by Adaora O
As soon as he entered the room, everyone stood uneasily, muttering, “Good morning sir”. Chief Utah apologised for not checking in on them these past few days. He explained that he had to travel to Abuja regarding his obvious involvement in the sordid case. It only made sense, since his property served as the collection and dispatch point for the trafficking ring. Though happy to hear about Chinny’s improvement, he warned Dubem not to take his apparent bounce for granted, emphasising his need to take his days one at a time. He glanced at Chinny, muttered that she would be just fine before taking his leave. At the door, he beckoned on Dede who swiftly followed him out.
Chief Utah began, “On returning from Abuja, I reported at the police headquarters as is required of me and learnt of the fire incident.” There could not have been a better cue as Dede confirmed the fire, describing how it razed his entire house to the ground. Awash with sympathy, Chief Utah asked if they had any family to stay with while they thought of ways to pick up their pieces and Dede answered in the affirmative. The chief’s car disappeared in the distance and Dede almost kicked himself. The opportunity to ask for a loan sat on his lap and he let it slip away. How would he face Ama with no answer to their homelessness and mounting debts? The question of whether they were now in the blue or still in the red with the hospital accounts department hung around unanswered. Dede also feared Kika and his family may soon crack under the weight of the burden he suspected they had become.
In the quiet hospital room, Ama busied herself reading the little blue Gideon Bible while Dubem and Ejiofor stared at Chinny’s monitor. Glancing at Dubem, Ejiofor sliced through the silence.
“A kobo for your thoughts?”
The two men never exchanged much in terms of conversation. Dubem let out a dry laugh and told Ejiofor that he would come out badly bruised if he ventured into his head. To that, Ejiofor offered no response. The minute Dede returned, Ejiofor made to take his leave, but his mobile phone began to ring. It was his father. Ejiofor listened to the voice on the other end of the line before offering that he was at the hospital. Afterwards, he handed his phone to a surprised Dede. Lancelot had been trying to reach Dede and had to resort to contacting him through Mr Clarke. He wanted Dede to concentrate on his family and promised that his job waited for his return to the office. Dede expressed his gratitude but decided to follow through with his previous plan to go to the office the following day.
*
Day six after OPS VOID and Ama sat alone in the hospital room since Dede had gone to the office to give a formal report of the reason behind his unplanned absence. He thought it to be the responsible thing to do, his finding good grace with the company Chief Executive Officer notwithstanding. As she wondered when and to where they would leave the hospital, Ama stared at her ever-boisterous daughter lying unconscious in bed, her heart heavy with worry. The doctor said she should be on the way to consciousness. She touched Chinny’s forehead and shook off the fearful thoughts that crowded her mind. Exerting needless energy as she pushed the curtains aside to let in more sunlight, which was no match for her gloom, Ama’s tears began to fall. She concluded they were mapped out to remain at the base of the tower of happiness. Ama had just finished with Chinny’s routine bed-bath when a knock robbed her of the luxury of an extension of her pity party. Chief Utah walked in.
The uneasiness which Chief Utah’s presence emitted filled the room but as was always the case, it dissipated as soon as he flashed his ever-genial smile. “How is she today?” he asked. Ama told him that the machine beep remained the same and that she had still not blinked, even though the doctors had stopped the coma medication, as she referred to it. Chief Utah’s brows creased in worry. And telling Ama that he would be back in a moment, he left the room.
On returning, Chief Utah met Ejiofor and Adaiba in the hospital room. Eating the breakfast they brought did not make Ama’s list of things to do, as she sat brooding. Chief Utah asked to see Dede but on learning that he had left for the office, asked to talk to Ama instead. They stepped out of the room with two pairs of curious eyes boring into the back of their heads. A while after, Ama returned to the room alone. The mask on her face threatened to crack from its tautness. Ejiofor and Adaiba were not sure if the looming crack was due to excitement or agitation. Moments later, Ejiofor left for home. His folks would be back today, and he wanted to be there to welcome them. Adaiba informed her auntie that returning with lunch would be pointless since she adamantly refused to eat any breakfast. Before Adaiba left for home to prepare the dinner her mother was to bring back for Ama later in the evening, she told her that it would also be her mother who would bring breakfast and lunch the next day. Suspecting at once that Adaiba smarted from the rejection of her breakfast, Ama took a few mouthfuls as she asked her why she would not come to brighten her day as usual and sensed a clamming uncharacteristic of her niece. She probed further, and the jolly lady buckled. Adaiba could not tell a lie to save her life. She was grateful nobody ever asked her about her so-called sewing classes. More so, she had deep affections for Ama who nobody assumed served as a major pivot in her aspiration to succeed. She noted in admiration, the difference between her mother and Ama. A difference she realised stemmed from one of them having the will to ride above life’s cruel shenanigans. This difference, as she came to know, was what put the ‘extra’ in the ordinary life of her sweet cousin Chinny.
Petrified at the real reason behind Dubem’s unusual absence this morning and the planned absence of Adaiba and Dubem for the better part of the next day, Ama blamed herself for allowing the flurry of all the events around them to make her forget that the long-awaited GCE interview was scheduled to be held the next day. She listened with growing alarm as Adaiba told her of how Dubem, Ejiofor and herself beseeched the GCE officials to either postpone the interview date or reschedule Chinny’s since she still lay unconscious in hospital. With a small voice, Adaiba told Ama that all their pleas fell like water on the back of a lizard. She confided in Ama about their planned rally, to peacefully demonstrate their position on the proposed day of the interview. Adaiba and a few others planned to boycott the interview in the hope that it would make the GCE officials change their stance.
Though thankful for how much they were sacrificing for Chinny, Ama feared that it may all go wrong. “What if the police get involved? You know, like the other time when the youth demonstrated over the death of that woman and her two children,” Ama said in agitation. As Adaiba assured her that they intended to go quietly and let their placards do the talking, Dede walked in. He responded to Ama and Adaiba’s greetings, dropped the nylon bag he came in with and went straight to Chinny’s side. He touched her forehead, asking Ama if she noticed any change. The slow and resigned shake of his wife’s head sent Dede’s passably happy mood southbound. He stood by the window, silently sipping the bottled water he held and barely looked in Adaiba’s direction when he bade the young lady goodbye as she left for home. He threw the now empty bottle into the trash can and made to return to his unseeing gaze out the window when his eyes caught something. In an instant, he strode to the bedside, his eyes poring over Chinny. Scampering to his side, Ama asked him what the matter was, and Dede swore he thought he saw their child’s eyelids flicker.
It took almost twenty minutes for Dede and Ama to quit peering into Chinny’s face. Their daughter was still unconscious. Dede tried to lighten Ama’s mood by showing her the few items he bought from the market on his way back. Some tops and bottoms for himself, Ama, Dubem and Chinny. As much as they appreciated the clothes Kika and his family provided, Dede figured that they would be more comfortable in their own clothes. There was also a pair of rubber flip-flops for each of them and a multicoloured hairband for Chinny. Somewhere in the corner of Ama’s mind, she was certain that the hairband would either end up at the bottom of Chinny’s box or as a gift to someone, most likely Adaiba. Her daughter preferred less dramatic colours.
The early hours of Friday found Dede and
Ama talking about what next to do. Optimistic that his new job would provide a level of succour, Dede’s only looming cloud was that Chinny’s unconsciousness lingered. Ama began slipping into despondency when she remembered her grand plans to help their financial status. Her farm lay in ruins and hopes of leasing her property to another telecommunications outfit seemed like a mirage. When she told Dede about the GCE interview and the planned rally, Dede became troubled. He thought Dubem should have confided in them. Ama lit up suddenly. She had forgotten all about Chief Utah’s visit yesterday.
“Chief Utah came here yesterday morning. I forgot to tell you. He said he would be leaving town again soon,” Ama began. “He wanted to see you but when I told him you went to the office, he decided to talk to me. He said he would have preferred to talk directly to you but that considering the urgency and delicacy of the issue, he thought it best to convey his proposal to you through me.” Alarm bells went off in Dede’s head at the word ‘proposal’.
“What is it? What proposal again? Honestly, I am tired of these rich people always seeking to trample on the less privileged few. I do not want—”
An at once puzzled and agitated Ama interrupted her husband with the voice of an angry school teacher. “Allow me to land Dede!!! Since when did you use a one-size-fits-all bag for the entire world? The man said he found out that the hospital management, in their frenzy, misunderstood his instructions before he hurriedly left for Abuja. He told them he would be responsible for Dubem and Chinny’s hospital bills. As we speak, a cheque refund of all the payments we have made so far is sitting with the accounts department.”
15
Engulfed by penitence for thinking the worst of Chief Utah, Dede wondered if he would catch him at the villa before he left for his intended trip. Ama knocked her husband’s socks off when she told him the other part of the discussion. “He asked us to move into one of his guest chalets, pending when we can sort ourselves out, if we do not mind. He said that because of the incident at the villa, he now has only one cook, one cleaner, one driver and one security guard. The villa is bare and too quiet for his liking. This is like a dream Dede!!! I could not contain myself… But, I thanked him and told him I would check with you,” Ama finished, the look of uncertainty etched on her face as she searched Dede’s star-struck eyes.
Unable to contain the bubble any longer, Dede began to do something between a foxtrot and atilogwu – a traditional spirited dance from his ethnic group. Overwhelmed with gratitude, he stopped momentarily, took Ama in his arms and began to sway in rhythm to the beep of the machine attached to their daughter. From the warm wetness on his left shoulder, Dede sensed Ama crying but did not fret because he knew she cried for joy. Life had dealt them a few ruthless blows. Blows that almost robbed him of his reasoning and Ama of her sweet soul. Blows that made them almost lose their son, that still threatened to steal their priceless jewel from them. Yes, there have been blows. There were still blows but surely, they were being handed cushions so plush that they made the pain of the blows begin to feel more like mere shoves. In a surge of overwhelming gratitude, Dede stopped dancing and clasping his eyes shut, prayed.
I do not deserve this… I do not. I know I do not. I asked for a twig, but you gave me a boat. I am sorry for not living up to your expectations of me, but I am thankful. Thank you God for forgiving our sin of bitterness, of thinking life consisted only of what we could do on our own in the way we thought best… Thank you for the signposts you keep giving us to show that you can change our drumbeats to any tempo you like. Thank you because now more than ever, we know that Chinny will be well and that…
Dede paused for a heartbeat but continued,
and… and that everything will be fine. Help us to always remember that you are the one who beats our drum… the one who dictates the tune. In Jesus’ name.
Dede and Ama chorused Amen.
*
At half-past seven in the morning, a nurse knocked to inform Ama and Dede of the medical director’s request to see them. Sensing their worry at leaving Chinny alone in the room, the nurse offered to stay with her till they returned.
“There is some news,” the medical director informed them. All their medical bills had been paid.
“We are aware that Chief Utah cleared the bills in excess of 150,000 Naira, but we prefer to wait till our daughter is discharged to confirm exactly where we are with the accounts department,” Dede said. The director shook his head smiling as he informed them of the Federal Government’s interest in the case and of how in a twist of events, they decided to take over their hospital bills. He continued, his voice shaking with excitement, “We informed Chief Utah at once and asked him to come for a reimbursement, but he said the refund should be made to you. So, Mr and Mrs Ona, there is a sum of 355,000 Naira as a refund with our accounts department, waiting to be claimed. But of course, we can arrange something if you decide to subscribe to our medical insurance…” The director’s proposition received a good-natured decline even as Ama and her husband expressed their unabashed gratitude to who? The Federal Government? The director? Chief Utah? Divine providence? Or God? Quite frankly, the medical director did not care who their gratitude went out to. He had an idea of how they felt. The joy stamped on their faces was infectious.
Dede, who before now thought that all he had to his name after he withdrew the part payment for the hospital bill came to some hundreds shy of 50,000 Naira, could not keep his excitement on a leash. They left the doctor’s office walking on clouds. Still bubbling with excitement when they got back to the room, they thanked the nurse who stayed with their daughter while they met with the medical director. As the nurse left the room, a doctor and a different duty nurse breezed in to wheel Chinny away for another batch of tests.
With the GCE result defence interview scheduled for today, Ama picked at her breakfast of milk and bread, thinking about the planned rally. Dede doubted that the demonstration would yield much and prayed the children came to no harm. But he, unlike his wife, dug into his mini loaf with gusto. Ama suspected that the funds injection they had just received was the cause of his unmistakably good appetite. Gusto or not, Dede did not miss the faraway look in his wife’s eyes and asked what troubled her. She blurted, “What if all this is a ruse?”
Lost, Dede asked, “All what a ruse?”
Ama continued, her eyes brimming, “A trick, a ploy to get us prepared for the worst. What if all the blessing thrown our way through this entire experience is a ploy to reduce the pain of the biggest blow? What if Chinny does not pull through this and—” Dede cut her off with the sharpness of a newly crafted blade. He warned her to continue being double-minded and risk receiving nothing further. Pulling his frayed nerves together, Dede tried for encouragement.
“Ama, do not allow your mind to fight you. It is man’s greatest known enemy. Our child will be fine. I choose to see this cup as half full. She will pull through this,” he ended, feeling a tad sorry for his now tear-stained and subdued-looking wife.
The scuttling outside drew Dede’s curious legs and opening the door, he peered out to find two nurses running off in the opposite direction. They stopped to speak to a male nurse who screeched, “Are you sure? Okay,” and ran off while the two nurses returned to where they were coming from. Dede recognised one of them as the duty nurse who wheeled Chinny out for her test and told Ama so over his shoulder. As they made to pass by, he asked for his daughter. The two nurses looked at one another in uncertainty, shook their heads, mumbling as they scurried past. Something looked wrong and by now, Ama stood next to her husband, looking anything but comfortable.
Urgent steps carried them towards the test room that held their child. It had been over an hour and a half since Chinny had gone in. Dede knocked, demanding to see his daughter but a doctor said they were yet to conclude the tests and Ama began to wail. Something did not sit right. Another doctor came out of the test room and respectfully asked them to go back
into the hospital room to wait. After what seemed like a truck load of appeal-garnished coercion, Ama agreed to be ushered back to Chinny’s room but Dede remained obstinate in his refusal to move away from the locked doors.
Heavy in heart, Ama knelt on the floor of Chinny’s hospital room, plunging face down on the bed that once accommodated her daughter. Her sobs could be heard down the hall. She restrained herself from heading back to Dede as she pulled at the sheets in anguish and let out primitive torture-cloaked groans. “God, I begged you. I begged you ooo. I begged you. Hei, hei, after everything. Oh oh! Oo! My child, Chinny!!! God, I begged. I begged…” Her heart threatened to rip out of her chest. Twenty minutes later, Ama still lay sprawled on her daughter’s bed crying but the sound of the door creaking open made her turn around.
Dede bounced in with stars in his eyes. “She is awake, she is awake, Chinny… she is up!!!” Dede screamed at his confused wife. Ama opened her mouth to ask if Dede saw her with his own eyes as a nurse came in behind him with a wheelchair-bound and weak but conscious Chinny.
Ama wanted to run to her child’s side but she faltered in her steps and stood rooted to the spot. Chinny’s eyes looked terribly weak. Her head felt as cold to Dede’s touch as the sound of her voice when she said, “Nne’m, I am fine. Why are you crying?” It was all Ama needed as she flung her arms over Chinny, who flinched in pain. Dede managed to fight off the tears threatening to spill from his eyes.
Overjoyed for the Onas, the entire hospital staff on duty did their best to make Chinny as comfortable as possible and by 4:00 pm, after having sipped only on water, which she could swear was at least a gallon, Chinny received a reward of a warm bowl of custard, laced with honey and milk. Nobody had brought any lunch for Dede and Ama, but they did not mind as they appeared content gazing at their sweet daughter. They answered with enthusiasm all the questions Chinny threw at them save for the one regarding when they would leave for home. “The doctor has to discharge you first,” came Dede’s clipped reply. Violet arrived with pounded yam and bitter-leaf soup for lunch and made no effort to hold back her tears on seeing a conscious Chinny, almost in her usual happy mood. She called Kika instantly to tell him the good news. Further adding to the happy mood, Violet told the Onas that Dubem and Adaiba called her mobile phone earlier to say they were fine and on their way back.