chapter 51

On the 29th of December 2010, Ivie fainted as a result of being pregnancy. She had no choice but to go on compulsory leave. The doctor's report subjected her to go on a leave.

She had go back to her parent's house.

On the Ist of January, the whole Momoh family, except the father who was away on political business, gathered in church to thank God for a successful 2010.

That morning, Ese walked in with a sad look on her face. She had the institution newpaper in her hands . Everyone in the sitting room noticed her sad countenance.

"What going on?" Mrs Momoh asked then she collected the newspaper from her scanning through it.

Her mood instantly changed.

"Okay what's going on?" She still insisted and Mrs Momoh shook her head, she wasn't sure how I've will take the news.

"It's nothing serious"

"That's our newspaper and we don't deal with unserious stories if it's on the front page then it's serious. Can someone please pass me the paper!" Ivie demanded and Mr Momoh passed it to her.

The caption bodly written was, 'Chief Isreal Momoh r*ped me!'

"This is impossible!" Ivie shook her then she skimmed through the news.

"Dad is incapable of infidelity and r*pe! This a lie"

"But his daughter's Newpaper published it, everyone will think it's the truth" Ese answered and I stood up angrily.

"I swear I'll kill James and Silvia" she picked up the phone dialing Silvia's number.

"I'll go call Dode" Mrs Momoh suggested leaving the sitting room while Ivie stomped her feet impatiently waiting for Silvia to pick up the call.

" I know you're probably mad" was the first thing Silvia could say, "Mad is far from how I feel. How dare you make a print out of that news?"

"Oh but if it's another person you won't waste time to post it, but because it's your father we can't post it. I didn't learn that from you. I learned that discipline and principles should come first"

"Screw principle, what happened to finding out the damn truth first. Did you even Investigate? Are you so stupid?"

"I had proof, she confessed to.me"

"This is a plot from his political opponent to kick him off the game and you just handed them the Golden chance"

"We needed the news too. She was threatening to give the news to others who were interested"

"And it didn't occur to you that it might be a plot?"

"I'm sorry"

"Oh sorry for yourself Silvia! I'm so mad at you right now!"

"We can sort this out too what if we pay the girl to confess that it was just nothing but a manipulation from the opponents"

"I don't do bribes!"

"That's the way out" she answered and then Ivie hung up.

"Urgh!" She groaned.

"I have to call Dad" she added and then she felt something hot flow through her lap.

It was blood, she looked down, raised her gown up to see blood flowing down her lap. Ese widened her eyes in horror.

"Jesus" she muttered, "Mom!" Ese yelled.

Ivie was then rushed to the hospital.

The moment Ivie walked into the institution, all heads turned towards her and people started whispering. She climbed up and then she went to Raphael's old cubicle and she found no one there.

Meanwhile people couldn't stop whispering.

"Where's Ralpheal?" She asked one of the journalist then she pointed at an office so Ivie walked towards it.

She knocked on the door.

"Come in" she answered and Ralpheal opened up.

He wasn't surprised to see. This raised suspicions, could he have been the one to release her? How did he do it?" She asked within and Ralpheal let her in.

Then he hugged her. "Good to see you outside prison" he sighed and she pulled back.

"Did you have me released?"

"No! How will I have done that? I don't even have any power in this damn company, my office is so small, I don't have space to keep my leg when I sit how much more to influence your release. Wait you thought I was the one right? Because I wasn't surprised when I saw you" he guessed and she nodded.

She had to hand it to him, Ralpheal knew her inside and out.

"Well to feed your curiosity" he turned his laptop to a paused video then he played it . It was a video of the reporter from earlier on and I sat on a chair.

"It's only a matter of time before everyone knows you're back." He leaned on the chair and I agreed.

"How have you been?" He asked then he slapped his own cheeks, "Sorry, wrong question. You've been in prison"

"I'm fine Ralph and you?"

"Well... As you can see," he pointed at the office.

"This office is enough to tell my life."

"What happened? You deserved a promotion"

"I wish the government saw it that way. I was seen as an accomplice to your alleged crime and if not for Silvia I wouldn't have had any job"

"I'm sorry"

"You could have gotten a job elsewhere"

"I didn't want to leave the institution, not until you come back and reclaim all that has been lost. It's not the same without you dear"

"What about James?"

"The idiot now stays in Miami or Hawaii, one of those countries with multiple i's" he answered and she laughed.

"What happened after I left?" She asked and he shrugged.

"What exactly do you want to know? Your amebo is here to tell you anything"

"Everything"

"I don't know everything Ivie, I wish I do but I don't"

"Who pertuated my arrest?"

"Easy, the Governor Samuel Godwin and a whole lot of back stabbing b*tches that I don't know" he answered, "Was Silvia among?" She asked and he shrugged again.

"I can't say but I have my suspect. Everything that happened afterwards just didn't click. You were arrested without trial, then government took over the institution and baam! They released it again to Silvia, it's all suspicious and Daniel too" he paused and she grew more interested.

What does her ex husband have to do with this?

"What does Daniel has to do with this?"

"Didn't your mom tell you Daniel remarried?" He asked and I shrugged.

"It's totally normal"

"But it's who he got married to that made me angry"

"Who?"

"Okay...brace yourself for this baby" he sighed.

"Oh screw it Ralph! Tell me"

"Silvia. He got married to Silvia, if I was a strong type, I would have given Daniel the punch he deserved but I can't cause I'm not willing to go through face reconstruction. I still love my face the way it is"

"What's your suspicion then?"

"That Daniel had something to do with it too"

"That's insane"

"I don't know. I might be wrong and I might be right just be opened about it. No one can be trusted, you can't even trust your own shadow. You're going to have to keep your friends close and enemies closer"

"I want to have my life back"

"You mean the institution?"

"Not just that. I want to be a journalist again, resume work and find out all I need to find out about those who did this to me." She answered and Ralph sighed.

"I'm pretty sure I was so close to getting them and they got so scared"

"I'll have to go back to the drawing board but I need my job back to have access to some information"

"I don't think Silvia would be that generous but you can talk to her though"

"Where's she?"

"Your office" he answered.

Hearing that her office had been taken over by Silvia, it was quite an emotional blow for her. James would have rightfully replaced her as the head of the company but she expected they would have been considerate to do so, not from her office but theirs.

It was like someone usurped her position.

Just as walked towards the office, she started having thoughts, could it have been that Silvia had always envied her post? First she got married to her ex and now she's managing a company that's originally hers.

She found Getrude on her desk making a call. Getrude opened her mouth in shock the moment she saw Ivie.

"I'll call you back later" she said to the caller then she stood up smiling.

Ivie almost didn't recognize her, if not for the smile. She was now chubbier than she was.

"Mrs Ejiofor, sorry Miss Momoh" she corrected, "Good morning Ma" she hugged her and Ivie smiled. It felt good to see her once again.

"So it's true that you're back" she smiled.

"Thank God!"

"Wow. You're now fat, look at that belly"

"Yes. After my first child I didn't tie my belly until the fifth month, it was too late and also too late to lose the fat after mom did Omogwu on me"

"Wow"

"Same thing my husband said when he saw me. Now he'll have to live with it" she answered and Ivie laughed.

"Where's Silvia" I asked and she pointed to the office.

"Can I see her?"

"Let me put a call through to her, she doesn't like it when people come in unannounced and the last thing I need right now is complains" she sat down on her seat then she called Silvia.

"Ma Miss Momoh is here to see you"

"Ese?" She asked.

"Not Ese, Miss Ivie Momoh" Getrude answered and Ivie picked that.

Why would Silvia ask of her sister? She thought to herself, how  regular does Ese come here and why in the world would Ese come when she isn't even around?

"Miss Ivie!" Getrude yelled and this brought her out from her thought.

"What were you thinking of?"

"Nothing really. What were you saying?"

"Miss Silvia said you can come in, although she's having a little crisis in there"

"What crisis?"

"You should see for yourself" Getrude replied and Ivie walked in to find Silvia wrapping her hands around her a boy from behind.

It wasn't hard for Ivie to deduce he was her son.

"Stop playing around Gabriel" she exclaimed but he kept on playing.

The other girl, seven years of age was at the corner of the desk playing with a document.

"Lira leave there this instant!" She yelled now looking at Ivie.

"Can you come back some other time?"

"No I can't"

"I have a situation in my hands right now. These kids are one my headache" "They're just kids"

"You think they are but they don't listen"

"Okay" Ivie moved over to Lira, "Um Lira right? Mommy and I are about to talk and we need you to sit still and"

"We want to play!"

"Did you feed them too much sugar?" She asked and Silvia shrugged.

"Lira darling" Ivie paused.

"Okay I tried to be nice." She held on tightly to her arm.

"Listen up Lira, I'm not going to be Miss Nice woman any longer. You're going to that seat and you'll sit on it till your Mommy and I discuss whatever we want. Do you understand?" She asked and she kept quiet.

"Do you understand?" She asked firmly and she nodded continuously in fear then she sat down.

"And you" she pointed at Gabriel and then at the chair. Gabriel sat on it then he busted out in tears.

"Don't cry oh! I'll tell Ojuju Calabar to come and catch you" Ivie threatened and he kept quiet.

"He doesn't even know what Ojuju Calabar is" Silvia replied looking at her son in pity.

"Gabriel" Silvia called out affectionately.

"Let him be, too much attention spoils children. Act like he's not there he'll keep quiet eventually" "How do you know?"

"Should I remind you that I took care of my siblings. Now let's talk"

Silvia went back to her seat, Ivie's former seat, the chair had changed into something beautiful and modern. The whole sitting down occurred in slow motion to Ivie.

She tried to contain her anger.

"Thank you for.." she pointed at the kids.

"They're driving me nuts" she answered and Gabriel eventually stopped crying.

"Didn't they go to school or it's break time?"

"They missed school"

"Where's the nanny. I mean knowing you so well, there would be a nanny"

"I fired her two days ago. I'm on the hunt for another"

"With these kids? You'll keep on firing them"

"She laid her filthy hands on my children. That wasn't part of the plan" Silvia answered then she cleared her throat. She has said more than she should.

Ivie looked around the office, the pictures wall, that of the president and that of Samuel Godwin. She tightened her fist in anger.

Silvia had positioned her wedding frame and honeymoon pictures on the same spit she used to positioned hers. How worse can it get?

"What do you want?"

"Is it a crime to visit a friend?" Ivie asked and Silvia scoffed in disbelief.

"To visit a friend in the same office that was previously yours?"

"I guess congratulations are in order"

"I got appointed in 2012; congratulations have passed. Ivie I know you, you must be hurt, you might as well hit the nail on your head and say whatever you want"

"How about congratulations on your children. I learned his father is my ex-husband. How could you Silvia?"

"Shhh" She looked at her children.

"We shouldn't have this discussion in front of the kids"

"So they don't know their mother's a man stealer"

"You say man stealer like you owned him. What the hell? You were already crucified, your ass on the stake and I did what any woman would have done."

"You did that any Jezebel would have done, you backstabbed me"

"What did you expect, you think Dan would have waited for you, till ten years? You two were divorced and he did what any man would have done and we have the best gift God could ever give. Lira and Gabriel, if you're not happy with it. There's nothing I can do"

"The only reason I'm not slapping you right now is because of your kids." Ivie confessed and she scoffed.

"I wonder who filled you in, Ralph right?" She asked and Ivie rolled her eyes.

"Why are you here?"

"To slap you obviously. You should be grateful to your children" she paused and Silvia looked away.

"What else do you want? You just stalled, I know you want something"

"I want in back"

"I'm sorry I can't do that"

"Why?"

"This is government owned and with your police record, we can't accept you back"

"That's absurd!"

"The governor will not agree"

"Screw the governor. This is my company, where was the governor when we pioneered this? When I pioneered this!"

"That's what you get when you rebel against the government! No one asked you to!"she snapped and then I shut my eyes.

"But I can give you some other job or call my contacts"

"I can't believe I'm hearing this" Ivie scoffed.

"Keep your job Silvia. Good day!" She added leaving the office.

"Miss Momoh" Getrude called out and Ivie walked past her.

Outside the building she saw Daniel walking directly towards her.

She tightened her fist again.

"Hey Ivie" he greeted, "I just saw your kids and your wife"

"Okay I can explain" he raised his hands and she slapped him on the cheek.

"Save your stupid explanation!" She snapped.

"You're indespicable!" She added leaving then she waved her hands to the next available taxi.

Daniel walked into Silvia's office and the children rushed to hug him and they busted into questions but he wasn't interested in listening to them.

"Why do you look like you've just seen a ghost?"

"Let me guess, you saw her right?" She asked and he gave a gentle nod.

"She slapped me"

"She threatened she would have slapped me too if the kids weren't around. She wasn't supposed to be out till 2020"

"Jesus Silvia! Have some heart!"

"Did you have her released? I know you now have contacts everywhere"

"I didn't. I didn't do it"

"Who did then?"

"I don't know" he answered and she stared suspiciously at him.

"What? Are we seriously going to have an arguement again? In front of the kids?" He asked and she scoffed.