UNTAMED

Part Nineteen

{I have escaped like a bird from a hunter’s trap; the trap is broken, and I am free}
    
        There was blood on his shirt and he said he had killed Chief’s men. He was looking for Chief to kill Chief, then Chief would not be able to come for her and he would kill her when he got tired of her. Tears flowed out of her eyes as she moved towards her food. She was not hungry but he would kill her if she did not eat. She tried forcing herself to eat the rice and chicken but she could not, he had almost crushed her when he held her neck. What if he came back to touch her. Her body shook at the thought. Earlier, she had heard a motor noise close to the compound. She had thought he had returned but after some time, she heard the noise of the motor again and later it stopped. Maybe those were Chief’s men looking for her. She should have screamed for help. She felt sad she just thought about that now it was too late.  She tried to distract herself by looking at what was in the big box. There were a lot of clothes, skirts, dresses, tops and trousers. She saw bathing soap and sponge, toothpaste, toothbrushes, undies, brassieres and also pad. Chief had also brought pad every month and he also used to give her some drugs he had called pills. He had said that would prevent her from getting pregnant. But she was sure that Beast did not know that. He would touch her and make her carry a baby. Fear laced through her at that thought. She stood up and started walking round the room, she went to the door hoping to find a hole at the door handle where she could peep and know when he would come to touch her. There was no hole but something was wrong with the door. It was not fully closed, she held the handle and pulled at it, it opened making her gasp. He had forgotten to lock the door. A thought immediately came to her mind. What if she ran away? What if Chief was searching for her? If she ran she might meet Chief or Chief’s men. But then she remembered Abigail. Abigail had ran away and he had killed her. She went back to where she had been sitting close to the wardrobe before Beast had entered. After few minutes of sitting down, she stood up and went back to the door. Abigail did not have who to run to, that could be the reason Beast had caught and killed her. She had Chief to run to, and there was the part where he was looking for Chief, he had killed Chief’s men. It was either she stayed back and wait for Beast to touch her which she knew she would not survive it or ran and look for Chief and tell Chief Beast was looking for him. Chief would reward her. She shook her head and walked back to the wardrobe but almost immediately, she went back to the door. This must be a gift, this was the help she would ever get and she must make use of it. She opened the door squeezing her eyes and face with the hope the sound the door made would not give her away. She quietly moved through what looked like a passage, she saw a door which she tried pulling but nothing happened, she pushed the door and it opened to what reminded her of a parlor, she did not know how she knew but that was a parlor, there were two more doors but she did not think it was the way out, she closed back the door but it made a loud noise. She stood still waiting for him to appear but after some seconds without seeing him, she continued her movement. That big zoom zoom sound must have helped her. She got to another door and tried pulling it but it did not bulge, she pushed it but nothing. She studied the handle and pressed something round, it make a click sound. She tried pulling the door again and it opened. She smiled at the sight before her. Although outside was a bit dark, she could see a little with the help of the moon. How did she know it was called the moon? Suddenly a song flashed through her mind.
“I see the moon, the moon sees me. God bless the moon and God bless me” she sang.
But how did she know that song?
      She heard a bird’s noise making her turn back. She had almost forgotten she was supposed to be running and not smiling and singing a song. She quickly came outside, she felt elated as her feet touched the ground. She ignored the happiness and started running making sure she passed where there were no grasses. It was not that wide but she knew that must be the way. She ran and ran. She stopped and breathed heavily then continued running. She heard the flapping of wings almost touching her head and stopped to look at the bird, the night was not clear enough but she knew it was a bird.
“A bird” she said as the bird flew towards her face.
Even though she had no memory, she knew birds don’t bite. She stretched her hand hoping to touch the bird. The bird dodged her hand but did not fly away, instead it landed on her arm making her laugh. She robbed the bird’s head.
“Go, fly away. Don’t let him catch you. I’m running away. I want to find Chief. I need to go now” she said gently pushing the bird away from her arm.
The bird flew high and she continued her run. She burst out on a road. She knew she had been running on a road but this one was different. It had black blocks on it. This was where cars pass, she thought. But there were no cars, might be because it was dark. She crossed the road, turned left and continued running. She heard another flapping of wings and saw the bird. It was following her. Maybe it was her guardian. She stopped running.
“Where did that thought come from?” she said aloud.
After taking some deep breaths, she started running again. She saw another road that looked like Beast’s road but looked better because there were no grasses here and there. She entered the road and continued running. Finally, she could see houses. She thought about knocking to ask them if they knew Chief but changed her mind. She should run farther before asking. After running for a long time, she could no longer see houses, except bushes and what looked like an uncompleted house. Tiny smoke was coming out of it.  She stopped running and turned to go back. She would knock on the first house on her way back.
“Hey lady, you miss road?” someone asked making her turn.
He had come out of the uncompleted house. There was something in his mouth that brought out smoke. Someone else joined him. She took two steps back, her fear resurrecting.
“No, I’m looking for Chief” she said taking another two steps back.
“Who be Chief?” he asked after removing what was bringing out smoke from his mouth and blowing out large smoke from his mouth.
“Take me to Chief. He will reward you” she said.
“Onos you sure say this girl dey alright so, who go dey look for person by this time” the second man said.
Surprisingly, she could understand what he said.
“She be like person when one Chief don use her kpekus exchange for money. Her head come scatter join” the first man answered but she did not understand him.
“But this na manna from heaven na, nothing stop us to enjoy her kpekus too” the second one said.
He took what was bringing out smoke from the first one and put it in his mouth.
“Abi?” the first one said moving close to her making her take a step back.
“Please take me to Chief” she said.
The first man pressed something in his phone that gave light. He raised it to her face.
“Wait oo, guy come check this face, e dey familiar” he said.
The second man came closer with the smoke thing still in his mouth. He pulled it out after looking at her.
“True, guy na she oh, e be like say we don hammer oh” he said.
Smoke came out of his mouth as he spoke.
“You sure say nor be the drink dey do us so? You sure say we never high? How three million pepper go land for our face like this” the first man said.
“Guy snap am and send am, make we confirm am” the second man said.
“Will you take me to Chief?” she asked moving back.
“Girl, relax, shey na Chief you dey call Ojogolo, relax we will take you to Chief. I know Chief” the second man said hitting his hand on his chest.
The first man pressed something on his phone that blinked light. He continued pressing his phone.
“Guy I don send the picture through Facebook. Make we wait. I put my phone number” he said.
“Girl come sit down. We are contacting Chief, we go take you to Chief” the second one said holding her hands.
It felt bad and she pulled her hands away.
“She nor won touch, okay just follow me come sit down” the second man said.
“Wait, I don get response now now, na true oh” the first man shouted.
His phone started making noise, he pressed something and placed it in his ears.
“Yes I dey hear you loud and clear” he said and paused.
“She dey here life and direct, she say make we take am go meet Chief” he said and paused again.
“Oga we ready to bring am now now, but you need to clear way.” He paused again.
“Guy he say cash on delivery, how far?” the first man asked.
“You dey even dey ask me, you don forget say na peace message, our life dey secure and on top we don hammer three million” the second man answered.
“Oga we go bring am. I know oga, I know the penalty, we nor go fail to deliver. We nor go touch am, no touching, we don dey enter road self” he said.
He removed the phone from his ears and started touching the top of the phone.
“He say make we dey come Ologbo, he say dem go meet us for the boundary” the first man said.
“But who we go borrow car from na, Aka nor go gree. We never pay am for last time” the second man said.
“Tell am say we don win the peace lottery, if he nor believe make him follow you come see, we go share the money with am” the first man said.
“Na him be say you go wait here make I go carry the car come” the second man said.
“Oya hurry, I go dey watch am” the first man said.
“This one wen ojogolo won pay that big amount for person when him don use her destiny, I just dey feel say something else dey.”
“Guy e nor concern you, abeg waka fast” the first man said.
The second man entered the uncompleted building.
“Girl see block, sit down, he don go bring car when go carry you go meet Chief.”
“Really? You are taking me to Chief?”
“Yes na, you still dey doubt?”
She shook her head and sat down on the block.
“Thank you” she said.
“Thankless, you know say plenty people don dey look for you, we dey even dey think say you run but e be like say you nor run, wetin happen?”
“Beast captured me, he wants to kill me. I just ran away hoping to see someone that will take me back to Chief” she said.
“Who be Beast?”
“He is very large, like two of you, he came and took me away from Chief. He wants to kill Chief, then kill me later.”
“Girl I nor just understand wetin you dey talk. How person go be times two of me? And how person go enter Ojogolo territory, capture you just like that. Wetin dey even do me self. See as I dey expect craze person to talk normal.”
“Craze?”
“Girl relax eh, just relax, we go take you to Chief, okay?”
She nodded. She heard the flapping sound of a bird and raised her head. She saw the bird again making her smile. Her guardian was around.