Daughter In-law?

“Kehinde, I have helped you to bring them down, please don’t leave me. I’m your mother! Please forgive me”. Olasile said to K. K smiled at her. He held her face.

“Don’t worry mom! Me and your daughter in-law will remember what you did for us. Thank you for this favour! But I still need to leave”. K said to her. He kissed her on her cheek and walked away.

“Daughter in-law?” Olasile asked looking confused. Kehinde was yet to get married. Which daughter in-law is he talking about?

She ran after him wanting to stop him from leaving. But she could not. He was too bent on leaving. She had to let him go at the end. He told her he has a flight to catch.

K left for the airport. On getting there, he found Eno waiting there for him. The woman who she was staying with stood by her side. He got to where they stood. He thanked the woman for bringing Eno.

“Uncle K!” Eno cried. He smiled at her. He told the woman he would be taking Eno with him now. The woman bade them goodbye and left.

“She did not even allow me to go to aunty Lanre’s burial”. Eno cried. K laughed. He hugged her. He asked her to stop crying and that everything was fine now.

“Where are we going to?” Eno asked.

“To see your aunty Lanre”. K said to her.

“Are we going to where they buried her? Are we boarding a plane to Ibadan?” Eno asked as the tears rolled down her cheeks. K shook his head.

“We are going to London”. He said. Eno looked at him, confusion written all over her face. She told him she does not understand. He told her she would soon understand if she goes with him. Different scenarios started playing in Eno’s mind and she hoped that one of it could be true.

…………………………………………

Olamide watched his mother as she sat on the couch looking helpless. He has come home for the first time in a long time. After Lanre’s burial, he had returned to work. But he decided to come visit his mother. She kept falling sick and he was tired of seeing her like this. She has never stopped to mourn her daughter even though it has been over a year.

“Mama! You should stop all these mourning already”. Olamide said to his mother. She sighed, hissed and looked away from Olamide. He sat down next to her.

“Mama, will you like to stay outside the country for a while? You can go on a three months visit. Maybe this Christmas will be good. Your passport is ready. It won’t take long to work out your visa”. Olamide said.

Mrs. Olayinka told him she had no one outside the country she would want to visit. So why go anywhere outside the country.

“What about your daughter? Won’t you want to see Lanre?” Olamide asked. His mother slapped him.

“May you not be unfortunate in your life”. She said. In reply he said “amen”. She tries to stand up and leave.

“Olanrewaju Olayinka did not die mama! Your beloved daughter is alive!” Olamide said to his mother. She stopped. She gripped her wrapper which she tied on her waist. Seeing that he already has her attention, Olamide continued.

“She has been in coma, although she is responding to treatment. The doctor’s said we should get ready because she might wake up anytime soon”. He said to her.

“Lanre is alive? Who did we bury?” Mrs. Olayinka asked.

“A dummy! Lanre never died. We had to fake it so they don’t try to kill her twice”. Olamide said.

“Why did you not tell me?” Mrs. Olayinka asked her son.

“If you did not cry the way you did and everything did not happen the way it did, they would have suspected”. Olamide said.

Mrs. Olayinka walked close to him and slapped him again.

“Take me to my daughter”. She said.