THE LAST SURVIVORS
Episode 25
While plans were being made to invite the police to quiz Melinda and Ochuma, Verah and Osoba were meandering through every corner of the streets in that night looking for Austin and Etim. Osoba and Verah turned on their torch lights on their phones to help them see well in the night. They had tried several times to reach either Austin or Etim on their mobile phones without success. Eventually Verah and Osoba turned into the street where Austin and Etim noticed that the house they were going to was also moving away from them. But as they walked energetically towards the house they saw Austin’s phone on the floor ringing, the call was from Melinda. They wondered whether to pick the call and tell Melinda what they have found; after a bit hesitation Osoba picked the call, Melinda’s voice came through, sounding very excited that she had finally got through to Austin. “Austin! Oh my God! Where are you?” “Sorry Melinda, this is Osoba……..” “Where is Austin?” Osoba hesitated wondering how to tell her that they found Austin’s phone on the ground. “Where is Austin? Tell me you have found him!” “Sorry Melinda, we haven’t found him. We saw his phone on the ground. At least we know he went through this way. Stay calm we will call you as soon as we find Austin and Etim”. “No Osoba, I am coming over!” “No Melinda, you can’t do that, it’s too risky out here stay with Ochuma. By the way, how is he?” “I have put him in a good hospital and he had been attended to. I want to come over and find Austin please!” “No stay with Ochuma, they could send the scorpion again!” “Ochuma is asleep!” “That is the much reason you should watch over him!” While Osoba spoke with Melinda, Verah found something on the ground and called Osoba to come and have a look. “Osoba, you have to see this!” “Melinda, Verah has seen something, I have to go now”. Osoba dropped the call and ran over to where Verah stood. Verah was pointing her torch light on the ground; there was fresh blood trail on the ground and lots of foot prints. “Austin and Etim must have given whoever crossed their path a lot of fight”, said Osoba thoughtfully. “We have to find them now!” said Verah with some measure of alarm in her voice.
A few yards away from where they saw the blood trail on the ground, they saw a crushed big black scorpion. Verah and Osoba studied it for a moment and then continued running to the house glowing in the distance away from them. “Osoba I don’t understand, the scorpion usually comes in smoke, cloud or shadow forms, the one we saw wasn’t in any of those forms, why?” “I have no clue Verah, let’s pray that by the time we find Austin and Etim, they are still alive”. “Wait Osoba, why should we go to that house and make enquiries about our friends, what if they are the bad guys?”
The two of them stopped running and Osoba pondered what Verah said. “What do you suggest we do?” asked Osoba. Verah and Osoba had their torch light turned off and were talking in hushed voices. Verah had to time to alert Osoba to it, she felt a human figure moving very close behind her, she swung her right leg backward into the air, she could not tell how she was able to achieve that. It has been about two months since she went to a gym. When she swung her leg backward, the sharp end of her shoe heel caught the man by the neck and punctured his windpipe, Verah’s action shocked both her and Osoba, all they heard was a heavy thud on the ground. Osoba turned on his light and they saw a man with his windpipe ripped open and blood fountaining from it. The man was gasping for air and was strangely naked from hair to toe. Verah was of the opinion she had killed a mad man wondering the street in the night, until Osoba who was on his knees examining the man leapt into the air and called Verah’s attention to what he had seen. Verah had to turn on her own light; underneath the man’s skin were scorpion-like creatures, moving about as if in a hurry to flee the man’s body before death could set in. While they watched in shock, some blue light began to glow amid a pile of clothes lying next to the man. Osoba kicked the pile clothes, and it revealed Etim’s phone vibrating to a call. Osoba picked up the phone, the call was from a friend of Etim’s, Osoba ignored it.
Verah and Osoba were forced to turned of their torch lights and hide when they heard voices coming out of the bush directly in front of them. While they held their breath in the bush and watched, they saw four men dragging Etim and Austin out of the bush.
To be continued
