OSUWAKE
Episode 12
As I got back to Lagos, I secured another job still as a househelp to one woman who had no child. The woman was very kind to me and was even thinking of adopting me as her child from the look of things then.
While in her house, one of her friend came to the house and liked me. She pleaded on my madam to hand me over to her since she had no child. She had a very little daughter. We were in the same church organisation too.
So, she accepted and handed me over to her.
We went to the hospital and ran series of tests, I was comfirmed very safe and sound to live with them. That was how i started living with another woman due to friendship and closeness of two women.
At first, she took care of me and everything was moving on well. We were church members too. It got to a point, I started falling ill frequently especially when am about seeing my period. But, it never bothered me because am used to severe menstrual cramps.
But, the issue worsened after I finished the monthly call of nature one certain time. It was as if the pain grew teeth, became sharper and was biting painfully.
After some days i was unable to work or do any thing at all in the house. As a result, I was taken to the hospital for check up. They discovered that it was my appendix that got infected. The doctor warned my madam that i may not make it if urgent operation wasn’t conducted immediately to remedy it.
I was so surprised when my madam started displaying attitudes that was not worthy of a believer.
“i don’t know this girl ooh! She was supposed to work for me and take care of my daughter
I’m not to take care of her ooh! I don’t know her ooh! She echoed.
She was saying so many things and the other of my madam was there; the one who handed me over to her. She asked the doctor the costs of the operation and the doctor made an estimation of two hundred and fifty thousand naira(250,000). The estimation further scared my madam, she was screaming that she can not raise such amount of money but she can foot the bills only if she was willing to sacrifice.
My previous madam who handed me over to her pledged to join hands with her to foot the hospital bills. She and her husband donated a hundred thousand naira, the doctor committed a hundred thousand naira too while my present madam wrapped it up with fifty thousand naira.
This was how the bill was shared among them.
I underwent a successful operation although, I lost a lot of blood and was unable to do anything for a while. I wasn’t really strong and so. I remained in the hospital.
Two weeks after my operation, my madam came and pleaded on the doctor to discharge me and let me go home with her. The doctor disagreed with her and advised her to allow me stay in the hospital till I recover fully and safe to resume any serious activity – let the nurses handle me till I get pretty better. She wasn’t really comfortable that I was staying in the hospital and as a result , the doctor now agreed but demanded for two more weeks to make it full one month before being discharged.
She didn’t still agree and wanted me to go home with her that day. The doctor accepted to release me to her since she was missing me that much but on a second thought demanded for just one week, after which i will be free to return home and she agreed.
After one week, i was discharged and returned home to reunite with my madam. At first, she acted well and even cooked for me – the first time she did that. After eating the food, she asked me to abandon the plates that she will wash it herself. We had alot of visitors in our house that day. Our church members visited the house in their large numbers. They brought a lot of gifts for me and i was very happy.
As soon as the visitors left, she charged me to wash the plates and tidy up everywhere. As at then, they have not even removed the ropes. I went and washed the plates and squared up everywhere. In the morning, she will give me one stool to sit down and wash clothes with the wound. I do that regurlarly.
One day, her little daughter was sick. She was on malaria drugs for two days. She has taken the first dose the day earlier and was to finish it the next day which happens to be that day. That same day, we were relocating from our house to another estate still in Lagos and the relocation wasn’t really that easy for me at all due to the stress involved. I was still nursing my wounds as a result of the operation and it made things very difficult for me.
the parking wasn’t easy for all of us in general.
I arranged the baby’s stuffs carefully and kept it one side including her drugs but the mother-in-law altered it and kept it somewhere else. As a result of that alteration, she started looking for her daughter’s drugs. I was in my room battling to take my own medicine after consuming pap because that became my daily meal then as a result of the operation.
“Osuwake! Osuwake! Where is my baby’s drugs”
When I took my own drugs from where it was, I didn’t see the baby’s own and so, I decided to finish mine before searching for that of her daughter’s. I was about swallowing ny drugs before she threw it to the ground.
“So you will be the one to take drugs while my daughter won’t abi”
she yelled at me and started beating me instantly. She used turning stick to give me the beatings of my life and I was still with the ropes as at then. I was unable to sleep that night as a result of the beatings and even went to pharmacy shop in search for drugs because her mother-in-law wasn’t around when all this was happening. I searched for the drugs but any time she comes by, she will hit me or knock me on the head – I cried bitterly and finally found the drugs, I dropped it for her somewhere she will see it.
I went inside my room to cry but she came inside and dragged me out; she started beating me again and that was when one of her little nephew rushed and held the turning stick she was using to molest me. She started struggling with the nephew and that was how I escaped the beating that unfortunate day. That night, she nearly beat me to death. I went inside the bathroom and cried bitterly. I was even unable to sleep that night, I was even supposed to had gone to the hospital in order for them to remove the ropes but haven’t gone there since then.
while in her house, I had a friend. A loyal friend,
her name is Jane. She was very kind and good to me. She normally comes to the house to assist me with household chores whenever my madam was not around. She was very pure in heart and assisted me wholeheartedly.
After the incident of that day, I had serious complications and my wound started bleeding seriously. I bled seriously that my madam became scared. She searched for the remaining diapers she used for her daughter when she was still a toddler and used it in an attempt to stem the blood flow. there was blood stains all over the place. Blood stains designed my bed sheet and legs. Blood and pus were gushing out of my body without a drop of pity!
the next day, I was taking to the hospital for check up and thorough examination was caried out. The doctor couldn’t believe what he saw. He was very angry and frustrated.
“this is the first case in many years, the first operation I did and it got infected to this extent” he continued narrowing down in frustration and anger.
“But wait, did you stress yourself?”
he inquired but I was unable to say anything
my madam broke her silence immediately.
“what will she do nah! I’m the only one in the house, and before I leave th house for the shop, I will cook for her and do other things”
I didn’t counter her or say anything. The doctor instructed that i should be coming to the hospital regurlarly for the wound to heal. They removed the rope – the wound was open and deep. I started going there regurlarly and they were attending to the cut like ordinary wound.
the doctor still wanted to know what transpired that complicated the wound because according to him – the scenario is quite capable of tarnishing his image and thereby scaring away intending patients.
I called my madam and briefed her on what the doctor has said; she quickly charged me to leave that place and return home at once which i did immediately.
At home, i began treating the wound myself and never visited the hospital again untill the wound finally healed.
I stayed with her after the whole saga and managed my life untill I received a message from home that my mum was crtically ill. I haven’t seen her or my siblings for a while and this message had arrived. I felt disturbed, troubled and heartbroken.
I traveled back to my home town in despair to attend to my sick mum.
to be continued..
This particular story I’m writing, is really changing a lot about me. It’s not because I’m the writer but because its highlights the tricks inherent in human nature and moreso, the fact is been written directly from the victim’s point of view. I hope it does so to all of us!
A life story saturated with intrigues, controversies and life struggles.
written by: ©️Emeka Nwobu
stay tuned for more..
