Checkmate Episode 8 (By Adeyoola Ojemola)

Averting her gaze from Joshua and returning it to look at Theresa, Daniella knew something was really wrong with this young lady. She knows that their ages are not so far apart so she can outrightly call her that young but something about her feels like she should be protected.

 

But from what? Why was she crying and eating at the same time? How serious or difficult could her problems be? What can be that devastating? Did she lose someone? Was she kidnapped and sort of escaped?

 

Daniella was eager to know this sister Theresa. What a fine name. Or should I name little-P Theresa? She laughed within her, not remembering for a moment what Joshua had shared with her during the day.

 

‘Sister Theresa, please share with me what troubles you so much. I might be able to help you out or simply pray with you if I don’t know what to do either. I am sure Daddy will not ignore two daughters when they pray in agreement’, Daniella encouraged. 

 

 

Theresa, knowing this woman is surely part of God’s plan for her rescue, she knew she had to open up to her. But then, how far will this woman be willing to shield her? How I wish Mummy Ojo was in the country at the moment! she exclaimed within her.

 

Taking a deep breath, she started ‘Hmm! I don’t know how to begin, ma. I came into this big town some four years thereabout. I came here to work for a woman who owns a big salon. You may have heard of TEMS-BEAUTY. I am or was a hair stylist in her shop.

 

I worked there until yesterday. I believe God has blessed my hands. I am told I make very beautiful hair-dos and since I even started working for Mama T, I became better. 

 

I know and I am confident that I have served her faithfully because she has been a fair woman. She is not all that nice but she is one that likes to be fair and she condones no dishonesty. Most of the customers prefer that I work on their hair whenever they come around.

 

Sometimes even when I am busy with someone else, they would wait and take turns. They prefer me that much. When I go for home service, the price my boss charges is four times the usual price. We would go together before but after about a year when I had been working with her, she would send me alone while she went off somewhere else.

 

 I knew that some other co-hair stylists were jealous of me but I did not allow that to make me dislike them or treat them badly. God would always discipline me in some way when I do that. So to avoid God’s rebuke, I always check my heart for pride.

 

 

Should I slip, I always make it a point of duty to repent.

 

Sometimes, they would treat me harshly but God has been helping me to be at peace with them. Can you believe that they sometimes will spoil hair making equipment in the salon and to escape Mama T’s punishment, they will pin it on me.

 

During such frustrating times, I would run to God that I wanted to leave and He would tell me, not yet. Sometimes, Mama-T will overlook it, some other time, I had to pay for it. 

 

Sometimes, when a customer calls to book an appointment with me through Mama T or comes to the salon to make their hair and my boss offers to make it. The customer may decline and opt for me instead. If I were busy, they go as far as choosing to wait and take a turn.

Some of those times, I find Mama T giving me the dirty look.  I have prayed hard and long sometimes, telling God I really want to leave. Each time, He will say, ‘Not yet’. 

 

I live with a sister from my hometown. She brought me to work with Mama-T. We both learnt hairstyling from the same woman. How I miss that woman. I have been living with Bimbo since I moved here. She has been a wonderful sister to me.

 

Every time I am getting those jealousy reactions from colleagues at work, she always encourages me. We have often shared talks about how we would leave Mama-T someday and we will have a place of our own. We lived together, ate from the same pot, went to work together, sometimes returned together, if we were at the salon at the same time. She is practically the family I have here. She is just about 2 years older than I am.

 

She will always refer to me as her sister. People believe her because we wear similar outfits at least once a week. We are that close. Until about a month ago. I knew something was off with her when we were returning home that day. She was the one who would usually go make hair-do for this woman in some estate.

 

 

The woman liked hair-do with threads and that is Bimbo’s specialty. She is very good and her styling is impeccable. But this time around, the woman wanted a new loom as her daughter was getting married so Mama-T asked that we go together while I do the hair-do.

 

Getting there, we met the woman and while I was making the hair, the woman was reading a book which I had read before.

She seemed to be in some book club. So she was conversing with a fellow member on the phone about her opinion on some part of the book.

 

After she hung up, I passed a comment on the book regarding her opinion.

 

That was it!

 

We began to discuss the book at length.

 

I even shared from some of the other books the writer had written which I have read, gave her some recommendations and all.

 

In her wonder, she asked me if I attended a university.

 

I said no but that I loved to read widely.

 

She asked where I had access to such books as they sometimes had to be pre-ordered. I told her from someone whom I make hair for and had a huge home library. 

 

I did not know her son was in the bigger sitting room and was hearing all our discussions. Just as we were about rounding off, he came in and engaged me too on a particular book. I had actually read the prequel and not the sequel.

 

Right there he gave me the sequel to the book and the woman was so happy that she said she would always request for me from there on so we can discuss books together.

 

I simply laughed it off while looking at Bimbo, my sister. I expected to see her joining us in laughing but I saw a look in her eyes that I had never seen before. I felt a shiver run down my spine!  The son got my phone number as well as the mother.

 

We were tipped generously as we left. 

 

But as we left, I tried to gist about the woman and her son with Bimbo, I simply wanted to make light of the situation and assure her that I was not going to steal her cherished customer.

 

 

Bimbo only kept grunting her monosyllabic answers and comments. I thought that  by the next day we would be fine but that was not it.

 

 

Mama-T was invited for the wedding and she had decided to go with Bimbo initially but the woman requested for me as well. She wanted to show me to her book-club. So Mama-T went with the both of us. The woman treated me so specially.

 

She practically moved me alone from sitting with Mama-T and Bimbo and sat me with her book-club members at the reception so that they could all engage me. They were all people of timber and caliber.

 

Just to mention ma, the woman’s son also brought a chair to sit very closely with me. He kept making chit-chats with me and even introduced me as a friend to some of his own friends!

 

At some point, that whole party was overwhelming!

 

I did not know that enmity against me was growing seriously  within Bimbo.

 

I found out about it yesterday.

 

 

A customer came over to make her hair some five days ago. She forgot one of her bags in the salon. She came back for her three days ago. Upon searching it, it was found that a box of jewelry was missing from it.

 

The woman came with policemen yesterday and since only five stylists were around yesterday, two had been absent for some 2 weeks due to family issues.

 

Mama-T said that our homes and properties should be searched and whoever it was found with should be arrested and tried in court for stealing.

Off to our houses.

 

Since four policemen and two soldiers came with the woman, a soldier and a policeman went off to Mama-T’s place.

 

The other three girls had one soldier and one policeman follow them. The other two policemen went with Bimbo and I to our place. 

 

We stood outside with a policeman while the other searched.

 

Soon, the one inside called for the other. I noticed Bimbo’s restlessness but I thought it was just due to the situation at hand. The two men showed up at the door and raised a poly bag up.

It was mine.

I store my underwear in it.

From that bag, a beautiful pink box was lifted and there was some jewelry I had never seen in my life in it!

 

My first thought was, ‘Bimbo framed me!’.

My first instinct was ‘run!’

 

I wore whatever my legs could find and I ran.

 

They seemed to be chasing me but I did not dare look back.

 

I simply ran.

 

The only place I could run to was the Church.

 

Here I am.

That’s why my tears can’t stop.

 

A sister betrayed me!

 

———

Wheeeeew! 

Need more Nigerian Christian stories like this? Click here for more.

You can also download Free Nigerian Christian Novels here.

Checkmate Episode 9