*”STRUCK DOWN”*
*_EPISODE ONE_*
________________________
“Debby you’re not going anywhere by this time of the night o. I’ve warned you several times of the dreams I’ve been having about you for over two weeks now. They’re bad and terrible dreams that I fear would become reality if you don’t stop this thing you call hustling.” Charity said. Deborah paid no attention to her but rather focused on her make-up.
“Are you even listening to me at all?” Charity said frustrated. Just last night, she had had a terrible about Deborah where she saw her in a bad state and being rushed to the hospital. She had tried narrating the dream at her but Debby kept interrupting her with her mocking laughter.
“What do I do to save this girl from the destruction she’s getting herself into?” She asked and immediately she recalled Debby’s mom coming over to their place the other time and dropped her phone number.
“Please take care and watch over Deborah like she’s your own sister. If there’s any problem at all, do not hesitate to call me.” She had told her as at the time she visited.
“Chai, her number isn’t going through. How else do they talk to a lost soul before they’d hear word to see the danger ahead of them and turn from their wicked ways?” Charity thought aloud but Debby cared less.
“I’d be back in the morning. Please make sure you don’t bolt the door, just lock it so I can have access to the apartment early tomorrow when I come back.” Debby said and left.
“God, what is this? When’s this girl ever going to change?” Charity soliloquized with a heavy sigh before turning to her beeping phone.
“Hello Ma.”
“Hello Debby I missed your call few minutes back. I hope there’s no problem?”
“Mama there’s no problem but…..”
“But what my dear, talk to me.”
“Mama it’s Debby, your daughter. Mummy she hasn’t changed. Imagine she just left the house to go meet some man she doesn’t even know anything about.”
“Hmmm….. we’ll keep praying for her, she’d come around soon.” Debby’s mom said, even though she felt broken inside but hadn’t wanted to express it.
“Mummy me I’m tired o. I’m seriously tired. The dreams I have of her these days are becoming scary as the day passes but she doesn’t care. She doesn’t even give me a listening ear when I try narrating them to her.”
“Don’t be tired my daughter. I’ve been having dreams about her too, and have been praying for her. It is well, God is working on something and it would be revealed soon.”
“Hmmm…..okay Mama, I’ve heard you. Let me go now and handle some things before retiring for bed.”
“It’s okay my dear. Please don’t relent in prayers over your friend please, it shall be well soon.” Debby’s mom said as Charity kept quiet. Deep down in her, she no longer sees the need interceding for the soul of someone who doesn’t want to be saved.
“I’ve heard you Mama. Goodnight Ma.”
“Goodnight my dear.” Debby’s mom replied and with that they ended the call for the night.
Charity immediately got to the kitchen to ensure things were in their appropriate places. She warmed the little jollof rice remaining and went round the house to ensure the doors were locked. After that she dressed her bed and knelt down beside it to say a few words of prayer before retiring to sleep. She opened her mouth to pray but sighed instead. She was short of words. She didn’t understand what to pray and how to. Slowly, worry crept in.
“I’ve been having terrible dreams about this girl for over two weeks now and none has come to pass, making me look like a fool and her thinking I just cook funny stories to scare her.” She thought within in worry.
“God, why is it that way? Again, why are you giving her safe journeys and waking her up daily despite her terrible lifestyle?
She makes more money than I do Lord. What she makes from her so-called hustling in two weeks is what I make in three months. God isn’t that cheating? Must the wicked always prosper and have the good things of life?” She said within her and hissed before climbing her bed to sleep.
ππππππ
Deborah walked into what looked like a five-star hotel.
“I was never born to be poor.” She said to herself in smiles before taking her seat at the waiting room.
Few minutes later, a man walked up to her and kissed her from behind.
“Fred stop stop.” She said in giggles. It was obvious she was enjoying his pecks on her neck.
“How are you baby love?” He asked after detaching from her and coming to seat beside her.
“I’m fine. You called me here, is there any customer?”
“Yes, and this one is a big hit I promise you.”
“Hmmm, that sounds cool. So where is he?”
“Room 145. He’s waiting for you already.” He said and she nodded and got on her feet.
“Hey.” He said and pulled her into him.
“I know you’re not comfortable with this but trust me, this phase would be over as soon as we get what we’re looking for. And I promise you, we’d be out of the country by the time we gather more than enough money to do so.” He whispered to her and bent to kiss her before staring at her for a while.
“I believe you.” She said in innocent smiles.
“And I won’t let you down.” He responded and released her. He watched her leave for the reception area till she was out of sight.
“My girl.” He said with a smirk.
ππππ
“He’s expecting you.” The receptionist said to Debby after a brief call to Room 145 to see if she was expecting anyone.
“Okay thank you.” She said as she found her way to the room.
“Yes, come in.” She walked in to meet a man in his early 50s smiling at her like he’s been expecting her.
A part of her didn’t like what she was doing but a greater part of her knew she needed to do what she had to do if she wanted the kind of life she desired.
“Hello Sir.” She said in forced smiles.
“Hello my girl, how are you today?”
“I’m fine Sir.” She said and dropped her bag on the sofa before walking seductively to him.
“So, how do you want my services tonight?”
ππππππ
“Oooh, who’s this now?” Charity asked as she rubbed her sleepy eyes to be fully awake.
She walked towards the door where someone had constantly been knocking on for some time now, forcefully waking her up.
“Babe why did you bolt the door after all my pleadings not to before leaving the house? I’ve been knocking for the past ten minutes for crying out loud.” Debby questioned as she angrily walked into the house.
“I’m sorry, I actually forgot.”
“Are you serious?” Debby turned to look at me and sighed angrily. She walked into the room to change before coming to meet Charity who was already in the kitchen.
“Is there food to eat, please? I’m super hungry.”
“I’m just trying to make something, but there’s jollof rice remaining from last night.”
“Bring am abeg. I’m more than famished.” She said and went over to the pot with a plate and spoon to serve herself. Charity smiled at the way she rushed at the food right there in the kitchen without waiting to get to the dining room, wishing deep down she would come to get to know Christ so her life would be better in the end.
“Food is ready.” Charity said an hour later and Debby got up from where she was to the dining.
Charity watched her eat peacefully and felt it was a perfect time to start a conversation.
“I spoke with your mom last night.” She began and watched to see her reaction.
“Oh okay.” Debby said simply
“She isn’t too happy about your lifestyle but she isn’t giving up on you. She has you in her prayers. I do too.”
“I don’t understand the boring thing you’re saying Charity. I do not need prayers, okay? So please let me eat my food in peace.”
“How can I when I’m scared for you Debby.” Charity said as Debby angrily dropped her spoon.
“I’ve been having terrible dreams about you that frighten me each time I have them and you seem not to be bothered. As if that is not enough, your mother too is beginning to have dreams about you. Danger is near Debby, please change. This hustle of yours will take you nowhere. Please…..”
“Okay that’s enough already please, enough! Listen I do not need prayers and yes, my hustle will take me somewhere. I have it all mapped out okay? So please enough with the badluck wishes.
My mom you’re talking about, ask her if she can provide for needs or send good money when I ask for one? I don’t plan being poor so please let me be.” Debby said and stopped there. She didn’t see the need saying much about her mom or her background.
“Infact, I’ve lost my appetite.” She said and left the food she was eating. She was about getting to the room when her phone beeped indicating a message had just come in. She screamed out loud as soon as she read the content.
“What is it?” Charity asked, frightened.
“Oh my God I can’t believe this.”
“Can’t believe what?”
“N750,000!!!” She announced with another scream.
“Did what?”
“My dear, I have just made N750,000 for spending just one night with him!”
“What?!” Charity thought about.
“I still don’t understand. N750,000 for just one night?”
“Exactly! Oh my God, I’m so excited right now.” She said as she dialed Fred’s number.
“Hello Babe.”
“Hello dear, you won’t believe what I’m about to tell you now.”
“What? You’ve received the alert?”
“Yes! And guess how much it is.”
“Tell me instead.”
“A whopping N750,000!”
“Wow, that’s quite huge. Congratulations dear, just stick with me and there’d be more alerts coming your way.”
“Sure! As long as our plan would work out, and we’d be out of this country in no time?!” Debby said out loud to the hearing of Charity.
“Out of the country? God are you listening?!” Charity asked herself and God.
“Yeah but keep it low okay. It’s not very advisable going around and shouting you’d be travelling abroad soon. You sabi say na Naija we dey, village people fi intervene.”
“Sure, my lips are sealed.”
“Yeah so how we go wash am na……let’s hang out this evening at our usual spot.”
“No problem. I’d be there.” She said and ended the call.
“You see? N750,000 in a day. Can you beat that?” Debby said and stuck out her tongue to Charity like a child.
“Ehe, what did you say about your terrible dreams about m again? Come to think of it: for some time now you’ve been having ‘dreams’ about me, but none of them seems to be coming to pass. Instead of badluck, it has been goodluck all the way. So tell me, have you been cooking them up?” Deborah said and Charity went mute. Thai made Debby to laugh.
“Listen, I know when we first met I was broke. So broke that I couldn’t afford a place to stay so I begged that we share this apartment pending the time I’d be able to find my feet again since we were once coursemates and not completely strangers, and you agreed. I couldn’t afford a thing of my own and so depended on what you and my mom had left.
But ever since my boyfriend Fred brought this idea, my level has changed. Shouldn’t you be happy for me? Happy that at least I’m no longer disturbing you for chicken change and my expenses are no longer on your shoulders?
Instead you’re looking for a way to….to make me feel bad always. Now tell me, is that fair?”
“Deborah God has better plans for you. He has a reason He’s letting you go scot free now but that grace may expire soon. I believe the dreams are like visions. They are for an appointed time and it will surely manifest and not tarry.” Charity replied her.
“Hmmm…..you always have answers to everything right? Well you can keep your God and Jesus, I don’t need them. I’m in money already, made without them.” She said and shifted her attention towards her phone.
“Done! I just sent 200K to my mom, to let her understand that I know what I’m doing.” Debby said as Charity did nothing but just watch her like film. In few minutes, a call came in for Debby. It was her mother. She placed it on loudspeaker so Charity could hear her mom speak proudly of her, but was disappointed when they got the opposite reaction.
“Debby I just received an alert now. Was it from you or my eyes were decieving me?”
“It’s from me Mama. Just take it as a gift from me?”
“A gift? Who gifted you?”
“Mama nobody gifted me. The money is mine.”
“The money is yours how? Deborah where did a small girl like you get such huge amount of money from?”
“But mummy must you question everything I do.”
“I have to question everything you do Deborah because you’ve turned yourself to a prostitute! A common prostitute Deborah. A kind of woman men use and dump at will. The type of woman that is never taken serious in life. The kind of……”
“Oh please stop mom, enough of all this. If you’re not interested in the money just transfer it back to me, instead of insulting me for trying to find a way out of poverty.”
“Of course I’m sending it back to you, you prostitute!” Her mother said and ended the call abruptly.
“Why is it nothing I do ever pleases her?” Debby asked in frustration and stormed out of the parlour to the room.
Charity watched the drama between Debby and her mom to the end, quietly wondering how she who had lived a godly life all her life had never had the chance to send such huge amount of money to her own mother.
“Why do the wicked prosper Lord, why do the wicked prosper?!” She screamed within, with slight envy in her heart.
*_To be Continued…_*
