The Walking Corpse

The first victim was the young medical doctor at Saint Stephens Hospital in Onitsha. The killer, out of nowhere, appeared in his office when he was reading a newspaper and stabbed him countless times in the neck with a syringe. 

No one saw the killer, except the doctor, and when the detectives from the homicide section of the Central Police Station in Onitsha arrived at the scene, all they could make out of incident was a case of conspiracy and murder allegedly masterminded by some malicious staff of the hospital. Autopsy also revealed that the object of the attack was a syringe, and the detectives vehemently believed that a non staff of the hospital couldn’t have used the hospital device for carrying out the act without having been seen by anyone! 

But the syringe was nowhere to be found. The killer must have left with it, possibly to undermine any trace of his identity being uncovered by the police. 

When the detectives barged into the doctor's office, he was sitting in his swivel arm chair, his head resting on the gleaming mahogany table before him, as though he were sleeping, his unblinking eyes gazing at the entrance door of his office, his hands sprawled out on the table, and The Crystal newspaper under his head smeared with his own blood! 

To leave no stone unturned in their investigation, the detectives took all the staff of the hospital to the station for interrogation.

†

Mrs. Rebecca Eziokwu shuddered at the sight of her father in-law. She tried to scream, but her voice failed her. 

‘‘You’re dead. ’’ She pointed at the old man, drawing back as he walked towards her. ‘‘You died a week ago. You have no business here. ’’

The old man, still in the pajamas he was wearing at the time of his demise, glared at her. A bloodstained syringe was poking out of his profoundly veined fist. He tottered towards her, defying the woman's threat to hit him with a pestle she was already holding in her hand in defence. 

The food in the pot, which the woman had placed over the gas cooker to warm, was already burning, causing emission of gaseous smoke in the kitchen. 

She coughed, and held her heart to soothe the inflammation occasioned by the gaseous pollution. In anger, she came at the old man and hit him with all her might. But she not only wasted her energy (for the pestle snapped into two, as though it had been hit against a sharp surface), she also infuriated the old man so much that he stabbed her countless times on her neck and gouged her eyes.

†

The detectives were forced to release all the staff of the hospital from detention after the latest serial murder of Mrs. Rebecca Eziokwu. The police officers were convinced that none of the staff had a hand in the murder of the doctor for two reasons: one, the recent murder incident was carried out in same manner as that of the doctor and, two, all the staff of the hospital were in detention when the recent incident occurred. Thus, they were absolved of all guilt for their alibi in the matter.

The police interrogated Kosi, the woman's only child, and her husband. Kosi said she and her mother were the only people in the house before the tragic incident occurred. According to her, she was watching a movie in their living room when she started perceiving the smell of a burning food. She paid attention to the kitchen, and the sizzling noise and the smoke coming into the living room confirmed her fears. Impulsively, she rushed to the kitchen only to find her mother sprawled on the floor, with blood oozing out of her mouth and her eyes missing from their sockets!

‘‘Did your wife quarrel with anybody before she died?’’ Inspector Bode turned to Mr. Angus Eziokwu, the woman’s husband.

The man tapped his head with his finger thoughtfully. ‘‘My wife was a peaceful woman. Everyone knows her as one who never looked for people’s trouble. ’’

‘‘That’s not the point,’’ Inspector Bode retorted. ‘‘A peaceful person can be involved in a quarrel they didn’t start. ’’

Mr. Angus Eziokwu shook his head in resignation. ‘‘I’m not aware of any quarrel between her and anybody. ’’

The officer looked at Kosi. ‘‘Any incident you’re aware of?’’

The young girl shook her head, her eyes glinting with tears.

†

The body of Ichie Linus Eziokwu, Mr. Angus Eziokwu’ s father, was missing. To make matters worse, the morticians at Saint Stephen’s Mortuary couldn’t account for its loss. 

‘‘Are you kidding me?’’ Mr. Angus Eziokwu glared at the men who were in hand gloves ready to attend to some other corpse in the cadaver-filled rooms inside. ‘‘My father was brought here, under your care, and now you’re telling me you can’t find him. ’’ His eyes bulged as he said those words, wondering what the men had used his father’s corpse to do.

The men were silent, for they had no explanation to offer. They knew what the man's next line of action would be, and the consequences of that.

‘‘Don’t worry. I'll back!’’ He stormed out of the mortuary premises.

†

The morticians couldn’t offer any explanation to the missing corpse, despite every measure, including the use of duress, employed by the police to extract the truth from them. 

‘‘It’s obvious you people are ritualists,’’ one of the policemen concluded. ‘‘Yes, ritualists. That is what morticians do these days — they sell corpses, especially those abandoned by their owners, to ritualists. But we will deal with all of you today. It's better you confess now so that your punishment will be reduced. Once we charge you to court, there is no mercy again. ’’

Just then, a young woman was led into the interrogation room by a corporal.

‘‘Sah,’’ the corporal saluted the inspector, ‘‘this woman get information wey dey vital for this matter. ’’

‘‘Which information?’’ the inspector glared at him, and then at the woman.

‘‘I’m a nurse at Saint Stephen’s Hospital, ’’ the woman began.

†

Ichie Linus Eziokwu had suffered stroke, and was admitted at Saint Stephen’s Hospital where he eventually went into coma. Days ran into weeks, and weeks into months, but still, his condition wasn’t improving.

‘‘Doctor,’’ Mrs. Rebecca Eziokwu said with a tone of resignation and indignation, ‘‘I think you have to do the needful. ’’

‘‘And what do you mean by ‘do the needful,’ woman?’’ the doctor said, confused.

Just then, Charity, the lead nurse in the hospital, thudded through the hallway that led to the doctor's office, but immediately stood still, as though she had been enchanted by some unseen forces, when the words, ‘Just end his life,’ came flying through the crevices of the doctor’s office.

Then, she tiptoed to the doctor’s office entrance door and pressed her ear against the peephole. 

The doctor sat upright and removed his spectacles. ‘‘Woman, why would you conceive such an evil idea?’’

Mrs. Eziokwu scoffed. ‘‘Evil idea? Evil idea you call it, but it's not at all. We are just helping the old man. Of what use is life to him in his condition? A man who can’t eat, drink, urinate, pass excreta, and is on life support? We are wasting a fortune on him. To me, the old man would be happy if you just end his life. ’’

‘‘But, woman, is your husband in support of this?’’

‘‘Leave my husband out of this. ’’ She waved her hand dismissively. ‘‘Is the old man not his father? Do you expect him to support this? This deal is only between us — you and me. ’’ She pointed at him and at herself. 

‘‘I will not be a party to this deal, woman. ’’ The doctor shook his head, scowling. ‘‘Besides, your father in-law may later come around. Or don’t you believe in miracles? We've had cases where patients, who were in coma for months, later came around. ’’

‘‘Doctor, that old man's case is different. His condition can never improve. Don’t you know he's an idol worshipper, ogo mmuo? He's the chief priest of Ngene deity. He must have committed many hidden atrocities and the evil spirits are after his life. ’’

The doctor stared at her in astonishment. He saw how desperate she was in carrying out her hideous plan, and knew that no sermon from him could change her mind. 

‘‘Doctor, please, do this. Money is not the problem here. ’’

The doctor bent his head in thought. When he raised it, Mrs. Eziokwu knew she had won him over.

‘‘How much are we talking about here?’’ the doctor said in calm voice.

‘‘One million naira. ’’

‘‘No. I can’t take such a risk for that peanut. ’’

‘‘Ok, one point five million. ’’

‘‘Five million. ’’

‘‘Doctor, five million is too much…’’

‘‘Five million or you forget the deal. ’’

The doctor's voice had a tone of irrevocability in it.

‘‘Ok, five million,’’ Mrs. Eziokwu said, scowling.

‘‘Five million, then. Deal. ’’ The doctor scribbled something on the notepad before him, smirking satisfactorily.

†

‘‘Dr. Ifeaka ended the life of the old man by injecting a substance in his body with a syringe,’’ the nurse said, looking at the inspector and Mr. Angus Eziokwu, who had come in while she was narrating the story to them. ‘‘I recorded everything here. ’’ She held up her mobile phone, indicating where she had recorded the clandestine conversation between the doctor and Mrs. Eziokwu.

The inspector gave the morticians a seemingly apologetic look, before turning to Mr. Angus Eziokwu. ‘‘Hmm.’’ He sighed and shrugged in resignation. ‘‘Mr. Eziokwu, I fear this case is a spiritual one. It's obvious some evil spirits have entered your father’s corpse to kill the two persons who took his life. ’’