Under The Udala Tree

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One day, Ekene Chuma and his sister, Ozioma, went to Ichie Buruego's stall to get their portion of the yam, which had become their birthright. While Ekene Chuma settled down, Ozioma and Ichie Buruego went to their usual hideout.

As Ekene Chuma was stuffing loads of yam into his mouth, he heard sounds coming from their direction.

He ignored it at first and went back to eating his meal. Today's roast yam was so special to him. The palm oil was fried with onions, pepper, and crayfish to spice it up.

He also had more than enough to take home.

His father's yams always tasted like dust. Many parts were attacked by pests and rodents. So there was nothing left to eat because the edible parts had been destroyed by these pests, who seemed determined to ensure that his father would never harvest good yams.

Although he ignored the sounds coming from his sister's direction, they became too loud as the minutes ticked by. The servants were not around to check on them as they used to.

When he could no longer bear the noise, he stood up and tiptoed in that direction. He saw where his sister, Ozioma, and Uncle Ichie Buruego had passed.

As he went closer, the sounds became even clearer. They were muffled like moans. Probably, someone's mouth was covered.

That sound rang a bell in his ear. He remembered hearing it when he caught Mama Odinaka's daughter, Ifechi, with a man he couldn't identify near the stream.

His father had sent him to fetch water from the river. While returning, he saw Ifechi and the man, whom he estimated to be in his twenties, under an Udala tree.

Ifechi's wrapper was hanging loosely on her waist while the man's jumper was pulled down to his knees.

Ifechi's mouth was covered by the man's left hand as she kept screaming, "Gbuo m na-abu m nke gi! Kill me, for I'm all yours!"

Sweat glistened on the man's shoulders while his muscles rippled as he tried to suppress his own moans.

Ekene Chuma could not decipher what was wrong with them. He found Ifechi's words funny and planned to share them with his parents when he got to the farm.

When he got to the farm, he met angry parents.

"What took you so long?" his mother questioned.

"I choro ka akpiri kpo anyi nku. Do you want us to die of thirst?" his sister, Ozioma, queried.

However, Ekene Chuma was too engrossed in relating his story to his parents.

"Nne, do you know I saw Ifechi and a man playing under the Udala tree near the stream?" he said excitedly.

"What do you mean?" his mother asked, standing to her full height.

His father, who had tried to ignore him, turned to pay attention to his blabbing.

"The man was pinching Ifechi under her wrapper, and she was screaming on top of her voice!" Ekene Chuma exclaimed excitedly.

But his excitement was cut short when his sister slapped him across the mouth.

His father didn't utter a word. He signalled to his mother with his eyes to gather the farm tools and seedlings.

That was how they rounded up their work for the day. His mother didn't go to the market.

Later that evening, his mother sat him down on a stool and pulled his left ear.

"Whatever you saw Ifechi doing is very wrong. It is adults' play. Don't you ever engage in it."

"But Ifechi is a child."

"Mechie gi onu! Shut your mouth!" she shouted.

"Ifechi will face the consequences of her actions tonight. Her father will beat her to death, and that is the same way I will beat you if I ever find out that you are doing such an immoral act," she said authoritatively.

And that was the end of the discussion.

During the night, Ekene Chuma's sleep was interrupted by the lashes that landed on Ifechi's body as she pleaded for mercy.

Ekene Chuma couldn't believe his eyes when he reached the corner of the stall where the sound was coming from.

His sister, Ozioma, was clad in only her blouse. Her wrapper lay neatly on the ground.

Ichie Buruego's jumper was pulled down to his ankles. His khaki shirt seemed to have a mind of its own as it lay on the ground.

Ichie Buruego's lips formed the letter O as he moved rhythmically into his sister, who couldn't suppress the urge to scream.

"Mesiwe Ike! Go harder!" she kept moaning, oblivious to her brother's presence.

Ekene Chuma couldn't believe what was playing out before him.

His mother had warned him to desist from such acts, calling them "adult play." But his sister, who was fourteen years older than him, was actually doing it.

When he could no longer stand the sight, his instinct was to run out of the stall.

He ran as fast as he could despite Ichie Buruego's calls for him to come back.

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This is an excerpt from my novel, Shattered Dreams.

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