“Ona, you’re up?” she scolded when she finally came to her senses.
“Ifedi, what are you doing in the dark? Is something wrong?”
“I couldn’t sleep.”
“I couldn’t sleep either. Maybe it’s the heat. Sorry to intrude, but I needed some water.”
She didn’t respond, so I got what I needed and left, while she remained seated in her position. When I got to my room, I placed the now empty cup on the side table and cranked up the air-conditioning before sliding under the sheets. Still having difficulty sleeping, I stayed up till sunrise, and the moment the clock struck 5:59, I called Amah.
“What time is it?” she asked. “What happened? Has Albert lifted the staff?”
“I don’t know about Albert lifting any staff. I wanted to wish you a safe trip.”
“But it’s not even six, yet. Couldn’t you have waited until the morning? Not that I mind, but I thought something important happened.”
“Sorry Amah for getting you so excited. It’s just that I’ve been staring at the ceiling for hours after a terrible nightmare woke me up.”
I described my dream to Amah, right to the last detail.
“What do you think that was about?” she asked.
“I don’t know. I visited Albert earlier in the day, and we talked about the oracle. That must have entered my subconscious and manifested in my dream.”
“That’s likely what happened. Why do you think Albert hasn’t been able to take the staff? Ona, you have to pray oo. This is no joking matter.”
“Do you think I don’t know that? The thing is giving me a serious headache. Soon you’ll leave me to deal with all these problems on my own. I’ll miss you so much.”
“I’ll miss you too. It’s a pity that I won’t be able to attend the wedding when it finally happens.”
I burst into laughter.
“What’s funny?”
“Nothing. It’s just that you’re looking forward to the wedding more than I am.”
“Yes o,” she said with a chuckle.
I still hadn’t told her about my issues with Albert. Now that she was leaving, it would simply be torture letting her in on it, and I didn’t quite think she’d understand. Albert was usually sweet. It would have taken great effort to convince anyone he was capable of lifting his hands against a woman.
“Don’t forget to send your address the moment you get to London, and take good care of yourself.”
“I will, my dear Ona. I’ll write to you as soon as I settle down.”
“I trust that you will, and I’ll be praying that everything works out right for you.”
“Thanks, love. You, too.”
* * *
After I hung up the phone, I lay down to try and get some sleep. As I was reminiscing about Amah, Albert, Okem, and everyone that had impacted my life so far, I felt a familiar sensation and slowly drifted to Luenah. My grandfather took me to the shrine and showed me the image of a man on a screen.
“Do you remember this face?” he asked.
“I recognize him,” I said. “That was Ozumba—Okem’s father. I remember that many years ago, he had brought Okem to live with us. Back when Okem was just a scrawny little dancing boy.”
“You were little yourself too, although I wouldn’t call you scrawny.”
I laughed and continued to stare at the image. It was definitely Ozumba. He looked a lot older than I remembered, and he had the wreath of weeds on top of his head, the same as I’d seen some people wearing the last time I was in Luenah. He was shriveled as an old fruit, as an unripe mango plucked before it was ready to be eaten and left in the sun.
“What is that?” I asked.
“A mark of dishonor,” my grandfather whispered.
“Is that why he looks so miserable? Why does he bear the mark? Why is he in Luenah? Is he an Eri too?”
“He is.”
“Then why was he dishonored?” I asked in a desperate tone.
“One thing you must know is that Luenah, even with all its strengths, has its weaknesses, too. The decisions by some Eri, disrupt the balance in this mystical world. Some of the members choose to be evil despite the good nature that’s bestowed on them. These same people find ways to use their spiritual powers to penetrate the minds of others to garner support for their quest to topple the seat of power so they can do as they please, mostly bad. Though peace and tranquility are some of the things we enjoy in Luenah that make it superior to other realms, there have been massive obstructions to this peace by the actions of these few. Luenah has zero-tolerance for evil, so to combat this problem, the supreme ruler created the spell of detection a hundred years ago after a massive rebellion threatened the throne and resulted in various syndicates vying for possession of our realm.”
“There was a rebellion?” I asked, stunned. “I simply can’t imagine it. How does the spell work?”
“The wreaths.”
“What about them?”
“The one you saw on those people’s heads, including Ozumba’s. Those mark them as the bad eggs. Anyone can detect them from miles away.”
“What if they continue to rebel? The wreaths alone can’t stop them.”
“You’re right. It can’t. It’s meant for others to detect them, but they’ve been stopped for good. An illusion has been cast over their minds’ eyes, so much that they can’t see what you and I see. These lush fields, beautiful rivers, the peace, not to mention the shrine, are invisible to this bunch. In their place, they see dry land, muddy waters, and indescribable strife. Luenah looks inhabitable to them. Remember the darkness you experienced recently?”
“Yes,” I said agitatedly. “I was going to ask you for an
