Dysfunctional Family - Season 1 - Episode 44

Episode 4 years ago

Dysfunctional Family - Season 1 - Episode 44

~FINALE~

He got out of the car and was heading into the chapel when he suddenly felt the urge to ease himself. Lubesha Jr. decided to do a detour to the loo and it was from there as he was washing his hands that a casually dressed man walked in. He saw the man from the mirror but that was a public toilet so he minded his on business. To his surprise, the man was suspiciously approaching him.
The young boy instinctively turned. “Can I help you, Sir?”

“Actually, yes,” the man smirked and before Junior could do anything, the man produced a handkerchief from his pocket and hurriedly covered the boy’s nose.

The boy wildly protested but the chloroform knocked him out pretty soon.

Lubesha Junior awoke with a start and much to his dismay, realised he was still bound to the chair like a criminal or some animal awaiting slaughter.

He’d had a weird dream..it was weird in the sense that it was actually a replay of his kidnapping.

In his chair and his face burning from all the hot slaps he’d received that evening, Lubesha Jr. scanned his surrounding once again. Seemed him and his three kidnappers were in some sort of abandoned warehouse.
Speaking of his kidnappers, they were seated at a distance, playing cards while chain smoking and drinking cheap beer.

The mere sight of them turned his stomach such that he wanted to cuss them but he knew better. Oh how he was scared for his life..he’d watched enough movies and had seen how kidnapping ended in murder.
The unsettling thought of him getting murdered at the age of 13 brought tears to his eyes but he blinked them away.

All he did was hope his parents, grandpa and everyone else who cared about him out there was doing their best to locate him.


☆☆☆

Seated in the backseat of a taxi, en-route to Sandra’s place, Lubesha contemplated his options, if there were any to begin with.
He’d promised Sandra he’d marry her but now he was having second thoughts.

He exhaustedly blew out a breath and buried his head in his hands. The headache seemed not willing to leave him alone.

“You okay, mister?” came the driver’s voice. Lubesha had taken a random taxi.
He shook his head. “I’ll be okay if you just shut the hell up and drive me to my destination in peace.”

The driver shrugged, he was used to snobs. Lubesha hadn’t meant to be rude but he was so exhausted he just willed all this madness to be over soon.

He shut his eyes and was deep in thought. After some time, a plan popped up in his head. It was a long shot but he was going to give it a shot anyway. The plan was simple. Put his phone on voice recorder and have an incriminating conversation with Sandra which would be enough proof she’d kidnapped his son. He debated calling her right and decided that would be suspicious, talking to her in person was the only option he had. He was headed to her place after all.

After what seemed like an eternity, Lubesha finally arrived at Sandra’s. He paid the driver and apologized for being rude.

“It’s alright,” smiled the middle aged driver. “I pray to God whatever’s troubling you goes away soon.” “Amen,” he watched the car drive in the opposite direction and then he sighed, approached the gate and picked a stone to knock.

“Here goes nothing,” he hopelessly mumbled.

His guts told him his plan wasn’t going to work and he found out a few minutes later he was actually right.

☆☆☆

Tracy’s eyes were puffy from all the crying she’d done that day. And the fact that Lubesha was willing to sacrifice so much for their son overwhelmed her and she cried even more.

Juliet and Laura tried to comfort her, all to no avail. Laura was easily getting agitated and sighed with relief when she saw Sylvester enter the living room.

“Any news?” Tracy got to her feet as soon as she saw him, rushing towards him, her wedding dress sweeping the floor.
Sylvester ruefully said, “Nothing yet..I’m so sorry. Your father’s contacts seem to be making progress though.”

“I know you’re just saying that to make me feel better,” Tracy slumped back to her seat. “Oh my Lord, I guess Lubesha is the only one who can save my son now.”
“Can I talk to you in private?” Sylvester asked Laura who nodded.
Laura ushered him to her old room and shut the door behind them. “Yes?”

“I didn’t wanna say this in front of Tracy because it’d look like I don’t care about Junior..the thing is I have to step out, duty calls.”

“No problem..” Laura trailed off when Sylvester’s phone beeped, indicating there was a message.

He got the phone from his pocket, opened the message and smiled. He typed some stuff and hit send. “You were saying?”
“I said it’s fine, you can go.”
“Cool,” but he dumped the phone on the bed after locking it and headed towards the adjoining bathroom. “I gotta catch a s--t first.”

Laura offered him a sheepish nod and grabbed his phone as soon as he’d closed the bathroom door behind him.
Of course the phone was secured with a complex pattern which she’d been snooping to master for some time now and luck seemed to be on her side seeing as she’d mastered it earlier that morning but just hadn’t had time to try it. What with the wedding and the kidnapping fiasco?
Why was she even going through the trouble of snooping? You might wonder. Well, the answer was simple. Ever since Sandra had mentioned seven months back in that beauty parlour that Laura was married to a cheat, Laura had started watching her husband closely and indeed his actions were that of a cheating man.

The time he spent on his phone chatting with God knows who and smiling stupidly, coming home reeking of a woman’s cologne and many other signs.
To all cheating men, your wife always knows when you’re cheating. Some decide to keep quiet while others retaliate depending on the type of people they are and Laura was the retaliating one. She’d sworn to teach her husband’s side chick a lesson but hadn’t had the luck to find out who the side chick was.

Her heartbeat escalating, Laura tried the pattern and it budged. She almost jumped for joy but managed to contain her excitement. She went straight to Sylvester’s Direct Messages which were fortunately not locked.
She opened the message string on top.
Mike technician, 6:46 PM: ‘Sex at our favourite hotel tonight?’
Slyvester, 6:49PM:’I’m having a crisis at home which I guess you caused. Maybe later.’

Mike technician, 6:50PM:’I’m leaving the country with Lubesha first thing tomorrow morning so today’s your last chance to have a taste of my cookie’

Sylvester, 6:50PM:’Let me see if I’ll make it.’
Mike technician, 7:59PM: ‘Are you coming or not?’ Sylvester 8.00PM: ‘I am. Just wait up, on my way.’

Laura read through the string again and furiously cursed under her breath, “That b---h!” she pocketed Sylvester’s phone, removed the key from the keyhole and locked her room’s door from outside.

“Let’s see how you screw that whole tonight you son of a b---h.”
“Where are you going?” Juliet asked Laura who was hastily walking out of the house.
Laura replied, “If any of you care about Junior’s safety, don’t let Sylvester out of my room!”

“What’s going on?” Tracy inquired.
“I’ll explain later, wish me luck,” and Laura was out of the house.


☆☆☆

“What do you mean Sandra isn’t here?” Lubesha angrily asked Enoch. “She herself called me to come here!”

“Then sit your a-s down and wait for her!” Enoch exploded too, apparently Lubesha wasn’t the only one having a bad day.
Shaking his head, Lubesha sat and watched Enoch frantically pace the living room.

“Stress is a killer,” Lubesha mocked.
Enoch opted to ignore his sarcastic statement.
His phone rang, startling him. He hurriedly swiped to answer. “Hello?”
“Your 24 hours is up,” said the familiar voice on the other end of the line. “I’m on my way to the police, Enoch. I hope you’ll enjoy your stay in prison.”

He’d barely gotten off that call when he received another one from the man in charge of his merchandise shipment from China.
“What?!” Enoch snapped.

The voice on the other end crackled, “I hate to be the bearer of bad news but the police have a search warrant for your cargo, Sir.”
“I’m finished!” Enoch exclaimed and even as he said it, he felt the muscles around his heart tighten and then came the searing pain. He clutched at his chest and wide eyed, fell to the floor.

Lubesha was by his side in seconds. One look at Enoch and he screamed for help.


☆☆☆

When Sylvester walked out of the bathroom and found Laura gone, he checked his phone on the bed. Nothing.

A surge of panic coursed through him and he rushed for the door which much to his dismay was locked.

D--n!
“Help!” he b@nged on the door. “Help! Hel-”

“Save your breath,” came Tracy’s voice from the other side. “Laura left strict instructions not to let you out. Now tell me why she’d do that.”

“I don’t know..just freaking open this door!”

“I don’t have the key, Sylvester.”
“There has to be a spare one!”
“I’m sorry, I can’t open the door unless you give me a good reason as to why I should let you out.” Desperate times call for desperate measures. “Laura must have found out I’m cheating on her with Sandra,” that’s the only logical reason as to why she’d have stolen my phone. “I’m afraid she’ll do something crazy!”
Where she stood leaning against the door, Tracy felt her knees go weak. Sylvester and Sandra?

Holy s--t, she now loathed him as much as she did Sandra so all she did was silently walk away. She was so angry she felt like cutting his balls off and feeding them to him.
“Odd,” Sandra mumbled to herself, reading Slyvester’s latest text.

Apparently plans had changed and he wanted them to meet at a much more secluded place. An abandoned building of some sort.
‘Laura happened, I’ll explain once you get here.’

‘Sharp.’
Sandra grabbed her car keys and scanned the plush hotel room one more time.
“What a waste.”

Several miles away, Laura awaited her prey in the dark. This was going to be fun.


☆☆☆

“What did you say happened to him?” the doctor asked Lubesha who with the aid of a guard had taken Enoch to the hospital.
Lubesha explained to the doctor exactly what had happened.

“I guess the bad news triggered his heart attack.”

“Heart attack?” gasped the concerned looking guard.

“Yes..I’m afraid you brought him here quite too late. Mr. Enoch Mulimba is no more. Am so sorry.”

Lubesha watched the doctor turn to walk away and his head begun to spin.
“That just didn’t happen, did it?”
It felt surreal to learn a man who’d had the strength to yell into his phone only but less than an hour ago was now dead. Lubesha took out his phone and dialled Sandra’s line. She didn’t pick up so he called Tracy.
“Sandra’s Dad just kicked the bucket,” he told Tracy without preamble.


☆☆☆

The place was creepy as hell and it surprised Sandra that she even had the guts to turn on her phone’s flashlight and head into the building.

Crazy sex, look what you made me do, she wryly thought and muffled a chuckle.
“Sylvester?”
“Over here, bestie.”

Sandra turned and her flashlight illuminated Laura right in front of her. A container in her hands, she was smirking. Sandra knew she was in danger.

“Laura, what-”
“What am I doing here?” Laura laughed. “Honey, I’m here to teach you a lesson for spreading your legs for my husband and kidnapping my favourite nephew.”

“Sweetie, if your husband is s------g me that only means you don’t give it to him like I do. Besides, he followed me, not the other way round.”

“But you’re the one spreading your legs so it’s you I’ll punish. Men will always be men and we all know it’s in their nature to cheat.”

Sandra let out a hollow laugh, “Good luck punishing me,” she turned on the spot and sprinted for the exit.

Laura did a swift manuever towards Sandra and tackled her, sending her expensive smartphone flying. It fell at a distance and the light went off.

Quickly, she pinned Sandra down and climbed on top. She opened her container and poured a bit of the contents on Sandra’s arm.
Sandra screamed with agony, writhing. The pain on her arm was intense.

Laura laughed and closed the container. “This is hydrochloric acid, honey. By the time I’m done with you, nobody will be able to recognize your face. So, where are you hiding Lubesha Jr.?”

“Let go of me first,” winced the powerless Sandra. “Maybe then I might consider telling you.”
“Really? You think you’re in the position to call shots here? Sandra, hell knows no wrath like a woman scorned so please quit testing my patience cause-” This time it was Laura who screamed.

Despite the pitch blackness, Sandra had aimed for Laura’s arm and had taken a chunk off it. She actually tasted the warm blood as Laura rolled off her, cussing. Sandra took the chance and ran for her life. Laura fought the pain, picked the container of acid and began pursuing Sandra.

Delirious, Sandra ran towards the opposite direction from where her car was parked, screaming for help.

She kept on glancing over her shoulder such that she didn’t see the truck coming her way.

Bg the time the truck driver saw her, it was too late.

Laura froze at a distance behind Sandra who was screaming her lungs out and shut her eyes as the driver hit emergency brakes.
When she finally opened her eyes after the loud crash, she realized the truck had hit Sandra who lay face down on the gravel road, blood oozing from her wounds.


☆☆☆

Seemed sleeping was the only thing that kept Lubesha Junior sane so he slept again and had a bizzare dream.

He was older and was seated in his room thinking out loud, “My family is messed up, this I can’t argue. But I love all my family members regardless of their wayward ways and I also like to believe am special. Am special in the sense that I’ll right the wrongs of my family and straighten everyone out. How I’ll achieve this farfetched goal of mine, am yet to know.

You needn’t know my name, at least not at this point in time, nor my gender.

All you need to know is am this family’s saviour.”

When he awoke, he wondered what the dream meant but nature called, reeling his thoughts off the weird dream.

“Hey,” he called.

“What?” growled one his abductors.
“I gotta use the toilet.”
“You can pee from there.”
“Who says I wanna pee?” he was agitated. “I wanna catch a s--t. Unless you want me to do it right here and right-”
“Message clear, brat,” snapped another of his abductors.

He left his two friends playing cards and warily untied Lubesha Jr.

Knife pointed at his neck, Junior was led to a room located at the far end of the warehouse.
“Make it quick,” the man ordered, motioning into a dark room.

Lubesha Jr. nodded and pulled his pants down. He squatted and m0aned with pleasure as he eased himself.

The man waiting for him took a few steps out of the room, unable to take the stench of human faecal waste.

When he was done, Jr. pulled his pants up and bumped into a metal. His eyes widened. This was a sign from God. He slowly and quietly picked the metal.

“You done yet?”
He almost gasped with fear. “Not yet.”
“Hurry the f--k up! I don’t have all f-----g day!”

He didn’t reply but instead took slow strides towards the man’s silhouette, lifted the metal above his head and wham!

The tall man fell with a muffled grunt.

Jr. quietly put the metal down and ran for the exit and into the night. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him until he reached a main road and flagged down an approaching taxi which fortunately came to a stop and he jumped in.

It was past 9:00PM and it struck the driver as odd for a boy his age to be wandering around that late. Hadn’t he heard of serial killers?
“What’s a boy your age doing-”
“Drive! I was kid-kidnapped,” he was breathless. “Drive!”

The driver hit the accelerator and off they were.

“Do you have credit on your phone?”

Ten minutes had past.

The driver silently gave his phone to the boy who thanked him before dialling a number.
Tracy’s phone rang and she picked up without checking the caller ID.

“Mum,” came her frantic son’s voice. “Mum, I’ve escaped. I’m on my way home.”

Tracy thought the boy was playing tricks on her until she finally heard the seriousness in his tone. She closed her eyes and gave God a prayer of gratitude. “But how?”
“I’ll explain everything when I arrive,” Jr. pressed and the line cut.

“Who was that?” inquired Donald who had retained with Amos a few minutes back.
“It was Lubesha Jr, he’s on his way home.”

When Lubesha Sr. received a call from his wife informing him about the development, he got on the first taxi he could find.
F--k Sandra, he inwardly mused.


☆☆☆

Lubesha, Donald, Tracy, Juliet, Mr. Fulilwa and Amos were standing on the porch anxiously awaiting the taxi and when it finally pulled up right in front of them, they all rushed to welcome Jr.

“Where did you find him?” Lubesha Sr. asked the driver after they’d all taken turns hugging Junior. The driver explained and everyone showered him with gratitude and offered to pay him for rescuing Junior but he only accepted a K60. That’s how much it cost to take Jr. home.

He wished them the best of luck, got into his car and drove off into the night.
Tracy couldn’t seem to get her hands off Jr’s face and it was understandable. They all went into the house and settled in the living room, listening to Jr’s tale.

“It’s a miracle I’m even home right now,” he added, yawning. “I gotta go to bed, I’m exhausted.”

“Poor baby,” Tracy held him by the hand. “Mummy will tuck you in.”
Juliet stifled a yawn too. “Now that my grandson’s safe, I think I’ll retire to bed too. It’s been one helluva long day!”
“Me too,” chirped Donald.
Mr. Fulilwa had given everyone a respective room. “Good night,” Juliet and Donald said in unison.

There were murmurs of ‘good night’ in response.
It was just Lubesha, Amos and Mr. Fulilwa in the living room when Mr. Fulilwa’s phone rang.

“Laura?” he mouthed, baffled. He hadn’t even realised she wasn’t home. He swiped to answer, “Hello?”
“Tracy’s phone isn’t going through so I opted to call you. I’ve got great news, uncle.”

“I’m all ears.”
“Well, the big bad wolf Sandra was run over by a truck and has been rendered paralysed. As if that isn’t enough, the accident tampered with her vocal chords such that the b---h will be mute for the rest of her life. Isn’t karma a b---h?”
Laura had pretended to be a passerby and had helped the truck driver to rush Sandra to the hospital. That’s where the doctor explained to them what she’d just explained to her uncle. Sadly for the driver, he’d been arrested though his sentence would be light seeing as he’d reported himself to the police.

The smile on Mr. Fulilwa’s face was inevitable as he got off the phone.
“You won’t believe what has happened?”
“After all the crazy happenings of today,” Lubesha snorted. “Try us.”
Mr. Fulilwa told them.
“Karma’s a b---h,” Amos carelessly shrugged. “The witch deserves what’s happening to her and more. I say we even report her and her goons to the police.”
“The goons are probably leaving town as we speak,” said Mr. Fulilwa and he was right.
They’d hit the road as soon as they realised Jr. had escaped.

Lubesha sighed. “Sandra’s already paying for her sins..jail won’t do anything. God has already fought our battle for us.”

A tired Mr. Fulilwa touched Lubesha’s shoulder. “I’m proud to call you my son in-law.” and he retired to bed.
“Sorry about your messy wedding,” Amos told Lubesha.

“I really don’t care about the wedding, man. I’m just glad everything’s slowly going back to normal. Speaking of normal, haven’t you found anyone special yet?”
“I’m working on it,” Amos sheepishly rose to his feet and bid Lubesha good night. Lubesha retired to bed too. He found Tracy singing a lullaby to Jr.
“He’s asleep,” she whispered.
Lubesha slipped under the sheets and whispered, “What a day..” he quietly narrated Sandra’s fate to Tracy who unsurprisingly felt bad for her.
“She’s bad, yes. But being paralyzed and mute at the same time? That’s just plain shitty luck! I say we drop all charges against her.”

“Yeah.”
She then told him about Sandra’s affair with Sylvester and Lubesha wasn’t surprised. It wasn’t unlike either of them to be so shameless.
Pushing Sandra and Sylvester to the back of his mind, he whispered in the dark, “Tomorrow will be a new day, new everything, my love. I can feel it.”
“So can I. I love you, Lubesha Pondamali. After all the ugly things we’ve been through, the only thing I don’t and will never regret is the love I have for you,” she wearily blew out a breath. “Goodnight, Lubesha Pondamali. Always remember that I love you.”

“Goodnight, Tracy Pondamali. I love you too.”

They both kissed their son who was sleeping in the middle on the forehead and slept. They deserved the rest after the hectic day they’d had.

“I thank God the nightmare is over,” Juliet was clinging to her husband under the warm bedspread. “You know I hate leaving our Junior at our neighbour’s place. I’ve missed him so much!”
Donald kissed her on the lips. “Starting tomorrow, you and I will be with him for the rest of our lives.”

“Misozi too..heaven knows I adore that baby. Alice left us a gem. Frank’s a great father, I’m grateful to God for that. I can rest assured knowing my granddaughter’s in great hands.”

Not wanting to discuss their late daughter, Donald closed his eyes and zoned out on Juliet who joined him soon. They so needed the sleep.

Amos lay in bed thinking about the girl he was in a relationship with. He knew his parents would love her.

He slept with a huge smile on his face.
Laura arrived home and went straight to her room after unlocking the door.

She knew Jr. was back but knew he was resting so she’d decided to check on him tomorrow.

She entered her room and flickered the light on. Sylvester was seated on the edge of her bed, fully dressed.

“Hey,” she greeted. “We don’t have to talk about your infedility because I’ve forgiven you. That’s how much I love you, you fool. But please never take my love for weakness because I can be deadly when I want to.”

Her tone scared the crap out of him so he swallowed and awkwardly said, “I’m sorry for cheating on you…I..I promise to be faithful to you henceforth.”
“You better.”

Sylvester rose to hug her but she pushed him away. “Don’t push your luck, mister.” and threw a pillow and blanket at him. “You’re sleeping on the couch.” “Yes, ma’am.”
Shooting one last yearning glance at his wife, Slyvester did his walk of shame towards the door, opened it and closed it after him.
Laura heard his footsteps fade away and she rushed into the bathroom, stripped, opened the faucet and stood under the jet of hot soothing water.

She had flashbacks of Sandra covered in blood. She pushed the ugly memories to the back of her mind and absent mindedly shrugged, mumbling under her breath, “The b---h only got what she deserves.”
Sandra lay on the bed conscious yet unable to utter a word nor move a muscle. In that instant, she wished she’d just died! Death was way better than being a vegetable.
When Lubesha Jr. flickered his eyes open the following morning and saw his lovely parents lying beside him on each side, he beamed.
To hell with the weird dream that he’d had yesterday, he told himself.

Maybe a day would come when he’d have to play family saviour but that didn’t matter and that day wasn’t today.
What mattered was that for once, all was finally well in their lives.

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆THE END☆☆☆☆☆☆☆