As Aisha strolled home with her laptop bag in hand, she couldn’t help but smile remembering what she had just done like an hour ago. Just after she hung up, she had sent images of her handwork to the respective sources and the gossip trolls did not disappoint as usual. Like a pack of hungry wolves, they had readily uploaded the pictures and screenshots of the mails herself and Lara had exchanged years back. She wanted to scream with glee. Nothing satisfied her more at this moment. Revenge felt sweet. Too sweet in fact. Getting to serve her enemy a cold dish without mercy.
She had already made plans to travel out as soon as possible. She knew the Kitans and how they had spies around. If she wanted to be alive to witness the further downfall of Lara then she might need to do that outside the country.
Her mind drifted to Soji and she allowed herself fantasize him coming to beg her. His ego would not allow him for sure, but she couldn’t help but imagine how he would feel with everything happening now. He was a fool, a big fool to allow Lara manipulate him, to coax him into killing a child that she would have gladly carried for him. Well, she did well in manipulating people so she wasn’t surprised.
She wasn’t going to be the first or last baby mama of a guy and Lara had taken it personal and gone too far. Just because she didn’t want her name and that of her fiance to be soiled.
Talk about starting a fire. She would suddenly wish she had borne Soji’s baby afterall.
It was 11a.m by the time she got home and it was when she saw her sister Mariam sitting on the chair with phone in hand while tapping her legs on the ground that she stopped.
Halima looked up when she stepped in.
“You did it didn’t you…, even when I told you there are other ways we could go about this thing?”
She ignored her dropping her bag and heading for her room but not before the girl jerked her to face her.
“Don’t you dare walk out on me. What did I tell you about all of these? Do you know what you’ve just done? I get the part of her fiance, but to bring out a past childhood with her father involved? You don’t know what you’re dealing with.”
“That girl took from me and it’s my turn to take from her. I can’t even believe you’re here defending her.”
Halima grimaced. “You’ve lost your mind. If you think for one second I’m defending her. Was I not the one that introduced you to the guy that took the pictures and sent in the girl? You told me about Lara’s past and I told you that those kind of things shouldn’t be said outside. We can use it to blackmail her but not tell the whole world?”
“We blackmail her for what? Who needs her stupid money? Blackmail is for the weak. It’s something like this that she deserves.”
“You slept with her fiance Aisha, the girl went crazy and payback should have stopped with her fiance. That was the only thing causing this strife between you two and you chose to take it far.”
“And you think I care?” She hissed. “I stopped caring ever since I realized the kind of girl she is. Someone undeserving of mercy. When she took my baby, she should have thought of those filthy secrets she shared with me. You don’t bite the hands that fed you, you nuture it and play wisely. Next time, she would choose her battles wisely and not think everybody is ready to bow at her throne all because she has everything and everyone at her beck and call.”
“But it was Soji who deceived you. If I do remember clearly, he was the one who drugged you and carried you away for the abortion.”
A sinister smile crawled up Aisha’s face. “Then you don’t know Lara like I do. I know what she’s capable of. We were friends for more than 10 years. She has a heart of stone and will go far to do anything she wants. She is the queen of manipulation.”
Halima shook her head obviously wondering how her sister had turned to a mad woman overnight. Letting her go, she shrugged. “We better get ready to leave before they find our dead bodies here. Our flight leaves by 4 and we’re still here.”
Aisha nodded.
Her sister looked into her eyes then. “But are you alright with all of these? Does this give you the closure you want, what you really seek from all of this? There’s no point if after everything and you don’t have peace within yourself. I’d like to make sure you settle fine in whatever new life you’re going to start anytime anywhere.”
She forced a smile. “I’ve never been better.”
“Good, I’m happy if you’re happy.” She pulled her close to herself and released her, leaving for her room. “We should leave this house by 12 so please tidy up and look unrecognizable as much as you can.”
“Sure.”
Aisha watched her sister leave and she closed her eyes inhaling deeply. She had felt so elated and happy when she dropped the bombshell this morning. She had felt like a master planner. But Halima asking her that question about peace and closure made her do a double-take and she suddenly realized that out of everything she currently felt, peace wasn’t one of them.
“I’ll survive.” She told herself before heading to the room to join her sister.
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Dapo stared at his sister and his heart constricted watching her on the hospital bed as she lay with eyes closed, almost as if she was in a coma. He hadn’t been able to pick any of the calls coming in immediately he heard the news of his sister. He wasn’t the type to give ear to gossip. A friend had sent him a message on whatsapp that morning asking him if what had happened to Lara as a child was true or it was just some false rumor being passed across and he had been upset that one of his friends would believe such.
It was not until Bibi showed him what was trolling online that the air got knocked out of him and something else took place in his heart instead.
This could not be a prank by Lara. Someone had been playing dirty and had dug up something about her.
But physical abuse? His father couldn’t. No, he loved Lara. He couldn’t do such. He understood that the man came across as intimidating most days but he would never hurt his own daughter.
It had to be a rumor. A disgusting rumor by some paedophile or someone who loved to conjure up things and just wanted to soil her name.
He was about to call Lara when a call came through and her secretary was screaming and crying that madam had collapsed in her office.
His heart bled. Oh God no, please let it not be true. Not Lara, not my sister.
He raised a hand to his mouth wondering if he was man enough to hold it in as he stared at her looking so innocent and lifeless. Had she gone through so much and did not have courage to tell him? Or tell on their father? Couldn’t she have told their mother? How long did he hurt her? The gossips had indicated she was 8 years old when it happened. When? Was he still in the states then? Was it when his parents had their first separation? Was it when Lara was all alone in the house with no mother to look after her or care for her? Was it when she was still in primary school and her relationship with IK had gotten strained. At the time when he came home for the holidays, just before IK left, he’d teasingly mentioned how Lara seemed to have grown distant and he was wondering if she just lost interest in him or maybe puberty came upon her early and it was natural for her to withdraw.
He had shrugged it off wondering if IK liked his sister so much he noticed even the slightest things he wouldn’t have noticed at the time.
His sister had looked fine. When he came home she always looked fine. Maybe because he had been selfish back then as well. He cared nothing but for himself. He probably was one person they should be blaming in all of this.
If he was very sensitive, if he had been very sensitive, he should have known what was going on. He should have asked and done everything within his power to ensure his sister was safe.
But no, he’d been chasing other girls at the time while his sister got hurt by their father. For how long he couldn’t say, but it was enough to marr her and mould her into the woman she had become today.
The door opened slightly and he turned to see his mother stroll in with swollen eyes. Even with the way she tried to look beautiful, her eyes betrayed her making it obvious she’d been crying. His mind briefly flashed to the conversation he’d had with them on Saturday and he shook his head.
What kind of father was his father? What kind of husband was he to their mother. He knew the man had been unfair to their mother in the past but this? Not this
Not her daughter.
Not his sister.
Not a girl who trusted him enough to believe he loved her and allowed him feed his inner pervert.
Was that why she sought comfort in a guy like Soji? Someone not good enough for her. And other men as well. Men like their family doctor and other men in their father’s circle. Married men. How would they even look at his sister? And their wives, they would hate her and call her names.
Would she survive it?
Something had to be done. He had to see to it that her name was cleared out of this mess. And whoever had done this to her…, there was only one way to find out.
“Why don’t you grab a cup of coffee and I’ll stay with her for now.”
He shook his head. “I want her to see me when she wakes. She has to know I’ll be here for her no matter what happens or happened to her.”
She rubbed his back soothingly. “I’ll be here for her. Besides, Nimi and IK are here to see you.”
He sighed rubbing his head. “You called them?”
“They said they had been trying to reach you but you wouldn’t pick their call or answer their text. I had to give them the hospital address so they don’t worry more than they ought to.”
He kept staring at his sister for a while before rising from the chair. Leaning close to plant a kiss on her forehead, he caressed her cheeks mumbling softly to her. “I love you baby girl and if you can hear me, just know that I’ll always love you, no matter what and I’ll never leave you.”
He turned and embraced his mother, holding back the tears. He shouldn’t be the one crying. She should while he comforted her.
“Are you alright?” He asked pulling her close to himself.
“Of course sweetheart.” She assured though he was sure her heart was breaking into pieces. If there was anything he was sure of, it was that his mother was a strong woman, like she was built to absorb anything his father threw at her.
“I love you, and I want you to know that when Lara gets better, you guys can move in with me. Infact I insist.”
She could only smile.
“When the time comes, we will figure it out okay? Just go and see your friends for now.”
He nodded and left the room. Immediately he stepped out, he saw IK and Nimi heading towards him.
IK was the one to reach him first. The two embraced briefly without saying anything while Nimi watched quietly.
It was when he reached for her he broke into tears and all she could do was comfort him while he lingered in her arms.
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“I feel bad that I yelled at her just before all of this happened to her.” Dapo mumbled when Nimi came to settle beside him handling him a cup of coffee.
“You shouldn’t beat yourself over it.” She tried to console him. When she’d heard the gossip, she had dismissed it initially as one of those gossip or rumors that flew about. Tolani had even been the one to show it to her and she had thought the girl was joking or someone went too far trying to make fame out of it. But seeing this now, she knew it was true.
Her heart suddenly went out to Lara. Was that why the girl hated her so much? Because her father had hurt her in the past? But who would do that to her, who would be so ruthless and go so far as to dig up dirt and watch her hurt?
Could it be a vengeful friend or a jealous lover?
This was just cruel. No love at all, no mercy. She knew she’d had a taste of Lara Kitan herself but she would never imagine doing something this cruel to her. It wasn’t something of mockery but shame and humiliation. Her father had used her when he should have protected her. As for Nimi, her father was the opposite of Mr Kitan. Her father had protected her like a Hawk protected it’s own. He had shielded her and moulded her life.
Lara’s father had not done the same.
“I should have listened to you when you tried to calm me down about her whole behavior to you. She was just hurting, why couldn’t I see it?”
Nimi’s mind suddenly flashed back to that moment Lara had looked at her father when he sent her upstairs. There was a flash of hurt and betrayal in the girl’s eyes and she had wondered why the girl had looked at her father that way.
She remembered Mr Kitan’s words.
“I’ve never seen a woman that makes my daughter sound like a jealous lover. It makes me wonder if you have something that she doesn’t.”
A cold shiver ran through her when she remembered Chief Kitan’s words. Some had exaggerated that Chief was an occult man and went as far as saying he had probably used the girl’s virginity to boost his wealth.
She looked at her boyfriend. He was broken enough and she had to focus on him and how to help them all. It was probably why God had sent her to Lara in the first place.
The blood and the girl she’d seen in her dream the first day she came into their lives.
“I’ll resume at the office and help out with somethings.” She said after much contemplation. God had told her not to leave in the first place. So she felt this was him confirming it again.
Dapo looked at her and his eyes skipped to her lips before going to her eyes. “Thank you.”
She nodded.
“Are you sure it’s fine by you because I could get someone…”
She shook her head. “We talked about this in the past. God who wanted me to stay with her knew this was coming. I’m familiar with some of the things and since I’m her PA, I can take the calls and answer the important ones. Help to nip the whole incident in the bud till it finally dies down. She will need you to be around her often and I understand.”
He remained quiet and managed a smile. “What can I do without you?”
She expected to feel happy and satisfied but something troubled her and she looked at him then. Dapo had just made a simple statement of him not being able to do without her.
Something told her she would find out if his words were true. Soon enough.
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Lara blinked and was greeted by the white ceiling staring back at her. She tried to adjust to where she was and why she was here in the first place. Her head ached and her throat felt so parched, even her eyelids felt heavy and her brain tried to recollect what had happened for her to feel this way.
Then she remembered.
All her emotions came in all at once like a wave crashing at sea and she broke when she realized no one was in the room with her. Feelings of pain, anger, humiliation and bitterness engulfed her and the tears strolled down her cheeks. She couldn’t think straight, didn’t know what to think right now, didn’t even know how to organize her thoughts. Was she running mad? Was this what it meant to be psychotic? A wire in her head seemed to have snapped somewhere and she just felt paralysed and helpless. Her heart had broken into shreds and Aisha had done a good job of kicking the pieces far from her so she would have a hard time locating them and mending them back together.
Aisha was the devil in the blue dress she should have run from. She had given her a tool and all the girl did was sharpen it and stab her with it from behind.
How foolish she had been. Where would she start from? Was life worth anything anymore?
And her father…, how would he feel that she had betrayed him by telling someone their secret. She had vowed not to tell anyone about it. She had kept that part of her life in one box where no one could ever dare open it. Aisha had been close enough to make her share that box with her. She had told the girl everything because she thought the girl was her friend and she so desperately wanted to share that part of herself with someone who cared enough to love her as a friend.
Her father had called it love but it hurt so much. Aisha hadn’t told her it was incest then. She had just listened to her and told her she would be fine.
She didn’t want someone to tell her what it was.
She knew.
She had just lived in denial for years keeping that part of her life safely tucked somewhere while trying to find comfort in the arms of those who told her she was beautiful and couldn’t wait to get enough of her. Nights when her fiance was away she could only find love in their arms.
They’d told her they loved her. Even with their wives and children at home, they called her name when she was with them. They were happy when she gave them what they needed. Even if it was just for a few minutes, she felt happy when they told her they couldn’t do without her in their lives.
Soji would know everything now. He would know she was even worse than he was and he would hate her. He would blame her for coaxing him into aborting his baby. He would look for a way to pay her back as well. Just like Aisha.
They would want their pound of flesh from her.
And her friends…, she wondered if anyone of them were here to see her. She was scared because deep down she knew the truth.
Her name which she’d tried so hard to keep clean was going to be dragged in the mud by the lip of everyone who got the chance to see all she had done.
What about Dapo? And her mum? What about IK? Would they be able to stand her? Would they even want to help her now that they knew the kind of girl she was.
Just then, someone came in and she turned.
“Sweetheart…, oh praise God she’s awake.”
She tried to sit up when her brother came in followed by her mother. Looking at their faces, she couldn’t read their expression and so she wondered what next.
The tears flowed again and she choked on her sobs “I-I don’t know what to do…, I’m sorry.”
“Shh…, baby, everything is going to be alright. You’ll be alright and I’m not going to let anything happen to you.” Dapo consoled running to hug his sister while she pulled him close to herself.
“I’m sorry Dapo. I didn’t mean to…”
“It’s okay baby, it’s okay. You’re safe with me. You didn’t do anything wrong. Stop blaming yourself.”
“I thought you would hate me…”
“And why would you think that?” He released her to look into her eyes while placing her hair behind her ears.
“Everything you heard about me, what I did..”
“But it’s not your fault.” He consoled. “I should have been there for you, I should be the one blaming myself. You were only a child. There was nothing you could have done.”
She nodded suddenly enjoying and giving in to the fact that her brother was willing to take the blame for her and seemed remorseful about her past. She wished everyone would be this way. Take some form of blame for everything she did while she remained untouched and unscarred in all of this.
Her mother came close to her leaning close to embrace her and kiss her. “My poor baby, what you must have gone through.”
“You’re moving in with me Lara. Mum and I talked about it and we agreed it would be safer for you there. IK will be around as well. Nimi is back as your PA and she would help you out in all ways necessary while I would work on ensuring the news remain as a rumor. I’ll work on the source..”
“It was Aisha.” She spoke almost immediately. “Aisha was the one I told everything to because I trusted her. She was my bestfriend and I can’t imagine why she would hurt me so much.”
Dapo nodded rubbing her hands affectionately. “I’ll talk with a few people and see what we can do about retrieving some of these things. Let Aisha be. Whatever a man sows, he will reap. I’m just glad that you came out alive from this.”
Lara wanted to protest but remained quiet. Her brother would take the ‘christian’ route and not track down Aisha wherever she may be. If it was her father, he would have looked for a way to ensure she was paid back in due season.
“You said Nimi is back to help me out?”
Dapo nodded with a smile on his face. “She said she was going to help out. She was really worried about you as well. She’s going to help with your calls and everything else. IK is also here.”
“IK is here?”
Not Soji
Not Mabel, Angel, Maxine or any of her friends.
“Yea” He hugged her again. “Can you see that you still have certain people in your life that love you? I want you to always remember that. And about your past, if you don’t want to talk about it, we won’t okay sweetheart?”
She nodded.
“But always remember that you can tell us whenever you’re ready and if it’s alright with you.” Her mother chiped in looking into her face worriedly. It was obvious her mother wanted to know how bad she’d been hurt.
“What about Daddy…, is he here?”
Mother and son glanced at each other. “No love, you don’t have to be scared. He’s not here.”
Little did they know…
She wasn’t scared of him. She just wanted to be sure she remained in his good books.
“I don’t think I’ll like to talk about it. The experience can be quite traumatizing when I remember.”
“Then you don’t have to.” Dapo assured her looking at their mother. “Mum, I know this can be quite hard for you because of Dad but please try and understand that Lara can’t share anything.”
“Of course. I apologize if I came across as being too pushy. I was just worried and thought you wanted to share something with us. If your Dad needs to be prosecuted…”
Lara shook her head adamant this time. “I’ll be alright.”
“As long as I’m here, no one’s going to lay one finger on you.” Her brother assured her again.
“Thank you. I don’t know what I would have done without you and mum in my life.”
And they embraced her again.
Much love. xo!
Original story by ITUNU TAIWO owner of http://myglowingscenes.com
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