Not All that Glitters Final Episode Episode 2

Richard felt as if a part of his body was being

pulled out as Ifeoma tightened her grip. He was

too shocked, and honestly too much in a pain to

strike at her. Thinking about it, he often regretted

not punching the life out of her with his free hand.

He screamed out in pain, begging her to stop.

Strangely, the more he pleaded the more Ifeoma

tighten her grip. To ease the pain, Richard bent

slightly, as if he was kneeling. He could almost feel

his testicles melting away under the crushing hold

of his wife.

Ifeoma lunged at his nose, as he bent a little below

her height. She increased the pressure on his

penis. Richard scream out in pain. Ifeoma bit into

his nose, as hard as she could. He felt something

like sweat crawling down the sides of his face, only

it wasn’t colorless, it was bright red in color.

Instinctively, Richard struck his wife on her throat.

She scream out in pain and freed his penis and

nose. She put both hands on

her throat.

The last thing Richard remember before he fainted

was seeing Charlie tackle Ifeoma to the ground.

.……. ……… ……….

Richard turned into the street that his parent lived

all his life. The street was empty and deserted as

usual. He liked it that way. Too tired to open the

iron gates, he packed in front of the fence that

enclosed the bungalow building that his father had

built years ago.

“Later I will come and drive it inside” Richard

thought.

As he opened the door, he felt something.

Something was out of place but he wasn’t sure

what it is. He was uneasy.

“It’s probably the after effect of being home alone”

Richard said to himself as he chuckled. He turned

on the light and the television before going into the

kitchen to pour himself a glass of juice.

The three o’clock news was being shown on the

television. A youngish woman with a brown

spectacle balanced on her nose was reading the

news. As Richard stepped out of the kitchen, he

heard her say:

“… The owner and chief herbalist of a traditional

home in Njaba local government area, was this

morning attacked by three persons, they are

believed, by police, to be mental patients in the

healing home. However, reports reaching our news

desk has it that two of the assailants has been

arrested and the third, a female, is still at large. In

another development….

Richard froze. It all started falling together, in

Richard mind, why things had seem out of place

when he came in. Ifeoma was here. He could feel

her presence. The smile of coconut butter cream

which she used on her hair hung in the air. He

hadn’t noticed it before but now… now he could

perceive it, as strong as he had perceived it five

years ago. He had always liked the smell.

He wasn’t scared of her –he was just scared of

what she would do. This time around, he would

not hesitate to smack her as hard as he could. She

still tormented his dreams. In them she was,

always chasing him with a blunt kitchen knife.

Which she used to cut off his penis and then she

would plunge the bloody meat into her mouth. And

as he shouted, Ifeoma sawed through his man

meat with a salvage energy and laughter. The pain

of the blunt knife was indescribable, even in his

dream. Blood lined her hands and mouth, giving

her the appearance of a vampire that had just

received his worst Christmas present from his

human friends. He wasn’t sure why he never raised

his hands against her in his dreams, something

was always pinning him down and holding his hand

down. But that was a dream. Reality is far much

different and, for all intent and purposes, he

planned to strike hard and fast.

He heard her footstep as she came down the

stairs. Richard walked back a step or two. His

heart beating a fast staccato beat. She came into

view. She was so beautiful, more beautiful than

she had actually been on her wedding day. Her

long natural hair had been cut short, thus giving

her a school girl kind of look. Her lips were painted

a bright red and her eye lid was neatly lined with a

black eye pencil. She was wearing a long red gown,

that she had split into two and as she cat walked

down the steps, Richard could see her slim, long

legs. Those legs stirred something ancient in him.

A desire to have her there and then. To make love

to her till she was incoherent and speaking

gibberish. But he suppressed the feeling.

“Richard!!!” Ifeoma shouted when she saw him. Her

face was lit by a beautiful smile. She pulled up her

skirts and ran down the stair. “Oh darling I’ve so

missed you, how are you…” she halted on seeing

the look on Richards face.

She came a step forward, and Richard took two

steps back.

“Richie am so sorry. I didn’t mean to attack you. It

was that stupid woman, I think she was in my

head, she told me that you were cheating on me

with Charlie’s wife. Am sorry. I shouldn’t have

listened to her. I promise I won’t listen to her

again. Can I hug you?” Ifeoma asked. The look on

her face was beyond innocent and sweet, so

innocent that it would have made an angel jealous.

“No,” Richard said in a deep voice, he narrowed his

eyes and looked straight into her eyes. “Don’t

come near me. What are you doing here in my

parents’ house?”

The innocent look disappeared from Ifeoma’s face

and was replaced by look that was akin to devilish.

“I see you didn’t miss me. She was right –the

woman in my head. You were cheating on me with

that black witch and I know that you don’t love me

anymore. She was right. And I made her go away

because I wanted to believe you“. Ifeoma

screamed. She stamped her foot on the floor and

then looked up as if something just occurred to

her:

“How is my daughter? Nnenna?” she frowned and

then laughed, “I never liked that name, Nnenna, is

like a song and a useless repetition of redundant

names. Father mother? How is that a name? Who

answers that?” she smiled an evil smile “but you

liked it, and I had to like it too so you would be

happy

“D–k, I like that name, it suits you more than

Richard. Richard sounds too mundane, and my

God! What a boring name. But then you’ve always

been too traditional, conservative and boring. It

drove me out of my mind along with that baby’s

crying every second of the day. You know she’s is

just like you, Nnenna, too boring and ultra

conservative. I guess you all get it from your

mother, my dear, dear mother in-law.

“Where is she, by the way? I’ve been waiting for

her, wanted to have a chat with her. So she could

tell me what I did wrong. I know she was the one

that fed those ideas into your head. She told you

to f–k that woman, Charlie’s wife. And she told

you to put me out of your house, our house.”

“How do you know that?” Richard whispered in a

voice that was a little more than a whisper.

“The woman in my head, she told me. She knows

everything. Don’t look so shocked sweet D–k, I

know you f—-d her too,” Ifeoma said in a drawing

voice. “She told me that she loved you, but you

broke her heart. She warned me that you’ll do the

same to me. But you don’t expect me to fold my

hand and watch you break my heart? Did you,

sweet D–k? What a nice name. I know your

mother have turned Nnenna against me. She never

liked me and I tried to be a good daughter in law.

Where did you say she went again, sweet D–k?”

“I don’t know. Please come let me take you back

home…..” Richard began

“Don’t you dare patronize,” Ifeoma screeched, she

pulled at her short hair and jumped up and down

hysterically. “Don’t you dare lie to me? You think

am crazy don’t you” she stopped smiled and

started removing the sleeves of her gown, “let’s do

it here on your mothers cushion. Let’s f–k, like we

used to do”

“Ify calm down. Maybe later. We’ll do it…” Richard

started to say

“I knew it. Liar. You never loved me. You still want

her. Ahhhhhh” Ifeoma screamed. She ran towards

Richard, but he hurriedly stepped aside. Ifeoma ran

into the kitchen shouting. Richard went after her.

Yes he was scared, but to his utter chagrin, he had

discovered that he still loved her. And wanted her.

Seeing her like this, like a crazy woman, had broken

his heart –despite his earlier resolve. He wanted to

reach out and touch her and hold her close to his

chest. But once bitten, twice shy.

Ifeoma stopped at the kitchen sink, smiled and

raised up her hand. A knife gleamed in her hands –

the one he had seen in his dreams.

“Ifeoma stop, don’t play with a knife. STOP,”

Richard pleaded.

But Ifeoma kept on walking towards him. Slowly at

first. She stopped for three seconds, smiled again

and then she rushed towards Richard, knife raised

high, poised to strike. Instinctively, Richard reached

for the pestle that his mother always kept by the

door, near the cupboard. He swung. A strong single

blow.

A red blobby matter spattered on the kitchen wall.

The knife dropped from Ifeoma’s hand. Her head a

red mess. Ifeoma fell to the ground and breathed

her last.

The End