Hushed Echoes

Maria became very calm to Jamal’s relief, besides he walked with her quietly out of the hospital to where his car was parked, he entered the driver seat, turned on the ignition quickly, he tried for a while to coax the engine into action but it barely clicked.

“Oh God! What Is all these?” He shouted, banging the steering with the palm of his hand, he tried a couple of times and fortunately the engine responded, he heaved a sigh of relief, they rode back home slowly.

One of the woman who had helped in consoling Maria just kept starring at the departing vehicle with utmost sympathy, and when they were completely out of sight, she placed her hands across her chest, ” poor woman, how could this have happened to her?”

When Marco’s mother and Jamal reached home, a lot of people had gathered in the compound anticipating their arrival, friends, relatives and Marco’s father colleagues were among those who made his small compound appear like a cinema hall.

Some of them kept glancing at all direction possibly go see if they were approaching.

“What could have kept them for so long?” Remarked one of his relatives, looking very worried.

“If I wait for another thirty minutes and they are not back, I would have no other choice than to go there myself” retorted his colleagues and very close friend.

“Well I pray all is well and he is still alive” said one of the neighbors, using his handkerchief to wipe the sweat that formed on his face.

All the while little Marco who had been crying inside the house had to be brought out by Salu who had done everything possible to pacify him, but he would not just stop crying, as a matter of fact, it was so serious that she felt taking him outside to see the crowd was the only option left as he kept crying and demanding for his mother.

“Bring him to me” said one of the neighbors who happened to be Jamal’s wife, she immediately got snacks for him and slipped into his palm, after eating it, she sang the lullaby until the boy fell asleep.

Hardly had she laid him down in the bedroom when they saw Jamal and Maria approaching from a distance, people rushed, pushing themselves as all scampered to gain access to them.

Jamal parked the car by the road due to how large the crowd was, this enabled Maria alight from the car, she began to weep uncontrollably, this of course created an immutable impression in the mind of everybody, that indeed something back had happened, but despite the fact that they already knew that all was not pleasant, somebody needed to let the cat out of the bag, but who was to do that?

That was absolutely a mind blowing questions in the heart of sympathizers that had waited earnestly with an amplified sense of anxiety for several hours.

As for jamal, he stood still with his arms crossed his chest, held on so tightly as if they were plastered together, and at the same time taking a steady gaze at the sky.

Marco’s mother was rolling on the ground still weeping vociferously, clothes were flapping furiously to cover her semi nudity in the Dusty haze, arising from the stampede of the pitying crowd who were making appreciable efforts to her excessive bawl.

But contrary to their expectations, the more they tried, the more she wailed and dashed round wildly, trying to wangle her way through the human ring formed around her.

“Let’s take her inside” ordered Jamal’s wife, while making frantic efforts to cover her exposed thighs with a wrapper, she was forced indoors by a group of hefty young men.

Jamal had stopped focusing his oblong face at the sky, as though he was expecting something to drop from there, whatever it was that he was expecting, nobody seems to be interested, what was in their kind was Marco’s father condition and as such they wished Jamal would subjugate to his absentmindedness and summon courage to disclose to them what was really at stake.

Hence one of the men grew out of patience and demonstrated it to the awe of everybody, he ran towards Jamal, pushed him on the chest and shouted, ” tell me, tell me right now or I will punch your teeth out, what is it that had happened that a mature man like you finds it difficult to say, or are your lips sealed?” His fist clenched as he spoke to Jamal, his voice rose with each statement, suddenly his body grew more tensed as he glared at him.