Gone astray episode 11

Gone Astray

Episode 11
We passed through an open ward to her office.
The sight of mentally challenged people gave
me the creeps. Some looked calm and well
behaved, you ll rarely notice their madness.
Others where obviously unruly and disorderly.
Some showed waxy flexibility.
I wondered why Ruth was in a psychiatric
hospital. Has she suddenly become mad? I
wondered. I began to recollect stories of
young girls who have been used for money
rituals by boys of this kind.
My own thoughts sent cold shivers down my
spine. But i knew my curiosity would soon be
satisfied, as we entered into a small office
with three chairs and a table.
She pointed at seats for Hannah and i, while
she sat across the table facing us. I looked
around the office uncomfortably, wondering
what was about to happen.
Hannah on the other hand was sobbing. Her
face was soaked with tears. For what reason, i
had no idea.
The nurse placed her file on the table, and
flipped through several pages, clearly
searching for something.
She looked up, staring into our eyes,
alternating between me and Hannah.
“lets hear your own side of the story” she said,
pointing at Hannah.
Hannah shrugged, and turned away from the
nurse. She directed her gaze to the floor,
sobbing profusely. I was getting more agitated
and worried, i desperately needed to hear what
happened.
“i didn’t know it was going to be like that, i
thought she would agree ” Hannah said in
between sobs.
“but why did you not offer yourself instead, or
at least return their money?” the nurse replied,
in a stern voice. She was getting impatient
and angry too.
“Aj wanted me to himself, i have spent part of
the money. Ruth was the only option left”
Hannah continued.
“so you sold your friend? For how much? ” She
shouted, springing up from her seat and
banging her fist on the table.
Hannah’s head dropped to the table, her
sobbing had become weeping. I turned my
head from side to side, trying to decipher the
situation. I just couldn’t gather the story in
my head.
” pray nothing happens to your friend, you
LovePeddler. ”
” and you” focusing on me “how did you
become friends with this girl?”
I looked sullenly at her, if only she knew how
much i regret knowing Hannah.
“what happened ma? ” i asked almost
inaudibly
” your friend here was paid fifty thousand to
arrange three pr-stitutes for a boy and his
friends. She brought you and Ruth to them.
Obviously you were not open to the
arrangement, i guess. I heard you threatened
one of them with a sharp object”
“yes ma, ” i replied
” when you left, he demanded for his money or
another girl. But i guess your friend here has
spent all the money. So they settled for Ruth
instead, without her knowledge.
Apparently ruth refused to ‘accommodate’ two
boys at the same time, so they resorted to
coercion. They forced a substance into her
mouth and nose. I’m not sure what it was, but
from the description, it might be cocaine and
Rohypnol.
Anyway Ruth passed out, she had no idea
what happened. When she woke up, she was
bleeding via her womanliness and acting
abnormally. So they brought her here and
disappeared.
Well, your friend suffered from the effect of
cocaine and the trauma she also passed
through. She had a miscarriage too”
Her last sentence shocked me, i almost
jumped out of my seat.
“how is that possible?” i asked, with tears
falling freely from my eyes.
“well she told us she was six weeks pregnant,
and Hannah here has been giving her pills to
terminate it. I guess she has succeeded now”
I stood up from my seat with uncontrollable
anger, and grabbed Hannah by her collar. I
wanted to choke her badly.
“what have you done, you devil. If anything
happens to Ruth i will kill you myself ” i
scre-med at the top of my voice.
Hannah sat helplessly, making no effort to
defend herself. The gravity of her actions must
have sunk deep into her head. The nurse ran
across to us, and freed Hannah from my grip.
” calm down, Ruth is stable now, the worst
has past” she said as she pulled me away
from Hannah.
“can i see her? “i asked calmly.
” follow me” she ordered.
The three of us walked out of the office, as she
lead us towards another room. She stood by
the entrance, and directed us to go in and be
brief. I opened the door and walked in, while
Hannah held back. She was reluctant to see
Ruth. Off course she had to be, it was difficult
to predict what Ruth’s reaction will be.
I got closer to the bed and called out to Ruth
gently. She turned her head towards me
slowly. Her pillow was soaked with tears, her
eyes were pale and swollen. She looked
nothing like the girl who left school with me
this morning.
She was still sobbing quietly when she
signaled me to come closer.
I walked up to her and bent down to listen.
“tell Hannah that i ll kill her and myself when
i leave this hospital ” she whispered into my
ears in between sobs.
I could feel the pain and anger in her voice,
she never deserved this. I’d kill Hannah too if i
had the courage.
” pls don’t bring my parents into this” she
continued, as she burst in another round of
tears.
I held her hand, and we cried together for a
while. I couldn’t take it anymore, i had left
the room.
Hannah and the nurse were still standing
outside. I looked at her coldly, with hatred and
anger clearly visible. I felt the urge to choke
her again.
The nurse placed her hand on my shoulder,
and spoke in a gentle voice.
“you have to help Ruth, we need to contact
her family, this is a psychiatric hospital. We
have done our part, we need to refer her to the
teaching hospital, she needs an ultrasound
which we can’t do here. So if you know any
way of contacting her parents, please tell me”
I thought about it for a while, if Ruth’s parents
entered the fray, it will only be a matter of
time before my parents would know too. All
our dirty secretes will be exposed. I’d probably
get the beating of my life.
But all that didn’t matter, i had to do the right
thing, even if it would be a disaster for me.
Ruth needed help.
“i know her house” i blotted out.
“fine, i will get my keys” she replied, and
headed for her office
“what are you doing? you are going to expose
all of us” Hannah whispered .
I had no idea how to reply her, i simply swung
my hand around and struck her face. The slap
startled her, but she made no attempt to
retaliate. She simply held her cheek. My reply
was clearly delivered i suppose.
I knew our little hide and seek had come to an
end, but what i was left to anticipate was my
parent’s reaction when they find who i had
become.
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I was still deep in thoughts when the nurse
returned, with a bunch of keys. She signaled
me to follow her. Hannah simply refused to
follow us. We climbed down a flight of stairs
leading to the exit. Her car was packed in
front.
“were are we going?”she asked, as we both
took our sits in the car.
“new Benin” i replied.
She started the engine and our journey
started. As it progressed, i placed my head on
the dash-board, thinking and sobbing. A lot of
thoughts flashed through my head.
Ruth was pregnant, she was sold by our friend,
drugged and Molested. I imagined the horror
she went through, and her eventual
hospitalization.
I wasn’t left out of the suffering either. I had
lost my V-rginity to a boy who had moved on
very quickly. I was caught in a hotel room with
a boy, like a common LovePeddler. I also
wondered what would have happened to me if
i didn’t have the courage to escape from the
hotel.
In all, my life had taken a negative turn, i
hated who i had become. Is there any way
back for me.? I wondered, as tears fell freely
from my eyes.
I felt the car slowing down and pulling over. I
knew we hadn’t gotten to new Benin yet. I
lifted my head from the dash-board to see
what was happening.
It all seemed clear in front of me, there was no
reason for us to stop. I turned towards her
with my tear filled face, wondering why she
stopped.
Her attention was solely focused on me. She
had a look of sadness and pity registered on
her face. Her gaze provoked more tears, as i
started sobbing loudly.
“here, stop crying ” she said, handing over a
white handkerchief.
” i can tell that you are different from your
friends “she continued.
” how did you get involved with them? ” she
asked
” i don’t know, i thought we were friends “i
replied in between sobs.
I couldn’t control my tears anymore, i was
already crying bitterly. The reasons for my
tears were many, sadness and sorrow
overwhelmed me. I just felt like dying. I
opened the door quickly and ran out of the
car, i had no idea where i was or what i was
doing.
I came to a stop a short distance away from
the car and fell on the shrubs. I felt i was
going mad. The nurse walked up to me, and
held me up. She hugged me, holding my head
tightly to her shoulder.
“it’s ok, i know this must be difficult for you,
just know I’m here for you.” she said, in the
kindest voice i have ever heard.
I laid helplessly on her shoulder, crying
profusely. My tears soaked her white uniform.
We were beginning to get attention from
passers-by.
She held me by my wa-ist and led me back to
the car, and held the door open for me to sit.
“Ella, talk to me, what have you girls been up
to”? She asked again.
I felt a little bit more comfortable, there was
nothing else to hide, the truth will soon be out
and everyone will know. I revealed all the
events of the past few weeks, including all the
minor details.
I told her about our regular escape from
school, and how we usually pay the gate man.
She did not seem shocked to hear any of it,
not even the escapades with Ehis. She listened
patiently and quietly to my story.
“but why Ella? Why did you choose to follow
this path, why ignore your parents discipline?
” she asked, looking straight at my eyes.
” i just wanted to be loved, i wanted someone
to understand me. He was just there for me,
he……. ” i stopped to wipe the tear from my
eyes and control my weeping.
She held my head up, and turned it towards
her.
“I’m sure your parents love you, just give them
a chance, you can be a better person”
“they don’t, no one has ever spoken to me like
this. ” i replied coldly.
She let go of me and turned towards the
windscreen.
“no one is a perfect parent, my daughter was
about your age when she gave birth. ” she
said, as a feeling of sadness overwhelmed her.
I wiped my tears when i heard those words. I
simply decided not to cry anymore, knowing
that it could have been worse. She looked at
me again and said” you can be a better
person, don’t give up on yourself ”
She started the engines, and our journey
continued. Few minutes later, we were at
Ruth’s house. It wasn’t exactly a mansion, it
was the habitat of people who earned decent
wages.
Ruth’s mother’s car was parked outside. The
nurse pulled over at the side of the road, and
we walked a short distance yo Ruth’s house.
The front door opened before we got to it.
Ruth’s mother came out of the house, well
dressed with a bible under her armpit. She
looked set for evening service. We hurried
quickly to catch up with her, while she was
struggling to lock the door.
“Excuse me ma” the nurse called out, to
Ruth’s mum, as she hurried towards her. I
stayed back at the gate, fearing the reaction
from Ruth’s mum when she hears about her
daughter.
I was too far out to hear the conversation that
ensued between them, but Ruth’s mother’s
countenance changed, she looked worried and
began to panic. She got into her car in a hurry
and drove off. While the nurse and i got into
hers, and headed towards my house.
I still managed to get home a little early. My
mum had returned from work, she was
watching a movie in the sitting room. I
greeted her and walked towards my room
quickly to avoid being noticed. My eyes were
swollen, and my face was a mess.
I threw my school bag on the floor, took off
my uniform and tied a towel. I wanted to wash
off the day’s events from my body and mind. I
needed to rest badly.
As i headed for the bathroom, my room door
opened. My mum walked in. I tried to hurry
into the bathroom to avoid any confrontation
with her, i did not want another fight.
“Ella wait ” she called out, halting me in my
stride.
I stopped, without turning around to look at
her. I anticipated a question and answer
section.
” what is wrong my daughter, you don’t look
happy”she said in a rather nice tone .
I was quite shocked, my mother doesn’t
usually speak to me in such manner. I turned
around to make sure it wasn’t someone else.
My eyes met my mum’s. She noticed my
swollen eyes and battered face.
“have you been crying? ” she asked, moving
closer to me.
I paused for a moment, it was quite obvious.
There was no use denying.
” Ruth is in the hospital ” i muttered
” oh what happened to her? ”
” she fainted” i replied, convinced within
myself that i haven’t told a lie.
My mum tried comfort me. Her attempts were
lame but duly appreciated. I went into the
bathroom, as she left for the sitting room. I
bathed slowly, wondering what would transpire
between Ruth and her mum.
I stepped out of the bathroom after fifteen
minutes. I wore my night cloths, and retired
for the day, hoping to fall asleep as quickly as
possible. However, sleep eluded me. My eyes
remained wide open. I continuously replayed
the day’s events in my head, wondering how it
would all end.
The sound of my door handle turning
interrupted my thoughts. My mum walked in
again, with her placed on her ear. She spoke
for a while with the person at the other end
before turning her attention to me.
“that was Ruth’s mother ” she said, giving me
a suspicious look.
I sat up on the bed, knowing fully well that the
game was up.
” she gold me a lot of things i don’t
understand. Ella, what happened? Who did
you go to see in a hotel? Is what I’m hearing
true? ”
I looked at my mum’s face, i could feel her
disappointment and frustration . I bowed my
head slowly and began to shed tears again. I
knew i had let everyone down, i was a bad
person.
” so it’s true? This is what you have become?
“she said, with a shaky voice. She too was
close to tears. She sat on my bed and buried
her head in her palm. She seemed greatly
pained, and i knew it was all my fault.
I knelt down beside her and began apologise
profusely. I tried go explain the day’s event to
her as accurately as i could remember, while
tactfully leaving out anything that had to do
with Ehis.
“you see why i told you not to associate with
those girls? Imagine yourself in Ruth’s
situation” my mum said after listening to my
story.
“promise me you won’t tell daddy” i pleaded.
My mum obliged, as she left me to continue in
my thoughts. I heaved a sigh of relief as she
left, believing that it was all over. I made a
resolution within myself never to return to this
way of life. I wanted to be a better person.