Gladys watched her mother clear her throat and fiddle with her neckline. “We spoke privately and she apologized again saying she wants us to put the past years behind us.”
“What‘s your own opinion Mama?”
“I told her I didn‘t appreciate how she thought she could come back so easily without any explanation for what happened.” Gladys bent her head as her mother continued, “Didn‘t I tell you I sent Isioma several letters when your father was sick and she never replied? It hurt me so badly when she didn‘t show up for the funeral and I thought I would never forgive her.”
Gladys squeezed her mother‘s hands.
“When I married your father, I was happy he had a sister my age. She was already married and lived in Lagos but I hoped we would become like sisters. That never happened.”
Gladys knew it was so painful for her mother because she lost most of her own relatives when her village fell during the Nigeria-Biafra civil war.
“Anyway, I decided to let bygones be and told her I had forgiven her. But I have my reservations; I‘m not comfortable with her request for you to come and live with her in Lagos.”
“I know this Mama. But I still have to go there for the Zenon Oil test.” She‘d received the invitation letter a couple of weeks ago, and it had since become the fulcrum of her attempts to get her mother to allow her to move permanently to Lagos.
“Yes, and that‘s the reason I told Isioma that I would accept her request.”
“Oh, thank you Mama…” Her jump of joy was halted by her mother‘s next words.
“I could say we‘ll find a temporary place for you in Lagos, but I have to be realistic and think of your future too. If you succeed at the test, there‘ll be interviews, and I don‘t want you to have to travel back and forth or worry where to live. You all do very well in your studies, and I thank God for that, but it has not been easy. I still have to see your brothers through school.”
“I think I‘ll pass, that‘s why I am so excited. Mama, thank you so much.”
Her mother looked at her and smiled with pride. “I know you will, even if not with Zenon. The truth is you stand a better chance of getting a job there in Lagos.”