₦airaland Forum

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NINE (contd)

Looking at everything in retrospect, she could see it was mostly her fault. She handled the matter very badly. Maybe because she was so young; but then her fatal mistake was involving her father instead of her gentle and wise mother. She had done that because she knew he was more likely to get his support.

Her father had sent for his son-in-law Olumofe and he went to see him. Her father told him in no uncertain terms that his daughter was nobody’s housewife – in fact that she was too smart to be an housewife – and she was going to start work, and work she will, as soon as possible whether Olumofe liked it or not.

Olumofe was very hurt; more by her actions than her father’s words. When he came home that night, he told her if she decided to start working, he would not stop her, but she should know that she will be doing it against his will. She soon started the job anyway. She got one almost immediately she started looking; with her father pulling a few strings, it was not a difficult task. It was a bank job and she started right away.

The cosy atmosphere which had always been between them gradually dwindles. He started coming home late and didn’t talk much when he was in the house. Then her crazy hours started. The bank job was very demanding and coupled with the bad traffic situation, she always got home very late. He was angry that it seemed Bucky was only been tended to by the housemaid. They had many arguments over this and the ambiance in their home became tense.

Then the one that broke the camel’s back: He found out from a friend accidentally that her job contract included not getting pregnant in the first three years at her job in the bank. He was livid when he confronted her that night. She had barely arrived from the office and was only a feet away from the entrance.

She told him that she was tired, dieing to get a shower and did not have time for a shouting contest. A wide-eyed and mouth-gaped Olumofe watched her as she calmly walked past him to go into the bedroom. With fast strides, he moved ahead of her and blocked her way, intending to make her comment on the issue he just brought up. “Would you stop all this childish pranks and allow me go inside and have a shower,” she said. “Or can’t you see that I am fagged out.” Deeply annoyed by the nonchalant way she was waving him away like some stupid kid on an issue he considered important, she saw him raise up a hand as if to stop her, then put it down again. She could see there was frustration in his eyes, and venting it out, he pushed her out of the way and left through the door that had not yet been closed. Outside, he discovered his car keys were still in his pocket. He got into the car and drove to his usual hang-out.

Unknown to Olumofe, because he never he looked back till he got out of the house, when he pushed Laide out of his way, her leg had caught against the other one and she missed her balance. She fell flat and her head hit against a stool. She was dazed for a while and in pain. When the pain subsided, she had a bump at the side of her head and a throbbing headache that proved the bump was real. Annoyed by the fall, and more annoyed by the fact that he could treat her that way – which she considered insensitive – she called her father and told him what happened. “Where is he now?” her father had asked. She told him where she thought he would have gone. “So he has the guts to beat you up,” her father had concluded deliberately in contradiction to the facts of the story related to him and she had conveniently bothered not to set him straight. She was hoping that her father would come down hard on Olumofe; tell him to back off and let her be. But she got an overdose of what she hoped for.

Olumofe did not come back home that night. She did not see him until she returned from work the next evening. He was civil and very calm. There was no trace of anger in him. He asked her how her head felt. He must have found out from the maid, she thought.

Next day at the office, her mother called to say she needed to see her urgently. She closed from work as early as she could and was able to make it to her parents’ house at some few minutes past eight.

Her mother took her outside to the gardens. There she asked what transpired between her and her husband. Laide told her what happened and exactly how it happened. It was then she learnt that her father had Olumofe picked up and arrested at his regular hang-out. He spent the night and half of the next day in police cell before he was released. When she heard this, she was horrified.

Her mother had told her, “Your father would be the ruin of your marriage. It’s time you stopped listening to him.”

But the admonition had come too late for it seemed the damage was already done. On getting home, she called Olumofe, explained to him that she never told her father to do what he did. She begged him but he insisted he was not angry with her and played down the whole event.

But of course he was lying. For the next two months he remained still civil and calm. He never got angry at anything or complained again about her job. Not even when she gets back home very late. He did everything he ought to do in the house the way a loving husband would, except warm up to her. It seemed the only time he was himself was when he played with their daughter Bucky.

She knew she was losing him but was at a loss at what to do. All efforts to appease him had no result. How does one placate someone who would not even admit that he has been wronged, she pondered helplessly.

Finally at the end of her wits, she decided to quit her job. Maybe that would have changed the course of things, but it was not to be, as fate chose that time to strike a terrible blow. Olumofe’s father, a diabetic suddenly took ill. For three weeks, he was in the hospital, and his condition worsened till he finally died.

The funeral was a big affair. The cross-section of the society came to the funeral, ranging from highly positioned civil servants from different governments departments to representatives of many NGOs and philanthropic organizations Reverend Alfred Olumofe and his wife had worked with over the years. The clergy was also highly visible; after all he was a Reverend of the Anglican Diocese. Also the President sent a representative, his media relations adviser to read a prepared speech eulogizing the many good works and virtues of the Reverend and high government official: his unrelenting selfless service to the nation, his commitment to God and His church; his philanthropic pursuit to make life easier for those less fortunate than him; and his positive contributions to humanity at large, making the world a better place than he had met it.

After the funeral, Olumofe told her he wanted to stay in the house with his mother for sometime. He was their only child and he said the mother needed comforting. His arguments seemed sensible and there was no way she could object under the circumstance, for she would appear callous and insensitive to anyone who heard about it But deep in her heart, she knew his seemingly good motive, really, was only an excuse to move out of their home. But there was nothing she could do about it.

When the four weeks that he was to stay with his mother came to an end, she awaited his return back to their home. Since she had already quit her job, she was hoping they would begin things afresh.

But instead, she received a home delivered parcel. Inside was a letter from Olumofe. The letter said he was already on plane to US and his final destination was Massachusetts. He already enrolled for a one-year MBA degree programme at the Boston University. After the one-year programme, the letter had said, he didn’t know what would come next. He regretted any pain his decision might cause her but then, she and her father had given him no choice; she and her father had caused him great pain.

After reading the letter, she immediately drove down to see Olumofe’s mother. It turned out that the same day, and in the same manner, she had found out that her son had jetted out of the country. His mother was so surprised because neither of them had given her any hint that they had problems at home. There was little consolation the much older woman who was still mourning the death of her husband could offer her.

When she got back home, she broke down in tears and cried. She cried through the night and the following day. Her maid was so confused and didn’t know what to do, so she just avoided her and busied herself with minding Bucky.

The crying continued for the next two days before she was able to put a hold on herself.

Six weeks later, she moved back to her parents’ home. What constitute the greater part of her grief stems from the fact that she was so sure the love between both of them had not diminished, not even by a tiny bit, yet Olumofe could turn his back on this and walk out on her. They had lived together for two years, eleven and half months. They had now been separated for over six years.