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MIDNIGHT MADNESS 3.

<<<Chapter three.>>>

The loud ear piercing scream coming from Dami's room woke Mama up. She checked her wristwatch. Time was just twelve o'clock. It was midnight.

"Why is he shouting by this time of the night?" she murmured, wondering what must've have been his reason for shouting.

She dashed to his room immediately she heard another loud scream. Luckily for her, his door wasn't locked.

"Dami!" She screamed when she got inside. What she saw frightened the living hell out of her.

Her eyes were so wide that you'd think it would fall out from its socket.

"What is wrong with you?" Was her question but it was left unanswered as Dami began to scratch his body and was uttering words that mama couldn't understand or make out.

It was like he didn't even recognise her. She rubbed her eyes hoping that it was all a dream but opened it to see that it was too real to be true. Tears of sorrows formed in her eyes.

Dami looked at her in a very weird way. She made a move towards him but when he began to laugh and say things to himself, she moved backwards out of fear.

Seeing that mama was afraid of him, he lunged towards her and gripped her singlet like he was going to hurt her. Mama breathing became rapid as fear consumed her.

It was like a demon had possessed her son. She screamed as loud as she could but stopped when she heard him screaming along with her.

They looked at each other briefly before he started laughing again. Mama took this as an advantage to pull away from his grief, her eyes roaming in search of his room keys and once she found it on top of the locker at his bed side, she aimed and targetted for it.

It was like she was faced with a 'do or die' option.

She found a way to distract him a little but once she did successfully took the keys, she ran out, slamming the door shut and locked it.

"Neighbors please come to my aid o." she wailed outside her house, crying profusely. "Please come and help me. I'm confused."

People who heard mama screaming, came out of their houses to know what the commotions were all about.

Mrs. Ennio and her son were the first to wake up and rush to Mama's house with concern.

"My son has turned to something else all of a sudden." Mama shouted, rolling on the muddy floor.

Neighbors who heard the noise began to troop into Mama's compound. Some were concerned about what was going on in Mama's house while few came to fill their ears with latest stories that was going to be their topic of gossip the next day.

"My wife, what's the problem?" Asked Mrs. Ennio.

She was used to calling Mama Dami her 'wife' because she was her sister in-law and was married to her younger brother before he died.

"I think a demon as possessed your nephew." Mama cried.

Raul was confused by what mama had told them.

He flashed back to when he had gone to the club. Aftter sometime of smoking, drinking and gyrating, he left for home. He was having a running stomach so he had to.

When he got home, he saw Dami in their house fetching water for his mother. He could recall that Dami was normal infact after he was done with the fetching, Mrs. Ennio served him tea and bread as an appreciation for his kindness.

"So you refuse to eat my food?" Mrs. Ennio had asked when he refused to take it at first. "So your mother told you not to eat your Aunty's food too?" She said, placing her hand on her chest dramatically and exaggerating the whole thing.

Dami shook his head "Not at all Aunty." he had said.

Dami thought it was not a bad thing to eat in his Aunty's house so he ate before he went home but not without telling her 'thank you'.

So how can Dami, whom he saw like thirty minutes ago before now be suddenly possessed by a devil?, it sounded unbelievable.

"What do you mean mama?" Raul asked with disbelief.

"Your cousin is insane!" Mama yelled.

Raul frowned. He was thinking mama was the insane one. He spun round and walked into the house. He wanted to see for himself.

Mama must be saying nonsense - he thought.

"You can't go inside alone!" Mama shouted after him but he ignored her.

When he got to Dami's room, he unlocked the door and once he opened it, a blow from no where landed on his nose causing it to bleed instantly.

Before he could regain from the shocking blow he'd received, Dami had already ran out of the house stark naked.

People that were outside with mama shouted:

"Ewo!!!... Please hold him."

"Ha!! This boy has become mad oh"

"Hold him before he runs away."

"Chimo! Please, tie him before it gets out of hand." some one advised.

Four boys were able to hold him down. He struggled with them and fought with them like he was ten but they still managed to put him down as Mrs. Ennio gave them a rope they used in tying him firmly to a pole outside.

Raul came out from the house, with a tissue in hand that he'd used to clean his bleeding nose. He couldn't still recover from the shock. His cousin was truly mad. The same cousin who had shared his meal with him.

"Are you alright?" Mrs. Ennio and Mama asked in unison, worry printed on their faces.

He gave a little nod because he was dumbfounded by all the event playing in front of him.

His cousin was mad. Only the thought of it, hurts him to the bone.

Mama turned back to look at her son. The boy she'd raised alone all these years. The boy she loved with all her heart. Her love for him was greater and bigger than that of an ocean. That love can not be compared to the love a husband had for his wife and as she watched him, her heart bled.

.................

(A/N: some places, tribes or religion in Africa especially the Igbo's refers their brothers wife as 'their wife', reasons are unknown to me.)

Word

Ewo: it is a kind of exclamation / wailing used in Nigeria when there is trouble.

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