Vero watched the younger woman standing by the opened window. She could see the unshed tears in her dark brown eyes. She wished she could take the girl’s pain away.
“Lily…”
Lianater glanced back at the sound of her name. “I need a vacation…” She adjusted the sweatshirt the baby was clad in.
Her mother raised an eyebrow. “And go where?”
She shrugged. “Right now, I don’t care. I would rather be a thousand miles away, than live in that house with him,” she locked gazes with the older woman.
Vero swallowed hard. If her daughter was thinking of escaping her husband’s proximity, his actions must have really eaten deep into her very soul. “It will take a while, but the hurt you feel right now, it will eventually fade away.”
Lianater scoffed. Her angry eyes drifted back to the window. Some children walked by, carrying buckets filled with water on their heads, heading home obviously. “A lot was happening right under my nose…”
She sighed heavily. “I can imagine.”
“He kept quiet…” She moved away from the window and sat on the closest chair to it. Her pain shadowed every movement that she made. “How could he?” She placed the sleeping baby on her laps. “We almost never keep anything from each other.”
Vero shrugged. She had no words. Only Ike understood why he didn’t tell his wife the truth until it was too late.
Lianater hissed several times, then glanced at her wristwatch. Her children’s school bus should be on its way by now.
“Will you be able to forgive him?”
She remained quiet for a long time.
Vero watched her daughter. Hoping that the girl would be able to forgive her husband and move on. Unforgiveness had a way of eating into people’s very soul, causing more havoc than necessary.
“Forgiving him might be difficult, but… but achievable,” she held the baby closer. “That’s the least of my problem,” her eyes smarted with tears. “Moving on is becoming a gigantic issue,” her voice cracked with sobs.
Her mother grimaced. Seeing her daughter hurting so much made her heart to ache.
“Every time I am in that sitting room, I see things… I imagine them, doing things in there,” She gave a shake of head. “I can’t even shower in my bathroom anymore,” She hissed. “The despicable things that happened in there… I hate that house now. I can’t… I cant live there anymore, mum.” hot tears slid down her sad face.
The older woman bit at her lower lip and began to pray. She asked God to heal her daughter’s heart and help her to forgive her husband. And most importantly, she prayed that the couple would be able to move on and remain united despite all odds.
“That house reminds me of Mmesoma and her antics and my husband’s foolishness. Maybe if we moved out, I might be able to… to breathe and then we can start all over,” she looked in her mother’s direction. She noticed the movement of her lips. But there was no sound. It dawned on her that the woman was probably praying. Her mother was always praying. Thank God for a praying mother. She sighed in relief.
“How are you coping with work and the kids?” she spoke after a while.
Lianater threw her smartphone into her bag. “It’s being crazy. My boss is always complaining now, and I can’t get anything done at home until the weekends. Ike is helping, but…” She zipped the bag and pulled her weight up.
Vero folded are arms across her bosom. She planned to helped her daughter until she has adjusted to her new routine. She doubted if the girl would be ready to employ a new maid anytime soon.
“I blame that agency for Mmesoma’s actions…” she started towards the front door.
Her mother raised an eyebrow. “The agency vet those girls as much as they can.”
“They should start vetting their hearts too,” she halted at the door.
Vero chuckled. “That’s impossible.”
“I need to go, mum, the school bus should be at my gate right about now,” she glanced back at the woman briefly before stepping out.
“Call anytime you need an extra hand,” the woman shouted, hoping she heard her.
“Sure, mum!”
Vero smiled when her daughter’s voice echoed through the walls.
Xxxxxx
The same minute Lianater was swerving into her compound, the school bus was driving away.
“Mummy! Mummy!”
The children ran into her arms the moment she stepped out of the vehicle.
“My babies,” she held the baby in one hand, then hold the other three children in the other.
“Mummy I want to eat Indomie Noodles,” Ada rubbed her tummy.
“I want yam and fried eggs without tomatoes and pepper. But maybe a little onions,” Dozie started to jump up and down.
“I want rice and stew with fried plantain,” Nonso started to spin around with his school bag.
Lianater rolled her eyes. “Let’s go in and get you all out of your uniforms, then we can talk about lunch.”
The children raced into the building, almost running into their father, who was standing on the front porch.
“Daddy is home!” the children flew into his arms.
She watched them without interest. She had no idea why he was home early that day. But, she felt better. At least, she wouldn’t be alone fending for the children and the baby at the same time.
“There is chocolate ice-cream in the fridge…”
“Hurrah!” the children chorused and ran into the house.
Ike laughed then looked in his wife’s direction. She stared back at him, lip sealed. Days and weeks after Mmesoma left their house, things had changed between them. They still lived together, but they were no longer close. It was as if a huge wall was standing between them. He wished he knew how to bridge the gap between them.
“Lily, I…” The heavy bangs on the gate interrupted his next words.
Lianater turned around. Who was hitting their gate like that? The noise had also woken the baby. Now she was crying.
“We want to see Mr. Briggs! Let us in!”
Ike saw two men, three other women and Mmesoma at the gate, struggling with the security guard. His brows came together in an angry frown. Who did the witch bring to his house?
“What’s going on there?!” Lianater addressed the guard.
“They want to see Oga, but I don’t know them. Mmesoma is also here,” he responded.
The sound of the girl’s name made her angry. She threw a nasty glance at her husband.
“What do they want?” Ike roared. “Tell Mmesoma she is not welcome here.”
The small crowd pushed their way in.
“Hey! You people are not welcome here!” the guard tried to stop them.
Mmesoma and the group of people marched towards Ike and his wife.
“I am Mrs. Chizoba Obi, Mmesoma’s mother,” the slim fair skinned woman drew Mmesoma closer. “These are my late husband’s people,” she pointed at the other two women and two middle aged men.
Lianater noticed their resemblance.
Ike glared at them all. “I don’t care. You cannot come into my home uninvited and…”
The woman hissed and eyed him. “My daughter is three months pregnant and you are responsible.”
Silence enveloped them.
Mmesoma looked up at Ike for the very first time. The shock in his countenance gladdened her heart. She was absolutely sure that her dreams were going to come true that very day.
“In our place, this child can never be born outside wedlock. It is a taboo,” one of the men spoke up. “The wisest thing to do now is to take Mmesoma as your second wife.”
Lianater paled. This was exactly the kind of problem they didn’t want or need. She backed away and stood at the front door, watching the ugly scene that unfolded in her home.
“Exactly,” Chizoba brightened. “We want to know when you are coming with your people to meet our people. We need to set the date before her tummy start to grow,” she rubbed her daughter’s tummy.
The others nodded and chuckled in agreement. Mmesoma smiled. Soon, she was going to be the new Mrs. Briggs.
Ike watched them in disgust. He didn’t like the fact that his problem was adding up. He was still trying to piece his marriage back together, now the root of their problem was pregnant!
“I want to make one thing clear to you all,” he pointed a finger at them. “I will not take responsibility of this child, until after a DNA has been conducted…”
Chizoba laughed. “That is a non-issue. We are ready for that.”
“And my belief system doesn’t support taking a second wife,” he eyed Mmesoma’s mother.
The group started to complain and argue. Mmesoma groaned inwardly. She had hoped that her people would be able to pressure Ike into marrying her. But the man was as stubborn as she remembered.
“What happened to your belief system when you were enjoying my daughter’s body?!” the woman flared up.
“You must marry her!” one of the women yelled.
“To hell with your belief system!” the others shouted.
Ike glared at them. “You have sixty seconds, leave my house, this minute!”
“We are going nowhere!” Mmesoma shouted back at him, hands on her hips, ready to fight for her dreams.
Ike dashed into the building.
“We are going to stay here and…”
He returned bearing two long sharp kitchen knives. “Who wants to meet God in heaven this afternoon!”
“Abba father!” Mmesoma fled without looking back.
Her mother and her late husband’s people followed without hesistation.
“Who?!” Ike chased after them.
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