Chapter 52

"My girl, you ought to know us well enough by now, to know that you can trust us to behave towards you in a loving way. We can listen without flying off the handle."

"Then I will explain. I started off looking for someone safe, to lose my virginity to. Tokunbo told me that Olu was such a person – safe, reliable, trustworthy, and tight-lipped. I accepted her assurance, and Olu accomplished that task for me."

"He took your virginity??"

"He did, at my request, and he was ever so gentle. It made the act so nice for me. Now, I originally intended this as a one-off event, but being the nice guy that he is, he invited me back again, and he was very nice to me again, quite solicitous. We did NOT have sex this time, just a pleasant evening with his family, after which Olu brought me home, as you remember. He wanted to do the right thing, at every stage. Before we had sex, he admitted that he had only been with one woman before that; I already was aware of the fact, however. That is how he knew what to do to make a girl happy."

Mrs Lubbock interjected, "Was he still with this other girl, at the time?"

"This is where it gets complicated, Mummy. His previous experience was secret, unknown to his family. It was only during my second visit that the secret came out, but it is not public knowledge, so you must swear you will not pass it on!"

"Provided it is not something bad or illegal, you can have that promise from us, darling."

"Tokunbo was the girl who took his virginity, and he was still enjoying her favours. She told me this before I first went there, so you see she is an honourable woman."

"Tokunbo? The older lady? Surely she is old enough to be his mother?"

"She is thirty-seven, and he is twenty, so you may be right, but he is still smitten by her, for she is a wonderful woman."

"I see. So he admitted to his family about his liaison with her? They must have been shocked."

"Yes, and no, Mummy. He said something that showed his love for her, and when queried, he admitted she was his lover. At that point she informed them that she was carrying his baby."

"What? Olu is fathering a baby on this 37-year-old woman?" Susan's mother was horrified, while her father just sat there, open-mouthed. Susan summoned up her will-power.

"Mummy! It was not like that. Tokunbo has been a widow for two years, and had not been with a man since her husband died. She was quite taken by Olu, and ... well ... basically, she seduced him. She never bothered about protection at the time, and the pregnancy resulted. Olu did NOT force himself on her. SHE was the instigator, but fell for him. She tells me that she loves him, but does not want to marry him, UNLESS he has a wife around his own age. She would happily be a second wife."

Susan's mother was overwhelmed with all this information. "So you are just a girlfriend while he looks for another woman to marry? That is a most peculiar situation to be in."

"Tokunbo looks on it differently. She says he needs a wife of his own generation, because she will get older while he is still a young man, so he needs a wife who will age with him. So you see, she is thinking of him, and his future."

"I still think it is odd. It leaves you in a most invidious position."

"Mummy, it is not quite like that. According to Peggy it seems that the reason I met Tokunbo first, was that she was hunting for a girl for Olu to marry. She was a self-appointed talent scout, and she chose me, as a possible wife for Olu."

"Oh! You? Marry? But you are only sixteen, my girl, much too young to marry."

"Mummy, Winston's new wife is only sixteen, and two of Mr Defreitas' wives are aged sixteen and seventeen, and they already have babies!"

"Defreitas?"

Mr Lubbock enlightened her, "The Managing Director of Rehome Deliveries, dear."

"Oh. I see. But still..."'

"Mummy, Olu has NOT asked me to marry him. In fact, I am not too sure he is aware of Tokunbo's plans for me. I don't know what she has told him. As far as he knows, I just came to lose my virginity. It is his own idea to keep seeing me. That is what I am assuming."

Daddy put in his own thought. "Susan, do YOU want to marry this man, if he asks? That is the important question."

Susan pondered. "I think so, Daddy. He is a man I believe I could live with. I never thought I would be saying this, so soon after losing my virginity, but I trust him. More importantly, Tokunbo trusts him. She is willing to marry him and I trust her judgment. She is an experienced and mature woman that I could live with, too, as that is what it would probably mean. I think it would be good for her to talk this over with you two, before she even gets Olu to ask me.

I would like you to be happy for me, if that course is what I decide."

Mr Lubbock was decisive. "Right. Invite Tokunbo to come visit us, by herself, and we can have a chat with her. She is old enough to handle some common sense questions, and young enough and good looking enough that if she wasn't so enamoured of Olu, I might have been interested in her myself – sorry, mother."

"I forgive you, you big idiot. I understand where you are coming from."

It was time for Sylvia's next weekend visit to her husband. She was excited at the prospect of being able to discuss with him their baby on the way, and how they were going to prepare for being parents. The upbringing of a child was not a simple matter, she recognised. A child needs a loving environment in which to be properly nurtured, but also needs instruction and direction in how to behave towards other people, and towards the world around it: the world that provides food, drink and material help for living.

She had so many plans scurrying around her head, but wanted Herbert to discuss these plans with her, so that together they could do the best for their child. It was an exciting time in her life; an exciting time in Herbert's life, and a wonderful new life for their coming baby.

The train thundered on, over the kilometres towards where Herbert was working at his boring job that was anything but boring. His exploration of the rocks ahead of the tunnel was a vital part of the planning of the tunnel's route, and she was proud of her man's part in this effort.

She checked her watch for the time, as she knew when the train was scheduled to arrive at the halt for the site workers to alight. Her check showed her she had another fifteen minutes to go. She reviewed what Herbert had said in his last communication, just before she left Metropolis. "Ore bore has encountered coal now, Sylvie. That is much easier to bore through, but if is a soft bituminous coal, that may be difficult for our tunnel plans. We may have to strengthen the tunnel walls in that location. However, that is the point of our exploration: finding where we have to alter our planned route, or change the tunnel walls to suit the environment. We will probably have to change the drill bit for the alteration in density we are going through. I shall tell you more about it when you get here."

Ten minutes later, the driver made an announcement over the train intercom as the train slowed and passed over points.

"Ladies and gentlemen, there has been a change in our schedule. Due to an underground explosion, this train is currently moving into a loop section that is not far ahead, and will stop for a while, to allow an emergency train carrying rescue workers and equipment to pass us and get to the site quickly. We apologise to you for this inconvenience. The train has transmission facilities, so that your personal phone will connect to the communication satellites, and you can contact anyone waiting for you at your destination, to notify them of the delay in your arrival."

Sylvia had a horrifying premonition of dread. She hoped desperately that she was wrong. She grabbed her phone and clicked on Herbert's icon. The phone dialled, but did not make a connection. She trusted that this meant that Herbert was busy helping at the explosion site, and was unable to get to his phone. She had no other number she could ring, so she sat, numb with worry.

A few minutes afterwards, a train rushed past them, sounding its horn in salute as it charged on ahead. A little later, their own train started moving again, to regain the main line, and move along the track to where the temporary station was positioned. Passengers who were in a position to see a fair distance as the train swung round the curve to regain the main line, shouted back that the other train had stopped at the station and was unloading people and machines. Their own train hung back in its own section of track until the now unloaded emergency train moved forward, clearing the station platform. This allowed the scheduled train to move down to the platform. The driver made a new announcement.

"Folks, you cannot got off just yet, until the platform is clear of all rescue personnel and equipment. We will remain where we are until given clearance for disembarking those for whom this was their destination. Everyone else MUST remain on board, as we will be moving on again very soon. With a bity of luck, we will be able to speed up and arrive at our final destination on time."

The train sat there for another ten minutes, but there was nothing to see. It was frustrating for those needing to get off, and for those wanting the train to take them to their destination. The promise of catching up on time was looking like a forlorn hope now.

At last, the announcement came. "All those with tickets for here, go to the door of your carriage and disembark with your luggage. The instructions say you must stay on the platform while security personnel check your tickets and ID. This train will leave in five minutes, so all others, please remain in your seats."

Sylvia got off with her bag, found a clear spot, and dropped her bag so that she could stand erect. She felt nothing, tensed up with fear of the unknown, lost for what to do, afraid to speak to others on the platform. Most of them seemed to be workers returning for their shifts.

A group of men in the uniform of the security service appeared at the exit, and gestured for the travellers to come to the exit. A queue formed, of the travellers who had come from the train, and they were checked, one by one, at the exit from the station.

When Sylvia finally got to the security men, they looked at her rail ticket on her phone, and her ID.

"Mrs Jameson, would you come with me, please?" said the man. She was by now confused and numb, and simply did as asked. He took her to a temporary building, done out as an office, and directed her to another man who sat at a desk. This man said, "Please sit down, ... Mrs Jameson ... while we establish your connection with this accident."

She sat there, shattered with terror at what might have happened.

"Your husband is Herbert Jameson? Mrs Jameson?"

"Oh, yes, Herbert is my husband. We are not long married."

"Right. Let me see." He scrolled though some data on his phone. "Hmmm. I think I need my assistant. Excuse me."

He got up, went to the door and called, "Evelyn! Need you here."

He returned and sat down. Looking at Sylvia, he remarked, "She will just be a moment, then we can proceed."

Sylvia was by now confused. What was going on? She wondered. There was a noise as the door was opened, and a woman in a nurse's uniform entered. "You need me, Jonas?"

"Yes. This is Herbert Jameson's wife, Sylvia."

"Ah." She drew a device from her pocket. "Excuse me, Sylvia," she said, and fired the injector gun at Sylvia's arm. "Ouch!" exclaimed Sylvia. "What did you do that for?"

"Just a tranquiliser, Mrs Jameson, to make it easier for you." She turned to the man at the desk. "Should be all right now, Jonas."

He then spoke directly to Sylvia. "I am sorry to tell you, Mrs Jameson, that your husband has been killed in an accident."

No. It could not be true. They are trying to keep me from Herbert. He has probably been injured.

She was surprisingly not too upset. She wondered, Perhaps that injection had something to do with it. Could Herbert really be dead? But that would mean I would never see him again, and our baby will never see its father. Her mind was kind of fuzzy, and she had trouble being concerned about anything.

The nurse said to her, "Sylvia? I think you had better come with me. We have a bed where you could have a lie down until you get over the shock." She allowed herself to be taken to another cabin, and lay down on the bed there. The nurse now said, "Sylvia, I think you need to sleep while your mind copes with this news. This is to help you sleep." The woman gave her another injection with her tranquiliser gun, and Sylvia drifted off to sleep.