SURROUNDED
EPISODE 3
I gained admission to study Accounting. Papa will never s£nd me money and so did my siblings. My sisters will only give someb©dy money to buy me food stuff but won’t give me money. Mama will.s£nd the money to another person’s account to give to me secretly. My father must not know about it.
The way I’m treated saddens my mother so much. I don’t know how my father got to know mama s£nds me money. He ban my mother from going to all his establishments and st©pped giving her money too. Mama had this land she bought. She sold it and divided the money into two. She gave me half and used half to start block business. It was going well for her until mama fell sick.
I thought it was mere sickness. I was in school so i never knew how serious it was. I was in the dream one afternoon when mama c@m£ to visiting. She brou-ght alot of stuff for me and said “OGUGUA, my son. Stay strong o. I’m going. No time again. I will come back and visit you when i have the chance”. She started crying. I was like, “mama, why are you crying na? I will cry my own now o”. Mama started wiping her eyes. “No my son, plea-se don’t cry. I’m no longer crying. Mana, ha gbalu gi okirikiri(but You are surrounded) ma n’iru, ma n’azu(both front and back) ogugua, enter church. I can’t st©p them. They are even after me. Look for church Ogugua, church oooo” i woke up.
I could not place it. I just waved it. My father doesn’t go to church. Going to church for me is as difficult as dictating a v!rg!nfowl. Why is mama advising me to start going to church? I waved it. It’s just a dream i said.
There was a little break so i decided to go home. I didn’t tell anyone i was coming. I just wanted to surprise my dear mother. I was looking forward to working in her block industry to earn some money for myself. I got home and met the shock of my life.
My mother was lying down. She was looking like bre-ad soa-ked in water. Mama was swollen. I dropped my bag. I almost dropped my heart. What is this???? I shouted? What is going on???? Mama!!mama!!! What happened !!!! I kept shouting and crying (as he narrated in broke into tears) mama stretched forth her swollen hands to reach me. I held her hands to my che-st. She said, “ogugua, oguguam obi, ogugua nwa m, Ogugua”, she was shedding tears as she called me. She tried to feel my face. She wiped my tears and her hands dropped. Mama died in my hands. I dropped the hand and ran outside with my hands on my head, i shouted. I’M FINISHED OOOOOO, I’M FINISHED!!!! What did i do oooo, who did i offend oooo, mama m oooooo, . My brothers were holding me. My sisters too.
My father spent money on my mother’s burial. All i did was cry. My only helper. The only one who stood before me. I begged death to take me too. Death was deaf to my request.
After my mother’s burial, i had to return to school. My father actually followed me to school. He paid every payable and bid me farewell. He did not give me a dim. I didn’t even ask from him because that’s his way. Mama wrote a letter and gave to her very good friend aunty Eunice. Aunty eunice gave me the letter after mama’s burial. Mama told me of 700k she kept un-der the foam in her room. Another 200k is with one mazi ugo. She told him i will come and collect it. I paid in all the money into my account. The money will last for 10yrs. So i thought.
After mama’s death, my father’s hostility increa-sed. He even st©pped paying my fees, he no longer cared about anything that concerns me. I started using that money to sort myself out in school.
My father and siblings abandoned me. I will cry every night and day. I tried not to allow it affect my studies because i had no one helping. It was all on me. I kept wondering why my father and my siblings hate me so much. One night a friend of mine named OTUKPO called me. He said to me….
“dan, join us. Join the rainbows. Your popsi go bend if you join us. we-tin sef???? Why your popsi go heartless like that? If you join us, your old man go arrange”.
As good as the offer was, i don’t want to let my mother down. So i declined. Tragedy struck when i was about writing my final exams. Onyema gave me his bag to keep. He was my friend, i thought i knew him too well. At about 8:15pm, i was in my room re-ading, policemen stormed our lodge and asked for Daniel okoroala. I stepped out. They said they have warrant to search my room. I asked for what? I asked to see the warrant and identity cards. What i saw was valid. Then i allowed them in. They brou-ght out guns, ha-rd drugs, phones, sim cards. They were like who owns these. I don’t know i answered. One of the officers landed a heavy sl@p on me, CRIMINAL, we found all these in your bag.what bag? I asked.They held up onyema’s bag. “It’s not my bag” i shouted. It was falling on deaf ears. I was cuffed and arrested once again, FOR A CRIME I DID NOT COMMIT.
Who will save me!!!!!
SURROUNDED
EPISODE 4
I was detained. I was beaten blue black to confess to a crime i didn’t commit. I decided it’s better i die than admit what i didn’t do. I even want to die. I have suffered so much. I saw blood pouring out of my mouth and nose. I was happy within me. Finally, i am leaving this wicked world to join my sweet mother. The very last punch to s£nd me to the great beyond landed on me, i smiled as i staggered to the ground and i said “atlast i’m going to stay with mama” i fell to ground.
I woke up in the cell. I didn’t die. I started crying. Why I’m i alive? I thought i had died.
I was detained till my exams were over. My final exams!!!! I was eyeing first clas-s!!! I will have to carry over. I cried.
The just wanted to die. So i decided to make trouble with the cell mafians. Of course the were beating me, i started feeling close to death when someb©dy , a policeman shouted “St©p ” (to his colleague behind him)BRING HIM OUTSIDE. HIS FATHER IS HERE”
what!!!! What does he want? Why is he here? What is he doing here??? was what was going on in my mind.
I c@m£ out, my father shouted.
“Chim oooo, what did my son do? Why this? Do you people want to ruin me?
There was h0t argument betweeen my father and the police men. He went in to see the D.p.o. I was later re-leased.
The school expelled me. There was no way i was vindicated. Onyema absconded. Even friends who knew i did nothing kept their distance. Four wasted years!!!!! I tried sorting. How much do i have ? I alre-ady put so much money but all to no avail. I went home. Home was hell. My father treated me like trash. I still visited the shrine. Even in school, once it is time, and i refuse going, it feels like i will drop dead. I will run to the herberlist and do the nee-dful.
My father gives me food, buys me clothes only after visiting the shrine. One day, i decided to leave the house. The money my mother kept has been exhausted. I nee-d money. I took the little remaining and headed for the city. I begged to stay with my elder brother obinna. He agreed. Brother obinna refused to help me. I was just useless, completely useless. I decided to start selling pure water and mineral in front of bro obinna’s house. I didn’t have money for cooler. Someb©dy taught me the rice sack and carton method. I wanted to use bro obinna’s freezer, he refused. I buy iceblock.
Bro obinna will take my soft drink on credit, for himself and his friends and he won’t pay on the grounds that, he feeds, clothes and shelters me. One day, i went mad. I demanded for my money from bro obinna. We fought. Guys gathered and was asking, i narrated.
Neighbours started raining insult on my brother.
“Obinna you wicked. So this boy is your blood brother, your last born. Upon all your money, see what he does for a living. You own 4shops, you own 3cars, see your younger brother. Ont©p of it all you take his drinks on credit. You are very wicked”
Bro obinna s£nt me out of his house. That night, i walked all alone. With tears in my eyes. I remembered mama. These things won’t be happening if mama was alive. I had no where to go. Home was far from where i was. I couldn’t even go home. I never wanted to go back home. I sighted an old woman frying akara. I walked up to her and sat on the bench she kept. I watched as she was bring the akara out. I remembered my mother. I started crying. I offered to help her bring them out. She agreed. That was how i ran into MAMA VERO. Meeting her was Evil in disguise.
Mama vero was the area mama for thieves and touts. She kept gun, ha-rd drugs and charms for them. She just used AKARA as disguise. She gave me shelter and food. Vero her daughter is a mafian. She is feared in that locality.
I knew my end has come the day mama vero called me and told me it is time to join the family business. I should start going for operation with the boys. I didn’t say no for fear of being killed. I just picked few important stuffs from my bag, threw it over the fence and pretended like i was just strolling. I went behind the fence, took my polybag and ran away.
Back to the streets. Nowhere to stay. My father is stinkingly rich, my siblings too. Here i am, all alone in the cold, Looking for ordinary shelter over my head.
I stayed in an open bus, parked in a mechanic workshop. That night, i couldn’t sleep. My maternal home would have been safer but my late grandpa’s second wife is a devil on her own. Mama was the only child from her mother. I cried. I sle-pt and dreamt i was la-id on a table and i.heard a loud voice that said, ACCEPT MY SACRIFICE . Next thing, i was on fire. I was burning and shouting. I shouted out of my sleep. I was so afraid. I looked throu-gh the windscreen and saw two men n-ked with cutlas-s and a pot. RITUALISTS i whispered to myself. One said, “let’s hide inside that bus. Someb©dy might pas-s” . I dropped dead!!!
To be continued