The Tides are Changing
The school had been dismissed for the day and Carmen and Vicky were walking out of the school gates,holding hands as the flood of students poured out in full capacity.Vicky would be taking a cab to her father's office while Carmen would be waiting for her step father's driver to pick her up.
"I'm going to miss you Carrie"Vicky said,sighing loudly.
"You see me five days a week at school V and most weekends I come to your place or you're at mine...let's not forget countless Sundays at your church with your family"Carmen said chuckling.
"Well I wish you could live with me!"Vicky said,pouting defiantly.
"I'm sorry pet,things don't always work the way you want them to"Carmen said pettishly as she patted Vicky's head.
"Ugh...you sound like my mom when unfortunately Cindy doesn't get a new pricy dress "Vicky stated,fake gagging.
"I know right?!I've heard her say this line like a billion times!"Carmen giggled.
"Bye Carrie!I'll text you when you're back to being my best friend and not sounding like my cat mom!"Vicky bade as she flagged down a taxi and hopped on.
"Bye pet!"Carmen teased as the taxi sped off.
Just then,the familiar Honda Accord that picked Carmen from school for the last two years stopped in front of the school gate and the front window,wound down and the driver who was fond of her greeted sweetly"Good afternoon Miss Carmen....how was your day at school today?"
"It was good Mr Phillips"Carmen replied softly as she hopped into the car.
"Lovely to know ma'am"the driver replied and drove away from the school quickly.
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It was Carmen's sixth sense but she always knew when something was wrong.She'd had this strong sense of impending doom since her father and baby brother had died in the car accident that had also left her mom handicapped for life.
She was 12 years old at that time and she had just finished primary school,her mother and father had taken her baby brother,Joseph to one of his favorite amusement parks in the city and had been in a terrible accident when returning home.She had felt something was amiss that day and had opted to stay home with her paternal grandmother;she still could not shake the feeling that she would've died like her dad and brother if she had tagged along.
That was why as the car rolled into her father's mansion,Carmen couldn't shake the feeling of dread that had enveloped her.
'Oh no..!Is mom okay?What could be wrong?'Carmen thought frantically.
"Ummm..Mr Phillips,are my mom and Uncle Pete home?"Carmen asked cautiously as soon as the car came to a halt.
"Yes my dear"the driver replied.
"Okay thank you"Carmen replied feeling a bit calm as she hopped off the car and walked into the Kingston mansion.
She was greeted with the sight of her step father massaging her mother's legs as her mother lay looking helpless and a bit pale on the couch.
"Mummy!Mummy!Are you okay?!"Carmen asked in a state of panic,shoving her step father aside as she knelt beside her mother.
"Oh..my sweetheart,I'm fine..I only slipped while I was trying to walk around my room"Mrs Claire,Carmen's mother replied smiling faintly.
"And where were you?!"Carmen fumed as she turned to look at her step father whom she despised.
"A good afternoon to you too Carmen...and if you must know,I went out briefly for business and found her lying helplessly in our bedroom"Pete,her step dad said looking viciously at her.
"I thought you promised to take care of her!Aren't you supposed to be there when she needs you the most ?!"Carmen barked furiously.
"How dare you speak to me in that manner?!You dare question my ability to take care of your mother when all I have done is to love and care for her for the past two years?!"Pete fumed,pointing a finger at her mother .
"Yes!I dare question you and your methods of caring for my mom!My dad would've never left her side!"Carmen screamed shaking viciously with rage.
"That's enough Carmen!Don't speak to your step father like that!Now apologize this instant and go freshen up !"her mom shouted with as much strength as she could muster.
"Sorry"Carmen said quickly and bolted to the sanity of her room upstairs.
When she was safely inside her room,she let out the tears of anguish she was holding.
Her mother,Mrs Claire Kingston,now Mrs Claire Richard,had gotten married to Pete Richard when she had still been in JSS3 two years ago.The marriage had come as a complete shock to Carmen who had thought her mother would've never thought of re marrying after her father;she'd come from school one day and been told by her mother who was sitting happily besides Pete that they had gotten married at a court and would love her blessings.Pete was a chubby accountant at her(Carmen's)father's pharmaceutical company and apparently the man had managed to make a grieving widow fall in love with him.He,himself,was single father with two sons and a daughter and they were the most unpleasant people Carmen had ever met.
Feeling drained,Carmen dragged herself into her large bathroom and had a long soak in her bathtub;feeling marginally refreshed,she walked into her room and groaned.She'd left in a hurry this morning and had not had time to put her room in order.The bed wasn't made,there were pieces of crumpled paper everywhere and her shoes were disorganized on their rack.
Biting her cheek,she started tidying her room and was done much later,very satisfied with it's neat nature now.She did her assignments and proceeded to block out every other thing by putting on her JBL headphones and blasting her ears with Juice World's"Lucid Dreams" playin' from her iPhone 8 as she texted her bestie,Vicky.
Carmen: Hey V!!!😫
Vicky:What's up amiga?🌚
Carmen:I'm having a bad feeling...you know...my sixth sense?💔
Vicky:Woah...slow down tigress....are you okay?🧐🥺
Carmen:I'm fine but....something feels off🤧
Vicky:Just chill...things will fall into place just like it always does okay?😽
Carmen:I suppose you're right 🤛
Vicky:Oops...gotta go,my cat mom is at my door screaming about something...again😅...bye hun!
Sighing softly,Carmen checked the time and reckoned it was 6:30pm....meaning dinner would soon be served.With her grumbling stomach as a strong propellant,She headed downstairs,headphones firmly in place.Unfortunately,the dining table was occupied by her arch nemesis,her step brothers and sister,Kingsley,Rogers and Hailey who were munching off her favorite snack,peanuts and sipping pineapple juice whilst texting and giggling about something to themselves.
Pete and her mother sat in the living room watching the evening news.
"Um...good evening guys"Carmen greeted uncomfortably,as she settled into the farthest chair away from them.
"Oh if it isn't the Queen Bee herself?Why are you seated here?"Hailey asked looking at her like a piece of trash.
"I'm hungry,so I'll have a snack while I wait for dinner or isn't that allowed in 'my' house?"Carmen asked annoyed.
"Point of correction you brat!Our father's house"Kingsley,the eldest fumed.
"Well my own father built this house while your father worked as an accountant in his company isn't that right?"Clair asked venomously.
"You'd better mind your tongue urchin,or you'll regret it...our father married your mother so everything belongs to him now"Rogers stated pompously.
"Bunch of leeches"Carmen cursed under breath.
"What the..."
"Oh Carmen my cupcake?!How are you?"Maggie,the maid for ten years cut in as she walked into the dining area with a jug of water.
"Feeling good Maggie,I'm hungry,can you get me some snacks?"Carmen asked the maid whom she loved,sweetly.
"We're out of your peanuts oh"Maggie said glancing apologetically at the last bottle of peanuts which the Richard siblings were consuming rapidly.
"Anything else is fine Maggie"Carmen stated softly,eyeing her step siblings.
"Okay give me two minutes"Maggie said,returning almost immediately with a plate of biscuits,cupcakes,chin chin and a glass of chilled strawberry yoghurt.
"Thanks Maggie!"Carmen squealed as she started devouring the contents of her plate.
"You're welcome my cupcake"Maggie replied lovingly.
"Well excuse me...Maggie,why do we have only a bottle of peanuts and she gets so much treats?Get more treats for us as well"Hailey asked rudely.
"There are no more of the treats she's having so I suggest you eat your peanuts contentedly,dinner will soon be served "Maggie said,staring hardly at the insolent girl before taking her leave.
Giggling loudly,Carmen ate happily while the Richard siblings complained about 'unequal rights' in the house.
**********************************
Dinner was always taken in complete silence;Maggie had prepared boiled yam and goat meat pepper soup whilst she made rice and vegetable stew for Mrs Claire as per her doctors instructions of her eating healthily.Carmen always enjoyed having meals at her house;no unnecessary questions were asked,no conversations were forged and best of all,no incessant quarrels.It was all in an unspoken truce to make Mrs Claire think they were all getting along.
Coughing slightly,Pete began"I'd like to announce something"
Everyone stopped eating and Carmen tensed.'What could possibly be the matter?'she thought in apprehension.
"Well your mother and I have decided that starting tomorrow...I will be given power of attorney in the pharmaceutical company"he announced smugly.
"Congratulations honey"Mrs Claire said looking pleased as she stroked her husband's arm.
"Wow that's big dad!Congratulations on this big success"Kingsley enthused.
"Congrats Daddy!"Hailey squealed,hugging her father excitedly.
"Congratulations Father"Rogers said looking extremely pleased.
Only Carmen felt amiss in the celebrations taking place around her;when had this decision been reached?Why is mom giving him the power of attorney? Isn't she fit enough to make mentally mature decisions concerning the company anymore?'she thought in anguish.
"Why?"Carmen asked in displeasure.
"Why what?"Pete asked looking confused.
"Why are you....getting power of attorney over the company?"Carmen inquired eyeing her stepfather with mistrust.
"Well your mother as you can see isn't physically able to run the company anymore and it will only be fair that I take over the reins of the company....it is in everyone's best interest to cooperate"Pete replied sternly.
"Oh sweetheart....I'm not strong enough anymore to handle the business....your dad will handle everything going forward"Mrs Claire said softly.
"You talk like you are mentally derailed and not just confined to a wheelchair!This man and his children are using your kindness against you Mom!"Carmen barked in frustration.
"That's enough Carmen!"Pete fumed rising from his chair.
"Sweetheart please you're getting this all wrong,my dear husband here only wants the best for the establishment and all of us seated here"Mrs Claire said sadly.
"But I thought Uncle Ben has been handling everything...so why this change all of a sudden?"Claire asked getting suspicious.
Uncle Ben was her father's younger cousin and had helped in running the company since her father had died;he had an electronics firm but still helped as much as possible with the company's affairs with Mrs Claire making the very important decisions.
"Your precious Uncle Ben has a firm of his own and I think its time he minded his own business and we tended to ours"Pete replied sternly.
"It would be better if you stop arguing with the grown ups and shut your mouth!"Kingsley pitched in in annoyance.
"Please calm down everyone,there's no need to fight and quarrel amongst ourselves....you're all my family"Mrs Claire stated soothingly as she urged Pete to sit down.
"Good night Mom!"Carmen said angrily and stormed off to her room,ignoring her mother's pleas to come back to the dining table.