Patience looked at her husband and saw how serious he was looking.
“Does it mean Peace reported me to her father? Why is he looking so serious like that? And this huge decision he made, he shouldn’t have done it without contacting me first. And it’s all Peace doing, she is trying to instigate me against her father” Patience who couldn’t endure how she was neglected in the decision approached her husband, to inquire his reasons for doing so.
“Papa Grace, to tell you the truth, I am not happy with you, I am not happy at all” She blurted, standing aright
The husband who was sitting on a wooden chair, receiving fresh air raised his head and gazed at her, trying to understand the point she was trying to make.
“Tell me, what is it that you are not happy with?” He asked
“How can you conclude that Grace will be going to my maternal home without first seeking for my opinion, when did that start? We haven’t arrived at any conclusion before without first putting heads together.”
“Mama Grace, are we not talking about the life of our daughter here? Since you have failed to take care of your own responsibilities as the mother, then allow me to take care of my daughter. I am not accusing anyone, I am not saying that Nana has a hand in anything, but an adage says, “prevention is better than cure”. I’m only protecting my child and don’t forget please, before she sleeps, call her into your room and inform her about it. She should start packing her things immediately, do you get me? Now, can I have some rest?” Papa Grace asked.
And Patience angrily walked out of his presence.
She met Peace at the entrance, and then stood, giving her an angry look.
“Mama, why is your face like that?” Peace asked
“Peace, you will soon get what you are looking for in this house” Patience angrily snapped
Peace who felt her anger and the reason behind it, didn’t utter a word again, she only maintained silence.
And when she was about to make a step, Patience requested her to call Grace.
“Tell your sister to see me in my room” Patience requested in a harsh tone
“Alright Mama” Peace heeded, and went to Grace’s room.
She met her laughing out loudly with Nana, as they were discussing about the wedding preparations, the colour combination they will use for the occasion.
“Sister Grace, mummy wants to see you in her room now.”
“OK” she said, and then excused herself, telling Nana that she will be with her in minutes. “And don’t sleep, you get? You know you like sleeping a lot” Grace teasingly requested.
And Nana smiled, and assured her that she won’t sleep.
So Grace cheerfully went to answer her mother’s call.
“Mama, you called me?”
“Yes, sit down”
And Grace sat, looking at how serious her mother was looking. She wondered what could be the reason.
“OK Mama, I am sitting now”
Patience then took a deep breath and relayed to her the decision her father made.
“Hmm, well, since it’s for my own good, I won’t object. I will leave any day you want me to”
“Very good, but you have to keep it to yourself. Don’t let anyone know about it, and not even Nana”
And Grace got stunned: “Mama, I don’t understand what you just said, why Nana? Why shouldn’t I inform her? You know I can’t do all the preparations alone and I don’t have much friends. She is the only one to help me with some of the arrangements, including going to the market for the materials.”
“But I am here to help you?” Peace said, jumping into their discussion.
“Peace, was this idea from you? Were you the one who told Papa to do this?” Grace angrily asked
“No, the decision was entirely Dad’s and not mine” Peace replied
“But you are the only person who has been perambulating with this issue of Nana trying to harm me, and now you have gotten Dad involved too. How many time will I tell you to stop meddling in my affairs? If Nana is trying to harm me, don’t you think I would have known already?”
Grace’s voice was sounding so loudly, attracting her father who was sitting outside.
He then stormed on them asking what was happening.
“Papa, tell Peace to stop accusing Nana falsely, that girl has not….”
“Grace!” Her father cut in: “Why are you vibrating like this towards your own sister? She was not the one who made the decision.”
“But Papa, why Nana? That girl has been so enthusiastic about helping me with the wedding preparations. She will feel bad if I travel without telling her where I was going. And besides, I would also want her to come with me, please Papa”
“But Grace, Nana won’t keep it a secret, hope you know the reason we are doing this?”
“Yes I know, so that what happened in the morning won’t repeat again. But I see no reason why you people are worrying yourself over it, It could be an allergic reaction, but in order to keep your minds at rest, I will go to anywhere you want me to go, but will be with Nana. You don’t have to worry about anything, I will make her promise me to be discrete about it and not tell a soul. Not even her own mother, please Dad. I am assuring you, I will be fine, nothing will happen to me again.”
“I totally agree with what Grace said, she should tell Nana about it, I am sure she won’t object following her.” Patience said
“Alright, no problem, accepted” the father said
“Papa? Have you forgotten that Nana is the main person I’m trying to protect her from?” Peace cut in
“Peace my daughter, I have my reasons Ok. If she is actually the person behind it, it will be an avenue to nab her. And I’m certain that, she won’t try anything stupid, if actually she is guilty, because any negative step now will expose her.”
“Hmm, OK oo, I just hope it won’t be too late by then” Peace feared
“So Grace, do whatever you wish, you can inform her, but I want you to leave this house tomorrow” her father said
“Alright Papa, I will inform Nana right away” Grace said and left the room.
Peace who wasn’t happy about telling Nana turned to her father and asked: “Papa, are you sure about this?”
“Absolutely, Nana will know that she will be held responsible for anything that happens to Grace over there, and therefore she won’t try anything stupid, trust me.”
And Peace hummed..
When they were discussing the issue, they never knew that Nana was eavesdropping to what they were saying.
She laughed to her self and began taunting them
“Look at this people, so they want to set a trap for me? It’s a good thing that we are not using diabolical means this time, otherwise our plans would have failed again. Enaku thank you so much for bringing up that wonderful idea… It’s like Grace is coming now, let me pretend like somebody who is feeling sleepy”
“Nana, have you slept?” Grace asked, touching her
“Ow Grace, you are here, are you guys through?” Nana asked, looking sleepy
“Nana, something came up”
“And what is that?”
“My father said that I should leave this house tomorrow to where my enemies won’t see and harm me again. You know because of what happened in the morning, he doesn’t want to give chances for such mysterious sickness to happen again”
“Grace, I think your father is absolutely right. You shouldn’t stay here until everything is over. Your sickness got us all scared in the morning. We never knew you will survive it so easily, so in order to be on the safe side, you should leave tomorrow morning and you shouldn’t tell anybody about it”
“Do you also believe that somebody might have a hand in what happened?”
“No, it’s not what implying, but prevention is better than cure you know. And as for me, don’t worry about me, I will stay here and be taking care of other things.”
“Nana, don’t tell me you are not coming with me?” Grace requested
“Are you practically asking me to come with you?”
“Yes off course, because I would need your help and company greatly.”
“With all pleasure, Grace, I will travel along with you” Nana said, hiding all her true feelings, and giving Grace the notion that she was with her.
The next day, Grace set out to her maternal village in the company of Nana.
Nana also saw it as a good avenue to carry out the task she had at hand without Peace keeping a close watch on her.
Enaku succeeded in getting a guy who will be taking care of the task.
Their plan was to abduct Grace, drug her, strip her, while the man will be on her, making it look as if they were having sxc.
Nana couldn’t wait for it to happen because she knew that it will shake the whole village.
“And yes, Oluba will realise that she is not the best after all.” She said and began laughing silently to herself.
On the first day, her job was to use Grace’s phone to send a message to the man.
They did it in such a way that whenever she sends the message, the man will reply immediately and then Nana will delete the both messages, the sent and received ones, while the man saved the ones in his own phone as an evidence that Grace was truly his girlfriend, and that they have been meeting secretly and sleeping together.
Four days later, things were going smoothly for them and Grace never got a wind of the dangerous plans that going on against her.
Nana took control of her phone each time she entered the bathroom or was cooking in the kitchen.
On the morning of the day they scheduled for Grace to be abducted, Peace who was no longer comfortable decided to call Oluba without her father’s consent and informed him all that were happening
Oluba was so pleased that Peace informed him about it.
“Peace, you don’t know what this piece of information you gave means. But how could your sister trust her so easily? When an enemy suddenly becomes nice, then know that he is targeting to strike. Don’t worry Peace, I know what to do now.” Oluba assured
“But Brother Oluba, please don’t tell anybody about this, I don’t want my people to get mad at me”
“Don’t worry Peace, you have my word” Oluba promised, ending the call, and then came up with a quick plan to meet with Grace to open her eyes on what was happening.
“That explains everything. So it have been them all along, both the letter, the messenger, everything. But Grace, how could she trust Nana so easily, what kind of a person does that?” He rhetoric
“I think I should visit Grace to know how she is doing” Peace thought it to herself, and sneaked out without telling her mother, because she knew she won’t approve the idea.
When she got there, Grace and Nana had already left.
“Where could they be?” Peace wondered and asked the person saw there.
“They just left now to get something, they will soon be back” the person replied
“But did she tell you were she was going?’ Peace asked
“No my daughter, but they said they will be back soon”
Peace wasn’t comfortable with the response. She felt herself troubled.
“If I call Grace now, she won’t listen or tell me anything, what if Nana is trying to harm her again? I think I should call Oluba, he is the only one to control her.” Peace said, bringing out her phone to call Oluba
When Oluba answered, he told her that he was already close to the town.
“OK sir, please be coming. I’m feeling unease here, I am having the feeling that Nana is about doing something crazy again.” Peace feared.
“Relax, nothing will happen now OK. It’s time to open Grace’s eyes to see the truth” Oluba assured
The man Nana and Enaku paid to do the job had already stationed at the position with his men waiting for them to close in so that they will abduct Grace.
But before Grace and Nana could reach that particular spot, Oluba called her cellphone.
“Oluba is calling me” Grace said, answering the call
“Grace where are you?” Oluba asked
“I am with Na…….” She couldn’t finish answering the question when Oluba cut in
“Grace, I want you to run straight home now, I am at your mother’s place waiting for you, it’s an emergency” Oluba said, hanging up, he knew that mentioning Emergency will get Grace scared, and she will run straight home.
“Emergency? Oh my God! Tell me, what happened? Hello? Hello? Its like he hung up” Grace said, wondering what could be happening at home.
“Nana, let’s go back home, there is an emergency and Oluba is also there” Grace said, looking worried, heading back home
“But Grace, we are almost at the place we are going to buy the stuff” Nana requested
“Nana, didn’t you hear me? There is an emergency” Grace said, walking fast as her heart kept beating fast.
“Hmm, what could be this emergency? Anyway, the plan can wait, if not today then tomorrow.. And we were almost close, I don’t know why this emergency had to occur now” Nana said in her heart, walking along with Nana.
When Grace reached the house, Oluba asked her to get into the car. And she did.
He then drove her to a particular spot, trying to open her eyes that Nana and her mother had been playing her.
But Grace was shocked to the bones when Oluba showed her the letter he received. She quickly recognized the hand writing.
“Wait a minute! This is Nana’s handwriting, I am so certain of it, it’s her hand writing… Oh my God! What is going on? Could it be that Nana has not really changed like she claimed?”
To be continued
The author of Dare the Truth is Ngozi Lovelyn O.
Warning: No part of this work should be used, copied, reproduce, redistribute either electronically or manually without prior permission from the author.
Copyright- ngozilovelyn.com
Contact- Xperiawithngozilove@gmail.com
