“Ahhh, yes! A bowl of Maa Dru’s light soup in the comfort of my chair! This is what I’ve missed,” Akushika declared lightheartedly as she took a sip from the spoon full of the beloved soup. Evening had arrived, and the Mills-Odoi apartment was buzzing. While Remaliah was yet to return home, the rest of the squad were around, and were in Akushika’s room. While she was seated in a nearby chair, the others were gathered around Ellen’s crib, admiring her as she fidgeted in her place.

Bukky turned to Akushika, a smirk on her face. “You deserve it, my dear. Pushing this baby girl out wasn’t easy. You deserve all the pampering you get.”

“Uh-huh,” Raymond agreed as he offered his pinky finger to Ellen. The little one duly grabbed it tightly.

“Awwww, look, she’s grabbed Ray’s finger!” Jonny gushed. “How adorable!”

“My guy, this your awww doesn’t sound cute enough. Put some more heartfeltness into it!” Raymond demanded playfully.

Akushika shook her head. “Ray, leave Jonny alone, lah. What is ‘more heartfeltness’? That’s not even a word.”

“Thank you, sweet momee! As for Nii Adamah, I have nothing to say to him.”

Akushika giggled.

How good it felt to be back home! This was where she belonged; with the ones who made her laugh and stood by her through her low points.

Not with that piece of scum who didn’t even consider his own child a human being, but called her property.

She continued to revel in the jokes and fawning over Ellen for a few more minutes. Then, she glanced toward the door, her brow furrowing slightly as Drusilla came to mind.

The elderly lady had been strangely less bubbly than usual since they got home. She had forced a bit of cheerfulness, but those who knew her well could it was a façade. Something was up with her.

She began. “Is it just me, or has Maa Dru been… off since we got home?”

Bukky exchanged a look with Jonny before sitting on the bed. “Yes ooo. I’ve noticed it myself. I asked her earlier, and she just said she was tired and had a lot on her mind. But the way she’s been moving around… it’s not like her to be so quiet.”

“Maybe she’s just tired from all the running around the hospital,” Raymond offered, shrugging.

Bukky shook her head. “Nah, nah. This one is different, Ray. You know how Maa Dru is. She doesn’t keep quiet unless she’s really deep in thought about something serious.”

Jonny tilted his head. “You think it’s about something at the hospital?”

“I don’t know,” Bukky replied, frowning. “But whatever it is, she’s not ready to talk about it.”

As the others sighed and shrugged about it, Akushika’s gaze flickered toward the door one more time, a shade of worry growing slightly inside. In her heart, she couldn’t shake the feeling that Drusilla was wrestling with something.

And considering she had seen her speak with the security man before they left, she had a strong feeling it had to do with her. Was it about Drill? Had he come back to say something?

What could it possibly be?

***

As Remaliah drove into the flat’s car park, grateful for another day of work and a safe return home, he found Drusilla standing by, her features tainted with worry and a bit of anger.

Killing the engine as he turned it off, he was confused. Drusilla never came down to meet him at the car park. Was something wrong? Had something bad occurred?

He stepped out of the car, locked it, and moved slowly towards his wife. “Dru? What’s wrong?” he asked, his voice low and calm, the way it always was when something was amiss.

She didn’t answer right away, holding out the folded letter. “Remmy. This… this came today. From her parents.”

Remaliah’s right eyebrow went up. “Whose parents… oh, you mean, Akushika’s parents?”

Drusilla nodded. “When Bukky and I went to pick her and Ellen from the hospital, that security guy you gave the directive to said that foolish boy came around and dropped this. I haven’t shown it to Shika, and honestly… we shouldn’t, because…”

Remaliah’s lips thinned as he took the letter. He unfolded it carefully, gearing himself up for the worst. Drusilla stood beside him, her arms crossed tightly over her chest as he began to read.

The letter was neatly typed, and its formal language was as cold and distant as could be:

This is to formally communicate that we, Brogan and Martina Acolatse, have severed all ties with the young lady by name Miss Akushika.

From the moment she chose to defy our counsel by keeping her illegitimate pregnancy and rejecting our directive to terminate it, she ceased to be our daughter. Her actions are a betrayal of the moral principles we instilled in her, and we consider her a disgrace and a reproach to our family. As for the product of her disobedience, whatever that so-called child is, it is an abomination that we will never acknowledge in any way.

We do not care what becomes of her or the abomination and we leave any form of responsibility in the hands of the father. If he chooses to take responsibility, so be it. If he abandons her and the abomination, it is no less than she deserves for straying from her upbringing. Let him do as he pleases.

We trust this letter clarifies our position.

Sincerely,

Mr. and Mrs. Acolatse

Remaliah could only shake his head in disgust. This had to be one of the most repulsive letters his eyes could have the displeasure of seeing.

“They actually sat down and wrote this?” he wondered out loud. “And thought it was a wise thing to give to her? Good gracious! How??”

Drusilla’s normally soft features hardened into an expression he rarely saw. Her lips pressed into a thin line.

Then, without warning, she blew up.

“How dare they? How dare they? Calling that sweet child an abomination? Washing their hands of her like she’s nothing more than trash? And that useless boy, what do they mean, ‘let him do as he pleases’? Are they mad? Are they stupid? What utter nonsense!”

It was extremely rare to see Drusilla explode like this; she was always the one to calm tempers. The fact that she was spewing venom in Ga made it even more vicious.

“The way I want to march right up to their doorstep and give them a piece of my mind, eh. What terrible excuses for human beings! No, more than that: I want to tear them a new one altogether! Ah! What kind of monsters do this to their own child? What kind of foolish beasts trample upon their child this way? How? How??”

Remaliah put a steadying hand on her arm. “Calm yourself, Dru. Please. They’re not worth your rage.”

“How can I calm down, Remmy? How can I? Ah, how do you sleep at night knowing you’ve written pure and unadulterated wickedness on paper? About the fruit of your womb? Because of one mistake, you throw her out to the world just like that? And you insult her child, your granddaughter? Huh? Kwɛ, see, if lightning doesn’t strike them and that house they live in right now…”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, Dru, Dru, easy,” Remaliah pleaded, holding her hands and pulling her close. Drusilla never invoked curses on anyone, no matter who was annoying her. This heartless couple’s epistle had struck a major nerve in her. “My dear, I beg you, take it easy. I know you’re upset. But please, take it easy.”

The anger on Drusilla’s face was blazing; she had held it in for so long after reading it, and was firing on all cylinders. “It’s just disgusting, Remmy! It’s disgusting! How do you treat your daughter this way? You don’t do things like this. Look at her. Poor girl that needs love and support after making a mistake. And you stamp on her and tell her she’s not worth your love. She doesn’t deserve that. Look at her. She doesn’t deserve that… she doesn’t deserve that…”

Drusilla’s voice faltered, and her words began to come out in broken gasps as the rage evaporated and sadness replaced it. As furious as she was, she was also heartbroken at this callous communication.

“She… doesn’t deserve that. She just doesn’t…” Her chest heaved, and a sob escaped her lips while her face crumbled. “A child needs love from their parents, not… not this kind of cruelty. Remmy, how could they?”

Remaliah pulled her into his embrace, his arms steady around her. “Shhh, my dear,” he whispered, stroking her back slowly. “It’s okay. It’s okay.”

Drusilla buried her face in his chest, her tears soaking his shirt as she let out the steam she held in since her eyes beheld those horrible words.

“It’s so wrong. It’s so wrong, Remmy. Poor Shika, and sweet Ellen… They didn’t ask for this. They don’t deserve this…”

“I know,” he murmured softly, resting his chin on her head. “I know, Dru. It’s cruel. It’s unthinkable. I’m so disgusted by this, trust me. This was just horrible to read. But listen to me, my dear. They’ll regret it one day. I promise you. These horrible words eh, it’ll come back to haunt them. We both know life has a way of humbling even the most prideful. Trust me. They’ll look back and know this was a stupid thing to do.”

Drusilla simply sniffed and nodded.

“For now, let’s keep our focus on Shika and Ellen. They need us now more than ever. Let’s continue to give them a safe place, arms that will hold her together, and words that will lift her up. She and her baby need love. That’s what we’ve given them, and that’s what we’ll continue to give them. Don’t let their cruelty overpower that.”

Drusilla took a deep, shuddering breath as her tears slowed down. “You’re right,” she agreed hoarsely. “You’re right. They’ve done enough damage to her. We won’t let them do any more. We’ll just focus on her and Ellen.”

Remaliah nodded. “That’s it, Dru. I know how shattered you feel about this. Honestly, it’s shattered me too. But, let’s not allow it to dampen our spirits. I don’t know why all this nonsense is popping up now, but we won’t let them and their cold-heartedness defeat us. Let’s just focus on loving Shika and Ellen. Alright?”

Drusilla nodded. “Alright, Remmy.”

“Good, good. And like you’ve said, no showing this evil letter to Shika. I’ll keep it with me, so she never has to see it. Now please, lemme wipe your tears before we go in. I don’t want them to get concerned and think I made you cry.”

Drusilla laughed, a gentle smile on her face as Remaliah took out a handkerchief, cupped her chin in his hand, and gently wiped the tear stains on her cheeks before leading her upstairs.

Smh. They didn’t disappoint. What a horrible letter. What kinda nasty parents are they?