SUSAN part 3
TWO MASTERS
“Kate, where are you taking my car to for God’s sake?”
“Stanley, hear me out for the last time. If you fail to buy me the Range Rover you will never have access to this Mercedes all your life.”
“What economic value do you have that I have to buy you the Range Rover?”
“You this castrated bulldog dare talk to me, talking to the daughter of Pelensiri just anyhow.” Kate claps over and again. “You are becoming too bold these days.”
“What will you do to me you this animal called a wife?”
“It is good you know I am an animal.” Kate’s face lightens up with satisfaction. “If you vex me beyond what I can stomach I will make sure your life becomes miserable in the next few days. I will harass you at home and harass you outside there.”
Kate is the very adorable daughter of Pelensiri. He doesn’t joke with his daughter. She could be called the apple of his eyes; his darling. This bond has made Kate to follow the footsteps of her dad; daring and cruel.
Pelensiri, Kate’s dad is one of the very rich men in the country. Pelensiri in his youthful days made his money through drug pushing. He could be called the chief drug baron. Although it wasn’t obvious to the general public but the rumour have elements of truth. To protect himself he has lists of thugs that create covers around him every moment of the day.
He needs so much cover because he himself had killed and duped many; and a number of those he had hurt are trailing his every steps. When he became an adult, he transformed his shady life into politics. Politics to Pelensiri is to further create immunity for his activities under heaven. As a political figure, he is able to raise many more foot soldiers for his sordid business empire and with connection in the high places he knows what button to press to save his boys from the jaw of the law whenever they are caught. He knows which judge to tip to subvert cases and even to the Correctional Centers he has those who could help him free his very dear thugs from the prison no matter their offences.
There was a case where they had to pay somebody else to serve the jail term of one of his strong men called Adu. Adu walked abroad throughout the jail term period. At another time Pelensiri had an innocent man killed to replace his axe man who leads his assassin squad. Pelensiri is a hardened criminal indeed.
The politics he plays is pervading in the country where every single leader is a collaborator to milk the citizens dry. They in their park are politicians without human feelings.
Stanley’s dad, Boudaha Kay is also one of the politicians but not the notorious kind like Pelensiri. Stanley’s dad is a successful practicing medical doctor but who was lured through greed to join the rest in unrestrained looting of national treasury in the name of service to the nation. The nation is bleeding under these leeches but no one cares.
Pelensiri’s thugs are wild and have to be dealt with, with caution. They become gnawing terrors afflicting the life of Stanley by the day until he becomes subservient to his wife.
After marriage Kate like her father deploys them at any slightest provocation against Stanley until she turns her husband into a puppet she could control with ease.
The thugs on many occasions have got him beaten to stupor while some other time they threatened him with assassination. Stanley knew they could make true their threat and no one would hold them accountable. So he had learnt to make peace with them by force. With all the trouble with Kate in the early part of their marriage he surrenders the authority to her in spite of the unending bullying.
One of those days Stanley goes to his dad’s home to report his wife to his father.
“Stanley, please thread carefully.” Boudaha grimaces.
“Dad, is that all you will say to the threat to my life by Kate?”
“Stanley, if you know who Pelensiri is you will want to be careful with his darling daughter.”
“But you made me married her, Dad?”
His dad was quiet for a while: “I didn’t know Pelensiri was as bad as he is. Initially, I thought most allegations against him were rumour. You too know that Pelensiri is a good man and very generous on the outside: A snake on the inside but a dove on the outside. This is how he’s able to gather together his team of riffraff, a benevolent leader of the gutter boys. He is subtle with the rare gift to camouflage.
“Pelensiri came to me upon sighting you that he wanted Kate and you to get closer. Sincerely speaking he likes you so much; even till this moment. He wants a protector for his daughter in spite of her excesses. But he wouldn’t stand you hurting her.
He asked for you. As politicians do, we have some benefits to receive when such offer comes. Notorious Pelensiri is the closest person to our president. Birds of like feather – ours is a nation where hawk feast freely. The beautiful one aren’t given the place to dance.
I know as an in-law there are certain privileges. I wanted to inch forward as one of the cabals in the presidency.
“Kate’s dad is smarter than me. Now I know: You can never be smarter than the devil in his own game. I was greedy for gain and I failed to see clearly. After the contracted marriage he came to me with conditions and threats to my life. You cannot divorce or maltreat her.
Deliberately he picked on you because he sees you as a good man to take care of his daughter. He wants the best for his daughter. Stanley, you happen to be his choice. You are a well nurtured gentleman.
“He told me that the day you divorce or hurt his daughter will be the day I will lose my life. I could see the seriousness in him. I am sorry my son.”
Stanley sits resignedly for a while then he bids his dad goodbye. As he drives home he knows he is an accomplice in the matter. He remembers the first day he met Kate. It was her dad’s birthday. She nurtures and cares for him like a king. He had never before had such treatment; Susan couldn’t meet up with such grand reception. He was mesmerized with her gentle allurement on his soul. One thing leads to the other, and she tells Stanley she too will come over to visit him. He is delighted and this is the beginning of the harrowing relationship.
He sees clearly now, love actions heated with passion don’t often last; the blindfold has fallen. In the real world, money doublers prey on souls by promising more than is naturally feasible. Kate seem by her action offers him more promises than Susan could give; a lady of class compared to a daughter of a nobody.
Many people fall into shitholes in relationship when they meet with the actors. Stanley remembers how a schoolmate many years ago fell for a cultist. He would give her all she would ever need; she didn’t hesitate to follow him into a relation. They got married then the love went sour. She escaped on a particular night naked as he was about killing her for his ritual.
One should be wary of calculated love.
Stanley realizes how greed gets him hooked to Kate. He embraces the opportunity to be married to the daughter of the Mighty Pelensiri, he dreams that the connection will one day take him to the corridor of power.
Stanley’s permutation is that when the elders come out of power, his synergy with Kate will become a force to break him into limelight and to replace the fathers when they step down. He has his own calculations.
Unknown to him, Kate too has the same dream. Kate wants to drive on the success of her father to the corridor of power. No one is ready to step down for the other person in their pursuit for power. The two of them remain unbending two masters under the same roof. Stanley realizes that the country isn’t ready for his kind of gentleman approach, so Kate is winning the game of power. She has better chance.
She lacks scruple and has the tool of coercion in abundance; either through blackmail, or intimidation; and she has her dad solidly with her with ready cash to spend for the bad boys. With the bad boys in abundance around her and money to spend she can get away with election malpractices when the time comes. She too is nurturing her own mafia team. Nothing can hinder her pursuit she thought.
Stanley is not able to stand her crass, so he compensates this by running a successful construction firms with many projects executed and running to billions. He is gradually becoming a leading firm in the country. The contracts that come his way are by virtue of his connections through his dad, Pelensiri and few others he has network with. Even without power, he has money and in abundance. He is learning contentment and gradually forfeiting the game of power.
With the kind of money in his hands, Kate knows her husband can afford one of the latest Range Rovers without blinking an eye. Stanley bluntly refuses; he is running dry of love. But Kate, in spite of her stubbornness wants the feeling of her man but her approach are crude. She grows up learning to dominate her world, Kate knows no better way of relating with Stanley.
She takes the Mercedes out for party not giving any hoot about Stanley’s feelings.
Stanley sadness is becoming unbearable as their kids are growing. He is afraid of nurturing Daniel and his sister Joyce under such environment. As much as possible, he wants to raise children under a sane environment, but this is impossible under the same roof with Kate being their mother. Mothers have so much influence over the children that the kids easily turn into what they see their moms approve.
Stanley knowing that we need to have a new society where the right things are established knows that this can only happen when we raise new mindset and lifestyles among our children. The adults are like the dry fish, to unbend it will cause the fish to break into pieces. Stanley knows he is far from the church since he left Susan but he still remembers his Bible well. He remembers the Bible verse that encourage parents to train up the children in the right way so that when they grow up they will not depart from it.
Stanley, exhausted falls on his knees as he prays for God’s mercy and grace to help turn his children out to become godly and as instrument for a better world.
