RED FLAGS
EPISODE 17
“Oh my God! This is Bimpe, my own best friend ” I said with a shocked expression written all over my face and I could see how shocked my mum was too. I rubbed my face for the umpteenth time to be sure am not seeing the wrong person. I burst into tears when the reality dawn on me as the image of the only person I called my friend stared at me in the calabash. My heart was so broken into pieces because I trusted Bimpe so much not knowing she is the one behind my predicament. The herbalist chanted a few incantations and the image disappeared. He looked at me and said:” That’s life for you my dear, Kokoro to n Je efo Abe efo lo wa ( the ant/bug that is eating and destroying the vegetable is right underneath)”.
Your friend didn’t wish you good at all, she is very jealous of your accomplishments that’s why she keeps destroying your life because she wants you dead. As you can see, immediately you battle a problem another one arises.
I was busy crying and wailing as the herbalist keep on explaining the devil I had as a friend. I have never felt betrayed like this in my entire life. Who knows it was someone close to me for years that’s behind all my problems. I took Bimpe like my own blood sister, gave her money even when she didn’t ask. I made sure to send her monthly allowance, I celebrate her when she wins not knowing she was busy backstabbing me all this while. I could not control my tears as memories of how I keep telling my enemy my problems.
“Baba, please what is the solution for my daughter?” My mum asked the herbalist.
” Your daughter’s friend has destroyed her life to some extent that I doubt there will be a solution to it ” The herbalist replied my mum.
” Ha! Mogbe. Baba, please help my daughter. She’s the only child I have ” My mum said and went on her knees begging the herbalist with tears streaming down her eyes.
“There’s only one solution though I pray it worked, ” The herbalist told my mum. You will have to bring big six white cows with no black blemishes, two bags of salt, and three hundred thousand nairas to perform the ritual on your daughter”.
” We are ready to pay any amount Baba, name your price. I just want my daughter to be okay ” My mum told him.
” Just bring what I mentioned and I am sure my deity will cure your daughter. Your daughter will have to spend four days straight in my shine so my deity can protect her till we perform all the ritual ” The herbalist told my mom because I was busy balling my eyes out.
” No problem Baba, when should we bring all that you mentioned because we are more than ready. If you want us to bring it today we are ready ” My mum told the herbalist.
” Bring it tomorrow and make sure your daughter brings a red wrapper because that’s what she is going to wear all through in the shrine while we perform the ritual, ” The herbalist told my mom and we both thanked him and headed out after promising him that he will see us first thing tomorrow morning.
I got into my car while my mom sat in the passenger seat . I could not drive because I keep hitting the steering hardly . After all, it still feels like a dream to me that Bimpe could do something like this to me.
“You better don’t kill yourself. Nobody is to be trusted and I guess you learned that now. You are not supposed to be wasting your tears on one stupid friend right now because your concern should be how you are going to be okay. Brace yourself because this crying won’t solve any matter at all. Ama le eleroyo lo na ka to wa fa abo ba adiye (We will need to send the fox away first before we come back to the hen)” My mum said referring to Bimpe.
I wiped my tears with the back of my palms and was about to start my car engine when a call came through my phone which was inside my bag. I picked my bag up as i remove my phone and speaking of the devil, Bimpe name was displayed as the caller calling me. I looked at my mum and said:” Mum, she is calling me “.
“Who is that ?” My mum asked me.
“Bimpe na ” I replied her back and she sits right on her seat and told me to pick her call. I picked the call and put it on a loudspeaker so my mum can hear her also.
“Hi best friend, how are you doing?. I just want to tell you my pastor is back though he came back to attend to an urgent matter so I helped you persuade him to please do the deliverance for you before going back so when are you coming because I can guess you must be very happy ” Bimpe said to me.
I was so afraid to reply to her because I can’t believe someone can pretend to save me from my problem likewise is the same person behind my predicament.
“Hello, hello. Are you there?” Bimpe asked when she didn’t hear me respond to her.
My mum collected my phone from me and said:” Shut up you good for nothing friend . Afefe ti fe, a ti ri furo adiye (The wind has blown and we have seen the anus of the fowl)”.
” Mummy, what’s going on? I don’t understand you ” Bimpe asked my mum sounding confused.
“Stop acting again and dropped the pretense. I should have known all this while that you are the one behind my daughter’s predicament with the way you are always at her beck and call showing concern more than the person that has the predicament. You want my daughter to come for one stupid deliverance so you can kill her right? God is surely greater than you and has exposed you so there’s nothing you can do. You this stupid, bastard and evil person ” My mum lashed at her.
” Mummy, I don’t understand all these allegations on me because God knows I will never wish Anisha bad ” Bimpe said and burst into tears on the phone.
” Don’t you dare call me Mummy again ever in your life because I only have one daughter and I know who my daughter is. Once my daughter is healed, I am coming to your husband’s house to disgrace you and let everyone know the kind of devil and witch you are made of ” My mum told her angrily and handed me the phone.
“Bimpe, why, why? What have I done to you for you to wish me bad like this? I am cutting all ties with you from today and I don’t want to ever see you or set my eyes on you ever again ” I told her with hot tears spilling down my face.
“Anisha, God knows I ………” I didn’t allow her to finish her sentence before I hang up on her. I cried immediately I dropped my phone because she is the only friend I have got before I came to know her true intentions. My mum patted my back as I cried, I wiped my tears and started the engine and skillfully maneuvered out of the premises.
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The next day, my mum and I were already at the herbalist place with all he told us to bring. He told my mum to go home and come back after three days to pick me up because the deity only needs me in the shrine. I hugged my mum and bid her goodbye as I followed the herbalist into the shrine while my mom went home.
During my stay at the shrine, the herbalist keeps giving me some concoctions which I didn’t know what was used to prepared it to eat and bathe me with a black soap every morning and night chanting different types of incantations on me. It was the third day of my stay in the shrine and I haven’t seen any changes in my body instead I keep having heavy flows. I was sleeping on the floor in the shrine when I heard footsteps coming in so I quickly sit upright thinking the herbalist came with some concoction or to bathe me and chants his incantation but was surprised to see him come in naked.
“Baba, What are you doing?” I asked him as I covered my eyes.
” Today is your third day in the shrine and I am sent by the deity to perform the last ritual on you which requires me to sleep with you so the bleeding can stop immediately, ” He told me as if it was nothing.
” I can’t hear what you say, Baba, you want to sleep or what did I just hear you say ?” I asked him trying to control my anger.
” Yes dear, better let’s get to business before my deity gets mad,” He said smiling stupidly flashing his stupid brown set of teeth at me.
He was about to come close to me when I quickly got up on my feet and said:” If you think you are going to sleep with me then you must be daydreaming. What am I even saying sef, to the hell with you and your diety? Thunder will both strike you and him dead because your deity didn’t tell me you want to sleep with me after you collecting cows and three hundred thousand nairas from my hand” I said angrily.
He tried to rush at me and I dodge him making him fall flatly on the floor and I quickly used that as my escape route. Fortunately, I was with my phone so I quickly put a call through my mum and told her to come with my car and come pick me up because I can’t go out with the only red wrapper I was tying around my chest. She asked me what was the problem but I told her I will explain to her better when she comes because I am hiding right now at the herbalist compound.
After what seems like fifteen minutes still expecting my mum, I felt a hand wrapped around my waist from behind and I turned to see the herbalist smiling at me and said:” Even if you are going to leave, I am going to taste your sweet pot first “.
I struggled to remove his hands from my waist and I could see his hold on me was strong and I looked at him with a confused look that how could someone as old as he be so strong and he smirked at me and removed the mask on his face and I came face to face with a man in his late forties. It dawned on me immediately I was duped by a 419 and the old man was a disguise of a man. How I didn’t notice all this while I was in the shrine that he wasn’t an old man was what baffled me. He tried to remove my wrapper since he knew I was naked underneath since he told me not to wear any diaper or sanitary pads because I was going to be healed that day.
We started struggling with each other until I suddenly heard a sound. I look at the man as he fell to the ground and saw my mum holding a stirring stick she used to knock him out.
“Mummy,” I said and burst into tears as I ran to hug her. She hugged me tightly too as tears streamed down her eyes.
“We need to get away from here before he wakes up,” My mum told me and I nodded my head in accordance as we quickly evacuate the place and got into my car, and zoom out of the premises.
“I can’t believe he is a fake herbalist,” My mum said with disbelief when we got to my house.
“I don’t believe too until he removed the mask he was wearing,” I told my mum as we both sat on my couch in the living room after I had changed into a neat dress.
“That means he was lying about Bimpe been behind my predicament but how was he able to make her image appeared in the calabash is still what is baffling me, ” I asked my mom sounding confused.
” We can’t still say for now that Bimpe is not the one behind your predicament. I never believe that herbalist was fake because a friend recommended him to me because her daughter was also having a problem with child delay and immediately she got to the herbalist place, she took in the next month “My mum said in disbelief.
” That means your friend’s daughter slept with the herbalist which I am very sure of after experiencing what happened at his place,” I told my mom and shrugged my shoulder.
” That might be true o, See life. I am just glad he didn’t have his way with you because I would have regretted it for the rest of my life “My mum said to me.
” So what’s next now ?” I asked my mum.
“I honestly don’t know Anisha, I would have say we should go to Bimpe place so she can take us to her pastor’s place but when you were in that fake herbalist place I was so angry that I had to travel down to Lagos. I went to Bimpe’s house and disgraced her calling her different sort of names and I am sure she won’t even want to see us if we decided to go ” My mum told me while I had a shocked expression written all over my face.
“You shouldn’t have done that na, What if she wasn’t the one behind my predicament. I hope have not offended the only person that stood by me in my trying times like this” I said regretfully.
” I am just mad at her and concern about you that was why I did that. We will go and beg her after we find a solution to your predicament because her place is a no-go area for now “My mum told me and I nodded at her in agreement.
My mum left for Lagos the following day after assuring me that she will get back to me after finding a trustworthy pastor or Alfa that can shed light on my predicament. I was so down all through so I decided to go to my company so I won’t kill myself out of depression. I quickly change into a Bubu, did a light makeup to cover my dark eyes then headed to my company.
I entered the reception after the security guard took my bag into my office. I met Stella my receptionist jotting down some sales in the account book. She quickly stood up immediately she sighted me and went on her knees as a way of greeting me. I responded to her by waving my hands at her and headed to my office after checking up on the four sales girls I hired to attend to customers. I was in my office brooding about my life when I was jotted out of my thoughts by the knock on my office door.
“Who is that ?” I asked.
” Is me Stella ma ” I heard my receptionist voice?
” Come in ” I replied to her.
She came in and I asked her:” Hope no problem, Stella?”.
“Not at all Ma, I just noticed you have been moody since you came in. For the past three months now, I have noticed how you fake your smile at us making us think everything is okay with you but I can tell when your smiles are genuine or not even if the rest didn’t notice so I came to ask that is everything alright Ma ” Stella told me.
” Thank you so so much for this Stella because no one has ever asked me this, all they think of me is that am a rich woman not knowing the rich also cry and money can’t buy happiness,” I told her with an appreciative tone.
” You are welcome Ma” Stella replied as she bent her knees as a way of respect.
“Ma, if you don’t mind I can take you to our Sheu shafau place. You don’t have to tell me anything about what you are facing. I have known our Sheu shafau ( kodasalaruhau) since I was little and he has never disappointed me. Anybody that comes to his place with tears always left with smiles on their faces ” You know my dad is a Muslim while my mum is a Christian but later converted to a Muslim three years ago after she was healed by Sheu shafau” Stella told me.
I heave a sigh and said: “Stella, there are a lot of fake pastors and alfas outside and I don’t want to be duped again by anyone “.
” Mummy, you have to trust me. How do you want to find a solution to your problem if you keep doubting every pastor and alfa? Remember we still have some real ones out there ” She told me and I was touched by her words.
” Thanks so much, Stella, I appreciate it “. Stella and I concluded she would take me to the Sheu shafau place tomorrow and see if I can get a solution to my problem.
The next morning, Stella and I set out to the Sheu shafau place. Immediately we got into the mosque, we were ursher in by a man to the Sheu shafau office which is beside the mosque after he told us to cover our hair with a scarf. Stella and I greeted the Sheu shafau who I guess was in his mid-sixties and he responded to our greetings by bowing his head a little bit. Stella told him am her boss that she talked to him about and the Sheu shafau said he already knows.
The Sheu shafau told Stella to excuse us and immediately she was out of sight, I was about to tell him my problem when he told me not to bother myself because he already knew about my predicament. He narrated everything I have been experiencing right from the start to the end and I was so surprised. I would have thought Stella already told him assuming I explained what was happening to me to her but I didn’t and I was awe at how the man knew everything.
He looked at me and said:” Before I can say anything, I will need to see your mother because she also knows a little about what’s happening to you though she is not the one that’s behind your predicament but we can start from there as God shed more light to it. Make sure to bring your mother here tomorrow because her life is in danger as I speak because immediately you came inside the person behind your predicament know you are going to get heal so be fast because the devil doesn’t wait for nobody and is always two steps ahead because it doesn’t rest “.
” I will make sure we are both here first thing tomorrow morning Sir, thank you so much sir,” I told him and handed him some wads of nairas but he rejected it politely and I was wowed that there are still some good people out there. Stella was called inside after that and she thanked the Sheu shafau as we both headed out.
I was driving back to my company so I drop Stella off before heading home so I can call my mum. I dropped Stella in front of my company and thanked her for today and was about to start my car engine when my Mum call came through. I connected the call to my AirPods and receive the shock of my life when I heard a man voice on the other line telling me my Mum was involved in a ghastly accident as we speak.
WHAT!
