WHO IS TO BLAME?

Chapter Ten

I couldn't stop crying at that moment. I shook my mom so hard trying to wake her up but she doesn't even move. I was crying so much that made all the spectators took pity on me; some even cried.
"Mum, how can you think of dying and leaving me all alone in this harsh world? Why mum?" I held her tightly.
"This is not fair mum. I just can't live without you. You are my strength, you are my happiness, you are my pride in fact, You are my everything so how could you be so mean to me mum. Leaving me here in this merciless world is the most stupid thing you could do to me. Just wake up or take me with you." I cried while trying to pull her but i can't because she seems to be heavy for me.
Everyone that watched what I did at that time cried while the brave ones just took pity on me. I was still sobbing when someone pulled me away from my mother, it was my grandma . "You idiot! What are you doing? Are you the only person that loses a mother ever." She yelled at me
"What? Are you saying that she's really dead?" I questioned her but she ignored me. I fell on my grandma still sobbing but she pushed me away. "Nonsense! Go back to the house?" She shouted showing me the door.
I wanted to disobey her but she frowned and dispersed ugly look on me so I carried my legs slowly and went into the house. I ran to our room and fell on the floor sobbing silently. How I wish this is all in a dream. But no it's real. I closed my eyes tightly allowing hot tears dropping down.
I was still sobbing when I heard the noise inside our house. I quickly went out and I found some people entering our house with my mother's corpse. I don't know when I rushed to them and held my mother. I'm so lucky that my grandma is not around 'cause she could have slap me or push me away but one woman among our neighbors came closer to me and held me on the shoulder. "I'm sorry my child." She started talking looking at me symphathetically. "I know you must feel bad but this is not what you suppose to do. I mean I know you like her don't you?"
I nodded.
"Therefore, the best thing to do for her now is to pray for her okay? She will be happy 'cause she definitely needs prayer right now. Will you do it?" She asked eyeing me and i immediately stopped crying.
I nodded again.
"Okay so go to your room now and started praying." She said while tapping my shoulder.
I could see tears trying to fall down but she quickly wiped them away. I went to my room while they took my mother to my granny's room. I sat on a stool inside our room and started praying for my mom. "Dear lord I asked you to forgive my mother. I Believed that we all did things that you prohibited us from doing, we are sinners but I asked you to forgive my mom. She is very honest, virtuous and obedient to you please dear lord have mercy on her. She taught me how to worship you and be a pious girl but now she is no more give her the beautiful and most expensive place in paradise oh God light her grave and make it easy for her to answer everything you asked for. I prayed and lied down on the mat.
I closed my eyes trying to forget everything but the pictures of my mom keep coming. I remembered how she keeps looking at me today, smiling. "Mom you keep looking at me today what's up?" I asked.
She smiled taking her face away from me. I could see that there is something she's hiding from me so I startled. I moved slowly to her and kept my head on her lap. "I want to know what's is wrong with you mom. You are acting strange."
I'm waiting for her to say something but it looks like she will never talk. I don't want to force her so I kept quiet and let her be but just then I felt something like a tear fell on my cheek. I quickly sat up. "What?" I shouted seeing my mother crying. She cried so much that time. I became perplexed 'cause she refused to tell me anything. She pushed me away from her gently and went to the toilet leaving me there speechless. I waited for her for about thirty minutes but she doesn't show up so I became frightened. I started thinking that something bad has happened to her just then she entered the room. I rushed and hugged her crying. "Mom why can't you tell me what's wrong? I was so confused at least talk to me mom."
She took a deep breath and held me tight. "I had a dream" she sounded so emotional so I became petrified.
"What happened in your dream?"
She sighed. "I dreamt I died."
"What?" I sprang up
She nodded.
"No mom, you won't die." I started sobbing.
"I will when my time is up." She smiled
"No, it won't be possible."
I was still thinking when I heard the shouting of my grandfather which brought me back to reality. "I will never ever forgive them. How can they killed my daughter and ran away."
"It already happened so you have to just keep calm okay?" Grandma consoles him.
Just then someone entered the house and present something in a nylon bags. "We found this with her." Grandma collected it.
"Can you tell me what exactly happened since you are eye witness?"
The young man cleared his throat and starts talking. "Well, we're sitting on a bench close to BM street when we see your daughter trying to cross the road. Actually we can't say how it happens but we just heard her shouting so we jumped. We found out that the man was running badly. When he hit her, he ran away living her in the pool of blood. We quickly ran to her in order to rescue her. She was bleeding so much and she was breathing fast. She was just calling her daughter 'seema '. She said something which we couldn't hear and she passed away."
They were all silence for a while that I thought they left just then, I heard my grandfather groaning. 'Indeed we're from God and to Him we shall return.'
I quickly went to the door and stood there peeping them through curtains. The old man sat down cause he feels like he is going to fall down. I can see the pain, regret and depression in my grandfather's face. He stays in that mood for a long time then he stood up and went out.
I later heard grandma saying that my mother is going to be buried tomorrow cause she died in the evening and it will be good if they leave her until the next day before burying her. That's what they called 'kwanan keso' in Hausa language.
The next day, I woke up early in the morning and prayed. I was still inside our room thinking of what I supposed to do. I stood up went to my granny's room in order to greet her. As I entered the room, I found my mother's corpse wrapped in a white clothes ready to be buried. I just stood there starring at the corpse. I checked the room to see if grandma is there but she isn't so I face the people. "Can You please allow me to see my mother once?" I asked with my teary eyes but nobody says anything so I became frustrated.
I quickly headed directly to the corpse and tried to remove the cloth. I noticed that they tied the cloth all over her body so I turned furiously. "Why did you tied her like this? What did she do to deserve this?' I yelled but nobody speaks.
They all hang their head. I started untying her when I felt a hard knock on my back. It was my grandma. She dragged me aside and started hitting me with a stick. I was crying and begging her to stop and set me free but she refused until other people inside the room intervened. They all apologized on my behalf at last she pushed me away and I fell on my mother's corpse. She came to me dragged me out and throw me in our room and locked it up. I laid down closing my eyes allowing hot tears dropping down. I was still locked inside the room when they took my mother away from the house in order to get her buried. She is gone forever. I said when they went out.