Natasha stood in the parlour and staring around while Madam Bola approached her from behind and apologized again - "I'm sorry I didn't come back for you all these while. I really wanted too, but I couldn't bring you to come live with me then in the city, due to the nature of my business, but it seems I have too now, as only you cannot be staying in these village, and knowing that you're also a beautiful girl like me. It will be very dangerous to your safety that's why I came home now." - Madam-Bola explained her reason to Natasha, and Natasha sighed - "Okay."
"Not to worry, Everything will be alright okay." - Madam Bola said.
"Okay" - Natasha respond, and Madam Bola walks away from her and said - "Wait, I am coming let me get you something from Mami's room first, I will come out now and show it to you." Madam Bola quickly walks away into the room opposite to the Parlour, which is the room that Natasha shares with her late grandmother.
Natasha sighed and walked back to seat on the old couch behind her back, while waiting for Madam Bola to step out.
Madam-Bola walked into her late mother's room, she approached the old wooden bed that was covered in white bedspread, and she bends underneath the bed and brings out a little brown wooden box, that is already covered in cobwebs, and she dusted it, to remove all the cobwebs on top of it, She finally takes it out with her to the parlour to meet Natasha, and to show it to Natasha.
"Do you know what's in this box?" - Madam Bola asked Natasha, as she finally approached Natasha that sat on the couch.
Natasha shook her head and respond "No" as she stared to the old brown little box in Madam Bola hands.
Madam Bola smiles as she sat beside Natasha, She opened the box and brings out some old photos collection from it, and she shows it to Natasha.
"Here, have a look" - Madam Bola says, as she finally handed the photos collection to Natasha to have a look, and Natasha also accepted the photo album from her hands, and stared at it.
"I want you to know that I am truly your mother, and I am not lying to you" - Madam Bola said, as she smiled at Natasha.
"Hmm" Natasha hummed as she continued to stared at the photo Album and Madam Bola opened the first page and Natasha stares at the photos for the very first time.
"This is me at the center" - Madam Bola pointed to her little self in the photo, and she smiles at the long time photo. She was wearing a short white gown, and her two older brothers were seen standing beside her on the photo, as she stood in their middle and small like a eight years old girl.
She looks so white in the photo, while her two older brothers are slightly dark as one is taller than the other.
"These are my brothers, Dede and Soji. Dede is my most senior brother, he used to beat me then a lot, the more reason why I ran away from this village, after given birth to you," -;Madam Bola said, as she smiled at the remembrance, faintly remembering her past.
"This is Mami and my father," - Madam Bola pointed at another image that have a couple standing beside her and her two elder brothers, and Natasha nods as the young beautiful woman was indeed her late grandmother.
The photo was taken years back in a black and white imagining but Natasha could tell that the young woman is her grandma , As her grandmother is also fair, and she looks very white on the photo too
Just then they both heard a knock on the parlour door and startling them to shift their gazes away from the photo album, and Madam Bola offers to check who's at the door.
"You don't have to worry, wait let me see who's at the door." - Madam Bola said, and she stood up from the couch and walked up to the door to pull it open and to check who's there?, while Natasha continued staring at the remaining photos that she hadn't seen before.
Opening the door, Madam Bola saw is the man that had accompanied her to her village, - Mr Jide Peters, that's standing behind the door.
"What is it Jide?" - Madam Bola asked, as she immediately stepped outside to the balcony frontage and slowly closing the door behind her back, as she placed her both hands around her waist and looked at Jide's face.
"We have to leave now Bola, is getting late" - Mr Jide said, as he stared at his wristwatch time.
Madam Bola frowned and asked him - "Why Jide? Can't we stay for today and maybe tomorrow we can leave, I promise I will be back to the city with Natasha by myself" - Madam Bola begs.
"No Bola. You know how the senior bosses work is. We have to leave to the city now, and be there with the girls in the city," - Mr Jide said, and he immediately walked away from the balcony as he went back to where the beautiful black car was parked in the compound.
Madam Bola frowned and knew that Jide didn't wanted her to stay, As Mr Jide was right. She was the boss, and she has to be in the city with her girls. She turns and push the parlour door opened again, and she walks back into the parlour to meet Natasha.
Natasha slowly closed the old photos album that she was through staring at, and Madam Bola approached her and kindly collected it from Natasha's hands.
Madam Bola spoke - "We need to leave now my dear child, Is already getting late."
Natasha frowned as she heard Madam Bola statement. She watch as Madam Bola carefully arrange all the photos back into the album carefully, and placing it back into the old brown box again, and she locks it, before carrying it back to her late mother's room, and she pushes it underneath the bed and stood up back.
Madam Bola asked Natasha - "My baby, Where are your bags of clothes?."
Natasha frowns as she hadn't thought that she was leaving the village soon. She stood up sluggishly from the couch and walked into the room to meet her supposed mother..She doesn't want to leave the village yet, even though she's finally happy to meet with her mother, She replies - "Is over there, Am I leaving with you to the city?."
"Yes, I have already explained to you before that I cannot leave only you here in this village, As I won't be able to concentrate in my job in the city, Not to worry when we get to the city, I will explain everything better to you there," - Madam Bola said, but Natasha continued to frowns as she watch her mother drags out the two bags. One is a big black box of clothes while the other is her little knitted bag.
"Why must I go to the city? I can take care of myself here in this village, As I am no longer a baby" - Natasha refuted, as she didn't want to leave her village.
"I know, but you still have to go back to school okay. Not to worry, You will like the city when we get there. Come now, let's be going, I don't want to upset Jide the driver as he works for me." - Madam Bola said, and she drags out the black box of clothes away from the room, and she carries the little knitted hand-bag on her shoulder, as she steps out to the parlour and going outside of the old house.
Natasha sighed as she knew that she didn't have any other choice than to follow her mother. She finally steps out from the house and slowly lock back the house door, as she is still holding the the house keys.
Madam Bola steps down from the balcony and walked up to the car, To give Mr Jide, Natasha's bag and box, for him to put it in the car's boot, and Madam Bola walked up to Mamabolu's house door again, and she knocked twice on the door.
Mama-bolu stepped out from her house, and she sees that Madam Bola was already leaving, as she hasn't thought of Bola to be leaving so soon.
Mama-bolu stared at Bola's face, and Bola said - "Mama, we're finally leaving and going back to the city today with Natasha, As I cannot leave only her here in this village, And I cannot stay back too, because of my job," - Madam Bola explains, and Mama-bolu nods her head in understanding.
"No problem my daughter,I understand you, but please do take good care of Natasha, As we have been the one feeding her and looking after her ever since Mami left us, she hasn't been herself" - Mama-bolu said.
"Thank you Mama, I really appreciate your help, please manage this little token from me" - Madam Bola handed over a huge sume of money to Mama-bolu, whom collected it and smiles.
"All this for me, Thank you Bola may my good God blesses you," Mamabolu beams in joy as she hugs Madam Bola tightly, and stared at the newly.printed 100-thousand cash note in her hands.
"You're welcome Mama, I have to go now, bye," - Madam Bola smiles, and finally walked away to her car.
If only she can tell Mama-bolu the truth now that Natasha is indeed her granddaughter and not.juat her neighbour, but there was no time on her side, as Jide was already in the car, and he started the car engine, as the night is fastly approaching..