GENESIS He was beautiful in his sleep. Nude, a pillow between his legs, twitching eyebrows and a heaving chest gave her some distraction for the morning. She stood by the foot of her bed and watched him as she sipped noodle soup from a bowl held by both hands. Mother’s plans had come to nothing; her spell on both of them, useless. Genesis hadn’t seen the faces of her rapists while she was intimate with Dominic, but she hadn’t seen his face either. In fact, the entire experience could be described as mildly agreeable, and for that, she owed her best friend, Nancy, a huge one. Nancy was Mother’s rogue daughter and had nothing in common with her. She was dark-complexioned, overweight, crass and loud. She ran a hotel where she pimped out all the girls Mother no longer needed. Mother loathed her and the feeling was mutual on her…
Novocaine Knights #10
Dedicated to all who take their time to leave comments. Dedicated to those who share. Dedicated, of course, to the ghost readers. The numbers don’t lie. Previous Episodes WURA “Ow!” Wura cried out and shoved a bleeding forefinger before Mahmud. Just stepping into his kitchen with a bowl of frozen fish, he went to her. “How did that happen?” He put the bowl away and placed the finger under running water. “Shey you refused to buy can opener in this house. I was trying to open the can of tomatoes and it cut me.” “Pele.” He put an arm around her. She felt the heat from his breath as he left fluffy kisses at the base of her neck. She was accustomed to his lips on her body, but everything he did was limited only to places she exposed. After two weeks as a couple, they were still on their…
Novocaine Knights #9
Previous Episodes LEXUS They ran their tests. Checked this, read that, listened to this, examined that and everything pointed to the fact that something had gone wrong with her. They brought in another set of doctors with their students who went through the entire routine again for a whole day, asking endless questions. Finally, on Sunday morning, they called in the top consultants from the neurosurgery, psychiatry and clinical psychology departments and they conferred with each other in a corner before they invited in Dominic and Eva. Lexus didn’t really bother about the expressions on her parents’ faces when the news hit them. She was lost in her own world, somewhere in the past, and she didn’t want to return. She half-listened to what the doctors were saying, catching a few words here and there. The prognosis was that she was suffering from dissociative amnesia, usually associated with stressful or…
Novocaine Knights #8
Previous Episodes EYIMOFE “I am so sorry, Nick.” Mofe left the comfort of her luxurious bed and took a chair in one corner of her hotel room as Dominic recounted details surrounding Lexus’ brain surgery. She listened attentively, noting the deep emotion in his husky tone. “But she’s not in a coma, is she?” Mofe asked. “No. In fact, I just spoke to one of the neurosurgeons right before I called you. She woke up about an hour ago and went back to sleep. She’s okay.” Mofe was relieved at the good news. “But you don’t sound so elated.” “I’m scared. I can’t…lose Woyintonbra. She’s all I got, Mofe. You’re a woman of faith. Please, pray for her. I’m at the point in my life where I’m not so sure God answers my prayers anymore.” “I’ve been praying for her and I won’t stop, Nick.” “Thank you.” She had never…
Novocaine Knights #7
Previous Episodes DOMINIC She looked so frail. It was difficult not to reach out and hold her. The color on her face was drained and the shine of her skin now reduced to a desiccated, pallid pigment. And her hair… they had shaved it on one side, right where they drilled a hole into her skull. She was very protective of that hair. It was one of the few feminine things about her and she nurtured it as much as she played around with it. He remembered her as a little eight year old girl, dedicating a lot of her after-shower moments in front of her mirror, combing the long, radiant tresses and comparing it to her grandmother’s. At that time he had predicted she would turn out coddled and vain like her mother. How wrong he had been. He had been off about so many other things…
Novocaine Knights #6
Previous Episodes WURA The last scoop melted on her tongue like butter on a hot pan. She closed her eyes and licked her lower lip to keep the taste in. “Now that’s what I call ice-cream,” she purred and pouted sadly at the empty ice-cream cup in her hand. “Hey beautiful!” Wura turned and threw a smile at a couple of her colleagues who were leaving the supermarket. Having just completed the night shift, they were now headed home. One of them turned around, arms spread out. “Be my Val, sweetheart!” Wura shook her head in a smile and bade them goodnight. She threw the empty ice-cream cup in a trashcan nearby. It was almost twelve-thirty; most shops were closed and only a handful of people littered the place. She had another thirty minutes or so to wait for the staff bus that would take her home. A pair of…
Novocaine Knights #5
The mermaid, the whale, My hat falls into the sea. I caress the mermaid, My hat falls into the sea. I lie down with the mermaid, My heart falls into the sea. –Haitian Vodou Chant GENESIS She returned home alone. Kasi had chosen to remain at the club until the sun came up. She met the house in silence as expected. The power was out but the weather was breezy. She stripped out of her clothes, had a warm shower and afterwards, spread a mat over her floor to commence on a ritual she had not done in a while. It went on for almost an hour and towards the end the power came back. Music from the television in the sitting room interrupted her quiet moment and she hurried out to turn it off but met Lexus spread out on one of the couches. An unflattering pair of sunglasses…
Novocaine Knights #4
PREVIOUS EPISODES WURA Not today. Wura groaned and fought hard from stomping her foot in agitation. She was having a bad day already. First, she had had another of her nightmares. Second, Mahmud was yet to call her; it was a week since they last spoke and she had called twice and gotten an engaged line. Third, she was late for church. Fourth, an unsightly zit had popped up above her upper lip. Fifth, her skirt was a little too tight and she didn’t have a replacement. And sixth, her period appeared from the blue, which would explain the fourth and fifth. Jesus, why me? She groaned and took off her stained underwear. She flung it in a bucket in her bathroom and hurried out to the sitting room, a towel around her body. Checking to see that Kasi was nowhere in sight, she called out, “sanitary pad, anyone! Two…
Novocaine Knights #3
Previous Episodes KASIOBI There was nothing he could do. Jordan was sticking to both Eva and Lexus. “Kasi, if Lexus handle you, your life go reset, I swear!” Kasi didn’t like the direction the conversation was going but Jordan pressed on. “That girl, mehn, she’s…” he shook his head for effect. “But seriously, Kasi, you and her never…?” “Never do wetin?” Kasi didn’t even want to consider the question. Lexus was his friend. Anything outside that would destroy what they had. Besides, she was not his type; not that he had a particular type. He just loved females, no matter what size, complexion or height they came in. As long as they were feminine, he was game. But for Lexus, it was hard to say where she fit in. She was always dressed to cover her feminine features and she lacked the grace the average woman possessed. But that was…