Chapter 11

Ayoola's POV.

I made sure to not be spotted as I got out of the forest, I was heading towards the town. We had made our home there. It was an isolated town mainly because the ground was not worth much. Farmers had to work ten times harder on these grounds to grow anything. Amid this poverty, they had dedicated a large amount of their time to spreading news about witchcraft. They suspected anything and everything. No one was an exception when it came to witchcraft.

I held him closer and acted like my focus was all on him as people began to pass by us. The timer on my wrist was counting down very fast. Every minute that passed pushed me closer to a panic attack. My heart hammered hard against my chest as I raced against time. I sometimes forgot to catch my breath. It was hard to do so when the only thing I could think of was not letting Adisa down. After years she now believed that there was a way. She put in effort in saving herself. If I let her down today, she would give up on herself. I could not let that happen at any cost.

"Ayoola!" A voice called out to me.

I had to get home.

I did not look back and continued. The voice kept getting closer and closer. I sensed a hand resting on my shoulders, I shivered as I turned back.

"Hey." My breath was stuck in my throat as I looked at Tumi. I feared that she would recognize the steel man. She would question me, and I would not be able to get away.

"Hey, Tumi. Shouldn't you be home?" I bet she had that question in mind for me but I judged it good to ask it first.

"I could say the same thing, young lady?" She crossed her arms against her chest. Tumi was never a treat to me. Instead, in these years that I have spent in this town. She was like my mother. She watched out for both me and Adisa even though she had only seen her once.

"I had to go give food to Adisa." She unwrapped her arm and placed one hand on my shoulder again.

"She can’t be alone at this time." She said as if whispering to me. I would occasionally lower my eyes to check the time on my wrist.

"She has joined the hunt," I said, hoping she would know what the hunt was. The less specific I was, the better.

"She could get killed too, these Dark shadows are powerful." This time it was a whisper. I was not surprised that she thought it was the witch hunt. It was the most obvious guess at this time of the day.

"I know but she has been training." His hand slowly slipped off my arm. I pulled him back at the right time.

"Who is that?" she pointed at the person I was holding close to my side. Cold waves washed over me. My hand trembled nonstop.

"Hmmm... Tumi I have to go." A small smile was plastered on her face.

"It's a boy." She said. I looked back at the man at my side.

“Got ya!” She shouted with excitement.

"N-no!" I protested. She laughed.

"I don't think I allowed you to go around with drunk guys." She raised her eyebrow.

"It's a friend... I'm helping him out."

"A friend?" I could not tell if it was a question or a statement, I just nodded politely.

"I'll get going." I tried leaving the conversation where it was but she held me back again. She reached out for her bag. Tumi took out a book.

"You left this." She said handing the book back to me. My hand shook as I reached out for it. I recited a prayer under my breath, I prayed for her to not see the timer on my wrist. There was no logic to explain how it got there and why it was counting down. Her eyes were fixated on my trembling hands.

"Spirit warriors." I read the title out loud to distract her. Tumi and I were obsessed over everything related to magic. Tumi was simply intrigued by the mystery surrounding the world of magic. Reading such a book was her habit to kill time while me on the other hand. I read such books to educate myself on my world. I knew these things were real and possible. Spellbooks had been burnt for ages after the downfall of the Walezi civilization. Despite knowing that we could not practice magic, they make sure to erase any trace of magic in our thoughts. Many guardians grew up not knowing simple tricks like an apparition or playing with flames of candles that required little to no magic. I did not want to let go of that part of my life, especially when I had a sister who was being consumed by dark magic. I needed to find a way to take her out of it.

"You left it on top of the counter in the tea shop at plain sight. Are you trying to have us killed, child?" Her smile turned into a stern face. I swallowed hard, I knew how important it was for me to keep our secret obsession in the dark. Tumi was a member of the town council, if she was caught possessing such a book she would have been kicked out.

“Sorry,” her stern face turned back into a genuine smile, she lifted my chin with her hand gently.

“Do you think I’ll be mad at you?” She raised her eyebrow.

“I could never.” She winked, the golden sun rays shone on her face giving her brown skin a beautiful glow that was enhanced by her thick medium height afro.

"Thank you. Tumi." She nodded, handing the book over to me.

“Keep it safe or else I’ll be forced to snitch on you.” She looked around jokingly.

“I take my work seriously.” She raised her head high with pride. We both laughed.

“Get back home, Ayoola.” I nodded, turning away from her. That was so close.