Akwaugo – Episode 59

PART 59

 

Our friendship blossomed as time went on. I went back to Abuja to pick up my visa. I went alone this time as Samuel had work to do. I spent just two days to pick up. I was issued a visa. I was happy. It was a fresh start for me. I shared the good news with family and Uju. Uju couldn’t wait for me to join her in the UK.

 

When I came back to Calabar, I informed Samuel. He was very happy and requested we celebrate. He asked me to pick him up from the house on a Sunday morning after Mass so we could go somewhere nice and quiet to celebrate. I agreed.

 

I was at his place on Sunday. I met his mother on her way to church. I had to drop her off at church and get back to the house. I knocked on Samuel’s door but there was no response. I knocked severally but he didn’t answer. His mother confirmed he was home. I guessed he must have gone out. I went to wait in the parlour. On second thoughts I called him. He picked at the second ring. I told him I had been knocking on the door. He said he was in the bathroom, he spoke to someone in Efik, apologized to me and then asked me to wait he was coming out.

 

He came out but he was not alone. The beautiful lady with bad makeup the other day was with him. She looked very amazing this time. He must have told her about the makeup because she barely wore makeup. She wore a black and white striped dress which was above the knee. She packed her hair and added a ponytail. I admired her while my heart ached.

 

“I am sorry, I didn’t hear the knock and she didn’t tell someone came knocking.

 

Let me see her off, I will be back” he left with her.

 

 

I wondered what was going on. What was she doing in his house so early or did she spend the night? I desperately wanted to ask those questions but I knew I couldn’t. I liked him but I had so much holding me back.

 

When he came back, I told him I had changed my mind and I wanted to leave. He asked where I was going and I told to my village.

 

“Let’s go then” he replied.

 

“Go where?” I asked

 

“Your village of course”

 

“You can’t come with me”

 

“Why? I have met your auntie and cousin. I want to meet your parents and brothers”

 

“My parents are not like my auntie and cousin. They are strict and religious people. I don’t bring a man home and say he is just a friend; they won’t believe it. I will go alone”

 

“I won’t allow you to drive down alone. We had a date today anyway so we can spend the day travelling. It will be fun. I made food for us. I am ready when you are”

 

I couldn’t just barge into the house with a man and claim he is my friend; my family won’t accept that. I called my brother to inform him I was coming home and added because I didn’t want to drive down alone, I was coming with a friend. He told me they were also in the village so they were expecting me.

 

We left for Umuoji. Samuel took over the wheels while we drove down so he wouldn’t stress me. We talked on the way. I wanted to ask questions but didn’t know how to go about it without sounding jealous. I thought about it for a while and an idea came into my head.

 

“I gave your mother a ride to church this morning”

 

 

“Good, she went for 9 am Mass”

 

“She looked happy. What could make her this happy?”

 

“Probably you. She likes you and is always happy when you visit”

 

“She was happy about you”

 

“How?”

 

“You are doing what she wanted, getting into a relationship”

 

“Relationship? With who?”

 

“I should ask you”

 

“I have no relationship. My work is my relationship. I need to save for when our Immigration visa will be issued. I am ready to do any work to save enough”

 

“That’s good. So what work are you doing for her?”

 

“I was waiting for you to ask. Ask me who she is and what she is doing in my room”

 

“Who is she and what is she doing in your room?” I asked.

 

“Better. I like the way you asked. She is a final year student of Unical and she is paying me to write her project and prepare her for defence”

 

“And she is coming to your room?”

 

“The first day she came, my mother brought her to my room and since then, she directs her there. I had to attend to her there”

 

“Why were you in the bathroom while she was in the room?”

 

 

“I cooked and smelt of the food. So, I took a shower after attending to her. That’s all”

 

“She looks like she wants something”

 

“I know but I can’t give her. The phone she uses can pay my two months salary and remain. How do I date someone like that? I can never meet up to her demands. I have made sure I didn’t cross the line with her. She has tried many ways to seduce me, I refused to fall. Very soon I will be through and I won’t see her again”

 

I was silent for a while taking in all he said then he added, “Wasn’t it better you asked than get angry and take us on this journey?”

 

“I wasn’t angry”

 

“Ediye, I know you”

 

We bought some food items on the way to the village. We arrived there just before lunchtime in my family. Samuel drove into our compound. I had told him everything about my family members and he looked forward to meeting them.

 

I called Ikenna to open the gate as we drove in order not to attract attention to us. Father and mother were ecstatic to see me. I hadn’t seen them in a while because of work and distraction. I introduced Samuel to them as a friend and he was well received. He helped offload the food items in the booth into the house. He dropped the soup he had cooked for me for the week; it would be enough for all of us. Chika and Joy were also around with their babies. The house was full.

 

My mother called me into my bedroom. I brought out my passport and showed her the visa. She was so happy. She said her dream for me was for me to climb to great heights but the only downside was not having a husband. Suitors had stopped coming and I was referred to as ‘old cargo’. But I believed God had a different plan. Mother then asked,

 

“What of the young man with you, what happened to him?”

 

“He is just a friend”

 

 

“He likes you. I can see it. What is the problem?”

 

“He is Efik, he is an only child, he is younger than I am and we are just friends”

 

“I don’t understand. Whose business is it if he is not one of us. Nne, pray concerning getting married. There is a covering on your eyes and you need deliverance. I had a dream about you. Nne, has he proposed? If he has, please let us set a date before you travel. Marrying a Nigerian is it not better than going to the UK and getting married to a white? I want you to marry before you travel”.

 

I wondered what my mother was saying. They were one of the reasons I rejected Sam and now she was talking about getting married to a younger guy before leaving the country. I was disappointed. She must believe I couldn’t get a better guy.

 

“Has he?”

 

“Has he what?” I asked coming back to our conversation.

 

“Has he proposed?”

 

“We are friends, mother”

 

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“It doesn’t look like just friends. When he proposes, let me know”

 

I came back to the sitting room and Samuel was in conversation with everyone. Father laughed at whatever he saying. I found it interesting the way they sat and talked like they knew each other for years. There was no awkwardness present.

 

We made pounded yam for the Afang soup Samuel prepared. When we served the food, the aroma was the first hit. Father asked what it was and I told him it was Afang soup made with waterleaf and okazi. He tasted it and loved it. He had a hearty meal which he hadn’t done in a long while due to age. I allowed everyone to praise the food before I announced Samuel made the soup himself.

 

“You can cook?” father asked.

 

“Yes sir, I learnt how to cook from my mother being an only child”

 

“He’s a chef too. He handles events” I chipped in.

 

“With your teaching job? How do you cope?”

 

“Your daughter introduced me to the catering business and it has been an awesome experience. I have also learnt how cook Igbo soups. I will learn Yoruba and Hausa soon. I want to cook all Nigerian foods with expertise”

 

“I like that. Buts as a chef, what will your wife be doing? Will she cook too?” father asked him.

 

“I am the chef; I will handle food in my house. My wife will warm up the food if I am not home. My mother taught me how to take care of a home because my father was hardly around. I want my woman to know she is with a partner and not a lord and master. We will plan and carry them out together successfully. That’s what I want. Sometimes women are smarter than us. They see things we don’t see. I want her to speak up freely and put her foot down if she sees danger ahead”

 

“She will be a lucky woman then” father replied.

 

“If she would agree” he answered looking directly at me. I avoided eye contact.

 

We stayed until 5 pm. We had to leave otherwise we would get into Calabar late at night. My father called me into his room and I showed him my passport with the visa. He was happy although he shed some tears since I would be far away. He prayed for me.

 

“Ada, Akwaugom, I hope you know you are the apple of my eyes” I nodded. “My daughter, you have made me proud. I am happy I raised you right. The mistakes of the past, you will be heavily compensated for them. Forgive all those that have offended you and free your mind so that when something good comes you can see it and embrace it. You will be blessed in any land you step into; this is a prayer I make today in your favour”

 

 

“Amen father”

 

“Sometimes what you are looking for afar is so close and ordinary that you miss. Don’t miss your chance at happiness”

 

“I won’t father” I replied wondering what he was talking about.

 

Samuel and I left for Calabar. He was in high spirit. He thoroughly enjoyed himself with my family. He told me he went to see Ikenna poultry, fishery, goat herd and farmland.

 

“My father has so much land in the village which the head of the family forbade anyone from taking from me. I could start up something there. I took your brother’s number. The land is massive, I have the documents. He said we could start with cultivation and share profit from the produce. We would recover our investment and make good profit in two years. I would call him only if you approve”

 

“Go ahead. Brilliant idea. But you won’t be here to manage it with him. Why not lease the land out to people, get Ikenna to cultivate for them and then share profit. You can imagine what you will make when you leave”

 

He was quiet for a while as we drove into Calabar. He seemed deep in thoughts. I allowed him to enjoy his thoughts and focused on my phone. He wanted to take me home but I insisted I drop him off and drive back home.

 

“I enjoyed myself at your home. You are treated like a princess in your family. I pray the man that will make you his, will realise this and treat you the same way. I wanted to be that man. I know so much about you and I can make you happy but you don’t want me. I understand. I have let it go but I will make sure you fall for a guy that will cherish you even more than I do” he came down and left.

 

I stayed in the car for a while. I had tears in my eyes. Did I deserve to be loved by someone like this? I felt something deep. I felt lost. I would miss him so much. I would miss his mother; I hadn’t told her yet. My life in Calabar was centred around them.

 

 

That week, the drama began in my life. First, auntie Nneoma called saying she was at the airport trying to catch a flight to Enugu. She asked me to come to Enugu immediately. I took public transport because it was a long journey and I didn’t want to drive that far. I called Amanze to ask what was happening. He said he was with his mother and didn’t know the details. I got to Enugu and met them in the house. They arrived thirty minutes earlier.

 

“We are going to my husband’s village”

 

We left for the village. Samuel called and I explained to him I had an emergency and I could talk until later. He was shocked when I mentioned I was in Enugu. He asked if everyone was fine and I told him I think so. He chatted me up asking if I was ok. I told him I was and I would explain after I knew what was happening.

 

We got to the village and met the family in the compound. Auntie Nneoma greeted them and wanted to open the house for them to come in.

 

“Don’t bother, we are not entering the house. We asked you to come with your niece because we heard something. When was the last time you saw your husband’s eldest sister?” one of the elders in the family asked.

 

“Since after the memorial, I haven’t seen her”

 

“What happened to your niece? Why didn’t you tell us instead of going to look for a solution?”

 

“I don’t understand nnanyi. What happened to my niece?”

 

“Did she have a sore on her let that refused to go?”

 

“That was after the memorial. She treated it and it went. It took months but it healed. You know she is a doctor”

 

“Well, your sister-in-law is dead. She had nursed a sore that defile all treatments. It kept expanding until they had to cut off her leg. When that was done, the sore appeared on the other leg. They hid it from us all this while. The other siblings

 

 

have sores that have also refused to go and they have asked us to call you and your niece”

 

“Call us for what? What did we do? We are not aware of anything” auntie Nneoma replied.

 

“Mum, hold on,” Amanze finally spoke up, “if my father’s siblings are ill, it is a cause of concern to us. Can we see them and check how they are faring?”

 

“He is Emmanuel’s son; the true son of his father. Let us go and see them”

 

We went out of the compound to the main family house which uncle Emma built for them. They were out outside at the balcony. We greeted and the last girl fell on her stomach.

 

“Nneoma, Akwaugo please forgive us. We did evil against you. The sore on Akwaugo’s leg was caused by us. It was supposed to get rotten and then take her life. She went somewhere and returned the illness to the sender. When our sister’s own started, we didn’t know it was the cause until it became too late. There is still a chance we will get healed. Take us to where you went and they averted it. Biko, I don’t want to die”

 

Auntie Nneoma in tears answered her, “she went nowhere. She called on the miraculous name of Jesus and left vengeance to him. He had mercy on her and she was healed. She didn’t go anywhere. Go back to where you went to do evil against, they should give you a solution”

 

An elder tapped auntie Nneoma and said to her, “You are angry and it is understandable. What they did was very bad. They were not the ones that went to the person who caused your niece’s illness. The person is in the morgue now. It is to save the rest we are after” he turned to me and said, “Akwaugo, please forgive them and tell them where to go”

 

“I don’t understand what you are asking of me. They should go to the church, confess their sins and beg God for forgiveness. That’s what I did along with medication. It took a long time but I was healed”

 

“So, you are claiming you did not anything against them?”

 

“I didn’t. Why would I do something against them? I didn’t even know it was from them”

 

The truth was that auntie Nneoma had warned me never to accept or give them credit for what they did to me. She said I should just claim I went to the church and used drugs. She had an informant but didn’t want to tell us everything.

 

We went back and forth while Amanze insisted “I am tired of listening to this cock and bull story about doing evil against your brother’s wife and her niece. It makes no sense. What is important now is for them to be taken to the hospital for medical treatment. Hire a vehicle let’s take them to where they can have adequate treatment. We can’t watch them die like this”

 

They did that. They were admitted to the hospital. Amanze paid in enough money for them to be there for a month. He asked the doctor to contact him if they needed anything financial. After that, we left for Enugu. It was an emotional experience for me. I remembered what the prophetess said. I was glad I listened to auntie Nneoma. I left for Abakaliki that same day. AKWAUGO