A YEAR LATER

She dragged her heavy baggage on the ground  not caring that it would get weared and dirtied and huffed as she lifted it over the few steps before dragging it into the house. She removed her shoes and kept it neatly by the door then studied the beautiful sitting room with a nod of approval. She stopped just in time to avoid bumping into the man who had brought her to her new home. 

    The man introduced himself to a tall willowy girl who went back through the door she came in to call the woman of the house, her employer.

    The man then took a seat and left her standing, she glanced at the couch, then the carpet as she tried to decide whether to keep standing, or sit. Finally she decided to seat on the couch just as the Madam, a robust plump woman bursted into the sitting room. 

    The woman had an air of liveliness.  She seemed to fill the room with her presence and it had already started seeming friendly.

'Mallam Baba welcome, i see you have brought my girl' her voice was as thick as she was.
Mallam Baba, the man whose job was dispatching young girls to houses as domestic workers shifted in his seat and nodded
"Yes, thank you Madam.  And how are the husband and kids? "

   'Oh, they are fine all of them. He isn't around as usual. He is currently on a business trip to UK' she smiled, her head held high. It sounded as if she was boasting.
      What is there to boast about? The girl thought. She had been to the UK more times than she could count.

  'That is good' Mallam Baba nodded in an agama lizard way.
He cleared his throat and motioned at her. She shifted where she sat and greeted the woman 'Good Afternoon Ma'. Her head was bent in a show of respect.

'How are you and how was the journey? '. She asked cheerfully.

'It was good. Alhamdulillah'. She didn't bother to say she was not fine, nobody really cared.

'Ah! that is good. So what is your name?'.

'Laura.. ' she hesitated,  then added'... tu'.
Her name is Laura, but because of the nature of her job, it has to be more local so Lauratu was to be the *username.

'Where are you from Lauratu?'

'From Gulani'. She replied shortly.

'You are Kanuri then?'. Madam nodded wisely, it was more of a statement.

'No, we are Babur'.

She frowned 'Well it is the same thing, almost. So have you ever worked as a maid before?'

'No' Laura shakes her head 'This will be my first time'.

'First timer? Mallam Baba why did you bring a first timer to me? She wouldn't know her way around the kitchen, i will end up babysitting her and teaching her instead'.

Mallam Baba's eyes widen. He had to convince Madam to hire this one. He could not afford to lose the money offered to him on the condition that he be able to secure the job for the girl in that particular house. 

'Madam Binta calm down, I'm sure Lauratu knows her way around the kitchen'.
He looks at Laura meaningfully. Laura got the message.

'I can wash plates and tidy up the kitchen but i don't really know how to cook well'.
Mallam Baba sighed,  Laura smiled.  Just because she got the message didn't mean she had to follow it.

'Ok i have a cook here. You are to help her with little things around the kitchen like peeling potatoes and chopping onions, then she will wash and clean the kitchen while you take care of the other parts of the house'.

Laura sat up right.

'The whole house?' She blurted. She couldn't help it. There was no way she could clean up the whole house all by herself. It wasn't that big but was not a one-man's job either. No matter the pay and security offered, she wasn't built for that donkey work.

'Of course, Indo will take care of the kitchen and you, the main house. You said you did not know your way about the kitchen'. She smirked challenging her to say otherwise.

Laura lowered her head. She had conceeded but she wouldn't be the only one unhappy about it.

Madam Binta concluded the contract verbally with Mallam Baba as Laura watched on distractedly. Her mind had drifted away from them, away from that town, away from the present.

She still remembered the phone call that had changed her life.

    It was during one of her rare visits to the University Library.  She was perusing through a book in search of relevant materials for an assignment in a dispassionate manner when she saw Uncle Bellos' call.  She had picked it up glad for the interruption as she couldn't understand anything in the book when he informed her of the news.  She didn't believe him, of course.

    She had sat frozen for only God knew how many minutes after the call, her phone still held to her ear as if it would make him call back to tell her that it was a prank, that the only person who mattered the most to her had not died. But that call never came.

    She had stood up in a zombie like manner and walked blindly to the exit before she collapsed into a crying fit. It couldn't be true, her father wasn't dead. He was too alive just that morning to be dead. Before she had realised what was happening, people had gathered and she started hyperventilating, her throat constricted and her breathing got laboured, she was having an Asthma attack.

The people around her were growing thicker, the curiosity of students had no doubt gotten the better of them as they were mostly probably bored and were looking for a good distraction.

Someone had realised what was happening and was ordering them to disperse and give her space. A lady had zipped down her blouse and undid her bra. She had asked her where her inhaler was and she weakly pointed at her handbag. The lady rushed to get it. As Laura watched her blurred form running towards the handbag, she had wished the woman would not make it in time, that she would be too late and that she would die and join her father.

An hour later, when she had woken up at the hospital, she knew that wished hadn't come true, what was the truth was however, the fact that she was officially, an orphan.

Mallam Baba stood up and she dragged her distracted mind to the present. He collected some few notes from Madam Binta, thanked her profusely then gave Laura some unsolicited advice before he left.

Laura watched the last link to her past, to life as she knew it - walk away.
Madam Binta called  'Maryam'. Laura expected the willowy girl to show up but another slim girl walked in instead.

'Go show her to the maids quarters'.
The girl- who was no doubt *willows younger sister- nodded and motioned for Laura to follow her.

Laura stood up from the couch and followed her. She did not miss the demeaning look thrown her way by the girl.

She was about to set foot into the kitchen where they will follow the back door and get to the maids quarters when Madam Bintas voice stopped her.
'Lauratu' all the earlier warmth in it gone.
'Next time, do not sit or go to place you haven't been told to. When i sit on the chair, you sit on the floor, that's your place'.

THE LAURA CONSPIRACY

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