THE COVEN’S BRIDE
CHAPTER 20 (SPONSORED BY Anonymous)
GUMBI HOUSEHOLD
“What is going on?” Jasmine asks when she finds the whole house staff in the dining area- the drivers, cleaners, kitchen staff, and servers. They are all standing there mumbling to each other. “Where are my parents?” Jasmine asks, even though she didn’t get an answer to her first question. Everyone murmurs, but no one gives her a solid answer.
She holds on to her morning gown and looks around for her parents. The first person she bumps into is Jules, who also looks like he just woke up, judging by the vest and shorts he is wearing. Before Jasmine can say anything, Jules asks. “Where is everyone? There is not even one person in the kitchen.”
“They are all in the dining room, just standing there.”
“What does one need to do to get coffee in this house?” Senzo walks into the room. Unlike his siblings, he has showered and is now wearing grey sweatpants that he stole from Jules and a grey top.
“Are those my pants?” Jules asks him.
Jasmine says, “Not now, you two, what is it with the staff just standing in the dining area? What is going on? Did something happen?”
“Maybe Mzilikazi is dead,” Jules jokingly says.
Jasmine laughs, “We all know that man is not going anywhere. So, who is going to make coffee?”
“I’ll get the coffee maker running, get the cups.” Jules gets the coffee beans while Jasmine gets the cups. They are used to being handed coffee the moment they wake up, and they find it strange that no one is attending to them.
***
“Wake up, sleeping beauty,” Sibusiso kisses Naledi’s shoulders. It’s after 8 am and she is still sleeping. Funny when she is not with him – she wakes up early.
“10 more minutes,” Naledi turns to face him, resting her head on his chest.
“Are you still tired?”
“I feel very tired, I think it’s the heels I was wearing last night,” Naledi answers.
“I also feel very tired, which is unlike me.”
“Baby, I love you, but please just shut up for a second, I promise I will be up in 10 minutes,” Naledi says. Sibusiso kisses her cheek, and they both fall asleep again.
***
In the kitchen, Senzo, Jules, and Jasmine are having coffee when Rosa walks into the kitchen and also asks for coffee. Jules pours his mother a cup, and they all enjoy their coffee in silence.
“What is going on with the house staff?” Senzo finally asks. He sees that his siblings do not plan on bringing it up.
“What are you talking about?” Rosa says, clearly clueless about what is going on. Jasmine fills her in about what is going on, and she seems in the dark like everyone else.
“Where is Dad? Did he say something?” Senzo asks his mother.
“I last saw him last night,” Rosa sips on her coffee. She is crossing her fingers that her children don’t pick up that she is fighting with their father. She is not happy about what she found out the previous night. What she hates the most is that Sipho invited Naledi for supper, knowing what he knows.
“Where is Dad now?” It’s Jules’ turn to ask now.
“Can I please enjoy my coffee? If you want to know where your father is, call him or look around the house for him. I am not your father’s keeper,” Rosa retorts. The 3 siblings share looks, wondering what is going on between their parents.
Senzo clears his throat and says to Jules, “Refill the coffee in case Sibusiso and Naledi want some too.”
“Has anyone seen those two today?” Rosa asks.
“I think they are still in their room,” Jasmine answers.
“Yeah, probably having some morning glory,” Jules whispers. His mother shoots a stare at him. “What? People have s*x all the time, and there is no shame in that.”
Rosa says, “I will be in my room. Tell me if the staff is striking or whatever is making them not work.”
Before Rosa can leave the room, Sipho walks into the room with his face down, looking sad. The children greet him, and Rosa doesn’t even look his way. Sipho clears his throat and says, “Mzilikazi never went to bed last night. One of the staff members found him cold this morning. He was still where everyone left him last night.”
“Oh my God! What happened?” Jasmine asks.
Sipho sighs heavily before answering. “Probably old age. The car took him to the mortuary this morning. The staff is in the dining area because we are going to talk about the burial. We are burying him today.”
“That’s sad. I know we always joke about him dying, but now that he is gone, it’s sad that we will never see him again. He was a very chilled man,” Jules says.
“Let me go wake up Sibusiso and tell him the news,” says Senzo, but Rosa stops him before he leaves the room.
“Sibusiso has a guest, let’s wait for them to wake up. You guys go prepare, and we will get started on everything,” Rosa says. Her children nod and leave the room, leaving Rosa with her husband.
“My love…”
Rosa interjects, “Don’t talk to me.”
“My love I am sorry. We need to be united now more than ever. We just lost a family member.”
Rosa sips her coffee. “That doesn’t require us to get along. Do what you have to do, and I will do what I have to do.”
Sipho kisses her on the cheek and tells her that he will always love her and that he also wishes things were different. Sipho leaves the kitchen to hear what the funeral arrangements are.
NALEDI
I wake up to an empty bed and a note that says ‘I am downstairs.’ from Sibusiso. I reach for my phone and gasp at the time. It’s noon, why would Sibusiso let me sleep that long? I fix the bed, head to the bathroom to pee. Why does my pee smell so bad? Is it the alcohol from last night? Maybe I need to drink more water. There is an unused toothbrush on the sink, so I use it, shower, and wear the dress I was wearing last night.
‘Hey, Aunty, can I come see you when you are free?’ I send a text message to my aunt. I need to tell her about Sibusiso and that he wants to meet her. I then call Tshidi. I have ten messages from her. Calling her is the best thing to do.
Tshidi: I thought you were dead, why were you not answering me?
Me: Tshidi, I am fine. Last night we slept late, and today I also woke up late.
Tshidi: How did the dinner go?
Me: It went very well. His family is very nice. They were lovely and welcoming.
Tshidi: See, you had nothing to worry about.
Me: Yeah, they are very lovely. Everyone in his family is lovely, I guess that is what a healthy family looks like. We had so much fun last night.
Tshidi: I am glad you had fun. My worst fear was them not liking you, which would be crazy because you are very lovable.
Me: I am also happy they don’t hate me.
Tshidi: Let me go now that I know you are safe. Next time you ignore me, I am calling the police.
Me: I wasn’t intentionally ignoring you, I promise. Someone is knocking on the door. Talk to you later.
I hang up and attend to the door. Two women in uniforms stand before me. “Good morning, Miss Nkala.”
“Hey, please call me Naledi.”
“This is your food, and Mr Sibusiso Gumbi told us to give you this dress to wear,” they say, walking into the room. The other one puts the dress and shoes on the bed, and the other one puts the tray of food on the table. There is a table and a couch just a few feet from the bed.
“Thank you,” I say and wait for them to leave.
“Do you need help getting dressed after eating?” One of them asks.
“Thanks, but I got it.”
I wait for the two ladies to leave and then eat. When done, I get dressed. It’s a black dress, black shoes and a fascinator. Is this how rich people dress for lunch? What am I getting dressed for?
Sibusiso walks in just in time when I need help zipping up the dress.
“A little help, love”
He zips me up and turns me around to kiss me. “Are you well rested?”
“Yeah, where are we going wearing all black?”
He sighs and says, “We lost Mzilikazi – old age, I guess, but his funeral is today.”
“Oh my God, when did that happen? I am very sorry. Are you okay?”
He nods, “I am fine. He was very old, everyone was sort of expecting it, but we are going to miss him.”