In this episode, we’ll be wrapping up this love story series. It’s been 13 episodes of thrill and suspense. We’ve witnessed guile, heartache and misfortune in the lives of the characters. But we’ve also seen them experience joy, love, faith and growth.
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Episode 13 details Raphael’s conversion experience and Sharon’s call to her parents to inform them of her imminent visit with him. Her parents’ response when they hear about the baby, Ikenna, is hilarious or ridiculous depending on the angle you view it from.
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Anyway, now the stage is almost set for their trip. Their love is strong but money is tight. And fear of trouble from the Igwe family persists. So what happens as we draw the curtain on this entrancing tale? Where shall we leave this pretty and determined pair that we’ve grown to love?
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If you’re just coming on board, fill a mug with your favourite beverage, make yourself comfortable and read the previous episodes before this to get the full exciting experience. They are located in the Category, Short Stories. You are blessed in Jesus’ name.

LOOKING UNTO GOD

Clara picked my call even before it rang. I wondered if she habitually had her phone in her hand but then what else would you expect from the grapevine queen? According to her, Kodili was attacked outside a nightclub where he was partying in the wee hours of that morning (Sunday).
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“Oh my God, is he alright?”
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“He couldn’t be better. He should be answering questions from St. Peter at the pearly gates about now.”*
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“No! But are you sure? If he was attacked just this morning …”
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“I was informed by a reliable source. He was shot in the face. And I can prove it to you if we meet. I’d have sent you the pix online but people’s social media accounts are getting hacked and once your stuff gets out like that, it can be used against you. I don’t want police trouble at all.
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“Neither do I! Please don’t bother.”
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“If you ask me, I’ll say that family is cursed. Three corpses in the mortuary at the same time.”
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“You mean two – the MD …”
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“I said three. Sorry, you had no way of knowing. The Madam slumped and died when she heard about Kodili.”
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“No, no, no! That poor woman!”
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“Hey, are we talking about the same woman here? Mrs Igwe was anything but poor!” I thought Clara had misunderstood me.
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“It’s just a manner of speaking, Clara!”
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“I got you, girl! Where’s your sense of humour?”
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I was stupefied. Had Clara been drinking or did she actually find it appropriate to crack jokes at a time like this?
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“With all that money,” she continued, “you’d think they would be able to control her blood pressure. She used to have fainting spells but this time around, she never came to.”
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“Poor, poor lady!”
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I was overwhelmed with sorrow at the sad news.
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“You’re not crying, are you? Abeg, knack me gist. So you want to leave us in the Singles’ Club, eh? Lucky you! All the men I know are useless. So for now, I’m still swinging. When is the big day?”
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“Sorry, how do you know this?”
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“How do you think I know? I’m not h#mping your guy or anything like that. He did ask someone where he could get a nice-looking ring on a low budget.”
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“I see. We haven’t fixed the date yet.”
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“Don’t forget me in the aso ebi* oh! Have you chosen the colours for the …?”
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I cut the call. I knew it was rude but I couldn’t bear to listen to Clara anymore. She was so cold-blooded. Talking about death with relish and then her swinging single trash. She was probably going to lecture me on colours for the day and all I needed to do to make the occasion the talk of the town like a high-class Lagos chick, which I am not.
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After the call, I began to weep over Madam. Although we hadn’t been close, I felt she didn’t deserve to die like that. I had been wary of her, feeling she might have been thinking the worst of me (that is, presuming I had an immoral relationship with her husband) but she was always cordial to me. And when she cried about the caterers’ lateness that practically ruined the MD’s last birthday party, I saw her humanity and vulnerability.
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Her husband was very wealthy but she wasn’t snotty. He kept her in great comfort, buying whatever she asked for. Perhaps, that was why she overlooked his numerous sexual indiscretions. But was it a fair exchange? Is it ever a fair exchange? Does a gold watch, diamond earrings or a car compensate for sleeping in a cold bed while one’s husband warms himself in another woman’s embrace? Does it compensate for the betrayal and rejection one must feel from such an experience?
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And the things that befell her in the past five weeks! The death of her husband, the unbridled greed and ruthlessness of her first son, the murder of her second son – they were just too much. No one should go through such horror in such a short time. I wondered if her daughter had heard of the latest tragedies and how she must be feeling if she had.
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As I was empathising with the girl I didn’t know personally, Raphael came in. I’d given him a key to slip in without knocking and perhaps waking Ikenna up anyday. He had already heard the bad news. A staff of the company had called to warn him to be careful after he heard Kodili had been murdered.

We should have been panicking seeing that Evil had unsheathed its claws, looking for who to tear to pieces. Strangely, we weren’t. Then another staff from the Igwes’ home town called to say it was a vengeance hit. He explained that in desperation, Kodili had hired some thugs to rough up Chukwuma in a bid to force him to share their father’s wealth more equitably.
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This happened in the presence of a committee from their kindred meeting in Lagos whom their mother had invited to mediate in the matter and sue for peace. Chukwuma then swore that Kodili was “a dead man” and they believe he ordered a hit on him. But will he be brought to book? Your guess is as good as mine,
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We were more convinced then that Chukwuma had got what he wanted. He had done away with those near him with clear claims to his father’s estate. Although he didn’t directly kill his mother, it was his all-out war with his brother that resulted in her death. At that point, he would not be perturbed by unconfirmed reports of a son, who was after all an illegitmate son, if he had heard them.
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Anger welled up in me as I rose to defend Ikenna in my heart.
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“Ikenna is not illegitimate. In fact, as far as I’m concerned, no child is illegitmate. This one is my son!”
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And I was going to proudly call him so henceforth. With a broad smile on my face, I went to pick him up and tie him on my back as Raphael and I began to pack for our journey to the village. We acknowledged that whether Chukwuma targeted us or not, the world was a dangerous place. But our lives were in God’s hands and we knew that whatever we faced, He would stand by us. We didn’t know what we would do for work. My confidence was not in my savings either (money can disappear just like that) but we would trust God to be our sufficiency.
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And as a first sign of His faithfulness, Raphael received a credit alert from his bank as we were packing. Someone had transferred three hundred thousand Naira into his account. A phone call followed and incredibly it was Chief Adams!
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Raphael had mentioned to Adams the previous day that he would not be available for his Maths lessons with his son for a fortnight because he was going to the east to get married. Adams then requested for his account number to pay in his “widow’s mite”. Some rich widow!
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He said Raphael should use the money to help with the marriage expenses. Even in my part of Igboland where it costs a fortune to take a wife, three hundred grand should go a long way. It was nothing but the Lord’s doing and we gave Him all the glory. I also got a credit alert for sixty-five thousand Naira on my salary account which should help with transportation and some sundry expenses.
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And a voice told me, “In future, don’t forget that it was Raphael’s ‘Father Christmas’ lifestyle that brought in the money he married you with.”
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Duly noted. Lesson learnt.
-The end-
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Postscript:
And now that I’ve come to the end of my story, I’m thinking how ironic that I used Raphael as a bait to get the attention of other guys when all the while it was Raphael that I needed. Well, thank God in the end, it’s Raphael that I got. On Raphael’s part, making him my bait accelerated our relationship and ultimately led to our planning to get married (which was his earnest wish). Yes, it so often happens that what is meant to hurt someone might be the very thing that brings their miracle to them.
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Also, I’ve been wondering if what my erstwhile co-workers called the “outrageous emolument package” I was placed on by my late MD was God’s way of getting him to provide in advance for Ikenna’s care without his really knowing it. Lately, I’ve begun to see that God is in control of everything and everyone, whether they are aware and acknowledge Him or not. In the midst of the seeming chaos and senseless happenings in the world, the Almighty God is behind the scenes pulling the strings to work out His purposes.
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This whole line of reasoning fills me with holy dread. Our God is fearful and majestic. But it also fills me with pride and confidence because my Father in heaven is totally in charge of everything. Therefore, I am secure in Him and so is my family, the one that is and the one I’m about to build.
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This has been sooo long a story. Now I have to say “So long” till I find the time to tell you another tale.
Ⓒ Edith Ugochi Ohaja 2016
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The idea that the dead answer “questions from St. Peter at the pearly gates” is not Bible-based. It’s just a joke.
“Abeg, knack me gist” means tell me a story or the story in Pidgin English.
*aso ebi is a Yoruba term that refers to the cloth for bridesmaids in a traditional marriage
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Clara complained that all the men she knew were useless. Please help me describe the kind of man someone who behaves like her will attract.
What is your reaction to Sharon’s assertion that, “In the midst of the seeming chaos and senseless happenings in the world, the Almighty God is behind the scenes pulling the strings to work out His purposes”?
Finally, I’d really appreciate if you share your impressions about the entire story and what you came away with from it.
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