Sister-in-Campus 4

M

ama Namasaka, Daudi's wife had just sent her Namasaka to the shop to get some tea leaves, milk and bread as she sat opposite Pastor Mwanga in the barely spacious sitting room. Part of the room was occupied by a double decker wooden bed where the children slept.

"It is long since your husband came to church sister", Pastor remarked.

"Yeah it's true pastor. Even here at home its hard for him to sleep in this house a whole week. He claims its the job he got at Mbale that keeps him away at such times." Mama Namasaka replied with calmness facing the table before her. Pastor who was looking at her all this time could not help noticing her beautiful eyes getting wet. She continued to narrate how being inquistive to her husband had at times made her get slapped. Her daughter Masela came and sat beside her and she cling to her as she paused within her narration to cry quietly.

"I suspect he has another woman out there",Pastor spoke when she stopped her narration. She nodded to the fact that her husband was seeing another woman. Just then she remembered she had forgotten to send for sugar since her supply in the house was almost getting finished. Sugar had become very expensive after the government discovered the deadly mercury and copper in the sugar being retailed in shops. Namasaka was already back but was sent back to the shop again together with his young sister. This time around to get sugar which would require going upto Gambogi more than a kilometre away to get sugar.

"Am sorry that you have been going through such a hard time all this time and no one not even me knew it! Such a shame!" Pastor continued talking mentioning alot of things in the process as Mama Namasaka continue to sob slowly. He could not hold it any longer so he stood up and went to sit beside. He placed one arm over her shoulder expecting a her to decline but she didn't. Instead she moved closer to him and leaned on his chest. He right hand were now on her waist. His other hand was busy wiping tear over her face as the other gently caressed her side. It was long since someone did anything equivalent to her probably a year or so just like it was for pastor. 

Dealing with church problems like people fighting to be pastors, family disputes, teenage relationship was not easy for him just like it was extremely hard to contain a gossiping wife who was a parrot in the house. It was his daughter Joyce now in the university that knew how to neutralize the tense environment in the house when it rose. Now that she was not near, the house was hotter than the sun outside. The encourager needed an encourager.

Namasaka had left his sister behind at the posh mill so that he could run faster to the shop and be back in a short time. He never liked walking with her since she was a liability in many ways. She got tires quickly, she could cry over nothing, she got distracted by whatever that caught her eyes. Namasaka did not expect to meet his father at that time of day, though he expected to see him in the evening out of his routine to be away for two or three days. He was already carrying sugar he had been sent but since he feared to spill it on the way he could not run. He still managed to walk fast. A motor cycle that was hooting at him stopped before him. He could not recognize the rider on it till he took off his helmet.

"Dad! Is it you on a motorcycle?" Namasaka managed to say between his panting.

"Did your mother send you?" Daudi asked his son ignoring his question.

"Yes dad, we have a visitor in the house" Namasaka said.

"Who is it?"

"Pastor Mwanga." Daudi was full of anger as his mouth moved though nothing came out. He knew someone was either poking his nose into the affairs of his family.

"Let's go there now!" He said fiercely as he signalled him to board.

"Masela is waiting for me by the posh mill" Namasaka said quickly before his dad could release the clutch of the motorcycle.

"What! So your mum sent you two this far so she could remain with a pastor!" The rage in him was rising faster like speed of a Ferrari. A number of things were revolving in his mind. He was going to bust the two of them with whatever they were upto. To him they were like two blind people walking into a big hole. Never in his life had ever imagined that a pastor would be meddling with his faithful wife.

A sweet mouth watering smell invited into his compound. In an unexpected turn of events his wife was preparing some chapatis while the said pastor sat alone in the sitting room busy on his phone. An open bible was right beside him on the table. Daudi felt weak as he approached the smiling pastor to great him. Pastor wanted to embrace him warmly but he insisted on a normal hand shake as he felt doing so was not any different from what Judas did to Jesus on the eve of the pass over. On the other hand pastor was as happy as a nineteen-year-old Mbappe kissing the world cup. The timing of Daudi's arrival with his children was quite perfect. He would not know anything bad that could happened in his absence. Had he not come may be the children would be busy accusing their mother, "Dad while you were away Pastor Mwanga was here sent us to the shop and even mum cooked chapatis". That was the price their harsh mother would get over the whole incident. The children were equally amused and happy for they were going to feast on chapati some they had missed for a very long time.

* * * * *

BANG! BANG! BANG! Someone was going violent with the door. It was Hazy knocking at their door. Nobody knew how long she had stood there. But from the banging of the door it was definate she had stood there long enough to get mad at Joyce who was inside. Her phone was off for a very very long time. When she peeped through the key hole she could see someone on the bed though not clearly. Perhaps a call to either Abby or Daisy would do whoever was responding the better. Abby was offline but Daisy was not picking her calls. Hazy decided to go to the washrooms as she thought of what else to do Daisy was calling her back.

"Sweetie where are you?" She said as soon as she received. She hardly said hello or any other greetings unless she was talking to someone superior.

"Am on my way back to college", Daisy replied.

"Where exactly?"

"Am taking a bike here at Mwembe"

"Okay make it quick then"

"Hazy is there a problem?"

"Daisy you will know when you get here" and with that Hazy hang up leaving Daisy in darkness over what awaited her. She was not a person to be told anything in suspense.

* * * * *

Monday morning were often not good times for most people who had been enjoying a long weekend parting. Dealing with hangovers and sleepiness becomes an uphill task. There were other people who didn't feel like waking up despite not having been parting or having fun. They were pastors of protestant churches whom as usual preached with so much vigour that came from the need to convert souls to Christ. Pastor Mwanga was not an exception on such a morning. His wife was already up to prepare breakfast and feed the chicken before heading to the farm. Pastor could not wake up till after 11am when he would begin feeling hungry. The effect of tgs sermon he preached, and the prayers he conducted afterwards was now taking toll on him. No man was too strong for fatigue and sleep. Just as his wife was about to leave the house his phone began to ring and she expected he would wake up to pick it. It was the second time that it rang again that she moved into the bedroom to pick it. The number calling was a new one and she was torn between ignoring it, receiving and waking her husband to tell him about it.

"Hello!" She said into the phone when she had finally made the decision to receive it on his behalf. The caller on the other end was a woman like her and her mind just like any other woman would think her mind could not help think about the possible reasons why a woman was calling at such a time. If she was a husband snatcher then she was there to deal with it, if she was reporting battering from then she would be the first to know such hot news. The lady went ahead to know if she was Joyce's mother which was confirmed with an "mmmh". However Mrs. Mwanga insisted to know the caller before she could go ahead to say why she was calling. It turned out to be a nurse from Kisii University and she was asking either Mrs. Mwanga or Pastor to travel urgently to the university. She could not help think of many absurd things her daughter could have done to get herself into trouble. Back in high school she never sneaked out of school like other naughty girls had done. Maybe she had been influenced into some bad company and done something bad.

"Your daughter is very sick in a critical condition and we need you to come and get her to a good hospital where she can be taken care of." That was the last statement that the caller said before dropping the call. She could not help scream in shock over the news awakening her husband in the process. Before she could break the news to him another call was coming though but this time pastor got up and took the phone ready to receive it. It was from Daudi's wife. He was full of mixed reaction not knowing whether to receive it there or excuse himself since his wife sat on the edge of the bed.