Johnbull's Decision

Chapter 2

Johnbull moved randomly through the hospital like a mad man, creating a tense atmosphere around him. He felt overwhelmed with worry and confusion, pondering his next course of action. The devastating outcome of his final decision stunned him, leaving him too shocked to cry. He seemed lost, behaving like a goat without an owner, desperately seeking someone to assist him. He reacted as though engulfed in flames, his trousers no longer fitting properly. He breathed heavily, resembling a lizard that had fallen from a roof, mouth agape in shock.

Johnbull urgently conveyed the terrible news to his closest brothers, seeking their help. The situation had become a hideous nightmare for him, making everything clumsy and awkward. He contemplated deeply on how to transport the corpse back home. Johnbull's emotional turmoil had significantly affected him.

Johnbull called his elder brother and other relatives, informing them about his daughter's death. He pleaded with his elder brother to purchase a coffin for the corpse. With no other choice, he decided to escape from the hospital, fearful of Preye's maternal family.

Facing blame and insults from people, Johnbull felt a rush of unseen flames and smoke in his mind. His decision to abort Preye's pregnancy had caused him significant problems. He summoned his relatives to meet him at his hideout.

His elder brother procured the coffin and transported Preye's body to Keme community, their hometown. They arranged for the burial of the corpse.

Preye's maternal family arranged two taxis and drove to Keme community.

The news had reached Jurist's family, prompting them to plan a visit to Keme community for compensation due to the loss of their unborn baby.

Daniel cried deeply upon hearing the news of Preye's death. Tempted to harm himself, his relatives intervened and saved him. He reflected on the promises they once shared.

"This man has caused the deaths of Preye and my unborn baby. Oh, Preye! I had hoped for eternal happiness together. Why did Johnbull bring confusion and premature death between us?" he sobbed.

"Take heart, my son. It has happened, and there is nothing we can do now. He will regret his deviant behavior. He has found what he sought. There is nothing you can do to bring her back," Daniel sympathized with his son.

Both Daniel's family and Preye's maternal family arrived at Keme community simultaneously and found Preye's lifeless body in Johnbull's room.

Johnbull's family members remained aloof, treating Daniel and Preye's maternal family as strangers, avoiding further pain. None of them extended a warm welcome, distancing themselves as Johnbull's siblings.

Some town elders and other respected individuals guided them to the town hall to discuss and arrange Preye's burial. However, the chairman of the community, enraged by the situation, left the community, choosing not to involve himself in the matter as he had pleaded with Johnbull not to abort the pregnancy, a plea that went unheard.

The elders and other prominent men moved to the community hall, bringing drinks to entertain both parties before initiating the discussion.

Representatives from Eko community (Preye's maternal community) and Ebe community (Jurist's community) gathered in the hall. Peter, the spokesperson from Eko community, and Kelvin, the spokesperson from Ebe community, inquired with Keme Community about the circumstances surrounding Preye's death to gather more information.

Kelvin, the spokesperson for Keme Community, stood up and disclosed all the secrets regarding Preye's premature death.

"I didn't see the aborted child, and that's why Johnbull's relatives are here with us," the spokesperson from the elders' council pointed at them with his finger. A representative from Preye's maternal family stood up and posed another question.

Peter, the spoke'sman from Eko community, also rose and asked, "Where are the bodies of Preye and the aborted baby?

Kelly stood up and declared, 'We have buried the aborted child, and Preye's deceased body remains in her father's room. We informed Johnbull's relatives that the matter has been entrusted to the community elders. Since he has fled, the deceased body should remain unburied until Preye's maternal family and the father of the aborted baby arrive,'" he replied to Peter.

Kelvin, Daniel's spokesperson, stood up and conveyed their decision to Kelly, who was representing Johnbull. He addressed both Preye's maternal family and Daniel's family members, acting as a peacekeeper.

"We pleaded with Johnbull six times not to abort Preye's pregnancy. We even assured him not to worry about her responsibilities, but he disregarded our pleas and did as he pleased. You should tell Johnbull to compensate us for the share of the aborted child, as he has ruined his own share. If not, Johnbull and his family will regret this situation," Kelvin warned.

When Johnbull traveled with the girl to the city, we noticed and inquired. He mentioned he wanted to buy her a JAMB form. Tell Johnbull and his relatives to compensate us with five hundred thousand for our grandchild," he stated before sitting down to listen to Johnbull's spokesman.

"Both yourself and I are messengers in this matter. Johnbull is the focal point. During this settlement, we have pondered. Our community's youths have a saying: 'No matter how small the catfish, it still has three gills.' Please, we're here for a resolution. Johnbull has faced an unexpected situation. It's beyond his control," Johnbull's spokesman pleaded.

"When Johnbull intended to abort Preye's pregnancy, selected men and women from our elders' council visited him and pleaded, but he rejected all their appeals, dismissing them. Considering Johnbull's actions, we might be tempted to use a cutlass and divide him into two hundred pieces. However, expending our energy on Johnbull's behavior is not worthwhile," he continued.

"We can be reconcilers tomorrow if you agree to terms with us today. Please, don't allow Johnbull's malevolent behavior to breed discord between our communities," he earnestly implored both parties.

Johnbull's relative sent us a message without waiting for your inquiry. Please pardon us if we make errors; we have individual differences, diverse community ethics, norms, rules, and distinct ways of addressing people.

"He caused harm to his own children and requested us to plead on his behalf. We are not resentful enough to ignore his message. Since we've committed to him, all we can do is plead with you.

"Everyone in this hall, please refrain from reacting harshly to his transgressions. I can't describe his current state; he feels alone, depressed, disappointed, devastated, and melancholic. His bitterness has stripped happiness from his life.

"Johnbull has fled, speaking authoritatively that he knows what he's doing and no one can stop him. At present, he's in hiding due to his own children. He has lost his children and incurred unexpected expenses. Please, our in-laws, reason with us." Johnbull's spokesman, his relatives, and other prominent community figures knelt and implored Preye's maternal relatives and Jurist's family. The eldest man from Preye's maternal family ordered them to stand up.

Peter stood up and remarked that Johnbull is on the run due to his own deliberate actions that caused harm to his children. He's moving in an unknown direction. What we encountered from Johnbull today has deeply upset us. He hasn't even visited our community for our daughter's introduction, that is, Preye's mother. Many people in this hall haven't seen him either.

"He failed to realize that he alone didn't give birth to the girl. Despite numerous pleas from several members of this community, he disregarded their efforts and harmed the children. There was no communication informing us about the abortion of Preye's pregnancy. Moreover, when Preye passed away, none of Johnbull's relatives reached out to inform us. We came here to confirm Preye's death because we were incredulous when we first heard about it. Hence, we intend to return to our community.

You must preserve Preye's deceased body until Johnbull and his family members come to our community for our daughter's introduction. Following that, he must compensate us for our share of the children he harmed. He needs to accord us that respect before we can unite with his family and proceed with Preye's burial. If not, there will be conflict, and anything could happen.

"Moreover, we still have other children with Johnbull, including Preye's younger siblings. They will accompany us to our community along with his wife, our daughter, who is Preye's mother. Johnbull's actions are appalling; we cannot leave these children for Johnbull to harm them all, to prevent more tragic news," he declared before walking out of the hall.

Johnbull's spoke'sman and other elders from Keme community hurriedly left the hall and proceeded to Johnbull's house. There, they met Preye's maternal family packing all of Johnbull's belongings and the children from his house into their taxis, including his wife, Preye's mother. They implored them to disembark from the vehicles and join them in the hall. The eldest person from Preye's maternal family stood up and continued speaking: "We came to this community due to the distressing news about the death of our children, as our spoke'sman previously mentioned.

"In marriages, whether from your own community or another, if something good or bad happens to the woman you marry, you must inform her maternal family too. The husband alone did not give birth to the children," he angrily exclaimed in a loud voice.

"Johnbull and his family members were supposed to inform us before making any other arrangements. They are not children; they understand. Every mature man in this hall has married from different families and understands what I am talking about."

Johnbull's siblings, the elders in the hall, and the villagers were taken aback by the man's statement. They listened to him quietly.

"If it weren't for our children from the nearby community informing us, we wouldn't have seen our daughter's corpse. As I said, we came to discover the truth, and that's why I followed them to this community, being the eldest man in our quarter. We are not foolish. Today, we are not here to bury our daughter," he added emphatically.

We respect individuals based on their conduct. When someone wrongfully claims authority, it can instigate irrational reactions in others. We come from a calm and respectful family, but Johnbull's family is trying to influence us to engage in something inappropriate. If caution is not exercised, we might succumb to it.

"I commend the efforts of this community's elder council in handling this issue. Our youth believes that a person who can't be honest with their family can't hold a position of authority. As I mentioned, our aim is to uncover the truth in this situation.

"He gestured towards Preye's grandmother in the hall and highlighted how she diligently cared for her children. Ebi, Preye's mother, is her first daughter, followed by another three daughters," he shared with everyone present.

Everyone values education, but not in a manner that pretends to end children's lives," he pointed to Preye's grandmother. "This woman ensured her two daughters pursued higher education even after giving birth to two children from different partners. They are now government employees."

"It's terrible to halt girls' education due to pregnancy. Even worse is killing them through abortion. If your decision is to halt girls' education due to pregnancy, my brother, it's because of financial constraints."

"If everyone continues to terminate their daughters' pregnancies through abortion, there will be no girls left for our sons to marry. We shouldn't project our frustrations onto our children, as Johnbull did. As I mentioned earlier, we want to leave now, and we're taking our children with us.