RUSSEL'S TALE PART 2

My gaze shifted from the man to the girl; she just lay there as if dead with her clothes ripped like she’d been attacked by a wild animal-I guess in a sense she’d been attacked by a man-nimal. As my gaze lifted it locked with hers and in an instant i felt like I was sucked right into her-I couldn’t move for a moment. Suddenly I was filled with rage and I picked her up in my arms and dashed for the mobile vehicle parked outside. I opened the door and moved all the clothes and bags off the front passenger seat and I sat her up.

As I reached across her to strap in the seat belt my eyes stayed on the pistol that lay on the driver’s seat just then I felt a burning sting at my back; the man snarling behind me ‘you dey craze do you know who are messing with’. In my back on my left shoulder was a large kitchen knife, the blood flowed across my back: it was warm; it felt sweet till the pain came like thunder after lightening. The girl suddenly as if waking up from a nightmare reached out and grabbed my hand ‘please don’t let him…’then she fainted. Then I felt the rage again like steroids pumped into all my veins; I reached out and grabbed the gun swirled around and pointed it at the man. ‘Bros make you put that gun down…you know who I be’ the man said staggering backwards but my hands trembled as it caressed the trigger, I didn’t know if it was loaded or cocked but I didn’t care it was like being high on crack-I have never been high but I have seen many guys in the club after a wild night; it was like walking on air, I felt bullet proof. ‘look you, I go give you chance to commot before my boys come back…drop the gun and walk away from the girl and I will pretend like say this no happen’ he started walking towards me and stretched out his hand to grab the gun but my mind raced as my finger squeezed the trigger tightly; my fingers remained glued to the trigger as the gun fired away, the sparks from the gun were blinding and the force swerved my hands to the left and to the right. It seemed like hours but the bullets finished and the man was sprawled on the floor before me ‘my God…my God’ my lips moved to say but the words stayed in my head. I moved closer and looked but he still wasn’t moving. I reached down to look closely then I noticed the uniform on the man-the ranking, the badge, the colour black: he is a police man. Suddenly he reached out his hands and grabbed my shirt ‘you’re dead boy; DEAD! You hear me.’ I pushed him to the ground; I could hear him grunt in pain as I run towards the mobile truck. I shut the passenger door were the girl sat and got into the driver’s seat ‘were are the keys’ I searched frantically in the glove compartment, under the seat, then it hit me: the car light is on so the keys must be in the ignition. I put my hands on the ignition and felt for the key, my hands hit the key; it was in a bunch and jingled to my touch. I turned it in the ignition and the car engine wheezed ‘shit…start’. Suddenly I hear their voices, ‘Oga, Oga…wetin dey happen’ the man on the floor pointing to the car ‘stop that car…the boy is mine!’ The three armed police men rushed to the car. ‘oh God, please’ I turned the key one more time, the car wheezed longer this time then suddenly it roared to life. One of them pulled out his gun ‘STOP!’ he yelled. I put the car into gear and stepped on the throttle with all my might, the car screeched riding up sand and stone in air. The gunshots followed immediately, bullets whizzed past the car, I could hear them brush my ear-it burned. The road ahead was misty because of all the dust in the air but I didn’t care my legs were like lead on the throttle and the car roared out of the site. I could hear the treats of the men fade away but my heart continued to race as I caught a quick glance at the men from the rear view mirror; their eyes were bloodshot red, their muscles strained against their bullet proof vest as they fired at us ‘you are f@#$$%kd’ they yelled one last time.

I turned the wheel sharply, steering us onto the highway. I didn’t know were I was going but I was on the highway and that was better than being dead-how did things get so messed up. I turned to her, she still wasn’t awake-she looked really young; from what I could I see I’d guess she was sixteen. There was a bright light in front of me and I heard the car horn; I looked up just as my hands turned the wheel; the car whirled a 180 degrees angle and flipped-it was uncomfortable all my insides were tumbling, I looked at her face as her body bounced around the car she didn’t seem to feel anything. I tried to hold her in but my hands couldn’t reach her, I stretched again and then the car bounced hard one last time and splashed into the lagoon. The shards of glass and grass started to rise as water filled the car; ‘arrrgh…just a little further…yes!’ I grabbed her hands firmly with one hand and with other I pried my side of the door open. As I pulled her across, the water rose to my nostrils and spluttered into my eyes but I wouldn’t let go. I slipped into the water and pulled her all the way through to my side and into the water. It was dark and reeds were everywhere, I put her arms around my neck from behind me and used my hands to remove the reeds from our path as I swam towards the bushy shore.

Holding onto a bunch of elephant grass I pulled both of us onto land and continued to tread through the bushes till I found denser grass then I lay her on the floor before my knees gave way and I slumped to the floor-I could see my mother smiling with her outstretched arms towards me, she looked so beautiful then suddenly I felt these strong hands with no face or body just hands pull me into this darkness: ‘MAMA…help’ but no sound came out from my throat. My mother reached out and grabbed my hand but the hands wouldn’t let go there then ensued a thug of war between mama and the hand-mama is unbelievably strong- the darkness became stronger but mama wouldn’t give up and suddenly the hands gave letting me fall into mama’s hands, gradually the light tore through the thick darkness and I could see mamas face smiling at me again-I could hear a rumbling sound and then a lorry’s loud horn blaring and mama’s face began to fade but she still had a smile on her face, I reached out to touch her but couldn’t ; ‘mama…mama’, my eyes opened.

I looked up and she laid beside me my hands around her-‘where are we?’ I scanned the area, we were in some container, then I heard the lorry’s horn blast through the air: she must have dragged me all the way to the road and gotten us a ride on the truck, I looked down on her hair which was so close to my face and a new respect for her swelled within me. We finally got to the city, I found an old wrapper on the lorry and put it around her; I hopped off and caught her hands and helped her down the lorry. As I started across the street her hands wove instinctively around my hand and I paused for minute and looked in her eyes then I nodded and she nodded in reply in some coded language then we went across the street. My wallet wasn’t with me but we would have to find a safe place, till I could figure out my next move.

The time is 8:30am, looking at her face one last time and suddenly that rage burned in my belly. ‘Somebody must pay for this’ (gritting my teeth). Immediately my legs spring up from the chair and I trace my steps out of the room. Walking across the living room into my grandfather’s room I brush aside the beaded drapes and turn the door knobs. That ancient creaking sounded as I open the door- the musty smell that poured from the room was a reminder of how long we had not lived here since grandpa and grandma died. I head for the drapes on the window pulling it aside, flooding the room with light-I reach underneath the bed and pull out a box covered in dust. Blowing the dust away the inscription on it reads; GENERAL. Sitting on the floor I pull out the top of the box and reach inside the box; my hand encases a 39millimiter revolver; a crooked smile forming on my lips ‘she will be free again’ and I get up and head straight for the door.

TO BE CONTINUED