Must Read: Twine (A Drama Series)

7 years ago

Must Read: Twine (A Drama Series)

I threw the envelope behind me on the bed.

” Its nothing Auntie. I thought you were napping so i didn’t check up on you when i came in”
She ignored me and walked towards the bed, i took hold of the envelope and she made to grab it from my hands but missed.

” What is inside the envelope? ” she asked authoritatively.

” I told you it is nothing! why are you so curious to know?”

She grabbed it from my hand but i clamped my hands on it tight, refusing to let it go. I couldn’t understand why she was acting the way she was. We struggled to have it in our grasp but she slowly gained the upper hand. And it was now in her possession. She brought out the result sheet and gasped.
” Victoria! what is wrong with you? why won’t you let sleeping dogs lie? ”
I grabbed the result sheet from her hand and paled as my eyes scanned through.. It was negative.my hands trembled and the paper dropped on the floor. My aunt picked it up and tore it into bits.
” Why? why did you all lie to me?” I asked, tears rolling down my cheeks.” Who am i ?”
” Keep your voice down ! Please keep quiet, i will tell you everything.” She pleaded, pulling the door close. ” Jennifer bought you from a homeless woman” .

” Bought? or adopted?”

” Bought. She…..she was a very sick person.” she whispered.
” Her heart condition? ”
” No. I mean mentally sick, to her, babies are toys……like a play thing”
” Why did she buy………me?”
” She saw babies as something to play with and dump when she got tired of it. She was already tired of Linda and left the poor child to my care.

She tried to conceive but she couldn’t, she so desperately craved a play thing that she almost stole a baby”
My eyes widened in shock.” That’s not true! She was…..she was an angel!”
” That is the lie we led you to believe. That she was an angel. Why will i lie to you?what do i stand to gain?”

” Why?” i cried.

” One day she came across a pregnant homeless woman and she begged her to sell the baby she was carrying to her ”
” That is not true! ” I refused to believe what she was saying. It couldn’t be true, being adopted is better than being sold off like a pup.
” Mr Joseph traveled a lot then on business so she was able to fake a pregnancy. We kept friends away, even Linda wasn’t allowed to go see her in her room.”

” That is not true!” i screamed, my voice was hoarse and my eyes were blood shot.

” I am telling you the truth.please don’t breathe a word of this to anyone. It was a secret Jennifer made me promise to keep. I know this is hard on you but she was a sweet person albeit a sick one.”

She went out of the room and i sat like that for hours, staring into space. Auntie came to call me for dinner. She asked me to compose myself and act like nothing was wrong. Dad kept staring at me during dinner but i didn’t meet his gaze.

” Are you alright Victoria?”

” I am fine” i mumbled.

We continued eating in silence until dad cleared his throat. It means he had something important to say.

” I have two good news to share” he announced happily. ” The first one is that, i have decided to sign off our Lagos branch to my beautiful and hardworking daughter Linda”
Linda squealed with joy, she got up and planted a big kiss on his cheek.

” Thank you dad! I have a good news to share too! i will be walking down the aisle soon.”

I rolled my eyes. ” Kelvin?”

” Yes ” she snapped, sitting down. ” What is the other news you want to share dad? ”
Dad linked his hand through Auntie’s, he was smiling happily. ” This wonderful woman here has agreed to marry me” .

I could see the gigantic ring which had belonged to my mother, sorry, the late Jennifer Nwosu on her finger. Linda was trying her best to keep the frown marring her face away. She choked on the food in her mouth and went into fits of coughing.

” Dad isn’t that the ring that was stolen?’ I asked.

” Yes we recovered it back. Maggie had worn it to the office but somehow it had slipped off her finger and that girl stole it.” he said.
I looked at my aunt in surprise but she lowered her gaze.
” I thought Linda wore it to the office ” i said in an amused voice.
” I have a right to that ring because it belonged to my mother!” Linda spat out. ” Auntie had even accused me of stealing it when she couldn’t find it, not knowing that it was that Tomi girl! ”

Auntie laughed nervously and cleared her throat. ” You haven’t congratulated us yet”
” Linda who had Tomi arrested?” I asked, ignoring the older woman.
” Why? Auntie of course! She said she had a hunch that Tomi was the culprit, turns out she was right.”

I looked at my aunt and i really saw through her for the first time in my life. Why would she lie to me about Linda? i wondered what other lies she must have told me.