Muna blamed the witchy-looking neighbour who rang the doorbell on the second morning. She invited herself inside and looked at Ebuka in surprise when he said he hadn’t heard from Yetunde. He explained that his wife had taken her clothes, suitcase and passport, and he assumed she planned to stay away for some time. After that, Mrs Hughes became inquisitive.Was it normal for Mrs Songoli to go away without warning? Had she done such a thing before? And how had she managed to leave so quickly? There had been less than an hour between Mrs Hughes speaking with Ebuka at the gate and her finding Muna in a faint. Had either of them seen a taxi pass? At the very least Mr Songoli should call Yetunde’s friends to discover if they knew where she was. What if she’d met with an accident?Ebuka’s resentment at being interrogated by a virtual stranger meant his answers were curt, and Muna saw that Mrs Hughes found them suspicious. She stepped in to make the explanations herself. Mamma always threatened to leave when she was angry … She kept her suitcase in her bedroom cupboard for that reason … They had seen many taxis while they were out but hadn’t thought to look for her in them … It was a good idea to speak with her friends … She would persuade her father to make the calls after Mrs Hughes left.Mrs Hughes appeared to accept what she said but Muna noticed that her curious eyes were never still.
