LAURA

CHAPTER TWO

                                                         
When I got to Innas house that is when she told me that what my stepmother said was true and ever since then she has taken umma to different places for treatment but none of it worked even as she speaks to me now she is in the room tied down so she wouldn’t escape.

I went into the room and I don’t know how but my mum remembered the name she use to call me ‘ummina’ she kept calling my name but nothing else she said made sense.

Two months later there was no improvement in my mothers health, somebody adviced inna to let my mother out of the house maybe she will get better outside.

Inna followed advice and let my mother out of the house and she now walk around as a mad woman in the village.

In this two months not even once has my father talked to me  or ask how I am doing and my stepmother made me do all the house chores.

All of my suitors that were flocking around me all stopped coming. Also all my friends turned their back on me except my best friend Aisha and even her she is not married in our village we only meet if she comes home to our village to visit her parents.

And now after two years nothing have changed in my mothers health. Inna and I try bring her food everyday.

I just noticed I have been sitting on the stone for long my mother has already slept off after finish eating the food I brought for her.

I quickly went to buy what anty zainab sent me buy. In getting home nobody was there which I was not surprised because that’s how anty leaves the house and come back anytime she wishes and sometimes bring back men into the house if Abba is not around.

You know people say old habit die hard anty is said to have been a prostitute before my father married her where she runs a brothel in our village.

The only family member she has is her brother Salisu who everybody call Danger and that name suit him , he is really dangerous he has his goons who follow him around he is a drunkard he smokes some people even say he is an arm robber which I think is true too because he spends money lavishly, and even the police in our village are scared of him he moves around freely carrying weapon.

The good part is he only comes back to our village once in a while maybe after six months spend a week or two with his boys and then he leaves again.

  I always try to avoid him any time he comes to see his sister because I am really scared of him.

I was in the kitchen when I had voices outside so I came out to check and speak of the devil which is not an irony in this case, behold Salisu also called Danger leaning against the kitchen wall outside looking at me.

He kept looking at me for sometime and did not say anything and I couldn’t move away from his gaze because I was so scared.

After almost five minutes I find the courage to speak ‘A...aa....... anty Zainab is not around she went o......ut’ I stutter.

He just smiled and left without a word which is strange.

I went back to the kitchen to continue the cooking I was doing. After I finished cooking it was already time for magrib prayer. I went to my room which was previously my mothers room and now mine, I prayed and ate my food and started reciting the holy Quran which was my only way of finding peace.   

It was around 10pm that I had anty coming into the house and I did not bother to go look because I had another voice belonging to a man which means she has company again and its not surprising because my father is not around today.

I just swithed of the lantern I had on off and made sure I locked my room very well before going to sleep because it happened once when I forgot to lock my room when In my sleep I felt someone touching me , I screamed and that person ran out of my room and I was very sure it was one of anty zainab numerous male visitors.

Ever since then I make sure I lock up very well before going to sleep.

I woke up when I had the calling of the Adhan I went out of my room to perform ablution and came back inside to prayed. It was alredy day break before I finished reciting the Quran.

I came out and started my daily house chores which consist of sweeping the compound, washing anty clothes, washing the dishes we use the previous day and also fetching water.

I was on my way coming from the borehole when I met Aisha brother Isa who told me she came back yesterday. I was very happy and told him ‘ tell her I will come see her later’.

I quickly went home took my bath and left the house before anty zainab woke up which is not anytime soon because she wakes up by noon.

I went to Inna's place of business where she sell masa and miyan taushe by the road side in the morning.

She gave me a knowing smile and said ‘ I am surprised seeing you here I thought you will be on your way to Aisha house’

I laughed  ‘ good morning Inna and I am not that eager, I just want to  meet her and her new born baby that she named after me’ 

Inna laughed and said ‘ don’t worry I was only teasing you and even her she is also very eager to meet you she came to my house yesterday after you left thinking maybe she will meet you there but I told her you already left and she said she could not go over to your place because she don’t like  zainab’ .

  I just sighed and said ‘ yes she told me that is why I told her to always come to your house to look for me and besides I want to help you and take masa to Umma before I go’ 

Inna said ‘don’t worry about Safiya I took her food to her just go’  I just shrugged and sold masa to somebody who came to buy before I replied her ‘ ok then I will help you here then before I go’ . she said ok.

  That was how we continued frying the masa and selling together.  After we finished I helped her pack before leaving for Aishas parents house.

I did salam and entered the house I met Aishas mother sitting on a mat carrying a baby. ‘Mama good morning and is that my name sake you are carrying’  I said while sitting down on the mat next to her.

Mama was a good friend of my mother they grew up together and was like a second mother to me. Mama laughed and said while passing the baby to me ‘ and see who came to my house today , oh I forgot you came to see your friend not me’.

I laughed and said ‘ Mama I have been just very busy you know’. She just sighed and look at me with pity ‘ don’t worry everything will be fine Insha Allah just keep praying’ she said.

Before I could reply her somebody hugged me from the behind and shrieked at the same time. Without been told I know it is my friend Aisha.

Mama was the one one to speak first ‘Aisha when will you ever grow up, even with three children you still act childish. Laura give me that baby before the both of you squish her while hugging’ she said while trying to sound angry but I can see her trying to hide her smile.

I passed baby laura to her before turning to my friend to give her a big hug. After breaking the hug Aisha dragged me to mamas room where we started catching up.

I asked about her other children and she said ‘ thier father did not allow me to bring them he claimed that if I come with them I would not go back early’.

I laughed and said ‘ Yaya Dahiru is not wrong ai when you come back home you don’t like going back early’.

  Aisha married her cousin Yaya Dahiru after we finished our JSS3 five years ago, they had two boys twins Hassan and Hussein who are now 3 years old and she just gave birth to her third baby Laura two months ago. They live in sokoto  where he does his business.

Aisha faked been sad and said ‘so that is what you will say, the last time I came home was eleven months ago and its obvious you did not miss me’ 

I laughed and said ‘ drama queen you know I missed you so much and you better have brought something for me or else you will go back’.

She  laughed it up and we continued chatting about all the things we have missed in each others life for the past eleven months.