The Maid 4

The maid danced to loud rap music which blared
from a music set on the floor. She wore white
shorts, a red tank-top and black heels. With her
make-up, she looked like a hooker working in the
notorious red light district of Las Vegas.
Ngozi entered the room without knocking and
threw the maid off her rhythm. She turned down
the music but didn’t greet Ngozi who stood by the
door and looked at the posters on the walls. Her
eyes settled on Snoop Dog smoking a cigarette.
“You did better than I expected,” Ngozi looked
around the small room with disdain.
“I told you I could pull it off. Shade is no match for
me,” the maid boasted.
“What exactly did you tell Shade?”
“Everything you asked me to say.” The maid lied.
That morning she was about to confess the whole
thing to her madam before she threw up in the
visitor’s toilet. A part of her still felt she shouldn’t
have done it. She liked Shade and Tola her
daughter. The woman had been kind to her. She
didn’t want to be the reason why she left her
husband’s house.
“What? Is that a look of remorse I see on your
face?”Ngozi looked closely at the maid.
“No, it isn’t. I was just thinking about everything.”
“I am not paying you to think. I paid you to do a
job. Is that understood?”
The maid nodded like an obedient puppy before she
sat down on the bed.
“Are you sure you didn’t arouse her suspicion or
create doubt in her mind in any way?”
“She’s out of this house, isn’t she? Isn’t that what
you wanted?” The maid asked.
Ngozi ignored her question. “Where are the
remaining pills?”
Yemi opened her bag, brought out a plastic bottle
containing blue pills and gave it to Ngozi.
“Are you sure there will be no side effects?” The
maid asked.
“If you took it the way I told you to, you should be
fine. You should stop throwing up by tomorrow
morning.”
The maid looked worried. “My body feels very
different.”
“I said you will be fine!” Ngozi snapped. “I know
what I’m doing.” She reached into her bag and
brought out a bottle of yellow pills. “So that we are
sure, take this for the ext three days. It should
stop the vomiting.”
The maid put the bottle in her bag. She planned to
throw the bottle away the moment Ngozi turned
her back. Who knows what this wicked woman put
inside this bottle? Yemi liked her madam but she
was in this for the money, Ngozi’s money.
Seven months ago, Ngozi began visiting the house
regularly when Shade her friend was out of town.
She also began to give Yemi gifts. Sometimes she
gave her clothes, sometimes money. But whenever
she came to the house, she had a gift for her. One
day, Ngozi told her what she wanted from her. She
listened as Ngozi made her an offer and outlined
her plan. The woman was devious. But she
promised her $5,000 if she could pull it off.
“So, what do I have to do?” Yemi asked.
Ngozi told her what to do.
The maid carried it out flawlessly.
Two months ago when Shade was out of town,
Gbenga returned from work and Yemi served him
his dinner. Tola was already asleep in her room.
Yemi returned to clear the plates from the table, by
then she had changed into a mini skirt and a
blouse. Gbenga didn’t think anything of her
dressing. He was drinking and watching Barcelona
demolish Arsenal in a semi-final game. Shade
washed the dishes then returned to the living
room,this time, Gbenga noticed her.
“What do you want?” he asked, by then the pill
Ngozi gave Yemi to dissolve in his drink was
having the desired effect on him.
“I am not feeling too fine,” Gbenga said. He tried to
stand up from the chair but fell back into it. Yemi
helped him up the stairs into the bedroom and
placed him on the bed. Soon after Gbenga passed
out. The next morning he woke up to see Yemi’s
clothing scattered all over the room. He was
scared that something had happened between
himself and the maid while he was drunk the
previous night. He promised to give Yemi some
money if she kept her mouth shut.
Ngozi opened her bag, brought out three bundles
of cash and threw them on the bed beside Yemi.
She smiled, picked up the cash and kept it in her
bag.
“Now, pack you things and get out of this house!”
Ngozi pointed at the door with her left hand. “I
don’t ever want to see you again!”
Yemi didn’t budge.”You promised to find me
another job,” she protested.
“Well, plans have changed. Take the money and
leave.”
“What will happen to madam?” she asked.
“That is none of your business. You must leave
this house tonight.”
The maid didn’t move. “I have nowhere to go.”
“I don’t care what you do as long as you don’t do
it here. You have enough money to rent an
apartment. You can move in with the driver if you
want to. Do you want to tell me that you are not
sleeping with him?”
The maid stood up from the bed. “Who I sleep with
is none of your business,” she said rudely as she
packed her bags.
“Yemi,” Ngozi whispered.
The maid turned around to face Ngozi. There was
a dangerous look on Ngozi’s face that the maid
had never seen before.
“Listen very carefully,” Ngozi said. “I don’t want to
see you near this house ever again. And the day I
catch you near Gbenga, for whatever reason, I will
leave a permanent mark on your face. Do you
understand me?”
The maid shook her head.
“But I will leave tomorrow morning. Do you want
me to carry this load on the streets of Lagos
tonight?”
Before Ngozi could reply,there was a knock on the
door. It was Sadique the gateman.
He looked surprised to find Ngozi and Yemi in the
same room. He thought Ngozi hated her. Why was
she talking secretly with Yemi? And why was Yemi
dressed like that?
“Oga wants to see you,” he told Yemi.
“Sadique, the maid would be leaving this house
tonight. Make sure she takes only what belongs to
her.” Ngozi said.
“But oga said I should tell Yemi to come,” he
protested.
“Don’t worry about oga, just do what I tell you to
do,” Ngozi said and left the room.
Ngozi found Gbenga drinking in the living room. He
looked like a man who had resigned to his fate.
Ngozi sat beside him. They looked into each
other’s eyes for a few seconds then Gbenga’s eyes
settled on her chest.
Ngozi reached for him and kissed him. Gbenga
pushed her away.
“Ngozi, we shouldn’t,” he protested.
“There’s nobody in the house, but us,” she
caressed his thighs.
She tried again, this time he responded and kissed
her. She stood up, gently pulled him off the couch
and headed for the stairs. Gbenga followed her like
dumb sheep being led to the slaughter.
Under the moonlit night, with a frown plastered on
her face, the maid watched them through the
window like a lioness stalking her prey.
To be continued.