Sleeping was difficult and eluded her like a teasing girl to her lover, wanting to see how he would react but mostly loving the thrill of the chase. She realized ignoring it did the trick and when it wanted to, it would come to her and wrap her in its numb embrace. She had nothing much doing, so she filled her hours with studying and practicing her agreements, even making a few of her own. Nkosi would’ve been thrilled to see her suddenly take an interest in her education but he didn’t have time to praise her. The Vodun community was in danger, that’s what he said anyway but she knew it was just justice to those who have been able to elude it all this while. Until now.
She was after all the right-hand woman of justice in these times.
Dzidzor meted her anger unto 5 more families, 3 of whom were members of the council within 3 months. There was one that has been at the back of her mind, all the way over in the Ashanti region but she knew she did not have the courage to do what she had to. It enraged Lisa but she knew who was really in charge here, and he knew it wasn’t him.
Her ‘activities’ had obviously put the leaders of the Vodun community at edge. They were not blind neither were they dumb; they knew what was happening and they were not pleased at all. They knew they were the authority of Vodun business, especially in West Africa. they deluded themselves that the decisions they made were for the good of all Vodun, but for themselves mostly. To think that a vigilante had decided to destroy the order they had so desperately kept trying to maintain enraged them and thus, they had to do something about it.
They tried to create a stir and panic that there was a Vodun serial killer on the loose and thus they needed the strongest of charms and agreements against this person. Going against rules they set themselves on performing certain prohibited agreements were being discussed. They said she was evil and killed children because of the agreement she had had with evil spirits.
Dzidzor wanted to be enraged but she couldn’t, neither could she be amused, anyone who wanted to know the truth could’ve just asked the survivors. She was surprised to feel nothing, feeling nothing inside like she was the contents of a large empty ceramic vase. She tried to get a reaction from herself by hanging out on the roof, but she found that relaxing and that it helped her clear her head, making her even more numb.
She did not know that the feeling of murdering over 30 people would feel like this. She expected to feel disgusted or angry at herself or even pleased, from cleansing the world of this vermin but no, she felt nothing. Blades, accompanied by the ever present blood, did nothing more than mildly irritate her. Fire, she had realized, felt like hot wind against her skin. She was suddenly immune to all pain, physical and emotional. She was very sure Lisa had something to do with it, and she hoped he would hold this up for as long as was needed to complete her mission. She did not need the burden of a conscience at this point.
She winced at the person she had become, but it was too late. What had been set in motion cannot be stopped now.
She heard a knock and without waiting for a response the door opened. Nkosi walked into her room looking a bit uncomfortable. His already gray hair seemed almost silver, making his locs seem translucent and fragile like wool, as though if someone reached out to stroke them, it would fall apart in their hands. The hair contrasting his face made him look even older, with the shadows of the evening adding contrast to his features. His clothes looked bigger on him, his black shirt and loose trousers further enforced the illusion that he was shrinking. She almost wanted to tell him that it was her, she was the Viviti Mawudↄla so that he would rest and regain his strength, instead of chasing dead-end after dead-end, for someone that was in his own home.
You will tell no one!! Lisa shrieked.
Dzidzor simply rolled her eyes.
“Hey,” Nkosi said moving her worn clothes from the bed into the wardrobe “What’s that?”
“Oh, just some light reading on Plant enchantment, nothing serious”
“Are you okay?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” Dzidzor rose from her reclining position on her bed as he took more clothes from the chair into the wardrobe.
“Dzidzor when you are anxious you go back to things you know everything about. Books on the spirit realm,” he picked up the book she was reading last night “on charms, animals, elemental agreements, plants” he then settled heavily on the bed “so I’m asking again; are you okay?”
“She doesn’t really kill children, does she?” Nkosi sighed, but at least she was talking about it. Nkosi had become someone very dear to her, at the irritation of Lisa. She wanted to talk to Nkosi about all this, but she was afraid of his reaction. She was afraid of looking into his eyes and seeing hatred, discord and the emotion that would break her into even more shards; disappointment. She wanted Nkosi to look at her beaming with pride but she knew it was not to be. She and he would never see eye to eye, especially on politics like this so she created a shell of secrecy, telling herself it was for his protection but she knew it was for herself, so shield herself from the hurt she knew would cause Nkosi and in extension, herself.
He sensed her anxiety about this Vodun serial killer as Dzidzor had never even spoke more than 3 sentences about her, despite his not so gently proddings.
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“I don’t know…”
“But she doesn’t” this time she said, instead of asking. Nkosi looked questionly at her for a moment, before sighing and telling her the truth.
“No”
“Then why do they say she does? From what I hear in town, people are calling her a savior…”
“All life is sacred!” Nkosi said with burning intensity that made her flinch and her stomach twist “Even corrupt, idiotic evil life. A lot of people disagree and that is fine but the best way to solve a problem is not always the violent path”
Dzidzor thought he was only right in the part where he said a lot of people disagreed with his philosophy but she did not say anything.
“But yes, you are right, the town’s people are safe, you are safe. It is me and my colleagues who should worry”
“No one will hurt you as long as I am alive”
“Thank you” Nkosi smiled, taking her hand and looking very pleased “The said colleagues will be coming over for another meeting. Will you be okay in here?” Dzidzor nodded “Remember the rules”
She did; make no noise, don’t be seen.
“Good. Goodnight”
“Goodnight”
She lay faceup on the bed, and stayed that way minutes after he left, waiting.
Then she floated out of her body, naked as the day she was born, and out her room and down the stairs and perched on the couch, where she could observe the meeting without being seen.
Apart from Nkosi there were 7 men on their meager dining table and she knew all of them; Gyaase, a heavy set middle-aged man who represented the Vodun community for the Fante tribe, Ayinbila, a tall middle-aged bulky man representing the Ga tribe, Lateef, a short skinny graying man representing the Gonja tribe, Iyapo, a middle aged man missing some teeth representing the Anlos, Yakubu, a balding man with long beard representing the Dagombas, Prampram, a hairy man with salt and pepper facial and head hair representing the Ga-Adangbe people and his majesty Otumfoↄ Kwaku, a man with a mean face with little hair on his body representing the Akan tribe and then of course Nkosi, leading the meeting.
They all wore red or black, funeral colors, in solidarity to their lose comrades.
“Welcome honorable dignitaries…”
“Spare us the pleasantries, Nkosi,” Prampram bellowed, shaking his ill-fitting black lace shirt with his sudden movement “you know what we are here for. What is going on? How do we stop her and mostly importantly, how do we make her pay for her crimes?”
“I do not care for the first part,” Yakubu added “the reasons for such outrageous crimes are moot”
Then they all began to speak, one by one, on how they will make her pay.
“Please, please,” Nkosi offered, raising his voice as he tried to get a word in “honorables let us handle this reasonably”
“We have no reason to be,” Gyaase snapped “she is not reasonable, why should we?” the other men nodded and grunted in agreement.
“She seemed to have been wrong by one of us somehow. Her pain is clouding her judgement and that is making her act this way. We have discovered that but she does not know that we know, giving us an upper hand on her. The next steps are extremely critical and thus we need to act the right way or else she will kill again”
“After all she’s a woman,” Gyaase quipped “their emotions make them weak and this one has plenty of them. That is what we will use against her” Dzidzor made a mental note to add Gyaase to her murder list.
“That’s all well and good,” Kwaku said in his usual calm velvet voice “but how do we do that?”
The silence that followed was deafening.
“That part is painstaking so simple I am surprised you lot cannot see it,” Ayinbila said with a smug smile on his face. All the faces of the esteemed makeshift council turned to him with impatient expressions “Give her what she wants”
Dzidzor held her breath, having an idea of how the men would react and she was not wrong. After Ayinbila has spoken the once quiet room erupted into chaos and name-calling leaving even Nkosi looking bewildered and a bit annoyed.
“Brothers, brothers let me finish…” Ayinbila started but was soon cut off by Iyapo and his accusing wagging finger.
“You want to let this maniac on the loose continue their evil deeds and yet you call us brothers? Fantes and their cowardice…”
Dzidzor winced at the direct insult at the other council member, expecting a fight.
“Do not mistake my calmness for weakness, I alone have the power to subdue you…”
“Please, please comrades,” Nkosi said while raising his hands in a calming gesture, trying once again to keep the peace “Ayinbila explain yourself”
“It is simple,” He continued, still staring daggers at Iyapo’s direction “She wants the big big fish, the big big men, we around this table and those fleeing the country in fear of getting killes. So, we deliver to her but, together, standing as once” The faces on the table still looked confused so he continued still “Normally, we stay clear of each other, after all there cannot be two kings in one village without war and that is her biggest strength, apart we are easy prey, but together…” he weaved his hands together to emphasize his point.
“We are unbeatable” Nkosi finished with a bemused grin. Smiles went round the table until it erupted into laughter and banging of the table in delight. How hadn’t they thought of this before? It was brilliant! Within a week at most they should have her and severely punish her for what she has done.
“However, there is still a little bit of a problem” Kwaku began, the smile already leaving his lips “how will this arrangement be done? Will we have to be together all the time? Holding each other’s’ hands and singing sweet songs?”
“I have a bit of a solution to that,” Nkosi said, trying and failing to control his tremor of excitement “I know her next target”
“How?” Kwaku asked incredulously.
“I tracked her every move, asking for specific times and dates from witnesses and others…”
“So, who is it?” Gyaase demanded, unable to contain his impatience.
“Honorable Otumfoↄ”
The uncomfortable silence returned. Dzidzor found herself relishing in the fear and suspense she felt in the room, it was everything she hoped for; to get these gluttonous pigs a taste of what they did to innocents. However, she still couldn’t prevent herself from brimming with pride at Nkosi, he is exactly as good as advertised.
“Why should we believe a word you say!” Kwaku fumed in silent anger “How are we to know you yourself do not work with this woman, to silence the competition and pave way for yourself to rule over all of us?”
“He’s not lying” Yakubu, who had the uncanny ability to know when someone was lying by examining their auras, uncomfortably stated and the tension died down.
“When will this happen?” Kwaku asked, back to his calm demeanor.
“2 weeks” Nkosi obliged “but we will be ready”
With all the love Dzidzor had for Nkosi, it was unfortunate that she could not let this happen, even for him.