The Puzzle Episode 9 – 10
The Puzzle
Episode 9
ELIZ AND DANIELLA*
Somewhere in Texas, U.S, Eliz and her daughter, Daniella sat at the dinner table. It was 7:40pm in the evening. Just as they were about to start eating, the door bell rang. “Oh crap!” Eliz nearly scre-med. “I don’t want a visitor right now!”
“Why mom?” Daniella asked innocently.
“Cos I’m so tired, would faint if I didn’t hit the bed right after dinner…” The bell rang again. “Who the hell could that be?” she said in a whisper as she moved to the door.
“Who is it?” She barked, her annoyance reflecting in her voice.
“It’s Helena,” came the voice from outside.
“What? I can’t believe this, Helena?!” Shouted Eliz.
“Oh yeah, silly girl, open this f-cking door, I’m freezing out here!” She yelled.
Eliz opened the door and there stood her childhood friend and close confidant.
“Oh my God! When did you arrive? How did you get my address? I don’t believe this, what a surprise!” Eliz kept ranting on as she hugged tightly her friend of over 25 years . They were so happy to see each other again for the first time since Eliz left Nigeria for the US. Eliz soon forgot about her tiredness.
She called out to Daniella to come and say hello.
“Oh my God! My baby is now a big girl,” Helena exclaimed.
“It’s been a long time you know, Eliz replied. “But how come you didn’t tell me you were coming? How and where did you get my address?” Eliz asked further.
“Calm down babe, won’t you even ask me to sit? Where are your manners?”
“Oh, please sit, I’m so sorry, I am just too excited. In fact come and join us on the dining table”
“Okay dear, thank you.” Helena replied “my coming is meant to be a surprise,” she said as they all settled down to eat.
“Wow! I am so happy to see you Helena. When exactly did you arrive?”
“Last night. I put up at Uncle Richærd’s place.”
“I can’t believe this, so you have been in town since last night. If I had bumped into you today, I would have thought it was your ghost!”
They all laughed.
“So how are you doing Eliz?” Helena asked.
“I am so good and you?”
“Well, I’m doing great as you can see…”
They chatted on and on for several minutes, gossiping and gisting about different issues and people.
Daniella soon slept off in Helena’s arms where she had curled up earlier.
“So, how long are you gonna stay in Texas?” Eliz asked after she had taken Daniella to her room and settled back on the couch with her friend.
“In two months from now, I would have been back to Niger oh. I beg, no place like home. I wonder how you people survive in a place where local delicacies are such a luxury to afford and where cold can ‘kill person.’
See enh? Eba, fufu and Ogbono soup are very important in my own life oooo”
“Silly girl” Eliz laughed.
“Back to sender” Helena replied giggling.
“Eeenh! Eliz,” Helena called out suddenly. “What are your plans babe, is your decision to leave Michael final? Won’t you have a rethink?”
Eliz immediately went sober. “I don’t want to go back to him, he’s such a cheat and a liar, I regret ever marrying him in the first place…”
“But why don’t you at least let him know what he did wrong, the reason why you left him?” Helena interrupted her.
“Well, I decided to let sleeping dogs lie since I have my own secrets too you know, let us both live in our separate worlds okay? My daughter is not complaining neither am I. Even if Daniella insists on seeing her Dad, I can agree and arrange to do that for her once in every year. Anything asides that, I don’t want to hear.
But you are a cheat and a liar too Eliz, considering the fact that you also have your own secrets and faults, why don’t you just do this for the sake of your daughter? She needs a father figure in her life.”
“Helena, forget about it, I will never go back to him, and that is final okay? Let’s talk about something else.”
“Alright babe, it is your life, you have a right to your own decisions. I was only bothered about your loneliness, it’s not too good for a woman of your age. You are in your early thirties babe, how are you coping with your body’s s€×ual demands? I hope you haven’t been going out with different men?”
“Me? God forbid!” Eliz replied, “you know I can be really choosy when it comes to men, I don’t even have their time here at all. There are vibrators in the market, I already bought one for myself and I make use of it whenever my body is on fire.
“Chai, baaaad girl,” You are really a bad girl and I hate you for that.” Helena replied.
“I hate you too, Eliz said, “the feeling is mutual.”
They both burst out laughing as they made their way to the bedroom to retire for the night.
Episode 10
MY IDEAL MAN*
So, we discovered in episode 8 that Rose concluded in her heart to try all her best to avoid Michael. Let’s see what happens next.
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When Rose got to her daughter’s school, she alighted from the car, she said a quick ‘thank you’ and bade him farewell. But before she turned to go, Michael came down from the car, walked to Rose and said, “I know you are a married woman, Rose but permit me to say this: “in all my years as a doctor, you seem to be the most beautiful woman I have ever come across . When I saw you this morning, I thought you have never had a child but now that you talk of a daughter, I concluded in my heart that you are wonderfully made! Your husband is the luckiest man on earth. Please keep it up, you look so smart and beautiful beyond description.”
By the time Michael finished his lines, Roseline was totally flattered. She couldn’t explain why this was happening to her, probably because she has been emotionally starved for a long time. She couldn’t find the right words to respond, she only smiled shyly as Michael went back to sit behind the wheels again. Before he started the car, he handed out his complimentary card to Rose.
“Please take this, you may need my medical attention anytime anyday, don’t hesitate to call. Take care Angel”
Roseline stood on the s₱0t, staring at the vanishing figure of the Toyota car
in,side her, she wished he hadn’t gone yet. She suddenly wished she wasn’t married yet, not to talk of marrying a cold husband like David. That feeling of loneliness came over her again. Then, she remembered why she was there, she sighed and quickly turned to enter her daughter’s school. She apologized to the teacher for coming late, while both mother and daughter headed for the hospital.
“Where are we going mom?” Debbie asked
“To see grandma, at the hospital sweetheart, she’s a bit ill…” She replied her daughter absent mindedly, her mind was still busy thinking about the encounter she had with Michael…
They finally got home around 08:45pm leaving grandma with her house help to watch over her for the night, so they could prepare for the following day.
After they ate dinner and Debbie had gone to bed, Roseline laid on the bed she shares with her husband. The devil started working on her mind. It’s been a while her husband made love to her, she somehow felt the coldness that night.
Her thoughts went back to Michael, there was just something about the guy that ar-uses her feelings so much. It’s not as if he was more handsome than her husband anyway but what turns a woman on is beyond mere good looks. Michael has those words that will make a woman stick to him.
“His wife must be very lucky.” Rose thought then paused in her thoughts… “But wait, I didn’t even notice if he had a ring on his finger. Could it be that he isn’t married yet?”
Her phone rang, jolting her from her thoughts, it was her husband. She checked out the caller and hissed.
“He’s just calling back since morning. It’s already 10:15pm, is that what a good husband should do?” The phone kept ringing. She refused to pick the calls, hissing again and again, but because of her husband’s persistence, she finally picked up.
She sounded so cold and harsh, “is this when you should be calling enh? Since morning, you didn’t bother to check on us, is the meeting that tough and has it just ended?” She went on and on.
David removed his phone from his ear to check out the number he dialled again, it was his wife of course. “What happened to this woman?” He thought then spoke to her
“I am sorry Rose, I had a very busy day and besides, if I didn’t call, you should have at least called too.” He didn’t know he just added petrol to fire.
Eeeeeenhhh? I should do the calling, then you start cutting the calls that you are in a meeting or in the midst of a crucial discussion, I don’t have time for all that…”
“Roseline! Are you sure you are alright?”
“Definitely, do I sound like I am sick? And that reminds me, grandma had an accident today and she’s been hospitalized, though she’s getting better.”
“Jesus!” David exclaimed, “I am so sorry about that, please let me know when you are with her so I can speak with her.”
“No problem, I have to sleep now,” Rose replied, still sounding cold.
“Alright, David replied, sleep well but I also wanted to tell you that I won’t be back till four days from now, I want to check on one of my clients at Benin before coming back to Lagos…” His wife’s voice interrupted him,
“If you like, stay there forever, it’s not like I need you anyway, I’m used to the loneliness”
“Roseline! What is wrong with you tonight? God forbid that I stay forever, what kind of statement is that? I reject it in Jesus name.”
“Whatever,” Rose muttered and disengaged the call, switching off her phone immediately.
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So, Roseline is tired of David, she had fallen for Michael. The story is just starting sha, stay tuned patiently.