Chapter 5

Olima finally got a cab, entered it, and paid the cab driver, who drove her back to their residential estate where the billionaires and high-profile families lived.

Upon arriving in front of the estate gate, she quickly paid the cab driver for her ride while rushing back into the estate street and running home speedily.

The estate security men wondered what was chasing Olima, as they knew her to be a beautiful young lady, and she mostly used her legs to run errands after her parents' demise.

Olima finally approached the front of her late father's mansion gate and banged heavily on it.

Nathan quickly approached the gate from within, pulled it open, and stared at Olima's face.

"Why are you banging on the gate like that?" Nathan asked her. He was a young man too, and although he liked Olima, he couldn't cross boundaries with her, as he knew she was his former boss's daughter.

"I'm sorry, Nathan, please open the gate quickly," Olima replied. Nathan stepped aside and pulled the gate open for her.

Olima rushed into the house, approaching the mansion frontage. The luxurious mansion was painted white and had beautiful flowering plants decorating the frontage, and a fountain in the middle.

Olima nervously approached the door entrance leading into their living room. She knocked, and opened the door while walking into the parlor.

Mia was still in the living room watching television. As Olima stepped into the living room, her brown eyes automatically fell on the huge wall clock, and she saw it was 8:30 p.m.

"Oh no!" She gasped.

Without being told, Olima rushed into the kitchen to prepare their dinner, as she knew her stepmother would soon step out and flog her mercilessly for wasting so much time in the market and arriving home late.

Olima hurriedly took out the vegetables she had bought and washed them quickly. She unhooked the dried fish and soaked them in a bowl of warm water.

She cut the meats into smaller pieces and washed them very neatly. She switched on the gas cooker and started cooking the meat first.

With every second that ticked on the clock, Olima was sweaty as she hurriedly cooked the soup. She jumped in fright as she heard the kitchen door slide open, and Mia entered.

"What took you so long to arrive home? I'm hungry," Mia said to her sister, as she walked into the kitchen and approached Olima, who was turning and tasting the soup to know if she should add more seasoning or salt.

"Here, taste the soup first. Is it okay?" Olima asked Mia, extending the big spoon to Mia's right hand to have a taste of the soup in her hand.

Mia also didn't know how to cook, and she opened her right palm while Olima dropped a few drops of the delicious soup into her palm.

Mia wanted her mother to discipline Olima for making her hungry. She frowned and said, "It lacks salt. Add more salt."

Olima frowned and tasted the soup again. She said, "It's okay like this."

"No." Mia frowned, used her hands, carried the salt container. She opened it, and poured more salt into the soup.

"Mia!" Olima excliamed. Just then, her stepmother walked into the kitchen. Olima quickly shut the pot of soup closed and carried it down from the gas cooker, as she was still yet to prepare the semovita that they would use to swallow the vegetable soup.

"What's going on here? It's after 9 p.m., and you're still cooking the soup?" Mrs. Gina questioned as she walked into the kitchen.

"No, madam, I'm almost through," Olima replied. She quickly poured water into the empty new pot and started preparing the semo while Mrs. Gina questioned Mia, "And you, what are you standing there doing?"

"Mom, I'm hungry," Mia replied, stomping her feet on the ground and walking up to meet her mother.

"Go and sit at the dining table, the soup will soon be ready," Mrs. Gina stated. Mia frowned and said, "Olima, be quick, please."

"Okay," Olima nervously replied as she saw her stepmother and stepsister leave the kitchen.

Olima sighed, "Phew!" She was through cooking the semo, she used her light blue gown to wipe off her sweaty forehead.

Olima served out the semo and, not wanting to anger her stepmother and stepsister. She quickly dished out their soups too into smaller plates and trays. She carried it out, and took it to the dining room.

Mia sat at the dining table across from her mother, waiting for her dinner, while Mrs. Gina adjusted her seat properly to the dining table to start eating.

Olima nervously walked to the dining table and dropped the tray of food there. She served it out to her stepmother first, then to her stepsister, and she reached to serve Mia's soup and semo to Mia properly too.

The dining table was silent. Next, Olima rushed back into the kitchen to get her stepmother and stepsister some bowls of water to wash their hands. She rushed back to the dining room to serve it to them.

Mia was the first to washed her hands in a separate bowl of water, while Mrs. Gina later washed her hands next. Olima paused beside the kitchen door and asked her stepmother, "Ma, do you need anything else?"

Mrs. Gina frowned first and finally said, "No. Go and eat your food."

However, Mia gasped out, "Mom!..."

"What is it?" Mrs. Gina glared at her daughter for screaming aloud her name. Olima paused and stared back at Mia too with a worried expression.

"The soup is bitter," Mia said, making Mrs. Gina frown. As Mrs. Gina hadn't tasted the soup, but had already washed her right hand, she dipped her index finger into the soup to taste it too. Her face contorted in irritation while she harshly stood up from the dining seat and questioned, "Olima, what's the meaning of this?"

Mrs. Gina moved out from her seat, and Olima took two steps backward as she stammered and said, "Ma... I..."

"You what? Did you taste the soup at all?" Mrs. Gina roared angrily. Olima shuddered and stammered, "Ma, I did... Mia added more salt to the soup and..."

[Slap] Mrs. Gina landed Olima a hot, resounding slap on her left cheek. She approached Olima more, dragged her to the dining table, and forced Olima to taste the soup.

"Here is the soup. Taste it and eat it and see how bitter it is. Did Mia follow you to cook it?" Mrs. Gina questioned, and Olima cried and tried to explain.

[Slap] Mrs. Gina landed Olima another hot slap and started beating Olima while Mia smiled viciously.

"You witch! You killed your parents, now you want to kill my daughter and me too!" Mrs. Gina roared at Olima.

"Please, Mother, I'm innocent, I didn't kill anyone . I didn't ruin the soup," Olima begged.

"Shut up! And get out! I don't want to see your ugly face here in this house again. Nathan!!" Mrs. Gina roared out.

Nathan swiftly got into the madam. Yes, madam."

Mrs. Gina commanded, "Throw this witch out!"

"No! Mother, please... No!! I didn't ruin the soup..." Olima tried to beg, but her stepmother wrecked another hot slap that landed in police cell. 

"Silence! One more word from you, I will have you arrested tonight, witch"

"Nathan, throw her outside and never let her into this mansion again," Mrs. Gina commanded. Nathan grabbed Olima by her arms and dragged her out of the living room, throwing her out of her billionaire family duplex mansion and outside to the street at around 9 p.m. at night.

Mia smiled victoriously, and Mrs. Gina was the happiest that the billionaire mansion now belonged to her after succeeding in killing Olima's parents to acquire Olima's father's company and assets.