The House Wife
Episode 4
“I pray I will see Nancy and I pray she has not aborted the baby.” Ali said to himself. He was driving on the expressway that led to the hotel where he first met Nancy. He reached for the car music player and slotted in a CD which contains a mixture of reggae music. The first song that played was ‘One Love’ by Bob Marley, but he changed it and selected ‘I Got You Babe’ by Lucky Dube. He wound the glasses of the car and increase the volume of the song to the highest level.
“I have gone around the world, trying to find a woman. A woman that will understand me.” The song goes in Dube’s sweet voice. Ali sang along with Lucky Dube, trying to internalize the meaning of the song and hoping that he would find Nancy who he believes understands his desires.
After driving for about 15 minutes, he finally arrived at the posh hotel. He went straight to the bar hoping to find Nancy there.
“She no longer works here.” A new lady who looked dark in complexion tells Ali. She looks uninterested in the conversation because as she talked to Ali, she was busy serving her customers with beer and wine. Sounds of clinging bottles and glasses filled the air.
“Please, do you know where she is now? Did she get another job? Do you have her number? Do you know where she works now? Please, I need to see her urgently. It’s a matter of life and death.” Ali tells the new waitress pleadingly. The lady looked at him from head to toe and kept mute. Clearly, she was not going to talk to Ali, but from the way she was behaving, Ali knew she has vital information that could lead him to Nancy. It was at that moment he knew he was a fool to have deleted Nancy’s number. Now, he has to beg to get it back from this new waitress who was very unfriendly.
“Do you have Martell?” Ali asked.
“Yes! The one I have is even chilled. Should I bring it?” The waitress asked.
“Let me have two bottles.” Ali said. He brought out a bundle of money and then gave it to the lady without counting.
“Take the cost of two bottles of Martell and keep the change.” Ali said. That very moment, the waitress brought out a pen and paper and then wrote Nancy’s phone number and address on it. She handed the paper to Ali with a beautiful smile dancing on her face. Ali’s trick worked. He collected the paper and went back to his car with the speed of light. He turned on the ignition and sped off in search of the address on the paper.
Ali is a very wise man. He knew that if he calls the phone number, Nancy will not answer him, so he made up his mind to look for the address instead.
“Since the birds have learned to fly without perching, I the hunter have also learned to shoot my shot without missing.” Ali said to himself as he mounted the neat tarred road leading to the address on the paper given to him. He tapped the CD player in his car again and Lucky Dube’s voice went up again.
“I have gone around the world, trying to find a woman. A woman that will understand me.” The song goes and Ali sang along, shaking his head in enjoyment and anticipation, hoping to find Nancy and hoping that she would understand the explanation he would give.
Ali slowed down his car when he got to the street described on the paper. He packed at the front of the shopping mall where Nancy is said to be located and then jumped out of his car like a soldier arriving at a war front. He felt as if he was going to fight a war because he would have to do a lot of explanations and begging if Nancy would accept him back.
When he came down from his car and lifted up his face, he saw an inscription that reads “Nancy Fashion House.” It was boldly written in colorful letters of blue red and white, printed on a small billboard that was placed in front of the very first shop at the shopping mall.
“Did she open a shop? Is she a tailor?” Ali asked himself. He took a few giant steps and he was in the front of the shop.
“What are you doing here? What are you doing in my shop?” Nancy asked Ali as soon as she set her eyes on him. She was sitting on one of the electric sewing machines in the shop. There were four girls that looked like teenagers in the shop. They are Nancy’s apprentices.
Before she came to the city, Nancy had learned fashion designing but she could not open her own shop because she had no money. She was working at the hotel to raise money to start her shop. She got pregnant for Ali and he gave her N1 million to abort it. Instead of using the money for the abortion as instructed, she went straight and used it to open her tailoring shop. It was a very wise decision because after then, she never lacked money again.
“At least, you should offer me a sit first. Even someone sentenced to death deserves to be given food. A chicken that will be killed on Christmas day is given food the night before its death. Give me sit before you kill me with questions.” Ali spoke in parables. He was trying to use it to lower Nancy’s temper, but it did not work. Nancy asked the four teenage girls to leave the shop so as to give her and Ali some privacy. They obeyed her. When they left, Nancy stood up from her tailoring machine and the landed Ali a very hot slap.
“My God, I have suffered in this life. Everywhere I go to, women will be p******g my face with slap. I go to my wife, she will slap me, I go to side chick, I get slapped too. Where else should I run to?” Ali said in his heart. He used his left hand to touch his face to sooth the slap spot.
“Your hand is very painful. Do you have bitter leaf in your hand? Are you a trained soldier, because only a soldier slaps this way.” Ali asked Nancy. The joke he cracked got Nancy and she laughed a little, and then Ali knew he was making progress. He saw that Nancy’s pregnancy had become big and then he was happy that the abortion did not happen.
“You tricked me and got me pregnant and then told me you have a wife. And then told me to abort the baby. Wicked man.” Nancy said. She was shouting angrily. Ali knelt down and began to beg her.
“Forgive me for I knew not what I was doing. I have wronged you. What I did was totally wrong. I should have let you know that I’m married before touching you. But you see, the truth is that my heart is with you. I didn’t truly forget about you. I have realized how much I need you in my life and how much I need this baby. The truth is that I want to marry you. I want us to live together in one house because you are the one who has ever made me happy.” Ali said. He put his right hand in his pocket and produced an engagement ring.
“What about your wife?” Nancy asked.
“No law says I cannot marry two wives. I’m capable of taking good care of the two of you. Just say yes and leave the rest to me. I will handle everything.” Ali said. Deep down her heart, Nancy loves Ali and she has never forgotten about him. Just that she was scared of reaching out to him after he disappeared because he is married. After a long silence, she stretched her left hand and accepted the ring. She has not figured everything out yet, but she knew she had to do that for her unborn child. Nancy also knelt down and they hugged each other tightly and passionately.
That day, Ali did not go back to his wife, Kassandra. He went to Nancy’s house and passed the light in pure bliss.
“How are you going to convince your wife to accept me as a second wife?” Nancy asked that night after Ali finished making love to her.
“Don’t worry, I have a game plan.” Ali said as they both slept off with Nancy on his chest.
But Ali knew that trouble is coming.
Watch out for episode 5
