The haunted bride - Season 3 - Episode 16

4 years ago

The haunted bride - Season 3 - Episode 16

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His head was spinning from not having enough sleep these few days. He had given himself an ultimatum of three works, to finalize his work on Demon Hall. Most of his employees knew how determined he was when deadlines were involved. Aniekan had made up his mind to finish all the work on Demon Hall, but his time was limited.

Fatigued, he pushed the laptop aside and pulled out the phone from his pocket. He had run out of ideas, and he needed to speak to someone from the creative department in Games Village to help him out.
Apart from the tiredness he felt, Aniekan sensed a deep hole inside of him. There was a part of him that was missing, and he hadn’t felt this way for a long time since the death of Imaobong. He couldn’t just put a finger around this feeling of loneliness.

Slowly, he realized why the void was there.
‘Come off it, she’s just girl’. He muttered. He’d gotten the answer! The absence of Elena was the reason he felt empty. Though he hadn’t spent much time with her, the few minutes they had together a week ago, at the forbidden wing of the house had been interesting.

He noticed she’d been a bit withdrawn, or was she afraid of him?

Aniekan anticipated her arrival. He couldn’t wait to set eyes on the beauty again…
There was something about her eyes, they possessed innocence. She seemed like a good person, and that was the reason he’d helped her in the first place. Aniekan couldn’t hold back his thoughts anymore. He needed to see her or talk to her. He just needed to know that Elena was okay.
He quickly tapped his phone. He had collected her phone number, and he guessed she was on Whatsapp. Though he was officially her boss now, he didn’t mind reaching out to her on a personal level. He just couldn’t sleep without a word from her.

The seamless silence he enjoyed was broken by a rap on his door.
‘Who’s there’? A frown wrinkled his forehead.

‘It’s me sir…’ Idara stuttered.
She had heard the conversation between Ada and Ese. It terrified her and brought back painful memories of what they had done to her mistress. She needed to warn Aniekan about those two and expose their plans.
‘Come in’.

The frown quickly dissipated. He’d thought Ada had come to speak to him or persuade him to change his mind about Elena. He was done with taking advice from a dishonest lawyer. He was still angry with her, for the way she had treated Elena. He was still contemplating on the best action to take.
One thing was certain; Ada would pay for her lies and cruelty. Although Elena hadn’t been innocent, she didn’t deserve such a horrible treatment from Ada.
‘Good evening sir’, Idara marched into the room on wobbly legs.
‘Evening, can I help you’? Aniekan asked without looking away from the phone. He didn’t remember asking her to prepare something special for him. Her visit was a surprise, but he guessed she had something important to say.

Tears stung her to quietness. She found it difficult to utter another word as she weighed the consequences of what she was about to confess. What if Aniekan doubted her? She had no evidence that Ada and Ese were bad people. That would only get her into trouble.
‘I am sure you didn’t come all the way from your wing to stay silent’? Aniekan was uncomfortable with her presence. She was the only domestic staff that had visited his bedroom. He didn’t want that closeness.
Idara quickly brushed the tears from her eyes, ‘I just wanted to tell you that…’ she swallowed, ‘I’ll be going to the market tomorrow and I’ll need some money’.
He now understood why she had come, ‘you should’ve come earlier. I don’t have cash on me right now, but I could arrange something in the morning’.
Idara nodded and bent her knees, ‘thank you sir, and goodnight’.
Aniekan muttered a response, ‘goodnight. One more thing, prepare the fifth room. We’ll have a new guest; she’ll be staying with us for a while.’

‘Alright sir, that wouldn’t be a problem’. Idara cast one glance at Aniekan’s back before leaving the room.
She knew very well that Elena Benjamin was the guest. Idara was unhappy about this arrangement. Nobody was safe in the white house, as long as Ada and Ese were there. She needed to talk to someone. Idara needed the help of her mistress.
‘She’s online’, a boyish smile curved his lips. He quickly typed a message and waited for a reply. He couldn’t wait for Elena to move into the white house.

At first, her mother had been skeptical about Aniekan’s offer. Tamar was uncomfortable with the people that lived in the white house. There was Ese, Aniekan’s rough looking brother. And there was Ada, the lawyer whom she referred to as “Ogbanje”. Tamar saw Elena’s release as a chance to escape from Aniekan’s claws forever.

She had been prepared to find a way for Elena to join her older sister in the U.S.A. Fleeing Nigeria or getting married to a wealthy man were the only options for Elena. But, Mr. Benjamin didn’t accept his ex’s ideas. From the first time the old man had seen Aniekan, he’d liked him instantly.
Mr. Benjamin sensed that the young billionaire was a straightforward and trustworthy person. He wouldn’t do anything to harm their daughter in any way. If he had any evil plans towards Elena, he would never have released her. This was his way of helping Elena to achieve her dreams.
“Elena!”

Elena had been on her bed, thinking about her relocation and what her new experiences would be like in the white house. She thought about Aniekan, and how handsome he was. His kindness and gentleness in the way he’d acted towards her really touched her.
All men weren’t scum, some were different. She had seen genuine care and concern in his eyes, she was sure of this. Aniekan wasn’t as tough like a typical Nigerian boss would be. He was easygoing and friendly. But there was one thing she didn’t like about him, and that was an impression she intended to correct.
For reasons known to him, he saw her as a child and that was demeaning. She was twenty three years old going to twenty four! From Wikipedia’s record of him, he was nine years older than she was. That didn’t place him on a position of higher maturity.
To her, age was just a number. Most times, people felt she was older because of the wisdom and boldness that flowed from her. Tamar had announced to Elena as her wisest child, in the presence of her siblings. Everyone in her family respected her, and held her in high esteem.

Why was Aniekan different? He had insinuated she was a child twice at the white house.
‘I hope he gets over his older guy ego’. Elena sighed and dragged herself from the bed, so she could heed her mother’s call.
‘Yes mother’! Elena quickly grabbed her android and rushed towards the living room.
She had noticed the strange behavior of her parents. Elena had caught her father checking her mother’s hips out. He’d been so lost in adoration, that when their eyes finally met, Elena looked away in embarrassment.