MELAMINA THE QUEEN

CHAPTER 38

The welcoming and cleansing ceremony at the Mkhize homestead was done and everything went well. I even had a dream about my grandfather and my great grandfather seating together and talking. I guess that means they reunited and buried the hatchet. Mediating for dead people is never easy because you never know if they really want to forgive each other or they are content with how things were when they died.

I got to meet a lot of family members from my mother’s side of the family. Some of them asked for transport money when it was time to go back home. There were a few that even went to great lengths of getting money from me by telling me how miserable their lives are. Some asked for jobs even though they are not qualified to fit into my company. Like how do you turn down a family member politely when it comes to that part?

Someone who I connected well with was my mother’s eldest sister, Ntombikababa. That woman is very savage and proud but she is very loving and welcoming when she wants to. We also share the same gift so we had a lot to chat about. I also met my mother’s older brother who asked if I could connect him with the king so that they can discuss some tenders. Like come on, he is a royal prince. All he has to do is ask his uncle for connections and all will be well. But he looks like he is a few months away from his grave, so maybe he should focus more on his health and not tenders.

Dad and Kuhle paid lobola before we even left. I guess they did not want to feel indebted to the Royal family. I think dad built a some type of a connection with my grandfather, the current king. They even exchanged numbers when we left. As soon as we got back to Durban, everyone went back to their lives, except for Busi. Her situation is a very tricky one. She came home with the kids and her husband called her a lot until she decided to block him. We have never been that close in life, but she is my sister and I need to be there for her in times like these. Which is why I cleared out my schedule and decided to take her out. She doesn’t need to be locked up at home. She will end up caving and taking back that bastard. I managed to dodge my guards by taking my husband’s new car. He hasn’t installed a tracker in there, so he won’t send them my way as soon as he notices I’m not home.

I arrive at my parents’ house and head inside. I find Busi watching those Zulu speaking Indian shows. Yeah, she is in the deep end and needs some rescuing. She is even wearing dad’s gown and sleepers. I’m pretty sure they let her use that because of the state she is in.

“Hey big sister.” I greet and she finally notices that I’m in the room. She frowns.
“Aren’t you supposed to be at work? Or somewhere doing a good deed?” if she wants to go there, I will go there.
“Well, you are on my agenda today. So take a shower. We are going somewhere.” She waves me off.
“I am good here with Onesipho. You can go about with your day.”

I huff. Why is she being difficult? “Busi, I don’t mind dragging you to your room and bathing you. I did cancel a lot and maybe did something to piss off my husband just so I can be here for you. The least you can do is cooperate. You are not going to forget about the man you left behind by becoming a couch potato. Instead, that will make you miss him even more and you will find yourself leaving in the middle of the night just so you can go back to that asshole.”

She scoffs. “Whatever, sdudla.” She gets up after that and drags her ass to the bedroom. Finally. I don’t even care that she called me sdudla. If that means she will allow me to help her through this painful process, then she can throw those insults my way all she wants. As long as she finds the healing she needs.

In the meantime, I busy myself with making smoothies in the kitchen. I’m pretty she hasn’t eaten anything today. She comes back after 10 minutes wearing a dress that’s a bit loose. I’m not judging, she has lost a lot of weight. We are going to have to work overtime to get her back in that shape because it made her confident in herself and all I want back is that confidence. I hand her the smoothie. We walk out and she stops near the car.

“Where are your guards?” she asks.
“They took a day off.”
She gives me a look. “All of them?”
I shrug. “Maybe. Get in the car.” I climb into the driver’s seat and she gets into the passenger.
“Is this the car you bought for your husband?” I nod. “I would never buy that lying piece of garbage even a bicycle. He doesn’t deserve it.”

“Well Kuhle did buy me a palace in Ireland for my 33rd birthday, so a mere car means nothing.” She rolls her eyes. Yeah, I realize I have nice life problems according to her. My marriage is at a place where I want it to be and I am content. I want to get Busi to a point where she doesn’t get angry, jealous or envious when she hears about other people’s successful marriages. It’s a long way from here but I will put in effort. I hope she sees that.

“So which part of town are we heading to without your guards?” she asks.
“I was not born with guards, Busi. Anyways we are going to Bluff. What we will do when we get there is a surprise but I know it’s just the right thing to do in order to distress and take your mind off things.” She sighs but nods nonetheless. That means she will try and put some effort. “How is it like living with the rents again?”

She chuckles. “Dad is still the same person. When it comes to showing affection to his wife, he won’t shy away from that just because I am going through a tough time. He is the best. Mom is also great. I know they said I am not a burden, but at my age, you can’t help but feel like one. You cant help yourself. My peers are making their marriages work, even my younger siblings are happy in their marriages. And then there is me, the eldest, about to divorce because I wasn’t enough for my husband.”

I wish I can stop the car on the side of the road and talk some sense into her. But this is Durban. You can only stop near the road when you’re in town or smaller roads, and not the highway. “Busi, not everything is as it seems. We are not going to tell you every shit that happens in our marriage, but a few months ago I nearly left my husband. You remember those news about him taking a second wife?” she nods.

“Sorry I didn’t reach out to check up on you after that.”
I smile. “It’s not a problem. You had your own shit to worry about. I had not told him about my decision, but I knew that if he chose to take a second wife, I would walk out of that marriage with all of his assets because I made it pretty clear to him when he was still courting me that I would never share him.”

“But he is crazy about you. So I’m pretty sure he would have even turned his back on the throne just to keep you.” I chuckle. Yeah, my husband would do something like that. Speaking of the devil, my phone rings and it connects to the car automatically. I answer the call.

“Ndabezitha.” I say in the most polite and charming way.
“Don’t Ndabezitha me we Ntombifuthi. Where are you?” I keep quiet because I don’t want him to track me. “Don’t make me ask again and don’t make me send the SWAT after you.”

“I am out with my sister and I need some freedom and some normalcy. You know I’m not a difficult person, but I need to be here for my sister as Ntombifuthi Cele, not Princess Melamina Zulu.”
He chuckles angrily. “I don’t know if both of you fell and hit your head, but as of last week, you both became princesses of the Abasembo Royal family. There is nothing normal about you.”

I pout. “If you are going to continue speaking to me in that manner, I am going to hang up.”
“Don’t you dare.”
“Watch me.” I hang up and Busi laughs.

“God. You guys are so cute. I wish I had problems like those in my marriage.”
I chuckle. “I am glad that you find that amusing. Anyways, that man is going to send a chopper after me. He won’t even try to call again. I will just see his guards showing up where we are going. Downside of being married to a crowned prince. Yoh, fuck my life.”

She continues laughing. “You chose this path yourself, mtase.”

I don’t know when was the last time I saw her laugh in this manner. It’s so good to see her let go and just be in the moment. I continue telling her about the times when Kuhle and I had squabbles and she is just laughing like I am Trevor Noah. Well, I do add some spice to make the stories a bit interesting. But the facts are legit. We get to Bluff and I drive us to the Bluff Nature Reserve. We take a walk there and we start opening up about our lives. We have never really had that sisterhood moment, so I am actually getting to know the real Busi. After that, we head to Bluff Towers.

“I don’t want you spending your husband’s money on me.” She starts off as soon as we enter the mall.
I chuckle. “I am just not going to get offended by that Busi. I am going to be using my card. This is where all my salary, dividends and other incomes go to. But I never use it. So I am not Kuhle’s wife. I am just your little sister, spoiling you with my hard earned money.”

She rolls her eyes. “Yeah, whatever.”

We go from shop to shop getting clothes. Yes, I wear most custom made clothes nowadays because of my status, but shopping with my sister in regular stores feels nice. She even helps me choose underwear. After that shopping, we go to John Dory’s for late lunch. There isn’t much options for eateries here. Just two restaurants. Just as we are munching on our desserts, I see Mpendulo making his way inside the restaurant. Okay. That marks the end of my freedom day. It was nice while it lasted.