A Short Story
Murder in Shere Forest
by Mohammed Alhassan
The story so far: General Cole and Gbagblaza had made an abortive trip to a shrine to seek power and protection. A second attempt was made to a different fetish - the Headless One - which is prepared to grant the wishes of the two friends provided certain conditions are fulfilled…Looking back at his past, he could only laugh. A year ago, a prominent politician had come and made a similar request. He had got two buses alright. A month later his government had been overthrown. Now the new rulers too had come. How good. But most important of all, a long standing family dispute was about to be resolved. He would send the names of the judges who sat on the case and resolved it in favour of his bitterest opponent as a result of which he has been so poor for so long.
(see part 1)
The news of the abduction of some four men and a pregnant woman took the nation by surprise. At first no one believed it. Some newspapers even made a mockery of it.
"This is the work of the enemies of General Cole," one newspaper editorial said. It went on "...realising the popularity of our one and only General, a man of the meek, the Jesus of our time; some enemies of the revolution of the General have carried out this act to make the General un- popular. We shall seek out the perpetrators of this crime and deal with them... the General will not fail to flush them out..."
A statement from the office of the General promised "hell" to those who wanted to "take the name of the General in vain" and to those who had resorted to such "anarchist, ultra- leftist and unprincipled populist actions the first in the nation's history…”
The whole nation remained silent, but expectant.
Not so much for the lives of the disappeared, but a fear for their own. For, those who had vanished belonged to the untouchable of the society. Those for whom the milk of the society had been reserved; whose children had access to the best schools. Four days earlier, six workers of the State House where General Cole has his bunker and armoury had disappeared. No one talked about it. And it received very little attention from the press.
But this time, not only had four big men and a pregnant woman vanished from their guarded homes, but homes decorated with "Beware of Dogs" sign-boards. And when it happened, General Cole promised to see to it that well armed guards were provided for all big men.
The fear was intensified when it leaked that the bodies of the disappeared had been found in a bush hundreds of miles from the city. Bullet holes in their backs. Then the police found to their horror that vital parts of the female victim had been removed. Eyes, nose, hair and the inner parts had all disappeared. Some even claimed that the clitoris of the female victim had been tampered with. But what horrified the team and confused them further was that none of the victims had a drop of blood left. All blood had been drained out of their old bodies.
In the aftermath of the outpourings of public anger the General shed more tears than everybody else. He sounded genuinely shocked.
INVESTIGATION
He was almost sick physically. "How could the priest do such a terrible thing," he asked Big G. "I never imagined that was what he had in reminded them. mind." Big G spoke very sternly: Get a hold on yourself, it has happened already, no amount of tears will bring them back. We should start a crisis limitation exercise and hope the priest knows what he is doing."Two days later, the police inspector in charge of the investigation team was arrested for aiding and abetting in subversive activities. Big G announced that all matters relating to the abduction and murder of the five persons was to be under his personal supervision to "ensure that enemies of General Cole did not make political capital of it."
Then the town's leading drunk was heard boasting openly that he led the operation was also arrested. "... We shot them. Made them sit on a log at Shere forest. I asked them to name a successor to the General. Shot the first man from behind. I could not miss, you know... I won the best marksman award at the training centre ...
Ha, ha. When I shot them we did not leave immediately. We hid behind a tree. Man what did we see? That dirty old man who calls himself a jujuman and two masked men. All three armed with knives, they started their work ... I am sorry. . . I should not have done it at all... Ooooh!" he wept.
"The boss had told me that the operation was ordered by Big G in the name of State security, and yet there were these people draining blood from the dead men and mutilating their bodies. I thought I was killing for the nation, not knowing some people just wanted dead bodies for fetish rites."
Back in the shrine of the Headless God, General Cole, Big G and the priest reviewed the events of the past. They were satisfied. All traces had been removed, the two big men felt fortified enough, but the priest was still not satisfied. He had not received the expected "gift" and it looked as if the two had virtually forgotten. As they begged to take leave, the priest asked.
"What do you want?" General Cole
"A landrover or 230 Super Benz."
"A what?" screamed the General. "Go tell your fucking god that I have nothing to give. After all this blood you still want cars. And..."
"Hold it, my brother" the priest said calmly. "Do you think that is the end of the matter. The juju given you people will only be effective if you donate a bucket of blood every three months to the headless one. Also remember the blood oath we swore. Do not play your childish tricks with me.
"I have come a long way. From the white man to the dozen or so men who have passed through that office. They have all come here. But how you get into office determines the price you pay when you come here... and listen to me with your ears wide open... a time is coming when you must sacrifice your wives and children, your intimate friends. I only give advice."
"You came on your own... the soil of Shere, the plants, the fruits, the rivers of Shere will from now on thrive on blood. Fresh human blood... one day it will include your own... Go away! But let me have the gift… there shall be no compromise.. the headless one shall listen to no excuses, not from you. If you falter, your fall will follow. Ha, ha, ha! Leaders and Generals. The Generals of Shere are stronger..." he paused.
No word came from the two men. The priest continued, "...in this kingdom the Headless one is the supreme Lord, the General, and no one can claim greater supremacy. Between us, remember; we swore an oath of allegiance to the Headless one. Now, because you believe yourself to be invincible, you came threatening me. Ha, ha, haa! The General! Our General! In Shere, the Headless one is the General. Go away! Go to your fortified castle. But remember your earlier promise. Let the Benz reach me before midnight, else the whole world know. That the General could also be another victim of Shere. It could be today, tomorrow. a year. But it will come as surely as the Headless one lives."
They departed in silence. But conscious that the General had bitten off more than he could chew.
