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Chapter 9
Sarah sang along as she washed her clothes. She was washing in a large bowl and sitting on a very low stool. Sarah, also once an important Choir member, but whose time of rave and fame was during Sister Joy’s era. She was then the assistant to the Choir Mistress- Sister Joy, until she found herself right in the prostitution scandal that rocked the Church back then.
Nobody knew Sister Joy wasn’t the real prostitute; Sarah was! And the man who claimed to give his life to Christ knew about this too, but Sarah couldn’t save Sister Joy because it means it will fall back on her. She reminisced about how it all went down:
******************
That faithful day, weeks before the prostitution scandal, Blessing came to blackmail her with hard evidence on her escapades as a prostitute at the hotel where she worked. She will attend the morning class and engage in prostitution in the evening through the night to make ends meet. She lied to people that she worked as a cleaner at the hotel. Surprisingly, when Blessing brought this evidence, she had wanted nothing more from her than for her to step down as assistant to the Choir Mistress- Sister Joy. It was a surprise that Blessing only wanted her to step down, so, that was what she did.
She could have told the Church to go to hell, but prostitution was and is still illegal in her State of residence, and Blessing warned her not to flee. But, she could have fled if not because she was half-way through her college studies already!
Since then, she had avoided attending rehearsals, which meant she couldn’t be allowed to minister. People asked questions, and she said she was busy and couldn’t make the time. Weeks later, she officially announced her stepping down as the assistant to Sister Joy, and by default and rank, Sister Ruth, who was the church-mother to Blessing, became the assistant to Sister Joy.
Weeks after that, Sarah was surprised when Mr Eric came forward to give his life to Christ and confessed that Sister Joy, the Choir mistress, was a prostitute! That was even a surprise to Sarah because Sister Joy was never a prostitute. Nevertheless, Sister Joy fainted that day and was never seen again after being taken to the hospital. This paved way for her assistant, Sister Ruth as the vocal leader. This automatically makes her church-daughter, Blessing, her assistant. Sarah was reduced to the bench as a member.
The most surprising thing about the man who testified was the way he held the lie like it was the truth- it was never the truth. Sarah knew this, but she must never talk about it. Sarah knew why he had to lie- Mr Eric, a Deacon!
But, that was all in the past. She had since stopped attending the Church altogether for months now, and she felt peaceful. She went over to the line and started spreading her wet clothes; she was determined to let the past rest in peace.
****************
Blessing increased her pace as she made her way to Sarah’s abode. She was sure she will meet her at home; the day being Saturday- almost everyone in the country does their laundries on Saturdays. Emeka’s role in her next mission has been handed over to him; she had to ensure that another web was spurned to complete the network of the next unfolding event. As she walked on, she reminded herself how Sarah owed her, and unless she was ready to go to jail, she will play along. She remembered what she did for her, what she did for Sarah…
***************
Mr Eric, the Deacon who was forced to testify against himself, really had no choice. He had to, or risk being jailed too! The scenario was a nice playing ground for blackmail. The Deacon couldn’t keep his old dick in his pants, and went ahead to having sex with a minor! Emeka has many friends, and one of them was dating a friend to the minor.
So, one day, Emeka was arguing with Blessing about how religion was nothing but hypocrisy, given the fact that all they do is going to Church and acting like they’ve never sinned. He was an atheist, and having sex with Blessing and Ruth gave him the audacity to say all Christians, especially the female ones, are hypocrites.
While Blessing was still defending that, Emeka told her about a Deacon in her Church that was also having sex with a minor! And when Blessing wouldn’t believe him, he had brought out his phone and called his friend, James, to bring his girlfriend for a visit to his house at the weekend. He asked him to tell his girlfriend to bring her friend along; knowing that the only friend the girl has, was the minor he was talking about.
So, that weekend, Blessing and Emeka waited for their guests. Blessing was still sure Emeka was talking nonsense, but right inside her mind, she wished it would be a revelation that is worthy of wielding as a weapon. Anything for her ascent is welcome!
Then, there was this soft knock on the door; after all it looked like they were never going to come. She rushed to open the door. The revelation wasn’t much; just this two kids- Hannah and the minor. There was also James, Emeka’s friend, Hannah’s boyfriend. Hannah was then, just a member of the youth Choir; she was never a threat to Blessing back then.
Though, Hannah was the leader of the youth Choir back then, and she led exceptionally well with her soft voice. Blessing didn’t even know that Hannah would be promoted to be a real rival of recent. She used to believe that before Hannah could dream of being in the main Choir, she would either have gained an admission into a college outside the City or die of cancer. But that didn’t happen because Hannah did gain an admission, but it was a college within the City, and she refused to die of cancer.
“Good evening, Sister Blessing.” Hannah beamed as Blessing opened the door. Blessing didn’t say a word; she just went back to her seat.
Emeka tried to hold her hand, but she gave him a stern look, and Emeka got the message and let her be. James went over to Emeka and greeted him with a kind of a coded handshake, known only to both of them and whatever fraternity they belonged to. Kike, the minor, and Hannah’s friend, couldn’t even look up. Blessing kept her calm, even though she couldn’t believe she was seeing properly. Mr Eric, the Deacon, who always makes the special announcements every Sunday, couldn’t have been the one having sex with this little girl. Even Emeka’s friend, James, whom she sees as a guy in his early twenties, would be said to be too old for her.
“Ladies,” Emeka started after they all sat in silence, “this is Blessing…” he wanted to begin an introduction when Blessing cut in before he could start talking about him and her being lovers. She didn’t want that. Not with her status in church. She was supposed to be an example for these kids.
“Yes, Emeka, they know who I am, right?” She asked the girls who nodded.
“Good,” she continued, “and if you are still wondering if I and Emeka are lovers, well, think again, we are not!”
Emeka and James shared a look of surprise between each other. Even Hannah and Kike, the minor, did the same. The only difference being the look of shock in theirs because they knew it would be better if Blessing was also an adulterer like them. Blessing was satisfied with their countenances.
“I am here because of you,” he pointed to the minor, Kike, “I have nothing with you,” he pointed to Hannah who was just seventeen years at that time, and four years older than Kike. “You are old enough to do whatever you like,” she said to Hannah, “but allowing her do the things you do, even worse, is disheartening.”
“Ma,” Hannah wanted to talk, but Blessing hushed her down.
“Could you guys please, excuse us?” Blessing asked both James and Emeka who have been a little bit petrified about the sudden turn of the drama.
They followed each other like lambs to the abattoir. After they have disappeared inside, she turned back to the girls who were already fidgeting.
“You,” she said, pointing to Kike, who never dared to look at her face, “why that old man? Why Mr Eric?” She dropped the bomb on her, and both Kike and her friend were so shocked. Kike went on her knees immediately, and Hannah followed suit.
“Please, I beg of you, don’t tell my Dad. He will kill…”
“Of course, I know he will kill you!” She said. “Now, you need to stop or I will tell your Dad.” Both Kike and Hannah looked at each other and nodded.
“I will stop.” Kike said reluctantly. Hannah flashed a fierce look at Kike and poked her with her elbow.
“What is this?” Blessing asked, noticing the gesture “What are you not saying, Kike?”
“Nothing, Ma.” Kike lied. “I promise to stop seeing him.”
“There is something,” Hannah countered, “but she is scared to tell you.”
“I see.” Blessing said. “Are you pregnant?” She guessed
“No!” Kike screamed, taken aback. “I am not!”
“I hope so. So, what are you scared to…”
“She can’t stop having sex with Mr Eric!” Hannah came in and Kike nodded frantically with a scary face.
“What? What do you mean she can’t stop? Are they into some king of a covenant or…?”
“No!” Kike screamed again. “Why would I enter into a covenant with an old man like that?”
“An old man like that? And he was not too old to have sex with you?”
“Technically, he has never had sex with me.” Kike corrected.
Sister Blessing was disappointed by half. She feared her hold on them might have loosened. If there was no sex, then there will be no scandal. And with no scandal, she has no weapon against them to use for future purposes.
“What… what do you mean by that?” She managed to ask.
“I am always on top. I am the one having sex with him.” Kike jumped at her question.
“Shut up, you idiot!” Hannah pushed her. “You are a moron!”
Blessing couldn’t control her laughter! She couldn’t believe she heard her right. “Don’t ask her to shut up,” she cautioned Hannah, “and don’t call her a moron. You are at fault here. I am sure you know about all…”
“Not really, Ma.” Hannah cut in. “They were really deep into it before I knew about it. It… it appeared to be too late for her to stop.”
“How?” Blessing cared to know more.
“Did you remember the phone that was stolen from the guest minister’s bag some months ago, during the convention?” Hannah asked, and Blessing nodded. “It was her,” she pointed to Kike, “who stole it!”
“Jesus Christ! She did?”
Blessing couldn’t believe her ears. That case actually made Kike’s father, an assistant Pastor, sack the security guard and suspend some workers from the Church since they couldn’t find out who did it. They were all sent packing in relation on the theft scandal. She covered her mouth in surprise. Kike started to cry, silently.
“Well, Mr Eric kind of found out, a few days later, that it was Kike, who stole it, and he promised not to tell her dad if she agrees to…”
“That bald headed idiot took advantage of that?” Blessing asked and they both nodded.
“Almost eight months now.” Kike said and nodded. Hannah patted her gently.
Blessing was very angry, and for the first time, she didn’t care about her ambition this time.
“Who else knows about this?” She asked.
“Sister Sarah.” Hannah said, much to Blessing’s surpise.
“What? The same Sister Sarah? The assistant to the Choir Mistress?” She asked again.
“Yes. Sister Sarah works as a cleaner in the hotel.” Kike said. “But… also as a prostitute!”
“What? Who told you all these?” Blessing asked.
“Mr Eric.” Kike said. “He told me not to be afraid. He said that Sister Sarah is also in the business, and she won’t tell anybody. That was the day Sister Sarah saw me in the hotel with him. Mr Eric called her inside and told her what we always do together. Mr Eric said if she told anyone, he will expose her as a prostitute. He even claimed he had had sex with her several times.”
“Jesus!” Blessing exclaimed. “And you kept all these from….from …the Church?” She asked them.
They were silent, but Kike has started to cry again. Blessing asked Kike to wipe her tears and promised to help her stop Mr Eric. She learnt from Kike that they always choose a particular hotel for the sexual act, so Blessing hacked a plan.
The plan was simple-
Whenever Mr Eric wanted sex with the minor, he always calls her and asks her to wait in the usual room at the hotel. The owner of the hotel was a friend to Mr Eric, so, Kike just goes to the manager, collects the key and waits naked in the room for the paedophile to come. And since all Mr Eric had to do was to always enter the same room with his spare key and goes straight into the act, Hannah was able to hide in the wardrobe and take both pictures and videos.
Four days later, when the kids called her that they’ve gotten the photos and the video, she asked them to bring it to her house straight away. She was satisfied with the results when she saw them.
“Now, we will eliminate the threats, one after the other.” She smiled at the kids who didn’t even know she was now going to use them for her selfish interest. Though, they will be helped too.
The next day, they went straight to Sarah’s house; they met her just in time. She was going for work. She was no doubt shocked to see Kike, Hannah and Blessing together that faithful day. Her fear was justified when Blessing showed her the video and told her the parts she took. She assured her she will report to the police and she will serve a jail time, along with Mr Eric. She was an accomplice to the crime of sex with a minor. Sarah started to cry and she pleaded to be spared. She claimed she felt bad, but she could do anything since Mr Eric was privy to her secret.
“Well,” Blessing began that day, “You are next to Sister Joy in the Choir, and if Sister Joy should leave today, you automatically become the vocal leader, right?”
Sarah nodded with tears.
“Good.” She said, “We all know it is very wrong for someone in your profession to be a leader in the house of God. How do you even feel, standing in the front and asking the congregation to praise God when you know you are only deceiving yourself?”
“I’m sorry.” Sarah wailed.
“Sister Sarah, there is no need for that. It is so disgusting to even think about it. This is what I want you to do if you want us to keep your secret;” she stood up like a Boss and started dishing out the terms and conditions, “one, don’t speak a word about Kike and Mr Eric to anyone. Two, within six weeks, announce that you are stepping down as the assistant to the Choir Mistress.”
“I can even leave the Choir.” She suggested excitedly, glad about the leniency of the condition.
“No, you must not leave. It will be too easy for you.” Blessing halted the idea.
“Please,” she pleaded, “people will ask why I wanted to step down and I will not be able to give…”
“That is your problem,” Blessing snapped at her, “and that is your punishment for being an accomplice to a crime, and a hypocrite.”
Sarah sighed, and nodded. “How am I sure they,” she referred to Kike and Hannah, who have been silent all through, “will not spill the beans?”
“They can’t. For what is worth, I still have a video of her,” she pointed to Kike, “and Mr Eric here with me. And I will not only show it to her dad, I will upload it on my Facebook timeline and tag as many Church members as I would!”
“Ha!” Both Kike and Hannah exclaimed.
“And as for you,” she pointed to Hannah, “don’t you forget you took this video, and you knew about this plan all along and yet, you didn’t report it! It means you abetted the crime!”
Hannah clamped her head with her hands and exclaimed inaudibly.
“So, all we all have to do is keep quiet about this, and I promise, everything will be fine.” She concluded. “I will take care of Mr Eric tonight. Kike, you are free now.” She said and they all dispersed.
At night, she went to Mr Eric, and it was easier for her to get him to agree to leave Kike alone. Not only that, he had two hard choices to make, as laid before him by Blessing as atonement for his sins.
One, he either faces jail and disgrace if he agreed that Blessing may show the video to the police, or, two, he will announce his resignation as a Deacon, and give a confession against Sister Joy that she was a prostitute. As a man afraid of his own works, he accepted to do the latter, which, of course, appeared as his only choice.
That was how Sister Blessing ousted Sister Joy, who wasn’t a prostitute, and Sister Sarah, who was supposed to take the mantle of leadership after Sister Joy. Sister Ruth was the next in line, and Blessing was a church-daughter to her. So, automatically, Sister Ruth was made the vocal leader, and Sister Blessing was made her assistant. It was all a brilliant plan!
*************
“Well, that was then.” She thought to herself as she approached Sarah’s residence. Hannah has been promoted from the youth Choir, and she is now being considered as an assistant to her. She doesn’t want an assistant; it must always be her and Sister Mary. She worked too hard to be that close, ousting Sister Joy, Sister Sarah, and Sister Ruth to be here. In her mind, she believed that Hannah knows too much, and things may not end well between them if they had to work together. That was the reason she was on an urgent visit to Sarah. Only Sarah could help her out. As she entered into Sarah’s compound, she saw her spreading her clothes on the line.
“Good morning, Sister Sarah!” She said aloud, beaming.
Sarah looked petrified like she has seen the devil. Of course, she has seen the devil, because for years, after she relinquished her position due to this same devil, she has suffered in silence, watching as her own influence petered away while Blessing rose to the head. She has been confined to remain in the Choir, just because of this devil. She has witnessed Mr Eric give a fake testimony against Sister Joy and she couldn’t say a word.
She also suspected that Blessing was responsible for the suspension of Sister Ruth. Maybe she planned it all because she thought Blessing was too quick to take her church-mother’s phone to the Pastor. What kind of a devil does that? They haven’t exchanged many words between after Blessing blackmailed her to step down, except the normal pleasantries being shared and expected among choir members.
She watched in silence as the devil grinned and called her name again. She knew the Saturday must be a wrong one. Blessing held her grin as she made her way towards the petrified Sarah and repeated her greeting. Sarah didn’t say a word; she just starred at her with unbelieving eyes. Blessing shrugged when she saw her reaction, but she wasn’t bothered.
“Good morning, Sister Sarah,” She repeated, “how have you been?”
Sarah dropped the wet clothes she was holding and started to cry almost immediately!
Chapter 10
“The plank”, was the name of this relaxation center down the street, right after the popular Dede’s close. People named this place ‘the Plank’ because of the popular bible verse that says, ‘remove the plank in your eyes first, before complaining about the dust in your neighbor’s eyes. So, those who come here to drink and merry after the day’s job, will say they are clearing their eyes with the liquors - the reason why they named the place, ‘the plank’. The plank is a very lovely place to be- there are bars, a very big swimming pool, a very big lawn with trees for a good picnic, an open billiard room with a thatched roof and so much more. Dull moments were never part of its offer.
This same Plank was very close to James’s residence. Emeka crossed over to the street behind James’s house and went straight into one of the small bars located inside the Plank. He ordered a bottle of his usual beer and mulled over the next task that Blessing requested of him to do. Not that he has a choice, if he ever wanted to continue his sexual escapades with that brat. He must admit the sex has been good, and he enjoyed every bit of the act, because Blessing has been very unusually surprisingly experienced for a lady who claimed she has never had an intercourse with a man.
The most interesting session was always the oral sexual session. He would like to recollect the memories there at the plank, but it appeared as the wrong place to do that, and the wrong moment too. He hated himself by half because he was nothing but a puppet to this little girl, but he was not ready to end the relationship.
He picked his phone and went straight to the phone book. He swipes down to Jame’s number and dialled. James picked up right away,
“Boss.” He said
“Meet me at the Plank. I’m right at the last table at the left corner of the second bar, before the viewing center.” Emeka said and disconnected.
Emeka knew James wouldn’t have to think twice before yielding to his call. Even if he was about to be slaughtered, he must take the permission to heed his call first and then go back to the slaughterhouse. That was one of the benefits he enjoyed as a leader of their cult group. Insubordination could attract a penalty as harsh as a death sentence. Members may be subjected to the worst treatment they wouldn’t have imagined.
Just last week, a member has been forced to bring his sister forward to be gang-raped as a punishment, in lieu of the death penalty for his failed action. He didn’t have a choice. He only pleaded not to make it obvious to her sister that he knew about the plan. He asked his Sister to follow her to a friend’s place; along the way, he led her to a lonely place and they were accosted. He was beaten as if the ambush was real, while he kept begging them. They carried his Sister to a corner in a bush and three masked guys raped her in turns while he was forced to watch at gunpoint.
After the act, he carried her sister to the hospital and reported to the police. Of course, the investigation cannot lead anywhere.
James jumped off from his sexual act as the ringtone already distinguishes who the caller was. He rushed to the table beside his bed and picked the call. Emeka, his Boss wanted him at the plank right away. The girl he was having sex with was just a random chick he met on the social network. She wasn’t worth the trouble that may arise if he refused.
“Yes, Boss.” He replied Emeka who disconnected from his end.
He looked dejected almost immediately; his throbbing todger wasn’t feeling so good. He turned to the lady in bed, and the girl was already helping herself out to orgasm the moment James disconnected from the sexual flow to pick Emeka’s call. The lady just went straight to masturbation to please herself. James shook his head at the disgusting sight and started putting on his clothes.
“Just wait for me; I will back in no time, okay?” He said as he dressed up.
“Okay, okay, okayyyyy!” The girl replied between her moans as she masturbated frantically.
She grabbed the bed-sheet with one hand, while the other did the work. Her legs almost touched the ceiling. James looked at her with pity and closed the door after himself. He wasn’t even close to the main exit when the girl screamed in a very loud moan that shook the building. He needn’t anyone to tell him she has reached her orgasm. He only stopped, smiled and shook his head again.
“Bitches ain't smiling.” He said as he made his exit into the main streets.
James took a seat in front of Emeka and greeted in the required jargon, known only to their group members as a salutation. Emeka didn’t reply; he only took another gulp from his beer.
“I’m sorry, Boss. I rushed here as soon…”
“That’s not an issue, James. And I want you to ease up.”
“Thanks, Boss.” James smiled. It dawned on him that there wasn’t any trouble. The Boss may just want him to run a personal errand.
Emeka ordered for a bottle of beer to be brought for James.
“Thanks, Boss.” James smiled. He poured himself a stint of the glass cup placed in his front. Emeka watched him had the first taste before he started the briefing of the mission.
“James, you have a very important job you are going to do for me.”
“Anything Boss.” James said, rubbing his palms together in anticipation.
“Don’t get too excited over this, James. This is not going to be pleasant for you. But as you know,” he paused and took a sip, “you don’t have a choice.”
James sank deeper against his chair and sighed deeply. His countenance was frustrated and his shoulders dropped.
“Don’t die before your time bro,” Emeka tried to cheer him up when he saw his face. “it’s not something you can’t handle. In fact, I believe it is something you must have been anticipating on doing. But right now, you just have to hasten the process.”
“I…I don’t understand wha…”
“It’s about your girlfriend, Hannah! Like I said, you don’t have a choice.” Emeka dropped it on him for an introduction.
*******************
Blessing helped Sarah pick up the cloth that fell to the ground, with a smile full on her face. She didn’t seem to act like it was weird for Sarah to do that; she just acted normal. She stretched out her hand for her to take it. Sarah reached out slowly, she collected the cloth and it fell right back on the ground. She started to cry, “Please,” she pleaded, “let me be.”
Blessing looked around like in a suspicion mode and whispered, “What is the meaning of this, Sister Sarah? You didn’t even know why I am here.”
Sarah continued sobbing silently, but Blessing grabbed her by the arms and dragged her towards the main building. Sarah followed reluctantly, rather sluggishly. She didn’t stop crying.
“You are embarrassing yourself, Sister Sarah.” She told her as she dunked her in the only the chair in her room. “You didn’t even allow me to state my cause, you just…”
“You can’t possibly be here for any good, Blessing.” Sarah summoned some courage and snapped back.
“Well, you are wrong. You see, in the books of Hebrews…”
“Jesus Christ!” Sarah interjected. “Spare me your hypocrisy. You can’t possibly be preaching to…”
“You know, Sister Sarah,” she cleared her throat; “do you need to be reminded that I still have the sex tape, intact, with me?”
“Shhh,” Sarah hushed her down. She looked around like someone was listening- nobody was. “Okay,” she said reluctantly, “continue with whatever you wanted to say.” She looked away, scratching her neck.
“I thought you would say that.” She smiled and continued; “the bible says we shouldn’t forsake the gathering of the saints. But it appears you are doing exactly the opposite.”
Sarah scoffed, she already got her message. “Please, Blessing, let me go. I have been demoted to serve under you and I have done this without choice for years. Please, allow me to go elsewhere. Haven’t I been punished enough by you? Haven’t I atoned for my sins? I can’t be attending that Church again.”
“That church? Like it aren’t a member!”
“A member? See, they might as well change the name to ‘st. Blessing’s church’, because you have definitely taken over!”
“Well, the church still remains, ‘st. Jude’s’ okay? Now, to the order of the day.”
“There is no order of the day, Blessing. I already atoned for my sins.”
“Almost.” Blessing said, coldly.
“Almost? What do you mean, ‘almost’?”
“You see, if you can do this last thing for me, then it will be considered that you have fully paid for your sins.”
Sister Sarah scoffed.
“You’re not interested?” Blessing asked.
Sarah scoffed again.
“Listen, if you do this, I will give you the tapes. Do whatever you like with it.”
“Yeah, right. Like you haven’t copied it elsewhere.”
“Sarah, I haven’t. you want to ear this or not?”
Sarah hesitated for a while. “Let’s hear it.” She said, without looking at her. She knew it would never be good.
“Well,” Blessing started, “this is about Hannah, and that dog that was made the Coordinator!”
END OF CHAPTER 9 & 10
YOU CAN NOW PURCHASE BLOOD ON THE ALTAR BY CLICKING HERE
THANK YOU
Chapter 9
Sarah sang along as she washed her clothes. She was washing in a large bowl and sitting on a very low stool. Sarah, also once an important Choir member, but whose time of rave and fame was during Sister Joy’s era. She was then the assistant to the Choir Mistress- Sister Joy, until she found herself right in the prostitution scandal that rocked the Church back then.
Nobody knew Sister Joy wasn’t the real prostitute; Sarah was! And the man who claimed to give his life to Christ knew about this too, but Sarah couldn’t save Sister Joy because it means it will fall back on her. She reminisced about how it all went down:
******************
That faithful day, weeks before the prostitution scandal, Blessing came to blackmail her with hard evidence on her escapades as a prostitute at the hotel where she worked. She will attend the morning class and engage in prostitution in the evening through the night to make ends meet. She lied to people that she worked as a cleaner at the hotel. Surprisingly, when Blessing brought this evidence, she had wanted nothing more from her than for her to step down as assistant to the Choir Mistress- Sister Joy. It was a surprise that Blessing only wanted her to step down, so, that was what she did.
She could have told the Church to go to hell, but prostitution was and is still illegal in her State of residence, and Blessing warned her not to flee. But, she could have fled if not because she was half-way through her college studies already!
Since then, she had avoided attending rehearsals, which meant she couldn’t be allowed to minister. People asked questions, and she said she was busy and couldn’t make the time. Weeks later, she officially announced her stepping down as the assistant to Sister Joy, and by default and rank, Sister Ruth, who was the church-mother to Blessing, became the assistant to Sister Joy.
Weeks after that, Sarah was surprised when Mr Eric came forward to give his life to Christ and confessed that Sister Joy, the Choir mistress, was a prostitute! That was even a surprise to Sarah because Sister Joy was never a prostitute. Nevertheless, Sister Joy fainted that day and was never seen again after being taken to the hospital. This paved way for her assistant, Sister Ruth as the vocal leader. This automatically makes her church-daughter, Blessing, her assistant. Sarah was reduced to the bench as a member.
The most surprising thing about the man who testified was the way he held the lie like it was the truth- it was never the truth. Sarah knew this, but she must never talk about it. Sarah knew why he had to lie- Mr Eric, a Deacon!
But, that was all in the past. She had since stopped attending the Church altogether for months now, and she felt peaceful. She went over to the line and started spreading her wet clothes; she was determined to let the past rest in peace.
****************
Blessing increased her pace as she made her way to Sarah’s abode. She was sure she will meet her at home; the day being Saturday- almost everyone in the country does their laundries on Saturdays. Emeka’s role in her next mission has been handed over to him; she had to ensure that another web was spurned to complete the network of the next unfolding event. As she walked on, she reminded herself how Sarah owed her, and unless she was ready to go to jail, she will play along. She remembered what she did for her, what she did for Sarah…
***************
Mr Eric, the Deacon who was forced to testify against himself, really had no choice. He had to, or risk being jailed too! The scenario was a nice playing ground for blackmail. The Deacon couldn’t keep his old dick in his pants, and went ahead to having sex with a minor! Emeka has many friends, and one of them was dating a friend to the minor.
So, one day, Emeka was arguing with Blessing about how religion was nothing but hypocrisy, given the fact that all they do is going to Church and acting like they’ve never sinned. He was an atheist, and having sex with Blessing and Ruth gave him the audacity to say all Christians, especially the female ones, are hypocrites.
While Blessing was still defending that, Emeka told her about a Deacon in her Church that was also having sex with a minor! And when Blessing wouldn’t believe him, he had brought out his phone and called his friend, James, to bring his girlfriend for a visit to his house at the weekend. He asked him to tell his girlfriend to bring her friend along; knowing that the only friend the girl has, was the minor he was talking about.
So, that weekend, Blessing and Emeka waited for their guests. Blessing was still sure Emeka was talking nonsense, but right inside her mind, she wished it would be a revelation that is worthy of wielding as a weapon. Anything for her ascent is welcome!
Then, there was this soft knock on the door; after all it looked like they were never going to come. She rushed to open the door. The revelation wasn’t much; just this two kids- Hannah and the minor. There was also James, Emeka’s friend, Hannah’s boyfriend. Hannah was then, just a member of the youth Choir; she was never a threat to Blessing back then.
Though, Hannah was the leader of the youth Choir back then, and she led exceptionally well with her soft voice. Blessing didn’t even know that Hannah would be promoted to be a real rival of recent. She used to believe that before Hannah could dream of being in the main Choir, she would either have gained an admission into a college outside the City or die of cancer. But that didn’t happen because Hannah did gain an admission, but it was a college within the City, and she refused to die of cancer.
“Good evening, Sister Blessing.” Hannah beamed as Blessing opened the door. Blessing didn’t say a word; she just went back to her seat.
Emeka tried to hold her hand, but she gave him a stern look, and Emeka got the message and let her be. James went over to Emeka and greeted him with a kind of a coded handshake, known only to both of them and whatever fraternity they belonged to. Kike, the minor, and Hannah’s friend, couldn’t even look up. Blessing kept her calm, even though she couldn’t believe she was seeing properly. Mr Eric, the Deacon, who always makes the special announcements every Sunday, couldn’t have been the one having sex with this little girl. Even Emeka’s friend, James, whom she sees as a guy in his early twenties, would be said to be too old for her.
“Ladies,” Emeka started after they all sat in silence, “this is Blessing…” he wanted to begin an introduction when Blessing cut in before he could start talking about him and her being lovers. She didn’t want that. Not with her status in church. She was supposed to be an example for these kids.
“Yes, Emeka, they know who I am, right?” She asked the girls who nodded.
“Good,” she continued, “and if you are still wondering if I and Emeka are lovers, well, think again, we are not!”
Emeka and James shared a look of surprise between each other. Even Hannah and Kike, the minor, did the same. The only difference being the look of shock in theirs because they knew it would be better if Blessing was also an adulterer like them. Blessing was satisfied with their countenances.
“I am here because of you,” he pointed to the minor, Kike, “I have nothing with you,” he pointed to Hannah who was just seventeen years at that time, and four years older than Kike. “You are old enough to do whatever you like,” she said to Hannah, “but allowing her do the things you do, even worse, is disheartening.”
“Ma,” Hannah wanted to talk, but Blessing hushed her down.
“Could you guys please, excuse us?” Blessing asked both James and Emeka who have been a little bit petrified about the sudden turn of the drama.
They followed each other like lambs to the abattoir. After they have disappeared inside, she turned back to the girls who were already fidgeting.
“You,” she said, pointing to Kike, who never dared to look at her face, “why that old man? Why Mr Eric?” She dropped the bomb on her, and both Kike and her friend were so shocked. Kike went on her knees immediately, and Hannah followed suit.
“Please, I beg of you, don’t tell my Dad. He will kill…”
“Of course, I know he will kill you!” She said. “Now, you need to stop or I will tell your Dad.” Both Kike and Hannah looked at each other and nodded.
“I will stop.” Kike said reluctantly. Hannah flashed a fierce look at Kike and poked her with her elbow.
“What is this?” Blessing asked, noticing the gesture “What are you not saying, Kike?”
“Nothing, Ma.” Kike lied. “I promise to stop seeing him.”
“There is something,” Hannah countered, “but she is scared to tell you.”
“I see.” Blessing said. “Are you pregnant?” She guessed
“No!” Kike screamed, taken aback. “I am not!”
“I hope so. So, what are you scared to…”
“She can’t stop having sex with Mr Eric!” Hannah came in and Kike nodded frantically with a scary face.
“What? What do you mean she can’t stop? Are they into some king of a covenant or…?”
“No!” Kike screamed again. “Why would I enter into a covenant with an old man like that?”
“An old man like that? And he was not too old to have sex with you?”
“Technically, he has never had sex with me.” Kike corrected.
Sister Blessing was disappointed by half. She feared her hold on them might have loosened. If there was no sex, then there will be no scandal. And with no scandal, she has no weapon against them to use for future purposes.
“What… what do you mean by that?” She managed to ask.
“I am always on top. I am the one having sex with him.” Kike jumped at her question.
“Shut up, you idiot!” Hannah pushed her. “You are a moron!”
Blessing couldn’t control her laughter! She couldn’t believe she heard her right. “Don’t ask her to shut up,” she cautioned Hannah, “and don’t call her a moron. You are at fault here. I am sure you know about all…”
“Not really, Ma.” Hannah cut in. “They were really deep into it before I knew about it. It… it appeared to be too late for her to stop.”
“How?” Blessing cared to know more.
“Did you remember the phone that was stolen from the guest minister’s bag some months ago, during the convention?” Hannah asked, and Blessing nodded. “It was her,” she pointed to Kike, “who stole it!”
“Jesus Christ! She did?”
Blessing couldn’t believe her ears. That case actually made Kike’s father, an assistant Pastor, sack the security guard and suspend some workers from the Church since they couldn’t find out who did it. They were all sent packing in relation on the theft scandal. She covered her mouth in surprise. Kike started to cry, silently.
“Well, Mr Eric kind of found out, a few days later, that it was Kike, who stole it, and he promised not to tell her dad if she agrees to…”
“That bald headed idiot took advantage of that?” Blessing asked and they both nodded.
“Almost eight months now.” Kike said and nodded. Hannah patted her gently.
Blessing was very angry, and for the first time, she didn’t care about her ambition this time.
“Who else knows about this?” She asked.
“Sister Sarah.” Hannah said, much to Blessing’s surpise.
“What? The same Sister Sarah? The assistant to the Choir Mistress?” She asked again.
“Yes. Sister Sarah works as a cleaner in the hotel.” Kike said. “But… also as a prostitute!”
“What? Who told you all these?” Blessing asked.
“Mr Eric.” Kike said. “He told me not to be afraid. He said that Sister Sarah is also in the business, and she won’t tell anybody. That was the day Sister Sarah saw me in the hotel with him. Mr Eric called her inside and told her what we always do together. Mr Eric said if she told anyone, he will expose her as a prostitute. He even claimed he had had sex with her several times.”
“Jesus!” Blessing exclaimed. “And you kept all these from….from …the Church?” She asked them.
They were silent, but Kike has started to cry again. Blessing asked Kike to wipe her tears and promised to help her stop Mr Eric. She learnt from Kike that they always choose a particular hotel for the sexual act, so Blessing hacked a plan.
The plan was simple-
Whenever Mr Eric wanted sex with the minor, he always calls her and asks her to wait in the usual room at the hotel. The owner of the hotel was a friend to Mr Eric, so, Kike just goes to the manager, collects the key and waits naked in the room for the paedophile to come. And since all Mr Eric had to do was to always enter the same room with his spare key and goes straight into the act, Hannah was able to hide in the wardrobe and take both pictures and videos.
Four days later, when the kids called her that they’ve gotten the photos and the video, she asked them to bring it to her house straight away. She was satisfied with the results when she saw them.
“Now, we will eliminate the threats, one after the other.” She smiled at the kids who didn’t even know she was now going to use them for her selfish interest. Though, they will be helped too.
The next day, they went straight to Sarah’s house; they met her just in time. She was going for work. She was no doubt shocked to see Kike, Hannah and Blessing together that faithful day. Her fear was justified when Blessing showed her the video and told her the parts she took. She assured her she will report to the police and she will serve a jail time, along with Mr Eric. She was an accomplice to the crime of sex with a minor. Sarah started to cry and she pleaded to be spared. She claimed she felt bad, but she could do anything since Mr Eric was privy to her secret.
“Well,” Blessing began that day, “You are next to Sister Joy in the Choir, and if Sister Joy should leave today, you automatically become the vocal leader, right?”
Sarah nodded with tears.
“Good.” She said, “We all know it is very wrong for someone in your profession to be a leader in the house of God. How do you even feel, standing in the front and asking the congregation to praise God when you know you are only deceiving yourself?”
“I’m sorry.” Sarah wailed.
“Sister Sarah, there is no need for that. It is so disgusting to even think about it. This is what I want you to do if you want us to keep your secret;” she stood up like a Boss and started dishing out the terms and conditions, “one, don’t speak a word about Kike and Mr Eric to anyone. Two, within six weeks, announce that you are stepping down as the assistant to the Choir Mistress.”
“I can even leave the Choir.” She suggested excitedly, glad about the leniency of the condition.
“No, you must not leave. It will be too easy for you.” Blessing halted the idea.
“Please,” she pleaded, “people will ask why I wanted to step down and I will not be able to give…”
“That is your problem,” Blessing snapped at her, “and that is your punishment for being an accomplice to a crime, and a hypocrite.”
Sarah sighed, and nodded. “How am I sure they,” she referred to Kike and Hannah, who have been silent all through, “will not spill the beans?”
“They can’t. For what is worth, I still have a video of her,” she pointed to Kike, “and Mr Eric here with me. And I will not only show it to her dad, I will upload it on my Facebook timeline and tag as many Church members as I would!”
“Ha!” Both Kike and Hannah exclaimed.
“And as for you,” she pointed to Hannah, “don’t you forget you took this video, and you knew about this plan all along and yet, you didn’t report it! It means you abetted the crime!”
Hannah clamped her head with her hands and exclaimed inaudibly.
“So, all we all have to do is keep quiet about this, and I promise, everything will be fine.” She concluded. “I will take care of Mr Eric tonight. Kike, you are free now.” She said and they all dispersed.
At night, she went to Mr Eric, and it was easier for her to get him to agree to leave Kike alone. Not only that, he had two hard choices to make, as laid before him by Blessing as atonement for his sins.
One, he either faces jail and disgrace if he agreed that Blessing may show the video to the police, or, two, he will announce his resignation as a Deacon, and give a confession against Sister Joy that she was a prostitute. As a man afraid of his own works, he accepted to do the latter, which, of course, appeared as his only choice.
That was how Sister Blessing ousted Sister Joy, who wasn’t a prostitute, and Sister Sarah, who was supposed to take the mantle of leadership after Sister Joy. Sister Ruth was the next in line, and Blessing was a church-daughter to her. So, automatically, Sister Ruth was made the vocal leader, and Sister Blessing was made her assistant. It was all a brilliant plan!
*************
“Well, that was then.” She thought to herself as she approached Sarah’s residence. Hannah has been promoted from the youth Choir, and she is now being considered as an assistant to her. She doesn’t want an assistant; it must always be her and Sister Mary. She worked too hard to be that close, ousting Sister Joy, Sister Sarah, and Sister Ruth to be here. In her mind, she believed that Hannah knows too much, and things may not end well between them if they had to work together. That was the reason she was on an urgent visit to Sarah. Only Sarah could help her out. As she entered into Sarah’s compound, she saw her spreading her clothes on the line.
“Good morning, Sister Sarah!” She said aloud, beaming.
Sarah looked petrified like she has seen the devil. Of course, she has seen the devil, because for years, after she relinquished her position due to this same devil, she has suffered in silence, watching as her own influence petered away while Blessing rose to the head. She has been confined to remain in the Choir, just because of this devil. She has witnessed Mr Eric give a fake testimony against Sister Joy and she couldn’t say a word.
She also suspected that Blessing was responsible for the suspension of Sister Ruth. Maybe she planned it all because she thought Blessing was too quick to take her church-mother’s phone to the Pastor. What kind of a devil does that? They haven’t exchanged many words between after Blessing blackmailed her to step down, except the normal pleasantries being shared and expected among choir members.
She watched in silence as the devil grinned and called her name again. She knew the Saturday must be a wrong one. Blessing held her grin as she made her way towards the petrified Sarah and repeated her greeting. Sarah didn’t say a word; she just starred at her with unbelieving eyes. Blessing shrugged when she saw her reaction, but she wasn’t bothered.
“Good morning, Sister Sarah,” She repeated, “how have you been?”
Sarah dropped the wet clothes she was holding and started to cry almost immediately!
Chapter 10
“The plank”, was the name of this relaxation center down the street, right after the popular Dede’s close. People named this place ‘the Plank’ because of the popular bible verse that says, ‘remove the plank in your eyes first, before complaining about the dust in your neighbor’s eyes. So, those who come here to drink and merry after the day’s job, will say they are clearing their eyes with the liquors - the reason why they named the place, ‘the plank’. The plank is a very lovely place to be- there are bars, a very big swimming pool, a very big lawn with trees for a good picnic, an open billiard room with a thatched roof and so much more. Dull moments were never part of its offer.
This same Plank was very close to James’s residence. Emeka crossed over to the street behind James’s house and went straight into one of the small bars located inside the Plank. He ordered a bottle of his usual beer and mulled over the next task that Blessing requested of him to do. Not that he has a choice, if he ever wanted to continue his sexual escapades with that brat. He must admit the sex has been good, and he enjoyed every bit of the act, because Blessing has been very unusually surprisingly experienced for a lady who claimed she has never had an intercourse with a man.
The most interesting session was always the oral sexual session. He would like to recollect the memories there at the plank, but it appeared as the wrong place to do that, and the wrong moment too. He hated himself by half because he was nothing but a puppet to this little girl, but he was not ready to end the relationship.
He picked his phone and went straight to the phone book. He swipes down to Jame’s number and dialled. James picked up right away,
“Boss.” He said
“Meet me at the Plank. I’m right at the last table at the left corner of the second bar, before the viewing center.” Emeka said and disconnected.
Emeka knew James wouldn’t have to think twice before yielding to his call. Even if he was about to be slaughtered, he must take the permission to heed his call first and then go back to the slaughterhouse. That was one of the benefits he enjoyed as a leader of their cult group. Insubordination could attract a penalty as harsh as a death sentence. Members may be subjected to the worst treatment they wouldn’t have imagined.
Just last week, a member has been forced to bring his sister forward to be gang-raped as a punishment, in lieu of the death penalty for his failed action. He didn’t have a choice. He only pleaded not to make it obvious to her sister that he knew about the plan. He asked his Sister to follow her to a friend’s place; along the way, he led her to a lonely place and they were accosted. He was beaten as if the ambush was real, while he kept begging them. They carried his Sister to a corner in a bush and three masked guys raped her in turns while he was forced to watch at gunpoint.
After the act, he carried her sister to the hospital and reported to the police. Of course, the investigation cannot lead anywhere.
James jumped off from his sexual act as the ringtone already distinguishes who the caller was. He rushed to the table beside his bed and picked the call. Emeka, his Boss wanted him at the plank right away. The girl he was having sex with was just a random chick he met on the social network. She wasn’t worth the trouble that may arise if he refused.
“Yes, Boss.” He replied Emeka who disconnected from his end.
He looked dejected almost immediately; his throbbing todger wasn’t feeling so good. He turned to the lady in bed, and the girl was already helping herself out to orgasm the moment James disconnected from the sexual flow to pick Emeka’s call. The lady just went straight to masturbation to please herself. James shook his head at the disgusting sight and started putting on his clothes.
“Just wait for me; I will back in no time, okay?” He said as he dressed up.
“Okay, okay, okayyyyy!” The girl replied between her moans as she masturbated frantically.
She grabbed the bed-sheet with one hand, while the other did the work. Her legs almost touched the ceiling. James looked at her with pity and closed the door after himself. He wasn’t even close to the main exit when the girl screamed in a very loud moan that shook the building. He needn’t anyone to tell him she has reached her orgasm. He only stopped, smiled and shook his head again.
“Bitches ain't smiling.” He said as he made his exit into the main streets.
James took a seat in front of Emeka and greeted in the required jargon, known only to their group members as a salutation. Emeka didn’t reply; he only took another gulp from his beer.
“I’m sorry, Boss. I rushed here as soon…”
“That’s not an issue, James. And I want you to ease up.”
“Thanks, Boss.” James smiled. It dawned on him that there wasn’t any trouble. The Boss may just want him to run a personal errand.
Emeka ordered for a bottle of beer to be brought for James.
“Thanks, Boss.” James smiled. He poured himself a stint of the glass cup placed in his front. Emeka watched him had the first taste before he started the briefing of the mission.
“James, you have a very important job you are going to do for me.”
“Anything Boss.” James said, rubbing his palms together in anticipation.
“Don’t get too excited over this, James. This is not going to be pleasant for you. But as you know,” he paused and took a sip, “you don’t have a choice.”
James sank deeper against his chair and sighed deeply. His countenance was frustrated and his shoulders dropped.
“Don’t die before your time bro,” Emeka tried to cheer him up when he saw his face. “it’s not something you can’t handle. In fact, I believe it is something you must have been anticipating on doing. But right now, you just have to hasten the process.”
“I…I don’t understand wha…”
“It’s about your girlfriend, Hannah! Like I said, you don’t have a choice.” Emeka dropped it on him for an introduction.
*******************
Blessing helped Sarah pick up the cloth that fell to the ground, with a smile full on her face. She didn’t seem to act like it was weird for Sarah to do that; she just acted normal. She stretched out her hand for her to take it. Sarah reached out slowly, she collected the cloth and it fell right back on the ground. She started to cry, “Please,” she pleaded, “let me be.”
Blessing looked around like in a suspicion mode and whispered, “What is the meaning of this, Sister Sarah? You didn’t even know why I am here.”
Sarah continued sobbing silently, but Blessing grabbed her by the arms and dragged her towards the main building. Sarah followed reluctantly, rather sluggishly. She didn’t stop crying.
“You are embarrassing yourself, Sister Sarah.” She told her as she dunked her in the only the chair in her room. “You didn’t even allow me to state my cause, you just…”
“You can’t possibly be here for any good, Blessing.” Sarah summoned some courage and snapped back.
“Well, you are wrong. You see, in the books of Hebrews…”
“Jesus Christ!” Sarah interjected. “Spare me your hypocrisy. You can’t possibly be preaching to…”
“You know, Sister Sarah,” she cleared her throat; “do you need to be reminded that I still have the sex tape, intact, with me?”
“Shhh,” Sarah hushed her down. She looked around like someone was listening- nobody was. “Okay,” she said reluctantly, “continue with whatever you wanted to say.” She looked away, scratching her neck.
“I thought you would say that.” She smiled and continued; “the bible says we shouldn’t forsake the gathering of the saints. But it appears you are doing exactly the opposite.”
Sarah scoffed, she already got her message. “Please, Blessing, let me go. I have been demoted to serve under you and I have done this without choice for years. Please, allow me to go elsewhere. Haven’t I been punished enough by you? Haven’t I atoned for my sins? I can’t be attending that Church again.”
“That church? Like it aren’t a member!”
“A member? See, they might as well change the name to ‘st. Blessing’s church’, because you have definitely taken over!”
“Well, the church still remains, ‘st. Jude’s’ okay? Now, to the order of the day.”
“There is no order of the day, Blessing. I already atoned for my sins.”
“Almost.” Blessing said, coldly.
“Almost? What do you mean, ‘almost’?”
“You see, if you can do this last thing for me, then it will be considered that you have fully paid for your sins.”
Sister Sarah scoffed.
“You’re not interested?” Blessing asked.
Sarah scoffed again.
“Listen, if you do this, I will give you the tapes. Do whatever you like with it.”
“Yeah, right. Like you haven’t copied it elsewhere.”
“Sarah, I haven’t. you want to ear this or not?”
Sarah hesitated for a while. “Let’s hear it.” She said, without looking at her. She knew it would never be good.
“Well,” Blessing started, “this is about Hannah, and that dog that was made the Coordinator!”
END OF CHAPTER 9 & 10
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