When Ndubuisi left the room, Ogechi quickly called her mother and began telling her what was happening. And just like her husband, her mother shunned her for ever thinking that Okwuchi was as bad as she portrayed her.
“I am telling you the truth, mother, she is faking that sickness. She is not actually sick, she made that up to have me back in this village. She wasn’t happy when I was leaving with Ndubuisi yesterday, and now she has used a fake sickness to have me back here. I am worried mother, she is upto something”
“Ogechi my daughter, don’t allow anybody to hear this, how can you think that your mother in-law hates you? Have you forgotten she was the one who chose you for her son? Off course, she can’t hate you. It certainly can’t be her. I think some people are busy trying to mess your marriage, but my God will never allow them to succeed”
“Mother, I am sure of what I’m telling you. You have to believe me. I am having this strange feeling that something is about to happen. I am just scared mother. I have discussed with my husband to allow me come and stay with you, but he misunderstood me. I just can’t stay here. I am scared. Previously, it was food issue, and only God knows what it will be this time”
“Ogechi, what did I hear you say?” Her mother asked
“Which part did you not hear clearly?”
“The part you said “you discussed with your husband”
“Yes mother, I told him that his mother was faking to be sick”
“Oh my goodness! Ogechi, are you alright? How can you tell him something like that? Who is giving you that ridiculous idea that your husband’s mother hates you? Don’t you have a brain at all? How can you nurture the idea that she is bad? And besides, sickness is not something one can joke with, she certainly can’t be lying about her health. All you should be thinking now is how to be taking care of her and not how to run away from your responsibilities. And from the look of things, you will be staying with her for now until she recovers. This is how a good daughter in-law should behave.”
“What? You mean stay with her in this Village? No mother, that can never happen. I did not get married to her, the person I got married to is her son and wherever he stays is where I will live.’
“Ogechi, this is not what I thought you. I thought you to be wiser than this. And don’t tell me that I will be expecting a disappointment from you, because this is certainly not the way I raised you”
“But mother,….”
“No “but” Ogechi… I said no “but”, I want you to go and apologize to your husband right now, tell him that you didn’t mean what you said concerning his mother, did you hear me?”
But Ogechi remained mute, she didn’t reply that statement.
“Are you not the one I’m asking?”
“Mother, to tell you the truth, you are unbelievable. You trusted Okwuchi whom you barely knew, but distrusting your own daughter, whom you gave birth to. I can’t believe this… This shows that I’m all alone in this battle. I am sorry for ever sharing my problems with you. I have to go now….. Goodbye..” She angrily ended the call…
“What? She hang up….. When did Ogechi become this stubborn? I just hope she doesn’t end her marriage with this her stubbornness. I better go over there and plead on her behalf before Ndubuisi harbours any hatred for her… No man would stand his wife hating on his mother. So it’s better I go over there before she wrecks her marriage with this her new found stubbornness. But Ogechi wasn’t this stubborn before, what really happened? Why did she changed all of a sudden? I must go over there……”
But as she was about to get prepared to visit her in-laws, she remembered that she had something to do that evening.
“Oh no! I forgot that I have something important to do this night… Alright then, let me leave it till tomorrow morning. I will storm their place as early as 7am. Oh Lord, please help my daughter, don’t allow her destroy her marriage”…
Ogechi who ended her call with her mother began shedding tears. She was so scared that something was coming her way, but was heart broken that her mother chose to trust Okwuchi instead of her.
“Lord, you have seen it now, it’s only you and I, you are the only one I have left. Please, don’t allow me put to shame. Don’t allow my enemies to triumph over me. I beg you Lord, please protect me”
When Ndubuisi was approaching his mother’s room, he heard her voice.
“Is that not Mama’s voice? Which means she is awake now” He said and began running towards her room, calling “Mama, ..Mama….”
“Okwuchi, that’s Ndubuisi’s voice, he is coming here… Just lie down and pretend to be sleeping” Nkechi quickly said in a low tone…
And Okwuchi laid back, pretending to be in deep sleep.
And just then, Ndubuisi stormed the room…
“Mama, I am here now to take care of you… How are you doing now? Mama, can you hear me? Mama? Mama? Mama?” He called and then looked at Nkechi, having fears in his heart and then continued. “What’s happening to her, why is she not saying anything?” He asked, and then turned to his mother, looking at her lying helplessly like somebody who was about to die
“Ndubuisi, your mother is still sleeping, she hasn’t woken up”
“She hasn’t woken up, but I just heard her voice? I am sure it was her voice that I heard, so what do you mean by she hasn’t woken up?
To be continued…
Yes, please give me 2hrs to get the next episode……. OK…
Mama Why? By Ngozi Lovelyn O.
Warning: No part of this work should be use, reproduce, redistribute either electronically or manually without permission from the author.
Copyright© ngozilovelyn 2017
Contact Ngozi Lovelyn O. @ Xperiawithngozilove@gmail.com.
