Manna

Prologue

𝑴𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒂❆

"Bonani! bonani! bonani!
Kuvulwa ucango lwezulu.
Yivani! yivani! yivani!
Kwavel' intlokoma enkulu.
Lobalwa ngubani inani
Labemi entlanganisweni?
Bebonga uthando lweMvana,
Egazi likhuph' etyaleni.

Yivani amazwi eculo!
Amazwi avel' ezulwini,
Avunywa ziithunywa zezulu,
Asel' evakel' ezizweni.
Udumo, nombongo, namandla,
Alunge kwiMvana yedini;
Egazi lihlamb' amabandla,
Angene emhloph' ezulwini..." Mandisi Dyantyis crooned on the podium.

I painfully sat there, my heart aching. My sunglasses concealed my bloodshot eyes which were a result of all my wailing. Pain, treachery but most of all, desolation plagued me.

Yha! Impilo neh?

Here am I, burying my late husband of three years, at 24. Mohau was all I had, literally and figuratively. From the tender ages of 19 and 20, we've always envisioned a life and legacy shared together.

The past week has been shit. With multiple baby mamas I knew nothing about as well as dealing with my difficult family. I would have expected all this spiteful nonsense from my in-laws, not my own family.

Despite my late husband's betrayal, I still loved him, a lot. At this point, I hated God just as much as I hated the drunk driver who decided it was a good idea to drive on the road, knowing that they were intoxicated. I blame everybody for the love of my life being gone because there was nothing that anyone could tell me that would make any of this make sense.

I zoned out as his younger sister read the obituary. It made me sick to my stomach watching his mother scream and fall out over his casket as if she really gave a damn about him. It was fake as fuck to me, just like most of the people in attendance.

The service lasted about two hours before everyone headed to the burial site. I decided not to go. It was bad enough watching them close the casket on my man. There was no way I would be strong enough to see them lowering him into the ground for the last time. I just couldn't even believe it. Why him? It was a question that I knew would never be answered, but it plagued me. Life is unfair at times, but this seemed like a whole other level of cruelty.

Death? He really deserved death?

•••

"Bitch! Who the fuck do you think you are?" Hearing the sound of an unfamiliar voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

"Ausi, this isn't the place for this!" Mohau's cousin, Poloko, called out.

Maintaining my calm demeanour, I stared at the female with a full face of makeup. Scratch that, the products were plastered on her face.

"Bitch, that was OUR man. What part of that aren't you getting? You've got your nose all turnt up like you're better than me, but we're on the same level, skat," the woman spat with venom behind her words.

"First off, I'm not your skat. Secondly, you and I could never be on the same level because I know my place. Clearly, there's a reason no one has ever heard of you before. You should have just stayed the secret that he obviously wanted you to be," I retorted, getting pissed off by the second.

"Don't go there, bitch! Just because you got the measly "ring" doesn't make you better than me. Because when Mohau was face deep in my pussy, we were equal in my books, sis." She smirked as she crossed her arms as if she had somehow won. From the corner of my eye, I noticed people had their phones out. At that point, I knew it was time for me leave this situation.