Chapter two

Mission to save

"What is the meaning of this ? What are you doing here at this hour?" Mr. ALABI asked, already sure of what asoh's response would be

Asoh could not explain. The word were caught in her throat.

"I am sorry dear. Stand up. Let's go back to the house,"he told her.

He gently pulled her up, carried her bags and took her back to the house. Though he had made up his mind not to quarrel with Grace over this incident, he couldn't contain his fury when he saw that Grace had locked Asoh's room with padlock.

"Wait for me , I'm coming," he told as Asoh and went to collect the key from Grace.

Meanwhile Grace had seen them through the window and locked herself inside her room. Mr. ALABI knocked and knocked but she refused to open the door.

"Grace, open this door before I do something that all of will regret later". He threatened.

Mr. Alabi's voice coupled with the way he banged on the bedroom door attracted the neighbours' attention. They began to

speculate and gossip among themselves. Some of them went to question him outright.

" what is the problem baba folake" asked one of the neighbors who happened to be Grace's good friend.

" mama FEMI tell your friend to open this door or I will break it ", he threatened with fire in his eyes .

"Ah ah ! Why did Grace lock the door ? Are you sure everything is alright with her?" Mama FEMI asked again .

Mr ALABI was so angry that he could no longer talk. On noticing his anger, mama femi pleaded with Grace to open the door no matter what the problem was.

" I am not opening the door until he sends away his concubine," Grace shouted insolently from inside. Mama femi was astounded. She had already known mr ALABI as a responsible man.

"His concubine ? How come about a concubine?" She asked herself but before she could get an answer , mr Alabi had already kicked the door open , dragged her out and beat her up like he had never done before

Mr ALABI was not a man of many words . So, Grace packed her things and left the house that night despite every effort and entreats from their neighbors to stop her. Mr ALABI angry that he did no even care if she left or not .

He helped Asoh with her things and gave her the key to her room …. Before leaving for his room .

Grace went to her sister's house which was some kilometers way from Alabi's house . Sister Bimbo blamed her for leaving the house for her husband concubine

Episode 12

At school Folake was already having the premonition that all was not well with her family but many things distracted her from confirming the true situation of things at home. Some of the things that happened in her dream and school earlier we're beginning to manifest in reality even thought they did not happen exactly the way they happened in her dream this even still bothered her very much, one of their outing days Folake went into town with Benny other friend of her's on their way back to school it suddenly started raining and it was getting too late for them to go back to school they took shelter at a bus stop and waited for the rain to subside but it increased instead they became stranded and unsure of how to get back to school, as they were thinking and worried themselves on how to get back a young boy drove past them on seeing them be reversed is car and signal them for them to hop in, but they were rather reluctant to enter and unknown persons car, come in let me drop you off at your school before it is too late he said pooping his head out of the have opened car window, the two girls stared at each other for a while and hoping in because it seems that their choice will limited they could not brace the storm, *my name is Michael* is said as his bed into the highway I am *Benny and my friend here is Folake* Benny introduce. Ok nice to meet you I saw you at the bus stop and felt you might be stranded because of the rain I should take you back to school guess I inquired. _Yes comprehensive secondary school_ Benny replied I know I have seen your school uniform a reply as a stop hard on the accelerator. He checked with time and it was *25 minutes pass five in the evening* what time are you supposed to be in school he asked them..

They will close the gate exactly at 6:00pm" Folake answered, in that case we still have some time left if you wouldn't mind, let me pick some view things Frome the supermarket up the road promise to make it snappy he said and the girls nodded, he pull over and rush inside the supermarket and later come out with some nylon bag, hope I did not stay long is said to them, not at all the chorused it was still drizzling when he drop the girls in front of their school gate. he brought out two umbrellas and give to them they were amazed he also give them the London bag I got from the supermarket they refuse the kids thought they accepted the umbrella, come on girls accept them mean no harm or do you still see me as a stranger accept them and run inside before they close gate he told them in a friendly too. A mysterious as a rank in folic acid like I remember what hannened in a dream. The boy who gave her a BlackBerry phone made the same statement *I mean no harm* after remembering the dream she shake her head using the gift and run inside the school compound.benny stood transfixed and wondering why Folake had to live like that, you did not have to do this I am only trying to show that I care and nothing else and not around me here please take it and rushed back before it is too late Michael said softly, Benny look left and right and decided to accept the gift he handed them over to her with a complimentary card, that is my card try and give me a call anytime you come into town again, okay! see me as a friend or better yet as a brother, so you can feel free with me he told her, okay thank you I will surely give you a call she said and to the lightning bug and join other students running in, Michael ogled lasciviously at her smiled mischievously and drove away nothing his head later that night what transpired between Michael and the girls began to disturb Folake because of the dream she had earlier, she was scared in might turn the reality like that again but just before she could think deep into that Benny came in with a Leyland bag of provision that Michael had given them Benny you will not understand Folake reply rather quickly what is there to understand even if we should not accept them you were not supposed to leave me and him like that Benny maintained, okay I am sorry pardon me she apologized to avoid further argument, whatever this is for you I have taken my own we shall talk about it when you are in a better mood she dropped it on her bed and left immediately, Folakeopen it and saw the contact she became distraught, that woman's voice rank against like bell in her mind saying *I mean no harm* she covers her here to stop hearing it and laying on the bed until she slept off, mysterious things were beginning to happen in that school some nights they student hear some funny noises when they woke up and look through the window they will see some mysterious images and in the morning they will also sae some human footprint, it was really scary and strange no student dear step outside at night because it look as if spirit held meeting in the school compound, the students were even afraid to discuss it, the truth of the Martha was that it was a student of the school who has been initiated into the Marine Cult that were having does meeting, before the student knew what was happening a good number of them are being initiated, somewhere initiated through eating food, that has been Bewitched by the cultists why somewhere traped through fruits, but even at this some students were so strong spiritually that they could not be injected into the Marino Cult Folake was among the strong and stubborn ones, each time she heard the noise at night she would walk up and listen attentively to hear everything that were said, she wasthus able to confirm the part of her dream concerning the Marine (ogbanje- _an igbo words which means evil spirit__ ) she had been given the gift of understanding how they operated the Marine spirit girls torment the student in very many ways for instance some of the initiated students would become very careless with their studies and will not mind whether they passed or failed their examinations almost all of them became very convincing and habitual liars the Marine Cult lured them into a sort of crime, they quickly became evil geniuses, some student turned to bullies between of their fellow students with impunity, the cults I also turned many girls to waywardness and some very near to full-time prostitute, so when the school authority discovered that many students were under the influence of this Marine spirits they decided to invited a man of God to the school to pray and deliver the students from the clutches of the cultists, confidentially it was the same man of God that Folake had seen in her dream, fear rippled through Folake's body on perceived this, what is happening to me? why is everything I saw in the dream coming to past in real life? She asked ourselves not expecting an answer, god please get me out of this I cannot stand this if it continues, what do I do now? If this goes exactly the same way it happened in the dream then I will be in hot soup, Mama, I hope papa has not driven you out of the house she don't and shivering many things run through and mind so stop giving for manifesting itself to a reality, no I must find a way to stopping distance from Albany god I need you in my life now more than ever she prayed, Folake thus began to behave strangely in class while the lesson we are on she would occupy herself with thoughts of how to conquer what are obviously became her burden. One day a teacher was dictating notes and while they were busy writing Folake was busy thinking, her closest friend Confront and Benny I did notice Harrison strange behaviour with mountain discomfort but they elected not to question her, things were really getting out of hand and they could not tolerate it anymore. So what did dictation was going on and Folake was not writing they ask her why what has so deeply engrossed you again today that you are not writing down something? Benny asked her. You have been acting strange these days and you will not confide in either of us, what is bothering you? Comfort asked in support of Benny question, Folake acted as if she was not the person they where talking to, are you not the person we are talking to, connfort asked her, pushing her to draw her attention because Folake's mind was not there she jacked and draw the attention of everybody including the teacher, hey the three of you should stand up the teacher commanded and they obeyed, why are you disturbing the class she asked them? He moves closer to there and discover that Folake had not written anything at all, you have not written the remarks and check her friends notebook and discovered that they too were way behind others, _birds of a feather_ so you people have not been writing what I have been dictating? Go and kneel down there he instructed and they went and kneel down in front of the class, Benny and Comfort were very angry with follicle for bringing that punishment to them!

After school that day they confronted her again concerning her strange behaviour but she still refused to talk I hope you are not what I am suspecting, Comfort began to avoid Folake, one day Benny took permission to get out of school to buy some things she needed she told Folake that she will also go and see Michael, you want to go and see you? Folake asked her surprisingly you want to go and see someone you barely know do not try eating like that she want benny, there is nothing wrong in want to see him he is not a friend and a good friend for that matter I promise him that I will come and see him anytime I come out again Benny try to explain, everything is wrong about it you meant it like I was and you are already going to see him are you with your senses at all Folake ask her with seriousness, the problem with you is that you claim to know too much what is your mind telling you now? You are already creating heaven in your mind when I have not understand motive okay you think I have something else in mind why not come with me so you can see things for yourself Benny challenge her, come with you to hear God forbid, Folake exclaimed swinging her right hand around her head. Then allow me to go and stop thinking everyone your mind Benny scolded her. _folake peered through her eye and saw a hand adding some substance into a glass cup it look like the same has she had seen in her dream that had drugged and defiled her, she then smiled and nodded her head impishly._ I know what to do I have to go with her hell's God will hold me responsible for whatever happens to her and if what I have seen is real then I must stop the bad things in that dream for my true she said in her mind anyway mind, anyway I just come to inform you in case there is anything you would want me to buy for you and not for you to start suspecting me as if you do not trust me any longer Benny told her

sarcastically, okay I will go with you since you said there is nothing private you are going there to do Folake replied, this is what you have done since get ready let us go now so we can come back early enough Benny told her and waited for her to prepare, Folake quickly got her exit card and the left, they first went to the market to buy something's before proceeding to Michael's home, before they finish buying what they needed Benny put a call across to my Michael that they were on their way Michael thoughts Benny was coming alone I'm so when she told him that she was going with Folake Michael called one of his friends to come and join them, Larry he called his friend on phone where are you? Leave whatever you are doing I was to my house now he said an urgent but my voice, Now? What is happening? Why so urgent"? Larry ask him' okay I told you about is on her way to my house and guess what she is coming with that are pretty friend he answered exactly what? yippie! So what is going to happen now? Do you still have that stuff Larry asking again, yes of course I will arrange it before you come so hurry up they said and cut the line, Larry immediately began to get ready while Michael tidy up his apartment before the arrival of this unsuspecting visitors,