Chapter 11: Chapter 11

Part Four

A Helper

One who helps, provide assistance or contribute to someone's life.

Chapter Nine

"So how are you settling in? I haven't had the chance to come over to your new apartment. Maybe the kids and I will come over on sunday to bother you" Daria grinned up at her brother.

His eyebrows furrowed "Just you and the kids though, I don't want your husband or friend in my apartment" Darrell said forking a piece of pineapple into his mouth. Daria sighed and rolled her eyes, so he didn't like Femi and he didn't like Halal too. The two people she really cared about.

"Femi has done nothing to you, he's my husband and the father of my kids. I think you should respect that" Daria said adopting a strong voice. Darrell scoffed and looked up at her.

"You do know that your husband is older than me? You were naive, he seduced you. He's done more than enough, I can't have an iota of respect for that kind of man. One who takes advantage of little girls because he has cash to throw around" Darrell said harshly pushing his plate of diced fresh fruits away.

Daria glared at her brother, ever since he and Halal split back in the day, he'd become mean and cold. "I wasn't a little girl, young but not little. And Femi didn't seduce me, I love him! " Daria spat.

Darrell chuckled harshly "How can you love that Short, ugly, potbellied moneybag?" Darrell asked.

"Don't call him that, I love him. I married him and I have kids for him, get over it. Is it bad that I chased after my happiness?" Daria asked a little hurt.

"Chased after your happiness? you dropped out of school. Every penny I'd put into your education, wasted. And guess what that stupid husband of yours told me the day he called to talk to me? He said he'd pay me back, the idiot! I don't blame him though, he knows nothing, he doesn't know how I laboured for the money. I blame you Daria, you don't know anything about priorities. You're my sister Daria, and I love you but that's something I'll never forget" Darrell said furiously.

Tears gathered in Daria's eyes knowing that Darrell would never be fully happy for her. "Nkemjika, I am sorry" Daria said apologetically.

Darrell cleared his throat "Darrell" he corrected. Daria looked up at him, a little frightened now. "I'm your sister" she said.

"Yes, but you belong to another man now and you got married without my consent" Darrell sneered. Daria shook her head wiping a stray tear "I told you I was getting married, you said I could" Daria said sadly.

"No, I told you If marriage was worth more than your education and my efforts, you could. And you picked that man over me" Darrell corrected.

Daria closed her eyes a little hurt, she hadn't picked sides. She loved them both in different ways, they were both family. Femi had no problem with Darrell but Darrell was strong headed and hard hearted, he refused to get along with Femi.

"I'm leaving, I'll be expecting you and the kids on Sunday" Darrell said getting up from his chair. Daria nodded numbly, on Sunday he'd be in a better mood with the kids around. Maybe then she'd be able to tell him about her friend who needed his help.

Daria called Halal right after her lunch date with Darrell but her phone was switched, if she wasn't so emotionally drained, she'd have gone over to her house to check on her.

Her conversation with Darrell had left her weak, and emotionally bruised so she dragged herself home to her husband.

Surprisingly her kids weren't around to welcome her when she got back, the entire house was silent. "Femi!" she called loudly taking off her jacket. Now was not a good time to stay alone, She needed comfort, she wanted her children around her.

Femi showed up minutes later in a white polo and white Nike shorts. "How was your date?" he asked quietly.

"Terrible, Darrell wouldn't let the issue go. I wish you two would get along, seriously. He's so bad tempered these days and he can't seem to let a grudge go" Daria hissed.

She knew deep within her that whatever that had changed in Darrell had something to do with his previous relationship, his relationship with Halal. Their break up, Darrell never talked about it and Halal paled every time she brought it up.

"We're grown men Daria, don't worry about us. My sister came to get the kids, her husband has travelled out of the country again and she doesn't want to be lonely" Femi explained the absence of their children.

"I guessed as much, well you'll have to go pick them up on saturday, we're spending sunday with Darrell" Daria said. Femi sighed and shoved his hands into his pocket.

"I was hoping we could go out on saturday" Femi suggested. Daria mumbled that it was too late and that she'd made plans with Halal already.

"I'm sure Halal wouldn't mind, these days you've been spending a lot of time with her. Let's go out on saturday" Femi said strongly.

Daria turned to him now, a glare imprinted on her face. "Babafemi what do you want from me, haven't I given you more than enough already. Do you want my blood?" she asked a little irritated. She didn't wait for a reply before walking away from him, out of the living room and heading for their bedroom.

It wasn't until Sunday evening when the kids were starting to fall asleep in Darrell's cozy living room that Daria gathered courage to tell her brother of a certain friend who needed help.

"How well do you know this friend?" Darrell asked patting Christiano's back. He was amazed and glad that none of his sister's children looked like their father. That would have really irritated and angered him. His nephews and niece were angels, their father was the devil, their mother on the other hand was a fallen angel. He'd mapped out Daria's life, and marriage had been last on the list only for that troll to come in and ruin everything.

"Very well, we're pretty close" Daria said, not mentioning that she was talking about Halal.

"Alright, I'll see her. But don't get her hopes up that you're brother is a miracle worker, I'll decide whether I can help her or not when I've heard from her" Darrell said.

Daria sighed satisfied "Thank you,Nkem....Darrell" Daria said a sad smile on her face. She hoped he would tell her it was okay to call him Nkemjika once again but he said nothing.

"It's getting late, is Shrek coming to pick you up?" Darrell asked mockingly minutes later. Daria glared at him "You're a big jerk, you know that" She hissed taking Christiano off him.

Femi arrived minutes later to get his family, he avoided contact with Darrell while Darrell stared daggers at him. Daria hugged her brother before getting into the car.

"Christiano must have played a lot, he's usually awake by this time" Femi observed as he turned on the ignition.

They'd not spoken to each other since their last conversation when she'd snapped at him. "Yes, you know how he is" Daria muttered.

"Did you have fun?" he asked her not looking in her direction. "Femi, I'm sorry I snapped at you the other day. It's just that everytime I talk with Darrell, I can't help but feel like I've betrayed him" Daria sighed.

"So that's why you lashed out at me, I noticed that since he returned you've been cold and distant. You're always like that when he's around" Femi noted still looking ahead. "I did tell you that you didn't have to drop out of school Daria, I have no idea why you did and I didn't support it. Yet Darrell thinks I'm the bad guy and you make it seem that way. You snap at me, you avoid me and you push me away." Femi continued.

"School never mattered to me Femi, I couldn't tell Darrell that. The only reason I got into the university was because I wanted to make him proud. Dropping out made me relieved" Daria confessed.

Femi sighed "I don't care about that Daria, just stop treating me like crap whenever your brother is around" Femi said.

"I'm sorry, I won't anymore. I love you" she took his free hand and brought it to her lips.

"I love you too" Femi smiled a little.

Daria tried to smile back but she couldn't. Would Darrell help Halal when he finds out she's the 'friend', or should she have told him the truth?

Darrell had just finished up his last appointment before his lunch break when a knock came through. Daria had mentioned that her friend might show up late, so he wasn't expecting anyone till later.

"Come in" he said while he was sorting through the files on his cabinet. He heard the opening and shutting of the door but he didn't look up.

"You must be the new doctor, the American" he heard a flirtatious voice and looked up. It was one of the nurses, a few had dropped in but this one had upped her game.

He didn't know that nurses wore such short dresses and left the tops of their cleavages on display. "I'm a Nigerian" he said dismissively.

"Wow, I heard you're from the US. And you don't look Nigerian, so I just guessed you were an American. Doctor Darrell right?" she asked moving closer to his table.

"And you are?" he asked taking his eyes off her and back to the file cabinet. "I'm Victoria, you can call me Vicki for short" The nurse said grinning as if he'd paid her a compliment.

Darrell turned to look at her, giving her his attention. She was very beautiful, curvy and a lot of other sexy things but he was turned off by the blatant want in her eyes. He hated it when women made it so easy to get them, that's why some men took advantage of them.

"Is there a particular reason why you're here?" he asked crossing his arms over his chest. Vicki ran her eyes all over him appreciatively, she wet her lips before replying him.

"You know the late doctor and I were companions, if you ever need a companion, just know that you're not alone and I'm here for you" Vicki said.

Darrell smiled, well welcome back to Nigeria. These ladies would soon learn that he wasn't the type to mix serious business with pleasure.

He also hated work romance, recently romance of any kind was unappealing. He had made it known to the ladies he'd been with in the states that he wanted nothing more than sex from them, so there was no talk about a serious relationship leading to marriage or emotional baggage after their break ups.

"Good to know Victoria, I'll keep that in mind" Darrell said. Victoria giggled loudly, was something funny? "Well, if you need anything. Anything at all, just let me know. I'm only one floor away" Victoria winked before walking out purposely swaying her hips seductively for his benefit.

"Bye Doctor Darrell" she called out as she shut the door. Darrell rolled his eyes before taking in a deep breath.

After his lunch break, he called his sister to ask if her friend would be coming in or if he would have to cancel their appointment.

"She's on her way, she should be there any minute" Daria said, she sounded nervous and he couldn't place why.

"Are you okay Daria, is something wrong with the kids?" Darrell asked concerned.

Daria was silent for a while "You're going to help her won't you?" Daria said adopting a little voice. She sounded like a child once more, like the little Daria that liked pulling his ears when they were little.

"I'll do my best, you must be very close to this friend. Is she related to your husband?" Darrell asked.

"No, she's...Darrell promise me you won't get angry" Daria said. Darrell frowned now wondering who this friend might be, it hit him like a ton of bricks.

"Don't tell me it's Halal" he said stonily. Daria sighed "It's Halal, wait Darrell don't end the call. I told her already that you agreed to help" Daria pleaded.

"Why would you tell her that, look I want nothing to do with Halal. Call her and tell her that I won't help her and age better not show up here" Darrell said sternly, pissed that he was foolish enough for Daria to deceive him.

"You're a doctor, it's your job to help people. Darrell stop being so strong headed and just help her. If not for me or her, do it because it's your job to help people. That's why you went to school, that's why you chose this profession. Help Halal" Daria pleaded.

Darrell sighed knowing she had a point, it annoyed him. "Maybe I should have gone into military service instead" he muttered causing Daria to laugh.

"I don't think that would have made you happy, thank you Darrell" Daria sounded less nervous now.

"You have a lot to make up for Daria, especially after this. Thank you doesn't cut it" Darrell said.

"Fine, I'll come over later to do your laundry and I'll cook you something special. Your favorite, but you have to promise not to be a jerk to Halal" Daria said.

"I'll try" he stressed and ended the call.

Shortly after his conversation with Daria, he heard two voices chattering and laughing about something outside his office. Probably one of those obnoxious nurses, his door came open without a knock this time.

It was Victoria again, she had a playful smile on her face. "Doctor Darrell, there is someone here to see you" she smiled and pulled Halal to her side.

"Mrs Amity here is a frequent visitor, I thought I'd bring her over. Have you had lunch already?" Victoria asked.

Darrell noticed that Halal's eyes were looking all over the place rather than at him. He mentally scoffed "Thank you Victoria, I'll take it from here" he said. Victoria giggled annoyingly again before walking out of the office.

Darrell made a mental note to ask her what exactly was amusing next time. He turned to Halal who looked a little pale.

"Mrs Amity, shall we?" he asked gesturing to a chair. "Yes" she stuttered and moved to sit right in front of him.

Her eyes fluttered about the place before finally settling on the desk. "Daria told me..." she began but he cut her off.

"I'm not going to discuss that with you here, as a matter of fact, I have nothing to discuss with you outside this office. Let's keep this formal, I don't know you and I've only just met you, vice versa" He said coldly.

Halal said nothing to that, she played with her fingers nervously. Darrell noticed the gesture and noticed that she had no wedding band on. Perhaps she'd taken it off for his benefit, not that it mattered.

"You seem nervous, are you okay?" he asked seconds later when he noticed she was twisting her fingers again.

Halal looked up at him "I'm fine, it's just that this was doctor Femi's office. The last time I was here.....it didn't end well" Halal responded.

"Moving on to important things" he said coldly. "Let's talk, Doctor to patient" he said with all seriousness.

Halal looked about the room "He was lying down there dead" she muttered tears forming in her eyes. Then she got up abruptly. "I'm sorry for wasting your time, I shouldn't have come here. This was a mistake" she said and walked out of the office immediately.

Darrell stared after her confused. "Did something happen in here?" he asked himself.