A WITCH REPENTS

The morning was broken by startling screams coming from the furthest house; a little shack where old man Kapuka was the only occupant, really the hoarse shrills could be no one else’s, but his.

Presently, he shot out of the house like a cruise missile and started circling a small tree in front of his door which was also used as a shrine.

“Mamaaa! Leave me alone,” he kept on chanting while tearing off clothes from his body. “Please people help me.”

The sight, though unlikely in the computer age, was so ghastly; it attracted a lot of attention. In no time the homestead of grass-thatched round hovels was jam-packed with people, anxious to see an unedited video of a self-confessed wizard performing what one called a broad day ritual.

“You see people,” his tall brown-skinned Mulamu, talked in whispers to those who had gathered to witness the bizarre event, “this is the result of practicing witchcraft, killing innocent people.”

All eyes turned to look at the spectacle. The face was alert, furtive and saliva oozed out from his cracked lips like groovy spittle. He was ever waving hands like someone parrying blows from different people. The sagging belly looked like a hyena skin piled up carelessly and the thighs were just slightly better than two logs lying side by side. His unshaved pubic hairs, completely grey with age made the pelvic area look like the mouth of a cave in winter, and his long dark cucumber dangled in front like a rhino horn placed at the wrong place. The ghastly picture was rounded off by glazed eyes looking wild and dazed like a monkey lost in the wilds.

“He is killing me, please stop him,” his hoarse voice sailed slowly in a deathly drone. He threw away the last piece of clothing; a pink scarf from his neck and started running towards a group of barefooted women who were sweeping leaves in the yard. Completely naked and covered with grey slime from rolling on the ground, he tried to join them, burying himself in their midst, but all the women scampered away like rats. It was taboo to see the nakedness of an old man, far worse to be seen standing next to it.

However, undeterred, the children quickly gathered around him, gleefully chanting; “Ehe Kapuka, you stupid witch! Ehe Kapuka, die before you finish us!”

“Hey! Stop that nonsense,” Nzala peeled himself from a group of older men who were driving a yoke of oxen to the fields. He whirled around, fiber whipcord exploding in his hands, in an attempt to disperse the unruly children. “You are a disgrace; can’t you see that dad is sick?”

However, even the redoubtable Nzala had no sooner uttered the threats than started retreating into safer waters, away from the children who were not only numerous but also violent. A few older boys, armed with catapults, waved their weapons in his face menacingly, daring him as they shouted; “You get lost also, were you together when he was bewitching people?”

“Nzala my son,” Kapuka ran to him, engulfed him at the waist in both arms, “help me, and keep him away.”

“Big bro, don’t listen to this wizard,” Kazoka shouted. “You never know who is next to die on his agenda, maybe it will be you.”

“No, it is not right Kazoka,” Nzala was saying while disengaging himself from the old man’s grip and pushing him down into a heap. “At least cover him with clothes, it is taboo looking at the nakedness of your father.”

“I will never do such a thing," Kazoka disagreed with Nzala, "you are kind to him because he has spared your family from his witchcraft, right?”

“It was not me, I swear by Heaven,” Kapuka was now coiled on the ground in fear, looking like an embryo. His bony arms looked like a starved snake as they tried to cover the head in shame.

“Maybe it was the spirits.”

Just then, someone arrived carrying a shambok. It was Depu, Doli’s former husband.

Suddenly Kapuka became alert, like someone in shock, his red evil eyes glowed like ambers and his lower jaw dangled like a broken wing. Then, pointing at Depu, he stood up hurriedly. Before anyone could read his moves, he tore through the crowd and sprinted away at great speed while shouting; “Mamaaa! Please help me people; he has come to kill me with a spear. Please save me, I beg of you people!”

Kazoka was the first to react; he was on his heels and already running after the old man even as the other kids were scampering away in fear. When he caught up with the big man, he shouted; “uncle stop, don’t make me slide you down.”

“Felix there! Felix is coming to kill me! Whwhwhwh!”He kept on running breathing heavily.

Kapuka was running surprisingly fast for an eighty year old man and he would disappear if not stopped quickly. Kazoka was now getting tired. Before Kapuka could pull away Kazoka shot out his right leg to put a foot in the old man’s legs. This tripped him down; he was thrown into a rolling fall like someone attempting a long jump. He hit the ground with his mouth first and his belly was scratched badly. He grunted in shock as Kazoka rushed to sit on his belly, gripping the throat with big hands in a strangling act.

Nzala reached them panting from running a hundred yards; “Kazoka, spare him,” he said between panting, “He is suffering already.”

“But who is Felix?”Kazoka asked his elder brother but refused to let Kapuka go.

“His third born son,” Nzala said nodding towards the old man, “he died mysteriously twenty years ago.”

“Was it him who killed Felix?” Kazoka asked looking at Nzala with anger in his eyes

 “I don’t know,” Nzala said while avoiding his younger brother’s eyes.”I just don’t want any of you to be arrested for killing this man on suspicions of witchcraft.”

“I don’t care about the police,” Kazoka shouted, “The pig must confess all his killings today. That is the only way we will forgive him.”

 By now the place was again crowded and the children were arranged in a ring surrounding Kapuka. Kazoka kicked the old man in the groin to get his attention; “start talking, how many of us have you killed so far, and who is next on the list?”

“I killed Doli’s children,” he started while looking down and holding his balls.

“Why?”It was Depu, father to the said children, “what did they do to you?”

“I just wanted to embarrass their mother,” Kapuka answered almost instantly, “she was too arrogant, always walking with a nose stretched out like a peacock.”

“That is the most stupid thing I have ever heard in my life,” Depu said, yelling like a mad man and struggling to break his neck. “How can he kill my children like someone killing cats?”

“Hold on, Mulamu,” Kazoka advised, his eyes shining in anger, “let him tell us everything.”

“All right, talk child of Satan,” that was Depu now brandishing the shambok.

“Depu, don’t forget that I am your father in law,” Kapuka looked at Depu in a threatening way.

“You ceased to be my in law when you started killing my children,” Depu was barely holding himself. His chest was heaving like someone about to have a seizure.

“And how did you kill them…?”Kazoka was like a prosecuting judge.

“I sent a tortoise into their bedroom to drain their blood,” he said shivering. His eyes had a terrifying slant, like someone about to faint. The pupils were set deep in the sockets like shining water in a deep well. Mucus flowed from pipe-like nostrils as they dilated like the nose of a hippo.

“How did you send the tortoise, a wild animal?” Kazoka asked thinking to himself; ‘This vermin has been killing children just to spite their parents-wasting innocent lives to please his whims-what mediocrity in thinking?’ “Do you talk to animals?”

Kapuka started shivering as if it was a very cold winter. His mouth moved without words coming out but finally, he said; “my child, there are things that you cannot understand…”

Just then someone poured boiling water on Kapuka’s head almost burning him to death had it not been for Nzala’s quick action. He quickly pushed the pot away before it could burn anyone.

This was Miyanda, she was shouting; “liar!”  Peace was restored when her step-Mom dragged her away.

“Please my daughter, don’t invite disaster on yourself,” bina Maggie said in an attempt to advise the young woman.

 “I don’t care ma, ” Miyanda said, her red evil eyes showed that she was determined to finish off the old man, curse or no curse.

“What about Miyanda?” someone asked, “Why does she want to kill you?”

“I killed her sister,” Kapuka started talking while looking over his shoulder in case another pail of hot water was coming. Twisting his mouth like a dog chewing a bone, he temporarily kept quiet like someone thinking deeply.

“Why?”

Kabriyele (Gabriel) lied that I would become as rich as Hanyaana if I donated Maria’s children for rituals,”

Instantly, Miyanda was back; fuming and fighting wildly to hit the old man with a pestle. “My mother suffered greatly because of this pig…” she shouted, her mouth trembling violently and tiny legs moving as fast as a praying mantis.

Kazoka saw Miyanda coming, he knew that Nzala would intervene again. He devised a trick to distract his attention; “big bro, today you are playing the pastor, saving him, right?”He nodded at Kapuka but made sure he held Nzala’s gaze for a full minute.

“I am not….” Nzala couldn’t finish, Miyanda had sneaked in cleverly and smashed Kapuka’s knee with a pestle. How she evaded everyone was hard to understand, maybe someone let her in, but the sight of the old man holding his broken knee in both hands and crying in pain was ghastly.

‘Please spare me, I beg you,” Kapuka screamed. However, Nzala acted quickly again, he applied some healing oil on his injury; the same stuff used for treating cattle.

“I can’t sleep these days, my son,” Kapuka was now feeling much better, lying on a mat, “that child is always chasing me in my dreams, and now how will I run with a broken leg?”

“What about Felix?” Kazoka asked.

“I fed him to a python, my son,” Kapuka answered. “Kabriyele gave it to me.”

 “Someone to call this Kabriyele to answer these charges,” it was now Depu coming in.

“He died five years ago,” Nzala explained.” but now that he has confessed he will recover.

“Hoooarrrhaaaa!”Kapuka groaned like someone vomiting. His eyes widened and flashed amber red like a small torch. And then he collapsed into a deep sleep. That is how his haunts came to an end.