Chapter 3 - The rain

Sharon saw all the drama between Tina and Prisca, but she hissed and didn't bother asking what was going on. She never liked Tina and wondered what her brother saw in her that made Patrick keep bringing her up.

Sharon would have agreed that Tina was indeed cute, sexy, and very fair in complexion, but Tina was still too local to her.

Meanwhile, Patrick stepped out from his kitchen into the parlor; his house was a small two-bedroom apartment he had bought and shared with Sharon.

Patrick stared at Tina, who was sobbing. He saw Sharon busy laughing and drinking with two visiting friends, which irritated him, and he immediately asked, "Where's Prisca?"

Sharon, hands on her hips, replied, "Which of my friends?"

Patrick glanced at the wall clock and saw it was getting late. He wondered what was taking Prisca so long to take Tina back to their village, which was a little farther from the city where he lived with his younger sister.

Patrick and Sharon were not their parents' only children; Patrick had three other siblings besides Sharon. Just then Prisca stepped out of the restroom and said to Tina, "Let's go."

As they stepped out of the house, a strong wind blew and then a heavy rain began to fall. Prisca turned to Tina and said, "You see, Tina, we can't go out in this rain. We'll have to wait for the rain to stop, before leaving for home. I'm going back inside."

Prisca did not wait for Tina to respond; she turned and went back into the house to continue her conversation with Sharon and the two friends.

Tina stood outside by the door and began to cry. She did not want to go back into the house even as the rain soaked her clothes.

Patrick returned to the living room after cooking and realized Tina was not inside with Prisca and the other women. He assumed she was still outside; it was already getting dark and the heavy rainfall had made night fall quickly.

Patrick ignored the women talking and went out. He opened the door and saw Tina sobbing under the small porch. "Come inside, Tina. It's still raining," he said.

"No," Tina refused to move; she did not want to go inside Patrick's house. Patrick frowned, went back in, and later came out with an umbrella, but Tina refused it. "There's no need for it," she said.

"Take it and cover yourself. You're already wet and you could get cold if you don't come inside," Patrick said, leaving the umbrella beside her. He knew she was stubborn and went back into his house, annoyed by her attitude.

The heavy rain continued, with lightning and thunder, but Tina remained outside, regretting, "Why today of all days did I follow Prisca here? Mom will already be home from the market and won't find me. Richmond and Jude might be outside playing, wondering where I went..."

Tina sobbed as the rain increased and continued late into the night.

***

Meanwhile, Mama Tina had been at the market earlier, where she sold fruits and foodstuffs in the village square. She noticed the sudden change in the weather and knew it would rain heavily.

She packed up and went home to the house where she still lived with her children even though her husband had run away with another woman ten years earlier.

When Mama Tina arrived home, she found only Jude, her youngest son, asleep inside; the door was unlocked. She wondered where Tina and Richmond had gone, leaving only Jude at home.

Mama Tina gently tapped Jude on the shoulder to wake him. "Jude! Jude, wake up. Where are your sister and brother?"

Jude, a ten years old boy, awoke and was happy to see his mother. He hugged her and said, "I don't know, Mom. I finished eating when Aunty Prisca arrived. She was talking with Aunty Tina. Later Aunty Tina told me to go back inside and sleep if I had finished eating."

"Hmm," Mama Tina frowned. "Then where is Richmond?"

She was unhappy that only Jude was home. Just then Richmond rushed in and shut the door before the wind and rain worsened.

Richmond had been at his friend Alex's home; he was fourteen and liked helping Alex's father at his furniture workshop. "Good evening, Mom," he greeted.

"Where's Tina?" Mama Tina asked quickly.

Richmond gulped; he did not know where Tina had gone. He had left earlier with Alex, while Tina was still at home and had not seen who visited her.

Mama Tina grew worried and wanted to go to Prisca's house to look for Tina, since Jude had mentioned Prisca's visit. But the wind and rain increased.

Mama Tina cursed and paced the worn parlor, hoping nothing bad had happened to her only daughter. She returned to the kitchen to prepare their evening meal; it was late.

Similarly, Mama Tina remembered a neighbor's earlier warning to watch Tina's movements around Prisca.

Prisca often visited when Mama Tina was away and was known to associate with different men.

Mama Tina had thought Tina was disciplined enough and had not taken the warning seriously. Now she regretted not warning Tina or checking whether the neighbor's gossip about Prisca was true.

***

The heavy rain continued into the night and Tina still stood in front of Patrick's house, soaked and shivering as it gradually eased.

"If only I had known the way home earlier, I could have walked to the village when I stepped out of the house at noon, before the rain started," she told herself.

Tina shivered and stood outside when a black car drove into Patrick's compound and parked.

Tina became frightened. She wiped rain from her face and saw the driver switch off the headlights. Fear gripped her; she did not know who the man in the car was.

Still looking at the car, Tina watched the man answer a phone call in his car. Just then she heard Sharon and her two friends laughing as they stepped out of the house.

Tina noticed they wore new, short gowns, different from what they'd worn at noon; they looked like they were going out.

To Tina's shock, Prisca was with them. Prisca had changed from a black gown into a red, short, seductive dress.

Tina hurried toward Prisca to ask if they were going home and whether the driver would take them, but before she reached her or could speak, Prisca yelled, "Where do you think you're going, Tina? With that soaked body of yours? Move back — you're not coming with us, and don't wet someone's car with your dripping clothes!"

Tina frowned; she did not understand Prisca's behavior. Ashamed, she swallowed what she wanted to say.

Sharon laughed, noticed Tina's umbrella, and walked over to take it. "Don't be annoyed, Tina. Lend us your umbrella. Aw — this looks like the one I've been searching for," Sharon said as she opened it and walked toward the car.

Tina finally snapped out of her daze and saw the four women getting into the car. She ran after Prisca again and pleaded, "Wait, Prisca. What do you mean I can't go with you? I thought we were going home."

"No, Tina. Sharon, wait — don't tell the driver to go yet," Prisca said, turning to face Tina. She stood by the car and added, "I've changed my clothes; I'm going out, not home. It's late, and I'll be back soon. Why don't you go inside and wait for us? When I return, we'll go home."

"But—" Tina began, and before she could finish, Prisca rushed into the car and shut the door.

The driver started the engine. Tina stood outside crying as the car drove out of the compound, leaving her alone in front of the house.