Nuru Jibri was not observant enough to take cognizant of the armed men as they drove in through the back gate. They came in by 10:30pm. Their vehicles were as firm as the Armored Vehicle of the German soldiers in World War II. Loaded with fiercely Bold men, dressed in army camouflage, having the looks of vampires that have been Starved for centuries. They looked more thirsty for blood than a starving vampire. Nuru had earlier told Chinulu about the strange man who walked around the estate gates without being interrogated by the security men standing there. His father Sabo Jibri, worked for Chinulu's father- Elias, as a gate man, but the boys were close friends more than their status Permits.
They dropped down one after the other, tall and average, dark and fair, guns loaded with bullets, wearing frowns like those God didn't add the ingredient ‘smile' in them when He was creating them. "They are well built" Chinulu would say had he seen them as they dropped from the vehicle like dogs that have been used to chase a thief. He loved to go to the gym and compared his abs with any guy who walked in the estate.
"Scatter everywhere until you bring the idiot out." one of the armed men said, pointing round the buildings. There were six buildings there. Chinulu's family stayed in the middle building. His father built the house in a similar way and called it "Identical buildings." They were painted with the same colors of paint. So confusing, that most times people go into their neighbors house without knowing it wasn't there.
That night was all disturbing and scary. As the men surrounded the house, going into each building, dragging people out and hitting them with the head of their guns. Most bled as they lay helplessly on the floor. No one knew what they wanted, but they wanted something, someone, who knows? There was danger, but Nuru didn't alert the neighbors, for fear he would be harmed. He pressed his hands to his mouth, as the men were forced into Chinulu's family main building. He Knew they would be the main target. He saw Chinulu go in, after they argued about whose builds were more firm and eye-catching.
“He should be in. No he shouldn't. But I saw him go in, or maybe he left shortly, but...”Nuru argued with his thoughts.
By 12:00pm, there was a gun shot 30 minutes after the men went into Chinulu's family house. "Oh! They've killed him" Nuru muttered. There and then, he wished for mysterious powers to use on the vampires that gave them a surprise visit. Since Chinulu's father went for a business trip, he would definitely be the new man of the house. Maybe he struggled with one of the men as they tried to molest his sisters or hit his mother and he got shot. Maybe he dived to the floor, trying to play Jackie Chan with one of the men and he angrily hit him with the head of his gun, his mother who couldn't stand the shock of the blood oozing from her son's head, jumped onto the man and got herself killed by his gun. Too many horrors, too many happenings; all in one night.
"Please don't hurt her, she's pregnant," Hajia Suliat pleaded with two of the men who waited outside for others to go in and finish the job.
Umi was groaning on the floor she was forced to lay, facing her heavy stomach on the floor. Her fearful husband was so scared to plead for her safety. He too was overwhelmed with fear, so he quietly exiled himself to an unknown land inside his thoughts, because he prayed for Allah to receive his soul as he lay like a child on the floor, with one of the men placing his foot on his head. The weight of the boot killed him six times before he slumped.
"I don't think he is still breathing," the man who placed his boot on Yusuf's head said, moving Yusuf’s head with his boot. Umi screamed.
"Wayo Allah!" as she heard what the man said about her husband. She went into forced labor, water came out of her part and Hajia Suliat cried in a bitter way.
"Please let me attend to my daughter in-law since my son is dead. I can't lose a son and a grandchild at the same time." Her words should have softened their hearts, but the devil has even disowned them and they have no room in hell to stay, so how would they know what it is to feel?
"You will soon join your son if you don't stop that song you are singing." That was frightening enough. She quickly covered her mouth. Who wants to die? Life is a special thing to pamper. That's so cruel of him not to have considered the poor woman.
The men would have left if they hadn't seen Elias's picture that hung on the wall.
"So this is where the Idiot has been hiding with our money? Let's see how it goes." Why would they address him as an idiot in front of his family?
This is it: Elias is a drug lord who has dedicated his life to the service of drug dealers. His business trips to Brazil and Colombia in most cases, was to either see how his drugs are being pushed from South America to North America. He did business with Diego Santos and had refused to pay the money he owed. It was a deadly game, but more deadly when you try to escape with your opponents money. Diego Santos and Kunle Ojo had been friends before Elias came into the picture. Kunle ensured safe and clear transactions in South Africa, Kenya, Jamaica and Nigeria. Well, the enemy of your friend is your enemy. Elias became Kunle's enemy as he escaped with Diego's money.
1:56am was too slow to turn into 2:00am. Nuru's eyes refused to close, even when his body wanted to sleep so badly. His eyes were brighter when he saw Umi delivering her baby with no support. She took off her panties and struggled to push. The men watched and walked a bit away from where she was. She screamed louder than before. Labor was purgatory compared to the hell she was facing now. She had to be strong for herself, for her baby, for Yusuf, and for Hajia.
Won't these people leave? How long will they torment before they quench their thirst for human blood? Those bastard sons of a hundred fathers. Their voices roared and they stamped their foot harder on the glass table and the side stools that rested innocently close to the mother couch- An expensive couch imported from Paris the last vacation the family went. Kunle smashed Elias's glass framed picture on the floor. He broke the screen of the plasma television that was placed in the middle of the sitting room – expensive properties indeed.
"Madam, if your husband does not provide for himself, I will use one of your girls to clear his debt. I'm not here to joke." The girls clung to their mother as he threatened them. All the while this was going on, Chinulu was nowhere to be found.
The baby's head came out at 3:00am, covered with fluids mixed with blood. It was slippery and as Umi pushed, the blood coming out was sticky and smelled like a chicken soaked in hot water ready to be skinned. At last the baby was out, born by a super woman, in a super dangerous hour. The situation made the baby not cry, unlike normal babies born in a comfortable situation. The baby dare not cry, not after seeing the guns from the womb before coming into the world.
"Aluhamdulillah" Hajia Suliat said calmly.
It was like a dream when God delivered Zion. Kunle lowered his voice as he answered his phone. The only thing he spoke out loud was OK. He hung the phone and gave a sign to the Other men, they nodded and he said harshly;
"Retreat!"
with this, they all left, not saying a word to anyone. When they all disappeared from the vicinity, Nuru quickly found his way to Chinulu's house. His sisters and mother were in tears as they sat on the floor, not moving. He didn't see his friend there. He looked through the door that led to the kitchen, there was the dead body of a smuggler– Chinulu's dog. He tried defending and got shot, it wasn't Chinulu.
Where could he be?
"What's going on here?" Chinulu asked as he walked from the room that led to the balcony. They were all surprised to see him. Nuru jumped to hug him. He had been in his father's underground house. He dozed off while playing a video game. The underground house was built by his Father for safety, so he made it a secret known to his family alone.
"We are leaving Katsina first thing tomorrow morning." his mother said angrily.
Yusuf didn't die, he collapsed because of fear. The Yoruba Muslim man couldn't withstand the shock. Sabo Jubri was lucky not to be around, he would have been shot. He loved to play the hero all the time. He went to his hometown to take another wife. The third one. Something intervened, a mysterious intervention from a supernatural being-God of course. Elias had transferred the money he made away with, into Diego's account. Diego called Kunle to tell him, that was why they left after the phone call. Else, the bloodshed of Ozubulu would have repeated; worst, If at all.
Bio:
Onyinye Maureen Kenneth is a passionate creative writer. Her works have been published in anthologies like 'Get Consent' (an anthology on rape and sexual assault against woman) 'Arrow of words' (anthology in honour of Chinua Achebe.) She was one of the contributors of the world's longest poem in February 2020. In 2019, she was shortlisted as one of the Top Ten Young Nigerian Poets by BN magazine.