House Of Secrets🏘️🏘️
Episode 4
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“I hope you are happy now, I’m sorry for neglecting you, I’ve
been very busy” he k!$$£d her forehead after they’d made love.
She was his sweet little pea and he relished her love for him. She
reminded him of her mother, when she was younger.
“I’m fine dad, but promise not to keep me this long” Rose pouted
herl-ips. She had been drawn to her father since childhood, and
they’d lived that way for many years, till that fateful day when th
stupid girl had walked in on them.
“We should get going before your mother gets worried, there’s
something I failed to handle” Pastor Ita rose to his feet.
“What could that be?” She raised her brows.
“Joy your cousin has arranged for us a new maid, she is to arriv
today, I forgot to tell your mother about her” he replied.
Grace had discovered his affair with his own daughter, god
knows how she did but she confronted Rose about it on the day
she was about leaving, a fight ensued and she ended up dead.
Helen had helped them put things in the rightful place, but she
never knew the secret behind the fight that led to Grace’s death
and it had to remain that way.
“A maid?” Rose swallowed ha-rd as she recalled her last moment
with Grace, she hated maids, either they were dirty or plain
stupid.
“Yes, your mother nee-ds help, you are not at home most of the
time” the man said and felt slightly jealous, what if his daughter
had another lover?
“I guess she does, we have to be more careful” Rose replied.
“Yes we have to, now let’s get going” he f0rç£d the disturbing
thoughts out of his mind and f0rç£d himself into the clothes.
She observed her father quietly as he dressed, she felt guilty
sometimes about what they did, but she couldn’t help her
unnatural attra-ction to him, they weren’t the only guilty ones, her
mother had a lover, she was sure of it, but she didn’t have prove
Countless times, she’d listened to her phone calls and re-ad her
messages, but she couldn’t pin point this person, what if her
mother knew about her affair with her dad? She shuddered at the
thought of them being discovered.
“Time to go” he patted her shoulder and they both stepped out o
the h0tel room.
“Something is bothering you” she observed her father.
“Not really” he ignited the engine.
“Talk to me dad, what’s it? I could help” she offered.
“It’s you I’m thinking of, do you have a b©yfri£nd”? He asked.
” No dad” she li-cked herl-ips nervously, how could he ask her
that? She had no lover except him and she didn’t plan on having
anyone else.
“Good, I love you so much, always remember that” he pe-cked
her and drove off.
****
“Grace”? My mouth felt dry, I was confused.
” Mum? Are you okay”? I heard a de-ep baritone voice from inside
I didn’t know why, but I felt a tingle in my che-st at the sound of
the voice, who was he?
” I’m coming soon Mark” she replied and stepped outside,
shutting the door firmly behind her, I felt like an intruder.
“I rebuke you, blood of God” the woman pushed me r0ûghly an
I panicked, I watched in shock as she bent down and scooped
sand into her hands.
“Go back to where you belong” Helen inhaled sharply and steppe
closer to the ghost, talk of the devil, why had Grace come back t
haunt her family?
“I don’t un-derstand Ma” I shifted from her. Was I a ghost? I knew
the significance of what she was doing, it scared me too.
“Shut up, you demon from the pit of hell, I cast and bind you out
of my house” she threw the sand at me and I sneezed. This
woman was juts, I concluded, I should’ve listened to my mum.
“Mom? What’s going on here”? a tall lanky guy stepped outside.
” Thank Jesus you’re here with me, see her, she’s here to haunt
us” the woman pointed fearfully at me.
“Mum? What are you talking about”? Mark eyed be steadily. He
was tall and brown, with broody eyes and a sharp nose, he was
cute and seemed kind.
” Uhmmmm” Helen coughed and gained composure of herself,
suddenly realising she’d allowed fear take control of her. She had
almost spilled the truth to Mark.
“This girl here is Grace, our maid that ran away, why has she
come back”? the woman eyed me with annoyance.
Mark’s eyes ran over my features briefly and his eyes softened as
our eyes met, he seemed to remember me from somewhere, b
I couldn’t recall. Did I know him?
” Grace?” He seemed excited to see me. This situation I found
myself was no longer funny, why were they calling me “Grace”?
When I was. ” Ajunwa”?
“I’ve found you, I knew you’d come back, I knew you’d return to
me” he embr@ced me without warning while his mother stared
daggers at me. I could feel hatred in her glare, and whoever this
Grace was, must have done something real bad.
“Enough Mark, she has to leave” Helen was still in shock, she was
sure of it, Grace was buried in the garden, so why and how had
she come back to life?
“So where have you been”? He finally re-leased me.
” I am sorry, my name isn’t Grace” I replied coolly and he laughe
for some minutes.
“Are you kidding me? Do you have amnesia now”? He gazed at
me mockingly.
” I am Ajunwa, I c@m£ here from my village, on reccomendation
by Joy Ita to serve as a maid here, she gave me this address ” I
handed him the sl!pof paper which Joy had written the address.
“This is a big joke mum” he showed his mother the paper, she
had relaxed a bit.
“Ajunwa”? Helen breathed de-eply, this was all a lie, this was a
ghost speaking to her and she had to get rid of it.
” Yes Madam” I replied.
“We don’t nee-d your services, so I’ll fetch you some money and
you return to your village. Thank you” the woman hissed and
retreated into the house.
I was stunned by her coldness, what had I done to receive such
treatment?
“Ajunwa?” Mark’s eyes romaed me over another time, they
seemed so sure about me.
She was plump, average and lightskinned just like Grace, she
looked every inch like his Grace but she wasn’t Grace of a truth.
This was a stranger who looked so much like her, he’d spent so
much time with her and he knew the brightness of her eyes and
most importantly the birthmark that sat proudly on her forehead.
“plea-se I really want to stay here, I really nee-d this job, plea-se talk
to your mother about it” I pleaded, tears had alre-ady welled up in
my eyes.
“It’s okay. You’ll be here, I promise” Mark as-sured her, he was
equally surprised by his mother’s behavior.
“Have this, just take it and leave, Thanks” Helen returned with a
wra-p of naira notes.
I couldn’t take the money, I nee-ded this job badly, I nee-ded to
save up for so many things.
“Mum, you don’t have to do this, you don’t even know her, I too
a closer look at her and I realised, she isn’t Grace” Mark said.
“What do you mean? Do you think me blind”? She sounded
angry.
I watched as mother and son engaged in a silent battle over me,
wondered where Joy’s uncle, the Pastor was, maybe he’d have
had pity on me.
” Madam” a handsome young man ran towards us, from the wa
he called her, something bad had happened.
“Yes, Nelson what is it”? She quic-kly faced him.
” It’s about your husband Ma, the pastor, they’ve gotten to him”
he p@n-ted.
“Gotten to him”? Mark raised his brows.
” Have this” he gave the woman the phone he held.
PASTOR k!ss!ngGIRLFRIEND IN A h0tEL.
“No, this isn’t possible, this isn’t my husband, remember he left
with a driver” Helen pressed her hand on her che-st.
“Besides the girl’s face isn’t clear, it could be Ph0toshop” Mark
suggested, he knew his father well, he was a godly man and
could never cheat on his mother. Their marriage was a match
made by heaven.
“Yes it’s ph0toshop” Helen replied with a shaky voice, what if it
wasn’t Ph0toshop? She wondered
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TBC