TEMI {MINE} Episode 9 Written by Anthony Temiloluwa
It was on monday morning, Eliza woke up a little bit startled. Even a blind man would notice the happiness hung up on her face. A feeling of fulfilment was dilated all over her body. She tried to recall the events of what happened days gone by and it became dawn on her that it wasnt a dream that she had gotten her dream job.
Eliza had been apppinted for the post of General Manager at Diiamond Foods & Consumptions. A company that specialised in the production of different types of raw foods.
Eliza knew her appointment there had been as a result of her late father’s name coupled with the vast education and skills she possessed. Not even after when the recruitment pannel got awareness that she had to travel abroad for her masters. Or her name which echoes kept ringing a bell on each of the recuirment officer’s ear. Eliza Badejo.
Badejo was a name that would refuse to get faded even after 100 decennary due to it attached goodwill. Ishola Badejo was the father of Elizbeth Badejo. A man known as great altruist with a whole lot of charitable works trailing after him. He was also an Engineer, the proffesion that enriched his pocket with copious abundance even enough to place large volume of students in inadequancy to source themselves to school. Countless of people in hapless situations had enjoyed been the recipient of goodwill from Ishola. The orphans, the disables and a whole lot of organization had received financial favour from him. And though he always pleaded to remain annoymous but the enthusiasm in most of the beneficiaries wouldnt make them keep their mouth shut. As they shambled everywhere chanting the name of Ishola.
But as it is always said “Good people die while the bad once stay alive” Ishola died in a plane crash when he was returning to where he just finished executing a contract giving to him. He died a cold death with no traces of his body as it all blended with the ashes.
Eliza was 5yrs old when he lost her father, a naive girl who never
knew the meaning of the what happened then. Busayo Badejo, Eliza’s
mother and wife to late Eng. Ishola Badejo had been the one taking care
of Eliza, their daughter. And also, she had been the sole signatory to
her husband’s account.
The account she had diligently managed while she spent the proceeds on vital business that in return yielded substantial output.
Eliza had also grown up to enjoy the goodish her father’s name had regorged. On many occasions, favours from unknown outsiders had stomped on her whenever they got awareness of the daughter of who she was.
That was actually the situation when she got her first job with Diiamond Foods & Consumption. One of the recuirment officers who had happened to also benefited from Ishola Badejo’ charitable works when he was alive was the one who tried to convince his other colleagues into appointing Eliza.
Eliza’s first day at her working place went well. She was introduced to other boad members, who welcomed her with all clear authenticity. She was assigned a new a new office with a secretary. Like a new staff that she was, she tried to blend with the system of her new company. A feeling of a fulfillment enveloped her.
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“Hello mother” Eliza greeted her mother as she hurried out from the parking lot where she had expertly parked her Toyota Camry. The parking lot contained 3 others vehicles covered with a tarp, a Toyota Ventra 2013 model dominated with ash colour, black Range Rover also and a golden Infinity Jeep. The infinity jeep had been Busayo front-runner, Dami already knew that cause he didnt seem to tamper with other vehicles whenever he was set to driving out her madame out. She seldom went out with other vehicle.
“Welcome daughter” Busayo replied her daughter “How was the first day at work?”
“Well its just how its expected to be” Eliza replied sounding a bit stressed up due to her hectic day at work.
“OK. So quickly fresh up before having your dinner. I prepared your favourite for you” Eliza heard those words emitted from her mother’s mouth with great astonishment. She couldn’t believe her eardrum anymore, she actually paused as if to detect if her ear had lost uy validity. For her mum to greet and interact with such type of impassion, then her ear had expired. The last time her mom ever talked to that way was decennium.
“I i dont … .i dont get you mom” Eliza said while she tried to taut her ear so she could capture her mum’s next words again.
“daughter, i asked you to freshen up and have your dinner i prepared for you.” Busayo said again with slight chortle curving her mouth. She knew her daughter intentionally wanted to confirm what she just said.
“Definately my ear is still valid” Eliza thought. She tried to reason while her austere mother had now turned out to be lenient. Anyways, she wouldnt want to bother herself on that, only time will tell.
“Ok mum, that’s sweet of you” Eliza replied her mother as she hopped on the stairs to her room.
Dami was the only thing her heart want to eat right now, she thought to herself as she hadnt seen him today, and he had not called her or texted her. Something that was so unlikely of him. What could be happening ?
TEMI {MINE} Episode 10
Immediately she got to her room, she groped for her phone in her black Fashioné hand bag that melded her with her white blouse on ash skirt that stopped above her knee.
“The number you dialled is switched off” was the response she got when she dialled the number. She stood with left hand akimbo while her right hand waftured with her phone held tightly in her hand, making it seems she was trying to hand-fan herself with the phone.
“But Dami where are you now?” The question dropped from her mouth like there was some sort of answering machine waiting to answer the question. Alas! There was none.
With eyes furrowed, she wondered where Dami could be. The last time they saw each other was yestyday night, she had tippytoed to his apartment because she wouldnt want her mum to even take a glimpse of her.
Which afterwards they spent some romatic time spruced with excessive hot kisses and smooching which might have eventually lead to s*x between them but they were able to halt the intense feeling of ecstasy and quickly secluded it.
She had however informed him she would be resuming work today, also letting him know that for some pending time their communication now would be shifted mainly to their mobiles as there would not be enough time to see often again.
But since morning, she hadn’t caught a glance of his call or probably a missed one. While she had tried calling him countless number of time and she had gotten same countless response from the network operator. It took perfection before she could hover all her anxieties while at work today. She felt a part of her was absent.
“What is hapening Dami? Where are you?” She thought again as worries reposed on her face. She couldnt decipher what was happening. She needed to get to his appartment to get clue of what was happening. She quickly ripped off her clothe and hustled out of her room to Dami’s apartment.
She got to his room in a jiffy refusing to be fazed by her mother presence in the sitting room. She didnt even care if she was being followed by her. All her attention was focused on getting to Dami’apartment like that would puzzle out the mystery shelvering Dami’s absence.
She met his entrance ajar and tried to throw all her body inside. “Dami that she knows would never leave his entrance opened”. She thought. “Whenever he goes out his entrance remains closed”
Dami’s room was a little bit clumsy with a perceptible view of a raspy breadspread hovering some part of the family size bed. A blue wall hanger stay glued to the wall above the bed with varity of shirts hanged on it with some plastic anchors. An Ox fan sitted on the floor at left flank of the room had never been tired of blowing the cool breeze inside room as it was not awared of the absence of it owner. Of cause the breeze made some of the shirts and the bedspread ruffled in the air.
Eliza shifted her view towards Dami’s shoe-stand that also stood proudly on the well tiled floor, also enjoying the remaining space left off by the bed.
Eliza stood in bewildernment with two hands akimbo, her eyes stay glued to the shoe-stand. Dami’s casual slippers was still lying on it. Even the one he termed his *work-shoe* was also sleeping beside the casual ones. She raised her head to found his casual tops and belt lying on the bed too. Even if he was sent an errand by her mother, he would at have put on his *work-shoe* or casual one.
All his shirts were hanged up on the wall hanger. Eliza took time to noticed that it was only an underwear and jean trouser he wore the previous night was the only stuff missing.
It was so apparent to her that her mother had not sent him on an errand, because if she had, his shoe wouldn not be sleeping comfortably on the shoe-stand. But he was not at home too, yet, all her casual tops were also standing comfortably on the wall hanger at the merrit of the anchors
Eliza swooshed out a loud breath with her jaw drooped. She tried to waive aside the thought grouching on her.Could her austere mother sudden changed to lenity have something to do with Dami’s disappearance ? Has he been kidnapped ? Or sent and errand ? But if he was sent an errand he wouldnt go out with only a pair of jean and underwear, he was not even on shoe or slippers and he would have called. Her mind seemed too blurry to answer all the questions gushing in.
Her mother was the only one that could have cleared all her doubts, but she was not ready to go meet her. As much as she wanted answers to Dami’s mystry, she was not ready to stoop low to asked her mother. That is if she was ready to talk to her on Dami’ issue, to her it was an aswered prayer.
Hot perspiration had started emanating from her sweat glands. Today that ought to be one of her best as she emerged as the General Manager of a respected company eventually turned out to be rancid.
Her baby was missing. her joy was gone. Hope this will not be the end of her life ? “Where are you my baby?” Eliza wept as she clutched tightly to Dami’s pillow, while sitting oh his bed
To Be Continued…
