STORY : WHAT WENT WRONG (Episode 10)

The priest was fighting for his breath, Mwansa ran to him. Poor man he was holding on to his bible and rosary. Mwansa tried waking him up, he was not moving, she checked on his chest to feel if he had a heart beat, thankfully it was there. Mwansa screamed for help, people started coming. No one wanted to help out. They accused Mwansa of killing the priest as she was said to be a cursed child. Some youths rushed the priest to the village clinic while others took Mwansa to the village headman.
"What brings you here? Why are you dragging this young lady like this? What has she done?" Asked the headman.
"She has killed the church priest," one of the youths replied.
"Killed the church priest! How!" Exclaimed the headman.
"We found her with him in his yard. It is believed that she took some poisoned mukuyo to him."
"How sure are you? The headman asked.
"We found the mukuyo next to the dead priest's body."
"This is not making sense. Where is the mukuyo.?"
"We carried it with us. Here it is."
"Young lady. What happened? The accusations labelled against you are serious. If you are to be found guilty, it means we will have to involve the police, they will take it from there."
"Sir my grandma sent me to the priest's house to take mukuyo. When I got there, I saw the priest in the middle of his yard with his bible. He was battling a very strong wind, I tried to walk towards him but it pushed me away. When it finally settled, lightening stroke and the priest fell down. That's when I got to him and called for help."
"I'm asking you to tell me what happened not that lie you are cooking up. How old do you think I am to believe such a lie," the headman replied.
"Sir I swear upon my grandmother's life that's what happened."
"If that's what happened. How come no one saw or heard a thing! I have been here the whole day. I didn't see or feel any strange wind."
"I don't know, I only felt it at the priest's house. The strangest thing is that my grandma was attacked by a similar wind weeks ago."
"Who is your granny?"
"Mama Musonda."
"How come this wind only attacks people you know?" Asked a village elder.
"I neither know nor understand a thing."
"It seems you hold an explanation to this mystery," said another village elder.
"If I knew anything I would have explained already. I haven't done anything to the priest besides the priest is still alive, he is unconscious and not dead."
"Did you say you are mama Musonda's granddaughter?" Asked the inquisitive headman."
Mwansa responded to the question by nodding her head. The headman shock his head. "I thought that curse was dealt with decades ago. It keeps on coming back." Mwansa was more than puzzled. What was the headman talking about? What curse was he referring to? What is it about her family? Why is everything about her family so strange. She was curious to ask the headman."
"Sir what curse are you talking about?"
"I'm not in the position to say anything. Ask your grandma.
The headman was right, everything made sense now. It explains why they are treated as outcasts in the village, the supernatural occurrences that take place at her home and the attack on the priest. There is more to this than she ever imagined. How come her grandmother never explained anything to her." That old woman has some better explaining to do."
(Mediapronounce ng)
The headman calmed all the people that gathered at his home. He told them to go back to their homes. They all refused. They wanted Mwansa to be punished and handled over to the police.
"My people we are not sure of what occurred. I cannot punish this girl without thorough investigations. I need to hear from the priest's side. If I punish this girl and later find out she is innocent of this crime, I will be the one to suffer the consequences."
"We want justice!!!! Everybody was shouting.
"We are all innocent until proven guilty. We don't know what transpared. We await the priest to regain consciousness."
"Then let her drink the mukuyo she gave to the priest." Someone from the crowd shouted.
The entire crowd started yelling "Yes! Yes! Yes!"
"Mwansa got the container containing mukuyo, she drunk a quarter of it. Everybody waited for her to collapse perhaps die. To everyone's amusement Mwansa was okay.
"My people this is why I say we wait upon the priest to get better before we punish an innocent person. Calamity has befallen us, there is an enemy amongst us. I advise that we all remain prayful."
Mwansa was detained at the headman's house. She sobbed her heart out, this was the first time in her life she was to be away from her grandmother. She so wished everything was a bad dream so she would wake up from it.
××××××××××
Back home, her granny was getting worried. It was not like Mwansa to take long considering she cautioned her to be quick, she wanted to take her to the village vimbusa to teach her grandchild how to go about things in her new life as she had come of age. Knowing "Mwansa she must be helping the priest with house chores," thought mama Musonda.
She sat on the back yard of the house pounding groundnuts. She heard a voice calling "Mama! Mama!" She ran to the front yard to check who was calling. She was met with Chilufya.
"What are you doing in my yard? Get out before your grandmother finds you here. You are not welcome in my compound. If it's my granddaughter you are looking for, she is not around and please stay away from her."
"Sorry mama I'm here because of your granddaughter."
"What about her? I have told you she is not around so leave this very minute."
"I'm here for Mwansa's sake."
"What happened to Mwansa? Is she okay?"
"No she is not. Mwansa is at the headman's house."
"Doing what? I sent her to the priest's house."
"The priest is dead. So they accused Mwansa of poisoning him."
"The priest is dead and my dearest Mwansa is accused of killing him?"
"He is not really dead. We are not sure. It's like he fainted and Mwansa was around when it all happened so she is being held up at the headman's house until the priest gets better.
"My grandchild can never hurt a fly, who fed the people with that wrong information that Mwansa is responsible for whatever happened to the priest? I personally prepared the mukuyo, if anyone should be detained, it's me."
"We don't know yet, let's hope for the priest to get better before things take a worse turn."
"Thank you so much Chilufya, let me run along."
"Can I come with you?"
"No my child go home, your grandmother will be pissed off."
"I just want to help out, Mwansa is my friend. You and my granny don't get along. That's your problem between you two. Dont drag us in your issues."
"You have helped by coming here to inform me, please go home. As you can see I have issues which need to be cleared."
"I understand, let me not stress you. I will pass through tomorrow. Plead with the headman to release her."
Granny hurried to put on a clean wrapper. She run to the headman's. Old age was catching up with her, it didn't stop her from doing a sprint to the headman.
She cried as she approached the headman's house. Mwansa heard her grandmother's voice, she was relieved that help was finally coming her way.
Mama Musonda knelt down before the headman. The headman explained everything to her, she pleaded with him to have her released.
"Napapata tata wandi hear my cry, that's the only child I have, my whole life depends on her."
"Mama I wish there was something I could do to help you."
"You are the headman."
"The matter is at the village council, the only thing I can do to help is keep her here to avoid the police getting involved."
"You and I both know that my grandchild is innocent."
"I'm very much aware of that, the past has come calling, what are you going to do about it?
"I don't know what to do. I leave it all to God almighty."
"My father warned me about this battle when he was alive. Did you do all that was required to?"
"I did everything but nothing. This is why I leave everything to God. This is a war of the evil spirit."
"Our only hope is the priest, he is the answer to this."
"What really happened?"
"According to to your daughter, the priest was attacked by a supernatural strong force."
(Mediapronounce ng)
"That's the same wind that attacked me."
"Your grandchild mentioned that."
"Can't you and your grandchild relocate to another village, maybe it can stop attacking you.
"Whether we go somewhere far from here, it will still follow us. It won't rest until we are all dead."
"What of your only surviving child. Does he encounter such?"
"I don't remember the last time I saw or talked to him, I last saw him seven years ago, he chased us like dogs when we visited him in the city. He has cut all ties with us."
"I hear he bought a farm in the neighboring village. I have to talk to him to find out more from him."
"Just let him be, it will worsen things."
"Can I see my grandchild?"
"Yes go ahead, the kapaso will lead you to her."
"Thank you so much."
"Before you go. Have you told your grandchild about these evil forces? She seemed not to know anything."
"No I never told her a thing. She doesn't need to know, don't tell her anything. She is better off living a normal life not living in fear."
"One way or another she will find out, the earlier the better."
"No one will say anything to her, I will tell her myself. Now is not the right time."
They led mama Musonda to where Mwansa was held. She cried upon seeing her granddaughter chained up.
"Mama you are here to get me? I didnt do anything to the priest, he was attacked by the same wind that attacked you, I tried to help him but it pushed me."
"I'm sorry my child."
"You believe me? Don't you?"
"I believe you my child, this is the work of the enemy."
"What enemy! I had nothing to do with what happened to the priest. Is there something you are not telling me?"
"No my child I can't hide a thing from you."
"Then explain the curse casted upon our family."
"A curse? Who told you that?"
"Who told me is not a problem. Just answer my question. It's true right?"
"I don't know who is feeding you with crazy things."
"Grandma no one is feeding my head with lies. I'm able to analyze things on my own. The priest was attacked by the thing that attacked you not to talk of the strange things at our house, something is surely wrong somewhere.
"I will tell you everything when you come back home. Right now Let's concentrate on getting you out of this mess. Thereafter you are going to the city at bana Miyanda."
"What about you? I can't leave you all alone in this village."
"I will talk to the headman to secure a place for me here, I know he won't refuse to help me. His late father was a good friend of your grandfather."
"Who is bana Miyanda?"
"She is your mother's best friend, I wrote down her address in your mother's diary, I put it in the trunk under the bed."
"Will these things stop attacking us when we leave our house."
"Yes they will. Rumor has it that the land we settled on is cursed, I never used to believe them now I do."
"That explains everything. Why didn't you tell me?"
"I was afraid you would get scared."
"We should leave even though we have created most of our memories. We can't continue living on a cursed land."
Granny prayed together with Mwansa. She wanted to spend a night with Mwansa but the headman refused. In the night the headman ordered the kapaso to escort mama Musonda to her house.
Mwansa remained all alone, she prayed more than ever. She asked God to protect and guide her grandma. The load was too much for her to carry. In the middle of the night she heard a snake hissing. She shouted "Snake! Snake!" The Kapaso came to her aid. They searched everywhere but nothing.
The following morning news reached the headman, he was wanted by the priest. He regained consciousness. Some village councils, the headman and two youth representatives were among the people who went to see the priest.
He explained what happened and declared Mwansa innocent. After delivering his message, the priest took his last breath. He passed away around 10 o'clock, his fellow priests arrived to take him to the city.
Mwansa was released, she was happy as well as sad. The only person who helped them was no more. She wondered how her granny will take the news of the priest's death. She hurried home to be with her grandmother. She got home to comfort her granny who might be devasted with the loss of their priest.
What she found home was more shocking, her world came to a stand still.
Upon consuming the current situation, she collapsed.