CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Okegbemi Ebenezer
The torture given to the hunter was so much that he began to think of lying against himself about being the mastermind of the kidnap. The police were always checking on him to know if he has changed his mind.
“Are you still proving stubborn” One of them shouted at him
“Hmm, please, you are know that I am not guilty” He pleaded but it fell on deaf ears
“Who told you, you are not guilty, you need to tell the court what you were doing in the bush at that particular hour with a gun pointed towards the SSG and holding other people in captive” the DPO said to him and bite his lower lips.
“Sir, I know nothing about these, you can ask the victims, they will tell you the truth” He begged the policemen who hit the stick on his head.
“Shut up, what did you know, the other two victims said you were the one who killed the second in command and also held them captive” The police man said eyeing the hunter continuously
“Ahh, they are lying against me, you can ask from the pregnant woman, I was the one who saved her when she was about to be killed, please hear me out and ask them, I know that their conscience would judge them if they don’t tell the truth, I am sure” He replied.
“Okay o, you will meet with them but it will surprise you that all will still fall on your head” The sergeant said and went out.
**************
“Mama, Pastor Lawrence that is how I saw it o, here is the letter she wrote to me” John shows both of them.
“Are you for real, this is serious but she shouldn’t have done that” Pastor Lawrence said looking down casted
“John are you sure that both of you did not fight” His mother queried
“Because I know the gravity of what she did and you men, hmmm” she sigh.
“Mama, why are you talking like this?
“This is not the reason I called you here mama, I want solution on how to bring her back”
“Bring who back, did she tell you where she would be going, huh” She frowned at him
“At all, she did not but mama, I believe you can help me reason and think about the place she can be at this time so that we could go and beg her. I have forgiven her whole heartedly, I know that she left because of shame and not being able to look at me but I have forgiven her and I was even planning that we will have to take our vows again as in renew the vow and for the baby, if the father did not accept him, I will take the baby as my own” He explained while he placed his left hand on his fore head to relieve himself of the slight headache he was having.
“Bro. just calm down, I am sure that by God’s grace all will be well. To me she left to calm herself and bring herself to order, you know what you both went through nevertheless, I am having this kind of feelings that she would come back and in a manner that would be of surprise to you all because her coming back will be to peoples freedom and peace. Just watch and see, like I always, there is a reason for the coming together of the two of you as ordained by God.” The pastor said to them as John sat on a stool beside him to relax.
“Alright sir, God bless sir” He greeted.
***********
The hunter was brought to the interrogating room, his face was full of bruise but he kept on smiling at the police that wanted to interrogate him.
“Why are you smiling, I know that hardened criminals like you cannot repent” He said to him as they ushered in Anita
The hunter was able to recognize her but wonder why she was not in prison cloth like him.
“Excuse me, what’s happening here, why is it that the person that masterminded the kidnap is looking nice while I am being punished for what I know nothing about” the hunter protested.
“Shut up your mouth, you don’t know anyone in this country and you expect to survive…these people you are looking at have backbone and those behind them are strong that …hmmm, let me reserve my words” he tried to educate him about how the system was structured.
“Ahh, I am …” Shut up and focus.
“Now start” the interrogator shouted.
“Do you know this man, Miss. Anita?” He questioned.
“Yes sir, I know him from the den of the kidnappers” She said with her face straight.
“What role did he play there?”The police asked
Immediately Anita burst into tears…
“You see this man, he made us suffer, he was the one that shot at the second in command and tied us to the tree, he k!lled the other pregnant women, by what he told us he said that he would k!ll the SSG if they did not bring ransom…ahh, I suffered in this man’s hand” Anita cried
“Ahhh, I am in trouble, woman, you were the one that said the SSG would use money to spoil me if I am …’they put off the microphone when he was ranting so as to prevent implicating evidence against the SSG.
“Shut up and move him away” The interrogator shouted while the hunter continued crying.
*********
Three weeks later,the date for the court hearing was fixed, the hunter was brought into the court room with the prison cloth on him. John was not allowed to attend as they claimed that he was still suffering from the trauma he went through in kidnappers den even though, he protested that he can come. They didn’t allow him to move out of his house as security was moved into house and he was given a house arrest.
Anita was called upon including some of the members of the kidnapping with Kelvin to testify and they did against the hunter who was just crying. He had no lawyer to represent him.
The SSG has promised Kelvin and the rest juicy offer of sending them abroad if they were able to lie against the hunter and not indict him in the crime.
The judge having considered the testimonies from their mouth and through the help of various incriminating evidence brought by the police, he cleared his throat to declare his judgment
“Hmm, having listened to the testimonies from various witnesses that were held captive which includes the SSG of this state himself, here is my judgment, this court sentence you to …” He was about to pronounce the penalty when they was a fracas happening outside the court, someone was trying to force her way into the court but the police would not allow her…she began to scream on top of her voice and was telling them that she was a victim and has something important to say that would help the court but the police were pushing her yet she struggled and because of her condition some able bodied men came to her rescues and helped her to find her way into the court…
“My Lord, pardon me for screaming, this case is manipulated” She screamed while the police wanted to close her mouth, she bite one of them as she became violent.
The judge sensing what could happen if he did not grant her the time to talk knew what could happen as the people were already in support of her…The hunter looked back only to see a woman looking very rough and unkempt…
“You think I am a mad woman right, okay, My Lord, my name is Blessing Okafor… I am one of the victim even the one that was kidnapped. I am pre…” She could not complete her words as she became dizzy and collapse but the timely intervention of a man who saw what was about to handle prevented her from landing on the floor…
The judge sensing what was happening adjourned the court till the following week…
Anita opened her mouth in shock as she murmured…
“So, this lady is not dead….ahhh, you have ten lives …” She said to herself
To be continued. OPEN SECRET
