Onyedikachi searched his vehicle thoroughly for the bottle of eloaku he always carried with him but his efforts seemed futile.

He peeked underneath his car seat after he had almost decided to turn back only to see the black colored oil stored in the bottle lying beneath his driver's seat. He quickly grabbed the bottle and raced back into the house where the commotion had erupted.

Adaugo and the others heaved a sigh of relief when he came back with the bottle and knelt beside the woman who was now soaked to her toes with water, which was supposed to resuscitate her.

Obanma pried open her mother's eyes as Onyedikachi guided in two drops of the liquid in each of her eyes. The remainder of the oil was poured into her mouth and almost immediately reduced the violent quaking of her body.

Agatha and Nnamdi fixed up Ngozi whose clothes were now revealing her laps.

Nnamdi's mother held onto Ngozi with her humongous Bible as scriptural verses rolled out of her mouth effortlessly in her prayer.

Chijioke seemed too dazed to move and the sudden outburst of baby cries sent Agatha into her bedroom.

They all waited patiently beside the woman in a circle which was unconsciously formed.

Her eyes blinked rapidly, which probably came from the stinging sensation of the oil and tears began to drop from her eyes.

Obanma helped her mother sit up with her hands wrapped around the woman whose consciousness was gradually returning. Olumide quickly rushed into the kitchen and fetched a cup of drinking water which he passed onto his wife who sat beside her mother and guided the cup to her mouth.

It took a long while before Ngozi completely gained consciousness but the streams of tears wouldn't stop rolling.

"Ndo" were constant on Obanma's lips as she patted her mother, this was one treatment Obanma was used to. Chijioke extended his hand and held the woman who seemed to be in a very frail state of of mind. Even Onyedikachi had been tempted to hold her but he felt the gesture wouldn't be appreciated or even appropriate.

"Nna Daalụ" Nnamdi's voice drew Onyedikachi out of his thoughts. A very much compassionate smile came from Adaugo to him and he couldn't help but feel pleased that he had come.

"You really saved my sister today, God bless you" Agatha added, patting the baby who suckled aggressively on her breasts.

"We're all very grateful" Chijioke begrudgingly spoke, which made Onyedikachi even more pleased with himself.

Obanma gave no words but her eyes said it all. She was much more worried about the cause of the convulsion and had also thanked Onyedikachi with the looks she bestowed on him. It often felt like looking into her soul.

Onyedikachi refrained from speaking even though he wanted to mention that they would have done the same.

Ngozi whimpered a little turning everyone's attention back to her, then exhaled deeply

"Nwa m ooo" She bellowed with more tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Hewu chịm! Ọ gbuo di la nwa m "

Obanma held her tighter and squeezed her hand as she continued to scream.

Everyone knew who Ngozi was talking about because they had navigated through that same route of conversation in the past when she woke up but it didn't seem to affect her much.

They were hush about Obinna's death for a while until they couldn't hold the truth any more. Surprisingly Ngozi didn't react the way they had expected her to owing to her memory loss . They could all tell she was sad about the news but it had been the same incident that sent her into shock.

"He didn't stop ble..eeding. He went cold... Obinna didn't wake up! Obinna couldn't wake up! Hewu chi m.. Obinna came to hold me.. Why not me? Why was it my baby?"

The woman sobbed uncontrollably and soon Obanma's face was doused by her own tears. Adaugo and daa Agatha had their fair share of crying.
They helped Obanma hold her while she mourned the loss of her child anew.

Onyedikachi felt every single emotion the woman displayed, he had been his mother's comfort for a long while when she mourned her father. Nnamdi was the only one who disclosed their recent development with him, terming it a unanimous decision by the family and thanked him again for helping Ngozi.

Obanma saw him off even though he had partly wanted to stay. He gave her a long hug and bestowed kisses on her forehead which drew out sighs from her lips. His Mma was definitely stressed out by so many things that had been happening. She clung to his body, drinking in his scent and basking in the consolatory warmth his embrace offered.

"You'll be fine ịnụgo" Onyedikachi declared softly still placing kisses on her forehead.

"Yes, we'll all be..... Onyi I'm sorry we didn't get to celebrate anymore...I.."

"Mma, it doesn't matter now. We can now be together, your family accepts me" Onyedikachi interrupted pulling her face up to meet his gaze

"Your mother hasn't consented to this, neither has your brother."

"Mma that is not a problem, we'll be together you and I. I promise you that." Onyedikachi couldn't resist placing a heartwarming kiss on her lips as he whispered "I love you" into her ears.

That was all Obanma truly needed in the midst of the chaos.

"I'll be going to tell my mother everything, I do hope she understands and accepts things the way they are. If she doesn't Mma, then there's no problem at all, it means she'd be missing out wedding"

"I wish things weren't like this Onyi.." Obanma croaked with her tear clogged throat. Onyedikachi cradled her cheek and placed a soft kiss on her left chin.

"That's the way things are now, don't feel bad about it. I love you and that's all that matters.

I want you to be my wife, I want to have children with you... I want to wake up next to you every morning, I want your sweet scent to lull me to sleep every night with you safely tucked into my arms.

I want to make love to you without inhibitions, rightly before God, man and nature. I want you to be happy but most importantly I want you to be happy because of me... because you're with me.

You know I want to have children that look like their mother but are as smart as their father "

The last bit crackled Obanma up as she playfully patted Onyedikachi's shoulder.

" I am totally smarter than you are "

" Yes.. You are my smart girl" he responded with a grin

"There's one last thing I want..."Onyedikachi began anew, caressing her face ever softly.

" I want to tempt you to madness the way you did with me, just because I enjoy revenge and also because I enjoyed our naked silhouetted shadows on the bathroom wall"

Obanma chuckled as she recalled the incident with Onyedikachi and how much resilience he put up because he respected her.

"We will be happy.. You and I." Onyedikachi exhaled deeply drawing comfort from his declarations and the thought of things to come. They were promises he intended to keep. How had he for once doubted who his angel was. Letting Chijioke's lies mess with his head.

"I love you so much Onyi and I want us to be happy"

Obanma declared pulling him out of his thoughts. He gave her the sweetest smile then kissed her thoroughly before driving away.

Obanma turned back to see Adaugo staring and quickly raced to the veranda. She asked about their mother who was now resting and Adaugo pointed out where the woman was.

"He seems very besotted... That Onyi.. It's not hard to see that he truly loves you. I do hope you'll be happy"

Obanma nodded with a soft smile as they stepped into the house. The next week was Adaugo's introduction and the upper one was her traditional marriage which they were preparing for. Their mother's sudden remembrance of their brother's death distorted their plans but they were all eager to know if she had remembered what transpired between she and Chidozie before the shootings.

The early morning sobs which also extended to late night sobs persisted for days. Ngọzi unfortunately had skipped that process but the wave of remembrance had sent unfiltered emotions racing back through her mind.

"There was a bullet in my son's head" she would always lament.

"He went cold in my arms"

Even though they all began to grieve anew all were plagued with the hopeful thought that Ngozi had recovered all of her memories. They seemed eager to find out if she had remembered what transpired between she and Chidozie.

Nnamdi was the only one who managed to ask but got a disappointing response. He decided to channel his energy into seeing that Adaugo's introduction goes smoothly.

Ngọzi distanced herself from her family as grief over powered but deep down the other images which plagued her mind left her more curious. She had hazily remembered what appeared to be a passionate night with a faceless man. None of it made sense to her but she knew it was best to keep the information to herself. More and more of her memories were returning and she was afraid of what the future would hold for her if she was truly found guilty of adultery.

Agatha had mentioned an accusation about cheating with a married man, The father of the boy seeking for Obanma's hand in marriage. Was it true? Had she cheated?

Onyedikachi set out for Abia the next day after his mother had repeatedly ordered for his return. He knew what he was to face would be unpleasant but he was ready for it all.

Obanma had called severally to enquire about his welfare while he journeyed home. He could tell she felt uneasy about the situation but he kept reassuring her with words even he didn't believe. His mother would never reason with him on this matter. He even expected Arinze to wait at the entrance of the compound with enough animosity and disappointment just because he was certain Arinze was going to throw punches around.

Approaching their house after what seemed like a smooth journey, Onyedikachi inhaled deeply.

His eyes trailed from the petite women who waved excitedly as his car drove by, carrying their merchandise to the market. Some had created a type of rectangular wooden carriage on their bicycle where they stocked their goods which were mostly perishable food and vegetable.

He had made it a habit to stop and purchase from them, irrespective of how irrelevant the materials were to him. It was his way of encouraging the old women.

Onyedikachi stared at the gifts he bought his mother laying at the back seat. He had purchased her an expensive jewelry set, neatly packaged with a shiny golden square box, her cream, he had also gotten her different sets of clothes as he breezed by a boutique that displayed female wares. There were phone accessories which he had refused his mother because he felt she wouldn't use them properly.

The drive to his compound got slower as he approached their house. He had wanted to blame his speed on the poorly graded roads and water ridden potholes but he knew it was the fear of uncertainty that instilled his cautiousness.

Onyedikachi sounded his horn twice at the gate and waited patiently, exhaling at intervals.

Surprisingly it was Adannaya who came out of the house, reared her head out of the gate to catch a glimpse of her uncle. She excitedly hopped back into the house and was accompanied by her mother, Onyedikachi stepped down immediately and helped pull the gates apart. Olivia's pregnancy he had noticed had become quite prominent

Onyedikachi drove in and parked his vehicle at the spot in the compound considered as their garage.

Adannaya speedily ran into his arms when he strod out of the vehicle. He whirled her around as she giggled, yelling for him to stop yet reticent to leave his arms.

"Uncle Onyi you're getting shorter by the day. Is it because of your girlfriend? Daddy said they're usually short people, maybe it's affecting you"

Onyedikachi was too stunned to react to her words but her mother quickly reprimanded her as she approached him.

He gave her a hug then enquired of her husband's whereabouts. Arinze, Olivia had explained went to meet with an acquaintance few minutes before he arrived. Onyedikachi couldn't help but feel like there was an ambush laid for him inside the house.

"Your mother is in her room" Olivia noticed how quickly Onyedikachi's face dropped as she mentioned his mother and held his hand.

For years Onyedikachi had been the good son, his mother's confidant, friend and joy, those were the things she'd always say. He had a resemblance to his father that his mother appreciated and he had always felt it was solely his responsibility to keep her happy since his father's death. Now it seemed love was beginning to tear a rift.

His mother wasn't the type to ignore him when he visits, she'd have been downstairs with Olivia hugging him and checking his body out.

Momentarily, Onyedikachi's thoughts kept him aloof while Olivia rambled and when she noticed his absent-mindedness she called his attention.

"Onyi your only crime is to love, it's not something we can control. I have spoken to your brother and he was quite displeased to know that I knew you and Obanma were an item"

"Ada take these things upstairs!" Olivia beckoned on her daughter as she led Onyedikachi into the house.

"I hope it didn't cause problems for the two of you"

"Oh Onyi... You know your brother and his temper but he can't really do anything because of our baby . I tried to make him see things from your perspective."

"If only he were that easy to convince. It's funny that you still use your unborn children to blackmail my poor brother" Onyedikachi teased with a smile.

"I can't help it.. It worked wonders with Adannaya and now your brother is certain we're having a boy. The children help me teach their daddy lessons but to be honest Onyi, love has taught him more lessons. So don't be too certain about what he'll say"

Both she and Onyedikachi laughed heartily as they climbed their stairs. Olivia's gait was slower and he had to walk extremely slow.

" This is so much exercise "Olivia declared as they approached the last fleet of stairs

"I do it because of the baby"

"Olivia thank you so much for trying to convince my brother. Either way my mind is made up, I can't keep hurting myself to make them happy." Olivia nodded in acquiescence relieving Onyedikachi of the loaves of bread in his hands.

"How is she? Obanma?"

"She is worried but fine. She feels I'll end up lifeless after this visit" Onyedikachi ended chuckling lightly

"It won't come to that. I believe you two will make a happy couple and most importantly you'd make more beautiful children for this family. Seriously the two of you are some pair"

Onyedikachi laughed heartily holding on to Olivia's hand.

"So you don't think we rushed this and she's not ready for marriage?"

"Onyedikachi, I think you're beginning to forget how young I was when I married your brother. If that's what she wants, then you owe her a beautiful marriage irrespective of who kicks against it. Because frankly they won't be the ones who end up miserable, it'll be you. The two of you are just victims of a circumstance you could have never controlled

What about her family? How did they take it? "

" I got punched severally " Onyedikachi declared with a chortle.

" I wasn't expecting anything less than that. Chijioke abi? "

" Who else? "

" I noticed the little swelling on your lip " Olivia added concerned

" Arinze might just break my jaw completely... The good thing is that Mma's family have agreed. It's a long story that I will generously share " Onyedikachi winked as he noticed her face brighten

" I can't wait! " Olivia had meant to utter another word before Chidiogo graced them with her presence.

" Onyedikachi ịnata go "She declared briskly as Onyedikachi embraced her.

Olivia excused the mother and son in search of her own daughter who she noticed had already begun to help herself to the doughnut she hid for herself.

Onyedikachi could sense the strain in conversation from his mother's reticence in asking questions about his journey.

"I got these for you" Onyedikachi reached out to the gifts and presented to his mother who only nodded in response.

"Thank you" She replied in a grumpy tone.

"We can talk now if you want to. It's why I am home" Onyedikachi began not certain what else he was to say to me his mother who's face revealed only hurt and disappointment.

"You know I was there when the twins were born. I helped Ngozi bathe them occasionally and they seemed like my own children for long."

Onyedikachi nodded swiftly "Yes... I remember"

"I don't hate those children, not Chijioke or Adaugo or even Obanma. And I know how much you've always cared for that little girl. My thoughts have been quite retrospective ever since papa nnukwu mentioned her visit. You have always liked her.

Onyedikachi did you get her pregnant? Is that why you want to marry her? "

" Mba... She's not pregnant. "

" Then why are you doing this? Your father did enough before he died. What do you think I'll always remember when I see that girl. She will become the constant reminder of what I lost. I'll always remember Ngozi's betrayal and that Onyi... That is not easy. That... I can't deal with "

" I totally understand but I love her. I've always loved her. I mean you said it yourself and forgiveness is what we all need. Maybe you can move on if you forgive them. Nne.. You can't be so certain that our father did wrong.. I mean we... "

Adannaya's cheerful voice as she ran to hug Arinze halted Onyedikachi's conversation with his mother and she quickly excused herself,taking along with her the gifts her son bought.

Arinze picked his daughter up and flung her around playfully before placing a chaste kiss on his wife's head.

He noticed his brother seated in the living room and received a subtle warning from his wife with her glare. He knew Olivia wanted to handle the issue like an adult which involved no punching as he had badly wanted.

Arinze stepped into the living room and Onyedikachi quickly issued out a greeting.

"We've been waiting for you." Arinze responded gruffly. "Papa Nnukwu called and he mentioned everything to us"

"Yes... Yes I know. Mother told me and that's why I am here"

"So you're not even here because of our father's land that the riffraff wants to take"

Onyedikachi's silence was a response Arinze didn't take too well. The two brothers sat in silence for long, both staring at each other.

"Do you love that girl?" Arinze prodded

"Yes.. Completely"

"I don't know if you were bewitched but I just don't know what to say or do"

"Just say you support my decision and be happy for me"

"What did Chijioke say when you told him of your intentions?"

"He punched me" Onyedikachi replied slowly. He noticed a tiny grin appear on Arinze's face then disappear almost immediately.

"I would be surprised if he did not."

"Her family didn't take it so well" Onyedikachi added readjusting the cuffs on his shirt. He felt the need to do so because he feared would pounce on him at any instance.

"They have given their blessings" Onyedikachi spoke once more noting how flummoxed his brother appeared.

"Maybe it's time for you to truly become the prodigal son. You've always been the favorite son, I think nature is giving me a severance package.

Onyedikachi you can marry iga eri if you so desire. Just don't expect any more than all I've said."

Onyedikachi's face brightened up and he quickly thanked his brother.

" I will lock Chijioke up when the time comes, irrespective of your relationship with them. I can't do much for now, Olivia has been all over your case. Thank her later"

Onyedikachi smiled and stared out of the room to catch a glimpse of Olivia's dress as she hid behind.

"I did not expect this to go this way" Onyedikachi declared as they made their way out of the living room. Olivia slipped into the kitchen where her daughter was, causing her husband to chuckle.

"I still have the itch to punch you, don't push it" Arinze warned sternly while Onyedikachi withdrew.

"I don't know how you intend to make this work. I do hope you don't end up making the biggest mistake of your life. Choosing her over your own family"

"Arinze don't make it sound like I am picking a side, I'm not making a choice, I am ending a war. The hatred and bitterness has lasted for too long. We weren't like this before"

"I just hope this doesn't end badly for you."

"Arinze! " Onyedikachi beckoned as he turned to leave " Marrying Olivia is the best thing that happened to you. She is good for you"

"She truly is... She's the reason you're not writhing in pain now"

Arinze gave his brother a quick smile then walked away. Onyedikachi could sense how disappointed he was but all that mattered was his consent.

He waited patiently for his mother in the living room even after Arinze and his family left, still she didn't appear. Onyedikachi decided he was going to meet her in her room, maybe she would also consent to his marriage to Mma if he saw reasons with him.

A text from an unknown number appeared on his phone and quickly read through. He discovered at the beginning that it was from Chijioke who he suspected got his number from Obanma.

The text notified him of an intending paternity test. Chijioke wanted him to be present at the prison while he collected samples and had explicitly directed for him to get Mma's hair sample.

The text had gotten him quite angry but after much thought, Onyedikachi decided he was going to see it through. It was one way to quell Chijioke's madness and erase such doubts forever.

Mma wasn't his sister, nature wouldn't be so unkind were his thoughts as he approached his mother's room.

"I never told you to stab him, I never implied that. I only told you to teach Chijioke a lesson" The words emanating from his mother's room left Onyedikachi frozen at the spot.

Hello Everyone

I am so sorry for the delay in my updates. I've been quite busy which was why I decided to make this chapter quite long.

Who's your favorite character so far?

Have you read Against all Odds? Are there similarities between Onyedikachi and Obiefune?

Who else was impressed by Arinze's maturity?

Ngozi seems to be guilty in all of this, let's hope our love birds are not caught in this mess.

Remember to always comment, vote and share.

Lastly I have a gift for the first person to read this chapter. Don't forget to DM