Before I proceed, help me say amen to these prayers....
Anyone who copies this story without acknowledging me fully, uses it to make movie or write story book without seeking my consent, àtilọ àtibọ̀ ní pẹran ọ̀jẹ, ewé ojú omi èé nísinmi, ẹní gbódó mì èé gbádùn, such person will just be working while others will be earning the profit of his work.
As I reached where people were standing, I was told a woman wrongly accused my first child of picking her phone from her purse.
I immediately knew what that could mean. Theft and and armed robbery have become rampant in our area in recent weeks.
Some weeks ago, armed robbers broke into our Báálẹ̀'s house, carted away all his valuables, raped his two wives and shot dead his first child. Just last week, a miscreant was caught dragging phone with a pregnant woman along the street late at night. He had stabbed the woman thrice before people came to her rescue. The thief was handed over to the police while the woman died in the hospital in the second day.
Two weeks later, the miscreant handed over to the police was sighted at the other street. The angry mob lynched the boy and vowed not to hand over any thief to the police again.
By now, you should have started imagining the fate to befall my child. As people were about to descend on him, my brother coming back from work arrived at the scene. He used all his power to protect my son from being lynched. Without asking my son anything, he knew he couldn't have stolen even a pin. As he was trying to talk people out, he subjected himself to the hits of thrown stones, metals and stick just to protect my child.
People were angrier. They accused him of being an accomplice to my child. He was already lying lifelessly and about to be burnt alive when a fish monger appeared with the woman's phone. She claimed she forgot it in her shop.
If not for the quick intervention of the police, the woman, as I was told would have been beaten to death. The police rushed my brother to the general hospital near to our street.
It was even rumoured that my brother had given up the ghost at the spot.
Having forgotten that I got to the spot with my car, the minutes it took me to reach the hospital remains a record the legendary Usain Bolt would have failed to set in his active years on track.
As I reached the hospital, I was led to the ward my brother was lying lifelessly. In his unconscious state, obviously in a state of oblivion, he was still calling my child's name. My poor brother still cared for his young nephew while battling for his own life. The same brother I was contemplating on killing to sustain my wealth 😥.
After three days, my brother opened his eyes to see me by his bed side. As I opened my mouth to talk, he made a sign to tell me to keep quiet. He smiled and hugged me. He said he feared he would never see me again. He turned to my child that was already crying and said, 'Come on dude! I am fine. You know your big uncle will do anything to protect you. I love you.' My child could not control his tears again. He burst into heavy cry as he hugged him.
It was after two days he was discharged from hospital I started battling the thought of killing him again. Things were already going from bad to worse. I couldn't boast of a hundred thousand naira in my account again. I was already contemplating on selling the last house we were living in.
Poverty is not like bread and butter. I eventually made up my mind to kill my brother. I visited the old man and some atonement was made to appease the gods.
I was told that after some incantations, my brother would appear in the cloth displayed on the wall and I must stab him with the knife I was holding.
As earlier said, after the incantation, I saw my brother along with my four children going to mosque. My last born was begging the first child to carry him. He replied mockingly if he has no legs and the 3 elder boys laughed in unison. My brother was seeing rebuking 3 of them by calling them useless elder brothers.
He stopped pressing the phone he was pressing while walking and carried my child. The boy happily rested his head on his shoulder. Hot tears rolled down my cheek.
Oops! Time for Solat. Be right back!
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