“Why is everyone afraid of you?” I asked again, drawing their attention.
“You weren’t,” she hedged. “You kept bothering me until I gave in.”
I laughed. “That is why I don’t understand. You have good energy.”
Nafisa exchanged a glance with Rama, then walked to sit on the other chair, facing me.
“Nhyira, the reason everyone is so afraid of me is because I’m what most people would call a witch. I have the power of sight—to an extent, the power of healing, the power of persuasion, and the power to multiply wealth.”
My eyes widened in surprise. Of all the things I had expected to hear, that was the last thing that would have ever occurred to me.
“But you’re not actually a witch? What are you then?” I asked as Rama excused herself to go downstairs.
She laughed, and I felt proud to have made her laugh, as I had rarely heard Nafisa do so. “No, Nhyira, I’m not a witch. I’m just more spiritually enlightened and connected to the creator through nature. In ways most people cannot understand or aren’t enlightened to connect.”
It made sense, and my young mind was awed by her even more.
“Why are they afraid then?”
She smiled again. “I will admit that the fear they have of me is a mixture of their misunderstanding of the things I do and my own deliberate actions. It serves my purpose, so I don’t mind.”
I also thought that they misunderstood her because she rarely spoke to anyone. They didn’t know what to make of her even though they had known her for years. I was just glad that I was one of the few she related with.
“Now, I have a question to ask, Nhyira, and I need you to be honest with me,” she continued. “Did you invite Mr Anderson to your room?”
My eyes rounded at the question. How did she know that? If I told her the truth, would she be mad at me? Disappointed? Would she stop talking to me?
“Nhyira, the reason I am asking you is because I used some of that power of persuasion I just told you about to dissuade Mr Anderson from coming into your room. The only thing that would break that persuasion is if you invited him yourself. So tell me the truth—and I promise I won’t be mad. I just want to know how to protect you in the future.”
With that reassurance, I broke down and shared everything that my mother and aunt had told me and made me do. Nafisa listened quietly without interrupting until I finally finished and wept. She patted my back awkwardly for a while before drawing me into her arms. When my crying bout was over, I apologised for crying like a baby.
“You are a baby, Nhyira, despite your current circumstances. It is okay to behave like one sometimes. Besides, crying is not only for babies. There is nothing wrong with letting your emotions out through crying.”
I doubted that Nafisa ever cried, but the reassurance made me feel better about my weakness. She asked me to bring all the items my mother had given me and confiscated them.
“The universe revolves around balance, my dear. When something is given, something must be taken to balance it. It shows even in the basic action of breathing in and out. There is constant push and pull to make everything work just right, or something topples over. This means that I don’t have the power to get everything I want the way I want it, but I can try my best. I don’t think my persuasion will hold as strongly as it did before, but we can have a Plan B. Rama will get someone to change the lock so that you can lock your door behind you every time you go to sleep. If you hear it rattling, go to the bathroom and knock on Rama’s door. Between the three of us, we will make sure he doesn’t touch you again. But we can’t raise too many red flags while doing it. I am already controlling too much, and I fear that toppling may happen if I don’t restrict myself.”
She took my hand and stared into my eyes, unblinking. “Also, you are ours now. Rama and I will not allow anyone to send or take you away. That is not a fear you should ever have. Understood?”
I nodded eagerly, feeling extremely relieved at the reassurance, especially from her. “Thank you, I want to stay with you, too.”
My aunt and mother were never invited to the house again, and I never spoke to them on the phone without Nafisa or Rama being there. It was comforting, even though I felt guilty about it. I suspect that Nafisa had already warned my family, because their tone was cautious when talking to me, and they never brought up Mr Anderson. They mostly called to gush about the renovations that were being done at home or gossip about the family and neighbours. I missed my brother Kojo, but he never came to speak to me over the phone. Once in a while, he would send his regards through my mother. I tried to be content with that.
Two months later, Rama finally got comfortable with me being around her children. She asked me what I would like them to call me. “Just Nhyira,” I answered. It was amazing getting to know younger people around my age. They were different—more educated, cheerful, and carefree than I had ever been—but they were very nice to me, and we became fast friends.
Sophie was happy to have another girl to share her toys with, and Ohene was glad to have someone closer to his age to talk to apart from his sister. He was very vocal, and every day, after school, he would find me and tell me the highlights of his day. Sophie started to copy him, and I lived for those moments. They allowed me to experience school through them. After a while, Sophie and Ohene also started to teach me English words, and Rama and Nafisa picked it up. Nafisa’s English was difficult to understand sometimes. She spoke like the white people we watched on TV.
Once in a while, Nafisa would go to the mines with Mr Anderson. The house would feel incomplete until she was back, gliding around the big house barefoot in her white dress.
On my 12th birthday, seven months after my marriage, Nafisa made me a special necklace. “This is to attract good things and repel negative energy. It will also help you stay grounded as you grow into your womanhood.”
She had given me other pieces before, but this was specially made for me, which touched me deeply. I vowed never to take it off.
“Thank you so much!” I exclaimed in excitement, hugging her. She was surprised but allowed it and hugged me back.
She also gave me a box of different types of beads and tools. “I am going to teach you how to make them. I think you would be good at it. It will give you a skill you can use if you need it.
I was very touched and grateful. I loved watching her make jewellery, and there had been times when she had taken my suggestions to combine particular beads, but I never thought that she would give me this chance to do some on my own.
Rama also gave me some books and stationery for my birthday. “Nafisa and I have discussed this at length, and we think you need to learn how to read and write, and you need to understand more of the world you live in. We can’t enrol you at a traditional school, but we found a good teacher who can come here and teach you in secret. We will cross the bridge when it comes to how to write exams to earn a certificate.”
My eyes blurred with tears. Before leaving my parents’ house, I had thought learning anything except wifely duties was redundant, but coming to live with these women had made me wonder what it would be like to understand what was written in the pages of books Sophie and Ohene leave around the house. The pictures were beautiful, but what did the words say? Did the pictures represent the full story or just part of it? I had been careful not to let anyone catch me flipping longingly through the pages, but now I would be able to. And now I had books of my own to flip through and understand. It was the best birthday I had ever had in my life, and it was made even better because Mr Anderson was away at his gold mines. We had a nice birthday dinner with the kids with cake from the big store in town and several types of fizzy drinks we weren’t allowed to drink often. Even Sophie and Ohene gave me some chocolate and candy they had hoarded for months and wrapped in coloured paper. It was so sweet and gave me an additional sense of belonging.
That evening, after I took my shower, just before I slipped into my warm, soft bed, I stood in front of my dressing mirror holding my books and stared at my reflection. Did the books still make me perfect? Did they mar my perfection or did they fit into it?
I couldn’t decide on an answer, but I was satisfied with the fact that I was whole and beautiful either way. My mirror was whole and unbroken. And the books made me happy. I thought of my older brother, Kojo. Would he be happy to see me now? He was the only person I could share my secret education with. Remembering everything he had tried to teach me, I thought he would be proud of me for the new things I was going to learn. It gave me some comfort to have at least one person from home who would support the new trajectory my life was taking. With one last look at my reflection, I dropped the books on my bedside table and slipped into bed.
That night, I dreamt of my brother. He had come to the big house to bring me a book and my teddy bear, Sugar, but mother angrily snatched the gifts before I got to him. I was relieved when I woke up in the middle of the night and realised it was just a dream. Disconcerted, I reached over the table to pick up the books Rama had given me, hugging them to my chest until I fell asleep again.
