From that moment on, the days that followed were misery days for Bob Lee's mother.
Lonely nights on the balcony, sipping on a glass of whisky in hand, she stood and gazed miles away. Occupied with infinite thoughts, hopes to get her grandchild shrunk as days went by.
Although Bob Lee had employed as many maids as possible to watch over her and treat her like a queen she deserved, sunny days were so sad and boring like the moon in dark clouds with no stars around.
There reached a time when Bob Lee wasn't paying visits anymore and total loneliness became the order of the day for his mother.
Sometimes she tried to reach out to him on phone but he couldn't pick, which kept her wondering why.
"It can't be my son ignoring my calls!" She was so sad after trying to call his number more than once, "he'd never spend a week without checking on me either."
As for Nadia, a lady he loved unwaveringly, drove Bob Lee to buy new house where both of them were staying as husband and wife, thus leaving the presence of his mother, fully for the first time.
"Nadia Browne!" mother growled angrily, filled with hatred for her new daughter-in-law, blaming her to be the cause of abandonment and dismantling of once a united happy family.
Ishtar had already settled in with a new family which was so loving and caring. Pixie could often times assist her with taking care of the baby, comfortably dedicated like it was her own.
However, most of the times Pixie could stare at Ishtar with adoring eyes like she's fond of her. Pixie's endless earnest gaze always kept Ishtar questioning her mind, "why does she suddenly face away shyly every time I catch her staring at me?"
One night, after Pixie had laid Ishtar's baby in bed to sleep, she turned and looked at Ishtar with fondness. Ishtar was busy in the mirrior making up her face, preparing for bed since it was bed time. When Ishtar stood up from the mirror, her eyes caught up with Pixie's eyes, and this time round Pixie did not shy her face away like she had always done.
"Is everything alright?" Ishtar wonders, with a need to know why the fixed stare.
However, Pixie never said a word, only for her to continue staring at her as she slowly took steps foward, closer to her. At zero distance, after she had closed the gap fully, Ishtar gets stuck. Her heart begins to race nervously, not aware of Pixie's intention.
They were both female friends.
She tries to take a step backwards to space herself but Pixie gently grabs her by the hands not to. The situation gets so tense and confusing in the quiet guest room.
Ishtar chooses to surrender to whatever that is coming up next.
"Bang!" From nowhere, something hits Ishtar on the head so hard and her eyes slowly black out.
She slumps to the floor.
This happens in Pixie's presence, watching, seeming increasingly unbothered.
After a little while, in a dim windowless room in the basement of the house, here happened to take place a conversation between three different voices, two females' and one male's.
"But, using this wasn't what we agreed on!"
Holding a metallic rode, a weapon which had just been used to execute the job, Pixie talks against the means her parents had used to subject Ishtar's life to an end, far different from what was in the plan at first.
As both parents toil hand in hand, carrying, moving with Ishtar's body;
"Don't be foolish _ you think we were going to go with your cowardly idea? Forget it!" Pixie's dad argues, toiling with Ishtar's body, lifting it by the legs.
"We had agreed to treat her with chloroform to death, not subjecting her to such a painful death!" Pixie argues as she takes small steps after them.
"Stop talking as if me and your father are heartless!" Pixie's mother, also toiling, lifting Ishtar's body by the hands, intervenes to add on her husband's voice. "Using a metal rode on her head was the best option me and your father came up with in your absentia, just to make sure she dies instantly, no mistakes."
"You told me to make sure she focuses all her attention on me. And the moment I saw you sneaking inside the room, I started acting so that you can take action, which you took but not as agreed." Pixie seemed not so pleased.
This is because, during a meeting between the three family members which took place in Pixie's parents' bedroom, discussing on how best Ishtar's life can be ended so that they keep the baby as Pixie's, mother and father asked for her opinion which she clearly gave. They all agreed it was a suitable opinion they were going to apply.
But they hit Ishtar with a strong metallic rode!
However, on the other hand, in the midst of fronting her concern, she expressed no hurt feelings about Ishtar's death though.
Talking with kindness and sympathy, "Ishtar's life is no more, although she was a nice soul. We had to kill her in a way that wouldn't have to impart too much pain which may affect her in the next life."
Now, father saw a need to bring her daughter back in line, to look at the matter differently.
"Nomatter how we've done it, what matters most right now is the fact that you have won a cute baby for yourself _ you're a mother now and we as your parents are going to be proud grandparents," with a happily smiling face, he informs her.
Pixie smiled back at her parents including her mother who had accompanied the husband in a blissful smile. She was so pleased with such a heart-warming statement from her dad. She felt sweet, gesturing an expression of joy which was coming from the deepest part inside her heart.
In the midst of placing Ishtar's body on top of the table, "unless you want enemies to keep mocking our family depending on the rumors, don't forget that it was your reckless decision to get an abortion which ended up messing your womb!" A good of a reminder, her mom was.
Her mother's statement provoked both tears and laughter.
Pixie, besides her mother's statement, she continued with the conversation.
"It is said that when you kill a person in cold blood, the ghost doesn't rest _ it revenges, haunting whoever was involved to make them loose their peace and others unlived."
After finalising with place Ishtar's body down on the wide table, Pixie's father took a long relaxing breath and said to her, "I think you watch lots of horror movies darling _ there's no such a thing like someone dies _ turns a ghost in the world, bla bla... not at all. They are dead period."
Pixies twisted her face, giving a thought to her father's reply. "Is this why my parents have no problem with taking lives?" Within her head she questioned.
As she was still questioning in her mind, her father too more steps closer toward her, "like we agreed, you'll have to keep away from all of your friends for a full year. You gonna have to stay indoors for this time _ no more going out for shopping in the malls. Your only friend will be your mobile phone, okay?"
Blissfully Pixie responded, "I'm going to be wearing fake tummies for nine months, and every after three months I will take pictures of the pregnancy and post them on my socials. Now everyone will know that am expecting."
"That's our brilliant daughter," said her father, "come here _ give me that hug," immediately Pixie jumped into her dad's chest to warm up.
Mom on the side, happily watched the two.
"What are we going to do with the body now? It shouldn't stay in here for long," the wife inquired from the husband.
He answered, "at midnight, both me and you are going to drive with the carcass in the car to the river side where we shall be disposing it in the heavy running waters of the river so that it is washed far away."
Mother, in a strong voice and a good feeling, she states, "like the motto of our family says," and the rest of the voices from her husband and daughter Pixie accompanied.
"One for all, all for one!"
In combined happy voices all three recited their motto as a united family.