When I was done, I went to the kitchen, dished some yam pottage and then went back to see Zainab. It was already late but I didn’t care what she would think. As I walked down the bush path, I heard someone screaming. I quickened my steps and when I reached the bend, I saw two big boys struggling with Zainab.
At first, I was confused about what was going on but when I pulled closer, I realized that they were carrying her and trying to drag her into the bush while one tried to cover her mouth.
Zainab was struggling hard so it was difficult for the boys to successfully drag her away with ease. I knew the two boys, one was nineteen and the other was 21 and they were school dropouts.
Knowing that they were way bigger than I was and it would be impossible to defeat both of them, so I quietly picked up a broken branch and crept towards them after placing the food carefully on the ground. I crashed the branch on the first boy’s back and smashed the branch on the other boy’s shoulder.
They suddenly let Zainab go as they screamed out in pain and scrambled to get away. I ran after them, screaming like a mad man and brandishing the stick and the two idiots took to their heels and never looked back.
When I returned to Zainab, I was panting. She began to sob with a pout then showed me a tear in her wrapper, “They tear it.” She said, nodding her head and sobbing.
Tears streamed out of her eyes and I felt really sorry for her. I comforted her and led her to her spot under the tree. She kept glancing towards the direction the boys had fled through and I that bothered me? What if those boys came back? What if they tried to rape her again in my absence.
To be continued…
© Angela Okoduwa
Hmmm, I feel so sad for zinab,