Susan ekerete - S02 E03

3 years ago

Susan ekerete - S02 E03

Read Story: SEASON 2 EPISODE 3

Cherish was confused, but not really bothered about where she was. She had never had reason to doubt her father’s affection for her, so she felt no fear. She had accepted her father’s explanation for why her teacher had not followed them from the airport.“Miss Adeyemi…”“Miss Jennifer Adesina.” Cherish corrected, rolling her eyes dramatically.

Asuquo laughed, “Alright, smarty-pants. Miss Jennifer Adesina had to go and tell your mother you were going to stay with me for a while. You know your mother would be upset if no one tells her.” Asuquolied cheerfully as he quickly wound his jeep through the streets of Uyo.

Cherish considered his claim for a few moments. Why hadn’t he simply called hermother on his phone? She had been surprised when the jeep had moved out of the airport without her teacher and when she looked out the rear windscreen, Miss Jennifer had not looked like she was looking for a taxi. She had been waving at the car in what Cherish assumed was a goodbye, but she wasn’t quite sure. The seven-year old shrugged it away, only onething foremost on her mind.“You promised me ice-cream, daddy! Are we going to get it now?”Asuquo threw a furtive look at the rear-view mirror and Cherish frowned. Who was her father looking for?“Not today, dear. I have to get you to the house now.

Being on the road right now is not really smart.”Cherish folded her arms and pouted. Her father was acting very strange. He usually bought her whatever she wanted. “But youpromised!”Asuquo looked at his daughter, his resolution weakening.

He had never been able to deny her anything. “Alright my baby. But tomorrow. Tomorrow, I will buy you ice-cream, okay? Let’s go home.”Cherish grinned, gratified. “Thank you, Daddy! I love you!”“I love you too, honey. Now sit back in your seat, don’t bounce around.”“Are we going to your house? Do you have food there, because I’m hungry. You can’t cook Daddy, is Mummy coming to see us there? Will she come and cook for me? I miss her jollof rice. Ghana jollof rice had vegetables inside.” The little girl made a face. “I told them it was fried rice but they would not hear.”Asuquo laughed. “Ah, see? You’re a smart girl, just like your father. You know what i call Ghanaian jollof rice? Jealous rice!”The laughter of father and child filled the jeep and for a moment Asuquo missed the days when life was simpler and it was just him with Susan and their daughter. He wondered why everything had gone sour; selfishly forgetting that he was mostly to blame for everything, choosing instead to put the blame squarely on hi sex-wife’s shoulders.“There will be food at home, and don’t be afraid, I am not the one who cooked it. My friend, who you will soon meet, cooked it.”“Your friend?”“Yes. You can call her Aunty Grace.” Asuquo said, smiling. “She’s daddy’s new friend.”Cherish mulled over his words, a tiny frown appearing on her forehead. She wasa smart child, so she knew when parents got divorced they sometimes met new people. She wondered if this new aunt was someone new in her father’s life “Will she be my new mummy?”Asuquo winced, thinking of the portly woman whose house he was driving to. She was merely a means to an end; he intended to hang around her long enough to let the police forget about him. It also helped that she was rich and lonely. The last thing on his mind was settling down with a woman who was old enough to be his mother.“Oh no no, my baby. She’s just an aunt, that’s all.”Cherish nodded, and watched the trees pass by for a silent minute before turning to her father again. “I missed Mummy when I went to Ghana. We talked every day. When can I see her?”A frown wrinkled Asuquo’s forehead and he pushed down his impatience, but his voice had an edge to it when he responded. “You’re having a holiday with me. Mummy will see you later.”Cherish heard the impatient tone in her father’s voice and decided to keep quiet and stop asking questions. She knew her father loved her, but she also knew he got angry quickly, usually at her mother. She didn’t want him to get angry and shout at her too.If he shouts at me, I will run away to my mummy. She thought stubbornly, eyes scanning the signboards they were drivingpast. She couldn’t pronounce most of the words she was seeing, so she gave up. Butwhen her father’s jeep pulled up to a high fence and he leaned on his car horn, she stared intently at the house address, memorising it. She was curious about where they were. It would be smart to know.

Just in case she didn’t like the new Aunty Grace, or her father shouted at her or she missed her mummy and decided she wanted to go to her.Just in case.