EAGLE FROM THE RUBBLE: CHAPTER 9

geniusvic (54)in #story • 6 years ago

When Ezekwe came back that evening, he was very tired and hungry. Immediately, he demanded for food. Usually he ate his meals in his obu but on this particular evening, he decided to eat in front of his house rather than moving into the obu. He wanted some fresh air.
Chinyere, his second daughter, brought out a seat and a table and some water in a bowl for him to wash his hands, while Ure brought his food to him. He opened the fufu and seeing that the quantity was more than he could finish, he raised his voice and started calling Nkechinyere and Natachinyem. But long after his call, there was no sign of the two girls.

"Are they not around?" he asked no one in particular.

"They are in the kitchen with their mother," Nkeiru replied. As she said this, Ezekwe remembered something.

"That reminds me, get me my bag. I forgot I bought some fish for their mother".
Nkeiru brought the bag and Ezekwe brought out two wraps of fish. He handed one to Nkeiru and the other to Chinyere for Ure.

"Go and give this to Euna and then call your sisters so that we can eat this together, I will wait for you," he said to Nkeiru.

Nkeiru ran off with the fish and soon returned with it.
"Their mother told me to tell you that she won't accept it and that Nkechi and Natachi were not coming," Nkeiru told Ezekwe.

"Why?" Ezekwe asked. "Ure" he called his wife who was in the kitchen and she came out to answer. "I gave this wrap of fish to Nkeiru to give Euna and she refused to accept it from her. Would you please take it to her yourself?" he said watching her reaction.
Immediately he said this, Ure shot him an angry look and Ezekwe confirmed his suspicion.

"If she won't accept it from her, why would she accept it from me?" she asked, recalling the insult Euna hurled at her that afternoon. Ezekwe looked hard at her for a long time while she stood resolute with no change of expression.

"So you two have been quarrelling?" he asked, but Ure refused to answer. Ezekwe got up from where he was sitting and made for Euna's hut.

"Did you quarrel with her?" Chidi asked.

"This woman insulted me today and even pushed me down but all your father would do is to abandon his food in order to go and beg for pardon." she said.

"But you should have told him this when he asked you," Chinyere said.

That's what you should have done." Uzoamaka added.

"Does he ever believe anything I tell him to be true since the return of this woman here? To your father, she is always right. Please, if he won't eat his food, send it back to the kitchen," Ure said and returned to her kitchen.
Ezekwe was long in coming back and when he did, he came back with a weeping Euna.

"Call your mother for me," he said curtly to Chidi.
"Sit down here," he said pointing Euna to a chair. Ure came out and Ezekwe asked her to sit down too.
"Ure, what right have you to ask Euna if she wasn't ashamed to live in a mud house belonging to you and calling it her own? When did it fall on you to divide between me and my brother, our father's property?" he asked.

"Is that what she told you? Euna is that what you told him as the reason for our quarrel?"

"I asked you a question and you started calling on Euna. Answer my question first," Ezekwe thundered.

"I have nothing to say to your question because she lied to you" Ure snapped.

I, lied? I didn't know you were as slippery as this," Euna said in tears.

"Euna, I have told you to stop crying over this matter," Ezekwe said. "Forget all that she said and calm down." He turned back to Ure, "You claimed she lied, didn't you? Now, I want to hear the truth from you. Tell me exactly what happened here this afternoon," Ezekwe demanded.
After some hesitation, Ure began:
"I returned from the farm this afternoon and as I made for the kitchen, I heard the fall of the breadfruit lbehind her hut. I went over and found two of them and collected them. Not long after that, she returned from the market. After some enquiries from her children, she came into my kitchen and demanded that the breadfruit heads should be handed over to her. As I was explaining things to her, the next thing I noticed was her rushing into my cocoyam barn and collecting the breadfruit heads. I asked her why she did this, she insulted me and pushed me down and made off with them. She called me names and if not for the fact that I restrained myself, I would have reacted to her actions but I did not. That's why I am surprised at her saying that I said what she claimed." Ure concluded.

"I am not here to listen to claims and counter claims. Ure, you should be ashamed of yourself. Of all the breadfruit trees we have in this family, so the only one that will make you grow fatter and richer is the one behind Euna's hut?" Ezekwe paused, grinding his teeth. "Now listen, as from today onwards, I don't want you or your children near that breadfruit tree behind Euna's house. Secondly, all the the breadfruit heads must be gathered together compound and shared equally between the two of you.
I don't want to come back here again and receive complaints about any more quarrels. You should be able to accommodate each other. Ure, you are the elder here, you should be able to maintain peace and unity. If I come back here next time and receive complaints I won't take it lightly. That's all I have to say."

"I have heard all you said but Papa Chidi; may I ask you a question?" Ure asked.

"What stupid question are you going to ask?"
"Don't call it stupid because it might be the cause for another quarrel in the future. You said you want all the breadfruit heads to be brought here and shared accordingly?"

"Yes."

"You see, I would have preferred it if you allowed us to gather them near each breadfruit tree and then divided them over there. Then each person would carry her own share to wherever she wanted to, either to the stream for washing because the stream is nearer from there or home to wash later. Why I am saying this is because I prefer keeping mine there to doing the double work of bringing them home and then taking them back again to the stream. I don't know about Euna, but I think it will be better if kept there." Ure suggested.

You can keep it wherever you want. All I am saying is that I don't want anymore complaints on this matter," he concluded.

Both women retired. Each had won in a way. Euna was happy that Ezekwe had ceded the breadfruit tree behind her hut to her while Ure was glad that at least, if Euna wanted the breadfruits at Eluama, Ndende and Uhu, she would have to carry them home herself. This Ure knew for sure, Euna would never agree to do, and if this happened, it would still go that all the breadfruit would be collected by her.

After settling this quarrel, Ezekwe sat for several minutes waiting for his wife to bring back his supper which she had cleared away when he went to see Euna, but there seemed to be no sign of her.

"Ure" he called. Ure came out of the house wearing an angry expression.
"Where is my food?" he asked.

"Which food?" she asked "Didn't you eat over there?" Ure asked indicating Euna's house

"When did I start eating over there?" he asked, exasperated

"Do I know? Do I go in there with you when you visit her?" she asked, still fuming. "The food got cold and I poured the soup back into the soup pot and had it warmed to avoid it becoming sour. Now I have put out the fire because I didn't know you would still eat the food. You will have to wait for me to light the fire again," she said, but made no move towards the kitchen.

Ezekwe was too angry for words. He had never seen his wife behave like that before. Since the return of Euna and her children, he had noticed some unusual changes in his wife's behaviour. He quietly got up and went into his room shutting the door behind him. Ure hissed and went back to her room.

After the issue of the breadfruit was settled, there were many other matters that were brought to Ezekwe's attention for settlement. In all these he tried as much as possible to accommodate Euna's overbearing attitude. His wife was not happy about his attitude and this brought about some misunderstandings between them from time to time.
Ezekwe's conduct surprised all for he was not known to be a weakling. Yet, he went out of his way in tolerating Euna's actions. He maintained a maturity and restraint that baffled all in issues concerning Euna. He advised his wife to do the same but no matter how hard she tried; she could not measure up to her husband's standards.

On the other hand, Ezekwe's tolerance kindled in Euna an ever devouring flame of restiveness. She gradually became uncontrollable as she asserted herself in several issues concerning her and Ure.