Listening Ears! Spilled Secret

Edith stood in front of the Deaconess' table, fidgeting… the last thing any student wanted was to be summoned by the Deaconess… it never ends well. It was no news that the proprietress does not tolerate any form of indiscipline, and would go any length to punish anyone who goes against the school rules. And she was very vicious when meting out her punishment to offenders. 

Even though Edith does some dirty stuff for the Deaconess, she was still very afraid of her. No one wanted to be on the bad side of the deaconess.

 The deaconess was sitting behind her huge mahogany table in her simple but sparking clean office. Edith waited silently as she watched the viral video of her fighting on her phone, dreading the moment the Proprietress will raise her head and expel her. It was 7 am when she left her room after a junior had told her the Deaconess was waiting for her in the office. Nervously, she had walked from her room to the office like a lamb being led to the slaughter. Now, she was here, she couldn't stop shaking in fear as she watched the Deaconess who just left her standing in her office without saying a word.

Mrs. Rachel, the Deaconess of Bishop Evangelical College, was a fine woman in her late 30s. Her head was covered up in a stylish turban that complemented a trendy flowing gown with puffed-up sleeves she wore. Being a religious leader was no reason for anyone to look dirty or shabby… she often said. And her glowing skin could tell you she took good care of herself.

"Sit down and look at this!" she ordered Edith in a soft-spoken voice after making her wait for close to 30 minutes.

Edith obeyed her before reluctantly taking the phone the proprietress was handing out to her. She swallowed hard as she forced herself to watch the video of how she was mercilessly beaten up by a St. Monica girl for the very first time after it had happened. Edith took her seat in front of the Deaconess table, still shaking as tears threatened to drop from her eyes as she watched the video.

"Ma, I'm done watching it." she said in a low, painful voice, unable to continue watching her public humiliation.

"Keep watching it… till I say you should stop." Mrs. Rachel commanded in a stern voice.

Edith still shook whenever she spoke, even without her raising her voice. She was looking tired and beaten up in her hostel sleepwear. Ever since she found out someone had recorded the fight and uploaded it online, she had been on edge. And all through the night Gloria made it worse by singing about how strict her mum was and how she would expel her… which made Edith feel worse. She didn't want to be expelled, her mum would be heartbroken… she was ready to grovel at the feet of the Deaconess, just for her not to be expelled.

"Give me the Phone! How do you feel watching that video repeatedly? Now, just imagine how many eyes must have seen it for the last 24 hours. It went viral! Now, does that put our school in a good light? Is that what our school stands for? Fighting like a tout? Is that what my school has taught you?" Mrs. Rachel, the Deaconess, raised her voice.

"I am sorry… please ma… I am sorry!" Edith pleaded

"Shut up now! You silly idiot! I expected this from anyone, but not from you, Edith. You know how valuable you are to me. Why would you do this? You want to be expelled?" Mrs. Rachel snapped at her.

"No ma…please, I will never do this again!" Edith knelt down, crying and begging.

"Get up you fool! You think this nonsense drama you are putting on will work on me? You clearly don't know me. I am the Deaconess of this school and every good or bad thing that happens comes back to me. How dare you disgrace me and this school?" She screamed, suddenly standing and Edith shook visibly in fear, so afraid that the Deaconess will whoop her ass.

"I should expel you. Everyone expects me to. But I won't… and you know why." She proclaimed.

"Thank you, ma…"

"Shut up, you silly girl. You think I am happy with this decision? You must be a fool. Letting you go will make everyone think I am all soft and I am not!" She snarled at Edith, who was still kneeling and begging.

"I can't let you go that easy. No… At least for the sake of everyone who is watching and waiting for me to do the right thing. For the sake of the school board and concerned parents…I will have to call your mum and tell her about the possibility of expelling you." Mrs. Rachel said in a low voice after regaining her composure.

"Thank you Deaconess," Edith mumbled, even though she was not okay with the proprietress's decision to summon her mum to her office. Her mum would be heartbroken and disappointed.

The Deaconess's ever observant eyes glared at her. Her countenance suddenly changing from that of a mean Deaconess to that of a serious boss Edith was used to.

"Come here… The only reason I am letting you go is because you are one of my girls. Be grateful for that!" Mrs. Rachel said in a calmer tone.

"Are you ready for the assignment next weekend? Mr. Godwin has been asking for you. You know how it goes. Be a good girl and do whatever he asks you to do. Once you are done, he hands over some gifts that are meant for me and he brings you back to school. For now, just go to your room. And don't tell a single soul a word about this! Understood?" Mrs. Rachel said before dismissing Edith.

Even though everyone wanted her to expel Edith, she knew that would be a bad move for her to take. These girls work for her and they know her secrets. Cutting any of them loose is risking destroying her reputation. She watched Edith's retreating figure and silently hoped she would get the next assignment done properly.

Her phone rang then, and she sighed when she saw the caller. "Not him again!"

"Hello… Good morning, pastor Jude." she answered in a friendly voice, even though she hated talking with Pastor Jude.

"Sweet Deaconess, how are you today? I'm sure you know why I am calling, so let's get to it," came the baritone voice of Pastor Jude from the other end of the line.

"Calm down, Pastor… this is not how to start a conversation with a fellow religious leader…" Mrs. Rachel said calmly before by Pastor Jude cut in rudely.

"Deaconess… you know why I am calling. I have paid in the money to the account as you requested and none of the girls have shown up in my home yet. Don't spoil our deal. Don't!" He warned.

"Pastor Jude, calm down. Can't you see this is a bad time for my school? It is all over the internet for the wrong reason. We can't be doing business till I have cleared it all up." The Deaconess grunted.

"You mean the same school where I made you the proprietress? Or have you forgotten how I picked you up from the dirty life you were living in that slum and made you who you are now? Keep the end of your bargain and keep delivering your girls to me whenever I need them. Or you know what is coming for you!" He snarled at her before cutting the call.

Mrs. Rachel banged her fists on the table, regretting ever agreeing to become Pastor Jude's toy. But she had no choice then when he promised her a better life, so she has to agree to whatever he asks of her. "Oh! How she hated having to answer to him and do his bidding all the time." She gritted her teeth in fury. But she would have been nothing without him! But now, she was someone everyone respected. And she was busy pimping out kids she was supposed to be protecting.

The Deaconess banged her fists on the table, before a soft knock on her door made her change her countenance to a plain one.

With her legs crossed behind her mahogany table, Mrs. Rachel regained the composure of a highly revered Deaconess and proprietress that she was, which was better than what she used to be… a Nobody. She asked whoever was knocking at her door to come in. It was Mrs. Gracious, and she walked in with a stern look on her face.

"How may I help you Mrs. Gracious?" Mrs. Rachel asked without sparing Mrs. Gracious a glance.

"Deaconess, good day. Have you not seen the viral video about a Bishop College student fighting in public? A student of a prestigious school like ours fighting like a tout! Deaconess, we have to expel her to set an example for others!" Mrs. Gracious almost yelled.

Mrs. Rachel looked at her condescendingly from her black flowing gown to her local hairstyle, appalled by her audacity and her appearance.

"Do you realize you are talking to the Deaconess and Proprietress of the so-called prestigious school Mrs. Gracious? Don't you think I am well aware of all that goes on in my school? Don't you think I can handle any issue that arises?" Mrs. Rachel asked in a stern voice.

"Deaconess… I.."

"Are you the proprietress of the school? Are you? Know your place, Mrs. Gracious, and do your duty, or I might end up heaping all the blame on you!" She scolded a confused-looking Mrs. Gracious.

"Any other thing you want to discuss with me, matron? If there's nothing more, you can take your leave," she said, dismissing Mrs. Gracious. Mrs. Gracious stormed off, angry that she had been humiliated by the deaconess again. Mrs. Rachel sighed, as she watched her leave t of how to handle all the responsibility that came with living a double life as a pimp and a deaconess.

"What happened? Are you packing already? Were you expelled?" Gloria asked when Edith walked into the room, looking devastated.

"I don't know. The Deaconess needs to talk to my mum first." Edith broke down "My mum would be so disappointed"

"Yeah, you should have known better than fighting over a boy who doesn't even like you. Clinton is a snake, didn't I tell you?" Gloria rebuked her.

Edith rolled her eyes at her, and she turned her attention towards Goodness.

"Can we talk in private? Goody?" She asked Goodness who had been quiet all along. She nodded in agreement as they walked off to a far corner, away from Gloria, making her feel left out.

"So, is she expelling you?" Goodness asked in a concerned tone.

"No, and it is because of the dirty job we do for her. She said I was valuable to her." Edith smiled for the first time since that fight had happened.

"This is good news! I'm so happy for you!" Goodness hugged her.

"I am happy too, but I don't know if I am ready for the next assignment." She said, feeling tired of the sick things the Deaconess sends them to do with some so-called men of God and other men.

"Why not? What's wrong with the assignment?" Goodness asked.

"It's with Mr. Godwin and you know how nasty he can be. I don't like visiting his home or having to do anything with him. He's too rough!" Edith blurted out.

"Hey! You must do whatever she asks you to do or you will be in deeper shit. Don't even think of bailing out on her now! You could have been expelled, but she saved you. Don't play with the Deaconess! You owe her!" Goodness had barely finished talking when they saw Gloria approaching, so they had to keep their mouth shut and act normal.

Gloria noticed their awkward behavior, but she didn't know what to make of it. So, she simply sat there with them in silence. But while she sat there, she was hoping to hear Edith say she was packing out because she had been expelled. But Edith said nothing and Gloria was really bitter about it all.

They had just finished their night meal and calmly waiting for the bell to signal that it was time for night prep. Anna was all dressed up in her hostel night wear, lost in her thought as she remembered Senior Gloria and Clinton romancing each other at the T-end. She shook in revulsion, wondering why a Deaconess's daughter would do something so immoral. And she wished more than anything that she could tell someone what she had seen… keeping the secret all to herself was killing her. And that was when she decided that she was going to reveal the secret only to her friend. Besides, she was also doing her friend a favor by letting her know the kind of deep shit she was getting into if she decides to date Senior Clinton, Anna told herself, trying so hard to justify telling her friend the secret.

She was sitting all alone on her bunk watching other students chatting and dressing their beds when Sylvia suddenly appeared from nowhere.

"Why do you look surprised to see me? What were you thinking about?" Sylvia asked Anna.

"There's something I must tell you. I can't keep it anymore! You have to know." Anna said as she dragged her friend away from the room, to avoid being overheard by gossips. There were so many in the girls' hostel and one had to be careful with saying just anything.

Queen, the senior's pet and the popular snitch in their class, noticed the two friends walking to a dark corner, and she followed them. Her dainty feet made no noise as she walked behind them, happy that she was about to hear something juicy. She took pleasure in making her seniors happy and she never hesitated in listening to conversations and reporting back to her seniors. Queen followed them till they stopped at the far end of the hostel corridor. She hid behind a pillar as she listened to both friends talk about the craziest gossip she had ever heard. A smile spread on her face as she thought about the reward she would receive when she reveals the secret to their seniors. Anna and her friend will be in big trouble, she giggled in the darkness.

Anna and Sylvia had walked to the edge of the hostel corridor, hoping no one had seen or followed them. But little did they know that someone had heard everything they had said.

"Wait! Are you sure it was senior Gloria you saw? And not Senior Edith or Ruth? This is crazy, Anna. She's the holiest of them all. The most upright student!"

"I swear, I am not lying… that was when she punished me! And that's why I have been warning you about senior Clinton. Both of them are lovers!" Anna whispered to a very confused Sylvia.

"But her mum is the Deaconess of the school. What would she do if she finds out?" Sylvia asked.

"She can't know… nobody can know about this. Senior Gloria will make my life a living hell. Please don't tell anyone." Anna pleaded with Sylvia.

Sylvia hesitated in agreeing, and Anna was already regretting ever spilling the secret. "Why couldn't she keep her mouth shut?" She looked around the dim corridor, suddenly scared that someone had heard what she had told her friend. But everything was normal and nobody was in the corridor with them. She just hoped her friend wouldn't open her blabbing mouth to anyone.