Still Waters

SIXTEEN

Smoke...

Smoke...

Ajay wants war. He thinks we are not being taken seriously. He wants us to strike again.... fast. I think pain is clouding his judgement. I tell him we need to lay low for a bit.

"Guy you don soft finish." He shouts. "I say make we burn everytin, dem say we no go sleep, dem sef dem no go sleep. Dem dey use us dey play? Dem know who we be?" He demands striking a fist to his chest repeatedly. "If Torras don collect choppins na em know. This one no be about money for me again oh, e don tay wey we pass that level...."

I drag on my weed, choosing to stay silent and let him rant. He is angry, and rightfully so. But his anger won't get him anywhere. It is pointless.

He continues. "You know see wetin dem do for okrika? Army just fall in just dey shoot people anyhow? Dem craze? I say Dem craze?" He shouts as he paces the floor.

"My babe wey go see my mama, na so stray bullet..." His voice beaks but he pushes through shouting even louderr. "My babe don kpai. Person wey no hold gun, no hold knife, Dem shoot am for belle. Which kind army be that?"

He punches one of the pillars on the spacious balcony where we had come to talk. "I dey talk am since say our government no reason us at all. Army go just wake up kill people like chicken. Na em Torras dey talk say make we calm down, say dem dey negotiate. Negotiate wetin?" He bellowed. "Negotiate my ass".

Torras is the code name for our negotiator. After the first wave of attacks, the government requested a negotiation with us. We sent Torras, a lawyer uncle Green hired who swore he was loyal to the cause. He is a son of the soil, so we welcomed him. Personally, I thought he was too clean and smooth to truly identify with the creeks but we needed someone who could speak the language of crooked politicians. Torras did that expertly. We seemed to be making headway. There were talks of policies and laws that will end the spillages and gas flaring before the year end. It seemed promising until the army showed up. An atrocious act was carried out in a village which they say was the hideout of the militants. It wasn't our hideout, just our hometown and I'm sure they knew about that. They could never find us so the decided to hurt the people we love. Five deaths, 18 injuries and lots of burned down houses.

All cards should be off the table right now. But Torras thinks otherwise and I'm beginning to think he's been compromised. He seems to forget the reason for this war. It's not about money even though that would help. They could send billions into the Niger Delta and still nothing changes. The land remains polluted, the babies stay sick, the fishes stay dying, and all we have are a few billion naira that was stolen from us in the first place and will still be stolen before it makes way to the masses.

Ajay is still pacing around with his slight limp that becomes more prominent whenever he is worked up. The last time I saw him like this, his mom had died twelve years ago. He had paced up and down the hospital lashing out angrily at doctors and hitting his chest. He looked scary to most people in that mode, like a wolf ready to pounce. But I knew he was broken. There was only one other human who understands him the way I do. And now she is gone. I'd admit I want to blow up government skyscrapers just to get him his revenge.

"Ajay"

He huffs and paces on like he doesn't hear me.

"Ajay"

He looks at me with a deep scowl on his face.

"We will avenge Belema. They will pay for this. You have my word." He holds my gaze for a moment, silent, like he is considering whether to believe me or not.

"Forget Torras. E no get say for this matter. We go treat their fuck up" I assure him. "But you need to trust me to arrange things my own way, in my own time."