CHAPTER 174

" What? Magdalene? Haunting! This is very strange because I have always believed that only murders are the ones who get haunted like this. Come on! The three of you should not put such a sad face and yet my wedding is in two days time" said Ruth smiling.

" What are you saying? I think you are mentally sick. I am talking about the nightmares I have had tonight and you are talking about your wedding" shouted Vivian at Ruth angrily.

" Ruth is right. We should concentrate on my wedding and not a silly nightmare. This might even be a big conspiracy planned by the people of this town" said Ryan.

" No Ryan. I think that Ruth and Faith..." said Vivian but Ryan suddenly interrupted.

" Enough with puting blames on people Vivian. Don't you ever get tired of blaming people for the crimes that they have not committed? You are not going to ruin my joy for my awaited wedding. My wedding must and will take place with joy in my heart but not fear and sorrow. As for now, I want Ruth and Vivian to go and prepare breakfast for us and this is a command, not a request" said Ryan filled with lots of anger who left the living room accompanied by Lawrence who decided to follow him.

Vivian and Ruth stood aghast for a while staring at each other filled with lots of anger. Neither of them wanted to prepare breakfast but Ruth knew she had to, if she wanted to make Ryan trust her and not doubt her at any time because of her plans for vengeance.  

" I will do it. I will prepare breakfast for everyone" said Ruth smiling.

" No! You are not the one who is going to do it. This family has known me better than you and I am the only one who is going to prepare this breakfast" said Vivian in a commanding voice.

" How about we do this? We are both going to prepare breakfast and make people choose whose breakfast they want to take. Is that not a good idea?" Asked Ruth smiling.

" Even a poisonous snake would not dare to agree with your idea. You are saying this because you know that the only person who will choose my food is Lawrence while the rest will choose yours. It's either we cook together or none of us cooks today" said Vivian.

" What a challenge! I think we should cook together" said Ruth.

Cooking together with Vivian was what Ruth wanted in relation to the quote that said 'keep your friends close and your enemies closer'. Ruth and Vivian both went to the kitchen. They stood undecided for a few minutes wondering either what to do or where to start from since they feared each other.

" Why don't you prepare sandwiches while I prepare ginger tea?" Asked Ruth smiling.

" Great idea woman. It will fasten our work since everybody will soon come to the dining claiming they are angry yet they can't even come to the kitchen and cook. This is not a time to quarrel with one another or check around about the person who is better or not because I know that none of us can ever cook better. None of is us actually an experienced chef. We both cook based on how we have been taught by our ancestors or our mothers. Isn't that right Ruth?" Asked Vivian laughing annoyingly.

" No! I think it is only in your community that people cook based on their ancestors or how they have been taught by their mothers. I cook based on my knowledge and based on the way that I think is right. Nobody has ever taught me how to cook since everything that I have learnt, I have learnt them all by myself since I have always wanted to be a perfectionist. Let's cook then" said Ruth laughing annoyingly too.

Ruth knew that Vivian wanted to tease her so that she would get angry and stop cooking the breakfast then leave it for Vivian. How could she even do that? It had always been the joy of a woman of Olam town if she woke up in the morning and cooked for her engaged husband to be. It meant and signified alot of things that only those who knew the traditional really well knew what it meant and always followed it.

As soon as they finished cooking, they decided to go and set the table. They went to the dining and were astonished to find out that everybody was seated there with empty plates while they used the forks to knock on  the plates which astonished both Vivian and Ruth.

" You are all here? What are you all doing here and yet the breakfast is not yet ready? I am surprised you know. Faith! What is all this? I thought that we were done by surprises. You know that I don't like unexpected surprises" said Ruth who decided to put all her blame on Faith and yet Faith was really not to blame at all. 

" I know that Ruth but the person who has done this surprise does not know that you don't like surprises. I have tried to explain to him so many times that you do not like surprises but Ryan did not want to understand me at all. I am a human being and I don't understand what else I could have done. Please bring in the breakfast my sisters. I am feeling very hungry right now and there is nothing more than I want other than to eat. It's been long since I have eaten food prepared by my very own sister. I really hope that my statements don't make you angry Ruth. I think that in this world people usually have the right to their own opinions. I also have the right to my own opinion" said Faith.

Ruth left the dining angrily and went to bring the breakfast that she had prepared accompanied by Vivian. Ruth knew that she had to cook according to the rules of the community but what she did not understand was the fact that she had to cook accompanied by Vivian. Didn't Ryan trust her anymore? Did he really think that Ruth would dare poison him with her food so that the marriage would not take place ? How could Ryan think so low of Ruth? Ruth thought about all those but was astonished about everything. She was astonished when Ryan decided to explain to her that mambo community needed her to cook accompanied to Vivian. 

If she had not dared do that, then the engagement party could have been considered as null and void and that was not what Ryan wanted based on how he had fallen madly in love with Ruth. 

" Alright! All the traditional rites have been followed today and I am glad. The only thing remaining is for both Vivian and Ruth to do all the house chores together while singing our old traditional songs" said Ryan smiling as soon as Ruth and Vivian finished drinking breakfast and joined them. 

" Your old traditional songs? When was such kind of a rule made? How was I not told all this before my engagement party? Oh! I get it. You all wanted to surprise me after my engagement party but yet I have not found this as a surprise at all. I have found it as a blasphemy of your community rules. I was not aware of anything but yet I am forced to follow the rules which I had no idea about. Can't you all see that I am broken by everything? I should have just stayed as an unmarried woman and never got engaged in the first place. Why are you all looking at me as if you have seen a ghost? Can't you see that I am just joking? I have stopped doing careless things immediately I have gotten engaged to Ryan. I am now a grown up woman and I do think way beyond marriage and everything. I love you so much Ryan in such a way that I have never fallen in love especially with the first love of my life Martin. This is something that no one in my life will ever get. The love that I have for you is unconditional beyond all measures. 

The love that none of you will ever give me even if you decided to give everything that you had here on earth . I love myself and I love my life so much. I love everything that makes me who I am . I love my mama and I love my sister Faith. I love Nelly, Vivian and Lawrence. I love you all" said Ruth laughing annoyingly.

Everybody looked at Ruth as if she was drank. They all did not understand what was really going on with Ruth. They thought that Ruth had drunk alcohol but in real sense Ruth was nothing but just overexcited for getting married to a man who killed Magdalene, her grandmother. This was called madness of passion.  A kind of madness which only those who knew about it could be able to explain. 

MARRIED AT SIXTEEN.