Saint Patrick's Ruin

Chapter One

They were everywhere.

Getting into Saint Patrick's College that morning was going to be a hassle. Not only were there reporters loitering outside the premises, there was a line of cars winding out the front gates.

"Is this how bad it has gotten?" Ijeoma asked from the front seat of their family Sienna. She scrunched up her face and slapped her hands together as if to say wonders shall never end.

"You know this girl's case has gained national traction." Chinedu replied. He'd been following the Nwafor case on the news. They talked all about how Ogechi was found in the downstairs girl's bathroom of Veritas Hall, how her assailant Femi was arrested from his hostel room and where he was kept. According to Channels news, he was taken to Kuje prison in Abuja where he was currently awaiting his arraignment. He was described as the kid-killer, Nigeria's Secondary School nightmare.

Adaeze didn't like that he got such a cool name and the attention of the media.

"That still doesn't explain why there's a line outside." Ijeoma countered.

Adaeze stared out of the window, agitated. She knew ever since the Nwafor case opened up that the school became the most talked about Secondary School in Abuja, with kids wanting to enroll and parents wanting the exact opposite. But she couldn't explain the line outside. It was like gridlock traffic.

She'd only ever seen something like this when she visited Lagos. According to her cousins who resided there it was a norm.

The news reporters swarmed around anyone who attempted to enter the school gate, shoving microphones and cameras into their faces.

Didn't they care that they were almost trespassing?

Some students tried to dodge the media circus, while others soaked up the attention. Adaeze, however, had no interest in being in the spotlight. Not after her parents had warned her to keep her head down this semester.

Her plan was simple, get through SS2 and make it to the next class without drawing any attention to herself or to her family.

How hard could it be?

Chinedu joined the line of cars outside the gate and killed the engine.

"When the school has been on the news all week?" The man asked his wife. "My dear, this line is to be expected, o." He said like he knew it all. "We're even lucky it's moving at all." He eased back in his seat to wait out the line. He turned in his seat to look at Adaeze. "I hope you didn't forget anything at home?"

She shook her head. "I packed everything on my list." She said referring to the packing list the school generated for its boarding students to follow. What she didn't tell them was she also packed her phone. She had it tucked away in her suitcase beneath the boulder of clothes she tossed inside and zipped up. What they didn't know wouldn't hurt them.

The line moved an inch.

Chinedu revived the engine.

It sputtered to life.

He moved forward.

Adaeze let her mind wonder to who she would see first. She hoped she would see Ayomide once she got into school. She hadn't seen the girl since they hung out over the summer. It was only once and it was when Adaeze had returned from Owerri, but it was something. She missed her best friend dearly. The two girls needed to catch up.

Adaeze needed to tell Ayomide about all the crime thriller novels she read while in the village. Owerri which was Imo state's megacity had more than enough bookstores for Adaeze to explore. Adaeze wasn't even able to get to all the stores before her family had to travel back to Abuja.