Heads turned to the sudden snap in the bush nearby. Without thinking, the men reached for their weapons and stood up slowly. Amid the voice of the birds and the gentle wind, they became one with the trees and could pass undetected for statues. Minutes grew into hours, yet they stood lame and hardly batted an eyelid. Maybe it was curiosity, Ugomma could not tell, but a close perusal and she saw a dent hanging on their shoulders. This was not their first time. The level of expertise showed that they’ve done this a million times.
The snap in the bush came again, and as if waiting for it, the men acted in unison, descending upon the object as they would a rabbit that had jumped out of a hole. Jide screamed as one of the men yanked his hair roughly, pushing him out into the clearing.
“That’s no polite way to treat a warrior. Where are your manners?” Jide said, rubbing his hair.
“Who are you and why are you following us?” One of the men asked.
“Following you?” Jide chuckled and wiped the tears. He was still rubbing the base of his head, “Never thought of that. I am just a simple traveler and nothing more.”
“Traveler,” The second man repeated and notched his arrow.
There was something about the way he said the word that drove an electrifying needle into Ugomma’s skin. It became obvious even as they closed the gap with Jide, with mouth drooling lustfully. These men were bandits, she could see that now. The tattered clothes, the unshaved beard, and the burnt ears. Why had she not seen that before?
“Can we talk about this without anyone getting hurt?” Jide raised his left hand, using the right to crawl back like a spider.
“You’ve got money?” The first man asked.
Jide pushed through the confusion and tried not to look in the direction of his money bag, but he was too late and before he could reach for the purse, one of the men grabbed him from behind. He kicked and tried to break free, but the grip was too strong to keep his feet from the ground.
“Well, well, well.” The second thief giggled wickedly and yanked the purse from his waist. “So much money,” his eyes narrowed when he felt the weight of the bag. “What is a young girl like you, doing all by herself, with a money bag that is ten times a laborer’s yearly wage?”
“I am not a girl. Now hand back my money before I send your ancestor after you.” Jide cursed.
“A young girl with a wide mouth,” The first thief laughed, “How about we have some fun, huh? Will your mama beg me to pay your dowries?”
“To hell with you,” Jide screamed and tried to struggle but the third thief wrestled him to the ground and started to undress him. “I think she is a slave,” The third thief panted amid the struggle. “A pretty slave,”
“No,” The second thief shook his head and spread Jide’s legs. “There are no markings. She must be a little princess. A nice little princess. I have never had one before. Let’s see how royal miscreants taste.” His laughter echoed through the afternoon trees as he laid on Jide. But the glee didn’t last, the thief pinning Jide to the ground had lost his grip, and seizing the opportunity, Jide held and bit the neck of the third thief who was trying to force himself on him.
“YOU DOG,” The man cursed and pushed Jide back, freeing himself from the angry teeth. He tried to keep the blood from oozing but every attempt only made him smear the viscous fluid all over his body, “I will make sure you pay for this.” He drew his dagger, and the pain on his neck made his eyes lose every friendly color.
Ugomma thought she lost her breathing as her head swelled. She needed to act fast if she wanted to save her friend. He had a death wish, but she was not going to let him die. Not after she had promised the princess that she was going to take care of him.
“Over here,” She screamed and jumped out of her hiding place.
Surprise engrossed the men as they turned their attention to her. But it didn’t last long. The third man had drawn his dagger and was charging towards her.
Ugomma relaxed her weight, trying to remember everything she had seen her father do, during his training season. It was a struggle, and even though she was able to keep her mind focused, her heart would not stop racing. They were beating fast and she could almost feel the thump at the back of her head.
Run. A voice said to her. She wanted to obey, but the sudden scream made her think twice. The thief was already closed, and his dagger was pushing every air resistance to get into her stomach.
“I will bury you,” The man finished and swept his dagger towards her abdomen.
Ugomma stepped to the right at the last hour and breathed in heavily when the man’s dagger whoosh past her face, missing her by the hair. She was happy with herself, and that little triumph gave her a little confidence. Without thinking, she tightened her knuckle and drove it with all her might into the man’s throat. Something cracked, she couldn’t tell what, but it felt strange to her knuckle.
The thief’s dagger was the first to kiss the dust, followed by his knees and then his body. He was holding his throat, trying to yell or say something. But for the gibberish and tears running the side of his face, nothing came from him that made any sense.
Ugomma turned her attention to the others and her stomach fell when she saw the horror in their eyes. They were as shocked as her, if not worse.
“This is the hands of the gods,” The man with the bow and arrow said. His pupil was dancing in his eyes, and his legs were wobbling, “it is the hands of the gods, Okonta. She warned us that the curse of the gods would follow us. But we didn’t listen. Now see what is happening. First, it was Nedu, eaten by a strange beast. Now, this.”
“Don’t be a fool,” Okonta—the injured man—said, “We only killed the child and were paid as planned.”
“But the white witch placed a curse on those responsible for the child's death. She cursed us, Okonta.” He tried to hang his bow on his shoulders but grunted when they fell to the dust. “Only…only…Only a tree remains when being threatened to be cut down. I am too young to die. Nedu and Ndubuisi are gone. Both dying mysteriously. Are we going to wait until nemesis catches? I am out of here. You can spend your blood money alone.” He stared one last time at the dead man before turning away and trotting into the forest.
“He is right,” The fourth thief—the one who had been struggling with the Zebra—said. The white witch’s words were true. We should find a remedy to this evil we have done.
OKonta looked as if he was going to argue, but with the plea in the eyes of his partner, he sheathed his dagger and they both hurried into the bush, trying to catch up with the other thief.
“Strange,” Jide said and dusted himself, “But that went well, didn’t it?”
“No, Jide. What have I done? This is…this is…I killed him.” Ugomma backed away and slouched on the dust, “I took a life.”
“One that would have killed us if we hadn't fought back. It was self-defense.”
Ugomma hugged herself. She was still staring at the man who lay motionless on the dust. His wide eyes were looking at her as if pointing accusingly. She should have listened to her father’s instructions. She should have paid heed to everything he had said. He had warned her about how dangerous taking another’s life was. But she had disobeyed him. She had disobeyed the one thing he was ever right about.
“How can I be so stupid?” Jide said
Ugomma wiped her tears. Jide had moved away from her and was searching the saddle of the Zebra.
“I should have known all along,” Jide laughed and walked towards her. On his hands was a scroll made from animal skin.
“What did you find?” Ugomma stood from the dust. The man she had killed was still looking at her, accusing her and she knew she was going to carry the burden as long as she lived.
“I was right, Ugo. The Zebra belongs to my father,”
“You mean that animal?” Ugo pointed.
The Zebra had slumped on the floor and had died instantly.
“Whatever,” Jide laughed and averted his attention from it, “This is what my father had talked about.” He pointed to a spot on the map but Ugomma would have none of it.
“I think that animal must have followed us for two years, Jide. I don’t know how, but I have this strong impression that it was destined to give you that scroll. And yet you despise its sacrifice? Show some a little respect for the dead.”
Jide pursed his lips, “Okay, I think you are right.” He closed his eyes and started humming.
“What are you doing?”
“Respecting the dead of course,” Jide said, “are we not going to observe a minute silence? Maybe we can bury the Zebra afterward then we can find its mother and pay tributes.”
“You are unbelievable,” Ugomma grunted and walked away from him. She wanted to put a distance from the corpse, as far as possible. A part of her wanted to call Jide selfish, to rain abuses on him until her ears were no longer ringing or until the guilt in her heart passed away. But she kept it to herself. She was the one that had killed the man. She was the one that had taken a life, not him.
“Anyway,” Jide hurried towards her, “We are heading in the right direction. With the map, I think we can find the white queen in two days.”
Guilt kept their cold hands on Ugomma but hearing the words bashed her face with comfort. The sooner they find the mysterious white queen, the better.