Novels by Ugonma Ukuku

The driver stops at a hotel that stands so tall and intimidating. I don’t get time to admire it because the driver immediately steps out to open Luther’s door. I get out too, walking quickly behind Luther in an attempt to match his pace. It’s difficult, considering that he’s very tall with long strides while I’m below average.By the time we make it into the elevator, I’m almost sweating from the exertion. I need to get my workout in if I plan to continue working for Luther. I have no stamina.While we wait in the elevator for our floor, I study the file Luther’s assistant sent. It’s information on the client we’re meeting and it keeps me occupied enough that I don’t register that it’s just me and Luther in this elevator. My roles are not many but significant enough that one fuck up could ruin this for Luther, whatever this is. I can almost feel her displeasure over having me handle this. She’s a perfectionist too and hates that she’s letting a rookie take such an important job. She e

Unfortunately, life has it that no matter how much you hate a person for his behavior towards you, if you work under him, then you’re going to have to put up with it.I never wanted to be anyone’s underdog. I always hated employees who didn’t have a spine and always lay down and took it from their employees. Now, I want to apologize to them for judging, I understand better.Luther is dressed in a different getup than I prepared for him and unwillingly, I have to admit that it looks less “funeral-ly” than what I initially put together for him. He doesn’t say anything to me as he walks past me in the hallway.I’d gotten dressed a while ago and stood waiting outside his door, not planning to provoke him any further but he walked past me like I wasn’t even present.I sigh, following quickly behind him. There’s a car waiting outside the mansion. A man with dark unimpressive features stands waiting by the already open back door. Luther gets in and with a bow, he closes it behind him. I stan

I squirm, uncomfortable under Luther’s angry gaze.“What do you mean?”, I ask. He doesn’t answer my question.“Your incompetence is beginning to grate on me, Richards”, he says, gritting his teeth. I blink, confused.“You instructed me to get your clothes ready-““For an appointment, not a funeral!”, he cuts in, glaring at the clothes arranged on his bed.I finally take note of the fact that every piece of clothing I picked out is black, save for his shirt.“I didn’t realize-““Of course, you didn’t”, he cuts in again.“And”, he continues, picking up the suit jacket. “I dress in the closet. That’s what it’s for”, he says as he disappears into the closet, leaving me standing confused in the middle of the room.I hate how much he affects me. I hate how much his disappointment discourages me. Every time I do something, he ends up disapproving it which doesn’t help my state in any way.It comes to my mind that I have a daughter in the hospital who needs my help. I need this job and I’ll b

Luther still thinks I had surgery. I hoped for a few more days with Keila even if I knew I had to go back to work on Monday. Surprisingly, Luther sent me a text, telling me that I could take the next few days off to recover. Again, the guilt of lying to him burdened me but I refused to dwell on it, choosing instead to celebrate the small win by staying by my daughter's side and pandering to her every wish.By Monday, I was allowed to feed her, and by Wednesday, I could now touch her, with my full costume of anti-infection of course. Keila still laughs at my blue coveralls every time, she says it looks ridiculous but I’m happy it makes her happy. Katie doesn’t have clearance to visit as freely as I do yet and I hope she gets it soon because I will be needed at work again and Keila needs someone by her side.I talked to the doctor and he told me he’d make arrangements so a nurse would be there by day with her and then I can come in the evenings after work. I agree, settling for it. It’s

I’m in the hallway, sitting on a bench directly in front of Keila’s surgery unit. She’s been in there for seven hours now. I’m worried, I want to let myself scream and bawl, but I hold it in, assuring myself that surgeries are usually long and can be even longer. Katie and Emily have been by my side since after they wheeled Keila away. Katie hated that she didn’t meet up to see them take her away but she’d seen her in the morning before she had to pick up some things. I’m grateful for her company, she’s a silent support by my side as we both wait for news. And then there’s Emily. I know this is far from easy for her, considering that she lost her son not too long ago. She’s a strong woman, and she doesn’t know how much her strength encourages me.Katie hasn’t asked why Louis isn’t here, and honestly, I don’t want to know. He sent me a text, telling me he had to take an urgent trip and apologizing for how he couldn’t be here at the moment. He told me to kiss Keila for him. Kiss her! Li

“Sir”, I scream, running to his side. His face is wrapped in pain and his grunts are mottled. I try to shake him awake, confused and worried. The anxiety waving through me is not even letting me think straight.“Luther”, I try again, touching a light hand to his face. He grasps my wrist, squeezing it tightly as his expression turns even more pained. I can’t tell if he’s having a nightmare or if he’s having a seizure. I’m about to call out for help when he gasps in a pained breath, jerking awake. His eyes are disoriented for a moment as they glance around before settling on me.I see the confusion and then realization passes through his eyes. He lets go of my hand.“What are you doing here?”, he asks. His voice is croaky from all the pained grunting.“I heard you...from my room. I was worried”He ignores me as he tries to sit up. He still seems a little out of it so I help him up myself. He doesn’t throw me away like I expected and lets me help. We get him to sit on the bed.“Do you n