Gatekeeper 2 

There was silence as Mr Chairman’s convoy sped off. Sarah and Jade watched in disbelief. Mr Akingbade’s comments brought them back to reality. 

“Good evening, Ms Sarah. As I mentioned to Ms Jade, I will get back to you once I receive your email containing the proposals I requested. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to head back to the meeting.” 

Sarah could barely look him in the face. As he walked away, she nudged Jade. 

“Okay, sir. We’ll send it as discussed.” 

Mr Akingbade did not respond verbally, nor did he look back. He simply gave a thumbs-up before disappearing from view. Sarah stormed out of the office, embarrassed by what had just happened. Jade followed, trying to catch up. She wondered how her boss managed to walk so quickly and effortlessly in those heels. 

“Can’t that man just sit at home for once so I can get this deal over and done with?” 

They were now in Sarah’s official car, heading home. 

“Don’t worry, Jade. I’ll fix this. Just so we don’t look as though we’re disregarding that man… what’s his name again?” Jade responded. 

“Yeah, whatever,” Sarah replied dismissively. 

“With that funny hairstyle and worn-out folder, he thinks he can stand in my way. I’ll give Chairman a few days and call him afterwards. For now, you guys can concentrate on all the other needs. I’ve got this one.” 

“Okay, ma,” Jade replied before getting out of the car at the nearest bus stop. It was already past five, and official working hours were over. 

“Don’t forget to send that man the email today,” Sarah added as Jade waved goodbye. 

Sarah still had some unfinished business at the office. She returned to the office just in time to see her rival, Olajide, walking out of Lil John’s office. Both men were smiling. Sarah swallowed hard. She didn’t like what it suggested. Seeing those two men smiling was unsettling. 

She quickly ducked into her office before either man saw her. With her back against the door she had just shut, Sarah breathed a heavy sigh. She flicked her feet forward, and her heels flew off. She smacked her head lightly with her palm, trying to numb the itch. Then she remembered she was alone in her private office. She removed her wig and tossed it onto her desk. Her nails dug into her cornrows. It was soothing, if only temporarily. Time was running out. There was no way she was going to allow some irrelevant person to come between her and closing her next big deal. 

The next morning brought no respite either. As Lil John walked past, he popped into her office. She was typing away on her laptop and had barely looked up when he opened the door. 

“Hey, Sarah. How’s it going? I haven’t heard any updates in over a week. A bit strange. You’re all right?” 

She nodded in the affirmative. 

“Great! Keep up the good work. I trust you’re up to something, as usual. By the way, Ola has had a great start. Can’t wait to see what your team has to share with me. Take care.” 

That was it. Sarah lost her train of thought. She couldn’t continue composing the email. She glanced at her phone and the calendar on the wall, then rested her chin on her clasped hands. Time was ticking, and she had to make a move. 

Back in his office, Mr Akingbade saw the email notification. He was busy running some models on his spreadsheets when it arrived. He double-clicked the email, eager to see what the proposal contained. He skipped straight to the unit costs and began calculating. He shook his head slowly and returned to his model. 

“Yes, come in. What’s up?” 

Sarah saw the look on Jade’s face. It didn’t look good. 

“Mr Akingbade has finally responded. Have you seen it, ma?” 

She scanned her emails with practised ease and started reading. 

“Who the hell is this guy? I’ll handle it.” 

She gestured for Jade to leave her office. 

She tried calling chairman three times, but he didn’t answer. Then she tried his PA, Toyin, but got no response either. 

“What was going on?” 

Her team had sealed some deals, but none could compare with what Chairman’s company would bring. She began pacing back and forth, uncertain about what the coming month would hold. It was an unfamiliar position for her. It was time to bring to the fore the relationships she had managed to nurture, first with Toyin and then with Chairman. 

Aboard a private jet, Chairman sat with his team, reviewing a master plan. Calls kept coming, but he ignored them. Eventually, he checked his phone. 

“It’s that lady again, Sarah. What could the issue be this time?” 

Before Chairman could finish, Toyin’s phone started ringing too. She ignored it, and they continued reviewing the master plan for their latest project. 

By the time they were done, Sarah had left Chairman several more missed calls and messages. 

“Didn’t I hand her over to Akingbade? Why is she still insisting on speaking with me?” he asked his EA, Toyin, who was also reading Sarah’s text messages. 

“I’ll tell you what. Call Akingbade and let’s hear what he has to say.” 

Toyin called immediately and put the call on speaker. 

“Na that girl wey, when she meet Chairman, she just begin dey go over me, dey follow Chairman talk. The girl no get sense at all. She come do the same to Akingbade wey no too well,” she whispered into the ear of one of her colleagues. They giggled. 

“Chairman would like to speak to you, Mr Akingbade. You’re on speaker.” 

“What’s going on with that lady, Sarah? She’s a very hardworking lady, and I really love her work ethic. It would be great for us to reward such people, don’t you think? What’s the issue?” 

“Sir, there’s no issue at all. Their proposal just doesn’t cut it for the company. They are far off what our current suppliers offer, and I’m afraid of two things. We have worked with these suppliers for over a decade, and they have been reliable. And as you usually tell us with procurement, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” 

He paused to see if his boss agreed. 

“I agree,” came the response over the microphone. “What’s the second?” 

“The second is really not important, but I should say it. From experience, when we challenge vendors and suppliers with a counteroffer, we run the risk of pushing them to the wall and forcing them to cut corners. We can’t, at this stage, be toying with her reputation. I’m sure she will get business elsewhere.” 

As Akingbade spoke, Chairman kept looking at his team for their reactions. They continued nodding in agreement. 

“Fair enough, Mr Akingbade. I trust your judgement. That was all I needed to hear. Toyin, your thoughts?” 

“One hundred per cent, sir.”