Two weeks had already passed by. The brotherhood had successfully done two other operations. Chala had finally managed to get the bag. His lifestyle had changed a lot. His priority was to make his children happy. His wife Amala had sent him a text the other week.
Hello Chala, I hope you are still stuck in your poverty. You will forever remain poor. As for me, I got myself a handsome rich man. I am so happy without you. I wish you a slow poor death.
Chala laughed loudly and shook his head. He could not believe this was the same Amala he had fallen in love with some years back. The same Amala who was loving and caring. He had already accepted to move on without her. He no longer felt the sharp pain in his chest. He was happy now together with his children. This is life, he thought as he came back to reality.
That evening Chala went to the post office, he had received two letters. He got back home and opened each. The first was from Ninke. It has been two years since she left. Chala had never heard from her all this while. Ninke explained to him that she was fine and coping well with the education there. She was planning to come back home in two years time after finishing her studies. Chala felt so happy to know that his daughter was okay.
The other letter was from his now former wife Amala. He did not even read it. He already knew the contents inside. All his wife was wishing him now was bad luck. He hid it in his bedroom and gave Mary the other letter from Ninke. They were all happy to hear from their elder sister.
Chala was also shocked to learn that his brother had tricked him into joining a cult. He had pretended that his working with the governor so as to lure Chala into joining the brotherhood.
Chala decided to confront Tintu after his initiation into the brotherhood.
"Tell me the truth brother, is this group all about the governor's operations?" he asked.
"Oh, oh, my dear little brother. I did not want to scare you but the real truth is," Tintu laughs a bit, "we are the lions brotherhood. We do many operations especially that deal with politicians all over the country. That is how I came to know the governor."
"You could have told me earlier Tintu."
"You would not have agreed to join me. I just pitied how you were suffering with your family until a point that your wife left."
"Do not remind me about that Tintu let us drink to more cash," Chala said as he lifted his glass of alcohol and drained all the contents.
Tintu then took him to their leader and Chala got direct contact to the operations. He had already developed a cold heart. He kept on receiving cheque after cheque. He even started recruiting new members. One morning he received a phone call from their leader. They had an operation at the port. Their work was to ensure the five containers that had arrived reached safely at the city.
Chala and six other men arrived at the port. They were already aware of the four containers that had electronics and one specific one which were bags of sugar loaded with tones of cocaine and bhang. The cargo ship landed safely as each container was being inspected then transported. The inspector was already told what to do by the boss.
The five containers were already transferred to a waiting truck when the men in blue ambushed the operation. There was shooting as they aimed right at the truck. The truck's driver had to jump and run for his life. The men who were with Chala started shooting as he tried to signal them to abort the mission but his words fell on deaf ears. Chala felt a hand grab him and he found himself behind another container. He surprisingly found out that is was a young woman who seemed in her early twenties. She wore all black and had dark shades on.
"Who are you and why did…"
"Sshh I was sent here by the boss, follow me. I will explain the rest later,"she stated as she led Chala out of the port through a hidden path.
The two followed a narrow way until they reached a quiet safe place. They walked along another road that led them to a bungalow. On arrival, they found a whole group of people. Chala recognized some of them from the brotherhood. The television was on and the headlines were very clear.
A GANG OF SIX MEN CAUGHT IN CONNECTION TO IMPORTATION OF ILLEGAL DRUGS AT THE PORT.
The news stated the three of them were injured and hospitalized. The boss looked at Chala with disappointment written all over his face.
"I tried to warn them boss but they did not listen to…"
"You tried!"He shouted in anger, "There is no room for trial in this brotherhood. Take him to the dungeon now!"
Chala looked at the boss trying so hard to plead with him to no avail. His eyes tried to search for the woman who saved him since she saw everything but he could not see her. Three huge men caught him and took him to a very
It was already dusk. Mary, Leah and Emmanuel waited for their father but there was no sign of him till late in the night. Mary was very keen and she had already noticed that their father used to leave every night. She was already suspicious since their life had changed a lot since their mother left. She decided to find out what their father was up to when he returns. Leah and Emmanuel were already asking a lot of questions since they knew their father had never left them home alone at night.
Mary convinced them that everything will be okay. She prepared supper and took the two to sleep. Once they were asleep she sat waiting for their father. She was deep in thought as she was trying to decipher what kind of job their father was doing. She drifted to sleep that night on the couch.
She woke up to the crowing of the cock. It being a weekend she prepared breakfast for her siblings and decided to start cleaning. The two woke up later and they took breakfast together. As they were eating, Emmanuel kept asking about their father. Mary had to lie that their father came back early in the morning and left again. She told them he had gone to bring them chicken. Emmanuel felt happy since that was his favourite.
Mary remembered how Emmanuel used to cry every night when their mother left. He could wake up and the first thing he would ask their father was where their mother went to. He was only three years old then. His father made up new stories everyday. Little Emmanuel was never satisfied with any of his father's answers. He could wail loudly and no one could soothe him. The first one week was very hard for him. His questions started reducing one by one and with time, he started to cope.
As the elder sister, Mary did not want her siblings to undergo what happened the first time. She promised herself to find out what their father was doing before it was too late. They spent the whole morning cleaning. They did their school work after which Leah and Emmanuel went to take a nap. Mary started to investigate all about their father. She was really in need of answers. Her curiosity got the better of her as she decided to check their father's room. She slowly pushed the door and tiptoed. She did not want any of her siblings to hear her. She was busy looking at the closet when she found a letter.
Chala was still in the room that night. He could not hear anything from inside. It was so dark and cold that he had started freezing. He could not help but think about how his life had changed in the last few months. He was glad at least he had lived the past few months to his best. Amala had left him after everything they had undergone together. He felt frustrated all of a sudden. He let out a loud scream.
He hit the floor hard until he started feeling pain. Nothing ever goes right in his life. The heart break he had was enough to break him into pieces. He recalled how he almost got into depression. He had suicidal thoughts but what prevented him was his children. He had to get into this life or else he would have been six feet under by now.
He heard the door open. He felt strong arms hold him as he stood up. His legs had become so weak as his nerves started shaking vigorously. The cold had affected his whole body. He tried to walk but found it so difficult. The man then dragged him outside as he groaned in pain. He squinted his eyes, the light was too bright for him.
The two entered another room where the whole brotherhood was seated. The boss looked at Chala. He was still furious from the previous day's events. The boss gestured Chala to move forward. He slowly moved next to the boss. He bowed his head saying a silent prayer. He knew this was his end as he hoped for a miracle.
"You have been given one last chance. The next time any of this repeats itself, I will feed you to the dogs," the boss said as Chala heaved a sigh of relief.
"Thank you boss, I will not disappoint you."
"We are meeting tonight at our usual place usual time," with that Chala left hurriedly thanking God for saving him that day.
He found it hard to walk but he struggled through the path, he had to reach home. He knew his children had waited the whole night. It being a weekend, they were at home waiting for their hero. He winced as his knuckles were still red and swollen.
Chala was a few meters from the brotherhood meeting place when he heard commotion. He drew closer to see what could be causing drama that evening.
"Lynch them! Lynch them!"
A group of men and women was shouting at the top of their voices. Chala was shocked to see two men in the middle of the group. They had swelling and bruises all over their bodies. The two had received numerous beatings from the crowd. As Chala was trying to figure out what was happening, a woman came from the crowd and tried to stop to stop them. She quickly called the police as she held some men back. The mob was too strong for her and she stepped aside.
"They deserve death!"
"Lynch them!" The mob continued to chant.
"What is happening here "Chala asked a middle aged woman.
"These men were caught in a very bad act," she shook her head then continued, "how can two full grown men be doing this to children this is an unforgivable act we can never acce…"
The woman had hardly finished her sentence when police sirens was heard approaching. Within a spur of a moment, gun shots rented the air as the crowd dispersed. Chala was already on his heels heading home. He arrived home panting. He almost forgot the pain he was feeling just few minutes earlier. He leaned on the wall feeling exhausted.
He knocked lightly on the door. Little Emmanuel came to open the door. He jumped as his father held him close. His father had missed his last born son so much. The father son bond that they shared was so strong. His son had a special place in his heart. Staying the whole night away from his children was a living night mare. He held him and they entered the house only to find Mary and Leah missing. Chala looked for the two around the whole house but there was no sign of them. . . .