Sounds Of Shadows

By Ureh Ruth Olowu

A fleeting glance at the clock revealed the irredeemable mobility of time. It’s already time for bed and she had hardly done anything reasonable with her time today. The cold weather which is as a result of the heavy downpour almost prevented her from taking her night shower but for the help of the water heater. The door to the bathroom was wide open, this was her usual manner since no one was at home beside herself. A short while before she was done bathing, a sound came from outside the bathroom, She was contemplating the sound she heard when the same lady she had seen countless times in her dreams approached the door. Courage eluded her, she shivered with fear, clenching her teeth and her breast dancing like leaves tossed about by the wind.
“You should be used to my regular visits”. The lady smiled heartily and moved closer to hug Beulah’s naked body
“U have made me proud I wish to come home but there’s but there is still one last turn that determines your future”
The lady put up a wry face that told Beulah something wasn’t right.
“ Where does the road lead?
The lady busted into a loud deafening cry, her unpleasant transition was frightening. She cried louder and then laughed hysterically. She sobbed and smiled at the same time and when she spoke, little could be heard. Her last words were more of a puzzle.
“I wish I was less vengeful”
A razor-sharp peek at Beulah and then she was gone, faster than light, the same way she came. The lady of her dreams, as Beulah had known her to be, had taken a subtle turn. She seemed friendly, yet fearsome. Sleeping on the couch has been a habit to her. Waking up from such a terrible nightmare didn’t scare her as much as it used to. The nightmare took her unawares, as it hadn’t reoccurred in a long time. She glanced at her clock, it was few minutes later than it was in her dream and she wondered if the lady would come in reality. What did she mean by the last turn and the vengeance she talked about? It was a mere dream and she needn’t lose a sleep over it. She pushed it behind her thoughts and walked straight to her twin bed and crushed heavily on it like a tree being cut down.

Excerpts.. Sounds of Shadow

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ureh Ruth Olowu
• Release date: Dec 9, 2018
• ISBN: 9780463454794

Book preview

SOUNDS

OF

SHADOWS

BY

UREH RUTH OLOWU

Copyright 2018 - SOUNDS OF SHADOWS

ISBN: 9780463454794

Smashwords Edition

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the publisher or author.

Published online by:

Alphikka Technologies

Phone: [phone],

Email: [e-mail]

Address: 4 Okomoko Street, D/line,

Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria.

DEDICATION

Dedicated to God Almighty and to all those who have been hurt in some way and will not let go.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

CHAPTER ONE

I am only but a boy; no one would listen to me let alone believe what I say

Obiku, you are not just a boy. You are different in a special way. No one in this entire community possesses the gift you do

Obiku had never thought himself gifted; they always called him the mischievous one. It really makes sense to address him as gifted. If she knows about his gifts, perhaps she could teach him how to use them.

"What did you say you wanted me to do for you?

The lady’s lip warped into a smile and then she moved closer to him and stooped so that they were the same height.

I want you to save one of your own she said in a whisper. And again she stood up as if attempting to get away from him and shouted I want you to save her from going to the dungeons of despair

The lady has always spoken in parables not considering that she could be thrice his age and more knowledgeable than he was. She had never taken any thought to explain what she meant.

She now resides in the big city close to….

this was the first time she was ever leaving a lead and God help in no time he would be done with this assignment and rid of her. His door was pushed ajar and his mum forced herself inside, he hurriedly sat up and realized she must have been knocking on his door for God knows how long.

Obiku you have started again, oh no! Not after the spiritualist assured me that your incessant dream conversations would cease his mum was so crossed but he couldn’t tell who with; whether with him or the lying prophetess that told so many lies about him, telling his mum that some evil spirit had possessed him and that he needs thorough cleansing. When he looked straight into her eyes, she cringed and because the mum had perceived, she said that him-Obiku- was performing what she called the mind ritual, something he had never heard of. She cooked up so many lies just to embezzle money from his mum. The most annoying part was the huge amount of money she-his mum- had given her-the spiritualist- to perform the necessary sacrifice and she promised to come back for him to conclude everything. She would never dare, she had scampered with the money and his mum had never believed him.

Leave your bed at once. That spirit must be somewhere in your room, and you are moving to the room next to my room he couldn’t imagine himself leaving his pint-sized room that can barely hold over four persons, his bed is so small so that he sometimes thinks he would fall out of it and hit his body on the rough floor that haven’t yet heard of such thing as cement. His small wooden chair held his lamp that has been reduced to the barest minimum, his clothes laid in heaps beneath his bed and some running out and lying carelessly like children being chased by owu, the village masquerade, his square window that was as small as a family size photo album, which ushered in limited air especially at nights when the sea breeze plays hide and seek with the trees making them run around the village, distributing air to the villagers. His papa had given him high hopes when once he’d told him that a new house would be built and a bigger room with big bed would be given him but his hope ran in different directions when his papa was taken away one night by the slave raiders three years ago. That season a lot of villagers got missing and no one knew who took them or where they were taken. The head chief, who died six market days ago then declared curfew once it was dusk. That fateful day when his papa was stolen, he had eaten leftover food from the day before and then he had running stomach, the latrine at the back of the house was overflowing and was covered with cocoyam leaves and papa had sent for the onyenburu ; the shit carrier to come and fetch it with his bucket at night. The onyenburu told papa that he would come a little earlier since it wasn’t safe to walk at night anymore, but he didn’t show up. Papa had no option than to go to a nearby bush to stool, he declined all mama’s pleas to use the small bucket in the kitchen and said it was unhygienic, but mama said his life was far more important than hygiene. He acted deaf and left the house, and when he didn’t come for the next hour, mama raised her voice but no one came out to see why she was shouting, not even papa. He was gone and it’s been three years since. Obiku was given little time to get used to the radical change, her voice was so commanding like she had never been before and he stared mouth agape with such incredulousness.

Stop gawking and start parking he was awoken to reality by her last rash words. When she left he chewed over what the lady had told him, who actually is the girl that was going to destroy herself and how? How could someone voluntarily walk into fire? The questions lingered in his head.

His mum could be right; he hadn’t seen her ever since he relocated to this room. She could be a spirit that lives in his room. Shockingly he was missing her; he regards her appearances as spices to his sleep and life. That night before he went to bed, he prayed for her to appear and he went expectantly to his bed hoping his prayers would be answered, but to his disappointment she didn’t come. He woke up the next morning feeling deserted. But he still has to tell some grownups what transpired between him and the lady. He thought of no one but Uloma. She lives just three blocks away from their house, and she has an accommodating heart. But would she believe him or wave it away and call him mischievous like everyone else.

Anyone coming in could tell Uloma was upset, or maybe confused.

Obiku, everyone in this community knows about you’re…. Uloma halted briefly as if recalling something. You could be right but if these your dreams are really a message, then you must prove it, as they say, the message is greater than the messenger.

She said it matter-of-factly, but how was he supposed to prove something he has no complete details of. To make matters worse, the lady no longer comes to visit his dreams now Uloma that once had confidence in him will henceforth consider him foolish.

On his way home, he resolved to go back to her the next morning tell her he was sorry, that he sought a reason to see her because he hadn’t seen her for a while that was why he came up with the story.

I don’t even know what I want someone else to believe. He thought bitterly.

The track that led to his house suddenly illuminated and he could see a very far distance from where he stood. He saw a little girl bending searchingly around a little hut and he went closer to see that it was the hut contained a latrine. She was a little older than he is, and then she found two long tiny sticks. She had this worried expression, which when she went inside and came out with a small underpants hanging in between the stick, changed into a smile. It was obvious her pant had fallen into the latrine and she used the stick to fetch it. Just then a second girl about her age came running, she almost ran into the former when she saw the pant and stopped immediately, she was panting heavily. They were conversing and he wondered what they were saying, Obiku’s curiosity pushed him closer so he could hear them, he hid behind some trees.

"Uloma you will never change. I know your pants fell into the latrine and you picked it up again, can’t you tell your mum the truth for once?

My mum is not like your mum Beulah, she’d beat life out of me and besides I have just two pants

Beulah’s facial expression turned from plain to pity eh ya all will be well okay. We will both grow up someday and become great women in the society Beulah squeezed Uloma’s cheek and they both smiled.

You have never met Beulah and no one else knows of that incident, but both of them. Tell her that and she will believe you it’s the lady, she has come back to show him something from Uloma’s past and the girl in question is Beulah; Uloma’s childhood friend.

CHAPTER TWO

Beulah woke up trembling, her hands and feet vibrating. She had woken up from a terrible nightmare, and a warning. All she could feel was tremor. She rushed to the bathroom, took her bath, slipped into a velvet torques gown. It was a Saturday and work free day, She decided to go for a stroll around the children’s park. She walked to a secluded corner, stood motionless gazing into space and then caught a sight of the pelicans playing in the field unperturbed, then the whole scene of last night flashed into her head, how she almost died in her dreams and was revived, and also earlier today when she was warned to stay away from things she didn’t know else she would die. Beulah was living in fear, fear of the unknown.

The fear was starting to elude her momentarily when she felt a tap on her left shoulder; the fear surged over her again. She turned fiercely; saw his face but she didn’t take note of his features. She had sunk deep in her thoughts so that she didn’t hear him coming and she knew that of a surety she was in danger.

I am Shama Duke He stretched out a well structured hand with finely manicured nails. "I noticed you from afar, you have been standing here for over thirty minutes, and you look troubled, are you alright?

Beulah was at her wit’s end, she gasped to speak.

Beulah, Beulah Marshal

It was then she noticed he was a gallant young man with such juvenile dimples and flamboyant outfit. He was polished, the kind of guy any girl will give an eye-teeth just to call her man. Shama was blessed with bulgy eyes, pointed nose and the nicest set of dentition Beulah had ever seen. He was tall with such straight long legs that could be seen even beneath his pant, they stood tall like guava trees,