Grace went to the Zenith Bank automated teller machine close to her new apartment to withdraw. Slipping her card into the ATM, she checked on the amount left. It was only #7,000. The big smile on her face dropped when she realized this. Immediately, she picked up her phone and called Mrs. Njoku. Luckily, she picked up.
“Good afternoon, ma.” Grace began.
“Afternoon, dear. How are you?” Mrs. Njoku replied to her greeting.
“I’m fine, ma. I’ve got a fine house at Agwan Wuru.”
“Good.” she appealed over the phone with a light chuckle.
“But the cost is a bit high. It’s #50,000. Could you lend me the money until the end of this year?”
“Sure, I will. But you can pay me back whenever you’ve earned enough, okay?”
“Okay, ma. Thanks so much, m-,” she said, and an electronic voice from her phone interrupted. “You have one minute remaining. Dial *606# to borrow #500 from MTN, otherwise, hang up now.”
Grace clicked on the end call button and sighed. She knew she had to pay her new landlord, Chinedu, to avoid any future controversy. And it was best to pay for it once.
‘Ping! Ping!’ Grace’s buttoned phone alerted her to a new message.
She checked and Mrs. Njoku just sent her #50, 000. The corner of her lips lifted as it formed a smile.
Just then, another customer came to queue behind Grace.
She pressed her lips together and pulled out her card from the arm machine. Then slut it in again to transfer her complete house rent to Chinedu. She got the slip for evidence.
Grace used the remaining cash to buy foodstuff and important cleaning equipment like new buckets, brooms, and dustbins. It was hectic at the market, though; she got home before 4:00 p.m.
Looking upward, the sky seemed gloomy. The sun shone brighter as if battling for space. Who would have thought that something as colourless as water could make clouds so dark? It calmed Grace that she had an apartment of her own now. Luckily, she got home before the drizzle.
Getting home from the market with three heavy bags, Grace imagined how she would prepare dinner and have a rest of her mind. She struggled to climb upstairs and finally got to her door. What she saw completely shattered get heart in an instant. All her bags were outside. Including her plates, pots, and suitcase.
‘Was I robbed? Who would have access to the room if not Chinedu, the landlord?’ Grace pondered. ‘Why would he throw my belongings out?’
Happiness drained out of her face, replaced by terror. Her hand dug into her handbag for the key to the flat. She found and fixed it in the keyhole at the doorknob. Grace turned it loose severally, but it wasn’t working. Just then, the door slid open from within. Grace’s eyes met with an aged woman and wheezed in total shock.
“Who are you?” the woman questioned with a hardened expression.
“I’m the new tenant of this flat, ma,” Grace mumbled. “Who are you?”
“I am Mrs. Arinze, the owner of this entire building.”
“What?” a flush crept up Grace’s face as it contorted.
“Don’t tell me that Chinedu is up to it again.” The woman protested with a tired sigh and rolled her close-set eyes skyward. “I own this entire building. It was what my late husband left me with. You see, I rent out other rooms except this one, and visit my children from time to time. Making Chinedu the caretaker is the worst decision I’ve ever made. He dupes people and despite all my efforts to make him leave, he just wouldn’t.”
YOU ARE READING
Replica: Crazy Versus Smart (Nigerian Story)
Mystery / ThrillerSusanne Fashorun, a woman who marries into the wealthy Balogun family, is rejected by her arrogant CEO husband and treated as a slave. Despite being his wife, Micheal Balogun refuses to share his bed with her, leaving Susanne to accept a life of lux...
