“Tshani…I never knew you were capable of such evil. Sleeping with your mother’s husband? That woman practically picked you off the streets and raised you.”
Malika’s voice was low with controlled rage and her eyes glittered with unshed tears. Tshani felt her heart beating wildly in her chest and for a moment it felt like she couldn’t breathe.
“Lili…I can explain-“ She began before the muffled cries of a baby interrupted her stream of thoughts. Malika sharply looked towards the direction of the sound and saw a little human lump, carefully covered with a blue blanket only an hour earlier. With the instincts of a mother, Tshani moved and delicately lifted her precious bundle. “Shhh baby…mama’s here.” She murmured comfortingly. Leo’s wet eyes gazed adoringly up at his mother and his crying slowly ebbed.
“Who’s the father of that baby?” Malika asked, her voice choked with emotion.
***
TEN YEARS EARLIER
Nabwire Darling enjoyed taking the scenic route along Jinja road on her way to work. She wasn’t a big fan of the traffic jam, but she enjoyed looking at the people walking along the street and even made up little stories for some of them in her mind. Her thoughts were scattered when a street child knocked rudely at her window and outstretched his hand for a handout. Darling looked straight ahead and kept her window shut.
A few years prior, she would have been a sucker for such subtle manipulation. Two years prior, one of the homeless boys she’d given a 500 shilling coin had rudely thrown it back in her face, nearly blinding her in the process. She’d been off work for almost three months and after the incident, had decided to keep her coins to herself. “Mum, please…give money.” The street child persisted. When she didn’t give him any attention, he banged angrily at her window before moving on.
Darling didn’t give the incident much thought, and continued on her to New Vision, where she worked as a News Room editor. The job was grueling and she often found herself exhausted but it was better than sitting at home. She went through the normal morning greetings and work routing, counting down the hours when she could return to her twin daughters. They were only four years old and she missed them sorely when she was at work.
When the day finally came to an end, she rushed back home, anxious to be with her babies. “Mummy!” Janelle and Janice both screamed when they saw her. They enveloped her in sweet hugs and she smiled contentedly as she inhaled their intoxicating scent. They still smelled like babies and their bright eyes shone with innocence. The two weren’t identical, but looked very alike with their little pigtails and dimpled smiles. Janelle was a little taller than Janice.
After she had made them their supper, and she’d finally convinced them to get into bed, Janice propped her hands up on her chin and asked the question that always made Darling’s heart contract in pain. “Mummy, when is Daddy coming home?” Darling closed her eyes and exhaled slowly. The thought of Fred, her husband and the father of the twins always brought about a feeling of conflict. They had married young, and twelve years later, were as distant as feuding relatives. He often went away on trips in the guise of business but Darling knew better. He was trying to get away from her, away from their troubled marriage. This was the longest business trip he had embarked on, almost a whole year away from home with a few phone calls here and there.
“Soon baby.” She answered before turning off the lights and kissing her girls goodnight.
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Great piece