Chapter 37

Violet woke up on the couch and noticed that she was home alone. The apartment was extremely quiet. She hadn't heard when Stephen had woken up, dressed up in his uniform and had left the house for work probably because she had had too much to drink before she slept. 

When she sat up now, moving her feet to the floor, she mentally counted the sticks of cigarette stubs which she had smoked the previous night and was surprised to find out that they totaled six. She yawned into her fist and looked around, wondering what to do now that she was home alone. 

She got to her feet and went into the bathroom to ease herself. It was when she returned to the living room that she found out that she had initially missed noticing an ATM card which had been placed on a folded piece of paper on the center table.

Pulling out the note from underneath the card, she unfolded it and saw a scribbled message from Stephen.

"Hey, I don't know how long you can cope eating junk food like I do or eating out but I think it's high time I changed that. I left you my ATM card and the pin is ****. You can go to the market and buy enough groceries to stock up the kitchen. You can also go to the boutique and get yourself some clothes because seeing you in Susan's clothes doesn't really sit well with me. 

You can take Doris along with you too and get her the few things she needs, but please, do not spend more than a hundred and fifty thousand naira, take care...And oh! Get yourself a phone too. It's pretty important for communication! And be careful not to exceed the amount two hundred thousand naira or I'll strangle you."

Violet sighed now and smiled a bit. She was both amazed and amused at what she had read. So, there were men who still trusted women with their ATM cards? What if she decided to run off with it? It seemed that Stephen was too trusting for his own good. Violet concluded. Deciding to clean the house before going to the market. 

She walked into the bedroom which looked very unkempt then she changed the bedsheets and dressed the bed with a new one she had found in the wardrobe. She also swept the floor and cleaned the furniture too. 

Then she moved to the living room, picked the throw pillows off the floor and arranged them on the chairs. She threw the stubs of cigarettes into the wastebasket then swept and mopped the tiled floor of the living room. 

She cleaned the electronics and furniture with a damp rag then destroyed and removed the cobwebs that were already accumulating in a corner of the ceiling and behind the plasma TV on the wall.

When she was done with that, she tried to go into the other bedroom in the apartment, but when she tried the handle, she found out that it was locked. Wondering what was in the room and also why Stephen had locked it, she decided that she would ask him later in the evening when he returned from work. 

Next, she moved to the kitchen, swept it thoroughly, including the nooks and crannies, then she cleaned the electric stove (double-faced hot plate) and also cleaned the gas which was thick with stains from food and dust. 

She rewashed all the dishes in the iron plate rack because most of them were dusty. She cleaned the drawers and cabinets and swept the dirt out. She swept the back of the fridge, opened the fridge and cleaned the interior then filled it with enough bottles of water, bottles of wine, a carton of juice and soda drinks.

After that, feeling sweaty and itchy, she moved to the bathroom and began to wash the tiled walls which had accumulated a lot of stains over the weeks. She thoroughly brushed the tiled floor, washed the sink and the entire toilet. 

She washed the shower head too and washed all the buckets. When the bathroom was spic and span, she walked back to the kitchen, picked a big broom and hit the bottom into a smooth roundness with the palm of her hand then she walked out of the apartment onto the front yard.

The front yard of Stephen's apartment was not that dirty but it was littered with leaves which had fallen from the tree. Bending down, she began to sweep it and that was when a pregnant woman walked out of the apartment next door with a bucket of children's clothes and bedsheet. As she walked to the long line tied in between two trees in front of her apartment, she kept staring at Violet in a curious manner.

Noticing how the woman kept looking at her, Violet had no choice but to greet her, hoping that the woman would stop and mind her business now. "Ina kwana. (Good morning)."

"Ina kwana." The woman greeted back as she pulled out a small blouse and hung it on the line but she still occasionally continued to glance in Violet's direction. Violet decided to totally ignore her and focus on her sweeping instead. After the woman had hung two more clothes, she approached Violet now with her hand on her waist but stood at a safe distance so that the dust didn't get to her.

"Ermm, sorry, sisi..." She began, clearing her throat.

Violet straightened up now and turned her head to look at the woman. "Me ne ne? (What is it?)" She tried to sound as polite as she could.

"Sorry o, but I know every single person in this block and almost every other neighboring block, but I've never seen you here before." She curiously asked

Knowing that the woman was nothing but a tattletale and probably had a habit of poke-nosing, Violet decided to oblige her, not wanting to make any enemies. "Well, that's because I'm new here."

"Oh..." The woman said and glanced at the front door of Stephen's apartment then pointed at it with a questioning look. "If you are sweeping Oga Stephen's front yard, it means that you live with him, ko?"

"Yes."

"Are you his sister or his relative?"

"No, why do you ask?"

"Because we are used to our fair aunty Susan already. She's the only one that comes around. Unlike other soldiers, Oga Stephen is a very faithful man and has never brought home any other woman. In fact, ever since aunty Susan jilted him, you're the first woman I'm seeing in his house. He became much of a loner after the wedding was canceled... So, tell me, are you the new girlfriend?" She asked, grinning and baring her teeth in a false manner.

"No, I'm not the new girlfriend." Violet answered, eager to get back to her sweeping.

"Ehen..." The woman's smile waned a bit now. "So, are you the house girl then or his friend? Is that why you are sweeping? Since I've known aunty Susan, she has never swept the yard, never."

Weary of the woman already, Violet hit the bottom of the broom again, ready to resume her sweeping. "Thank you for the information, madam, but I really should get back to my sweeping now."

"Oh, okay...babu matsala (no problem)," said the woman and just when Violet thought she was finally free, the woman introduced herself much to her chagrin. "...ern...my name is Esther, what about you?"

"Violet." Violet stiffly answered.

The woman gave a surprised and puzzled frown now. "Is that even a real name? Who names a daughter after a color."

"My mother does!" Violet tersely said, bent down and continued sweeping.

"Okay o... Ehn-ehn, lest I forget, just in case you're wondering who this very friendly woman is; I live next door and my husband is also a lieutenant. I've three children and this..." She pointed to her big belly. "...is my fourth child. I'm really hoping that it will be a boy this time, I'm really hoping so o." She said sadly now. "My husband has done small thing on my head but he said he'll only pay the bride price and do the wedding when I give him a male child."

Violet straightened up again with a frustrated sigh. Why did this woman have to talk too much?! She had not even asked her anything and she had revealed so much about herself already. Making a mental note to avoid her next time so that the woman didn't tire her out with idle talks, Violet reluctantly asked now, glancing at her protruding round belly. "So, what happens if this one turns out to be a girl too?"

"Ehn, I'll keep trying na until I get a boy... Me, I can't give up on trying o before my husband will now decide to go for one of these small-small barrack girls who are trying to snatch our husbands from us."

Without saying anything, Violet bent down again and continued to sweep. Soon, she finished, and as she packed the leaves into a sack bag, the woman returned to continue hanging her clothes on the line. Feeling so exhausted now, Violet turned and headed for the door. When Esther saw her, she quickly said: "Just in case you get bored, you can come and join me in my apartment and we can watch Zeeworld together. Have you watched The Promise and Gangaa?" She quickly asked.

"Sorry, I don't know what those are." Violet tiredly answered.

"Ha!" The woman suddenly exclaimed now, surprising Violet. "Don't say that outside o... Don't say it at all o! How will you say that you don't know television series as popular as Gangaa and The Promise? Don't just say it outside at all o, especially in this barrack."

"Well, thank you very much, Esther, I'll keep that in mind." Violet said and was about to step into the apartment when Esther said again:

"Ehn, Violet, I'll want us to be very good friends. I want us to be so close until you and I become the envy of other barrack women. Besides, I always know the latest gist and I can tell you about almost anybody in this barrack, you name it. I've lived here for ten years now and there's nothing that I don't know."

"Thank you, Esther, I really appreciate the offer but I don't think that will be necessary. I really need to go freshen up now." Violet said and quickly hurried into the apartment before Esther could utter another word. 

Returning the broom to the kitchen, Violet opened the fridge and quickly drank a sachet of cold water in a rush that it brought her great relief. After that, she quickly got into the bathroom, had her bath, put on one of Susan's clothes which was a blue gown, then she left the house, locking the door since Stephen had left the key in the keyhole for her. 

Trying her best, she succeeded in locating Rufus' block and went to get her friend to accompany her to the market. Doris who was more than happy to see her, obliged her since Rufus had also gone to work. As the two friends walked through the barrack gate, greeting the soldiers on duty, one of the soldiers who was skimming through a book got up and stopped them.

"Na wetin be una name?"

Violet and Doris exchanged looks and Violet nervously asked: "Is there a problem?"

"No, but we are supposed to take records of those who are new here."

"Okay..." Violet said then lied: "My name is Lauretta and my friend is Eunice."

"Okay... Na which block una dey stay (Which of the blocks do you stay)?"

"We didn't actually check but we stay with Lieutenants."

"Oh, I see..." The soldier slowly nodded his head then said with a smile as instant respect filled his eyes. "You can go now, madams."

"Thank you." Violet said and took Doris' hand as they walked away to stop a cab. The soldier's gaze followed them then he soon pulled out his smartphone, walked to a corner and dialed Nosa's number.

                                                                                ★★★

Stephen returned from work later that night and walked into his apartment. Immediately, his nostrils were filled with the delicious aroma of food which he had not perceived in his apartment for years. Whenever he perceives such aroma, it was only simply because a neighbor's wife was cooking or he had brought a fast-food home. 

He threw his car keys on the center table, still skeptical that the aroma was really coming from his own kitchen. Violet was nowhere in sight and he glanced at the TV which was on and was airing Judge Judy. He looked around the sitting room, noticing that it now looked different. The place looked so clean and new that he doubted that he was in the right apartment and he had to glance around to be sure that he was in the right place.

The cobwebs were gone and all the throw pillows that usually littered the floor were neatly placed on the chairs in an arranged style and orderly manner. All the stains and dirt on the tiled floor were gone too. Stephen strode into his bedroom and noticed that the bed was neatly dressed. He also noticed that there was hardly a crease on the new bedsheets that had been changed. His scattered bedroom looked arranged and there was not a thing that was out of place. 

He crossed the room to his wardrobe and yanked the doors open and was even more surprised to find out that all his shirts and uniforms had been neatly hung and his t-shirts and sweaters were folded and arranged on the shelves. His belts were rolled and placed neatly while his hats were hung on the door. 

His boots and shoes were arranged in pairs below and his undies and socks were neatly kept where they could be easily found. He also noticed that all his dirty clothes had been selected out and put in the laundry basket. Wondering what had happened to his apartment, he walked out of the room. He went to the kitchen, stood in the doorway and noticed that the place had been cleaned up too. Every single part of the apartment was clean.

As he looked around the kitchen, he didn't fail to notice the half bag of rice, a big bag of semovita, a bucket of garri, a smaller bucket filled with beans and several tubers of yam and a small bowl of onions near the wall. There were twenty-five liters each of groundnut oil and palm oil in an open cabinet above and a pack of medium Indomie noodles and a dozen of dangote spaghetti were in another cabinet. 

There were also several food ingredients such as Gino curry, thyme, knorr and star seasoning cubes and three big packets of Mr. Chef salt. He also noticed the big tins of Milo, peak milk, coffee, a carton of St. Louis sugar and two big packs of cornflakes on top of the fridge.