Chapter 3: Chapter 3
CHAPTER TWO
Two weeks after failing to meet her husband, Cythera left the house very early in the morning to the capital city of Kubuma to see the priest again. She followed one of the early lorries which used to convey the marketers with their goods to the cities. After his divination, the priest told her that Cynthia was the cause of her inability to conceive again. “Partially, it is your fault also?” The Priest announced,
“How is it my fault, wise one?” she asked, staring at the priest with a worried expression on her face.
“You have over-pampered her, because of the luxury she enjoys and been that she is not ready to share with anybody; she blocked your womb in the spirit world.”
Cythera was still agitated and worried, “Wise one, what should I do? My husband is slipping away from me...”
“Your husband is already seeing another woman, but all hope is not lost; for your daughter, I will suggest you start maltreating her; let her despise you, in that case, she will release you, because she is not living the best of life anymore so she will need companions to play with and confide in.”
Cythera nodded with understanding, “So, Azar is seeing another woman?” she wondered worriedly, she also wondered how she would start maltreating Cynthia. Cynthia had been a wonderful child, hardworking and loving. She sighed as she made up her mind to engage the girl in dialogue when she got home.
“Come back after four months; make sure within those four months, you meet with your husband, I’m sure you will notice dramatic changes in your body.” The priest broke into her trail of thought.
“Wise one, my husband does not find me attractive me anymore,” she explained worriedly, “Getting him to meet with me is a Herculean task; I want you to prepare concoction that would make him desires me, that way, I would be sure he would touch me within the stipulated time.”
The priest looked at her and nodded his head, “I must not do it for you.”
“Wise one, you are a powerful priest known all over the kingdom…”
“It is not as if I cannot do it, I must not do it,”
“I want to have a male child of my own and you are willing to be of help, but my husband is not cooperating, how will the concoction be potent if my husband and I do not come together?”
“Listen, cooperation from your husband has to come naturally, if I should do something about it, it is either you give birth to a pigmy or imbecile. If it is okay by you, let me proceed but don’t blame me if it backfires in the end.”
With tears in her eyes, she nodded her head vigorously, “I don’t want a pigmy, I don’t want an imbecile…”
“If you do not want those types of children, then go and work on your marriage, make sure your husband meets with you. If it is to get him drunk, that one is still okay as long as he is not charmed.”
“Thank you, wise one, I will do as you have spoken.” She replied and left the place after some minutes.
When she got home, Cynthia had already returned from school, and she sat under the tree in front of the house reading a storybook. “Welcome, Mama...” Cynthia greeted her mother who did not respond but merely strolled into the house.
She hurried after her mother, “Mama, what is the problem?” she asked her mother worriedly,
Cythera turned and slapped her daughter hard on the cheek, “What have I done to you to warrant you torturing me unduly?”
She fell backward from the force of the slap and landed on her buttocks, while her eyes shimmered with tears, “Ma…ma… ma… what have I done?” Cynthia stuttered in bewilderment as she rubbed her cheek where her mother just slapped her.
“Have I ever maltreated you in this house? Even when your father was making the home hell for us, I still tried to make sure you lacked nothing, I toiled day and night to satisfy...”
“Mama? What did I do?” she cried, and her body vibrated with sobbing, she can’t remember the last time her mother beat her. She stood up from the floor and went to sit on the sofa, crying bitterly.
Cythera became confused, “Can this girl do such wickedness to me? She has always been more than a daughter to me, she never complained whenever I asked her to do house chores; she always comforts and speaks words of assurances and encouragement whenever my husband maltreated me. Can she be the one behind my woes?”
She sat down on the sofa dejected, fatigue, and worried, “Carry your bucket to the river, go and get some water now!” she ordered and hurried to the kitchen which was at the back of the house. "Is it not frustration that is taking its toll on me?"
Cynthia with bloodshot eyes went to the back of the house and carried her bucket to the river. The path to the river was somehow lonely this afternoon. As she strolled to the river, she tried to console herself that her mother loved her, and she can never be bitter against her. She knew her mother was probably frustrated because her father had refused to come home for almost three weeks now. An elderly palm wine tapper who was riding on his bicycle with his two kegs of freshly tapped palm wine firmly strapped to the back of the bicycle almost hit her because she was absent-minded. The man swore spitefully and drove away after she apologized profusely for not concentrating on where she was going. She wiped her face and decided to concentrate as she sighed and prayed that everything would be alright between her parents very soon.
She could hear the noise of the villagers at the riverbank before she reached; it was typical of them. Whenever they visited the river to do their laundry or fetch water, they would use a greater part of their time to gossip. The river which served about six communities was a sight to behold; it stretched as far as the eyes could see, though not too wide at the middle, it was deep. Far off, one could see some fishermen with canoes throwing in their nets to catch fish. At the riverbank were different huge stones which the people used to do their washing or seats for fishing. She greeted the four women she met washing and gently dipped her legs into the shallow part to fill her bucket after which she lifted it on her head.
On her way back, she met Prince Liam who offered her a huge chunk of roasted deer meat and smoked yam. The scent of the smoked yam and roasted meat reminded her of the hunger pangs in her tummy.
“Cynthia, I want you to see me as your friend; I understand your plights and I’m already taking some steps to address them in my little way. I can assure you that very soon your father will return home.” He assured her with empathy.
“Thank you, Prince Liam, I don’t want you going to so much trouble for my sake.” She replied as she shyly took the gift from him.
“It is no trouble...” he insisted with admiration, “I like you so much, Cynthia; it pains my heart to see a beautiful girl like you being subjected to so much hardship for what you know nothing about.”
She did not reply as she was wondering what he could want with her because he was a prince, and she was just a common villager. “One of my father’s farms is not far from here; one of these days I will take you there so that anytime you need anything you can just come and take your fill.” He said as he strolled with her to a considerable distance.
“Thank you for your kind gesture,” she said in a voice barely louder than a whisper as she looked at nothing.
“It is okay,” he intoned with understanding, “I will turn back from here.” He patted her on the shoulder before she could realize and turned back to the farm.
When she got home, her mother was waiting for her outside, “What took you so long?” she retorted and upon noticing that she was holding a black nylon bag, she gestured towards her hand and asked, “What is that in your hand?”
She poured the bucket of water into the big basin in the kitchen to face her mother’s barrage of questions, “Who gave you these? Cynthia, you have started stealing?”
“Mama, I didn’t steal, Prince Liam gave them to me.” She answered innocently,
“Prince Liam? Where did you see him? Is that why you took so long before coming back from the river despite that you know we need the water to cook lunch?” Cythera asked in torrents.
“Mama, I didn’t stay so long at the river.” She denied tearfully, “Prince Liam met me on the way and just gave me the yam and meat.”
“Why would Prince Liam give you smoked yam and roasted meat if not that you have been complaining to him?” Cythera insisted savagely and descended on her daughter. She beat her with her bare hands until her hands felt sore. “There will be no lunch for you in this house today, you good for nothing girl; you have started confiding in strangers!”
“Mama! Please, you are hurting me!!” Cynthia cried as she tried to prevent her mother’s beatings from hurting her more.
Panting from sheer exhaustion, Cythera took the roasted meat and smoked yam, and ate them in the presence of her daughter after which she went into the house to observe her siesta being tired from the long journey to the capital city.
Cynthia went to sit under the tree in front of the house to lick her wounds. It was there Shilati came to meet her. “Hello, Cynthia, good afternoon...” she stopped short when she saw her friend’s sullen moods.
“Shilati, good afternoon,” she replied as she wiped her wet face with the back of her palm.
“What is the problem? You are weeping again?” Shilati asked compassionately, she helped her friend cleaned her face with her scarf.
“I’m not in the mood for play this afternoon...” Cynthia began uncomfortably, “If you don’t mind, I would like to be left alone...”
“I can see that,” Shilati said tritely, she was undaunted because she knew her friend very well; she only needed someone to bring her out of her sour mood. “I want to tell you a secret?”
Cynthia turned her tear-filled eyes to Shilati, “I said I wish to be left alone. Don’t you get it?” she snapped menacingly, “I’m not in the mood for this ‘hocus pocus’ game this afternoon.”
Ignoring the tone of her friend’s voice, she replied with a grin, “Hmmm, it is okay, my princess; your wish is my command.”
“What did you just call me?”
“I said princess, yes, you are my princess!” Shilati insisted, “Prince Liam likes you...”
“Prince Liam likes who? Please, I don’t like this your expensive joke; he can never like me because I don’t belong to the royal class.”
“Stop deceiving yourself; the other day, he was all over you at the path leading to the river.”
“Come on, Shilati, that happened because I fell, and he was around then and as a gentle guy, he was concerned. That could happen to anybody.”
“Okay, continue to be naive, just know that any girl in Kuburin would give an arm and a leg to be in your shoe right now.”
“We all know that royalty relates with royalty at least since I became conscious of myself, I have never seen otherwise.”
“Yours can be an exemption, civilization can overturn antecedent...” Shilati argued, “I don’t want you to exercise any fear, Prince Liam is a nice guy.”
Cynthia shrugged her shoulders and said nothing; she had made up her mind not to have anything to do with the prince again. She does not wish to get herself into any form of trouble with her parents again. “Now, can you tell me why you were weeping?” Shilati asked, “I won’t leave if you don’t confide in me?”
“If you must know, I’m hungry!” Cynthia burst out with a shrug of her shoulders.
“Hmmm, you and food are inseparable!” Shilati mocked, “You couldn’t enter your kitchen and cook?”
“My mother said there would be no lunch for me this afternoon...” she said with her lips pouted and her face registered her displeasure.
“What did you do wrong?” Shilati asked compassionately,
“I don’t know, my mother just changed her attitude towards me; I don’t know my offence.” She replied in obvious displeasure.
“I think you should call your mother and have a heart-to-heart discussion with her, apologized if there is the need, and tell her to forgive you in any way you have offended her,” Shilati advised,
“I will do that...” Cynthia replied after pondering over it for some seconds.
“Before that, let us go to my place, I have some food left in the kitchen; we will be back before your mother wakes up.”
“Thank you very much, Shilati.” Cynthia smiled sadly as she stood up and followed her friend.