Vengeance

A SHARP jab in her neck awoke Bibi with a startle. Sleepily, she looked around herself and realised that she was still seated in her uncle’s car, on the front seat. Beside her on the driver’s seat, was his uncle, Stanislaus and on the back seat was her mother and nine-year-old brother, Zain. All three were sleeping quietly. Absent- mindedly, Bibi gazed out of her window. Day had broken and she could not help but marvel at the beautiful sunrise. Three very loud yawns snapped her back to reality, the rest of her family had woken up.

“Good morning sleeping beauties, glad to see you have awoken from your peaceful slumber.”
“Sleeping in a car is anything but peaceful,” said Zain. “Anyway,” he continued, “what’s up for breakfast because am starving?”
“I hate to admit this but I am also feeling a bit faint.”

“Sorry kids, but I seem to have finished all the air pies I have ordered for breakfast,” teases their uncle.
Bibi gave an embarrassed laugh, at 16 she knew better than to wail for food. After all, her uncle had sacrificed so much for their safety. He had helped them escape from their pursuers the previous night and they had spent the night in his car as they waited for the arrival of the fellow who had arranged for their travel documents. However, it was morning and he still had not arrived.

“Don’t you think its time you called Wade, Stanislaus? I mean he was supposed to bring the passports at 11 o’clock last night but where is he? I have a bad feeling about this guy, Stan,” Bibi’s mother finally chipped in.

Although she had kept quiet at first, she had not liked the way Wade’s eyes darted about when they first met but she had seen how much Stanislaus trusted him so she had kept her thoughts to herself.

“It’s just that I don’t want to seem pushy, Frankie. I mean after all the guy is doing us a huge favour, although he is taking . . .”
He was suddenly cut short by the roar of a jeep driving in their direction. Stepping out into the crispy morning, Bibi felt goose bumps on her arms and legs and cursed herself for having worn a short dress and sandals. A familiar face appeared among two other shadowy faces that she could not make out.

“Wade, what a great relief to see you, now is our stuff ready?” Stanislaus asked anxiously.
“Sorry Stan,” Wade said coolly, “but there has been a slight change of plan.”

Immediately one of the strangers stepped out of the jeep and was instantly recognised by both Frankie and Stanislaus.
“Butch!! How . . . how did you get here?” they screamed, horrified.

“So Frankie, you really thought you could run away from me, Butch who owns you? As for you Stanislaus never trust anyone on this earth because thanks to Wade, I have found you now,”he said pointing a gun at them, “How about we take this little gathering somewhere else, hey?”

“Wade, I am deeply regretting the day I decided to trust you, you two-faced bloody traitor,” Stanislaus lamented painfully.
Bibi felt sharp pangs of fear aim at her spine. Her head was spinning.

“Butch, if you want me then take me but leave the children out of this! After all I am the one who used to work for you, so please spare them!” her mother pleaded with him.

With the swiftness of a cheater, Stanislaus jumped onto Butch’s hand and snatched the gun away from him.
“Zain, Bibi, run for your lives!” he screamed desperately.

As much as her knees shook with terrible spasms, Bibi clashed to the nearby forest at the same time yelling for Zain to hurry up. Suddenly, a loud bang tore through the still morning air. Involuntarily, she turned around and at the same time saw Zain’s lifeless, blood-stained body fall the ground. Dazed, she bolted on and melted into the forest, shaking and crying bitterly, Bibi painted heavy chest-wrecking sobs. No matter how much Zain annoyed her the last thing she wanted was for him to be killed.

Still trapped in a whirlwind of thoughts, she heard two more gun shots from the bushes where she was hiding, Bibi saw Butch holding a gun and standing over her mother and uncle’s bodies which were slumped on the ground with blood oozing from their temples. Hot tears welled up in her eyes and she had to bite her lips to keep herself from wailing at the top of her voice.

In less than 10 minutes she had lost all of her family and was left alone in all this big, bad, cruel world. In a bid to protect herself from Butch, she crawled into a small thicket and sand hid there. A vivid picture of her mother, uncle and Zain’s lifeless bodies was imprinted in her mind. It was funny how her life had changed since yesterday morning. She was having breakfast with her family in the comfort of their home and now she had no home, food or family and this was all thanks to one person, Butch. She hated him with a passion that blazed inside of her like fire.

As the sun set that very same day, Bibi had no idea who she would run to, where she would go but she had decided on something that she must do even if it was going to take an eternity to accomplish it. Tomorrow, she would start her life afresh with a sole mission: REVENGE.