CHRONICLES OF THE HELPS: PART 16

 

“Ikechukwu!”

Her screams got him flying out of the toilet. He found his wife crouched on the rugged floor, at the foot of the bed. “What is it?” he hurried to her side.

Lianater raised her head, tears filled eyes met her husband’s worried ones. “I think… I think I am going to explode,” she said through gritted teeth.

He started to rub her back, wondering if she was aching all over. “Talk to me, where does it hurt?”

“Every… where…” then she let out a loud scream as pain sliced through her.

The man panicked, lost on what to do to make his wife feel better. “Baby, what’s happening?” 

She shook her head, unable to speak, till the pain subsided briefly. “I think the baby is coming,” she locked gazes with him.

He nodded with understanding, as relief washed over him. It hadn’t been easy taking care of his pregnant wife. As far as he was concerned, this was their last child. No more!

Lianater watched him from the corner of her eyes. He changed into something comfortable, then picked up the baby bag they had both packed weeks ago. Everything the new baby needed was in that bag. The pain began to build up again. Fear gripped her. How long was she going to be able to endure this?

“Ikechukwu Briggs!” she yelled again.

“I am ready my love, I will get you to the clinic as fast as I can, I promise,” he glanced at the table clock, then helped her to her feet and led her towards the door.

“I… I can’t walk…” she began to sob.

The man groaned inwardly. “Honey, I cannot carry you. Please try, please…”

She managed a few steps, then stopped when the aching sensation running its course down her thighs held her bound to that spot. “Oh God! Oh God!” She shook her head, desperately wishing the pain would stop.

“Take deep breaths, love, deep breaths…” 

She tried, but it wasn’t working. “Jesus help me!”

Ike noticed the childen gathered outside their bedroom. The screams most have woken them up. It was barely five a.m and he hoped they would be able to go back to bed and get some more needed sleep. “I want you all to go back to bed.”

The children remained where they stood. They eyes were glued to their mother.

“Nonso, Dozie, Adanne… go to bed!” he raised his voice.

They didn’t move. They just looked at him briefly, then back at their mum.

Ike wanted to shout at them, but the footsteps racing up the stairway stopped him. The moment he saw her, anger brewed within him. Images of how she rode him countless times assaulted his mind.

The thought that she would get to stay in his house for one more day made him mad. If not that his wife woke up with labour pains, he would have told her what the girl did to him that night. 

“Is madam okay?” Mmesoma looked from husband to wife.

He helped his wife down the stairs. “Take the children back to their room. We are heading to the hospital.”

“Oh…” the girl bit at her lower lip. “Come, let’s get you all back to bed,” she ushered the children back into the bedroom.

“Is mummy and daddy going to bring the new baby?” Nonso asked the maid.

Mmesoma smiled. “Yes, they are.”

“Wow!” Dozie began to jump around. “Our new baby is coming home soon.”

“Baby, baby, baby,” Adanne followed her brother, hoping about like an antelope.

She moved to one of the windows and drew open the curtains. She could the security man rushing towards the locked gate, while Ike yelled at him.

The girl smiled. She could still remember her time out with him. She was able to go on five rounds before the drug she put in his drink began to wear off. She enjoyed herself immersely and was sure that Ike wouldn’t be able to forget the experience in a lifetime. All she needed to do was wait for him to come to her willingly. He wouldn’t be able to resist her anymore!

xxxxxx

“Grandma!” Nonso raced into her waiting arms.

“Grandmama is here!” Dozie flew into her embrace.

“Ga-ma, Ga-ma, Ga-ma!” Adanne joined her brothers.

Voke held her grandchildren for the longest time. “I have missed you all.”

The children chuckled. They were so happy to see her.

“Welcome ma,” Mmesoma watched the woman closely. After much thought, she could tell that it was her madam’s mother.

The elderly woman took a good look at the new maid. She was taller than the former maid, fairer too, and also had more flesh. “Thank you. What’s your name?”

“Mmesoma!” the children chorused before the girl could answer.

Voke laughed. It was obvious that the kids liked her. That could only mean one thing; the girl was good with children. The woman hoped she was better with house chores too. She remembered how diligent and hardworking Amina was.

“Come grandma, daddy called and said you will be sleeping in the guest room,” Nonso tugged at her luggage.

“He also said Mmesoma will sleep in our room for now, until you go back to your house,” Dozie helped his brother to pull at the luggage.

The woman was impressed at their ability to retain information and laughed some more. 

“Should I make something for you to eat now, or…” the girl dragged the luggage into the house. But, Nonso and Dozie didn’t let go.

Voke stepped into the house, holding Adanne by the hand. “Let me take a bath first. I need to change before they arrive with the baby.”

“Okay, ma.” The girl carried the luggage into the guest room. 

 

She wondered how long the woman would be staying. Now that Lianater’s mother was around, how was she going to be able to sneak around and get Ike’s attention?

“Do you know whether the baby is a boy or a girl?” she asked her grandchildren.

They began to debate amongst themselves. The twins wanted a baby brother, whilst Ada wanted a baby sister.

 

CHRONICLES OF THE HELPS: PART 15

Chizoba panicked when she saw her eldest daughter afar off. She hoped the girl wasn’t sent packing from her new place of work. She had three other mouths to feed with just the sales she made from the pumpkin leaves she sold at the market. She was not prepared for another mouth to join the hungry ones at home. The girl’s salary had been supporting them immersely, she hoped the good days they had been basking in wasn’t coming to an abrupt end. Whatever the problem was, she might as well follow the girl back to her employer’s place and plead for mercy.

“Mme baby…”  

Mmesoma approached her mother’s wooden market-shift stall. The woman was seated on a stool, under a worn out umberlla. The heap of vegetables on the table made her worried bleached face less conspicuous. 

“Mama…”  

“Is this your face?” the older woman tried to act cheerful.  

“It is me, mama,” the girl greeted the other women seated under their shades, before settling on the large stool beside her mother.  

Chizoba groaned, “The moment you sat down, this stool made a sound. I think your weight has put a strain on it.”  

Mmesoma rolled her eyes. “What weight?”  

The woman took a closer look at the young girl. She became overwhelmed with joy at the fact that her daughter looked well fed. “Look at your skin, you look so fresh and… and… you’re just eating all the food in that house and fattening up anyhow.”  

The girl eyed her mother, “Haba, mama.”  

“Am I lying?” she noticed the way the other women were looking at her daughter. They must be jealous of her by now.  

She opened her handbag and pulled out a paper pack. “I got this for you a while back.” 

The woman collected the package and opened it. “Jesus!”  

“Please, be careful with the jewelry. It is quite expensive, I don’t want to hear ‘they stole it’ or ‘I borrowed someone’ or ‘it’s missing.”

 Chizoba got up and began to dance. “When was the last time I wore such an expensive jewelry?” she sat back on the stool, after gaining the attention of the women around them.  

“It is a token of my love for my mother,” Mmesoma rolled her eyes.  

The woman pulled her close in a hug. “Thank you so much, my daughter. You will never lack. This is a pleasant surprise.”  

The girl basked in her mother’s praises. “You’re welcome, mama.”  

She kept the paper pack in a large bag and placed a heap of vegetables on it. “So, what brought you here?”  

Mmesoma paled. She leaned closer to her mother and whispered in her ear. “I want my madam’s husband.”

 Chizoba’s eyes widened in shock. She looked the girl in the eye and began to shake her head.  

“He is young, gentle, handsome, kind, hardworking and he is the perfect dream husband,” her young gaze became dreamy.  

The woman cleared her throat thrice. “Mme baby…”  

“Mama, let me show you his picture,” she scrolled through her phone gallery. “Here, see…”  

The older woman sighed heavily after taking a good look at the picture of her daughter’s employer.

“Mme baby, I want you to make good use of this rare opportunity that you have. Learn this your tailoring completely, make sure your boss buys you a sowing machine, pass your GCE exams and your JAMB, and hopefully, they might sponsor your tertiary education.”  

The girl hissed and collected the smartphone from her mother.  

“Once you have graduated and running your own business, your own God-given husband will find you.”

Mmesoma hissed. “Mama, I want Ikechukwu Briggs. The problem is that he doesn’t see me… I have tried to seduce him multiple times, but, he looks at me like a piece of furniture. He doesn’t find me attractive.”  

Chizoba breathed out loudly. She was aware that once her daughter sets her mind on something, it was very difficult for anyone to deter her from her goals.  

She reached for the older woman’s arm. “Mama, I need your help. I want Ike.”

The woman avioded the girl’s pleading stare.  

“Mama, please…”  

Chizoba pulled out a knife and started to sharpen it. “Drug help and sleep with him. Once you’ve done like three rounds, he won’t be able to resist you ever again.”  

The girl started to laugh. “By the time I pounce on him and take him to cloud nine, he won’t be able to get me out of his mind. And even when he lie with his wife, he will be screaming my name!”  The woman shook her head and chuckled, knowing fully well that the young man was in sweet trouble. 

xxxxxx   

While Ike had his bath, he made up his mind to tell his wife about Mmesoma’s antics. If they decide to send the girl away after confronting her. It might take them some time to find a new help, but it was worth the trouble. His wife might also take offence because he didn’t tell her about what the girl was doing sooner. Honestly, he was just being cautious and he didn’t want to create a mountain out of a mole hill. 

He strode out of the bathroom, dripping wet, towel hung on one shower. Halfway across the room, he noticed that Lianater was lying on the bed, sound asleep. She was laughing her head off while watching TIktok videos a moment ago. When did she fall asleep? He groaned inwardly, contemplating whether to wake her up or let her rest.   

xxxxxx  

Mmesoma was ready for action the moment Ike came downstairs that night. She allowed him to watch one or two movies before offering a glass of pineapple and orange juice and a bowl of freshly made popcorn.  She stood by the doorway, hopefully waiting for the drug in the juice to take effect. Her mother told her that one tablet will make him drowsy and weak for about twenty, thirty minutes, while two tablets will turn him into a vegetable for about an hour. He won’t be able to lift a finger and stop her from accomplishing her plans that night. She could hardly wait!  

Xxxxxx  

Ike realized that he could hardly keep his eyes open for less than two seconds after gulping down the glass of juice. He didn’t know how tired he was until a few moments ago. He succumbed to the drowsy state that enveloped him and the next time he opened his eyes, he felt strange! Exciting sensations were travelling through every cell in his body! And someone was on top of him!  He blinked several times till his eyes was able to adjust to the semi-dark room. 

His vision cleared, the feminine image on top of him turned out to be the help, Mmesoma!  Anger and shock consumed him. He tried to lift his hands, but they felt like heavy metal. He willed other parts of his body to move, but nothing worked. Fear gripped him! Why couldn’t he move his body? What was happeneing to him? How was he going to stop the foolish girl from accomplishing her diabolic acts? 

Maybe he was dreaming, but the wild sensations travelling through his body felt very real. He looked towards the door, hoping that someone would walk in. But nobody came in. The house was completely silent, except from the irritating moans of the help. She was truly enjoying riding him like a horse.

He swallowed spittle and tried to speak, “Please…. please stop.”  

Ike wasn’t sure if she heard him. She didn’t stop what she was doing, but rode faster, making him feel things he didn’t want to experience with another woman aside his wife.  He began to blame himself for his predicament. He wished he had not procastinated about reporting the maid to his wife. If not, the girl wouldn’t have been able to drug his drink that night. This was sexual abuse and it was unacceptable.   He thought of a thousand things he would like to do to the girl the moment he recovered his strenght. If care wasn’t taken, he might beat her to death. Or probably skin her alive!  Tears filled his eyes, saddened by the fact that he had unwillingly laid with another woman aside his wife.