“Excuse me…”
Edward shifted Gladys to one side and noticed a tall young man staring at them with raised eyebrows. The guy held his gaze and leaned back against the doorjamb.
“Edward this is Olisa, he‘s the middle brother. The others will be out soon I guess.” True to her word, they were right behind. They were all very tall and only the youngest was the same height as him. “This is Ngozi, the oldest brother, and Udoka my baby brother.”
“Hello, good afternoon.” They all walked up and shook his hand. Olisa seemed to find particular pleasure in showing he was the taller one, walking up close and pumping his palm in a tight grip. Edward suppressed his smile and returned the greetings.
“How was your flight?” Olisa asked after everyone found places to seat in the small room. Gladys was perched on the arm of his chair with an arm draped over his shoulders.
“It was fine and left earlier than planned. I‘m very glad I didn‘t miss it so I get to spend more time here with you guys.”
“Yeah, I was to come pick you up at the airport with Gladys.”
Gladys nudged him. “Ngozi is the one that loves cars. My mum has a small car which he‘s managed to keep on the road beyond all expectations.”
“Thanks Ngozi, I got an airport taxi…”
“Do you want us to go down and get your bags?” Udoka asked.
“There‘ll be no need; I‘ve rented the car for the day.”
Gladys whispered in his ear that she was going to join her mum in the kitchen to finish their lunch and then stood up and left the room. Edward hoped he wasn‘t being left in a den of lions.
“Do you like what you‘ve seen of the city?”
He didn‘t say it seemed tiny and empty compared to Lagos. “Errr…I‘ve not seen much. We drove straight here from the airport.” Her youngest brother had a boyish face but very earnest eyes. “It was a long drive through the expressway; the airport is quite far away.”
“Yeah it‘s in Emene and closer to the industrial area. Trans-Ekulu here is on the opposite side from the central area of the city. We‘ll take you to see some of the sights if you like.”