DIARY OF A PASTOR’S WIFE
EPISODE 7
I began to slightly calm down and nodding my head. I took a de-ep breath before answering all the questions the police men asked, my heart was beating like I was facing my worse fears.
“Madam you say na this pastor dey disturb you?” the awkward looking police officer asked, he was holding David’s ph0togra-ph in his hands.
“yes, he haras-ses me everywhere I go. last week, he stalked me at my daughters school.”
“na tiv him be.” another police officer said.
“no. na kidnappers dey follow people like that, when they know that you get fine motor, they follow you everywhere. ”
“madam, do you know the man or where he lives.” another officer asked.
“he is my ex husband.” I said, my voice faltered as I brou-ght my head down a bit.
The police officers looked at me with their mouth wi-de open.
“You mean am madam?”
“yes. My ex husband ”
“so Una wan carry Una family affairs come station abi?”
“oga plea-se, that shouldn’t be your business. All I want is for you people to st©p this man from bothering me and my children.” I said furiously.
“is okay madam. you go give us moni for fuel wey we go drive go him church go warn am well, well. money for pure water, money wey we go use buy gala hold belle and pocket money for the boys.” he reeled off, as he smiled with his brown tooth wi-de open.
I di-pped my hands into my handbag and brou-ght out clean notes, counted it r0ûghly and gave to one of them.
He smiled wi-dely and got the money excitedly.
“madam go, your problem is over. This man will never ever bother you again. Go and sleep with your two eyes close.”
thank you oga.” I said. I felt a sudden urge to smile, but didn’t. I walked out hastily.
I melted into my car seat like a bulb of ice cream.
While I drove home that afternoon to pick the kids from their new school, I felt something so powerful.
Love. Broken love. like a dying sun about to explode.
**
“Tell me about your new teacher. Have you two made new friends yet?” I asked the kids excitedly, as I drove them home from school.
“the school is boring mommy.”
“They don’t have a pl@ytree. ” Teye retorted with a frown.
“You will get use to it soon.” I said calmly.
I was almost approaching the house when my phone rang. Mfon picked the call and pressed the Speaker bu-tton.
“Ekom there is problem.” Lizzy said, she sounded terrified and worried.
“What is it?” I asked, my voice trembling.
“I just got a call from pastor Akintola that some police men badged into David’s office and almost Tortured him to dead.”
The kids began to shiver as Lizzy continued.
“he was rescued by some pastors. According to what I heard, he was warned never to go after you again. Why are you involved in this Ekom?” She asked sadly.
When Lizzy hung up the call, I bec@m£ afraid as my heart fluttered. I felt like my problems got bigger by the day.
“mummy, what did you do to my daddy?”
Teye asked, as she gave me a leveled gaze.
“Don’t ask me silly questions!” I yelled.
I was feeling so down and unhappy, nothing could calm me at that moment. There was heaviness in my heart. A combination of sadness, worries and regret.
I wished I had a time machine where I could turn back to the time where this conflict all started.
From when I left for America, to when I went to report David to the police.
“mummy st©p, we are home!” Mfon said shrilly.
I sighed and took a reverse immediately.
My mind had gone far in thoughts.
****
That night, sleep ran away from my eyes. when I closed my eyes, all I saw was David brutally beaten by the rude police men.
My thoughts were interrupted by my phone, and my sister Abigail was the caller.
“Ayeneka, abadie?” I asked in a low tone.
“Sister, I just got a message from Georgina now, what have you done? she said her son has been hospitalized because of you.”
“Oh that…..her son was haras-sing me, I reported him to the police….”
“What? why? I mean what happens to the woman of God in you? why would you report your husband to the police? ”
“he is not my husband!” I yelled angrily and cut the call. Suddenly, I heard a loud knock on the door.
I walked hastily towards the door and opened it immediately without checking who it was, my heart tremble at the horrible sight of Georgina, there were police men behind her, and then Lizzy whose eyes were alre-ady filled with unre-leased tears.
“What do you want?” I Asked with a furious stare.
But before I could say any other word she gave me a loud sl@p on my face.
“No madam! You don’t sl@p a pregnant woman that way, can’t you see she is heavy? Heartless Georgina!” Lizzy yelled, as she struggled out of the hands of the police officers and pushed Georgina down.
“Bishop my foot! stay off her!”
The police men held Lizzy with all their might. I stood at one corner with my hands on my cheek, watching Georgina in tears.
” She said you are pregnant?” She laughed a disgustful laugh and cl@pped her hands back at me.
“Who are you Deceiving Ekom? You ate to your fill, your stomach is filled with food, there is no single foetus in there.” She said, her mocking voice squeaked as she laughed sadistically.
“You are not God! shame on you devil!”
She wanted to put another sl@p on my face, when I held her hands ti-ght.
“Get out of my house!”
“Arrest this barren woman, poor, wretched idiot, who got lucky to marry my son.”
The police men pushed Lizzy aside and gr@bb£d my hands firmly.
All I heard was Lizzy’s voice, she was talking on the phone, I couldn’t see her clearly anymore.
“hello? Pastor David there is a problem. Your mother is here to arrest your wife..
Yes….we are at Bode Thomas surulere.”
Lizzy Said in a shaky tone as she attem-pted dialing another number, Georgina took the phone from her hands.
“mummy, mummy” the kids cried out.
The police men took me into a black maria.
Before I finally lose consciousness, a calm voice whispered something to me, “I will fight this battle for you.”
It was raining.
I can’t remember the exact time it was, but I knew it was midnight.
I felt something on my face, and tried to pu-ll it off, before realizing it was an oxygen tube. Lizzy held my hands to make sure I don’t make further movements.
“You will be fine.” she whispered.
Then I noticed that I wasn’t lying on my be-d, the mattress was softer.
There were lots of people in the room, I tried to open my eyes f0rç£fully.
“she is opening her eyes.”
A tiny loud voice said. My stomach dropped, and I could hear my heartbeat come to an abrupt halt on the monitor.
Then my eyes caught up with David, he was carrying Mfon in his arms, he had bandage tied around his n£¢k.
I stared at him in complete utter and disbelief as my heart picked again.
Lizzy’s eyes were we-t with anger and tears. I knew she wanted to tell me something, a lot of things.
“you will be fine bestie.” she said soothingly. I was surprise that Lizzy would refer to me as her bestie.
She pu-lls out the oxygen tube gently from my nose.
“can you breath?” she asked. I nodded my head slowly.
“you pas-sed out.” She whispered.
David ran out of the room immediately he saw my mouth moving.
“he doesn’t know that you are pregnant. I told the doctors not to inform him.” she whispered again, this time very slow.
Not long, David walked in with doctors and nurses. A doctor whose name tag re-ads ‘Dr Alphonsus’ gave me an apologetic smile and placed the stethoscope on my che-st.
“if she is now well, prepare her for cell tomorrow morning, I want her to be beaten up mercilessly by those police men, just like they did to my son!” Georgina yelled.
“Mom, you are so heartless, even in her pains you still hate her? what sort of a human being are you?” David asked looking amazed.
“What is it that you see in this barren woman!”
“She is not barren, but you are .” Lizzy retorted, her face changed to the real face of terror and anger. she continued.
“have you ever put to birth in your life? oh, you think I don’t know that it’s only you and my late mother who was your best friend that knows that you bought David from her just because she couldn’t afford paying her school fees at medical school, and my father who was your late husband’s driver could not also afford s£nding his young wife to her dream medical school….” Georgina’s face crumbles as she looked around blankly.
“What are you insinuating Lizzy?” David asked looking confused and terrified.
madness coated the air that night, secrets were unveiled, and the rain kept falling uncontrollably.