The gods are hungry1

Ijeoma watched quietly as Ofodile made his way to the reclining chair which was placed on the house veranda;it was a chair on which her late husband,Madueke,used to sit in the evenings after the days work, while IJEOMA would be stretched out on a long bench beside him as they chatted. all of a sudden,Ofodile had developed a fondness for that chair, a development which was beggining to irritate Ijeoma even though she fought hard to keep her discomfort in check. Ofodile tucked his loosely tied wrapper between his legs as he lowered himself onto the chair with some effort, a sign escaping his lips as he leaned backwards. His walking stick clattered on the floor as he dropped it and both hands went instinctively to the back of his head to cushion it from the hard wood. Ijeoma silently watched him,her hands not leaving the bowl containing the melon seed which she was husking. 'I didnt see you on the farm today,' Ofodile began.'are u alright'. am alright nna anyi, i decided to sit home and rest today. the rainy season is still a long way from now...'that is true 'Ofodile cut in.'but one need to start clearing in time so as not to be caught unawares by the rains. 'I know, nna anyi, i just want to take things easy ofodile cleared his throat and leaned forward as if to draw closer to ijeoma.'have you thought about the proposal i made to you earlier in the week,my wife'although ijeoma knew that was Ofodile's mission,she made it obvious that she was not in the mood for such a did not hear the man's question. 'i asked you a question, ljemoa...'' 'i heard you,naa anyi...'' ''what have you say then' ''i have nothing to say,nna anvi...' the abruptness of ijemoa's response irked Ofodile and his face clouded over with anger.but he struggled to control his emotion having made up his mind to endure whatever indignity ijemoa would fling his way as long as he succeeded in quest.'don't you think that is childish answer,ijemoa' he asked.''what do you mean by having nothing to sayh or do you mean to tell me that my proposal and i are worth nothing to you..' ''that is not what i mean,nna anyi...' ''then tell me what you mean'his voice came out a shade louder than he had meant.but instead of responding immediately,ijemoa lifted the bowl of melon seed from her laps and placed it carefully beside her the floor. ''hna anyi,she began in a voice surprisingly calm.''i wouldn't want us to misunderstand each other over this issue;at the same time,i wouldn't want people to get the wrong impression 0f what our relationship'. she paused and folder her hands across her laps.''after my husband died,you were the one that convened the meeting in which i was asked to choose the man who would be warming my bed, do you remember' do you remember that you warned me not to admit any other man to my bed once i had made that choice. again Ofodile indicated agreement by another kind of feeling, thatbsinking sensation that warned one about an imminent loss or defeat. he had known Ijeoma would be difficult to acquire, he however, was not in anyway prepared for the indictment she was about to pronounce on him. Do you remember that all of you, including the Umuada,took me to the family shrine to extract from me the oath of upholding the family name even when you knew that it was not necessary. This time there was no nod of affirmation from Ofodile. he sat foward on the chair one hand supporting his jaw,his eyes staring vacantly into the distance.''madueke has been dead for six years,and i've kept my oath of dragging the family name in the mud.'' she paused as if to make sure that point had sunk in before continuing.'at your request,i chose Ekejuiba undense who also accepted me as his mistress.when he came to perform the ikuchi ekpe rite,you accepted him and gave your blessings to the relationship.ever since then,have you found any other man in this house who has genuine business with me?Ofodile was silent.ijemoa was reducing him to nothing;she was also doing it masterfully.he was overwhelmed with shame at his stupidity.any cool headed was far from what he had been feeling ever since he had set his eyes on Ijeoma. what hot blooded man would not desire her. she was a widow quite alright but she did not look like one. her breat were still firm though she had nursed three babies. she was still an young woman who took great care of her body.no wonder then so many suitors had been trying to gain interest, suitors of whom Ijeoma had refused, preffering instead to spend the rest of her life alone in this house. alone. Was she really alone with Ekejiuba coming and goingas he wished?his anger was stirred again by that thought and with some effort that he dragged his mind back to ijeoma who was still passing sentence on him."...want me to dedecrate the oath you administered on me yourself by opening my legs to you of all people?do you realise what you are asking me to do? Do you want to lay me open to the wrath of the gods?" ijeoma was still fighting hard to keep her cool in spite of the anger blasing in her heart.if anyone had told her that she would not already have been shouting abuses at the randy goat siting across from her. To be continued