C1 Chapter 1

Grin! grin!! grin!!!

I heard the doorbell ring thrice. Stood up from my chair where I was doing my homework. I Walked into the kitchen to tell my mother that someone was at the door. On my way, I heard that same bell multiple times again.

"Yesssss! we're coming!! I scream just to let the person know that we aren't deaf. Met my mother slicing onions as she was preparing noodles for dinner.

"Mom someone is at the door! should I open it for the person? "

" Jessy when did that start? don't try that. I'll open the door by myself. Go and continue with your homework"

"Yes, mom. I'm almost done"

"That's good. Just go and finish it up"

I nodded and left the kitchen. My mother left the kitchen and went to my father's room. I heard them conversing

"Honey someone is at the door, did you invite anyone"

"Not at all! Where is Jessy? "

" She's doing her homework"

" Ok. I didn't invite anyone. Go and check, it may be Sandra your friend. Since she came back from her vacation, she always liked visiting. Before you leave there's a briefcase on my table, take it to Jessy's room."

As they were still discussing, the doorbell rang again.

She took the briefcase to my room and went to the door.

"Yes, who's there please!"

My mother asked in her pleasant voice.

The person refused to talk but rang the bell once again. My mother opened the door thinking that her friend might be playing pranks on her.

"....Jesus!!!!" I shouted

"Jessy, what's wrong?" My father asked from the bathroom.

I don't know what's wrong sir, this person forcefully pushed the door and struck my mother to the ground."

My father rushed out of the bathroom while tying only a towel. His body was soaked with water and foams could be seen in some parts of his body.

While looking at my father who had just come out of the bathroom, I heard a gunshot. On getting to the sitting room which was very close to the entrance door, we were surrounded by three men who were armed with guns. They used masks to cover their faces.

"Make no further movement or you'll have yourself to blame!" One of them said in a horrifying voice. Though the voice did crack, it sounded familiar to me.

"Dad who is..."

"My father used his left hand and grab my mouth while raising his right hand in surrender to them.

One of them came closer and hit his gun on my Dad's shoulder. My father was strong but he couldn't bear the pain. He screamed the way I never heard him scream since I knew him.

The same person raised his gun again to hit the innocent man, but one of them ...I guess the gangster held him back.

"What do you want from me and my family?" My father was pleased with much pain and anxiety in his voice. I was speechless since my father cautioned me not to talk. I felt the pain of what hit my father but I didn't know whether my words may cause more harm. I started shedding tears behind my father who was already on his knees.

"Stupid man! look over there" the gang leader said while pointing at the door. I couldn't wait for the man to finish before I intruded

" Stop calling my father a stupid man, you're the stupid one here" I shouted back to him.

We looked in the direction he pointed only to see my mother bleeding profusely from the head. My father got up with force to reach where my mum was bleeding, they dragged him back.

"Where do you think you are going?"

I don't think my father heard what they said because he was still dragging them to meet me where I was already holding my mother's hand and calling her name. I called my mother's name thrice but she didn't answer. I held her head where the blood was gushing out from, it was warm and mixed with another substance it was thicker than the blood I knew. I held her up but she couldn't help herself. I was still checking to know what was wrong with my mother when I heard the thunderous sound of a heavy slap. I guess it was on my father's chin because he moaned out.

"Won't you be obedient for once? will you be calm and settle us or do you want to die with her and we take what we want?"

My father stood still. It was from the words of the armed rubber I heard that my mother was dead. I wailed as I could but none of them cared about my feelings. As I was still crying, I overheard them conversing

"You people have ruined my life, what do you want?" My father asked as he was already like a toothless and deboned German Shepherd.

"Barrister Louis, I warned you not to even go near the case of Senator Yakubu, talk more of being a member of the panel to question him in the court, you did the opposite of what I said. And you're the team leader of the panel because you can speak and defend yourself. Hope you can defend against gunshots as well. I pleaded with you to hand over to me the files justice Zick gave to you right in the office but you refuse. Give it to me now and be free or only a gunshot will make it easier for us.

"Sam so you're the one doing this to me, though we're friends?"

" Not on my duty, because if not like this, it'll be the other way round, be a fast young man"

He walked into my room as two armed robbers guided him into my room. He came out with the briefcase he told my mother to drop in my room.

"Good boy! Now you can do whatever you please, but in your next generation, be smart and not just intelligent"

The gang leader said and shot him in the forehead. Then was confused. Tears couldn't drop from my eyes again.

That was a dilemma-like condition for me because shouting may attract their attention to me and they may still shoot me. Or should I mourn my parents just like that? I was looking like nothing happened while still holding my mother's dead body when they walked past me. I got my slap from the last person. He couldn't just pass without giving me such a hot slap to dilute what they did to me.

They left with the briefcase and entered a black Rangerover spot.

That was when it cleared my eyes that they made me an orphan in less than 30 minutes. I rushed out heading to Sandra's place but a warm hand held me from the flowers in front of our compound. I opened my mouth to talk only to hear

"....Shhhhhhhhhhhh! I'm Sandra. be calm please."

"Sandra they're gone but they've done irreversible damage to me. They killed my parents"

Sandra grabbed my hand without altering a word. She dragged me through a narrow part of her apartment. She picked up her phone and call the police. She narrated the incident to them. It didn't take up to ten minutes before the police arrived at our house. When they arrived, they took my parents away in an ambulance. They surrounded the whole estate and locked the main estate gate. No one could enter or leave the estate. A policeman kept questioning and questioning me as if I was among the robbers. Sandra was also questioned in the same way. Some kept taking pictures of almost everywhere in our house. All they were doing was like jokes to me cos all I wanted was how to bring my parents back to life. They later took me and Sandra to the police station. They gave Sandra some files to sign. which she did. They then advise that we don't go back to that same apartment until we're told to. They took us to a place that looked more like a hotel. I thought so because there were CCTV cameras almost in all corners