Twenty Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The grin spreading across David’s face fades away at the unexpected news. Emotions of fear  and surprise gripped him and he tried sit up but the nurse gave him a nasty look; a look that was clear indication that he was to lie still. 
Trying not to fume too much, the nurse turned to Chioma and in controlled tones said, “You too sef, don’t be telling him bad news na! Don’t you want him to live at all ni?”

“What do you mean Matthew is dead? How, where, when?” David said feebly from the bed. The energy he had felt before was drained out of him by the news and there was a look of agony on his face and this time when his eyes met with Chioma’s tear filled eyes, the malice he had had in his was gone.

“I don’t know,” the tears rolled down her cheek, “he..he..was supposed to come to the house. He said…he said…he said he was on his way after I attacked you, he was on his way,” she choked out between sobs. 

The nurse stood there looking confused, her own questions were racing in her head. Who was this Matthew? Had this strange girl just confessed to putting the patient into his present condition? How were this people related? I hope I have not put myself into trouble by collecting money from the woman who left in a rush earlier? Should I tell one of the hospital authorities? 

The nurse thought to herself and finally said, “Madam, stop this. Please sir, just try and get some rest. I am sure that you can deal with whatever this is later on. You need your rest to recover.”

“Shut up!” Chioma and David barked at her simultaneously.
The nurse looked between the two of them unsure of what to do and stared at the sleeping figure of Maryam who was still dozing like a member of a church congregation during a long and boring sermon. There was no hope of getting an answer from that one. Well, if they wanted to kill themselves, she might as well leave them to it and with that, she shrugged and left the room hurriedly.

Chioma’s sob was beginning to get louder, loud enough to wake some of the other patients in the ward. David stared at her with a frown on his face, unsure whether to pity her or hate her. He knew she loved Matthew but at the same time was she not the same person who had stabbed him and put him in this condition? “Stop those tears and answer me, what killed Matthew? Did you kill him too? What happened?” 

Chioma stared at him with a blank expression on her face before the import of what he was 
trying to say hit her. She hissed and walked away, her tears blinding her eyes to the curious 
stares of the other patients in the ward as she walked past their beds. She needed air, she just had to get out of there and it was with the tears streaming down her face unhindered that she walked out of the room that seemed to be choking the life out of her.

It was close to midnight before Chioma finally came back into the ward. The hospital was as 
silent as a graveyard and everyone was asleep except Maryam.

“Where have you been? I had to call my mother that I was going to stay at your end today. I 
couldn’t leave him alone here until you were back,” Maryam said nodding towards the sleeping figure of David.

“I have just been taking a walk, mother hasn’t called yet. I wish you left him though. He doesn’t deserve our time…” the shrill sound of a phone ringing interrupted Chioma and she frowned at the sound of the familiar ringtone. It took her some few seconds to realise it was was David’s phone. 

How come he still has his phone after I buried him? There are just too many unanswered 
questions top of which is how he miraculously arrived at the hospital, Chioma thought. She 
walked towards the bed and stared at the screen, it was a private number. Could it be her mother? 

She had barely had time to make up her mind on whether she wanted to pick the call when it was disconnected. She glanced distractedly at Maryam who was looking at her with a puzzled 
expression on her face.

“I don’t remember him having his phone on him when I buried him…” the phone vibrated in her 
hand and she saw it was a text. She clicked on the read button. 

“Davo, I don do the packaging, your cous don ex the picture. I dey go Abj by morning. No call 

this number again o,” the text message read.