Day after day, I waited for Mama or any of her gang to show up, yet nothing.
Since the night Dozie was arrested, there hadn't been any action from them. It was very worrisome that they would go off the radar just like that.
At times, I'd be up all night, afraid of even a pin drop. Hopelessly terrified that I would be snatched off the hospital bed.
Even with Nurse Dima by my side, the trauma of several months wouldn't let me keep my eyes closed and when I did, it was with a reminder that Mama was still somewhere waiting.
People and things scared me shitless. Every male in overall black looked like Dozie and any old woman sure looked like Mama to me. I couldn't bring myself to leave the hospital room for fear of being taken right outside the door.
Regardless of the number of times, Nurse Dima reassured me of protection within the walls of the Federal Medical Center Owerri, I still had my doubts. I couldn't believe I could hide away from them even when I was sure they knew where I was.
Come to think of it, What would it take Mama and her cohorts to bribe any medical personnel to steal me out of this place? She'd kidnapped people from very secure places, how much more than a hospital.
Incessantly, Police officers roamed the halls of this ward like ants, giving off the feel of tight security.
It was the Abuse and violence victims ward. Almost every patient on this floor, in this building, had been through some kind of domestic and physical abuse and violence.
Each morning, a police officer would walk into my room and say a timid hello, converse with me for like a minute to get more information regarding my case, and then leave.
There was no doubt they were meticulously doing their job, but I wasn't buying it. I would never believe the honesty and competency of the Nigerian police. When I knew that most of them were Mama clients.
If Mama could have sick perverts buy her girls for thousands of dollars in a country where a common man survived on less than one dollar a day, then, permit me to say she had strong connections in high places.
As religious as Nigerian was, many people had the sickness of perversion running through their veins and they would pay anything to feed their addiction. And worse still, to keep it a secret.
I never let my guard down. Vigilance was my watchword, I didn't want to be caught unaware again.
People's reactions and actions had a separate data space in my head where I analyzed every action. Their facial expressions and body language were like a clock, ticking away their unspoken words towards me.
I heard what they didn't want me to hear and read what they tried to hide. My surroundings were of uttermost importance to me. I would sit by the window watching, waiting for whatever may come my way.
Nurse Dima was relaxed on the couch opposite me reading a novel. 'Things Fall Apart' by Chinua Achebe, is a legendary writer.
I read that book in secondary school and when I saw her with it, I harvested it off her hand and read it again in twenty-four hours.
Sleep was no longer a luxury, I couldn't afford it because it came with the high price of insomnia. So, I occupied my mind with books that Nurse Dima supplied daily.
She sat there drowned in that book, her eyes moving in quick succession. I could tell she was enjoying it just like I did. She was wearing a plain white polo top and black jeans.
Daily, at the end of her shift, she would sit in my room, keeping me company and studying for some foreign exam.
My gaze had been on her for five minutes, but she'd not been able to tear her eyes off the book to even acknowledge me.
"I see you watching me, again." She spared me a glance, lifting an eyebrow.
I laughed, wiping my face when I was done. "Honestly, I thought you did see me."
She lifted her head and took a deep breath. "I see everything. That's part of my job, you know...to be observant."
She followed my gaze to the door when someone walked past it. "I see your eyes roaming everywhere in fear. Again."
Placing the book on the table. She walked up to me, "I told you, you are safe. Alright?"
My head nodded as usual. "But, any news? Do you know if Mama had been arrested?" Curiosity pushed me to the depths of my fears. I just needed to know.
Still on her feet, she pushed strands of hair off her face. "Mama is still out there, possibly in hiding. But for the other guy, he's still in police custody." She replied.
With a slight shrug, she turned to face me, " Like I said previously, you are safe here.....for now."
I swallowed hard, numbing the fear churning my stomach. "But...."
She lifted a finger, stalling my next words. "No buts. Just let your heart be at peace."
"Okay," I mumbled.
Silence stretched, then she took my hands, bending forward. "What do say when we are scared?"
"I am alright. I am in my safe space." I repeated as she'd taught me, reaffirming what was real and pushing out what wasn't, but who was I deceiving, I was scared to my bones.
She joined me on the bed where I sat dangling my feet. "This place is safe, no one is coming in here to hurt you."
I nodded again, my eyes went back to the door when I heard people talking right by it.
"Look at me." Nurse Dima, with her right hand gently turned me to face her. "You are safe. Say it."
"I am safe."
But then, I knew I was not. It wasn't even up to three days and everyone seemed overly confident that nothing could go wrong.
For me, I wasn't celebrating yet. I knew these people and it would be so foolish of me to ignore that bell ringing so loudly in my head.
That evening after Nurse Dima had gone off to her night shift, I was left alone in my room. As usual, I scanned the room and my surroundings. A few basic things were still left in the room.
The infusion pump was still there although turned off, but I had no more IV lines. There are still bandages here and there on my body.
Although my bruises were fading and the pain plummeting, I still struggled to walk properly. Without the use of a walker, I was crippled. Moving around was pretty difficult.
By the time I was done with my surveillance and a subsequent quick bath, it was well into the night. I relaxed into my bed which was somewhat close to the window.
From there, I could see movements outside my room. On the small clock across the room, it was a little after 8 pm.
Strong winds were blowing leaves across the ground. The orange tree that stood right beside my room danced to the rhythm of the wind.
The clouds thickened, and I knew it was going to rain. So I relaxed deeper into my bed grazing through a new book Nurse Dima gave me. Hours later, I dozed off.
"Why don't we just off her?" Hushed Whispering was going on quietly.
"Mama said to bring her home. Alive!" Another argued forcefully.
I was sleepy, too sleepy to realize it was rather a reality. All along thinking it was just a dream. Blame Nurse Dima and my usual medication. If I hadn't listened to her 'relaxation' message.
A white cloth clamped my mouth and I woke up with a start. My eyes widened as Dozie's murderous gaze fell on me. This can't be, I thought.
His usual black overall filled the room with deeper darkness. They had turned off the electric lights and disconnected the call light.
The tiny phone nurse Dima purchased for me was nowhere to be found. Only their flashlights from their dimly lighted flashlight illuminated the room. There were about four other guys with him, all dressed in black.
Before I could protest, they took off my blankets and turned it into a hammock. In minutes, they gagged me, tied me up like a burrito tossed me into the hammock, and rolled me into a bundle except for my head. Without mercy, I found myself tossed like a sack of rice on Dozie's back.
Everywhere was dark. The emergency lights were blinking like crazy. People ran back and forth in confusion.
There were other people dressed in black just like Dozie and his men. Screams filled and smoke filled the hallway, there was a fire somewhere in the building.
Right on his back I watched other victims like me on people's backs in hammocks. It wasn't just an isolated operation, it was a coordinated large-scale kidnapping. It was happening again. I was being taken.
I tried to scream but the guy behind Dozie flashed a knife in my face and I swallowed the scream.
Right outside the huge hospital door, blasts that sounded like bombs were going off like crazy.
The men who had me ran to the back of the building to hide from police officers who had engaged them in a gun battle.
Two of Dozie's men fell from those bullets, yet they continued to run, in a race to evade law enforcement.
At this point, there were more officers at the back, blocking them from exiting the compound.
Finally, Dozie dumped me in the hospital's dirty laundry bin. It was so big and deep that it kept pushing me deeper till I hit the bottom.
From the same bin, he took out lots of guns and turned the fire back at the officers. Cries of death and pain filled everywhere. The ground shook and running feet were all I heard.
Determined, I pulled the laundry sheets off my face and began loosening the cord around my body, ignoring the pain shooting down my legs.
With much effort, I freed myself and began climbing towards the top of the bin. Stepping on loads of dirty clothes, I made it to the top.
A stray bullet almost hit me, but I ducked, feeling the heat on my right shoulder. A bullet has grazed me. Yes, there was blood and pain but that wasn't what had my attention now. I must escape.
There were only two men left from Dozie's gang. Just him and another bald guy with muscles threatening to burst out of his skin. Guns were going off as if I was in the middle of a war zone.
A police officer sighted me and nodded. I saw my opening, climbed off the bin, and crawled to the floor. I couldn't walk on my own, so I kept crawling till I got into the laundry room.
Behind one of those huge laundry machines, I hid, hoping to stay undetected until daybreak.