S.I.M.S Episode 26 – 27 by Opeyemi O. Akintunde

S.I.M.S Episode 26

(STEPPING INTO MAGGIE’S SHOE)
©️ Opeyemi Ojerinde Akintunde

It took me about 2 hours 30 minutes to get to my parents’ house. I was grateful that it was already dark as that was able to keep my identity hidden from people. The alone time gave me space to think about my life and the next step to take.

Apostle wanted a divorce already, but was that good for me? Was I not going to be seen as the one with the problem?

That will be 2 Husbands in less than 2 years… No one would believe I was just the victim in both cases.

My guess about what people would say was actually proved right when I got to my mum’s place as she didn’t believe a thing I said…
“ Happiness, you better say the truth as to why your husband sent you out of the house!, with the way you are dressed, are you sure you were not prostituting yourself with some boy and the Apostle caught you?” My mother said

“ Prostituting myself?, Mummy!, even when I was single, did you see boys around me? I just told you the simple truth, Apostle is sleeping with a church member, who I tried chasing away with a cutlass today…That got Apostle angry and he locked me out of the house” I said to my mother who was obviously not convinced as she continuously raised her nose to indicate she was not buying my lie…

“ So you are telling me, your husband who is a man of God is sleeping around?, Happy have you been using your pills of recent, are you sure you are not hallucinating?, When last did you see your therapist?” Mum was saying…

That was it for me, there was nothing I was going to say that would convince my mother, so there was no point trying anymore. I left her and was heading towards my room…

“ Where to?” My mum asked

“ To my room, I need to rest, I trekked here” I said

“ Unfortunately, you have no room here again, I don’t have a space here, you need to go back to your husband’s house now”

“ Mummy, what is this?, mummy please I am not ready for any drama, I just told you my husband locked me out!”

I noticed my mother picked her phone and was dialing a number. It rang at first, but after about 3 times. The call was dropped. Mother kept calling but the person was not picking up.

“The only condition I can let you stay in this house is if I hear from the Apostle himself” my mother said

“Well, he is not picking…” my father who had been a silent observer said…

“ Then I will get to her house tonight…Let’s go” My mother said as she eyed my father

My mother picked up her car key and was on her way out. It was obvious I had to go with her, her word was final.

“ Ok Mum, but please let me have a change of dress, I feel really dirty and sweaty”

“ Make it fast” She said as she went out towards her car

I rushed into the room I lived as a single hoping to have a change of outfit since I still had some old clothes there. I Freshened up in a haste and searched through my locker for a dress.

As I was rummaging through my clothes, my old Diary fell. It was a diary where I wrote my dreams, wishes and fantasies. I sat down and skipped through till I got to a page that tore my heart….I wrote it on one of those days I was taken over by my Greed…

“ I just wish Pastor Maggie would just die, so I could be Apostle Ray’s Wife. I wish I was Apostle’s wife, where people would refer to me as MaMa, I would be able to travel around the world, waving at people, I would have a private jet, people will give me gifts of cars, money, e.t.c. I hope to have three kids with him and travel round the world.
God please, Pastor Maggie is not wearing her shoe well, I just wish I was the one in her shoe”….

I dropped the diary like it was a plague, just then Mum came in…

“ The car is not starting, We will have to take public transport”

“ Public transport at past 9, Mum it is late, we can go tomorrow, Maybe your car not starting is a sign that God doesn’t want us to go…”

“ Indeed… Get dressed and let’s be on our way” Mum said with her bossy tone.

*******************

We had stayed at our bus stop for about 10 minutes before we got a bus. I was really angry at my Mum, so I made sure I didn’t sit close to her, and I didn’t utter a word to her. A woman with three babies (she had placed one at her back and she had carried two in her hands, one on each hand) entered the bus, taking the seat beside me. Out of compassion for her, I offered to help her carry one of the babies who she gladly placed in my hand.

A female evangelist was preaching over the radio about God’s love…

“ It’s not everyone that God loves, God has his favorite” the mother of the babies said as we all were paying attention to the broadcast

“ Aunty, don’t say that, a father loves all his children, and since God is our father, he loves us all” I said to counter what she said

“ Then Why calamity, take for instance look at me. My husband died 2 months ago on the day of delivering these children. He was so excited when He heard I had given birth to a set of triplet, that he went drinking. It was when he was coming to the hospital he drove into the carnal…”

“ Ha!” Everyone in the bus exclaimed

“ So stop saying God loves us” the woman said

“ But what you just said shows that God is not to be blamed in this matter, your husband died because of his own sin, he died out of his error and foolishness. He drove when he was drunk…” a man said from behind

“ But God could have protected him?” She argued

“ My sister, it is well, God will watch over your children, at least part Of God being merciful to you, when your husband destroyed himself, God has given you 3 babies” the man said with no sympathy in his voice

“ I like being truthful…a lot of people blame God for their foolishness” the man said

“ When we act foolishly and get the consequences of such action, we should brace up, accept the consequences and find a way to live with it” the man said…

Suddenly, the woman shouted…

“ Please I need to ease myself, driver stop please…”

The driver hissed and stopped, telling her to make it snappy. The woman dumped her remaining two kids with me, making it three babies on my laps. As they were a handful, I passed the first baby to my Mum who was seated at my back…

The woman rushed into a dark place to avoid been seen while trying to ease herself….

“Madam….Madam, make it snappy, do you have a tanker load of water in your system” the driver shouted

This was about 5 minutes after she left, but no one responded. Someone got down from the bus to call her…

“Madam, Mama Baby, do quick….” the man shouted but he got no response…

The driver got down also and checked for her with this torch, the woman was no where to be found….

At this point, Everyone alighted from the vehicle….

We started searching for her in the dark….

“ Where was this woman who had dumped 3 babies in my hand” I thought in apprehension.

S.I.M.S Episode 27

(STEPPING INTO MAGGIE’S SHOE)
©️Opeyemi Ojerinde Akintunde

It was about 10:30pm and the search party had returned. Everyone except my mum and I had gone in search of the mother of the triplets but no one found her.

When all the passengers came back, it was obvious I had become the mother of the babies…

“ Madam, it’s seems you are now the mother of the triplets” someone said jokingly

The driver asked us to get back into the vehicle, but I couldn’t get back into the bus. Confusion had taken over me, my mother was also confused. We refused to join them in the vehicle, then out of the blues, someone who had recognized me said…

“ Please Ma, are you not Pastor Happy, Apostle Ray’s new wife?” She asked

I nodded in the affirmative

“ Ma, God dropping these babies in your hands is not a mistake, you will be able to take care of them better, I believe they are glorious children…” the young lady had said

The number of “ Really?” That sprang up in the vehicle was uncountable as people started flashing their phone torches to have a good look at my face… They saw it as a miracle and the act of God.

After all the exaltation of God as being a great God, the driver sped off with the other passengers leaving my mother and I at the spot.

“ Mummy, what are we going to do?” I asked Mum

For the first time my mum was short of ideas as she nodded in the negative.

“ Mummy, I think we should go to the nearest police station” I suggested as I knew that was the right thing to do. Mum nodded in the affirmative to indicate her support.

“ But, how do we leave here right now?” My mum asked

“ I don’t know, you see mum, that’s why I told you to get one of these cab apps on your phone… God!, I don’t understand what is happening to my life right now, but just lead me out of all these problems”

At that point,it flashed through my mind, “ MY WISH” to have three kids with Apostle Ray… I almost dropped the two babies in my hand…

“God!, I don’t have the capacity to care for these babies. No, please don’t grant that wish this way…No please, I am sorry for everything I have wished for that is not according to your will…” I said screaming in my heart.

I watched as my mother was dialing a number on her phone…

“ Julie, please come and pick Happy and I at…..”

**************
Aunt Julie had driven us to the nearest police station. We had lodged our complaint and stated the real situation of things… The D.P.O had recognized me as Apostle’s Wife, so he treated me with respect.

After explaining everything to the DPO, his comment furthered dampened my spirit…

“ Ma, I believe these children should be kept with you, if we take these children from you, we will hand them over to the government and this I tell you will not Favour these babies. First they will be seperated and put in different orphanages, Number 2, they may not recieve the kind of care you could have given them. Ma, I suggest you take these children as souls God has just added to your husband’s ministry.”

This comment did not sit well with me, one bit, but my mother as usual jumped to ask

“ So you mean, if we keep the children, there won’t be a problem?”

“ Not at all ma, I will write a letter stating the police is aware of the situation.” He said

My mother jumped up and started dancing…

“ Thank you, Lord, For years I have cried that I had just one child, but in one night, you have given me 3…”

All the necessary statements were taken and together with the babies, I returned to my mother’s house with Aunt Julie…

Early the next morning, my mum came to wake me up that she was going to the shopping mall to get some baby items. You should have seen the excitement on her face, but I guess she was missing something…

“ Mum, are we no longer going to my husbands’ place?”

“ See, forget that, Aunt Julie and I have spoken at length and she has said if half of everything you told me is true, you shouldn’t return back to that Apostle. God has been faithful to you by giving you these children, we will help you nurture them, while you live your life”

I watched my mother in amazement at how inconsistent she was in her decisions, she was always carried away by the situation at hand.

I heard the cries of the babies from the living room. I really wanted to see how they looked like in the daytime. I followed my mum and the sight I saw was beautiful, Mum had taken care of them and had wrapped them in some of her wrappers. They were all girls and they were beautiful…

“ We have given them names” Aunt Julie said in excitement

“ Mary, Martha, Melody” My mother said

“ Okkkkk!” I said laughing

I carried the one whose name was Melody…She was the fairest of them all…

“ She is my favorite too, but she cries a lot, and that is why I gave her the name Melody, I hope she uses that voice of hers to sing beautiful melodies when she grows up” Mum said cheerfully…

Dad walked in and said while switching on the T.V

“ I hope her husband accepts them”

“ If he doesn’t we will keep them”

“ We?” My father asked

“ You and I, can’t we take care of our grandchildren?”

“ Well, let me inform you, I don’t have the strength to start running after little children at my age?”My father said

“ That is not a surprise, you have never had the strength for anything good, the only good thing you have ever produced in this life is Happy and that is because I co produced her with you…” Mum retorted

My Mum’s phone rang, and surprisingly on checking the screen, it was Apostle calling. I looked at my mother who encouraged me to pick up…

“Hello!”

“ Yes “

“ Where are you and what’s this talk about you having three babies?” he said

I was so shocked….

“What… I mean who told you?” I asked

“ Maybe you need to check the NN news station, your face is plastered on the screen and people have been calling me, asking me questions I have no answer to” he said

Without hanging up, I took the remote from my Dad’s hands and changed it to the station Apostle was referring to…

True to his words, my picture was on the screen with the caption…

TRIPLETS FIND NEW HOME….

A lady was the one anchoring the show, as I looked closely at her, her face seemed familiar…

“ The Women literally dumped the babies in Pastor Happy’s hands and thereafter disappeared.” the lady was saying

“ At least, we are grateful she didn’t kill them, obviously from the way you described her, She must have been suffering from depression” the other presenter said…

“ Possibly, Pastor Happy, in case you are watching, I was in the same bus with you last night when the triplets were dropped in your hands, we know God doesn’t make mistakes and I am so sure this is a divine act. It shows you are a good woman and God believes you can take care of those babies. May God strengthen you for this great task, we hope to see them emerge as great vessels in God’s hand…”

I dropped the remote and sat down gently. My Mum’s phone rang again…

“ That was a very good act of yours, I suggest you start coming home, because Co-pastors are calling and wives of general overseers are calling already… They all want to come and see the babies. Soon, I know the press will be here as well… Where are you, so I can ask the driver to come pick you up…”

*************
I returned home and true to Apostle’s Word, our home was filled with visitors. The triplets became the center of focus, because Days later the corpse of the woman was found, as she had committed suicide in the bush…

Men of God came to our home and prayed for the children. People made promises to sponsor their education. Even the United Nations reached out to us as the story went Viral.. All these happened within the space of two months. Apostle was behaving like a proud father. I was seen as a heroine.

However, my joy and pride was short lived. I recieved a strange call.

“ Hello” I said

“ Hi, Pastor Happy, You suddenly have become a heroine all of a sudden without people knowing your wicked past…”

“ Sorry, who is this?”

“ This is Chaba, who you stole Apostle Ray from… Listen, I don’t have much airtime to waste on a wicked soul like you, here is my proposition, you pay me 300 million NAIRA, and I will keep quiet, but failure to do that I will tell the whole world how you poured Acid on your church member’s face in order to Marry the Apostle, plus my own version of how you were the one who murdered Pastor Maggie. That way, they will know you are a beast and those babies shouldn’t be left with you…I will be sending my account details shortly…” Chaba said before ending the call…

To be continued

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