Zakia - Episode 1

 

The headlines was the same as always. The Boko Haram sect seemed to have the upper hand, and whilst the press, and the government only gave false speeches, and empty promises through the modern TV screens, the residents of the Bogoro town in Bauchi state, myself most inclusive, remained the actual victims. 

".. there was a terrorist attack, at the Bogoro town, Bauchi state yesterday, at the early hours of the morning, - that's the fifth attack they've experienced this year . And unfortunately, as at the moment, twenty-two have been confirmed dead, whilst three seem to have suffered only a minor injury.."

".. the security agents are doing the best they can to curb the incessant situation, and they are also using this medium to inform the Bogoro town residents that they are deeply sorry for their losses.." The newscaster read out loud from the screen that was apparently stuck somewhere behind the scene. 

How convenient!  I thought to myself. 

My Mum happened to be a part of the few that'd supposedly suffered only a minor injury. And sparing her a brief glance, it was difficult to fight back the tears that threatened to spill across my face.

Mother was laid flat on her back, completely still. The aftermath of the bullet that'd been shot right through her spine had left her paralysed, and all she did was cry all day

All episodes of this story can be found here >> https://www.ebonystory.com/story/zakia

. The so-called government had failed to provide any form of medical services, whilst the traditional medical care we'd eventually resort to, looked very discouraging. 

My father had died right before my very eyes during the previous attack, and so had my younger sister, Halimah.. I was scared for my mother.

Sobbing, I gently held onto her hands, very much aware that she couldn't feel a thing, and silently, I prayed to God..I poured out my heart to Him, begged him to save us from the terror that we were suddenly being forced to experience ..However, He didn't hear any of my prayers, the sound of the gunshots that preceded wouldn't let Him.  

"Zakia.." My mum whispered anxiously, and I could almost sense the tension in her words, the same kind that was leaking through my buzzing nerves. She'd also heard the horrifying gunshots. "They're here again.." She mumbled. Her lips wouldn't stop shivering; her tears wouldn't stop trickling. 

Despite being indoors, I could percieve the cries of terrified souls, the violent palpitations of their hearts as they ran for their dear lives, the severe anguish as stray bullets pierced right through their delicate skins, the heaves of their final breaths. The chaos was nothing I hadn't experienced before, nonetheless, it wasn't something anyone wanted to get used to.

"Zakia, please find a way to escape.."

"Run away Zakia.."

"Please go.." Mother wouldn't stop whispering in fear.

However, none of her words fully registered into my brain at the time. It all just sounded like a combination of letters from a foreign language entirely.. I was too frightened to think straight, too overwhelmed to make any form of movement. And it was all coming back to me.. the terror of the previous attack. 

"Run Zakia!" My father had also yelled at me.

"RUN!" He'd yelled even harder. At that particular moment, my younger sister was already lying dead on the bare ground; Father definitely didn't want me to suffer the same fate.

"Run!" He wouldn't stop yelling at me.

And that day, I ran. I ran knowing my father had already been shot. I ran knowing for certain that it was the end of him.. 

Amidst the new tension, and my inability to move, our door had been forced open by another abrupt shot, and my fright deepened even more. 

"P-please.." I whispered with quivering lips, staring deeply at him. It was difficult to make out his actual features as a result of the mask he had on. However, the reddish quality to his eyes told me he was far from compassionate. 

I really didn't understand how it happened; it all occurred within the flick of a millisecond.. and what I heard next was the click sound of the trigger being pulled, and the sound of a fiery shot as it went straight to my mother's forehead. 

She's dead.. That was all my brain could register, before it all got too much.. My head became intensely blank, and I fainted. 

* * *

I woke up to an unfamiliar surrounding with no knowledge of how or when I'd gotten to that very location.

Read " After Grad " by the same author ( Ishola Ubaydah )

. The said location was a dinky space with a wooden door that wouldn't click open no matter how hard I pulled on the steel knob. And on top of that, the pain in my head only got sharper by the second.

Where am I?  I wondered, crouching back onto the same floor I'd been initially laying unconscious on.

But then, it occurred to me, the bigger question. Who am I? 

At this, my head got clouded by a sudden state of confusion, my brain hurt in turn from thinking too hard. Right about that very moment, the door had yanked open with an incredible force, however, my bemusement only intensified.. The hefty man in front of me, together with his younger subordinates were as unfamiliar as everything else that surrounded me. However, the unfamiliarity wasn't exactly the reason behind my fright. The weapon in their hands was the reason why my body wouldn't in fact, stop shivering in fear.

The hefty man continued to stare deeply at me, and his gaze still wouldn't shift from me as he crouched next to me. But I, on the other hand didn't dare to make a proper eye contact.

"What is your name?" He demanded harshly with an Hausa accent, raising my chin to meet his lethal glare. I didn't respond. I didn't know myself. "I said what is your name!" He demanded once again, and this time, his incessant question was accompanied by a slap across my face.

"I d-don't know.." I eventually managed to stutter. 

And just like myself, they all seemed confused.