04:12 pm
Lastborn shot Eniiyi an amused look and gently pulled down the headphones as though afraid it would break.
'Why do you have that on?' he asked, chuckling.
Eniiyi turned to him, her mind absent.
'Hey, Eniiyi, are you sure you're okay?' Lastborn's soft laugh turned to a frown when on touching her skin it felt hot. 'You're burning up again!'
Eniiyi blinked back into focus and stared at him, fingering the camera hung around her neck. She hadn't heard anything he had said.
'Eniiyi?' He reached his hand out and shook her.
She snatched her arm out of his grasp and glared at him. 'That hurts,' she blurted.
Lastborn looked embarrassed for a moment. 'Sorry. You're burning up, again! We need to get you medications as soon as we reach Lagos.'
'Who died and made you doctor?' Eniiyi scowled at him. But at the bottom of her mind she knew he was right, she was definitely very ill and all those symptoms from yesterday had settled into her body again.
'Hmm, whatever. You know I'm right.' He started to pull the headphones back on but then stopped. 'I asked why you had your camera on?' Bemusement had creeped into his voice again.
Eniiyi fingered the contraption and looked down at it. 'I was hoping to take some fast-mo photographs, but, as it is, this bus is too cramped and stuffy.' She scowled some more.
'I've never travelled by bus, too,' Lastborn retorted. 'What's fast-mo?'
'Fast motion. I don't know if that's even a term but I use it anyways. The picture taken will appear as a blur of colours.'
Lastborn shrugged, not sure he understood what she had just said. He relaxed back into his seat and stared out the bus window, wishing he could crack it open a bit but it didn't even have an opening. The only source of ventilation to them at the back was the set of windows at the front.
Suddenly the headphones started to beep, loudly, into his ears. He jumped upright and pushed it off, startling Eniiyi and earning himself glances from the other passengers.
'What happened?' Eniiyi asked.
'Boy, are you okay?' the talkative, voluptuous woman, whom he and Eniiyi had tried their best to avoid having a conversation with, asked.
'Yes, ma,' he replied the woman, then leaned closer to Eniiyi. 'Your headphone was beeping!' he whispered.
Eniiyi rolled her eyes and plucked it from his fingers. 'The battery is almost dead.' She scowled at him. 'You've been using it for almost an hour now, what did you expect?'
After several minutes of silence on the bus, she'd brought out her headphones to use but then Lastborn had begged her to let him have it and she'd finally given him when he wouldn't stop begging. But she hadn't meant for him to exhaust it's battery power!
'Pèlé, sorry,' he said.
Eniiyi just shrugged and then removed her power bank to charge it. There was no telling how many more hours they had to go and the only way she could kill this boredom was listening to music. It'd also help her to stop imagining that the walls of the confined bus were closing in on her.
Lastborn opted to put the charging pair of headphones in his backpack for her.
Thus, the two children were silent for the rest of the journey, finding nothing to say to each other. The girl rested her head on Lastborn's shoulder and tried to fall asleep.
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Eniiyi cried out in pain. Someone was shaking her violently and her whole aching bones were rattling together. She opened her eyes, confused as to what she had done to warrant such punishment.
A panicked face of Lastborn loomed over her. His face was contorted in fear and he was babbling, and it looked like he was crying too. She squinted, trying to make out what he was saying but everything was jumbled up and unintelligible. So she opted to sit straighter and then started to stretch her arms in a yawn when she noticed the tension around her.
She instantly dropped her arms, her heart beat skipping a second. What had happened? Why was everyone in a cowering stance? She could hardly make out the shapes of the people behind her, they were all bent over their knees, as though they were trying to hide from something. The same thing for the other passengers. Soft sobs permeated the air. Some people were murmuring prayers.
'... have to get down! Eniiyi!'
She could now make out what the boy was saying. He looked furtively outside then diverted his gaze immediately, ducking his head and trying to pull her down with him.
She resisted his pull and raised her head. What she saw made her blood run cold and any trace of sleep still dawdling on her disappeared instantly.
Gunmen! There were a number of men armed with huge guns outside the bus and it looked like they were arguing with the bus driver. One of them started to turn towards the bus and Eniiyi ducked, hitting her forehead on the seat in front of her.
'What . . . why? What happened?' She whispered to Lastborn, rubbing at her smarting forehead.
'They just came out of nowhere and stopped the bus. They told the driver to come out. That was when you woke up.'
'They've come to rob us!'
'No, they kill people!'
'Is no one going to call the police?'
'We're in the middle of nowhere.'
Eniiyi suddenly had an idea. The thought of it made her shiver but she knew she had to at least try it. She only prayed she didn't get caught and then shot to death. That would be horrible!
'Move over!' she shouted to Lastborn in a whisper and, before he could fully understand her command, shoved him over and took his place by the window, going lower in a crouch.
'Oh God, Eniiyi, what are you doing? Do you want to die?'
She ignored him and half-raised her camera so that the lens was just up on the glass window, over the vehicle body and bent to take multiple pictures of the men outside. It was a good thing she had turned the flash off earlier or she would have been spotted.
After, she squatted on the floor and looked through the pictures she had taken, most came out clearly, showing the faces of the men.
'In case we get saved,' she said and smiled feebly at Lastborn, although her whole body was now shaking in fear.
Suddenly, one of the men banged on the door and the cowering passengers gasped collectively.
'In fact everybody should get down! Everybody make una commot da bus!'
The door pulled opened and a hand shot in, dragging the guy nearest to the door out by his shirt.
'Oya, gerrout!' he shouted and raised his firearm at the people.
In a moment of desperation Eniiyi stuffed her camera into the nearest hiding place, Lastborn's bag. It was just a hand-stretch away.
The people at the back were now climbing over her to do the robber's bidding. Some climbed over chairs, afraid they'd be shot for delaying.
Eniiyi was scared shitless. She wrapped her hands around her knees and tried to curl into the wall. The voluptuous woman squeezed past and said something but she didn't hear.
'Heyss! Na who pikin* be this?!' the gunman asked on seeing the girl. Then he saw that they were two and his face contorted in anger. 'E be like say una wan chop bullet for ya head. I no get time for katakata, oya gerrout na na!' He raised his gun and pointed it at them.
Lastborn's body went cold and it felt like the life was sucked out of him as the muzzle of the gun faced his head. He didn't want to die! Then his reflexes settled in and he grabbed for Eniiyi and dashed out of the bus, feeling his trousers soak wet. He had wet himself!
'Na everybody go on ya knees!' a man who looked to be the leader of the gang commanded and everyone obeyed, shaking in fear.
Some of the robbers went to the back while some went into the bus and started to throw every luggage out onto the road.
'Pastor!' the leader growled.
The robber that had aimed at the children answered, 'Sir!'
'Wetin be the colour of the bags wey contain the money?!'
Pastor looked around and finally said, 'The green ones, sir!'
The leader motioned for the men nearest to any green bag to zip them open. The men did so and then turned back to their leader and nodded. 'Sir!'
The leader went over to examine the bags himself and then started to make a barking sound.
It took Eniiyi two seconds to realize it was laughter. So this was why they'd been waylaid.
Just then a young man rose up from the ground. 'Excuse me, gentlemen,' he said.
The robbers turned their gazes to him. The passengers were surprised at this bold man who was willingly courting death.
'I understand . . . we all understand that you're hustling for a means of livelihood. But don't you think your methods are a tad corrupt? You see those bags there, they might just not belong to you. My company—'
The man's words were cut short by multiple bullets going through him. His eyes widened in horror, looked down at his body riddled with holes from which his life force was gushing like taps and collapsed on his face.
Screams rent the air as the people panicked, many retched and got sick on the floor.
'Shatap!' the leader commanded, but to no avail. Then he raised his gun again and shot a woman who was screaming the loudest. The bullet went through her forehead and came out the other end, the woman collapsed onto her side, her mouth and eyes still wide open in an unfinished scream.
This shut the people up as many started to sob inside.
'Idiat! All these book people, they want to show say them read big big book, I go show you say I hold big big gun! If anybody open their mouth for there again una go answer to my gun!' He turned to his men. 'Mo una ransack the other bags!'
Lastborn was still gripped tightly by fear. He had wet himself again when the man had been shot. In his mind, he was screaming to run. You have to get out of here or you will die!
He glanced at Eniiyi. The girl looked frozen as her eyes stared wide and unseeing into the distance.
He reached for his bag which had been tossed near him. Okay, he knew what to do. He took several deep breaths, looking over his shoulder at the wilderness behind. Okay, on the count of three.
One...
... Two....
He tapped Eniiyi and swiftly pulled her up.
... Three!
He dashed for the forest, dragging a surprised Eniiyi behind him.
It took the robbers half a second to realize what had just happened.
'Get them! Get them!'
Majority of them dashed after the children, shooting out randomly.
Lastborn ran like he had never done before in his entire life. He had let go of Eniiyi and she herself was almost ahead of him. They stumbled through the wilderness, trying to put distance between them and their pursuers.
Eniiyi, heart hammering wildly somewhere in her mouth, tried to wrap her mind around what was happening and keep up running at the same time. As a result she slowed down. Forget it, she just had to keep running! She surged on forward as they went deeper and deeper into the bush and it got darker and darker. She didn't know why Lastborn had done what he had done, but she knew they would be dead soon. It was dark already and if they kept going deeper into the forest they would soon lost all visibility and then their pursuers would catch up to them!
Her whole body was weak and she struggled to keep up with Lastborn. God, she couldn't do this, she was almost dead! But she didn't want to die! What could she do?
As if in answer to her prayers, they reached a fall. Not really reached —Lastborn, who was running ahead, did not notice the dip in the topography so went crashing down it. Eniiyi saw this just in time and pulled to an abrupt halt, just at the edge of it.
She was going to call out for Lastborn when her sharp senses picked up running feet. The robbers were almost on them, no time! So she rolled down the slope as gently as she could, shielding her face with her arms.
She rolled to a stop against a body that had to be Lastborn's and then started to shake him. Oh God! Was he dead? Had he broken his neck and died!
She could hear the men stop at the edge of the fall. She could barely make out some figures against the streak of moonlight that had penetrated the thick canopy layers above, but, thankfully they could not see her in the darkness that blanketed the lower ground.
'Turn back, men, they don escape!' a voice rang out loud and clear in the night.
The men all obeyed and footfalls retreated.
'Make you no worry. Them never fit last the night in this jungle.'
Eniiyi shivered at this and hoped with all her heart that they were wrong.
When she was sure they were gone, she started to shake Lastborn again.
'Lastborn, please wake up!' she cried.
Lastborn rolled to his side and sat up. 'They're gone?'
Eniiyi's eyes widened in relief and she threw herself at him. 'You're alright!'
'Of course, I am. My backpack cushioned my fall,' he retorted but hugged her back, glad they were both alive.
'I have a flashlight in my bag, let's go.'
08:07 pm
They had been running through the bush for about two hours or so now and he was dead tired. He didn't know where they were or in which direction they were headed. The flashlight had long since run out and the only source of illumination was the moon overhead where it peaked through the dense canopy layers.
All he wanted to do was fall down and die. But he knew he had to stay strong and alive, not only for his sake but for Eniiyi's. She could barely walk and he was the one supporting her. She was now very sick and weak, his flesh burned hot on all the parts that were around her. He hoped they could make it out before it was too late, he shivered, before she died.
'Las . . . look.' Eniiyi weakly tried to raise her arm to point to her side then abandoned the effort.
Lights! Bright yellow lights were barely visible far to the side.
Lastborn's hope raised and he increased his steps. 'Hang on, Eniiyi, hang on, you hear?'
Soon they stepped out of the forest, into a roadside. Street lights lined the roads up and down, bathing the whole area in a yellow glow. It was obviously an express road, but, unfortunately, it seemed to be empty.
Eniiyi gave a sigh of relief on seeing the road and then fainted.
Lastborn fell down to her side and started to shake her. 'Eniiyi! Eniiyi! Eniiyi, wake up!' But her eyes remained shut. Tears started to flow freely down his face. Was she dead? What could he do? How would he get her to a hospital?
'Calm down,' he told himself then tried taking in deep breaths. He had to find a car!
He stood up, tears still falling from his eyes and walked closer to the road, hoping fervently that a car would pass.
One did, but it sped by so fast he didn't have the chance to shout for help.
'Please come back! Help!' he shouted, but the car had disappeared into the distance.
He continued to shout for help at the top of his voice till it went hoarse.
He fell down onto the side of the road, tired. Was this how they were going to die? Had they escaped the village and a band of armed robbers just to be found dead at the side of an express road the next morning?
Hot tears flowed faster as sobs shook his whole body. He shut his eyes as the lights glared brighter. Then snapped them opened, yes, the lights were brighter! But they were car headlights! A car was approaching but not too fast.
He didn't know when he picked himself up from the ground and dragged to the middle of the road, waving his arms wildly and croaking for help.
That way the car would surely see him.
*Child, baby.