Bandit Baby - S01 E04

Story 2 years ago

Bandit Baby - S01 E04

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 4

“Tie what? With what? How is that possible? What do we have here that is clean?” I asked.

“Please don’t talk, act and act fast. There is no time.”

“Ok! Ok! Ok! Ok! What? What? What?”

Then I remembered I had a tie in my pocket. Yes, the tie I wanted to put on when I get to Lagos for the biometric capturing. I thought the tie would be a better option.

Prior to that day, I had never seen an umbilical cord before. So I had no idea what it looked like.

I brought out the tie and showed her.

“Here! I washed and ironed it before I left house. I’ve not used it yet. It is very clean.”

My hands were shaking.

“No. We need something like a thread. Find it,” she said.

“A thread? What thread?”

“Like the one in your shirt. A thread. Don’t you know a thread?”

She became very angry with me as if I was the one who put her in that condition. It was obvious from the tone of her voice.

“Ok! Ok! Ok! Ok! I will find it. A thread. Madam I will find it.”

Then I remembered when I held her head, I felt her braids. The braids were of wool.

I quickly pointed my light on her head.

“Madam, we are going to use strands of these wools from here.”

Without waiting for her reply, I started unraveling the hair.

The hair came with its own task.

I was unable to unravel it with my bare hands because flame of fire was used to seal off the braids from unravelling.

Without wasting time, I engaged the services of my teeth.

I succeeded in tearing off the sealed end.

As if I was a professional hairstylist, I unraveled the hair and brought out two strands of the wool.

I kept them on my shirt.

“Are you alright?” I asked.

“For now, I am fine. The baby is coming. Just look for what you will use to cut the cord. Please hurry. If you can’t find anything, then be ready to use your teeth.” She started crying again.

“Ok! Ok! Cut! Cut! Cut! Cut! Cut! Cut! Cut! Cut!”

I could not risk using my teeth. I had to find something.

Then I remembered the hook on my trouser.

With the speed of light, I removed my trouser and without thinking twice, I employed the services of my teeth the second time.

If you know where hooks are found on trousers, I destroyed the whole place and brought out the hook.

The hook had three sharp pointed ends.

“This is it. This is what I can find.”

She did not even bother to look.

I placed it beside the strands of wool I earlier kept.

I was wearing only my boxer.

As soon as I kept the hook, she asked me to check her again.

I checked without hesitation.

“Madam it is wider than before. Is the baby still coming?”

She did not respond.

She was crying and calling on God.

At that moment, I had another prayer.

But this time, the prayer was unusually different.

I prayed aloud. She heard me clearly.

I told God that the reason I left the hospital when my wife was about to deliver our son was because I could not stand to see and hear the pains she was about to undergo.

I told him that naturally, I was not that brave to withstand such a situation.

Then on my knees and crying out loud, I added: “I want you to know that this woman is alone in this bush and it is very late in the night. There is no one with her. If I mean anything to you, please, for my sake, let her deliver in peace. I am asking this, not for her sake because I know she is strong, but for my sake. You know I am not strong. The lives of these three people are in your hands. Do it yourself. But if you don’t want to do it, no problem, just know that they are alone. No, I’m not running. I won’t run. I will just sit here and watch. And whatever you choose to do, I will tell people. I will mention your name. I will mention your name….”

I could not complete the prayer.

I cried bitterly for the first time in many years.

Then like the Biblical Jonah, after proclaiming judgment to the people of Nineveh, he located a befitting place to sit and watch what would become of them. So I did.

I sat on one of the stones and watched her cry.

Then the pain came again.

More severe than all the previous pains combined.

I stood up and rushed to her.

She screamed, I screamed.

She shouted, I shouted.

She called on God, I called on God.

Whatever that came out from her mouth, I repeated.

I became fearless.

I was charged.

I knelt down in between her and pointed my light. Behold I saw a head.

Yes, a human head. And without asking her to push, she was already on it.

She pushed, and pushed and pushed. All the while, both of us continued screaming.

Finally, the first came out.

Soaked in blood. I checked and he was a boy.

I carried him to my chest. He was crying. I was crying. The mother was crying.

“What is the sex?” the mother asked panting.

“A boy. A boy. He’s a boy,” I answered in a voice that sounded as if I just finished running a marathon race.