ICY HANDS OF LOVE

AnnaEveryone knew Christopher Hanson was a lunatic, but I was going to marry him. I sat in the car, thinking about my life in a nutshell. What other thing could I do well aside from messing things up even more?I sighed and glanced out the car’s open door. I was there, at the Hanson’s family mansion. The building rose like a giant and the intricate glassy design instilled a sense of wealth in all who saw it. It was easily the biggest building in this part of Abuja.I checked my phone, noting the time, 9:27 a.m., fifteen minutes had passed since I arrived in the car but no one had come to at least acknowledge my arrival. One would expect that Christopher—or anyone else of importance—would abandon their coves to come to usher me in. Christopher. Thinking about him, I felt silly because I thought he ought to have come out to see his new wife who had been brought on a platter. Heck, the man hadn’t even shown up to sign the marriage certificates. The certificates had been packaged and se

I became calmer by evening and I felt the long warm bath I had contributed hugely to it. There were still a lot of things on my mind, but I didn’t feel weighed down by them too much. When in my life had I never felt many burdens weigh down on me? Yeah, it was probably a routine in my life now. Dad said I was a failure. It was because of that, that I accepted to do this—to try and atone for my mistakes.With a long sigh, I started unpacking. I didn’t bring much so I knew it wouldn’t take too long. After hanging my clothes in the wardrobe, I put my shoes on their rack and then I put my books, files, and laptop on the table in the bedroom. When I laid down the books, something sticking out of the pages caught my attention and I pulled it out.It was a photo of a woman with a charming smile, sunny brown hair, a pair of sneakers, and a crown made of flower petals on her head.MomI never knew her; I never heard her talk—and Dad said she had the sweetest voice. That had been in one of Dad’s