Ruthanne Georgeson High

💎 •The Gemfiltrators' Rituals Abode•

| White Lanes Estates, Magodo |

| 5:02 AM |

•••

Yvonna Shettima, on bum-length braided hair she got from her father's lineage— the Fulanis—trotted to the heavy oaken front doors of her house. She clicked it open and dragged a door backward, a steamy cup of tea fitted in one hand and a bundled up blanket about her tall frame.

Hera stumbled in, panting and struggling with a duffel bag twice her size and made for the spatial sitting room of the palatial and stylish nine-bedroom apartment that belonged to Sarai Asma'u Abdullahi.

Single parent of Yvonna, divorced for twelve years, happy and raking in figures about five hundred million nairas as a programs' host, Master-of-Ceremony, and events planner.

She worked for the big players in the economy.

"Where's Lu?" Yvonna asked, going in after Hera and walking to a glass table. She snatched up a remote control and powered a wall TV on with it, to the left of the room.

"Will be here. I left her in the car."

Luyanda made her appearance then, looking like an African goddess even having just step out of bed, still in her pajamas. Pink, and with polka dots. Her hair was traditional - a cornrows type, but intricate. She was the least incited of their group and they converged at Yvonna's house to prep for school. A ritual they'd been engaging in since their junior secondary school days.

"Okay then. Let's go get ready. We have so much to do, places to go," Yvonna commanded in her bossy voice and they all trudged upstairs, on stairs covered with a flamboyant orange rug.

The close friends get treated to many pleasurable things and are pampered to fullest by professional beauticians, cooks, and staff working for Sarai always bristling in the house. She had a broadcasting room in the apartment, along with the adjoining rooms that came with it, guest rooms and trifty deluxes to give her visitors a homely experience.

Yvonna basked and thrived in the exposure, entertainment after being introduced to it at a tender age and facing bullying, backlashes which now she's accustomed to.

She had a bath at the same time with her company in a jacuzzi, sipping cocktails and fruit wines as make-up artists worked on their skins-the parts visible. They played in the water afterward, splashing the guzzling liquid at themselves and joking about the popular kids, hobnob parents. They proceeded to dried up, get waxed, and dolled up in their uniforms paired up with designer accessories-wraparound sunglasses with love- and diamond-shaped shades, heels and others.

They seemed oh-so-perfect, like their lives were made with delicacy - no scratch, glint, blemish. But only to an outside observer glimpsing through the newspapers and the feets-high fences to their mansions. They still had ruthless genes in them, and kept a lid over damaging secrets of top personalities around countries. Their own personal lives? Tales, rotten, for another day.

The gemfiltrators finished their ritual, forty-five minutes later, sprayed with expensive fragrances from around the world and proceeded to the dining room. An antique-y style. Having mosaic glasses, rich drapes and China wares. A chandelier gave a maroon hue to the room and candelabras were set up on the table.

Their breakfast had been served.

And Sarai descended from her chamber in a short while to join them.

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A

fter her Sarai's departure, her daughter began debriefing her friends.

"So, what have you guys got?" asked Yvonna, pushing a diced pineapple in-between her luscious lips.

Hera's face blossomed. "Ohh, I've got some thing on Crystal Flecks Montessori."

"Really? Spill."

"The founder is in a ménage a trois. . . with his students."

Luyanda spat out sparkling water onto her plate.

Yvonna was still, like an automaton, brain clicking wildly, converting the piece of information. It was not at the least shocking to her. Just another bit like the many tidbits she has full already. Some on her PC and Galaxy Note. She knew about everything, everyone - even deadly secrets about her two minions, unaware. She's never caught off guard, and was always a step or two ahead of all.

Ren Georgeson, though, seemed to be her hardest target to crack. Unearth. Rattle. Trying hard however, she just couldn't get to discover anything. Especially information relating to his involvement in Ruthanne's and Sophia's death. All she knew was that he came back to Nigeria because of the issue, causing a rift in the family, according to a source. But digging up on that apparently presented to be a case for some other days.

She opted for saying instead, "So, let me in on this juicy scandal. Tell me about it." And paid rapt attention to Hear as she recounted the dirty dregs on her fingers.

"You, Lu?" Yvonne turned to Luyanda Mtshali finally.

Lu was still shaken by the force of Hera's revelation, but it wasn't that much of a surprise anyway to her. It was norm in their world. Crazy happenings, but then hearing them being spoken out loud was knocking. Like a blow to one's footing. They lived constantly among bizarre events, and she was in no better place to know that first-hand. Being the daughter of a philanderer pursuing the young interns at his engineering company.

A recent scene popped in her mind. One that took place at Ruthanne very recently. And she'd painstakingly investigated it. It was going to be a big ruckus. One involving the Georgesons' twins and a poor student. "So... there this new girl...,"she began. "I don't really know much of her, she's a scholar?" She fiddled with a tablecloth, while intonating, pausing at intervals.

"Oh, that popular scholar girl? I know her. The really black one."

"Yep. That's her. She was talking with Ren yesterday."

"What?!"