Chapter 20

Pauline
Since Muse freed our lives, everything has been fine. Actually, with the exception of a few worries about the maintenance of the house. Indeed, Muse was a great help with household chores. I must admit it in spite the fact that I don't love her. She used to take care of everything at home she was here. And she did so without complaining. But since she's no longer in this house, things have gotten a little more complicated with these tiring chores. I could well have hired an employee to take care of this, but knowing Pen the womanizer as he is, I'm afraid he'd get hooked on her and get her pregnant too. Therefore, I prefer to do otherwise. I could have relied on my daughters, but they are so lazy and good for nothing. Even their own clothes, they are unable to wash them. They let me take care of all the chores around the house without any help.
"So you can't get your hands in the dough and help me with the chores around the house? You rather prefer lying down like hibernating bears." I scream at them during a weekend when they are out of class. They are on vacation and normally they should at least help me take care of the house. But no, good ladies prefer to slouch on the sofa and watch TV, while I do all the household chores on my own.
"No mom, vacations are for rest, fun and entertainment. We've done enough going to school for over eight months this year, we deserve at least a little bit of a break before this cycle hell won't do it again in three months. So you'll apologize with your work, we're not boniches. Besides, you don't do anything other than spend your days at home. You can take care of it without our help." They answer me with all the nerve and disrespect they have.
"You lazy girl! Holidays are made to take a break from school and not from housework. Besides, only those who have really worked at school have the right to rest, and not lazy people like you who failed once again to upgrade. Get up quickly and come help me in the kitchen! " I order them shouting at them.
"Mom why? That was Muse's job, why should we struggle with it? She's the one who's good at this kind of job." The smaller one replies me with a lazy tone.
"Muse might have been good at these tasks, but she's not here anymore. Now it's up to us to care for our house. No need to remind you that she's been away from this house for months now?! " I reply, tired of their nonchalance.
"She shouldn't be kicked out of the house then. It's your fault that she's no longer there to take care of the house, take care of that on your own then. As for us, we are not women. cleaning. If you can't work on your own, take one. " The biggest retorts me brazenly.
"Get up quickly and let me see you in the kitchen lazy kids right away! You don't even feel ashamed to come up with silly excuses." I scream at them angry. I will then turn off the television.
The girls get up sulking at me and go in spite of themselves to the kitchen and I follow them. I try to share the work to be done with them, but they don't seem to be interested in it at all. I didn't know they were so lazy. They do not know how to do anything with their hands, except to eat. In just a few minutes of washing up, they've already broken two dishes and a glass.
"Leave the dishes, you're only good for nothing! Venelle, come fry the fish and Lola, cook those yams for me, I'll take care of the dishes before you end up breaking all my plates." I tell them, snatching my plates from their hands. They therefore go near the oven to take care of their work. As for me, I do the dishes quickly, then I clean the kitchen floor, I continue to the living room, because it has been a long time since the mop was passed there. I at least take advantage of my daughters' help in the kitchen to keep the house clean all over the place. However, while I was on the veranda already continuing to clean, I could smell a burning smell coming from inside. I throw in the mop and run to the kitchen to make sure this smell isn't coming from my house. But what do I see? Madame Vanelle is standing sheepishly handling her phone, while Lola has an earphone in her ear, dancing merrily. I rush over to the pot of yams on the fire and realize the burning smell is indeed coming from there. I put out the fire quickly and I scream at my girls
"But you've lost your smell or what? Don't you smell that burning smell? Besides, what's the use of staying in the kitchen if you can't watch a fucking cooking pot on the fire!"
I feel so exhausted. My daughters don't know how to do anything at all. And the last thing is that the pot is charred, it is impossible to recover these yams. Looking at the fish I asked to fry, there are only three pieces in the pan, and the rest are gone. I think I'm going to freak out with these kids.
"But where did the rest of the fish go?" I ask them the puzzled question.
"But here is this fish, can't you see these pieces? Or are you old enough that you can't see well? You should consider wearing corrective glasses, old lady." Lola said to me in a disrespectful tone, pointing to the three pieces of fried fish.
"But are you kidding me or what Lola? I gave you no less than ten pieces of fish and there are only three left, but you have the nerve to wonder if I can't see the fish?" I retort my anger rising a notch.
"And what? Didn't you expect us to go to work without eating ?! Are we slaves?" Vanelle replied by making me more pissed off.
"Get out of here immediately, before I make a mistake that I later regret!" I put them in high tension. I'm really pumped up. And to think that when Muse was preparing, she didn't put any pieces in her mouth. I, who thought I was doing them good by sparing them household chores, I realize that they have become rather great lazy people. Maybe I should be tougher on them.
Late at night, I go to bed very tired, today's day has so exhausted me. I must have worked twice as hard as I expected. Indeed, after my daughters had charred the yams and ate the fish, I had to go to the market to buy more yams, come home to clean the fish and fry them again to be able to make the meal. I finished very late in the evening. And what is funny, the girls kept complaining that they were hungry. When I finished cooking, I went straight to my room where I took a nice hot bath in the bathroom. I came back to throw myself on the bed very headed. Fortunately, I can count on Pen to support me. He came to find me in the room and massages my body. I feel a lot of good. I was savoring that peaceful moment when my phone rang. I do not answer the call, because I do not want to interrupt this moment of pure happiness. However, the call is insistent and after the third ring, I decide to take the phone to turn it off, but I change my mind when I see the name of the person calling. It must be of utmost importance if she calls me eg especially at such a late hour. Indeed, I had forbidden her to call me if she did not have valid reasons to do so, or in case of extreme emergency because I prefer to call her in person. I pick up the call.
"I hope you have good reasons to disturb me at this time of night Cécile ?!" I say bringing the handset to my ear.
"Madame Pauline ..." She stammers hesitantly.
"Speak quickly, I have no time to waste! Otherwise I'll hang up the call." I reply with a harsh tone.
"Madam ... I'm calling to tell you that ... Muse has escaped from the brothel." Cecile's idiot told me in a trembling voice.
"What? I hope you're joking my dear, and if you are believe me, your joke is in very bad taste." I cry out as I get up from the bed.
"No Ma'am, she actually escaped tonight." She reiterates the serious air.
"But what are you doing to me in the end you incompetent? I pay you a fortune so that you do not do anything at all. How did she escape from a brothel that is kept like a prison? ? Where have you been during that time? And the guards, do I pay them to strut or what? " I say entering into a great anger.
"We couldn't do anything ma'am. She was one step ahead of us and she's a very stubborn and intelligent girl."
"But you're kidding me, my faith! What can a child do against an experienced woman like you and all those useless guards I pay gracious wages to every end of me? Or is it a conspiracy you made against Me? If so, dare I believe I don't need to remind you that I have your son's life in my hands ?! " I threaten her very furiously.
"Madame Pauline, please don't hurt my son. I'll do whatever you please, but don't touch him! Remember how I've served you for years without incident. It was a conspiracy. with a client. They had already prepared their plan well in advance and the guards were deceived. "She tells me in a fearful voice.
"How was that a conspiracy with the client? What happened?" I ask, becoming more curious. Cécile goes into an account of recent events since Muse arrived in the brothel, until her meeting with this client where she ran away.
"And who is this client? What's his name? Where can I find him?" I ask him very impatient to know more about this famous client.
"He is a new client Madam. He had never requested our services before. It was the first time he did so two days ago. We have no information on him, since he called with a temporary number that no longer works. However, the hotel's surveillance camera can provide us with an image of him. " Cecile answers me.
"Alright, I must have this picture tomorrow!" I conclude by hanging up the call.
I am seething with rage, this news is so bad. How could Muse escape so easily? Definitely, this girl will never cease to surprise me.
"Maybe we underestimated her and we should have just eliminated her." Pen tells me after listening to my phone conversation with Cécile.
"I think that was the best thing to do. Anyway, she can't live now that she's out of the brothel. No one comes out alive, for fear of divulging the secrets of. the brothel. " I give him a hard look.
I wonder who this brazen guy is who dared to do such a thing. He dared to challenge me, and he will pay heavily for the consequences of his act. I impatiently await the images of this man to make him his skin. He won't escape me at all, because I intend to hunt him down until I exterminate him. I'll make sure I gut him with my own hands. I'll have this country scoured upside down if I have to, to get a hold of him.
"Don't worry, we'll find them shortly, I give you my word." Pen reassures me when I see my uplifted look.
He comes back behind me and starts massaging my shoulders again. It does me a lot of good. Fortunately, I have Pen by my side, otherwise I wouldn't hold it at all. Managing a brothel of this size from a distance is a very difficult task. I did everything to stay away from it, to avoid arousing any suspicion in me. Thanks to an idea from Pen, I met Cécile who was the girlfriend of one of his friends. The latter had hosted her out of pity, because she was pregnant with her ex-boyfriend who had traveled without giving him any news. Pen and I offered them money to run the brothel, but she strongly objected. So that's how we went through her boyfriend who accepted the generous offer made to her. We therefore opted for a strategy of threatening Cécile with taking the life of her son if she does not do what we hear of her. Since then she has been working for us.
Pen continues the massage to my pure happiness. It continues downhill. He was sitting on my back and I was lying on the bed. All of a sudden, my bedroom door opens and my husband walks in.
"What is happening here?"
Muse
I must admit that Mr. Hawam is showing more and more reassurance to me. My fears and apprehensions are slowly falling. However, I can't seem to shake off that feelings of anxiety deep inside me that dictate that everything I am going through is a mirage and that overnight it will not end up falling apart. Every night I wake up with a start at least three times because of the nightmares I have. I dream of men trying to rape me. They chase me and I feel exhausted until I wake up. Sometimes I dream that I go back to the brothel and that I am locked in the dungeon, and that I will never get out of there. That night, for example, I woke up screaming. I had cold sweats all over my body. This time, I dreamed that Pauline was chasing me with Pen to kill me. It looked so real. Sitting on my panting bed, my door opens. I see Mr. Hawam going into disaster
"Muse, what's going on? What happened to you?" He asks me looking panicked.
"I had a bad dream that felt so real to me, but don't worry. Everything is fine." I answer him in order to reassure him.
"As of tomorrow, I will take you to a psychologist. You really need it. I noticed that you have a very restless sleep, it is surely due to the trauma you experienced with your uncle combined with that of the house. close. "
"Thank you sir !" I reply gratefully.
"Please call me daddy. That would make me very happy. At least I could hear someone call me like that again." He retorts, begging me with a look. I can detect melancholy mixed with sadness.
"It is with anthousiasm that I will do this." I hasten to say to make him happy.
"Thank you!"
"Dad ... don't you have children, little children? Where are they?" I ask him the question with great interest. I would be very honored to meet the children of this man with a generous big heart. However, it looked like my question shouldn't have been asked. Mr. Hawam plunges his gaze into space, he is as if in the throes of inexplicable pain. I stammer guiltily.
"I shouldn't have asked that question, right? I apologize!"
"No my child, you are not the problem. It is just that this question evokes in me very painful memories. I lost five years ago already, my wife, my daughters and my little girl in a traffic accident. Since then, I have been left alone. " He tells me about his face full of sadness.
I feel so bad for this nice man. How unfair is life! Such a good man, how can such things happen to him? Mr. Hawam stays close to me and waits for me to fall asleep before returning to his room.
The next morning, Mr. Hawam takes me as promised to see a psychologist before continuing to work.
"He's a nice guy, you'll see." He reassures me after noticing my worried look.
"You know him?"
"Yes, he is used to working with the employees of my companies. He is one of my partners elsewhere and the clinic we go to belongs to him." Mr. Hawam explains to me.
We did not take long to arrive at the clinic despite the traffic jams on the way. It's a large clinic, very well built. We enter it until the reception. The receptionist asks us to be patient because the psychologist is with a patient.
"I want to leave you to continue at work. You can sit there, he will receive you soon. The driver will come and bring you back at the end of the session. Okay?" Mr. Hawam tells me as I sit down on one of the many benches in the waiting room. He goes leaving me alone. I wait about ten minutes, then the receptionist leads me to an office that I imagine to be that of the psychologist. She leaves me after I'm inside. At first glance, I am struck by the youth of this psychologist. He looks very young to be the one Mr. Hawam described to me. Maybe he was talking about another person and this one is just the secretary.
"Hello young lady, come on please!" He invites me towards him by displaying a beautiful smile which reveals the whiteness and the beauty of his teeth. I am dazzled by the brilliance of his smile.
"Thank you! I came for a consultation with the psychologist. Is he not there?" I ask, walking slowly towards him.
"Yes, I am the psychologist!"
"Oh! I thought you were more like his ... Anyway, you seem a little too ..."
"Young to be a psychologist?" He cuts me off at my word.
"Please forgive my mistake!" I hasten to apologize.
"Don't worry, I'm already used to this kind of situation. Doctor Euniel!" He responds by holding out his hand to me.
"Euniel?" I ask, looking him straight in the eye. This name reminds me of something.