₦airaland Forum

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The young maiden a.k.a Comfort came from a neighbouring town about 30 minutes away. Three months earlier, she had dropped out of school due to the untimely death of her father. However, this suited the young girl just fine. Well not her father's death but the dropping out of school part. She had never loved school and had always spoken about trading at the market place.

She particularly loved the fish business and seeing the raw fish fresh from the river greatly excited her. She enjoyed the preparation process; the haggling with the fishermen by the river bank, the cleaning, the sorting, the smoking, the salting, the drying, stuffing the fish with carton, the selling and tying her money inside the corner of her wrapper.

Alas this sort of life infuriated her parents (especially her father) who wanted better things for their first daughter. Fortunately or unfortunately with the death of her father, Comfort was free to follow her heart desire. Besides trading her wares, Comfort was eager to start life off as a young wife but her parents vehemently refused. After the death of her father, nothing had changed and a certain Titi Ajibade had begun to make things worse in the young Comfort's life.

All of a sudden, Aunty Titi and Mama Comfort became close friends - way too close. They began to whisper about how Comfort could get back life as her late father had always envisaged. On one of those days, as the women discussed, Aunty Titi called out Comfort's name and looked at her like she was examining a piece of ripe fruit then she nodded her head and said it was well.

Immediately, Mama Comfort fell on her knees and began to weep in gratitude. Long after Titi had left, she continued to thank her creator. To Comfort, her mother's action was beyond disgusting and truly pitiful. It was not as if she was a burden to her mother per se. Her lover, Jide was more than willing to whisk her away but her mother was proving difficult. For Comfort, the thought of leaving her community and her sweetheart was traumatizing but it would only get worse.

By the following week, her mother informed her she would be leaving for Aunty Titi's hometown and her new benefactor would make something beautiful out of her life. That day Comfort wept herself to sleep. She didn’t want their definition of 'something beautiful' but her mother was adamant. The poor widow said she would never allow her daughter end her life when it had only just begun.

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Then Mama Bukky pointed a finger at her and warned in a low tone ''I don’t want to ever hear you singing in my house again''

''Sorry ma''

''You sound awful; your voice can wake the dead and make weeping babies stop in shock. But don’t be happy about the weeping baby part because I don’t mean that in a good way''

''Sorry ma''

''Sorry for yourself. You don’t know what life is all about. I bring you here and give you what your mother can no longer offer yet you cry yourself to sleep every blessed night. If you are not crying, you are singing or planning on your next escape. Are you doomed or what? Is this the Deep South? Do I ask you to pick cotton and lash you while at it?''

''I don’t understand ma''

''How would you understand? Go to school you will not agree instead you want to sell fish. Look at you, 15 years in JSS 3! Where is the hope for you? Where is the hope for your generation in your village if every young girl wants to drop out of school? How can you raise your head in the future if you are nothing but a fishmonger? Don’t you aspire to greater things? Don’t you want to be somebody 'big' when you grow up?''

''No ma; I mean yes ma. I'm sorry ma''

''Keep your sorry to yourself! I'm fast losing patience with you and that slap I gave you the other day is a foretaste of what is to come. I am doing this for the sake of your mother and your mother alone. I will give you till the end of the month and if this rubbish persists, I will wash my hands off you. I'm not indebted to your mother as a matter of fact it is the other way round. In addition, we didn’t sign any contract that says I must help you forever or help you at all''

Then Mama Bukky dumped the goods on the floor and walked away from her uncompleted kitchen.

FIFTY FOUR
The young maiden Mama Bukky desired was only 15 but double her age and you wouldn’t expect her behaviour from a 30 year old lady! The young maiden went by the name Comfort but there was nothing comforting about her personality. For starters, she had run away twice since Titi brought her and it had only being 3 weeks since she first arrived!

Today Comfort was chopping the ugu leaves on a chopping board and as the knife moved deftly, she continued to sing a mournful tune. It was one of those useless songs known only to the singer. It was the type they concocted on the spot and sang to pass time or feel good about their pitiful existence.

The song was about the suffering in the world and about the lack of love the recipient no longer enjoyed. At some point, she sang about God filling the void in her life and punishing all who stood in the way of her progress. Then she burst into a listless chorus which she sung in Yoruba.

Unbeknownst to her, as she sang, Mama Bukky stood by the kitchen door and watched as she continued to cut the leaves into tiny shreds. The sound of the knife went ''fiam, fiam, fiam…'' while Comfort continued to sing above the sound.

The overall melody was a disaster and the sound irritated Mama Bukky to the heavens and back ''shut up your filthy mouth there!'' Mama Bukky yelled at the young girl.

Immediately Comfort turned and looked at her in surprise; she had no idea her 'unwanted' benefactor was back from the market.

''Welcome ma'' she greeted.

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Someone once said he murdered a child in cold blood. Then another said it was lie. He claimed he was taken to court (with Imonitie) on the day charges were entered against him. This fellow claimed Imonite dealt in stolen goods; cars to be precise. He said Imonite was the ringleader of a group that specialized in BMW products.

The informant said on the day Imonitie was caught, the police gave him a hot case in a stolen 2012 BMW X5. The jail bird said the unassuming man (Imonitie) ran into a group of small children and killed them! He went on to say there were about 5 children crossing the road when Imonitie ran into them! Afterwards, the inmates began to give Imonite space. They hailed him once he walked past and the older crooks nodded at him.

Imonitie had no idea what it was about until Emma gave him the low down. That day Imonite laughed so hard and in that moment Emma knew the story was fabricated. Somewhere in Emma's heart, he had always believed it was a lie. Something told him Imonitie was not like the rest of them.

He was too good, too polite and Emma was certain he was a victim of circumstance. On that day, Imonitie laughed at Emma's story, the young man asked why he was imprisoned in the first place but Emma didn’t get the answer he sought.

Well that was a long time ago and on that memorable day Imonitie's name was called, Emma was pointing at some advanced words while Imonite helped him. Suddenly a prison official yelled out his name ‘’Mr Ebosele''

‘’Officer’’ Imonite yelled back in reply. He got up and walked in the direction of the stern looking man.

‘’You have a visitor’’ the official cried back.

The few inmates who heard the announcement cheered. Someone slapped his back while Emma pleaded with him ‘’bros, I beg nor forget me oh. Find something bring come for me’’

As Imonitie walked out, he felt the warden was extra nice to him but that could have been for another reason. He had not eaten anything since morning so perhaps his stomach was collaborating with his eyes and playing tricks on him.

When they got to the room that was used to see visitors, Imonite stopped but the warden kept on walking. Imonite looked at him in surprise and cocked his head to a corner but the old guard yelled at him ‘’move it!’’

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‘’But why didn’t oga send for me and tell me this thing now?’’ Unique asked. It was clear to see he was upset.

Then Chichi eyed him and continued ‘’Unique you should be happy sef abi you nor know say na yama yama work oga don give me so? He said you worked a brilliant case and he does not have the heart to ask you to mop dirt. This one is on me. I have to go NOWWW!’’

As Chichi was moving away, ASP Kassim Kolawole appeared with Professor Buwa in tow and he announced in his booming voice ‘’Officer Aburime, are we still chatting? What part of ASAP is hard to comprehend? When I tell Adeleke to move don’t you see how he sprints?’’

‘’Sorry sir’’ Chichi yelled. ‘’On my way sir’’

‘’Good. Do a Michael Johnson on it’’

‘’Or you mean Usain Bolt?’’ Professor Buwa joked. The men continued to laugh like no man's business but once they got to where was Unique’s standing, ASP Kolawole did the introduction ‘'here is the other half of the team. That's the young man who cracked the case wide open''

''I'm impressed'' Prof replied.

Then the ASP continued ''he did a very good job; my men always do’’ then he lowered his voice and whispered to his friend ‘’but Detective Unique Adeleke leads the pack and I knew he would not fail in this assignment’’

Professor Buwa shook Unique's hand and smiled at him. Then he addressed his friend ‘’I can attest he was good and professional at all times not forgetting his colleague who just left. They were brilliant and particularly good with the younger boy’’

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Evening everyone.

@Mistytohcute, I am absolutely glad your kid brother is fine.

labaski:
I bet he'll not be able to take it wen she spits it out.. touchmeder u are really good.. thanks..

Thank you

gal10:
Interesting... Thanks Touchmeder

Thanks dear; its quite a read tonight.

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As Professor Buwa made that last statement, he flung something aside and Roli swallowed hard. She had not seen her husband that angry in ages but she couldn’t stop halfway. She wanted to reach out to him but it didn’t feel like the right time so she remained in her small corner and continued talking ''hmmm, what more can I say! Dear, you are talking like I’m just strolling from the village. Is it not the same abroad I’m coming from? Is it not the same UK we lived while you were doing your PHD? I know these things dear. All I’m trying to say is…’’

‘’Look let me tell you Roli, Dr Ebosele, her pastors, my friends that know her, her parents, in- laws and even YOU cannot halt this court process so desist from it. You don’t want a case where this marriage will be on the brink because you have refused to leave me alone. You don’t want family to get involved in our affairs. That’s certainly not my way of handling things but if you push me, I will invite Warri people and they may just escort you off this premises at the end of the day!’’

Immediately Roli kept quiet. She knew it was going to be a herculean task but she didn’t imagine it will come with threat concerning her marriage. She decided she would broach the topic again but at a later date. Things had gotten out of hand too quickly and it was best to leave it for now. She knew her husband well enough. Soon he would apologize for the threat and they would continue with their life.

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The apology came rather quickly later that day. Prof had stormed out in anger but two hours later he was back. As he lay by her side, he held her arm and let it out ‘’I’m sorry for how I reacted earlier. I need you to understand my motive for going ahead with this case. I need you to respect my wishes on this matter''

''Please don’t threaten this union again'' Roli replied.

Then he smiled at her and kissed her arm before replying ''then steer clear from my path on this issue. I need you to understand this is my own way of seeking closure and justice’’

Then Roli began to weep ‘’where is the justice if the wrong person is locked up?’’

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''Oh oh yeah! She has been particularly nice to you. I can imagine why you wouldn't want to turn down her request''

''My dear it was not just Mrs Noruwa but other individuals as well. I could barely put on my phone for an hour without someone who knows the Ebosele's calling to plead! At the end of the day, I just wanted to hear what she had to say’’

‘’Fair enough but that was not what we discussed’’

‘’Dear, it was a good thing I spoke to her. You may want to sit down for this’’

‘’Not interesteddddddddddddddd!’’ Professor Buwa sang. He continued taking off his clothes and by the time he was done, he was down to his birthday suit.

‘’Let’s talk about it’’ Roli whispered.

‘’Its bath time’’ he replied. ''Are you joining me?''

''Not tonight dear; it's rather cold''

''It's warm water''

''I'll pass thank you''

Then Professor Buwa strolled out without another word. He spent sometime in the bathroom, a lot longer than he usually would. Perhaps he hoped Roli would be immersed in a TV program or would have fallen asleep but he was wrong. By the time he returned, she continued from where she stopped.

''It was nothing more than the initial impact. I didn’t run over her ma but I did something stupid - I reversed and ran away. I was scared for my life and I realize it was a stupid thing I did''

Then Mrs Buwa got up and walked towards Pearl. She looked at the younger woman and whispered ''is this the truth? You didn’t drive over my child?''

''I promise you I didn’t''

Mrs Buwa smiled at her and began to cry in relief. As she did, she clutched her chest and her shoulder shook vigorously. All the while she wept; Pearl stared at her but said nothing more. After a while, the older woman announced ''that was the worst part for me. I've had nightmares over that bit. And even if it happened that way, I just wanted to know the truth and get it over with…''

''It didn’t happen like that ma''

Afterwards, Mrs Buwa stretched out a hand to her then Pearl held her hand and got up on her feet. The two women stared at themselves for a while then hugged and continued to cry.

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''Let me ask you a question doctor. Do you have any idea what it's like to wait before a child arrives? I mean really wait''

''I can only apologize and to answer your question - yes''

Then Mrs Buwa looked at her small bump and laughed out loud ''I don’t think you do'' she replied in a small voice.

''I agree I may not know another woman's travails besides every case is different. I realize some go through more hurdles than others nevertheless; I know what it's like to wait for a child. This pregnancy didn’t come easy for me and sometimes I think this thing I'm passing through may kill us both''

''But you're still alive and I bet your baby is doing just fine. If it were not the case you'd be in a hospital instead of my house. At least you have something to look forward to. I don’t have that opportunity with my daughter and your husband is to blame''

''It's not him ma. It was me and that is why I am here today''

Immediately, Mrs Buwa arched an eyebrow in surprise. There was pure silence and the air was heavy with the new revelation. Then Mrs Buwa rose on her feet slowly and Pearl went down on her knees again. They stared at each other for some seconds and Mrs Buwa whispered ''is this a joke or something?''

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Then Dennis began to talk and he couldn’t be stopped. Once he was done, Mrs Buwa opened out her arms and hugged him ‘’I’m so sorry’’ he said over and over again.

‘’Shhhhhhhhhh! It’s no one’s fault. I’m sure you know you should have done better but I won’t dwell on that. It’s over and long gone. Life is for the living and we can only continue along that line. Regardless of what happened, you should have said something much earlier. It may have made all the difference in the world. Now I would have to battle this one out with your dad. I’ve never supported what he is doing anyway but this is enough reason to drop that case’’

‘’He is going to be mad at me’’

‘’Shush now! Your dad is the last person that would engage in any sort of blame game. I will try to repair this as much as I can. I will be honest with your dad and I want to assure you he would not blame you. Son, I need you to forgive yourself. It was no one’s fault what happened that night. You shouldn’t have done that. Michael should not have gone out with her. The gate should have been padlocked from within. I should have been watching them. Daddy shouldn’t have turned up the TV volume so high. Mr Ebosele shouldn’t have driven so fast. Maureen shouldn’t have been out by that time. Listen, I can go on forever but what would that do for any of us? It was a series of unfortunate events – end off. Is that okay?’’

‘’Yes mummy’’

‘’Good. Now try and get some sleep; you sure need it’’

jrhymez:
This touchmeder sabbi suspense oooooooo

Really? At the start of this story, someone actually said I should utilize suspense more so I decided to work harder at it. I take it i'm not doing badly ehn...

@everyone thanks. With this story, I feel I've been blessed with some of the best readers (very mature opinions) since I started writing on Nairaland literature session. I'm not sure why; perhaps its because the story made front page - dunno. Anyways as the story slowly grinds to a halt, I want to thank you all again. [s]Try not to be too excited cos I may just put you in suspense again tonight.[/s]