Must Read: The Claw, The Tail, And The Cross. - Season 1 - Episode 12

7 years ago

Must Read: The Claw, The Tail, And The Cross. - Season 1 - Episode 12

Asaba International Airport is currently on the outskirts of the city. I say ‘currently’ because the city is fast growing and expands daily.

In the very near future it is possible that the airport itself will be surrounded by business ventures, infrastructure and even accommodations.

As it stands now, various foundations for future endeavors have been la!d with laborers working hard to build up manmade structures that will take over the currently lush forest surrounding the place.

When we got to the airport we met the indigenous foreman who was glad to see me.

He approached immediately and greeted me courteously and I answered. He asked after Mr. Daniel and I told him I would be standing in for him today. He nodded understandingly and took me to a clearing in the huge car park where the other workers had gathered.

The tarred runway of the airport exuded enough heat to make someone have a heat stroke and I could see the waves of energy emanating from the coal tar. I asked for a drink and a bottle of coke was brought for me, chilled as ice, and I drank it gratefully.

Jenny and Mr. Obi had followed close behind me and were given the same treatment after which the foreman introduced us to the representatives of the workers and we were asked to come into another make shift tent to sit down while the driver went off with the foreman to discuss other things. Apparently they were familiar with each other.
“Don’t you people have access to the airport lounge?” I asked. “It’s terribly hot out here.”

The representatives replied No, that that was one of the reasons they wanted to talk to us.

We went on to discuss that and other matters with me proffering reasonable solutions and Jenny and Mr. Obi chipping in once in a while.

After two long hours both parties were happy and the representatives praised me for a job well done.
“It is not every time we get the Ogas to actually listen to us sir,” one of the reps, a middle aged woman, said. “You are a welcome development. Will you be staying on?”

I told them I was on contract and they promised to put in a good word for me at the firm. I didn’t feel like telling them I was already working elsewhere and so nodded my thanks. After the meeting we went into the airport premises and had a look around.

There were a lot of things I hadn’t noticed on my arrival, probably because I was in a hurry to get to the hotel and attend my first meeting with Leemen’s Consulting. But now I actually had time to take it all in and it was impressive. Although the area was surrounded by bush, work was going on in and around the Airport premises. Bulldozers were working on creating a clearing where they said they would build another hangar for the bigger planes. Vehicles came in and out and passengers were disembarking in large amounts. We went and stood at the entrance to the lounge to see if we could find a place to relax. Some of the passengers passed by us, most of them staring at Jenny, who graced them with her infectious smile.

One of them, an elderly man in silver lace attire, was so engrossed with Jenny he bumped into his wife who had been walking ahead of him. She immediately gave him a good tongue-lashing, eyed Jenny poisonously and continued on her way with the man apologizing behind her. Jenny grinned at me and Mr. Obi laughed. I shook my head, laughing as well and steered them towards a small restaurant I had spotted inside the lounge.

We had taken a table and were about settling down when Mr. Obi said he wanted to use the men’s room. We excused him and ordered for some drinks.
“Alone at last.” Jenny said, and shifted her chair closer to mine.
“So how was your night?”
“You know how my night was Jenny.” I said, drinking my malt.
“You were there remember?”
“Not physically,” she said mischievously.
“Oh, come on, you are the first guy I am knowing that hasn’t fallen head over heels in love with me, ring or no ring. What gives?”
“Is it wrong to be faithful to one’s partner?” I asked defensively.
“Ooooh,” Jenny said, thoroughly enjoying herself,
“So she’s your ‘partner’ now is she? Not your girlfriend again?”
“Jenny!” I said.
“I’m just messing with you dear, sheesh!” she said, smacking the back of my hand with hers.

“Do you know you are one of many firsts for me? For instance you are also the first guy that knows I am not completely human and hasn’t freaked out.”

“Oh? Someone has freaked out over you being a mermaid?” I asked. She shrugged her shoulders.
“A Pastor once saw me for what I was.

It was one of those mushroom churches; I had been invited there by a, erm…man friend of mine. I think he was trying to play for keeps as per making me his wife. I indulged him because I wasn’t done with what I wanted from him yet and we went to the church together. He made us seat at the front row and after some praise and worship, this fat, well fed fellow came out and started preaching.

I could see he was totally covered in falsehood, envy, greed, lust, the whole nine yards was all there.”
“You could see his greed demon?” I asked, interestedly.
“His what? No…is that how you see things? I see more of the person’s aura, it’s kind of like colors exuding from the person, flashes of light, bright and dark. I kind of feel the colors…isn’t that how you see?”
“Not exactly, no. “I said.

“I mean, I see colors sometimes but most of the time it is more graphic than that. Go on with your gist.”

She smiled; happy I was taking interest in her little escapade.

“We were seating in front and this guy who called himself a pastor was belting the scriptures like he was the one that wrote them and the congregation was being whipped up into a frenzy. You know you humans, easily swayed by emotions.”

She gave me a wink and I maintained a blank expression.

“Okay, maybe you are not so human yourself,” she murmured and continued
“Anyway, I’m going along with the sermon when the man professes that he had just finished a three day fast and had some visions he wanted to hand out. I don’t know what got to me, either the fact that I knew he was lying or that he pointed to me and said I was to come for private prayers that he had found my husband! I didn’t know when I started laughing! I laughed and laughed and my friend held me by the hand firmly, saying ‘he knew it all along’, that he was the husband the pastor was referring to! I controlled myself and waited till after service when we went to meet the pastor privately.

He frowned when I came in with my manfriend and said he had asked to see only me. My friend boldly told him that he was the one currently going out with me and that he was sure he was the husband the pastor had seen in his vision. The pastor didn’t even waste his time, he told him I was far from being his wife and that he should leave his office so I and the Pastor could discuss in private.

The poor lamb walked out so dejectedly that I felt sorry for him. The Pastor came out from behind his desk and asked my name and I told him if he hadn’t heard my name in his vision.

He laughed then and said he was going to pray for me, that I should kneel down and close my eyes. I didn’t want to appear too rude and besides I was worried for my man outside being so alone, didn’t want him to wander off, so I decided to comply, thinking the sooner we had this charade over the better.

No sooner had I knelt down that he la!d his hands on my head, then my face and went down to my shoulder, praying vehemently all the time. I opened one eye and asked him what he was doing and he told me to close my eyes, so I complied.

Again his hands continued to roam until I felt them taking the weight of my breasts. I stood up and told him I had had enough that I would like to leave now if he didn’t mind. He said I was behaving like a child that he didn’t want to say anything in front of the congregation but that he was the one who was meant to be my husband. ”

I shook my head and chuckled.

Jenny lit up immediately.
“Ah, so you are human after all? Wait, wait, I’m getting to the juicy part.

So I opened my mouth in shock when he said that, it was like a bomb had gone off in his office. This fat conman actually wanted to take me as a wife. Surely he wasn’t serious and I told him so. He said I shouldn’t look at him like that, that he had lots of money, houses in Ikoyi and so many cars that he didn’t know what to do with them. I told him he was allowing his material possessions to blind him to his calling but he laughed at that and said he wasn’t a fool, he was going to enjoy life and all it had to offer and ask for forgiveness later, his god after all wasn’t a poor god and I wouldn’t be poor either if I agreed to his request. I laughed and told him that he really wouldn’t want me for a wife, and that where I come from his wealth was what we used in paving our streets. He misunderstood me and said he knew the streets of heaven were said to be paved with gold but that wouldn’t I be better off enjoying the gold now on earth? I told him I was not interested and made to leave.

He grabbed me and forcefully pulled me to himself. It was while we were struggling that he must have seen me for who I was because he suddenly let go screaming.

He pointed at me and said ’Mami water’ and I told him I preferred the term ‘Mermaid’. I asked him if he still wanted to marry me and he ran past me and out of his office like a bullet out of a gun, screaming his head off!”
“What did your boyfriend say?” I asked. “Or didn’t the pastor tell him?” Jenny laughed.

“I think he was way too scared to do anything of the sort. In fact, the next time we went to the church at my man friend’s insistence, an usher surreptitiously approached us and asked that we go and seat at the back of the church, far away from the pastor who kept casting furtive glances at me throughout the service.

We never went there again after that, I think my man thought the pastor told us to go back because of him. I broke up with him soon after.”

“So in a way the pastor was right, you were far from being his wife.” I said, smiling cheekily. She grinned and sat back in her chair, her huge chest heaving deliciously.

“So tell me about this love of your life, this Nina that you care about so much.”
“There’s nothing to tell,” I said, “She and I just clicked. She’s beautiful, hard working, caring, humorous and I feel I can tell her anything. Anytime I see her smile I feel like everything is going to be alright. She isn’t self centered. She thinks about me all the time, I know because I can ‘see’ it and also because she shows it by what she does, the actions she takes. She is my encouragement.

She’s not so proud that she cannot say ‘sorry’ when she is wrong, or ‘please’ when she needs something or ‘thank you’ when she has benefited from something. I don’t know how else to explain it, except maybe like she’s like an addiction to me. And I know she feels the same way about me. Jenny had rested her face on her chin and was looking at me quietly.

“That’s a whole lot of nothing to tell.” She said.
“Where is Mr. Obi?” I said, suddenly feeling uneasy and wanting to change the subject.
“Yeah, he has taken an awful long time, hasn’t he? Maybe you should go and check on him. We’ll be leaving soon.”

I got up and headed to the male toilet. It was empty save for the cleaner who was quietly mopping the floor. I checked all the stalls and saw they were empty. I went back to Jenny.
“He is not in there,” I said.

Jenny was about to say something when she stopped short. A look of panic came over her face and she pointed behind me. I followed her finger and…

There, out on the runway, standing regally in the blowing wind and the hot sun, was a two tailed leopard!