When I was a kid, staying with my parents, Ben was a prominent businessman in the town that deals in electronics of different kinds. He was the first in the town to be selling such products. It came as a huge relief to many people. From TV sets, fans, pressing irons, radios, and cookers to kitchen appliances, he had almost everything that was hitherto, making many people embark on a more than 45-minute journey to purchase. The television set and standing fan that my mom uses till this moment were purchased from the shop more than two decades ago.
Ben had an apprentice named Charles. I realized that Ben would give him the money to start his own business after learning the trade and serving him for the agreed number of years. Charles was a friend to many people in town. He was closer to the people than his boss was because he was the one always attending to customers in the shop. His boss's role was primarily to stock the shop with the product and perform general administrative duties.
After a few years, Charles was leaving his boss as agreed to go start his own business. By this time, his boss had branches of the shop in more than three places within the neighboring communities. Instead of giving Charles money to go and open his shop, he relinquished the ownership of the shop in our town to Charles. It was a rare gesture from a master to his apprentice. The value of the shop was more than the money he would have given to Charles to open his shop.
Ben left our town with ovations from young and old; even the king hosted him in his palace to celebrate his impact in the town. My dad attended the reception in the palace, and he praised Ben to high heaven.
Now master of the business, Charles continued to sell the electronics and other products. After two years, he expanded his shop with more valuable products. It was a fast progress, and some people began to wonder what was responsible for his sharp progress, exponentially faster than when his former boss was in charge of the shop.
"I went to Charles's shop today, and I couldn't believe my eyes. Where is that boy seeing the money he is investing in his business from?" My mom asked my dad on a fateful day after visiting Charles's shop to purchase a manual blender.
"I heard that some companies do go into partnership with some of these shops, and they serve as agents to sell their products. Maybe Charles is in partnership with such companies," my father responded.
"If that's the case, he must be lucky to have hit such a big business deal this early in his business career," my unconvinced mom responded.
"I believe you have purchased what you went there to purchase; please leave Charles and his business and cook our dinner. I am hungry," said my dad.
My mom gave me a signal to join her in the kitchen. I stood up and went to the kitchen to wash dishes and run other errands while she did the cooking.
A few days later, we woke up to devastating news of an inferno. Charles's shop was razed by a ravaging fire overnight.
As early as 6 a.m., people were gathered around the burned shop to sympathize with Charles on the loss. I followed my dad to the event. People, with some having their hands on their heads, were crying and wailing. Charles was leaning against his car. He was surrounded by people that were consoling him over the loss. I noticed that he was not really disturbed with the development. My dad and I returned home after expressing sadness over the loss. We prayed for him to get over it and emerge stronger.
About three weeks after the incident, renovation work began on the burned building. It was built and equipped better than it was before the inferno. The renovation was followed by restocking of the shop. It was stocked with more valuable products than what was burned. Many people wondered how easy it was for Charles to restock the shop in record time.
My mom expressed the same thought.
"I just hope all that is happening to Charles is not having some sinister motives," she said this to my father when they were discussing the current status of the shop.
"It seems you don't know how those businesses work. Will you have a business like that without insurance?" My dad asked my mom. "Once insurance is in place, you are covered for disasters like fire in your business."
"Hmmmm, I hope it is what you just explained," my mom responded.
A few months later, I gained admission to a university, and I left for the school.
Whenever I went back to my parents for holidays, I was always marveled at the progress that Charles was making with his business.
I was discussing with my mom on a fateful day on the phone when he told me that Charles has been arrested by the police.
"Arrest? For what reason?" I curiously asked her.
"His shop got burned overnight," my mom began.
"Again?" I exclaimed.
"A few days after the fire incident, a team of policemen came with a few other people to access the level of damage in the shop," my mom continued. "Upon investigation, it was discovered that Charles moved out all the expensive appliances from the shop before setting the remaining products on fire."
"Why would he do that? Was he not harming himself? I chirped in.
"Wait for the concluding part of the story," said my mom. "The company gave him most of the expensive appliances to sell before paying them the cost price. The products are insured. He removed the expensive ones and set fire to the remaining ones. He then informed the company that everything in the shop was burned."
I was dumbfounded. That I was shocked with what my mom was telling me was an understatement.
"An investigation was done by some experts, and the truth was discovered. He has confessed to the allegation and took the police to a warehouse in his compound where he kept the appliances," my mom concluded.
"That is so bad of him. Could this be the same thing that happened the first time that the shop got burned?"
My mom laughed before responding. "Were you not there on several occasions that I registered my suspicion about the way Charles was running his business? Your dad would always convince me otherwise, but the smoke was glaring, which indicated the presence of fire."
On my next holiday, my dad expressed his disappointment in Charles when the topic came up for discussion.
"I had thought that that young man was only hardworking. I never imagined that he could display such dubious character. His boss, Ben wasn't like that.
"Well, you have been saying that his way of doing business looks suspicious," he turned to my mom. "I hope he will learn his lesson after his time in prison."
It was learned that Charles pleaded guilty in court, and he was sentenced to a jail term.
My father agreed that my mom sighted the smoke earlier, and that was a sign of fire because where there is smoke, there is fire.