MISSING PIECE (Part 6)

Four years later
The money the court ordered Armstrong to pay was paid, to his surprise. When he was escorted out, told to sign some papers and given his clothes, he thought it was a dream. Not until he saw his wife waiting for him outside in a cab, smiling. Then he knew it was real. How did she do it? They hugged tightly.
On their way home, he could not hold his curiosity. “Babe, how did you raise the money?”
“Let’s get home first”, she replied.
“Come on, tell me”, he pressed.
“Fine. I had to sell most of our properties. I couldn’t bear to see you there. Coupled with the help of the pastor and we’ll meaning friends, I raised the money. And we got a competent lawyer. At least you’re out now.”
“That’s…….good”, he said sadly, “At least, we have a house to go to.”
“Ernmm…the bank came to lay claims on it. They said you used it as a collateral for something and you’re yet to pay.”
             Great! House gone, everything gone. How will they cope?, he thought.
“If you’re thinking about where we’ll stay, don’t worry. It’s settled.
How did she know what I was thinking? “Settled? How?”
“Well, Pastor Kali arranged a self-contained apartment for us. Not big, but comfortable. What you need now is to eat and sleep. But we have to go somewhere first.”
“Where?”
“For starters, to the barber’s. You need a haircut and a shave. Then we’ll get you something else to wear. Plus, I told the children you’d be returning to the country and they’re expecting lots of gifts from you so we’ll stop at the gifts shop to get what they requested. I have a list with me”, she reeled on.
He kept staring at her. God, I love this woman!
“Hmmm…..stategist! You’ve got it all planned out. I love you, JayCee.”
“Awnnn….I love you too.”
          “Madam, where una wan stop?”, the driver asked.

***********
The children were excited to see their father. Each had questions they wanted to ask him. They were angry with him for not letting them know he was traveling nor talking to them while he was there. When they saw the gifts he’d bought for them, they were pacified. He looked at them jumping and shouting all over the place. Six years. He’d missed six years. Tears welled up in his eyes. He was happy to be home. Jacinta paid the cab driver, who had been smiling at the reunion, and they all went into the house.

*************
A week later….
“No problem. I’ll get it for you as soon as I can. Thanks for understanding.” Jacinta dropped the call. She turned to see her eldest child, Claire, frozen where she stood like she’d seen a ghost. Her motherly instincts set in. She rushes to meet her, placing a hand on the girl’s forehead. “Claire, what’s wrong? Are you okay?”
“Mum, you taught us not to lie. Lying is bad, right?”
“Yes, it is.”
” How come you’re lying?”
“How do you mean?”, Jacinta asked,  still not sure where her daughter was heading.
“So dad has been in prison all these while?”
“Who told you that? “, her mother asked, shocked.
“You did.  I over heard your conversation on the phone. You’ve been lying to us”, Claire accused. Can one really hide the truth from a fourteen year old? 
          “Have a seat, let’s talk about it”, Jacinta began, exhaling. “Look baby, I’m sorry I lied. But then, I had no choice. That is no excuse, I should have told you guys nonetheless. And yes, daddy was in prison for what he didn’t do and we had to sell so many things so he could be released”, she explained.
“Okay. But you must ask God for forgiveness”, Claire said. Wow! She’d never imagined that her daughter would be telling her what to do but she was glad she’d remembered all they’d taught her and her siblings.
“I will……right now. Will you pray with me?”
Claire nodded. They bowed their heads and prayed.

“So, mum, is that why we left our house and stopped going to school that time?”, Claire asked.
“Yes.”
“And that’s why we had to stay at grandma’s for a while?”
“Yes.”
“And that’s why we changed our school and you had to sell…….”
“Shhhh! Don’t say that aloud. Yes, that’s why. I don’t want your dad to know about it for now. So, am I forgiven?”
           She thinks about it for a while. “Yes, you are. But no more lies.”
Jacinta raises her hand. “No more lies, I promise.”
“I love you, mum.”
“I love you too, baby”, her mother replied, hugging her.
            “So, it’s only Claire that gets all the sugar, huh?”, Tony, her eldest son asked, oblivious of what had transpired between mother and daughter. Beside him was Andrew and Laura.
Jacinta laughed. “Come here.” They ran and joined in the embrace.

To be continued…….