Dark Room – Episode 10

Every night after the 8th day I opened up to him, We would play a game, which Pastor James Invented … ” Who sings it better?”.

It was a game of all my songs from my 10 albums, he would pick a song and we both will try to sing it individually. Funny enough we were the judges as well…. I was surprised that he knew ALL my songs… There were some I even forgot the lyrics, he would be the one to remind me….

Pastor James, was too true to be real. I felt like I had known him for years. I felt I had seen my solution and that’s why one night I walked up to the living room where he was sleeping. I woke him up telling him I could not sleep, he asked if there was anything he could do to help me…

I simply answered ” Marry ME, please”…

Pastor James was shocked to say the least as sleep immediately cleared from His eyes… and his answer shocked me…

” NO.. I mean Yes… I would love to marry you. But not like this… I don’t mean the pregnancy, but I mean your state of mind, Grace… Marrying you would be the greatest privilege, but right now, you don’t need me, You need God… You know since the last time you told me you are Orishamuyiwa, you haven’t rededicated your life back to Christ and the truth is after I lost my wife, I have been praying for a new wife…. So if God gives me the privilege of making you my wife, I would be the happiest, but I can’t marry an Orishamuyiwa, I can’t marry outside of Christ… ” He said in all honesty

“I am not yet sure I want to rededicate my life yet…I don’t know…I Am still in a confused state… ” I replied

“Then you don’t want me then… Grace I can’t love you outside God… The truth is I don’t know if this is God’s doing, but the truth is I really love and care about you, and I don’t care about the past, I care about the future… So what do you say?…are you ready to come back to God…? ” He asked looking straight into my eyes

I didn’t say a word, rather I laid my head on his shoulder, there was silence for close to 10 minutes without each of us saying anything. I guess God gave me that time to make up my mind because of what was about to happen….

What?

We heard a loud bang on the door, it was 1:30am ,

” Open this door….”

Ifakolade… Ifakolade was around… That was Ifakolade’s voice… I started shivering…

” Pastor, that woman in your room is my wife to be, we have an unfinished business together… Ask her, I was on my own… She came looking for me… She brought me trouble, and I can’t have peace of mind until the trouble is over ” Ifakolade said while his boys were trying to forcefully open the door…

Pastor James faced me and asked me to run out through the back door, but I couldn’t leave him to their mercy.. They would Kill him…. While we were arguing, the door broke and I hugged Pastor James in fear. Ifakolade didn’t like that sight… You could tell from his eyes….

” OK… so it has been the pastor doing what I am suppose to be doing? …Good, then the matter has been solved, Baba Jawegbona said Two lovers must shoot Larry, then you and your pastor boyfriend must get my revenge for me… ” Ifakolade said with a sneer

” God Forbid… I can never shed Human blood” Pastor James said with all audacity…

” But you can be sleeping with a pregnant woman? ” Ifakolade said trying to ridicule pastor James

” I have not been …. “Pastor James was saying but stopped suddenly and said ” I am going to marry her and as my wife to be I would never let her shed blood…., she might have made a bargain with you in the past, but that was in the past.. “

” Really?, ” Ifakolade moves close to Pastor James and pointed his gun at His head…, while directing the “REALLY” to me…

” Nooo…don’t shoot him please… Ifakolade… I will marry you… Don’t touch him please, he is innocent, I don’t want to be guilty of his own blood too. I am ready to do whatever you want” I said with tears and fear all over me…

” Stop it Grace… This has been the problem… You don’t know how to say No… Please Say no to this devilish bargain… He can’t kill me… It is just an empty threat” Pastor James said

As if to answer Pastor James, Ifakolade shot the pillow beside Grace to confirm that his gun was loaded…

” So Grace OR Oosamuyiwa… Which one are you sef? What is your final answer… It is either I kill your pastor boyfriend and I know I have gotten my revenge or you marry me and we get rid of that useless man together? “

” Grace.. Let him kill me, I am not afraid of death… I know where I am going after death, but if you let him push you, you will kill Larry and be guilty of murder… Let him kill me… The world is waiting for you to rise again…. Please…”

” 1..2…3…” Ifakolade was counting….

” Stop it… “

I walked closed to James, and with tears I couldn’t help, I held his hand…

“James …You have been an angel to me, I can’t bear to see you die, just let me do this, after Larry’s death, my marital contract with him will be over… I believe God Will still open his arms to receive me when I am done.. But will you still want to marry me….by then…???

For the first time, I saw James in tears, he had no answer for me… he was always hopeful and full of smiles…, but that day…I didn’t see any of those….

Ifakolade pulled me out of the house, Pastor James was not ready to let go of my hands, but I had to let go of his….

A new and interesting chapter in my life was concluded so soon, but now Ifakolade was writing a new one….

If you were in my shoes, what would you have done…. Would I have let poor James die because of me….?

To be continued…

© Opeyemi Akintunde

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