Chapter nine
Olu had the turbo machine up and ready, before any one had woken up from their sleep. We were quite impressed in what we did, but for now, I just needed a shut eye.
I dragged my feet, feeling the exhaustion overwhelming my body and weaved my way to the direction of my room.
"Tamar. Please can I have a moment with you?" Evelyn's lovely features drew forward, and her coral eyes held a bereft look.
I was too tired to disagree. I had an inkling of what she wanted to say, but I found myself still listening. "Sure."
I followed her to a recluse corner. "You have to make it quick. I really need my sleep."
She sent a apologetic nod. "Sorry about that. I know you're the closest to Laurena right now, and I need you to help me convince her to hear me out."
"Closest to Laurena? That's one way to put it. Laurena and I hardly talk, and when we do, it always ends in an argument. She and I have finally reached a common ground. Please don't let me shake it. In fact, the closest person to Laurena is Red, not me."
"Red's always on Laurena's side. I doubt if he would hear me out. You're my best bet."
"I am not. I want to help you, I really do, but I can't. I don't know your story or hers, but you seem sincere. If you want her back as your friend, then it's what you need to do on your own."
Evelyn sighed. "Everything I did was to protect my daughter, and myself, from being trapped in there."
"In where?"
"The Clandestine. If I moved to the adult district, then I would be separated from my daughter. I had to leave. I needed to."
Giving her my sympathetic look, I said. "Tell her all. Laurena's a nut case, but you still need to find a way to tell her. It's just not something I should be doing."
She sighed again. "I guess you're right. I just miss my best friend y'know."
I frowned slightly, when the realization hit me. My closest friends were still imprisoned, and I missed them like hell. "I know that feeling."
"I should let you go back to sleep. You guys did well with the engine. The energy machine works very well. Kiitan didn't make a mistake, letting you in. He just had faith in all of you."
"What's kiitan's story? He just seems so—" I needed to ask. A part of me always wondered how a mixed race young man got into the centre of all of this.
Evelyn joked. "Formidable."
I smiled. "That's you putting it nicely. I was going to describe him much worse."
"He's been through a lot. His father's a Russian socialite, while his mother was one of his many lovers. Vladimir Romanov is a man with a communist mindset. He hates breaking the norm, so when he found out that one of his lovers gave birth to a Radiant son, he wasn't very pleased. Vladimir tried to kill his baby son. That man's wack. So anyway, Kiitan's mom had to run away with baby Kiitan to her home country, which is here in Nigeria. Some messed up shit happened and she died. His uncle, a well known Radiant activist, has been raising him since then. He just has a chip on his shoulder, but he means well."
Damn. That's quite the story. "It must be insane for him to know that his father tried to kill him."
Evelyn shrugged. "He learnt to grow a tougher skin. When a person lives here, you get to see the world differently. He's doing what he can, till his uncle gets better."
"How sick is the uncle?"
"It's cancer. He's on treatment. There's a huge chance that he won't make it, but Kiitan's keeping his faith alive. His uncle's the only relative he has left, so it's keeping him on the edge."
I pursed my lips. I did feel bad for him. I could see why he was so difficult. "I hope he gets better."
"You and me both."
.....
The shouts and wails from outside had me and the others peering out of our rooms. I saw Kiitan banging against the door to Levi's room, as he yelled. "Open up."
Juan popped his head out of the door. "What is it? We're trying to sleep."
Kiitan's face turned melancholic. The fear in his eyes made me agitated. "We need the medical personnel in your midst. I know he's in this room."
Levi stood in front of him. His curly hair was messy and sticking out in odd places. "What's the problem?"
A woman's tearful voice drew closer. "Please you have to help me. My son. He's dying."
That immediately jolted Mubarak out of the room. He was dressed in a mickey mouse pyjamas, and if we were under any other circumstance, I would have teased him. But now, he was faced with a dire situation, and he didn't seem to care what he wore.
Levi looked at Mubarak. "Can you handle it?"
Mubarak gave a sigh. "I ought to give it a try."
Levi gave his nod of approval, and Mubarak asked Kiitan. "Is there any clinic or hospital to take him to?"
Kiitan glared. "If there was, I wouldn't be asking for your help."
"Right." Mubarak thought for a second, then said. "Lie him on a bed."
The mother obediently did that, and Mubarak inquired. "What are his symptoms?"
"He was having pains in his stomach yesterday, so I gave him mist mag yesterday and it seemed to work. But today, he complained of head ache, so I gave him some aspirin. Instead it made him worse, he's still having pain and his headache seems to have worsened. He's dying."
Mubarak grunted. "He's not dying. He has a H. Pylori infection. He needs an antacid. Something strong. With Cimetidine too. And aspirin affects ulcer patients, so just use Easadol. That should do it."
The woman blinked. "That's all. He has ulcer?"
"Pretty basic stuff, but he needs the drugs now. The pain can be excessively unpleasant."
The woman nodded, and hurriedly ran out. I had quite the feeling that she'd steal the drugs, but for now, it was more important to her, that she saved her son with it.
I was really impressed watching Mubarak work. Oge might not be here, but Mubarak seemed to be doing a pretty good job. Kiitan seemed to think so too, as he pulled him into his embrace, which shocked everyone around. I smiled softly, when I looked at him. He did care a lot about his people, despite his brawny personality.