TAKEN

[8]

"Ogwu? Ogwu?" Mama's voice filtered into my beautiful dreamland of family reunion.

The beautiful faces of my siblings brought me to tears. My mother's embrace and the songs of celebration broke me. I was bawling, rocking myself side to side, weeping profusely.

At least, In this beautiful place, I was safe, I was with family and no one was going to snatch me away from them.
I relished it so much that I didn't realize I was hugging my pillow tightly and kicking off Ifechi who tried to wake me.

"Ogwu? Ogwu?" Her voice inched closer, filled with so much venom that my dreamland couldn't shield me anymore from it.

"Where is this stupid girl for crying out loud?" She shouted so loudly, snapping me out of my deluded dream.

My body rocked the bed from side to side, out of sheer fear and trepidation. I didn't want this dream to end but at the same time, I couldn't help the void in the pit of my stomach.

"Linda, wake up nau? Mama is here!" Ifechi didn't relent.

Although at this point, I honestly was half awake, trying to fight off her grip on my forearm while trying to turn the other way, to continue my beauty sleep.
But sudden loud knocks forced me to my feet and got me running. By the time I made it to the door, it flew open and hit me in the face, pushing me back to full reality. My body made contact with the floor and Mama's face came into view.

"Ogwu?" She yelled, halting her steps as soon as she saw me lying helplessly on the floor. "Serves you right! Didn't you hear me call you?"

I tried to get up but her walking stick pinned me to the floor. "You insolent child, how many times does your mama have to call before you answer?"

Her stick came down forcefully on my belly, I let out a scream, blocking the next one with my hands. Instead, she stepped on me while cursing out my entire generation. Calling me a leech and a burden.

"Mama, please I am sorry." I found my voice.

She hissed loudly while she pushed her heels into my stomach. Luckily for me, she was wearing flats.

"Please, Mama. Please." I continued to beg, shutting my eyes to her vicious rage. "I just didn't hear you call. Please."

Whether it was by the power of divinity or by the force of nature, Something shook her body, distracting her. She vibrated and quickly employed her walking stick for stability.
By the time she found her balance, I was already up and standing by the wall, far away from her intense gaze. With furrowed brows and a scrunched face, she stepped closer to me.

"If I call you once, you better answer twice or you won't be alive to tell the story. Do you understand?"

My head nodded multiple times in quick succession, my hands clutching my tummy. I could barely breathe well nor could I complain of any pain, so I tried to stand still, plastering a bland expression on my face.

She looked me over and shook her head, then hissed. "Go get ready." A wrapped package was shoveled into my arms. I looked it over and returned my attention to her.

"To where?" A mask of complete shock washed all over me. Eleven pm was lights out for everyone at the camp and I was so sure I hadn't even slept for a couple of hours before she barged into our room.

Her head shifted from a shiny wristwatch on her left hand and landed on my face. "Did you just ask me a question?" Her right thumb pointed at a beautiful flowered greeny-pink dress she was wearing while shiny gold earrings laced her ears.

The bangles and multiple necklaces got me suspicious. Mama doesn't go on house calls with us, so seeing her dressed so elegantly left a note of fear in my heart.
My head bobbled up and down, then shook and nodded again. I didn't know how to answer that question.