'ONE
2010
Adam paid for the confectionaries, produced a wide grin which was apparently for the cashier who grinned back. Unknown to her, that grin was a subconscious manifestation of the feelings of thinking about the lady waiting for him in the car.
He felt having her with him was surreal, after five months of melancholy, anxiety and painstaking search. He was not going to waste a single second; not even a nanosecond. It had to be done soon.
He stepped out the confectionary with nimble steps, gave the security man by the door a nod and smile, before dropping a note of money in his hand. The man had smiled, saluted and thanked him.
Adam walked to his parked car, opened the car door and slid in. He cringed.
He was so hyper he did not take note before he sat down. Where was she? Did she go for a recharge card? But she could have simply waited for him and they could get that along the way.
He glanced round but he could not catch a glimpse of her. He laid his head on the headrest, puffed air and then closed his eyes.
Just a three more weeks!
He opened his eyes. She was not back. He brought out his phone and dialled her number. It connected and rang. She did not pick it.
This was not funny.
He got out of the car. There was a tag at the parking lot that read, cars parked at owner’s risk. That meant there was no one assigned to watch over anything there but he had to ask a security man, “please did you see the lady that was sitting in that car go out?”
“ Yes. I saw her go down there.” He pointed a finger.
“ When was that?”
“ About ten minutes ago.”
Adam grimaced. That was about three minutes after he left her.
“ Thank you very much.”
He walked towards the direction abruptly, aware that a wave of paranoia was sweeping through him. This was a commercial area, with lots of people moving around, and it was just a few minutes after noon. There seemed to be no cause for alarm but after thinking of what happened a few months ago, he felt jittery.
“Hey, did you see a lady dressed in a green gown pass through here, please?” He asked a man who sat before a bike.
“Yes, they just walked passed here.”
They?
“How many of them?”
“Two. She was with a man.”
Adam frowned. A man? Who was the man? Why was she with him or leave with him when he just went in to get her confectionaries?
It was not pertinent to ask more questions. From what the man had said, they were close-by. He went down the street, walking so fast. He looked left and saw a man looking shocked.
The man was fat, wearing shabby clothes. Instinct made Adam cross over the road and asked the man if he had seen her.
“Did you say she was wearing a green gown?” The fat man asked and Adam could feel that creepy sensation again.
“Yes.”
“I saw a man pointing a gun at her and they took her away inside a car! This kidnapping is so prevalent.”
Adam felt the earth spinning at an incredible speed, and seemed to be losing friction because he suddenly felt like he was going to slip and fall.
Again? She just returned one month ago for crying out loud.
He became confused.
“Which way did they go? When? How come nobody did anything? Why didn’t you shout?”
“The man seemed to be hiding the gun. People did not take note . I was too scared to shout because a similar incidence occurred and my friend raised an alarm only to be shot dead.”
Adam was so confused he did not notice when the man left him and walked away. He wanted description, he wanted the police to talk to the man, get clues.
He ran back to his car, trying to reach her on her phone, It kept ringing but nobody picked.
Why?
He called her father, and broke the bad news. He got into his car, started the car engine and headed to the nearest police station.
**************
Adam stood in a katzenjammer, subconsciously squeezing the phone he held, trying to convince himself he was not hallucinating. The phone call he just received was one of the most shocking and annihilating conversation he had ever had.
The call lasted thirty minutes, until the person at the other end ended the call. He could feel every word spoken resonating with him, padded with sputtering sounds and magnified echoes that threatened his ear drum.
He knew this was not in a nightmare. He should have seen it coming. The quiddity was not so esoteric but he was blinded. Now, he began to add things up. He had been a fool not have detected the quirks and subliminals.
Now everything made sense to him. He felt niggling, and a part of his head ached.
He stood still, trying to calm his nerves, and tumultuous brain.
He walked groggily to the bed, dropped his balk and closed his eyes. He had to talk to someone. The police needed to know this, and that should extend to her family members. This was a secret too hot to handle.
What was the use? There was no evidence, or clue to exact location.
He hesitated. He could not make a decision now. He was flummoxed, dejected and mentally lassitude. He switched off the light, and closed his eyes again but he knew he was not going to sleep. He remembered the first time he met Leena three years ago but the shocking phone call would not let him think straight.
He picked his phone, checked the time and hesitated. It was a few minutes after 11:00 PM. He scrolled down the call log then dialled a number.
“ Hello, Adam.” A ladies voice emerged.
“ Haneefa.”
“ I am surprised you are calling me this late.”
“ I am sorry about that. I could not wait till morning.”
“ What is it?’
“ I just received a phone call. It is about Leena. I got a very bad news.”
“ Oh my God! I hope she is not dead? I was told there has not been any demand for a ransom.”
Adam took in a deep breath.
“ I don’t know how to start explaining this. Okay, let me just go straight to the point……..” He began to talk.
**************
2009
He perched precariously on a pew, sequestered from the shindig but watched with keen interest as people moved about, engaged in various activities .
The commercial complex was busy and he noticed an air of bliss as business seemed to boom. He grinned at himself. This was his favourite part, when it happened at an unexpected and happy time. He once heard someone call it schadenfreude.
He looked at his strap wristwatch. It was two minutes to 4:00pm. A sweet sensation crawled up his spine. Two more minutes! He looked round the big shopping complex with admiration.
The owner must have spent a fortune to build it. What a shame! From where he sat, he could see a girl that appeared suddenly covered in a black veil. She could not have been more than seven years old. Her movement was slow, looking unruffled and confident. He grinned at himself again.
It was all honky dory. There had to be no flunk. He got on his feet, stretched his six foot brawny body and put his left hand in the pocket of his long black coat. It was now just a few seconds to 4:00PM. With long strides, he made quick steps, climbed a few steps then paused. Yes, he was at the right spot. He brought out a small binocular and viewed. He could see the little girl in veil.
Her face was set in a calm expression and then excitement splashed on her face at once. He frowned. What was the excitement for? But there was no time for pondering and shilly-shallying.
It was 4:00PM.
He pushed his big thumb on a button of a small detonator he held in his right hand.
Boom!
It was a single blast and it was done. The little girl was first to shred into pieces then those around her and everything close-by.
The bomb blast was loud, frightening, causing an instantaneous destruction of the building, properties and lives. Building blocks scattered, the roof was reduced to sputtering particles flying in air, the atmosphere obfuscated by thick cloud of smoke and dust.
While some bodies were completely shattered, some were gruesomely disintegrated; bodies with no head, hands, legs could be seen loitered around. The scene was pathetic and sanguinary. Some were lucky to be alive with different degrees of injuries. Screams, moans, wailings filled the air.
The man in black coat grinned at himself as he saw the level of damage done. The operation was not a debacle. It was a success.
He turned his head then stiffened. There was a girl, probably twenty or twenty-one years old staring at him. She was tall, slim and statuesque, her large eyes set in a startled and befuddled expression. Even in that state of agitation, her ravishing beauty and elegance was palpable. She covered her dark long hair with a red scarf and wore long red gown. Her jewelleries were golden and sparkled. She hung an expensive Italian handbag and an i-pad.
The man in black grimaced. He had seen her in retrospect taking selfies. How could he have been oblivious to such a threat? The excitement of detonating a bomb, which was his hobby, got him overwhelmed and careless. There was no doubt, she had seen him. The pad! Oh no! She may have had his picture or a video perhaps!
Well, it was his luck to have spotted her and thanks to her foolishness for letting him know that she saw him. His phone chimed. “Peace.” He said with his cadaverous eyes glaring at the girl.
“What the hell are you waiting for?” Someone demanded harshly from the other end. “Let’s get the hell out of here”
“ I am afraid there is a witness.” The man in black said coldly. The girl had turned and began to walk away hurriedly. The vicinity was now higgledy-piggledy and he knew the law men were on their way.
“Forget the witness. There is no evidence. The police are on their way”
Still pressing the phone to his ear and his grim eyes on the girl, he began to walk after her.
“ She has an i-pad. I suspect that she has my picture. I can’t take chances,” he said in a low tone, “ I have to clean the mess. I will clean it, pronto.”
“Damn! You goofed, bro!”
“I said I will clean the mess” He said impatiently, ended the call and accelerated with his deadly eyes still on the girl. The girl was now on the busy Burno Road. She kept moving as fast as she could, turning back her head frequently to see the giant coming after her. “ Oh no, he is coming after me!” She thought. Her heart was now beating violently, feeling a bitter taste in her mouth with a topsy-turvy mind. He began to run after her. His façade was now a bugaboo. She knew the monster coming after her was a mass killer. She began to scream for help. But the hotchpotch vicinity was already full of yelling, cries and hysteric agitations. No one really paid attention to her. She took a turn, ran down a long ambulatory lane with shops on both sides. The jittery shop owners were closing their shops and running for their lives. She turned and saw him. He was getting closer to her and she knew it was only a matter of time before he caught up with her. Panting and gasping, she retarded due lack of stamina. She stumbled and fell to the ground. The pain was excruciating and she let out a loud scream, but when she saw the killer standing over her, she forgot the pain. She was at the jaws of death. His eyes was now a thin vicious line, bulgy and mean.
“Where is the pad?” He demanded.
“I don’t know.” She replied with a shaky voice, “I may have lost it while running.”
He growled then kicked her on her ribs. She yelled.
“Where is it? I swear I will kill you”
She was now crying, aware that her side ached. Her heart banged as she saw him pointing a pistol at her. The sound of sirens emerged. The police! The man twitched his lips. He had to be fast.
“I will ask you for the last time, where is…………” but he could not finish his sentence. There was a gunshot, not from his gun but from behind him. The bullet hit his back head and blood splashed coupled with a crashing sound of broken skull. Another bullet hit his back .
He stood still for a fraction of second. Who had shot him and why? He sagged, made a futile attempt to stop blood from spilling. His gun fell off, then dropped on the ground to stare blankly at her.
Out of nowhere, a young man appeared. He could not have been more than twenty nine years old. He was a little above average height, sturdy and athletic. He wore a pacific expression with handsome features. His swarthy skin looked smooth, his lips slightly red and firm with a thin nose and curved eyebrow, swaggering moustache and chin beard. Dressed in blue denim top over black jeans, he stared at her inquisitively.
“Come on,” he said calmly, “ they will come for you and it’s going to be bad. Follow me.”
Flustered and feeling extricated, she got on her feet and followed him. He led her quickly to a waiting Toyota Hilux. There was a balding man behind the wheel and another lanky man at the passenger’s side. He asked her to take a back seat while he sat beside her.
“So?” Asked the balding man.
“Debacle factor obliterated” replied the young man.
“Very good” the balding man said, turned the ignition to start the car engine before sliding through gears to set the car in motion. Ten minutes later, the car was racing down a windy road that led to Kabari forest. The girl became suspicious.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“ Home.” Replied the young man.
“Home?” She frowned.
The driver pulled up the car, turned his flat face and said, “blindfold her.”
It was then she saw the butt of a gun in the young man’s pocket. A subcutaneous chilling feeling crawled up her spine and her teeth began to chatter. It now became clear that it was the young man who had shot the man in black coat. Who were these men? She was now shivering, her teeth chattering in trepidation. She was blindfolded. The car resumed its inglorious journey and kept roaring into the deep forest for another two hours before they finally arrived their destination. She could not see but from what she heard, there seemed to be a lot of people there. She guessed it was a camp.
Immediately they alighted, the young man grabbed her forcefully and dragged her along. She heard someone say, “won’t you wait for the Lion to examine her?”
“She is mine.” The young man replied firmly and forced her into a chalet and locked the door. He slapped her, she screamed before he flung her on the bed and pressed her neck.
This was the day Leena met the insurgent. The saga of north-western part of Nigeria was in full motion. Western education is banned and a new national order is inchoated.
Leena let out a loud scream.
She screamed louder while those outside laughed.
**************
Thank you very much