She collapsed on the chair and shouted in a way that her whole bosom shook.
She called on God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. She wondered which of them forsook her. Maybe the whole three of them. Her shouts and screams brought the women running in. They tried to question her but all they got was Mama Leratho rolling on the floor and pointing at her phone.
The women were confused but some reasoned that she must have received some bad news. Eva entered shocked to see her mother in such a state.
"Mama, what's wrong?" She asked as she knelt down beside her.
"Lineo! Lineo! " was all the woman could say repeatedly pointing at the phone and rolling on the floor.
"Mama, answer me!"
"Lineo is dead! Lineo is dead oo!!"
"Which Lineo? You mean my Sister"
"I wish it's another oo"
The women heard and then began their own cry.
"Where did they take her to? What have Nigerians done to her?" Eva questioning as she ran out of the house like someone who was mad.
"The unbelievable has occurred" she shouted as she ran.
The women tried to offer their sympathy but mama Leratho refused to be consoled.
Her phone rang repeatedly, she refused to pick until she was told that it was her son.
"Hello mama"
"Hello" She responded slowly, her voice weak from her sorrow.
"Mama I have heard the news, I am coming right now to Lesotho"
"Please come oo! I don't know what I have done to deserve this."
She replied and handed her phone over to one of the women. They stayed back as she had one time or the other rendered help to them. Other people called her but she refused to pick the calls.
Oh Lineo! Her precious daughter, who had a lot of dreams to achieve. Oh Lineo! Death why? Why? She kept on asking herself.
Her son arrived late that evening. He owned a school in Capetown. As soon as Mama Leratho saw him, she rushed to hug him, her tears soaking his shirt.
"It's okay mama" he responded with tears in his eyes too. He greeted the other women and finally sat down.
Later in the evening, when everyone had slept, they started planning on their trip to Nigeria. They were going to leave in a month's time after getting adequate information from their Nigerian relatives. They would also know who would be in charge of little Helen. Mama Leratho wanted to keep her. After all, she would be safe with her. She would bring her up properly and teach her the ways of their people.
*********
(NIGERIA, PORT HARCOURT)
Helen was shocked to see the number of people in her house as they arrived. Her neighbours were even standing around. She wondered what was going on. In her little mind, she couldn't understand why there were so much people.
Her head teacher took her inside the house. There they met David's brothers who sat in a circle as they deliberated on matters concerning David's wealth rather than weep for the deceased.
"Where is my mummy?" Helen kept on asking everyone.
"She is coming" one of her uncles responded and went back to his discussion. Aunty Mara, one of the wives took her aside and gave her food to eat.
Her headteacher left after making sure Helen was comfortable. As she drove home, she had one minute silence in honour of the dead.
For the next three days, Helen lived under the illusion that her parents travelled and would soon be back. At the end of one week, they couldn't stop the inquisitive girl who kept on asking questions about her parents. They finally told her that her parents travelled to Heaven and won't be returning back.
"Can I join them?" She asked innocently.
"God forbid!" Aunty Mara responded with great intensity andintensity and frowns.
Helen wondered why she shouted, if her parents travelled and they won't be returning back. Why can't she follow them? This was the question she asked herself with no one to give her answers.
"But why did they go?" She blurted out crying.
"We will find out later. God had to take them." Aunty Mara responded and drew her close.
*********
(IMO STATE, NIGERIA)
The church hymn started as the coffins were brought in by eight hefty men and placed at the front. In the front row stood Helen, her relatives from Nigeria, her relatives from South Africa, all dressed in black.
They stood until the minister came. Then they sang another hymn and sat down. Helen looked at the coffin and asked what it was. She was told that they put her parents there to honour them. If her parents were there, that means they were back right, but no, she couldn't touch them, she was confused the more. Another thing she didn't understand was the tears the people shed.
"We meet at this solemn moment...." The minister began.
" .....The Lord giveth and he taketh..." He continued but Mama Leratho did not agree. She knew it was not the Lord who took her daughter, but she listened anyway.
"No one knows when he or she will die, that's why we have to live our lives according to the pattern that the Lord set in place. Don't be moved by the wealth and riches of this world because it's all vanity. The Bible says in John 11:25- 26, I am the resurrection and the life said the Lord. He that believeth in me, even though he dies, shall live and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Matthew 5:4 says that Blessed are they that mourn for they shall be comforted."
"May their souls rest in perfect peace and may He comfort his beloved" The audience said after him and he spoke more on the characters of the deceased.
The bands struck and as they sang the hymn, the coffins were taken out of the church. The people filed out after it, hugging and comforting one another.
Mama Leratho was held by people as her body shook with tears at the burial ground. Helen was told to drop her sand too, then, she was taken away by an aunt into the house.
At the reception, mama Leratho watched as her late son-in- law relatives drank and enjoyed with merry as though nothing happened. She shook her head and knew she was right in her decision to take Helen away. She won't leave her in the hands of her greedy uncles. She was suprised that when she raised up the idea, no one objected.
"They were not even interested in keeping the little girl before" Mama Leratho thought as the smiles appeared on their faces as if they had been relieved of responsibilities.
Mama Leratho looked at Helen as she slept and thanked God that Helen was there to replace Lineo who had gone at such an early time.
It was a comforting thought to her ailing heart and so about one week later, Helen and her relatives made their way out of Nigeria to South Africa.