©️Opeyemi Akintunde
AS INSPIRED BY THE LIVING WORD
I sat in the living room unable to sleep, Aunty Yemi and F.D were also lost in their worlds. Aunty Yemi was more lost in the Spiritual world, her lips were moving. Suddenly, she snapped out of her prayers…
“Let’s pray…”
“Aunty, I am weak…I can’t pray”
“You don’t have an option…Or are you ready to lose your kids. If you are, I am not ready to lose Roland. He is my compensation” Aunty Yemi said
F.D looked a bit confused. Aunty Yemi saw the question in his eyes…
“I am Marcus’ mother”
For the next ten minutes, Aunty Yemi recounted the story again and F.D was wowed at God’s power.
“You mean this was where you lived and got pregnant of Marcus… Where is the man now? Leni did you buy the house from him?”
“No, he still owns the house. It’s a long story”
I told the story as well, opening up on the fact that I had been living a fake life just to impress them. Told them, my place was actually the boy’s quarter.
It was shocking to me, when my phone rang and Mr Teju was the one calling…
“Mr. Teju is calling” I said shaking…
“Pick up’ Aunty Yemi encouraged me.
“Hello sir…”
“Leni…What happened to Roland and Greg?”
I was shocked as to how he knew.
“How did you know?”
“You know I read Nigerian news every day. I just saw the reward for anyone who knows the whereabouts of two boys, a baby girl and a woman. On checking the pictures it was Roland and Greg.”
“My husband’s second wife took them when she found out about me and the boys.”
“Oh no! Is she asking for money?”
“No, she wants to punish their father for hiding the truth from her. She is threatening to kill them”
“Oh my God…I don’t trust Nigerian Police…”
He was on the line with us for another ten minutes. I really wanted to tell him Roland was his grandson but Aunty Shook her head vehemently against it…
“You don’t rush things, you consult with the Holy Spirit. It is your lack of the Holy Spirit in your lives that has brought you to this point.” Aunty Yemi said after I ended the call.
“Aunty Yemi, I need God…” F.D said…
The night that ought to be a night of worry became a night of prayer. It became a night of rededicating our lives to God. We wept, we wailed…
******
I wept unto the Lord asking for Mercy. I told him it was no coincidence that I was lying on the same floor where Mr Teju and I had committed the first act of immorality together. I asked for Mercy. It was obvious we had lost Marcus just like David lost the first product of his adultery with Bathsheba. However, Mercy gave them Solomon.
“God, you told me Marcus has sold his soul to the devil, please let me have Roland back as a compensation just as you gave Solomon to David”
******
“God, I let my emotions give birth to all of these. Even if Promise ought to have been the woman for me, the moment I realised she was married, I should have said no to her flirting. I should have fled, take a few days off like Titobiloluwa advised. Father forgive me for rushing to Leni when I could not get Promise and in the process lost Shalewa. Father, please don’t let Promise destroy the only child I have, please do not let her kill him or Roland in Jesus name.
*****
“God, the two boys are mine and I beg in the name of Jesus Christ, Please save them”
F.D’s phone rang…He rushed towards it hoping it was Promise, instead it was Promise’s mother. F. D picked up…
“Hello F.D… who are those boys Promise kidnapped?”
“One of them is my son I had before meeting her. She didn’t know about him, so I guess recently she found out.”
“Oh my God! This girl will not kill me. Have you spoken with her? I have been trying to reach her but her lines are switched off.”
“Yes, she called the mother of the boy threatening to kill the boys. Mummy, please join us in prayers that she will not carry out her threat.”
”She can’t kill a chicken. When she calms down she will come out from where ever she is hiding “
“Mummy, Promise said she was the one who killed her late husband, so Mummy she is capable of anything” F.D said and that got her quiet.
She ended the call.
******
It was morning, though it had been a tough night. The boys did not sleep well as the mosquitoes in the room were ginormous. My daughter was sleeping under her own baby net, so she slept soundly. I had bought a lot of snack for the kids, so I wanted them to have breakfast before deciding on what to do with them.
We were out of bottle water, so I got out of the house to check if there was anyone selling clean water in the village.
I went to the house beside the corpers’ lodge and I knocked.
“Yes who is there?” A female voice replied in Yoruba
“I am the visitor in the village. Please I need your help”
A lady around 22 years old opened the door…
“Good Morning ma” She greeted in Yoruba
“Please, I am a stranger here and my children need drinking water, please is there a place where I can get bottle water?”
“Unless you travel to the town. We drink water from the well.”
“My children cannot drink that, especially my baby girl”
“Ok…You have a baby?”
“Yes, I have two boys and a baby girl. The two boys can drink the well water but my baby girl can’t”
“Let me help you get the water from the town.” The neighbour offered.
“Thank you so much” I hurriedly gave her enough money to get 10 packs.
“This will buy over 10 packs, I don’t have the money to get a cab” She said
“I just need two packs, keep the change.
To be continued..
