‘My prophetess wants me to marry her’ (2)

We conclude Victor Kenneth and Prophetess Happiness’ story started last week. The duo were dating secretly but after a while, they couldn’t pretend about it any longer.

“When it became obvious that my relationship with the prophetess was becoming amorous, mouths started wagging in the church. Some brothers, especially the old faithful who wanted to come closer to her but she didn’t accept them went to town with the story. They called me all sorts of names but I never cared because the lady is a great beauty. Though she already had five children, she was so pretty you wouldn’t be ashamed to hang out with her. Her shape and waistline were still intact. Somehow, I was beginning to fall in love with her as well as seeing her as my future wife. I was enjoying myself and was happy with her. Just as she was called Happiness, she was a source of happiness to me. She made sure I never lacked money.

“But the people I was more concerned about were my mother and two sisters who heard that I was dating Prophetess Happiness. When my mother asked me, I tried to convince her that the lady meant well. That she was the one who set up my music ministry for me so much that I was well known in the gospel music genre. I told her how she was determined to train me to become her assistant in the vineyard of God. That she would train me to be a prophet so that I would be assisting her in the work of God because her members were increasing in leaps and bounds,” he said.

But when Uloaku, Victor’s mother got wind of her son’s amorous relationship with this woman, she went straight to warn her.

“When my mother walked in angrily, the receptionist noticed her rage and spoke to her gently to sit down first if she wanted to see the prophetess. She gave her a form to fill just as others who were waiting did. She asked her to drop the sum of N500 consultancy fee into the offering box. She did all she was told to do. Then she was given a tally number. When she looked at it, she saw that she was number 72. That made her flare up. She started shouting that she wasn’t there to consult her. That she came to warn her to leave her son alone. That her son Victor Kenneth would never marry a woman who had lived with two previous husbands and wasn’t satisfied with them and ran out of her marriage. ‘A woman who already had five children, old shameless cargo who would not concentrate on the charm and magic she was doing for people as miracles. Tell her to leave my only son alone. She would never charm my son to marry her. Go and tell her that I said so. Tell her I said it would never be well for her if she refused to leave my son,’ she thundered.

“At that, I heard my mother’s voice from Prophetess Happiness’ office where I was sitting beside her. I sprang up from my seat to caution her. That was when the prophetess came out to see the uproar my mother was causing in her church’s reception,” he said.

When the two women were standing face to face, there was calm for a few seconds until Prophetess Happiness asked who she was and what she was looking for.

“Don’t pretend as if you don’t know me Happiness. You know me in this village. I am Uloaku Kenneth, a widow with three children, the mother of Victor Kenneth your church member. Why are you pretending as if we never worked in Ala-Nkwocha Secondary School in this our village  where you were their Home Economics teacher before you decided to be using magic to charm people in the name of miracles?” she roared.

At that, the prophetess lost her temper. “Oh you? I used to see you in that secondary school you just mentioned before I resigned to answer the call of God. You were a mere cleaner, who busied herself washing the school’s toilets, that was why I never recognised you at a first glance. Yes? Why were you shouting like a mad dog Uloaku the tigress? When will you learn to respect yourself?”

“Oh I thank God you already know I’m a tigress. I have come to warn you for the last time to leave my son alone. He would not marry a retired cargo like you. Or do you want to milk his destiny dry and trap his star like you did your two ex-husbands whose lives are now nothing but misery. Chai Happiness, you are wicked! See what you have turned those two men to, just because their eyes opened and they got wind of who you truly are. But I want to tell you that my son would never be one of them else I would devour you like a tigress devours its prey. He would never marry you, Happiness. It would only happen over my dead body,” she retorted.

“Then, be ready to die Uloaku because it would happen,” she turned, looked at Victor who was trying to calm her down. “Victor, be ready to bury your mother because what she said would happen. Both of us have come a long way, did you not tell her?” she quipped and walked to where Uloaku was standing.

“Or you are just waking up from slumber? Were you asleep when Victor started consulting me? Were you never told that all he is today is the fruit of my prayers? Woman, don’t bite more than you can chew. I called you a tigress but know that I’m a lioness, no one ever dares me. If not for the love I have for your son, I would have made you walk round this village naked, picking empty tins from trash bins, just for daring me. But know that my patience can snap. I won’t tolerate this from you any longer,” she said, tears rolling down her cheeks.

Prophetess angrily stepped out to the centre of her church premises and looked up to the sky, to the scorching sun as if she saw something up there. She muttered some words, pointed at Uloaku and commanded her, ‘Get out of my church, now!’

Uloaku sprang up like a frightened cat and walked away not saying a word nor picking her wrapper which dropped. She continued walking home in her under-skirt. People who were waiting to consult the prophetess noticed that something powerful took control of Uloaku at hearing the command of the prophetess because she walked out like a moron. They laughed and clapped for the prophetess who dismissed them and asked them to return the next day.

When Victor picked his mother’s wrapper and went home that day after apologising to the prophetess, she spoke with her mother at length.

“Mama, you see it was needless to do what you did. In fact, you disgraced me. As it is now, I would not leave her, not now that she was getting ready to train me to be her assistant. I have not voiced it out to her that I would marry her. Though she had been telling me that she would never live to see me in another woman’s arms. So right now, I’m confused Mama. This is not what we would do forcefully. Things would normalise on its own, okay!”

His mother didn’t answer him. She knew that her son was already trapped by Happiness’ magical powers.

• Readers, do you think Victor Kenneth knows what he is doing? What’s your opinion on his relationship with his Prophetess lover?