SURVIVORS

CHAPTER NINE

    The celebration was ongoing, sounds of various musical instruments drowning any other noise that dared contend with it.

Cool breeze blew across the fields threatening to put out our only source of light. I wrapped my hijab around my neck to prevent the wind current from blowing it away.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a guard stroll confidently to join the three guards in the truck who looked impatient.

That familiar body structure and walking steps could only belong to Fahad. The khaki made him look really different in the sense that he could have been mistaken for a real soldier on first sight.

He lowered his face, pretending to tuck his shirt in when he reached the guards. He kept his face that way till he got in the cargo bed.

The guard opposite Fahad spoke to him, Fahad faced him to reply still keeping his eyes a bit lowered.

Musa ran to the truck and tossed a gun to each of them, they caught it smartly. Negative thoughts popped in my head. What if an incident comes up and Fahad is forced to kill?

It's still funny to me how the 'smart guards' weren't able to suspect a captive was in the same truck with them. They probably never believed we would impersonate a guard that way.

I guess that's why they never noticed Fahad's unusual nervousness or also the fact that he didn't have a name tag pinned to his uniform. I was scared anything could go wrong, it was all happening too easily almost like a miracle.

The guard driving brought his hand out of the window signaling that the gates could open. They drew their masks over their faces as they drove out.

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     Danladi stood on the highest porch drawing attention to himself, we stopped playing the instruments so we could hear what he had to say.

"Where in the hell is my uniform?!" His stentorian voice terrifying.

Suddenly every activity came to a stop, confused faces glancing at each other.

Danladi glared at where the captives huddled together, the anger in him making him look fierce.

"What are you talking about?" Master sipped his wine as he  walked  towards Danladi, his glamorous outfit stealing the show.

Danladi swerved to face master. "The five pairs of uniform I left aren't complete, there are only four now."

"You must have forgotten where you kept it, check again." Master said tapping Danladi's shoulders gently.

Danladi shook his head vehemently "I turned my room upside down yet I can't find it."

"Are you assuming someone stole it?" Hajiya Fatima chimed in from where she sat, a female captive squatted beside her, applying fragrance oil on her feet.

"Yes. I trust my guards, they wouldn't try that with me." Danladi nodded assuredly. "But these brats are capable of anything." He pointed his finger, waving it at we the captives.

I kept taking deep breaths.

"We can search them later, there's no way the culprit wouldn't be caught." Master convinced him. "Now, don't let a pair of uniform stop us from celebrating." He winked at Danladi who stepped down from the porch clearly unsatisfied.

It should have ended there, if the guard that Fahad impersonated hadn't brought a drink for master. They say some events in life are coincidences, but as I watched master slowly unravel the puzzle, I didn't believe the guard's coming was a coincidence, even nature was against our escape.

"You." Master stared at the guard "Why are you here?  I thought the truck left a while ago."

"You told me to stay behind." The guard stated surprised at master's question.

Master looked bewildered. "Are you on marijuana?"

My heartbeat slowly increased being the only person aware of the truth behind  this little drama. The others just looked on with undisturbed interest.

"Sir, I received a message from you saying you needed me to stay back, and you assigned someone else to take my place."

"What message? How..." Master paused. "A missing uniform...A fake message delivered to someone that was meant to leave the quarters..."

"A captive's escaping!" Nurse Muja exclaimed, her eyes widening.

The captives were mummering now, some looking around too see if it was anyone they knew.

"Bastards." Danladi muttered under his breath. "I'll send information for the truck to return immediately." He said to master before he left.

Master was furious. He squeezed the glass in his hands till it broke. "Get into your rooms, all of you!"

We scampered into our rooms, a once lively atmosphere had turned into the opposite.

I sat on my mat, my emotions getting the best of me. Fahad will be caught, Fahad will be caught. My brain kept repeating that sentence over and over.

Zahra shook me. "What's wrong with you?"

"You look lost." Samira added.

My freinds were also blank on what was going on, I never told them about Fahad.

"I knew about this." I whispered so only them could hear.

"You mean, you know the captive who they claimed escaped?" Zahra asked with unbelief.

"He told me about it. I tried to...I warned him but he wouldn't listen."

"But you never told us, I mean we are friends right?" Samira sounded a bit hurt.

"He only told me about it this night while we were still celebrating. Though we've spoken once before that." I explained to her.

"I must say, he's got a lot of guts. Stole a uniform, not just any uniform, Danladi 's uniform." Zahra stressed the last part.

Samira locked my fingers with hers, squeezing them gently "I'm so sorry this happened Shafa, he might even make it before Danladi gets to them."

"I don't think that's even possible." So sure they had already discovered him.

"C'mon, why so much gloominess?. What's the worst thing that's going to happen if he does gets caught?" Zahra folded her arms.

"He's going to be punished." Samira answered.

"And?...that's all. Who hasn't been punished for escaping? It's not like he's going to die." Zahra spat.