Ruth:From Farm To Queen

Chapter 2:The Mansion Job

The next morning, Ruth woke up to shouting.

Mama Nosa was holding the five thousand naira that David gave her. Her eyes were wide with greed and suspicion.

"Where you thief this money from? You don start to follow men for market? You think say you fit bring ashawo money enter my house?" she shouted, raising her hand to slap Ruth.

"No mama, I did not steal it. A man gave it to me. He asked for water and I gave him," Ruth cried, protecting her face.

Mama Nosa's face changed. She counted the money again. "A man? Which man get this kind money to dash village girl like you?"

Ruth explained about the black Range Rover and the fine man. Mama Nosa's eyes opened wider.

"David Osayande? Chief Osayande pikin? Ruth! You for tell me since! That na our helper! That na big opportunity!"

She suddenly became sweet, something she had never been in three years. She pulled Ruth up from the floor.

"My daughter, sorry oh. I don suffer you too much. See, you go go back to that market tomorrow. You go look for that man again. If you see am, tell am say you need job. Any job. Even housemaid for his big mansion for GRA. If you get job for there, we go comot from poverty!"

Ruth was shocked. Mama Nosa was now hugging her. But Ruth knew it was not love. It was greed.

That same evening, while Ruth was fetching water from the well, a white Toyota Corolla stopped in front of their house. A man in suit came down. He looked like a secretary.

"Who be Ruth here?" he asked.

"I am Ruth," she said, scared.

"Chief Osayande's mansion sent me. Oga David said you dropped your wrapper yesterday at the market and he wants to return it. He also said if you are looking for work, you should come to the mansion tomorrow morning by 8am for interview."

Mama Nosa almost fainted with joy.

"He remembered me?" Ruth whispered, her heart beating fast. She did not remember dropping any wrapper. She knew what it was. It was an excuse to see her again.

"Yes. Be there early. Don't be late," the man said and left a card with an address: No. 12, Etete Road, GRA, Benin City. The address of the gods.

That night, Ruth did not sleep. She washed her only good dress, a faded pink gown she wore for Christmas three years ago. She ironed it with a charcoal iron.

On the other side of Benin, in the Osayande mansion, David was having a quarrel with Vanessa.

"David, you sent a driver to go and find that dirty farm girl? Are you mad? Do you know who I am? My father is a Senator! You want to employ a beggar in this mansion?" Vanessa shouted, throwing her Gucci bag on the floor.

"Vanessa, lower your voice. She is not a beggar. She has dignity. And I need a new personal assistant for the new flour mill project. I saw something in her eyes. She is honest. Not like all your Lagos friends who only know how to take pictures," David said calmly, but his eyes were hard.

"Honest? She wants your money! All these village girls are the same! They will charm you and then steal!"

"Enough!" David shouted. "I have made my decision. She is coming for interview tomorrow. If you have a problem with that, you can go back to Lagos."

Vanessa kept quiet, but inside her heart, a dangerous jealousy was burning. She picked her phone and sent a message to her friend: "I need you to find everything about one girl called Ruth from Ugonoba. I want to destroy her before she even enters that house."

The next morning, 7:30am, Ruth stood in front of the biggest gate she had ever seen in her life. The Osayande mansion was like a small heaven. Two security men with guns, big interlocking compound, flowers everywhere, a swimming pool that shone like glass.

She was wearing her faded pink gown and her broken slippers. She felt small, very small.

The gateman looked at her from head to toe with disgust.

"Where you dey go? No beggars allowed here."

"I... I have interview... with Oga David..." she stammered, bringing out the card with shaking hands.

The gateman laughed and called someone inside. After five minutes, the same driver who came yesterday came to carry her inside.

The inside of the house was colder than the outside because of air conditioners everywhere. The floor was shining marble.

And there he was. David. He was sitting in the living room, wearing a black polo and jeans. When he saw her, he stood up and smiled. That smile made Ruth's heart jump.

"You came," he said softly.

"Yes sir. Thank you for the opportunity, sir," Ruth said, looking down.

He stared at her. In that faded dress, with no makeup, her natural beauty was even more obvious. Her skin was smooth despite farm work, her eyes were still shining.

"Ruth, I want you to work here. Not as a maid. As my personal assistant for my foundation project. We help poor village girls go to school. I think you understand their pain more than anyone. The pay is 150,000 naira monthly. Plus accommodation in the boys quarters. Are you interested?"

Ruth's mouth opened. 150,000 naira? She made 5,000 naira a month selling garri. Accommodation? In this mansion?

Tears started to fall from her eyes before she could stop them.

"Sir... I... I only finished secondary school... I no go school well..."

"I know. But you are smart. I can see it. I will send you for training. What do you say?"

Before Ruth could answer, a cold voice came from upstairs.

"So the farm girl has arrived to start her gold-digging job?"

Vanessa was standing at the top of the stairs, wearing a red silk robe, looking down at Ruth like a queen looking at a slave.

David's face became hard again.

Ruth's new life was about to start, but her biggest enemy was already waiting inside the same house.