After Nneka's father almost loses his life and farm, her mother mysteriously vanishes. She then moves to Lagos to live with her grandmother, but she soon finds there's more to her grandmother's life than she knows.
While hawking, she meets a boy...
Mama Agnes knocked on her door, trembling uncontrollably in fear. The landlady was a wicked woman amongst the neighborhood. She usually killed off people who defied her wishes or tried to harm her. Since she moved into the neighborhood, no one knew her name. They finally decided to call her 'Landlady' after the former landlord of her recently acquired property mysteriously disappeared.
Mama Agnes glanced at her watch and then at the sleeping dog lying lazily on a spot of grass. A small blue and frail bird flew on its stomach and chirped happily. Mama whipped her head to the door when she heard a faint click sound from inside. As soon as she turned to the door, an ugly face was right up in her face. A tall, stocky dark-skinned woman eyed her grumpily. She wore a large black hoodie over a tiny, body-hugging lavender miniskirt. Old, chipped sequins decorated the skirt with a long magenta stripe across the middle part. Food stains: oil, pepper, chocolate syrup, and ketchup; were splattered across the front of the sweater. The rim of the hood looked like it was feasted on by a family of rats. Her feet, dry and flaky, were tucked into slippers more than three sizes bigger than hers.
Her makeup was terrible: thick black eyebrows, bright pink lipstick that smeared on her nose, bright red blush, and streaky foundation three shades lighter than her skin tone. It didn't help that three huge, ripe pimples on her forehead looked like they would burst. She blew her nose into her hand and rubbed it on her hoodie. Mama watched in horror as she peeled off a dried ball of mucus with her finger and stuck it in her mouth. She looked to the dog and saw that the bird disappeared. Several blue feathers surrounded the dog and its bloody mouth.
The dog's ravenous appetite made cold sweat run down her back. If it could eat a small bird so silently, it would have no problem attacking or even killing her!
A thin, high-pitched voice pierced her ears. "Wetin? What do you want?" The smell of malaria tablets was getting thicker in the air. Her breath smelt of oily chicken dipped in pepper mixed with butter. When the woman scrunched up her face, it looked like the pimples would pop at any moment. "I have gift for you." The woman's face darkened before she reached into her pocket. She brought out a black Nokia torchlight phone and fumbled with the buttons.
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A 'Nokia Torchlight' phone
Mama's back was getting sweatier, and the dog began to stir. "Agnes. I just remembered your rent." Agnes-"Ma, please-" "Pay your rent sharply!!" Her screeching voice did nothing to stir the dog. It even turned to its side and wagged its tail.
Landlady was aware that people were watching them. Every few seconds, they heard the sound of footsteps walking around the gate. Mama was getting more nervous by the second. Laraba, the donut seller, told her to try not to let Landady ask for rent. She meant you would run an 'errand' for her. Those errands ranged from kidnappings to robbing restaurants. Landlady sent her last tenant to steal a cow from a shack. She made him go to an unnamed village on the outskirts of Lagos. Vegetation filled the land. Plantain trees, weeds, tall stalks of grass, hollow tree logs, rotting pieces of wood, and beautiful flower bushes covered the sandy ground completely. The sky was always grey as if an evil spirit was looming over the village. The atmosphere was unbearable and uncomfortable. After three days, he was declared missing. A group of four boys discovered his body in a rundown hut while they were exploring the outskirts of their village. One of the boys took his cow-tooth talisman from his headless shoulders, and the older boys took the money in his wallet. The group of boys was also found dead near that same hut.
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Some men examined their bodies. The rough, jagged edges of flesh on their bodies looked like a blunt blade cut through them. Scars, bruises, and thick pus-filled welts covered their skin like a thin sheet. They were bloody, and some boys' fingers and toes were missing. A quarter of one boy's head was missing; his nose stuffed with brain matter. The bodies of the other boys had their limbs stabbed through them. It was a terrible sight. The villagers burnt down the house, and their Babalawoexorcised the area to cleanse the air. Not long later, the bridge connecting the main road and the village pathway collapsed, and the village was never heard of again.
"Come inside. Let me get something for you so we can talk calmly." Mama almost started crying. She couldn't run, because the dog was wide awake, snarling behind her. Bloody foam dribbled from its mouth on the stone floor before the steps on the entrance. Landlady snorted and stuck her finger into her nostrils before beckoning Mama Agnes inside. The dog belched, and Mama saw a tiny bone plop on the ground. She pushed past Landlady so she could enter the house quickly.
Landlady was going to ruin her life.
Her house was chaos. Landlady's living room was only a room with a sofa, a small grainy television, a small glass table, and a wooden bench at the corner. The blue-carpeted floor was moldy and stained with grease and lizard droppings. The room stunk, and Mama retched as soon as she walked in. She noticed a large dried bloodstain at the back of Landlady's skirt and recoiled. She would not sit down on any surface in her house. Landlady called her from a room farther in the house.
Mama walked into the corridor, then took the hallway at the right. She walked for a few more minutes before approaching an orange curtain covering a room. She heard the distinct sound of metal clanging and wooden stools creaking. Landlady lifted her leg into the air and let out a loud fart as Mama was about to step into the room.
Brrrrrrrr....wheeeee!
Mama was horrified when she saw Landlady's menstrual pad sticking out limply from the side of her black underwear. The room was already unsettling, and the pungent odor of dried blood and undigested food drove Mama crazy. Landlady dragged her by her wrists and threw her before three bronze statues.
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They looked like they were about to eat Mama whole, despite being the same height as a throw pillow. Landlady ignored her face and thrust a small metal dish of a mysterious black powder into her hands. The powder smelt strange, like lavender and sugar mixed with charcoal.
Landlady turned to her with an evil smile. She scooped some white powder into the dish Mama held with a small wooden spoon. Mama looked at her with bulging eyes full of fear.
"Agnes, would you prefer to obey my orders or watch Jide die?"
__---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------__ Babalawo-A native doctor Thank you for reading my book! This chapter took a while to finalize, but the efoort was most definitely worth it. Don't forget to vote, share and comment! I love hearing from you and I would like to get your opinion of the plot, grammar or characters even. Happy New Year to you, and stay safe! Bye~
