The Last Insurgent

She drawns

The driver covered his heard with a turban, enjoying a Sudanese song, shaking his head. Next to him was a stern looking man holding a rifle. By the first door was a gunman while another gunman mounted the second door. They all wore turbans and military jackets over caftans.

There were about two one hundred and fifty girls in the car. Behind the luxury bus was a Toyota Hilux truck with heavily armed men.

Among these girls was Leena. She sat next to a chubby, swarthy girl. Leena had run out of tears. Even in captivity, she felt more at ease with Mufty.

She wondered how he would have felt if he came back to meet her gone. That was if he would come back alive.

Where were they taking them to? She had no idea of where they were. All she saw was a desert, the bus raising heavy dust. They had being driving for hours.

“I have a child.” The girl sitting next to her said in a little above whisper as if talking to her herself. It was the first time she would speak with Leena.

“Where?”

“I don’t know where he is.” She said. “I had gone out with him that they when they attacked. He was just three years old. They came and started shooting. They killed some people. I held on to my son. I was a widow. I lost my husband just a few months after our wedding.

They abducted some of us and one of them seized my son and kicked me. I was shouting, wailing and begged them to leave him with me. They agreed and I had him with me. They took us to the camp and …they took my child away.” She was now sobbing. “ I never saw him again. He was looking at me, shouting and calling me,  Mama, Mama, Mama. I tried to go after him but was pinned down. I watched them take him away. I can still see the look in his eyes.”

“Oh my God.” Leena’s eyes became wet. “When was this?”

“Three months ago. I know he is alive. I feel him but what I don’t know is…if I will ever see him again.”

“You will insha God.”

“Ameen. My name is Aisha.”

“I am Leena.”

“I used to see you in the camp. I thought they married you off to Iceman.”

“Iceman?”

“Mufty. That is what they call him.…behind him though. He is cold. He has no friend, no sense of humour and has never being seen laughing. Rumours has it that he has never being seen smiling.”

It was at that time Leena realised that it was true. She stayed with him for three weeks and he never smiled for once.

“I don’t know why but the Amir did not bless our union.”

“We heard that. The man they called my husband was killed by the military.”

“Good for him. Did you say you heard?”

“Rumours and gossip cannot be obliterated even if it was in a camp like ours. I hope you are not pregnant.”

“No.”

Aisha hesitated.

“We thought he was going to wake up one day and just shoot you. Even the men fear him. They say that is all he does: kill.”

“I don’t know what to say about him. He is a difficult person to understand but….I would have preferred staying with him. At least I was with him for three weeks but I don’t know what lies ahead now.”

“We don’t know what lies ahead.”

“I was supposed to get married today.”

“Ohhh my God!”

Leena felt like crying again as she pictured Dammy.

“I was abducted just three weeks to my wedding.”

“What are you two planning?” The man that was by the first door said as he appeared before them suddenly.

“Nothing.” Leena said.

“Better.” He said. “Okay ladies, we are just a few minutes to our first port of call. We all need you to behave. “I hope you girls don’t have phobia for water because you will be transported via canoes. Don’t be scared, it will be just ten in each canoe.”

Oh my God! Leena feared. Where were they taking them to? Who would come and save them? Why?

Mufty watched Jahl walking towards his cabin where he had about twelve wives. He said only four where his wives and the rest were his slaves.

Mufty rubbed his jaw absentmindedly while his eyes became thinner. His teeth grinded and this only happen when he was getting into his dangerous mode.

He saw him giving orders to the driver who was going to deliver provisions to a minicamp a few kilometres away from them.

Very good, Mufty thought. He ran back into the darkness and broke into a run. The time has come.

It was now very dark and frosty. The wind moved the saturated cloud smoothly, obstructing the rays from the moon, except for the flashing of the lightening that emerged within intervals.

Moore had watched the cabin for almost one hour, and saw no sign of life. It seemed there was nobody there as he had anticipated.

“Let me go and check the place out.” He whispered.

“I can’t stay here alone.”

“Okay, come with me.”

He did not put on the flashlight, but firmly held the gun. They snuck towards the cabin. It was not locked. He hesitated before he pushed the wooden door open.

They went into the room before he put on the flashlight. 

“Good.” He said at once as he saw groceries.

He began to pack them into a sack randomly. She helped him. They worked so fast without a word.

He sent a beam of light round the room. He was not surprised to see a camping tent. It was folded.

“We must leave. I think we have enough. I hope we should be back home by tomorrow.” He said.

She felt a wind of bliss hit her as she thought of her children and husband. She could not wait to see them again.

“It seems they left in a hurry.” She said.

“Shhh….” He said at once and put off the flashlight. “I heard something.”

She listened.

“It sounds like the sound of a bike.” She said.

“It is!” He said. “Let us leave here, fast!”

He carried the sack while she carried the pack of camping tent. They ran out of the cabin. They had barely left when strong beams of light emerged coupled with roaring of bike engines.

They knew there was no chance of leaving at that moment.

“Come here.”

They hid behind  thick shrubs.

Three bikes appeared with two men on each. The men seemed to be armed. Moore could not recognize any of them but guessed they were Sabr’s men.

“Check the cabin!” One of them said, “the police may come at any time.”

“We cannot leave any exhibit.” Another man said and three of them rushed into the cabin.

They came out just five minutes later.

“Someone was here.” One of the men said. “A tent and some provisions are missing.”

“That means…they are close-by. We might find them if we try.”

Beeba began to shiver. She knew if these men saw them, it was going to be the end for them.

“We do not have the time.” Another man said.

“I don’t think they called the police. This is the only place with service.”

“That reminds me, did you remove the service enhancer?”

“I will go for it.” Another man said.

“Disassemble it and tugged it out. This place is not safe anymore.”

“Let us look for them. Even if they call the police, it would be difficult to locate this place.”

 Beeba was now shaking more than ever.

“We don’t need them. Malern is still negotiating with her husband. He does not know that they escaped. We may get the money.”

Moore saw one of the men going to disassemble the so-called service enhancer.

He quickly turned, using his bogy to obscure the light of the phone, before he wrote a text: I escaped. I am still lost. Don’t pay them.

“Send it to your husband.”

It was after she sent it she felt something cold on her legs. She looked down and saw it. It was a snake.

She screamed.

Moore who saw it did something very brave. He grabbed the snake by the neck and knew it could do no harm at that point.

But the screaming had attracted the criminals.

Moore flung the snake away, fired a shot and shouted, “Stay right there!  It is the police.”

Moore knew he had to act fast but not before bullets were sent to them. He grabbed Beeba and pushed her down and they rolled on the grass.

That move saved her life.

Bang! Bang!

Moore fired more shots and he knew he got one of them.

The criminals were confused. Was it really the police? If it was, then they would be a bunch of them. They could not risk it. They made sure they carried the man who was shot. They mounted their bikes and escaped.

Moore and Beeba did not waste a single second. They got up, ran to where Moore hid the bike, put the sack in front of him, while she held the camping tent and they mounted the bike.

As the criminals ran away, so did Moore and Beeba run away?

They had ridden for about forty minutes when the rain began to threaten them.

“We have to stop here. There is more space here.”

He had to fix the tent quickly. It was so small and not very comfortable for two people.

It began to rain so they ran inside with the sack . It was only when they got inside he realise what was happened.

“Oh my God! What is wrong with you?”

“Masha God!” A man in turban said. “The goods have arrived.” He was smiling as he saw the girls alighting from the bus. “Beautiful girls saved from a dirty world.”

He was standing akimbo, and behind him was a river. There were so many canoes by the bank of the river with armed men in turbans.

The driver met him and shook his hand.

“Comrade Jalal. Peace be upon you.” Said the driver. “Greetings from the Lion.”

Jalal smiled.

“How is he doing? I have not been to your camp in a while. We have been busy taken care of Dammyawa.”

“God’s work is not easy.” The driver said. “He is fine. At least none of his wives is complaining.”

Jalal laughed.

“Twelve wives! That is too much. I can’t do that.”

“Really? How many do you have?”

“Just eight.”

The driver laughed.

“Okay, move them quickly!” Said the driver. “ Ten to a canoe.”

Some of the insurgents held flashlights. Two men came out each holding a cat o’nine tails, and began to shout, using whips to drive the girls like  cattle.

“Move it! Move it!” One of the men holding a whip said. When he felt he was not satisfied with the speed at which they moved, he began to use the cat o’nine tails to whip them.

The girls became frenzied, and began to run, while some of them fell to the ground, screaming and crying.

“Now get into the canoes. Ten in a canoe!”

The girls began to get into the canoe randomly. Some of them had phobia for river but the whips got them flummoxed. So they kept running into the canoes, not bothering to count.

The insurgents would now count them. If they were more than ten, they would start whipping them and the excess would be chased out.

Leena just got a whip, she screamed and fell into a canoe. The paddler smiled and then tried to touch her bosom. She used her hands to cover her chest.

He frowned.

“Sit down, i***t! You allow those infidels to touch you but you are running away from holy hands.”

She was crying just like most of the girls. Some of these girls were not Muslims, but abducted and forced to pronounce Islam.

These people were not representing Islam. They were only using Islam as an excuse to satisfy themselves. There was no compulsion in religion. This was no religion. It was sheer terrorism.

The canoes began to sail. Each canoe had three insurgents. While two paddled, one held a gun.

The man who had tried to touch Leena looked at her, and then grinned.

He stopped paddling, asked the man holding a gun to take over before he moved and sat close to Leena.

The moon helped illuminate the see but the views were not very clear.

“Do you know who I am?” He asked.

She shook her head.

“I am offering you a chance to be happy. Do you know where we are taking you to?” He was speaking a low tone.

“No.”

“A land of no return is your final destination. I can help you if you marry me.”

“I don’t want to marry you.”

“Okay, let us observe nikah mut’ah. It is a temporary marriage. You will be in Harabal kusum for three days. We should be together for three days. I will pay you dowry.”

“It has been abolished since the time of the Holy prophet SAW.”

“Shut up! What do you know about Islam? It seems you are not ready to live and you know what? It is very easy to get rid of you. All I need to do say is you tried to hit me and escape….”

He did is so swiftly. He grabbed her by the neck, pulled her up and flung her into the river.

Leena could not swim. She screamed, shouted for help before she began to drown.