Mommy Disappears with the answer!!!

'Why would he come and pick me up?'

Tito asks his fiancé this question as uncle John ends the phone call.

February 2012, Tito's uncle John, repeatedly calls him on his mobile phone insisting that Tito should wait for him at Tito's place. He stays ten minutes' walk from Tito's place.

Two hours later, uncle Daniel, the younger brother to uncle John, arrives driving a black sedan car. Tito's two young brothers, uncle John and one relative are inside the car. The time is 11:47 in the evening and Tito is told he has to come along to mommy's house in Block 9 suburbs. It is a 10 minutes' drive from where Tito stays.

'Why the rush late this night,' Nobody speaks, and questions start gathering into Tito's mind.

'Why this late night insistence that we should go to mommy's place?'

'Why are my brothers with us since they stay with mommy at mommy's home?

'Whose car is this?'

Silently Tito asks himself these questions. As his uncle is driving this car, Tito could hear his young brother instructing on how carefully his uncle should drive the car – and showing his uncle some of the gear levers.

When they arrive at home a mini truck is by the gate with mommy's church mates waiting.

Tito and the rest of the company have to pick up his other brother and sister and go to the village. Inside the car, still nobody says anything about this swift movement. They drive straight to his grandmother's younger sister whom they regard as their grandmother since Tito's grandmother has died four years back – the grandmother who died several years back is the mother to Tito's mommy.

'Tito, the reason you are all here is that mommy has just died.'

This is the response Tito gets from the old woman. This is the same old woman who reported 'daddy's death to Tito 18 years ago. This is a sudden hard shock to Tito.

His brothers and sister are all looking up on him to come up with solutions. They have to stay stronger than before. Just like during daddy's death, Tito does not want this situation to confuse his mind. He has to stay unbroken about this sudden death.

'She is gone,' Tito counsels his siblings.

Tito's younger sister, Queen, is twenty years old. Elders at the funeral become suspicious of Queen's state of wellbeing. Had it not have been for the old women during the funeral services during mommy's death, Tito would have not known that Queen is pregnant.

Women, especially the old, are very observant at realizing pregnancy at any stage. When he is asked by the elders if he knows about his sister's pregnancy, it seems to them as if Tito is hiding the knowledge of his sister's pregnancy. Elders are shocked when Tito tells them that the news are new to him during that very moment. He assures them that he will have to deal with the issue and give them the answer in due course.

The death of mommy touched Tito's heart, deeply. He is now the head of the family. He moves from one point to the other making arrangements for the funeral – mommy's insurance funeral benefits, buying the coffin and food.

The funeral services are over.

Tito shall never get the answer to this question:

Mommy where is my father?

Soon after the funeral services, Tito and his siblings drive back to the city to the new home mommy has just built. It is upon him to take over the control of all his mommy's responsibilities.

After the death of mommy, Tito has to face another challenge in life.

He has to look after his brothers and sister. He is not employed neither is his brothers and sister. Despite his possessions of degree certificates. He has just been in and out of failing entrepreneurship undertakings.

Stakes are high. He has to solve his sister's pregnancy issue.

In a friendly approach, the following day, Tito questions his sister, 'Queen, 'is it true that you are pregnant?'

'Yes I am pregnant,' responds Queen with a soft voice.' 'How many months is the pregnancy?'

Continues Tito in a relaxed mood to make Queen relax as well. 'Six months', Queen responds with a very short straight answer. Tito gives some soft whistling as a surprise!

'Did mommy know about this?'

'Yes, mommy knew about this,' replies Queen as she looks down while giving short answers.

'Did mommy inform anyone about this pregnancy?' continues Tito wanting to understand the whole situation.

According to Queen, Tito's mommy did not want anyone to know about this pregnancy, except mommy, and the other brothers. Tito's mommy just informed the aunt of the young man responsible for this pregnancy. Tito's mommy said she would take care of the pregnancy and the child to the exclusion of the child's father. The reasons are known to mommy only.

This is according to how Queen outlines the whole story. This is evident on the hospital costs mommy paid to the private hospital for Queen to do regular medical check ups. But Tito does not know about all these arrangements, despite being the elder brother in mommy's family.

Tito considers this for a moment and deeply wonders to himself whether or not to continue as mommy and Queen have planned about Queen's pregnancy.

This brings confusion to him. He looks at his sister and says, 'Ok, this is all I want to know.'

Tito wants some time to give careful thinking to the whole chronic situation.

Six months pregnant! no elderly person knows, the two families of mommy and the young man have not met over this pregnancy – and this is contrary to our family customs.

'But I have to make a decision.' Tito cannot handle this by himself.

He encourages his sister and brothers that their uncles should know about the pregnancy and assist in taking care of the sister. They all agree to this.

Mommy left inheritance for the family which she fixed up with the insurance company during her employment. This inheritance is in the form of a pension fund. All mommy's children are allocated equal percentage shares except Queen who has a bigger share than her brothers. At the age of 20 years, government laws do not allow her to be in possession of this inheritance. She is regarded as a minor under the age of 21 years.

However, Tito reassures his sister that, collectively with his brothers, they will take care of her. The signatory to all mommy's insurance funds is Tito as indicated by mommy while she was still alive. Tito signed for all mommy's funeral cover funds. He also has to sign for the pension funds on behalf of mommy's children.

Whenever Tito goes to the insurance company offices, he takes all his brothers and sister with him. This is for them to understand all explanations from the insurance agents – for them to pose any questions if they have some. He wants everything to be as transparent as possible to everyone.

Before the inheritance cash is issued, Tito gets his brothers and sister to come up with plans for the cash. He asks them to come up with opinions on collectively investing that money for the benefit of all. They all have plans which will increase the money and benefit all. More so that, mommy's house is not complete and needs some finishings; the floor, painting, geyser, bathtubs, fireplace, electricity connections and wall wardrobes are not complete. They all agree to finish the house. They all agree to build their own houses in mommy's home and stay together happily as mommy's family.

Inheritance cash is now out. Each one gets all of his inheritance money. The younger sister's cash remains with the government to access it at the age of 21 years.

This is huge amounts of cash – each of them gets BWP95,000.00. The two younger brothers buy luxury cars, lavish jeans and jackets. They put on sunglasses, caps and android HD front camera screen display smartphones. These are the bling-bling boys.

The city boys of glamor and glitter – and this keeps them busy everyday. Chaos erupts in the family.

Two weeks later, Tito's bling-bling brothers, the third and the fourth born as well as the sister, turn against Tito. Only the second born sticks with Tito's ruling in the family.

'By nature, this third born child is the older brother in the family, because daddy who died long back was the one staying with mommy,'

Shockingly says Tito's sister, Queen, as she licks her fingers after grabbing some pepper-hot chicken wings from her lunch box. She says this right into Tito's face.

'What did you just say,' Tito replies with extreme shock.

She crushes her chicken wing, throws away the tiny bone, licks her fingers again and makes the same point clear.

'Am I out of my mind or is my sister losing her mind,'

Tito unbelievably says this to the other brothers. Tito refers the statement to all his brothers to help him get some sense into his sister's brain.

The two brothers, the third and the fourth born, the bling-bling boys, support the sister instead. They continue to add to how much mommy did not favour Tito and the second born in her life.

The third born repeats on how he is the first born in the family.

He emphasizes that he is the first born of daddy and that is what mommy told them when she was alive. 'Are you aware that I'm the first born, this one is the second and you, the third born in mommy's family?' continues Tito trying to educationally remind the third born of how their family set-up is.

'Are you saying you are the first born of our mom,' Tito poses this question with a lot of surprise and noticeably looks at the third born. He looks at his Rolex wrist-watch. The indicators flash as he presses the immobilizer of his two-door convertible black BMW sporty car. Elegant white leather seats without a doubt. The central-locking system pops up as the car alarm makes a 'quik-quik' sound.

'Yes I am mommy's first born child,' the third born, the bling-bling boy, replies.

Panic attacks Tito wondering if his mommy's siblings are losing their senses.

Remembering the construction company 'daddy' named after the third born in the family, back in the year 1986. And during those years, the beneficiary of the company was written in the company documents as well as the second director. The beneficiary of the business was indicated as the third born – the biological son of 'daddy'.

On the other hand, the fourth born, boasts about how mommy was intending to change the ownership of her newly built home at Block 9. The home she built from her work retirement package just four months before her death. The fourth born is also the biological son of daddy.

Well cut and stylish, his hair is sparkling. He is just from the beauty parlor. He dances to the high note of his high definition Panasonic car sound system. He whistles as he wipes off some dust from his glittering 21 inch mag-wheel tyre. In his classy Dickies suit and All-star full white snicker, the bling-bling boy blows his own horn. He boosts about mommy's intention in favour of him, the fourth born.

Despite all these disputes, Tito ignores these arguments and dismisses them. He never wants them to affect the family. Tito neither wants disagreements or conflicts anymore.

He has been engaged in the battle; 'Mommy where is my Father?' which Tito eventually lost.

Regardless of how much he tries to ignore these disputes, they become more severe one day after the other. These disputes are now affecting the bonding of mommy's family.

Tito is forced to call his uncles and elders to intervene but situations get worse even in the presence of the elders.

The family is ripped into pieces and Tito has to move out of mommy's home. Tito and his two brothers, the bling-bling boys, and the sister lose touch.

The family is broken into pieces. Grief after grief troubles Tito, day-by-day.

'Mommy, where is my father? This question will never be answered. Tito does not know his father's surname; at least he could use it to locate his father. Aunt Judy does not know anything about Tito's father except where he used to work. Aunt Osaa died in 1999 due to a car accident; maybe she could help Tito locate his father would she be alive.

Mommy is gone, forever. The answer disappears with mommy.