by A. Achaka
A bit confused they all are but had to get on with their normal life outside the bush, they got ready and in no time were driving out of the bush. They came with two cars, five in each car, the car was park almost at the by pass and they walk in on foot to the shrine, that has been their spot when going for any operation. They were introduced by their dethroned boss, who got so greedy and snitched them on a mission but when they escaped, they butchered him and dump the body in a drainage.
The near by village, was just some kilometres from the shrine, in both the vehicle, they were curious about his his statement and were almost arguing on the issue.
They got to the city exactly when the sun was about setting, they head on straight to one of their hide out, its was more like an abandoned dilapidated building. The building has been delapidated for almost twenty years, it was a big bungalow, having more than five rooms and a large sitting room space, there was a rumour that the original owner, had been charm dead by his family member, the moment he informed them about the new project. So the building has been a home for the homeless, for crime and for drugs pushers.
The crime in the nehgibourhood had increased to the maximum, attracting strange face and destroying the citizen of the community, expecially the youth, whic had trun potential drug pushers. One day a whistle was blown and the building was raided by the police and Nigerian Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), more than fifty people were arrested, from the sellers to the buyers even the junkies.
The building was sealed for more than three years and was monitored by the police, until this group came along, they actually paid the police for the building. Since then it has been their secrete hide out, after all the others raided this will be the final place.
They used to be about fifteen but now they were just ten, atleast they know that three were apprehended but ‘where has been their boss and Seth?’ it has been more than a week, that should be enough for the others to come back.
The deal about the house was to share the profit of their business, it has been their cool hide out, once the operation has been done and cool for a while, they assembled there and share the price and the looth as well.
They complained among each other and settled for the profit to be shared. About three medium sizes Ghana must go bag, was dragged to the sitting area where they were all seated, it was stashed with mint currency of the large bill, their eyes were bulging out, all were eager to lay their hands on it and there is a thing about criminals they always want to cheat among themselves which will result to violence among them.
All their eyes were shining at the sight of the money, they don’t trust each other at all, their boss hass been the one doing the distribution job, he make sure all of them go out uncheated. In thir rules the boss was to go with the higest share but he has more than he can use, at one time they remembered given his own proceeds to an orphanage, which still sickens them, but that was his and no one have a say on it.
With all effort to be noble in the sharing of the money it end up in pulling guns on each other, I think personally its one of the curses of illegal money. After the fight and arguement, many suggestion were raised, either they let the money be for a while, since all their heads were hot at that moment, but later came to a comclusion that two people should be appointed, for the purpose and they all agreed.
The agreement was followed by casting lots, the lot fell on Papaface and Reed, those were by far the gentlest of the crew. They were ordinary thieves before recruited into the group. Papaface, was young boy, bearly nineteen but he was looking very old, he hardly get annoyed but when he does, they have to tie him down because it was more like madness that sieze over him, they watched him kill a man in anger and chew the meat raw. While Reed on the other hand was a fast finger any one could talk about, he once stole the wallet of a commissioner in the mist of his body guard, just for fun.
The two were selected for the assignment, but as usuall alot of threat were dished out least they try anything stupid.
It took the two of them three days to share the money equally into fifteen places, even though the others were arrested, their shares will be kept for them, either for bail or when they get, that has been their policy.
Early on Thursday morning four days after the assignment was given to them, they convey a massage to the others that the deal was done. The cash was set on a long dining table placed in the sitting room, that has been how they share the money, none to touch until every one is available unless on cases like these when three were arrested and two are no where to be found.
They never trust each other as it were, they are always like footballer who supported each other in the field but each seek to score a goal on his own, the painful thing about them is, there has never been a victor nor vanquish in their fight but it just had to be done, most of the time they end up drinking to it and curtain closed.
The D-day came and they all convey in the building, its the same as usual, none have trust on the other, when i comes to sharing the looth, they were all seated but had one eye on the one you suspect the most. Before they came in, they were asked to surrender all their weapon by the entrance of the sitting room, now they were all seated at the dining table were the money was set in front of them, as food dished in a foster home of many children. There at the center was a counting machine, if you don’t trust the measure you count.
The money was counted thirty million in full, which means the fifteen of them would go home with two million Naira each. They have gooten jobs of fifty million before but this was just a minor, despite the harsh economy, they always get their shares from odd job whic seems to pay more than the real job.
The room became quiet now that all of them had counted their money and discovered it was equally shared, they have no reason to fight or quarrel, they were just staring at the cash infront of them. The second in command named Silent, he has been the sneak in and out man, he can walk on a cover shoe and you wouldn’t hear a single sound, they sometimes call him ninja, he got up pull a paper bag from his pocket and started loading his cash into it.
The moment he was done, without any word he left the table and soon vanished out of the building. He has been more sceptical in his bidding, he had just figure out, the long staring of the money might end up causing a huge fight amongst them all. As soon as he was out, every one pull out his paper bad and load their cash as well and one by one they were gone, but Papaface was left behind to take care of the remaining ten million left behind.
Papaface neatly hid the money in the roof of one of the rooms, and soon locked and left. That was actually the first time they were ever quiet when it comes to money sharing and they didn’t fight, on the second thought, the main problem has not been around, which was Seth, he was nothing that can be tamed easily.
Papaface boarded a taxi on hire and slip in the back seat thinking how his life would have been without this job. He grow up as an orphan and Don, their boss took him in and took care of him, after he did the onthinkable in the street, since then he has been very careful about his anger issues, this days he just over look every thing. He has given in to some thought about a serious relationship with a girl, but who would want to ruin her life to be with him, so he spend his money on hookers and booze and fancy clothes and cars, which he eventually sell the moment he went broke.
****
Face to face with an enemy holding a gun to his face, was the worst day of his life, he had already said a million prayers to his maker to save him from death, when he noticed the bleeding out of his enemies mouth, the whole environment came to live in his eyes because he started to imagine heaven. Sometimes he would asked his friend if they have seen heaven at the point of dead? They will all laugh at him but to him that was the most scariest moment of his life, he shit himself but he wouldn’t bring himself to tell anyone, they would make gest of him till his dying day.
The war was pretty intense, bullets and bombs have become the food of the atmosphere, the Liberian terrorist are very resolute
in their dealing, they wanted all things for themselves, so every where they step, they do the most horrifying killings and make way with the young boys and girls to add to their soldiers.
It was not a question of who want to join, it’s a matter of do you want to be alive or not, that how they got their numbers up. Lieutenant-General Ahmed lawal was a young fine captain, when they were taken for the mission in Liberia as peace troops. Their camp was on the outskirt of the city it was not a place of luxury to begin with, he had always wanted to go there before he was a captain but his name was intercepted for somebody, who died during the war.
At first he was angry because he was the agitated and anxious type when he was young and always ready for action, but later droped the feeling to god’s grace, it might have been him, to be killed but someone took the fall instead and that is why they say patience pays.
He was excited to be there after all, since every soldiers pride was to go to war and return alive, it wasn’t as if he had not enjoyed it, but the nightmares of the event he saw during the war kept hunting him, one of which his friend was butchered before his eyes.
He was appointed to lead a team of five, into a remote village for a routine check up, it was exciting and fun going out to meet some of the villagers but unknown to them the terriorist have been in operation in that same village. When they arrive on like before the children run around and come to them but it was quite that day, they should have known or suspected that something was wrong, he alarm his soldiers to be quiet but they kep at it. They got walk right into the village still no sign of a soul, it didn’t prick the attention of the others who are discussing their next outing to the city, all of a sudden they saw a small child running from a house with a knife dripping with blood. One of the uniform men went after him, with a full speed not knowing it was a trap, the moment he turn into a corner, he came to a halt and sink into the ground with an arrow straight to his throat.
For some minute he wasn’t back and the boy had not come back, the captain alarm them to be vigilant, but two of them would not listen they set out to follow the other guy, while he and his friend followed the other path hising into some building. He could not tell what happened to the other two but his friend was a little anxious than him, he told him to calm down.
“Wait they will be back or something had happened” the captain said
“We can’t wait and let them die” his friend was anxious and eager to shoot at something.
They were peeping through a little opening by the wall, especially the direction the other soldiers went. A ten year old girl came out of no where crying, she had been bruised, Her loins were with blood.
“She might have been raped” the friend was now pissed off, he was ready to go out but the captain, sensed a different thing entirely.
“Yes, but relax, its not our soldiers, the terriorist are here and we cant fight them alone” Before he could say another word, His friend had jumped out of the building to the girl, he was asking her waht happened but she was really crying and before he could turn the terrorist were in the yard.
The Captain could only watch what they do to him, because he had the sense, he won’t succeed alone, he watched them beat him while the other still atke turns on the bleeding girl, it was a terrible thing to behold. When they had totured him, they cut his body bit by bit and and set it ablaze, if they would ahve listen to him, none would have happened, at least not without a fight.
He hid himself in that building for two days without food or water, but peeing through the opening he saw how nasty they are, when they got what they wanted, they left, and the people came back to their beeding, he on the other hand was exhausted with no water. The woman that owned the house knew him, form ealier patrol, he was by far the gentle of all the peace soldier that had visited the village, she feed him and he went on his back to their base camp to report the situation.
The best part of war is every soldier gat to tell his own story as it were either true or false, its more or less to the ears of the listener, because gone are the days when a man cannot exaggerate an event.
On that particular day burning with guilt, as he watched his friend bein slain by the terrorist, he took a stroll out of the camp alone without any ones consent, he always remember how they would make a plan on marrying the same day and at the place with his friend, now he can’t bring himself to imagine, it was just a words that would never actaully take place.
His mind was still divided, he kept on walking and reminecing their past event with his friend, he came to a little stream of water, and crossed ahead, it wasn’t that long from the base camp, but a real hide out, he made a way to the little hill across, almost at the top he mistakenly step on a stone that was loosen and came rolling down to the ground again. It was God’s grace that saved him, as he would always say, because behind that hill was the camp of the terrorist.
They were planning an attack to the peace force base camp. When he fell he saw someone at the top holding a gun, he quickly dive behind a tree watching thoroughly, two more came and looked but saw no one and they left.
“you lucky bastard” he always calls himself, that was the second time he had escaped the imagined tortured to death, because they wouldn’t spare at all.
When the men had gone back, he climed the hill on his belly, he wanted to know what they were dealing with, to his amazement, the camp was almost to their, more soldiers and most were children. Out there he brought out his phone and took some couple of shots and head back to the base camp.
On his way back to the base camp, he was fantacising the respect and promotion and award he would receive for such a brave and stupid act that would save their whole lives, when face to face he was with gun to his face, one of the terrorist, believe to be a spy, he was changing in to the terrorist uniform when Ahmed came along, his shirt was on but the trouser was one leg in and the other out when he spot Ahmed and held him to the gun point.
Ahmed in that position had prayed a million times for God to save him from these mess, why would God allow him to escape serious torture only to be killed by a bullet, that was in his mind and the face of the soldier was getting more angry, when suddenly he noticed blood coming out his mouth as he advance and collapse on him, immediately he sprang up from his bed panting, because the face of the soldier had turned to his friends and it was just a dream.
Lieutenant Ahmed was now in his how, getting confused about the mare of his past waking him up at a particular time of every day, He started thinking of setting his alarm to four o’clock, he climb down from the bed and went into the kitchen and took a glass of water, it was then he realise he hadn’t eaten the previous night.
He went to the refrigerator and there were varieties neatly arranged by the help, all he need to do was to micro wave and then eat. Even though he was hungry he couldn’t bring himself to eat anything strong in the morning, so he took about three donuts and put it in the micro wave set the timer and went about his normal morning exercise.
All his effort to do the normal routine, always fail, and stoped at the body command, he knew he was not getting any younger may be he would switch to yoga instead ‘yoga’ he would laugh and call it “that is women stuff” he took his bath and came back to the kitchen, made himself a cup of coffee and munch the donuts as he sip the cup.
In front of the TV at 5:25 watching the CNN news as usual, it would be the world’s crisis written over it, he was taking the second cup of coffee wishing he could stop at just two a day. He only force the will when his children are around, because they keep an eye on him and make sure he don’t get in contact with it.
He always get lonely alone in the house, his children visit at any siltest chance they get, but its never enough, sometime its the thought of his wife dead wife ‘may God rest her soul’ he would say. Raising his the cup to his mouth, he felt pain at his right ribs, it was like a blow, a minute and it went down and back again, he couldn’t lift the hand up, he tried to be on his feet but fell back into the cha
ir, “OH God” he screamed, he knew he had stop taking his medication five days ago, now it seems to be calling for attention.
He held the arm of the couch and struggled up, though the pain was intense, it kept him bent as he struggle to his room and swallowed two of the pills and soon lie down on the bed.
It was a nightmare that woke him up, he got to a seating position and twist his body to check if the pain was still there, it wasn’t but then the bell rang, he got up and went and answer it. It was his driver arrives to pick him up for work, He had totally forgotten, it felt like weekend, and the watch was reading almost seven o’clock, he must have dozed off after taking the pills.
He got dressed in a hurry and went out of the house, the sun had gone up, and it’s burning against the skin already,
“Morning Sir” his driver saluted
“Morning” he returned the greeting, and sat at the usual corner as the door was open and closed after him. Soon they set out of the house and off the neighbourhood.
He seems to have forgotten all about the case, he really was getting old, forgetting things was not part of his life, or may be the too much cafaine, and affecting his memory. A call came to his phone, it was from the commissioner for Police, “What does he want?” He sees the commissioner as show off, always an anxious man since he was appointed, he had not accomplish a job alone without the help of the army.
He had a plan to the case but had forgotten the moment he got home yesterday, he was trying to recall, it was almost at the tip of his mind and the radio came alive, it was the seven O’clock news, he had instructed the driver to make sure the seven o’clock news is on every time, they are on transit. He felt a little rage and burst,
“What is wrong with you, i am trying to think here” the driver quickly turned dwon the volume,
“Am sorry sir, i thought you would”
“Ahh” he waved his hand to the driver. Its been a while since the driver saw him angry.