Battles in the shadows

OUR PERFECT FAMILY

"Chief Cook? Mama Joe?" Laura's eyes bulged in shock but her lips soon spread into a smile as she threw her arms around the older woman.

"What is happening? Who is she?" Brandon asked in a shaky voice.

"She is our second mother at the orphanage." She replied and slowly pulled away as she recalled Brandon's words about some trouble.

"Like I said, we have more visitors so please all of you take your seats, fasten your seat belts because this flight will be very sweet as well as bumpy."

"Why are you here? Why is my husband scared of you? Do you know each other?" Laura asked out loud. Something was definitely wrong and her mind could not comprehend it.

She opened her bag and brought out a black pistol. Everyone shrank back in shock.

"Mama Joe! What are you doing?" Laura shouted at the top of her voice.

The doorbell chose that time to ring.

Chief Cook a.k.a Mama Joe smiled brightly and signaled to Laura to check the visitor.

Laura, more confused than ever walked to the intercom and looked through the screen; there stood Mrs. Robertson.

"Open the gate dear child!" Mama Joe said sharply.

Laura obeyed and quickly walked over to Brandon after the Robertson drove in.

"Why are you doing this?" Laura asked angrily.

"Hush child, we do not want to scare off our visitors." Mama Joe replied artlessly with her eyes focused on the door.

About thirty seconds later, the Robertsons knocked and came in. Mama Joe hid the gun behind her.

"Wow! Mama Joe! It is so good to see you." Faye greeted happily but just as the last syllable rolled out of her mouth, Mama Joe pointed the pistol at her.

"Oh my God!" Lucas shouted.

"Lucas stupid Robertson! You are a fool!" Mama Joe yelled and ushered him to sit down with his wife beside the Rakwela couple.

"Latoya, what is going on?" Faye asked as her knees suddenly became weak in fear.

"Now that we are all here, please listen attentively." Mama Joe said happily and got a stool nearby to sit down.

"Please kindly get us some drinks,"

Latoya stood up to obey the order but was stopped in her tracks by Mama Joe's pistol pointed right in her direction.

"On second thought, I wouldn't want to die a miserable death like those poor four innocent children, right Mompati?"

All eyes turned to look at the man of the house. Poison? What poison?

Mompati looked down and began to sob almost immediately. Latoya was speechless and very much confused just like every other person in the room except Mama Joe.

"I run an organization that watches over the children in several orphanages in the country. Call it crazy but we are guided and motivated by Ezekiel 3. Please Laura, unlock your phone and open your Bible to this precious chapter." Laura immediately obeyed while the others rooted down in fear and perplexity.

Mama Joe ignored them and rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Lauretta darling, please read aloud as we used to do at home okay... read from verse 17 to 21."

Laura scrolled through the New International Version Bible App in her phone and scrolled through the Old Testament drop list then to Ezekiel. She knows that chapter well; the chapter about the watchman of Israel. She looked up, cleared her throat and began to read.

17 "Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me.

18 When I say to a wicked person, 'You will surely die,and you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their life, that wicked person will die fort heir sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.But if you do warn the wicked person and they do not turn from their wickedness or from their evil ways, they will die for their sin; but you will have saved yourself.

20 "Again, when a righteous person turns from their righteousness and does evil, and I put a stumbling block before them, they will die. Since you did not warn them, they will die for their sin. The righteous things that person did will not be remembered, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.

21 But if you do warn the righteous person not to sin and they do not sin, they will surely live because they took warning, and you will have saved yourself.

"Why are you doing this to our family? Our parents brought Lauretta up well. She is who she is today because of them!" David said with intense emotion.

Mama Joe gave him a piercing look that made him look away almost immediately.

"Tsk tsk tsk. Ignorance is not an excuse at all but I will leave you out."

Mompati Rakwela went down on his knees and began to plead for mercy. This act infuriated Mama Joe. How could he be asking for the easy way out after the hell they made their child go through. The doorbell rang once again and David got up to check who it was.

"If you don't want to end up dead darling boy, get off my program and allow me to run it as planned." The dark look staring back at him was so overpowering that he sat back down meekly and slowly picked up his phone.

"We have visitors David, we don't want them to think we are unfriendly." Mama Joe said and stood up to check the intercom. She smiled brightly as she opened the gate.

And before long, the Moabi family enters.