A PLACE OF TERROR Episode 3 – Blessing-Enejo Abrahams Elleywrites
… I was awake all through the night. But how Pius was k!lled and then hung up there still remains an unsolved puzzle till date.
It happened that, I was still under the wrapper when I heard Osas’s voice.
“You guys are still sleeping? ” he asked hysterically and then busted into laughter.
“There’s nothing in this world that ganja can’t solve man! Wake up, it’s almost 6. ” he let out still laughing.
I didn’t want to be the first person to say something. Even if I would I just couldn’t cos I was still under my wrapper terrified and trying to comprehend all I had witnessed. I was still very shocked, and didn’t even know how best to narrate everything to them and not be sc@red while doing so.
Then Okpa’s let out a deep sigh and started to scratch his neck real hard. If you were outside the lodge at that particular time it’s possible to even hear the sound of his claws on his skin.
“Ah ah, who is that one now? Do it small small please. ” Dare yelled all of a sudden.
“Calm down now” Okpa’s fired back.
I uncovered myself immediately as soon as I was sure that they were now all awake and then repositioned to begin somehow to explain to them what I saw while they were asleep.
The room was still a bit dark and the torchlight was left on under the pillow all through the night. Osas picked up the torchlight from under the pillow and the flashlight went directly on the image dangling from the ceiling.
“Jesus!” he exclaimed and the rest of us struggled our way out of the room as soon as we saw it.
We ran after each other as fast as our legs could carry us and then the person leading us, Okpa’s, stopped running all of a sudden in the middle of nowhere and started to pant heavily with his head down and with hands on his knees. The rest of us sat on the ground helplessly, panting in chorus.
“What was that? What image was that? ” Osas questioned rhetorically with his torchlight still in his hand.
“Put off that torchlight, put it off” Dare yelled all of a sudden.
O’ Lord, if all these is a nightmare please wake me up from it. I just want to go home, I’m no longer interested. I want to go home” Dare said busting into tears of angu!sh.
“Me too, I swear I’m no longer interested in this. I won’t even bother to go back to the state coordinator as soon as it’s dawn before I find my way out of here. Yes I love horror films but I never imagined I would one day be given a role to play in it” I lamented almost in tears.
“Men, na to go back Benin go hustle if this Youth Service thing way nor pure o. If na where I dey dey sell my jeans jeje for ring road nah, I for know how much I don make. But mama Osahon say no, I must go serve. Now dem go still dey house dey snore but see me inside temple run (I’ll just go back to Benin to continue my hustle. If I were to be where I was selling jean trousers at ring road I would have known how much I’ve made by now. But Mama Osahon said I must go for Youth Service. See what I’m going through now while they would still be at home snoring.)” Osas lamented in between sobs still sitting on the ground.
But Okpa’s suddenly turned into a pastor.
“Oh God, please give me a second chance. Just help me out of this place and I promise to serve you forever”
Osas then raised his head all of a sudden.
“Wait, where’s Pius?” he questioned looking around.
“That’s true, where is he?” I asked too as we kept turning our heads and looking at each other even though it was still quite dark but we could see ourselves.
“Wait, I don’t want to believe it. Was he the one hanging up there? ” Dare questioned and then bursted into tears again and this time he wailed so aloud.
“Yee, moku oo (I’m in for it)” he cried with hands on his head.
“What could have happened to him?” Okpas questioned but I was too scared to even let out anything.
” We need to leave here as soon as possible I don’t want to d!e too. But, even if we must leave here what about our documents?” I questioned trembling
“That’s true. ” they all chorused.
“How do we go back there now?” I queried.
“Go back where, God forbid! From here to my house straight” Dare let out.
” Which document? Let me even survive this drama first before talking about that. I don’t have time for that one now, let me save myself first before anything ” said Okpas.
“Jesus! Phone!! My phone!!! ” Osas exclaimed all of a sudden.
” How do we make calls now?”
“Which phone? Which call?? Did you see network on your phone since you arrived this town? I tried calling my mom severally yesterday all to no avail. There has been no single bar on it ever since we arrived” said Dare.
“How did I ever get posted here? How did I find myself here?” Osas cried out again.
“Wait, what is that I’m hearing?” Okpas said calling our attention to something.
“Repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand” we heard repeatedly all of a sudden from afar, followed by the sound of a bell.
“What?! A pastor!!” Dare exclaimed as he stood up on his feet all of a sudden with his gaze fixed towards the direction of the voice.
The bell rung the second time.
“Repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand” we heard again.
It was dawning already, so were were beginning to see each other clearly. We hurried up and then went towards the direction where the voice was coming from. And then we paused all of a sudden, our legs became numb.
“Repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand” we heard but we found no one. Just a bell flying in the air and ringing itself with no one holding it, but only the voice accompanied it.
As soon as the bell passed us by, we could feel our legs again. We took to our heels and kept running till we finally stopped after few minutes.
Blessing- Enejo Abrahams Elleywrites
“I am d00med. I am finished. I’m out of here please, I’m finding my way home from here” Osas lamented as he ran into the next pathway and continued running, we ran after him again.
We ran for some minutes but there seemed to be no end to the route and finally we met with an old man on his way to the farm. We ran towards him and totally forgot to even greet him.
“Sir please, can you show us where we can get a bike out of here or a car park or something?” I asked.
The man looked at us.
“In Ekpo here?!” He questioned to be sure of what we were saying.
“Yes sir” we chorused.
“In Ekpo here no one goes out of this place, it’s a taboo. ” he said popping his eyes.
“How sir?” we queried looking at each other.
“Strangers can come into the main town but can never leave. There’s no exit route here in Ekpo”
Our jaw dropped immediately hearing that, we were left in awe.
“I don’t understand” I said looking at Dare.
” You can never make it out of here alive” he said.
“Mogbe!!!” Dare exclaimed with hands on his head.
“Except, through the footprint of Olodumare” he said again and then we paused to listen to him.
” How sir?” I queried with eyes glued to him.
“With the help of Eniola” He said.
“Please sir, who is Eniola?” I asked with curiosity.
He sighed heavily.
“Go to the cemetery and count to the 77th grave, that’s her grave. She has answers to your questions” he said.
“Cemetery?” Dare exclaimed.
“Which way to the cemetery please sir?” Osas questioned and then the man pointed towards a direction.
We thanked him and then followed each other, we finally arrived there.
It was so cold and we were all so frightened. Dare held my hand in a tight grip till we counted and arrived the 77th grave and her name was boldly written on it “Eniola”
“Yes, that is it. See that’s her name, ” Eniola” Okpas said pointing his shivering hand at it.
She appeared before us all of a sudden with her gaze fixed directly into the air as the breeze blew her hair back and forth and her gown danced slowly to the sound of the wind…
To be continued!
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