entered the US illegally and that was why the security men arrested me at the border. I had no option but to escape.” Adesuwa said.

“So, you are running away from the law and my house is the place you think you could hide? Why didn’t you submit yourself for prosecution? And why didn’t you apply for asylum? You could have applied for asylum to stay in the United States but instead, you chose to enter my house. Are you sure you are not going to put me into trouble?” The Oyinbo man asked Adesuwa.

“I will not put you into trouble. Please sir, I can apply for the asylum while living in your house. It is better for me to be working first. I have very good skills and if you allow me to stay here, I will be useful to you and I will not cause any trouble, I promise. In fact, if you tell me never to go outside, I will not go. If you want me to remain indoors, I will remain indoors. Whatever you say I should do, that is what I will do. I’m very hardworking. Please, trust me.” Adesuwa said.

“I have seen that you are helping my wife to recover, so, at this point, I have no option than to allow you to stay. However, we must immediately start the process of getting you the legal documents to stay in the US. I don’t want you to live here illegally. I’m a lawyer, so I will help you to get your documents. I will also give you the job of taking care of my wife. I have seen that you are good in that area. But let me ask, what did you study in school? And why didn’t you stay in your country to work?” The white man asked.

“I studied physical and health education which includes exercise as medicine. That is why I have been able to help your wife. I didn’t stay in Nigeria because jobs are scarce there. Besides, staying in America would give me a better future. This has been my person belief since I graduated from school.” Adesuwa said.

“Well, I’m going to pay you $500 weekly for taking care of my wife. That is the job you can have for now. However, you must follow very strict instructions until we are able to get you the legal documents to stay in the US. You cannot go outside of this house. You cannot go anywhere they law enforcement agencies will see you. You cannot leave the compound until I say so. I hope you understand?” The man asked.

“Of course! Thank you so much sir. You have made my dream to come true.” Adesuwa said happily.

“My dream of living and working in America has finally come true!” Adesuwa said to herself.