My teacher came as promised. She was a young woman in her early twenties called Miss Jenny, and although she was very sweet and patient, it was rough at first. I couldn’t grasp what she was teaching no matter how hard I tried.
After two weeks of struggling with my lessons, Nafisa pulled me into her garden. When we sat on the bench, she asked conversationally, “I’ve heard you’re having some difficulty with your lessons. What do you think is hindering you?”
“I don’t know,” I answered miserably. I hated disappointing them.
She stared at me. “I think I know what the problem is. You’re being too hard on yourself. Nhyira, you don’t have to be perfect or get it right every time. You have your whole life to learn things. We learn every day, but we have to start learning from somewhere. You’re still a baby, Nhyira. Allow yourself to be a baby. You don’t need to learn fast or get it right immediately. Even adults struggle with learning new things sometimes. I want you to approach your studies with the enthusiasm of learning and discovering new things, not with the pressure of passing a test or an exam. Be easy on yourself and you’ll get it. You’re such a smart, intelligent young lady. You’ll get it with time.”
Once I got over my need to be perfect, I started to do better. Ohene was an intelligent boy, and he gave me extra tutoring by doing his homework together. Learning became fun, and I started to decode the words in the books more fluently.
Two months later, I was jolted awake from sleep by Mr Anderson knocking on my door. I panicked, and memories of rough touches from before scared me into almost forgetting what Nafisa had told me to do if he ever came to my room.
“Nhyira? Why is the door locked?” he demanded angrily, beating insistently on my door. His words were slurred but forceful, making me more fearful.
I rushed to the bathroom and opened it into Rama’s room. The noise had woken her, and she was already out of bed.
“You stay here. I will get Nafisa to get rid of him.”
I slipped into her bed and buried myself under the covers, heart pounding against my chest. Feeling warm and protected, I slipped back into sleep. When I woke up the next morning, I was in my bed.
For the next couple of months, the knocks on my door became too frequent. I never went outside, so I didn’t know how Nafisa got rid of him, but each time, he went away. The next morning, he was normal. It was as if he was never banging on my door. And he never demanded why I locked it.
One day, after Mr Anderson had come to my door, I woke up again in my bed and went to pee. I wanted to ask Rama if I could sleep in her bed instead for comfort. Sometimes, she allowed me to remain in her bed. As I was pushing the connecting door open, I heard Nafisa speaking.
“It is becoming harder to get rid of him. We need to do something before it gets to a point.”
“I thought you said he had a mistress at the mines. Why is he so crazy about sleeping with Nhyira now?” Rama asked worriedly.
“I don’t know how it happened, but he found out that she has started menstruating. The sick fuck is obsessed with impregnating her now.”
“Oh my God, we can’t let that happen! We can’t let him near her.”
“Of course not. I think it’s time to free all of us from him.”
“Are you sure?” Rama fretted. “What if things get worse?”
“It is time the sick man met his karma. And I am going to make sure things get better for us, not worse.”
“What will we do when his family comes and tries to take over? You know why we have stayed in this situation all this time.”
“Rama, my dear, I think we’re ready,” Nafisa answered gently. “Now, we can protect our interests without him. I’m making sure of that. And trust me, when they come, I will be ready. Nobody will get more than what we want to give them, and nobody will take over our lives.”
“What will happen to the business? The mines? Neither you nor I can manage it.”
“Don’t worry, we already have the right people in place to manage it. We have people with good energy and clean hearts who have been working for me for a while.”
“Oh!” Rama exclaimed. “Mr Danso and Nathaniel?”
“Exactly.”
“My goodness, Fisa, you hired them on purpose, didn’t you? You’re always so many steps ahead. And Kwabena Anderson had no idea.”
“Yes, my dear, I selected them on purpose. And that’s why they have more loyalty to us than to Anderson. Using Anderson’s greed against him to plant my people was very satisfying. I wanted to be prepared for a time like this, when his cup became full. We can fend for ourselves now. I have been slowly but strategically getting rid of all his loyalists, both at the mines and here in the house. We don’t need to protect him anymore to protect ourselves and children.”
“Things are changing, and the law could protect us even further if we do this right,” Rama added. “Do you think you can—”
“Yes. I am already on that. Between the two of us, we can get him to sign whatever needs to be signed. We will make sure our protection is ironclad before I remove his and allow his karma to find him.”
I did not understand most of the conversation, and I didn’t want to be discovered eavesdropping on them, so I silently moved away from the bathroom door and returned to my room. I never brought up any of what I had heard, even after Mr Anderson died three months later at the mines. Nobody could say exactly how the accident happened, except that he had ignored caution and gone off the wrong path. I was not ashamed to feel a deep, intense relief at his demise. I felt free, like a weight I hadn’t been aware was on my shoulders had been lifted.
As custom demanded, Rama wore black outfits before, during, and for three months after the funeral, but Nafisa remained in white, refusing to wear black even though Mr Anderson’s family insisted. When they arrived to discuss funeral arrangements, I was nervous about being in a room with all those people whom I had last seen on my wedding day, but Nafisa assured me that I wouldn’t have to stay for the whole meeting. She sat on my right while Rama sat on my left, making me feel protected. I was in awe of Nafisa. She sat there quietly, staring blankly as Mr Anderson’s family talked and talked, then simply told them “No” when they insisted on anything for the three of us to do. She also refused to let us do any of the widowhood rites they had planned for us.
When she got tired of the push and pull, she said, “We will allow you to plan the burial of your son as you see fit. We will give you the money you require to plan everything and will not be interested in whatever profit you may make from his funeral. In exchange, you will stop insisting on any rites or processes that won’t benefit you.”
I could tell that they were shocked by her audacity, and the head of the family, sputtering, exclaimed, “How dare you think that you have any say! This is our son’s house, and you’re just here enjoying his benevolence. You will accord us the respect of your elders and do as we tell you. Otherwise, we will come and take over and leave you on the streets!”
His outburst had put some fear in me, but to my shock, Nafisa only burst out laughing.
“You officiated a marriage between your grown, paedophile son and a child. I am according you even more respect than you deserve.” Her gaze swept across the room. “All of you. I would love to see you try to run me or any of us out of this house and to see the power you think you have to be able to achieve that.”
There was a shocked silence, then Rama put a calming hand on Nafisa. “Fisa, please calm down. I’m sure Abusuapanin didn’t mean it like that. Abusuapanin, we’ve been devastated over the situation, and emotions are high. Please pardon her for speaking inappropriately. I’m sure we can come to an understanding that would suit all of us.”
I remembered parts of the conversation I had heard between her and Nafisa, so I knew that the two women were playing the elders, but I was a little anxious about the outcome. I was at least a little afraid of everyone else in the room except the two women I had come to love. Rama must have noticed my discomfort, so she said, “We can come to a mutual agreement. But I would request that we excuse Nhyira from this meeting. She’s too young and already distraught for this.”
I tried to mask my discomfort when all eyes turned my way.
“I think she has to be—” one of the elders started, but Nafisa interrupted.
“Nhyira, you may leave.”
I shot hastily to my feet, thanked the room without looking directly at anyone and gratefully fled.
I don’t know what happened next at the meeting, and I never asked because I did not particularly care, but everything was done as Nafisa had suggested earlier. My parents came for the funeral, as well as my aunt and some of my other family members. But the one person I was thrilled to see was my brother Kojo. Since he was in the company of my family when I saw him, I could not speak freely with him, but I was glad he was there. I had not expected him to come, so it was a very happy surprise.
