šAUNTY š
STOP TOUCHING š„
CHAPTER 23š
WRITTEN BY PETER’S GRACIOUS āš»
šFOR MATURE MIND ONLY š
NEXT DAY…
Eneka’s pov
I woke up to a credit alert of 6 million naira from Madam Cassandra.
After the initiation, I felt so weak and drained that I couldnāt even walk properly on my own. With Cassandraās help, I made my way to her car, and she drove me to her home.
The drive was painfully quiet. I was furious with Cassandra for her betrayal, but I couldnāt say much. Even my throat hurt badly.
I sat in the back seat, my head resting against it, eyes half-closed, lost in thought about everything that had happened. Silent tears slid down my face.
“Look, Emmy, Iām really sorry for everything” Cassandra said from the driver’s seat.
I didnāt answer her. I just let my tears flow.
As we pulled into her driveway, I remained silent, still lost in my thoughts. Cassandra turned off the engine and sat there for a moment, her hands gripping the steering wheel tightly. I could feel her glancing at me through the rearview mirror, but I refused to meet her eyes.
She finally broke the silence. “Emmy, please… can we talk?”
I slowly lifted my head and wiped the tears from my cheeks. My body ached, and my mind was a whirlwind of confusion and anger. “Talk?” I croaked, my voice barely a whisper, still raw from the nightās events. “What is there to talk about, Cassandra?”
She sighed, turning in her seat to face me. “I know I hurt you. I didnāt want things to happen this way. Itās… complicated.”
“Complicated?” I scoffed, feeling a surge of bitterness rise in me. “You betrayed me. You used me.”
Cassandra looked down, her face shadowed with guilt. “I didnāt have a choice, Emmy. If I didnātā”
“Donāt,” I cut her off, my voice stronger now. “Donāt you dare say you didnāt have a choice. You always had a choice.”
She bit her lip, her eyes glistening as if she was on the verge of tears, but I wasnāt ready to see her cry. Not now. Not after everything.
I opened the car door, the cool night air hitting my face as I stepped out slowly. My legs were shaky, but I refused to show any more weakness. Cassandra hurried to my side, offering to help, but I shrugged her off.
“I can walk,” I muttered.
We walked to her front door in silence, the tension between us thick. She unlocked the door, and we stepped inside. Her house, usually so full of warmth and life, felt cold and foreign to me now.
“Emmy, you should rest,” Cassandra said quietly, closing the door behind us. “Youāve been through a lot.”
“Iāll rest when I understand why you did this,” I shot back, my eyes narrowing. “Why, Cassandra? Why me?”
She hesitated, then looked at me with a mixture of sorrow and something elseāsomething I couldnāt quite place. “You were chosen, Emmy. Thereās more to this than you know.”
My stomach tightened. “Chosen? What are you talking about?”
Cassandra took a deep breath. “Youāre part of something bigger now, something powerful. And that money… itās only the beginning.”
A chill ran down my spine. The words hung in the air like a dark cloud, and I realized that whatever I had gotten myself into, it was far from over
I stood up and headed straight to the personal room Cassandra had given me, a space for privacy whenever I needed it.
“Are you really going without talking to me, Emmy?” she called out, following behind me.
“Don’t you dare come after me,” I said, my voice low but firm, as I staggered to my room and locked the door behind me.
A part of me urged me to pray, to ask God for mercy and deliverance, but I was too weak, too drained for that.
I just lay down on the bed, drowning in my own tears, ignoring Cassandra’s constant knocking and pleading from outside the door.
The knocking persisted for what felt like hours, each one more desperate than the last. But I stayed curled up on the bed, my face buried in the pillow, trying to block everything out. My mind was racing, replaying the events of the night over and over like a broken record. Betrayal, confusion, paināit all swirled inside me, too heavy to bear.
Eventually, the knocking stopped. The silence that followed was deafening, but I welcomed it. I needed to be alone, away from her lies, away from everything.
I stared at the ceiling, my eyes burning from the tears. How did I get here? How did things spiral so far out of control?
My phone buzzed on the nightstand. I didnāt want to look, but something in me pushed to see who it was. Reaching over, I unlocked the screen. Another alertā6 million naira, sitting in my account. Blood money. I threw the phone across the room, hearing it crash against the wall with a loud thud.
I couldnāt take it. The weight of it all crushed me from the inside. I wanted to scream, to tear the walls down, to erase everything that had happened. But all I could do was lie there, drowning in my own helplessness.
Cassandraās voice floated through the door, softer now, almost pleading. “Emmy, I know you hate me right now… but please, let me explain. Just… open the door.”
I clenched my fists, my nails digging into my palms. I didnāt want to hear her voice. I didnāt want any more of her explanations.
I closed my eyes, hoping sleep would come and take me far away from this nightmare. But even in the silence, even in the darkness, her words haunted me. The money. The betrayal. “You were chosen.”
Chosen for what? And why me?
I shuddered, feeling an emptiness deep inside me that no amount of money could ever fill.
*******
BEATRICE
—
I sat in my shop, wondering why Emeka hadnāt called me all day. A strong feeling gnawed at me, telling me something wasnāt right with my boy.
I tried reaching him on my cellphone, but his line wasnāt connecting. Anxiety gripped me tighter as I recalled the dream I had last night. In the dream, I saw my late husband, furious with me.
I asked him why he was so angry, and he replied, “The only seed I left in your careāyouāve let it spoil without watering it or giving it the care it needs, all because of your selfish desires.” I jolted awake, confused and worried about what his words meant.
As I sat there, lost in thought, a voice interrupted me. “Mama Emeka, you sit here thinking instead of finding solutions. Make hay while the sun shines,” said Orji, the market madman, his sudden appearance startling me.
“Orji, please, I donāt have time for your crazy talk. Just take whatever you want from the shop and leave. I have too much on my mind,” I said, waving him off.
“Well, I didnāt come here to take anything, but since you insist, a can of sardines and a loaf of bread wouldnāt be bad,” he said, helping himself to the items.
As he turned to leave, he added with a chuckle, “Make hay while the sun shines, Beatrice. He still has a bright future.”
I frowned, confused. “Who are you talking about?”
“Itās only the wise who understand the language of the elders,” Orji replied, walking away with the sardines and bread, laughing like the madman he was.
A chill ran down my spine. What did Orji mean? And why am I having this strange feeling about Emeka? I fidgeted nervously, my heart heavy with worry.
TO BE CONTINUE
