Chapter 58

"You are not going to force me again by putting pepper in my eyes, are you?! You should know that I'm prepared this time!"

She simply undressed, took the key and inserted it in her vagina. "If you want to get out so bad, come fetch it!... If you are worried about contracting another infection, I can assure you that I'm clean this time." When he made no attempt to come near her and she suspected that he might want to wait it out till the morning, she got up now and approached him.

"Don't come near me!" Vincent quickly warned, flattening his back against the door. "I might hit you if you touch me!" He fisted his hands now, ready to defend himself.

"If you like beat me, all I know is that you must have sex with me!" She started to reach for the waistband of his boxers.

"Njideka, I'm warning you, don't touch me!" He warned fiercely.

"Since we are now mates and you can now call my name anyhow, you can as well, fuck me!" She grabbed his boxers, trying to pull them off and that's how the struggle began and Vincent's boxers reaped.

Now, was he supposed to dip his fingers into his stepmother's vagina to pull out the only tool to his freedom?

                                                                               ★★★

Nduka woke up in the morning and was surprised when he saw his son sitting at his door, on the floor as if waiting for him to wake up. 

"Good morning, dad." Vincent mumbled under his breath after he noticed his father rouse from his sleep.

Nduka glanced at the other side of the bed and realized that it was empty. "Where's your stepmother?" He asked as he threw his feet to the floor and reluctantly sat up, still feeling very groggy.

"In the sitting room." Vincent bleakly answered.

"How long have you been sitting there?" Nduka asked over his shoulder after placing his hands on the edge of the bed.

"Probably four hours now." The boy replied.

"You didn't sleep?" His father asked, puzzled.

"I couldn't." He answered, his brow creased with lines.

"Why?" Nduka asked again.

Vincent only swallowed hard but said nothing. He watched his father get off the bed then lazily walk into the bathroom which was in the same room. After releasing the liquid load pressuring his bladder into the toilet and flushing it, he washed his face then stepped out of the bathroom and asked. "What you really want to tell me must be very important for you to lose some sleep over... What is it, Dike?" Nduka asked, adjusting the waistband of his old pajama pants.

Vincent rose to his feet now and told him, "Dad, I want to go to the seminary."

Nduka raised an inquisitive brow

"I thought that I've already informed you that you will go after your exams?"

"I know, but I want to go today." Vincent stated, sounding resolute.

His father gave him a surprised and confused look. "You want to go to the seminary today?" He emphasized on the last word to be sure that he had heard right

"Yes!"

"Why the rush?" Nduka asked, hands on his hips as he gave his son a questioning look.

"Father, I just think that the earlier I dedicate my life to God the better."

"How can you just make such a decision just like that without giving me a heads-up and chance to prepare and get ready to send you off before now?" Nduka asked. "You shouldn't make such impulsive decisions, boy!"

"I'm sorry father, but I've to leave this house today. If it's too much stress, I could hurry to the church on my bicycle and talk to the bishop; he can help."

"The bishop? What bishop?" Nduka asked.

"Dad, I made friends with the bishop of the parish who arrived at the church four weeks ago, and he has promised to enroll me into the seminary without any hitch whenever I'm ready."

"I see..." Nduka said thoughtfully, approaching the door but he paused and frowned now when he saw scratches on the boy's arms, neck, chest and belly. "Did you fight with a witch overnight? What are all these all over your body?"

Vincent pressed his back against the door to prevent his father from seeing the gory bleeding ones which Njideka had inflicted on his back during their struggle in the middle of the night. "It's nothing dad... I just scratched myself a lot because of mosquito bites."

"Ehen...then you should take your mother's mosquito net which is in the wardrobe. After weeding the small bushes surrounding your window and you should also trim those nails of yours. I don't see why a boy should be keeping long fingernails.”

"Alright, dad." Vincent answered.

Nduka yawned now and stretched his arms. "God, I feel so tired. I've never felt this sapped of energy before." He murmured more to himself then added, "Old age must really be catching up with me." Then he said to Vincent. "Run along now and go talk to the bishop while I discuss it with your stepmother so that we can make proper preparations."

"Alright, Dad." Vincent replied then as he followed his father into the sitting room, Nduka paused in shock when he saw his wife tentatively pressing her face with a piece of cloth dipped in hot water. One of her eyes was black and almost swollen shut and her other cheek was swollen not to mention that she had a cut on her lower lip and there were other bruises on her arm.

"Chineke mo! (My God!)" Nduka exclaimed as he hurried to her side. "Njideka, what happened to you? Who did this to you?" He asked in alarm, examining her body.

Njideka began to sob then she turned her head to look at Vincent who was staring back at her as if waiting to hear what she would tell his father concerning what had transpired between them the previous night. The boy was the devil himself and had dealt seriously with her. She couldn't count the blows he had rained on her when she had tried to coerce him into having sex with her. He had pummeled her to the floor until she laid there, trembling and begging for mercy which he had only granted after she had removed the key from her vagina and had handed it to him. "Nothing..." She slowly shook her head.

"What do you mean by nothing?" Nduka refused to accept her unreasonable answer. "I might be getting old but my eyes do not fail me, Njideka. This was not the way I left you before I went to bed last night. What happened?" He pressed.

Njideka quietly sobbed some more before lifting her head and saying, "It was a burglar o... I was sleeping when I heard a sound as if someone was trying to break into the house last night. When I went to see what it was, the burglar was already in the sitting room, trying to disconnect the television. When I confronted him, he left the television and tried to force himself on me but I fought him off."

"You fought him off? Have you forgotten that you are a woman and your strength cannot be compared to that of a man? You should have screamed or something, you should have woken me up!" Said Nduka, stupefied.

"I tried to, but the man covered my mouth; I couldn't scream."

Nduka looked at his son now who was still lingering around, listening to his stepmother's pathetic story. "Vincent, didn't you know that a burglar broke into the house last night?"

"I didn't hear anything, sir." Vincent simply answered.

"It doesn't matter whether he heard or not, Baby." Njideka quickly cut in. "Rather we should be thanking God that I'm still alive to tell the story. God gave me the strength to fight tooth and nail until the burglar had no choice but to flee."

"But what you did was although brave but also foolish! What if he had killed you because of ordinary television?! You should have just let him go with it..." Nduka chided her then swallowed hard as he tentatively asked now, "Um...hope he didn't succeed in doing anything to you?"

"No, he didn’t... I didn't let him...just that my body hurts all over from how he rough-handled me." She grimaced. "He really hit me hard, Obim."

"Sorry about that, Nwanyioma (endearing name)." Nduka tried to pet his grimacing wife. "Did you by chance see the face of this burglar?"

"No, he tied a bandanna over the lower part of his face. I couldn't see his face, just his blood-shot eyes." She answered.

Nduka sighed now. "Anyway, it's a good thing that you were not seriously injured... Vincent, you can go..." He dismissed his son who left after secretly shooting his stepmother a contemptuous look. "Njideka, let me go get dressed so that I can take you to the hospital." Nduka said, rising and leaving her as he returned to the living room.

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Three Weeks Later...

As Njideka stepped out of the main gate of the university and walked to the junction to wait for a commercial bus, Father Thomas who had parked his car over thirty minutes ago, while waiting for her to finish her lectures, started his car and drove slowly to where she was standing.

"Hello Njideka." He leaned towards the other window to look up at her, but when Njideka ignored him and looked away, chin up, he said stubbornly. "You can ignore me all you want like you have been ignoring me now for over two months, but I'm not going to let you take a bus."

"Can you just leave me alone and go away? What is it sef?" Njideka tersely replied.

"Haven't you punished me enough, Njideka. How long will you continue to treat me with scorn?" He helplessly asked now. "Why not get into the car so that we can settle this amicably, Njideka? You can't keep avoiding me forever, you know? Even your husband is beginning to suspect that we are not really in good terms because of the way you act towards me whenever I come visiting."

"No one asked you to come visiting!" She coldly said.

"So, you are just going to throw away everything we have shared this far simply because I won't give you what you want?" He asked.

"You cannot keep sleeping with me just for the fun of it, Thomas! If you are not ready for commitment, then go and continue shining mama Ebele's congo, as for me, I'm done!"

"Why are you talking like this na? I've told you several times that there's nothing going on between that woman and I! Absolutely nothing! Besides, she's too old for me...what's there to enjoy in her body?"

"You are asking me? She still has a vagina, doesn't she? And when did you men start caring about how a woman looks or how old she is when she has a vagina for you wanton lot to stick it in?" She retorted

"Okay, can we stop talking about vaginas in public already? Anybody could hear us. Njideka, please just get into the car and let me give you a ride home." He leaned down and opened the door for her. After a slight hesitation, she opened the door wider and reluctantly got in, still putting on an unsmiling face. As Father Thomas joined the traffic and began to drive away, he glanced at her fading bruises and asked, "You know, your husband told me how you got into a fight with a burglar who broke into the house, but I never did believe that story though."

"What does it matter what you believe? Is it your business?!" She retorted, her eyes fixed outside the window.

He tried to hold her hand but she pushed his hand away. "You really do not have a forgiving heart, do you, Njideka?" He asked.

"After you gave me Gonorrhea, you still want me to forgive you; just like that?"

"Speaking about that Gonorrhea; honestly, Njideka, I don't know how I got it."

"How will you know when you have lost count of all the vaginas you visit monthly." She fired, scornfully eyeing him.

The priest sighed now. "But how did your step-son get it? Your husband told me that he was also positive. How was that even possible?"

Njideka frowned. Why was Nduka always telling the priest everything? Couldn't that man just keep his mouth shut for once?! Must he always tell the private matters of their family to the priest? Making a mental note, she decided that once he returned from his trip, she would have a discussion with him. "And why are you asking me such a question?" She questioned.

"I'm just surprised that that little boy would have it. I mean, it can't simply be a coincidence..." Then it dawned on him. "Wait a minute! Njideka, did you also sleep with that boy??"

"How about you mind your business and stop assuming rubbish!" She snapped.

"Njideka, just relaxed...you don't have to get all defensive all the time... Anyway, I'll let that topic go... So back to us; what can I do to make up for offending you? Just name it! I've missed you so much that I'm ready to do anything you want me to, Njideka."

"Are you ready to elope with me and marry me now?" She asked.

"With an exception of that, Njideka... Have you even thought of what such a thing would do to my reputation?"

"Then you are not ready."

"Okay, wait...how about you give me four years to just have my fill of being a priest, then we can run away together and get married."

"Four years?!!!" Njideka exclaimed in disbelief. "What do you take me for? Do you think four years is four months? You want me to spend four long years of my life, waiting on you?!"

"Please, reason with me for once, Njideka...by then, I'd have saved a lot of money for both of us to start a new life somewhere else... that's the point." He explained.

After a short silence of contemplating, Njideka finally spoke again. "Alright... I'll wait, but on a condition."

"Name it."

"You have to discard the other women you are seeing; every one of them!"

"I've no problem doing that... In fact, I'll do that as soon as I drop you off, eh, anything for you my love..." He assured her. "So, will you smile for me now? I've really missed seeing your beautiful smile, babym." He said and when she managed a smile, he pulled her cheek then asked, "Hope when I drop you at home, you'll let me in? No more cold shoulder, right?"

"Well, I could really do with some company... Ever since Dike went to the Seminary, that house has been awfully lonely and boring, and it feels more empty whenever Nduka travels to the city." She bemoaned.

"Well, it's good that we are on good terms now, which means that I can always come around to keep you company and give you some good loving too." He winked at her and began to caress her thigh now, and she only smiled at him.