Chapter 38: Chapter 38

It had been three days since I had unexpectedly seen Reverend Lawrence again. I had been thinking of why everything was happening like that and kept thinking on what further surprises fate had in store for me.

Anyways, I was absolutely sure Reverend Lawrence wouldn't dare disturb me nor show his ugly face to me. I wasn't that little naive girl anymore and I could have him arrested for raping me and I knew he was well aware of that.

"Mum, I want more pancakes!" Cameron yelled from the dining room.

"Coming!" I yelled back from the kitchen.

I had made some pancakes for breakfast. If anyone had told me I still had cooking skills in me, I'd have said it's a lie.

I wouldn't have believed it because for the past few years, I had eaten foods prepared by someone other than me; I hadn't even attempted to cook.

I dished out some pancakes and untied my apron which I left on the kitchen counter and went to the dining where I kept the plate on the table.

Cameron took two pancakes from the plate and kept it on his own plate and made to start eating.

"Do you love the pancakes?" I asked.

"Yeah, they're delicious," He said.

"Awwn. Thanks sweetie," I told him.

He took a mouthful of the pancake in his mouth and began chewing hurriedly.

"You're eating like one who hasn't eaten in years," I said.

"It's not possible to not eat in years, the person will die," Cameron said, amidst eating.

"Don't you get sarcasm?" I retorted.

"What's that?" He asked.

"Never mind, just stop talking with food in your mouth," I told him.

I proceeded to eat my own share of the pancakes I had made. Yum! It tasted really delicious. It's not because I was the one who made it I stated it's delicious, it's because it actually was really delicious.

My phone began to ring and I had left it in the kitchen.

"Who could that be?" I asked.

"How am I to know?" Cameron retorted.

"If not that I'm a good mother, I'd have smacked you really hard," I told him.

"You won't do that, I'm your only child," He said.

"So?"

"You can't afford to beat me up," He said.

I smirked, "I really don't have to beat you up, I can always seize your video games and toys."

"Mum!!"

I ignored him and went to the kitchen. I took my phone from the counter and saw it was Mr Muffin who was calling.

I answered the call and put the phone on the speaker mode.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Is that any way to say hi?" He retorted.

"Hi. Now, what do you want from me?" I asked.

"Cassie, please, be nice," He said.

"You don't call me without a reason, just hit the nail on the head," I said.

"Could you please come to the agency?" He asked.

"What for?" I retorted.

"Please, just come, it won't take much of your time. I'm pleading with you, Cassie, please," Mr Muffin begged.

I sighed, "I hope this isn't about music."

"Not at all," He said.

"I'll be there," I told him.

"Thanks, Cassie, I owe you," Mr Muffin said and hung up.

I went back to the dining room and Cameron wasn't there anymore but he had cleared his plate.

"Cameron!" I yelled.

"I'm busy," He responded from his room.

By "busy", I knew he meant he was playing a game on his iPad or something similar.

I shrugged then finished up my meal then I proceeded to the kitchen where I washed the dishes.

There was a knock on the door.

"Who's there?" I asked, wiping my wet hands with the napkin.

I went into the living room and opened the door where I saw my son's nanny and my house help, Mary.

"Hey, dear, welcome," I told her.

"Thank you, ma," She said.

I had given her a week off to stay with her family since I was going to be home all day with Cameron and she was back.

"Come on in," I told her.

She wheeled her suitcase into the house.

"Ma, I've missed your house a whole lot," She said to me.

I smiled, "And my house has missed your presence," I told her.

"Ma, honestly, you're very lucky to be in this mansion. When I went home, I was reminded of how poverty had dealt severely with my family and I. The house we live in is nothing compared to yours, I'm really glad to be back here," Mary said.

"But I thought I gave you money to rent a better place for your family," I said.

"I appreciate all you've done for my family and I, ma, but I'm sorry to say, I didn't pay any house rent," She said, fiddling with her nails.

I was surprised, "Why?"

"My brothers have to go to school so instead, I started a small business for my mum where she can make little money and send them to school. When they graduate and make it, I'm sure they'll build houses for us. To me, their education is more important than living in a beautiful house," Mary said.

I was impressed with what she had said, "Bravo, Mary! You made a wise choice," I told her with a smile.

"Ma, I learnt from you. Even with your fame, you still went to school. That shows how important education is and although I wasn't opportuned to even complete my Junior Secondary School education, I'd try my best to send my younger ones to school," She explained to me.

"Mary, you're a very wise woman," I commended her.

She smiled, "Thank you, ma."

"You're always welcome," I told her.

"Where's Cameron?" She asked.

"He's in his room, I'm sure he has missed you," I told her.

"I bought a small toy train for him, let me go over to give it to him," Mary said.

"Sure, you can go," I told her.

Mary was such a sweet and wise lady. She looked somewhat confused and acted like she was a dummy but she was actually very smart and a good person.

She was 27 and had been right there for Cameron since he was a little baby. She didn't disrespect me even though she was older than I was.

She had been recommended by a working agency and I hadn't regretted ever choosing her, I only hoped for a better life for her.

I went to my bathroom and had a shower. When I was done with drying up my skin and moisturizing it with a Papaya organic cream, I slipped on a yellow off-the-shoulder blouse and wore a short white flare skirt. I put on yellow high-heeled sandals and did a light makeup.

After that, I put on my wig cap and wore a curly waist-length human hair wig.

I matched my outfit with just a diamond necklace and no earrings nor any other accessory was attached.

I grabbed a white purse from my closet that had real diamond stones on it and stepped out of my bedroom.

I went to Cameron's bedroom and saw him talking and laughing with Mary. Only God knew what they were always saying.

"Hey, darling," I said.

He looked up and saw me standing there.

"Gosh, mum! You look so beautiful," He said and came down from his bed and hugged me tightly.

"Thank you, darling," I told him.

"Mum, where are you off to?" He asked.

"I'm going to my agency for some important work but I'd be back shortly," I said.

"Can I come with you?" He asked.

"Ummm.. why do you want to?" I asked, surprised.

"I've never been there, I'd like to see how the place looks like," He said.

"Okay then, I even want to show off my handsome son to my colleagues anyway. Mary, could you help me dress him up?" I asked.

"Sure, ma," She responded.

"I'd be in the living room," I said and left the room.

About ten minutes later, I saw my son come to meet him as I sat in the parlour watching an American action movie. Don't be surprised, I had outgrown Zee world a long time ago cause love stories were lies.

He was putting on a pair of black jeans with a yellow hoodie with yellow high-top sneakers.

"Oh, my darling, you look so lovely," I told him.

"I hate putting on yellow," He said.

"Why?"

"It's girlish," He said, looking quite disgusted.

"Then why did you put it on?"

"So we really look like mum and son, you're putting on yellow after all," He said.

"Awwn, yellow looks good on you though," I said.

"It has to," He said.

"You're just like your mum, boastful," Rita said, coming in.

"Aunt Rita," He said and went to hug Rita who had just come in.

"Sweetheart, how are you doing?" Rita asked him.

"I'm fine and you?"

"I'm fine as well," She responded.

"Did you sleep at your boyfriend's house again?" He asked.

"Yes," Rita said.

"Is it a new guy?" He asked.

"Yes," She said with a smile.

"You're corrupting my son," I told Rita.

"He's old enough to know about dating, he even has someone he likes," Rita said.

I was stunned.

"Who does he like?" I asked Rita.

"Don't say it," Cameron told Rita.

"My hands are tied," Rita said.

"Mum, let's go, you'll be late," Cameron said.

"You have to tell me who the girl is," I said.

"Never," He told me.

Rita mouthed an "I'll tell you later" without Cameron's knowledge and I gave her a knowing smile.

"Let's go," I told Cameron.

"Where are you guys off to?" Rita asked.

"The agency, Mr Muffin asked to see me," I told her.

"Okay, bye," Rita said.

"Mum made some pancakes, bye auntie," Cameron said to Rita and we then left the house.

About forty minutes later, the car pulled over in the garage of Muffin agency.

Funny enough, Franklin hadn't said a word during our ride; I'm sure he wasn't ready to lose his job.

My son and I stepped out of the car and Wale and Michael alighted from the Camry which had been following us as usual.

Mr Andrew Muffin was there to receive us.

Cameron hugged him tightly, it was amazing how they bonded even though they had only met on the occasion of my birthday. They spoke over the phone and Mr Muffin was really nice to him.

"It's been a while," Mr Muffin said.

"You never come to see us," Cameron told him.

"I'm a very busy man," Mr Muffin told him.

"Good morning sir, I never knew I was invisible," I told him.

"Look who's jealous," Mr Muffin said, laughing.

"You're laughing, that's scary," I told him.

"You're scarier," He said and Cameron giggled.

"You really need to learn how to be on your mum's side," I chided him.

"He was funny, I couldn't help but laugh," Cameron explained.

"Can we go?" Mr Muffin gestured.

"Sure."

We began walking inside and I saw some of the staff who greeted me and asked of Cameron's health.

"If I had known you were coming with Cameron, I'd have alerted the press," Mr Muffin said to me as we walked.

"I doubt I'd have wanted that," I told him.

"You used to be on the news on a daily basis, your popularity is sinking," Mr Muffin said.

I rolled my eyes, "Is this the reason you called me here?" I asked him.

"Definitely not," He responded as we got into the elevator and pushed the button straight to the fifth floor.

"Why then did you call me?" I asked.

"There's someone who wants to see you," He said to me.

"Who's that?" I asked.

"A very important person," He responded.

My eyes bulged from their sockets, "Is it Laura Nutshell?" I asked.

He scoffed, "That deal is gone and lost forever, don't even remind me of the loss you caused this agency," He said to me.

The elevator stopped and the doors opened and we left there and walked to one of the offices.

"Where are you taking me?" I asked.

"You'll see, just be patient," He told me.

He opened the door to the office and I saw someone sitting with his back turned on one of the office chairs and his legs were placed on the table.

"Who's that?" I asked Mr Muffin.

"Go see for yourself," He responded.

"I sincerely hope for your sake that you're not leading me into a trap," I told him.

"Of course, I'm not. You should know I'll always do things that are in your favour," Mr Muffin said.

"Because they're also in your favour," I told him with a sneer.

He grinned, "You know me too well. Anyways, you should hurry up, that man's been waiting for a while now and he's getting impatient," Mr Muffin said.

"Cameron, you'll stay with Mr Muffin and be a good boy, okay?" I said to him.

"Yes, mum. Mr Muffin will show me around, right?" Cameron asked, with a smile.

"Of course, I will," Mr Muffin said and took Cameron in his arms.

Cameron tried to wriggle free from his grasp screaming, "Put me down, I'm a big boy."

I laughed and went into the office and closed the door gently behind me.

"Good morning," I said softly.

"Cassandra, long time no see," The man said and spun his chair around.

I was utterly shocked and highly bewildered. It was Mr Folorunsho that was sitting right there, staring at me with a glint in his eyes.

"What do you want from me?" I asked, trembling.

"Won't you like to sit down?" He asked instead.

"I.... I don't want to," I said.

"Why are you scared, Cassandra?" He asked.

"Well, the last time I saw you, you almost had me killed," I retorted.

"It wasn't my fault but the fault of your stupid boyfriend," He said.

"I don't know who you are talking about," I told him.

He stood up and walked to stand opposite me and I toook a few steps backwards.

"You can relax, I won't try to kill you in an open area," He said.

"I don't trust you. You could kill me and still get away with it," I said through clenched teeth.

He guffawed, "It's not my fault the people like me."

"You have them all fooled. If they knew the kind of despicable things you've done, they won't like you," I told him.

"How will they ever find out? It's impossible," He said.

"What's even your motive? Why do you pretend to be someone you're not?" I asked.

"Power, what else? I'm just the governor of a state, wait till I become the president of the whole federation. I'd wreak havoc and extort the money I want, even now, I already have so much money from them, they don't just know it," He said.

"Money! Money!! Money!!! What's your obsession with it? Aren't you rich enough?' I yelled.

"You have no idea what I went through to achieve this much money, I even had to marry a woman I don't love and had that good-for-nothing boy named Amsterdam," Mr Folorunsho barked.

"You're a bastard," I told him.

He raised his hand to slap me but I dodged the slap just in time.

He placed his hands in his pockets and stared at me looking so frustrated.

"What do you want from me?" I asked.

"I want you to testify in my favour in court," He said.

I scoffed, "And why do you think I'd do that?"

"Because Amsterdam betrayed you."

"Even if Amsey betrayed me, I still won't take sides with the devil," I said.

"I'd give you 10 million naira and you'd marry my eldest son, Jordan," He said.

"You're ridiculous! I'm not broke and I'm beautiful, I have a lot of marriage proposals just so you know," I said.

He sighed, "What do you want? I'd give you anything," He said.

I thought for a moment and decided to ask for the impossible.

"I want a five-storeyed building in Ikoyi and I want to sing with Laura Nutshell," I told him.

"Who's that?" He asked.

"She's a Canadian singer," I told him.

"Whatever, I'll make that happen," He said.

I stared at him in disbelief.

"I give you my word," He reassured.

"What exactly do you even hope to achieve if I testify in your favour in court?" I asked because I couldn't understand.

"You have to say you were living with Amsterdam and he beat you up badly because you refused to be part of his evil scheme against me," He said.

"But that's a lie," I said.

"No one has to know the truth. You're a star, people love and trust you. You lived with Amsey, paint him black in a way no one will doubt me," Mr Folorunsho said.

I paced around the room for a while, my head filled with thoughts. On one hand was Mr Folorunsho who could achieve my dreams and save me a lot of money and on the other hand was Amsey who had betrayed me.

"Do you need some time to think?" Mr Folorunsho asked.

I thought of what I stood to gain by joining forces with Mr Folorunsho but what was the whole point in the end? I'd be no different from him if I lied against Amsey in court.

"I feel stupid for even considering your offer," I said.

"Why?" He retorted.

I shook my head, "I don't know why Amsey hurt me badly but he took care of me and saved my life and my son's life as well. I may have been a victim of societal abuse or may have even died if not for him. I can't do this to him," I said.

"Don't you want to sing with your Canadian star?" He asked.

"I want to but not at the expense of betraying somebody," I said to him.

"Think carefully," He said.

"There's nothing to think about," I told him.

He smashed the vase on the floor angrily and eyed me viciously.

"You'll call me, that's a promise," He said and walked out, slamming the door behind him.

I grabbed the handle of the seat I was close to and collapsed into the chair, trembling hard; the man was so scary.

"Cassie?" I heard Mr Muffin call.

"Amsey's still my Achilles heel," I told him, not turning back.

"I think you did the right thing," He said and patted my shoulder.

"What do you mean? I'm just as weak as before," I said.

"What you did showed how strong you are," He told me.

I turned to face him.

"Why did you say that? I couldn't even bring myself to hurt him the same way he hurt me," I told Mr Muffin.

"That's strength. Weak people are the ones who seek revenge, don't forget how Amsey helped you out when you had nothing. I may not like the guy but you shouldn't forget the good he did for you," Mr Muffin told me.

I looked at him suspiciously, "You're being unreasonably nice. What are you up to?"

My phone beeped and I checked it and saw to my surprise that Mr Muffin had posted a picture of my son and himself on social media.

"Why'd you take this picture?" I asked, thrusting the phone in his face.

He chuckled nervously, "It's just a selfie. People are saying your son is cute and they want him to get married to their daughters, funny stuff like that."

"You can't just post my son on the internet, you have to take permission from me," I said.

"He's not complaining," Mr Muffin shrugged.

"Speaking of which, where's my son?" I asked.

Mr Muffin began to scratch his hair.

"Where is he?" I demanded.

"He's with....."

[Amsey's POV]

I was with Cameron at Muffin agency who was playing a game on my iPad. His whole concentration was on the game and he paid me little or no attention.

Mr Muffin, the same man who had taken Cas to the hospital the day she fainted some years ago had surprisingly reached out to me through Facebook. It turned out that he was the one who had saved Cas when I had left her.

He wanted me to be the face of the Muffin Magazine for the March edition. The magazine was all about health, lifestyle and entertainment.

It was an offer that I had declined immediately but after telling me it would help in being closer to Cas, I had jumped at the idea. Besides, he had said it would help in publicising my image to the public; something I wanted that'd annoy my father.

I had come to discuss business with the man and I had seen him with Cameron. He left me with Cameron and went to see if Cas was doing okay.

I was told she had an important visitor but the name of the visitor wasn't disclosed to me.

"You want to go get some ice cream?" Cameron suddenly asked.

I hadn't even realised he wasn't playing the game anymore.

"What's it? Aren't you playing the game anymore?" I asked.

"I give up, it's too hard," He said.

"How? This game is easy," I said, collecting the iPad from him.

"It seems easy at first but as the game progresses, it becomes annoying and you fail," He said.

I sighed, "Should I show you how to do it?" I asked.

"Nope, I'm bored of it," He responded.

"So what do you wanna do?" I asked.

"Let's get some ice cream," Cameron said.

"You know how scary your mum is, she gets so upset on seeing you and I discussing. She'd probably strangle me if I give you something to eat," I told him.

He giggled, "My mum just acts tough, she's a really sweet person once you get to know her."

I smiled, "I know her very well, I'm well aware she's just trying to act tough."

"How do you know her?" He asked.

"We....ummm... She... She and I were friends," I said.

"Really?" He asked, looking quite surprised.

"Yes, a long time ago, even before you were born," I responded.

"Wow! How was my mum like when she was younger?" He asked.

I thought for a while then answered him, "She was really cute, innocent and very emotional," I told him.

"Did you know my father?" He asked after about a minute of total silence.

I heaved a deep sigh thinking of how I was supposed to answer his question.

"I.... I didn't know him," I replied.

"But you said you knew her before I was born," He said, with a pout.

"Ummm....." I couldn't think of what to say.

"Or are you my father?" He asked.

"Of course not," I said and laughed nervously.

He rolled his eyes, "Of course, you're not. My mum said my dad is dead but at times, I wish he were still alive," He said.

I looked at him with so much pity and empathy. His father was alive; he just couldn't know about it.

I wondered which was worse; not having a father or having a father who treated you with disgust and contempt. I just couldn't tell which one was worse.

I heard the sound of footsteps approaching us then I saw Mr Muffin and Cas come into view.

She looked absolutely gorgeous and pleasantly stunning in the outfit she had on but something was wrong; she wasn't smiling.

"I thought I warned you to stay away from my son," She said, before she even reached the exact spot we were seated.

"It was Mr Muffin who told me to stay with him," Amsey said.

"And you could have declined," She told me, facing me squarely.

"Mum, it's fine. You don't have to behave like this, this is why he thinks you're scary," Cameron said.

Why did he have to say that? I was in a mess, all thanks to Cameron.

"What?!! You told my son that I'm scary?" She yelled.

"Cassie, keep it down," Mr Muffin said.

"For goodness sake, why's he even here? Are you guys hatching a plot against me?" She asked, looking from Mr Muffin who was standing by her side to me who was seated.

"Of course not!" Mr Muffin said.

"Then why?" She asked.

I swallowed, "I've been asked to be on Muffin Magazine cover for next month's edition," I explained to her.

She scoffed, "Wow! Will you ever change? I'm sure it's because he's trending right now that you suddenly want him to be the face of your magazine," She said.

"Is there anything wrong with that? It's my magazine after all," He said.

"The only thing you care about is money. You're doing this so people will purchase more copies of your magazine next month on finding out it's the alleged son of Governor Folorunsho that is the face of the magazine, isn't it?" She inquired.

"It is. You shouldn't be shocked. By now, you know I'm all about the money," Mr Muffin told her.

"Fine! Do whatever you want with your business. No wonder you were supporting him back there. For once, I thought you were actually being selfless," She said to him.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"It's none of your business," She retorted.

"Mum, you're actually being scary right now," Cameron said.

"You're turning my own son against me," She accused.

"I'm not, he's just being honest," I told her.

She scoffed, "Only God knows the kind of lies you've filled my son with. I'd be putting an end to this rubbish of yours, just watch and see," She said.

"You're misunderstanding me," I told her.

She grabbed her son's hand and dragged him along with her against his will but not before staring daggers at me.

I threw my hands up in exasperation. The boy just had to spoil everything.

"You shouldn't have called her scary," Mr Muffin said.

What a good way to aggravate issues!!

"Could we go sign the contract now?" He asked.

"You shouldn't have told me to stay with Cameron," I said and walked away.

I ignored his calls and left the agency's premises with so much annoyance.

Was I ever going to get my Cas back or was it really over??