Family Court

It came to her suddenly. “A courtroom. This is what a courtroom looks like and feels like.” A small laughter escaped from her mouth, making mama turn sharply and give her the cold eye. Before now, Immaculate would have been frightened after receiving one of mama’s cold stares. Now, she just smiled sweetly at the old woman. ‘You can’t do anything to me old woman. You have already done everything. You have taken everything away from me. What else can you do? I have absolutely no reason to be afraid.’

Sister China turned and whispered into mama’s ears and mama turned and glared at Imma, a look of triumph in her eyes, her hands and legs tapping in quick succession as one impatiently excited.

Immaculate closed her eyes and leaned back on her plastic chair. ‘How did it all come to this?’ For a moment, the bitterness welled up deep within her, causing tears to spring up in her eyes. Vehemently, she shook her head and willed the tears to go back in. ‘No! I won’t cry in front of these people. No matter what, they will never have that satisfaction.’

They were seated in Sir Baristo’s big and spacious balcony used to hold family meetings. Sir Baristo was the oldest man in the Chinda family. He was so old and frail that he needed to be carried around. A former military man, sir Baristo still commanded the family’s deepest respect and his word was the final say. He was the chief judge of the family and usually was the last resort for family matters threatening to spiral out of control. When everyone arrived, he would be put on the chair at the head of the table.

The living room was arranged like a courtroom. The table at the wall was the Chief Judge’s seat, surrounded by his two aides, mazi Nlemchi and papa Junior, two elders of the Chinda family. The chairs were arranged on two sides with the table in the middle. The disputants would sit facing each other as they tried to settle their disputes.

Already, mama sat with sister China on the opposite side. Every member of the Chinda family who came would sit on that side, and they would come in droves. She knew it. Brother Clement and his long toothed wife would most likely be filling Chinonso’s head with all sorts of poison. From the look in Mama’s eyes, Immaculate knew that today, she would most likely be labeled a witch, , a bad wife, a lazy hag and a disrespectful woman.

Oh that one pained her a lot. Disrespectful. She, who had sat down and ignored mama and sister China’s taunts and excesses. Every time they had come into her house, rained abuses on her housekeeping and used her kitchen as a gossip centre, she had kept quiet all in a bid to be respectful. What had her so-called respect brought to her?

Her legs tapped and swung hurriedly. Today, today would be the day that she would speak. Oh today she would speak. She would pour out her heart and damn the consequences. There was no saving this marriage, mama and sister China had made sure of that. But before leaving, she would pour out everything she had endured. Let them come. She was ready, prepared for anything.

As if on cue, the black Range Rover drove into the compound, revved hard before halting just inches to the wall. Chinonso. Immaculate closed her eyes and tapped her feet. She didn’t have to look to know how mama and sister China would rush up to him and practically spread their wrappers for him to walk on. Of course he would strut in all proud and arrogant as if he owned the world.

‘who do you think you are?’ she screamed at him in her mind, putting her wrapper to her mouth to stifle her screams. ‘If I had known, if only I had known. I have no one to blame but me.’

Not wanting to look at her crowd of enemies, Immaculate opened her bag and brought out her phone to call Emeka, her brother. Why hadn’t they arrived yet? It was almost time. Emeka didn’t pick. She called Nnenda her sister who picked on the first ring. “Imma we are coming. We’re just close by. You’ll see us in five minutes…” Nnenda said. Immaculate nodded and cut the call. If Nnenda said they were close, then they were close.

“Ehn Ehn…”

Chinonso cleared his throat loudly, directed at her. The hall became silent. Papa Junior and mazi Nlemchi paused their mouths in the middle of their talks, watching to see what drama would unfold.

“Ehn Ehn..”

Chinonso cleared his throat again. Immaculate ignored him and concentrated on her phone, just looking at her screen as if it was a billion dollar contract. Let them think whatever but she would not open her mouth and greet him.

Mama and sister China clucked their tongue, looking at her in victory. Too late she realized it was a trap to show the elders that she was disrespectful.

Heat filled her face, her body trembling. Another of mama’s diabolical plan. ’God, how did I end up in this family? Wasn’t I good enough? Didn’t I do everything you asked me to? Then why? I met and married Chinonso a virgin. I left Kehinde because you asked me to. What have I done to be labeled a bad woman? I am tired of this marriage. If this is the end, so be it.’

She used her wrapper to clean off the tears before they could pour down. “its okay” she heard Nnenda’s voice before she felt her strong reassuring hand on her shoulders. They had arrived. Emeka with Jane, his wife, Nnenda and her mother. The meeting could start.

Chinonso signaled to Ignatius, the young boy who aided sir Baristo, to bring him out. He carried the old frail man like a baby in his arms and carefully kept him on the seat at the head of the table.

Sir Baristo was just clearing his throat to officially declare the meeting open when another car drove in, a white Toyota pick-up. They weren’t expecting anybody else.

Everyone looked at the car in surprise as a huge tall giant of a man, emerged from the back seat in white crispy shirt and jeans. The man wore a black boot sneakers, and walked with a confident  poise into the hall.

Chinonso stood up and spoke to the elders “please forgive me. This is Pst. Onyegwache, a senior colleague in my office. I invited him to be the third party as one who is not related to any of us’’.

The elders nodded in consentment  and   Ignatius  brought out a wooden seat from the dining for the man. ‘Pastor Onyegwache , would he be another weapon in Chinonso’s side or would he remain unbiased?’

Later, Immaculate would be grateful to him. He sat silently throughout  the meeting and didn’t say a word until……..

Sir Baristo cleared his voice again, spoke in low tones that nobody could hear or understand but they all nodded as if they heard a word.

Mazi  Nlemchi took over . He carried the gift of gab in the family “Our people say, it is only the foolish squirrel that sees his house burning and goes to drink.” He paused and cleared his throat again. “It will be a very bad thing, a very bad thing, if we, as elders of this family, will see fire burning in any of our houses and keep quiet.

“Two weeks ago, news filtered into my ears that Chinonso, my nephew here, chased Immaculate his wife out of his house in the middle of the night after discolouring her face. This kind of thing has never been heard of in this family. Its unheard of. As a concerned old man, I summoned Chinonso and I asked him what his problem with his wife is. The young man poured out his heart to me and at the end, he said he would never take Immaculate back into his house as his wife. Infact, he said he was already making plans to divorce her.

Immaculate stifled the burning in her heart, not caring as the tears slid down her face.

“I heard what Chinonso said,” mazi Nlemchi continued. “But it will be foolish of me as an elder, as an uncle, to simply go home and sleep after hearing all that he said, to not ask Immaculate to tell us her own side of the story. Now I know that most of you in this meeting have hardened their hearts but please I beg, let us sit down and make one last final attempt toi stop a bad thing from happening. Let us allow these two young people to tell us their problem with each  other. If after everything we do today, they say they still want to go their separate ways, we will let them be but today, I beg all of you to please speak your mind today, say what the problem is so that we can resolve this thing. Have I spoken well?”

All heads nodded in agreement.

“Now, when two people marry, they don’t just marry themselves. They marry their families. For this reason, I will allow members of the two families to speak first, then Chinonso and Immaculate will speak last.

Let me sound a note of warning to the women. This is not a place to talk about gossip. Don’t come and tell us stories if you were not there when it happened. Speak the truth only…” He turned to papa junior who nodded emphatically.

“Okay! Eh, let us start with you, China. I know you were in the house the night Chinonso chased Immaculate away. We know that you have been taking care of Michael and Gabriel since that night. In fact, we know that on several occasions, you have not allowed Immaculate to see her sons ever since that night. We are not condemning you; after all, you are only looking out for your brother. So let us hear what you have to say. Start at the beginning.”

Sister China stood up and bowed slightly to the elders, then to mama and Chinonso, to the silent pastor and finally to Immaculate and her family like a proud student in a school debate, brimming with intelligence and impatience. Knowing sister China, she probably she probably had been involved in her school debate team. She cleared her throat.

“My elders, I thank you for this opportunity you have given me because finally, finally I can speak my mind. I have been keeping quiet since inspite of everything this woman has been doing. I am not a troublesome woman. I like peace…”

Feets shuffled and throats cleared but nobody said a word in disagreement. Sister China ignored them all and continued.

“On that night two weeks ago…”

“No…” mazi Nlemchi interrupted. “You said this woman has been doing some bad things even before Chinonso chased her away. Start from the beginning. Tell us some of the bad things she has been doing or never speak of it again.”

Sister China smiled widely. “Okay, if that is what you want. Let me start from the every beginning. When Chinonso brought this girl Immaculate and introduced her to me and mama that he wants to marry her, we welcomed her with open arms. I remember that very day, how mama with her arthritis and her waist, rushed to cook peppersoup for her. She was so nice, so quiet. She used to come and wash for mama, even sweep and clean the compound. That one I cannot deny because all of you saw her when she used to do all those things. We were all happy. Let me ask, since Imma married Chinonso, how many times have you seen her come and help mama again? Immaculate changed. Now to even greet mama is a problem…”

Mama gasped and held her hand to her mouth, shaking her body in self-pity. Chinonso held her hand in comfort.

“Yes, if Immaculate refused to greet mama, is it now me, small China that she will greet? Tufia. I didn’t say anything then. Sometimes when mama would go and visit them, Immaculate will not give mama food till in the night. Mama will call me and be crying. I told her to talk to Immaculate, that maybe she has offended Imma in anyway. So mama called Immaculate one evening and was begging her to forgive her if she has wronged her in anyway. Immaculate laughed, this woman here…” She pointed fiercely at Immaculate “…laughed at mama and said that the only thing she wants is for me and mama to stop visiting brother Chinonso . In fact, she warned us to not come to their house again without taking express permission from her, that we are disturbing their married life. My elders, can you imagine what a woman will tell a mother, an old woman like mama to stop visiting her son that she carried in her womb for nine months? Where was Immaculate when mama was pushing Chinonso out of her belly? Where was Immaculate when mama was struggling and suffering under the rain and sun in her farm to make sure that she can pay Chinonso’s school fees? Where was this woman …” another pointed glare at Immaculate “…when mama made me stop going to school because she could only afford one person’s fees? Eh? Where was she?’”

China’s voice rang in the quiet hall, loud and angry. She glared at Immaculate who just sat with her eyes closed. One would think she was sleeping if not for the agitated rise and fall of her chest and her tapping feet.