Seven:
He could see the silhouette again, approaching him, its face as dark as sin. One slimy hand reached out to him and he moved backward in fright. Not that he even knew where he was. When he looked at his feet, he was standing on nothing. Upward, black stars moved around, evil black stars with faces of horned demons.
"Come with me, Paul" The silhouette said in a husky voice.
He could feel himself being pulled by an invisible force. He didn't know where he was but he sure didn't like the place.
"No, I won't!!" He said with boldness.
"You've got no choice" The silhouette said and let out a reverberating evil laugh, "Don't you know who I am?!!! I am Sin, you've drank from my cup and there is no turning back"
"I've never sinned. I have the Light!!!"
"Lies! Lies! You're mine now!! You belong to me!!"
"It wasn't my fault!!" Paul was almost crying, "Let go of me!!"
But Sin would not yield. Its slimy hand closed on Paul's wrist and began to drag him towards a burning hell, Paul screaming loudly...
He woke up in his office, his heart drumming on his ears. He had dozed off while writing and his head ached badly.
But it was the dream that scared Paul. Sin had finally got a hold of him. He had sunk into its damning quicksand.
He had to pray for forgiveness. He had not meant any of it. They were haunting him, agents from the Pit of Hell.
Paul James took out his rosary, his hands shaking badly. When he started praying, he wasn't sure he knew when he began to cry..... *** *** ***
"Inspector, I know nothing of what you're accusing me of"
"No, Francis!!" Inspector Wunmi took a deep breath, trying to contain her anger.
If she was going to get anything out of Francis, she had to do so with calmness.
Considering the disappearance of Janetta which has been two days now, she viewed Francis would know of her whereabouts since he was her boyfriend. She had summoned the boy from the Monastery to the station but Francis had appeared like Wunmi was accusing him of hiding Janetta.
"I'm worried about her too but I do not know where she is"
"Francis" She sat in front of him again, "You and I both know Janetta shares things with you, things she won't tell anyone else. Did she happen to talk about taking a trip? Visiting someone?"
"Noo"
"Francis, if there is something you know about Janetta, tell me. Let's find her. Her parents are worried sick"
Francis tried to avert his eyes from Wunmi's glare. Wunmi could see that he was lying. He was definitely hiding something.
"I'm sorry, Inspector, I wish I had the answer to that"
Wunmi grew silent, drumming her fingers absent-mindedly on the wooden table. Francis said nothing too, his eyes puffy as if he was on the verge of crying.
"Sunday's night, hmm" Wunmi said, still thinking, "You booked a bus for Sunday night"
Francis was clearly taken aback.
"How'd....How'd?"
"I've got my sources, Francis" She leaned forward, "Now you know I know a lot of things. Do you want to be sincere with me? Where is Janetta?" Wunmi asked with finality.
Wunmi knew she had hit the nail on the head. Francis couldn't lie again.
After the Church service that Sunday, after Francis and Joyce had left her, Janetta came out of Paul's office, sobbing.
"Did Father Paul say something wrong?" Wunmi had asked.
"Noo but... " She wiped her tears, "Francis is leaving"
"Whaaaat?" Wunmi said.
"He told him this morning. He just can't stand our relationship"
"What is Francis's thought on this?"
"He'ld never be happy. I haven't actually talked with him but Francis wouldn't want to leave not when we..... "
Wunmi raised an eyebrow.
"Have you both done something foolish?"
"Noo but we are about to do"
"What do you mean, Janetta?"
"We are going to elope this night. We booked a bus"
"I'ld stop you two"
"Please don't. I really love Francis. We want to be together"
"But you're both young!!"
"We are eighteen!! I've got friends in Okape. They will take care of us"
Wunmi knew Janetta had made up her mind. There was no way she could stop her. So when Hunter Chidioke had appeared at her doorstep, claiming Janetta was missing, she couldn't find a heart to tell the man his daughter had eloped with the Priest's nephew. Yet, Wunmi began to suspect something was wrong when she found Francis still in Umuda the next morning.
"Francis"
Francis looked like he was going to cry.
"We wanted to elope but I swear Janetta never showed up. I swear on my life, she failed me"
Wunmi leaned back on her chair and watched as Francis sobbed.
For no candid reason, she believed him.
*** *** ***
The sun was low in the sky when Joseph began to cut the overgrown grasses behind the Church. Not that he liked this job nor was he gaining anything from it but he wanted to satisfy Father Paul.
The good man of no sin had shown kindness to his family. His twelve year old son had never seen the four corners of a classroom nor have they ever thought that he could be sent to school. Everyone in his family were stark illiterates but Joseph had developed a likeness for Western Education.
Some of his friends who had sent their children to school were living lives of luxury Now. They had cars, big houses in the village and travelled whenever they wanted to. Joseph envied them so much and so when Father Paul had volunteered to sponsor his son, he had been so elated, he promised to worship in Paul's church.
"It's more than being a worshipper, you have to know God personally"
Joseph had given his life to Christ and his native name had been changed to Joseph. Then Father Paul fulfilled his promise and sent his son to Lagos. Whenever his son came home, Joseph always felt like the greatest man in the world.
"My pikin, how Lagos? You don big oo, hope you dey chop akpu well well?"
Then He'ld begin to tell people of his son's experience in Lagos.
"My pikin see oyinbo (Whiteman) for Lagos" or "My pikin buy me Lagos' earthworm" which was actually noodles.
Joseph hummed to himself as he
continued to cut, wiping his forehead now and then with his dirty cap.
As he neared the church's fence, his machete hit something hard. He stopped and felt around the soil for whatever it was. Then his eyes caught something he was sure he wasn't meant to be seeing. He began to dig, digging as fast as he could. When it finally dawned on him what it was, he stopped midway in his digging and fled, yelling at the top of his voice, something never seen before in Umuda.
*** *** ***
Wunmi was about to take a spoon of her cassava flour (garri) soaked in cold water when Mary Anyali dashed into her office.
"We found something at the church"
*** *** ***
When Wunmi got to the Church, a crowd had already gathered, some women crying as if they had just witnessed a bloody massacre. Wunmi pushed her way through the crowd to the front. Some of her co-officers at the station were trying to control the crowd.
In shock, Wunmi sank to the ground, her knees digging into the rough earth. Emotions welled up inside her, fighting to get its release.
For staring out of the earth, cold and still, was the lifeless face of Janetta.......