KIMBERLY PART NINE.

Kim was sexually abused by her uncle. 

(Continued from the previous part).

Within two weeks of her aunt’s departure, Kim had increased the number of bags of water that her aunt left her from six to fifteen. She worked very hard and tirelessly.  She made up her mind to raise enough money to start selling soft drinks instead of satchel water because it would bring more profit and lesser stress but it involves more risk and capital but she knew the tricks of the business and she determined to excel in it. Her main goal is to raise enough money from it to go back to school.

Living with her uncle became very difficult as the days went by. He complained about everything she did yet he expected her to wash his cloth, cook his food and run errands for him. At Twelve Dawn, was already playing the role of a mum for him. One rainy night, he came home drunk and met Dawn, counting the money she was able to make that day. After taking his supper, he told her that he had an issue at work that required him to pay someone two thousand naira and that he would pay her back as soon as the month’s salary was paid in few days’ time from then.

For a long time, Dawn couldn’t make up her mind whether to borrow him the money or tell she had none. He had already seen the money with her and there was no way she could lie that she had no money. The money she had that day was just two five hundred and if she buys ten bags of water the following day, she money would remain just about a thousand naira so she told him that all that she could spare was a thousand naira because she had to buy water to sell the following day.

“Listen Dawn” he said “You don’t have to do that. Borrow me this money and I promise that on Friday when our salary is paid, I will pay you back immediately” he said seriously.

“If I should borrow you two thousand naira, I will not have enough money to buy water that I will sell tomorrow” she protested.

“That can wait. Besides, you can deposit whatever amount of money remains and you will tell the factory that you will pay in the evening when you have sold all the bags” he said “Your aunt did that a lot when she was here and I am sure that she would be angry if she hears that you cannot do this simple favour for me” he said convincingly.

Dawn gave him the money and the following day, she had to buy each bag of water at higher price than it used to be if she had cash at hand.

“What  wwhy?” she asked as much her ticks could allow.

“Because I am taking a risk by giving you water without receiving payment. If anything happens to you, I will be held responsible and you may even run away without paying.  I am doing this because your aunt is my very good customer, where did she travel to? I heard she travelled to Libya, is that right?. I wish her best of luck” the manager at the factory had said.

Dawn had no choice, so she had purchased the bags of water at the price that left her very little profit in the end. The month ends and another month began but her uncle didn’t talk about refunding the money he had borrowed yet Dawn knew that he had been paid. She summoned courage one night and asked but he shunned her and pretended to be sleeping.

It took Kim two more weeks to cover the loss caused by the bad debt, by then, she had learnt her lesson about debt and repayment. She took care not to count her money when her uncle was around and she tried as much as possible to hide it well in places that she thought he couldn’t find it.

After three months of hard work, she had gathered enough money to start selling soft drinks on the highway, by then, it was few months away from her thirteenth birthday. She woke up very early as usual and began preparing for the day. The previous night, she had tucked the money away inside her wallet and hid the wallet inside her bag. Therefore, she did not bother to check that morning when she was leaving home. But when she got to the place where she wanted to buy the drinks, the money was gone!

She didn’t want to believe that it was stolen so she opened the wallet, searched every nooks and crannies of it but the money was nowhere to be found. Somehow in the middle of the search, a part of her knew that the money had been stolen but she didn’t want to believe it. That day, she just sat and watched beside the road as the other sellers ran past to sell their wares to the passing vehicles. She had to trek home in the evening because she had no money on her to take a bus.

By the time she got home by 10PM, her uncle was already on the bed, snoring loudly. She didn’t eat that night and she went to bed, empty stomached and full of grief. Throughout all these troubles and trials, Kim thought about returning to the Smiths but she didn’t want to look like an opportunist. She knew that they would take her back but she knew that her uncle’s irresponsible behaviour was not enough reason for her to leave.

The following morning, she confronted him about the money but he denied ever taking her money. “May be you misplaced it before you got home yesterday” that was all he said. She knew that he was the one who took the money and he knew that she knew. She left home without saying goodbye to him and went to the pure water factory, this time; the manager did not receive her kindly.

“What exactly are you using money for?” he demanded when she begged him to give some bags to sell and that she would pay him back immediately she finished selling the water.  

“My uncle…gbo…..stole my…..gbo….. money yesterday gbo, gbo gbo!”

She tried to explain again but she was nervous and her tics got in the way such that it took her a long time to express herself again.

The manager seemed to be lost in thought. Finally he said.

“Look here, I will help you.  I will give you ten bags of water now at the usual price and I will give you money to buy ice blocks that you will use to ice them but in the evening when you come around, you will keep the money that you have made with me and I will help you to save it. If you need any amount of money from me, come to me and tell me what you want to use it for and I will give it to you. I think that will be better”

Kim had no choice than to agree with this plan. She took the water and began selling. Life returned to normal and she began saving her money again. Every night when she returns to the factory to deliver to the man, the man would show her how much she had saved with him.

“By the next couple of weeks, you should be ready to start selling soft drinks” the man told her encouragingly one evening. “I would have borrowed you the money but it is a bad business strategy to borrow money when you can raise the money yourself”

Kim said no problem that she would wait till she had raised enough money.

Her fifteenth birthday fell on the day Nigeria celebrates her independence. To celebrate the birthday for herself, she prepared a sumptuous breakfast and gave part of it to her uncle who devoured it and asked for more. Throughout that day, she was in high spirits and God made her sell that day more than any other day.

“How did you do it?” The manager asked later in the evening “Fifty bags of water in a day, it has never happened before!”

Kim was too happy to talk.

“With the sales that you made today, I think that you are ready to buy soft drinks after all.” He said and gave her the money. She thanked him profusely and on her way home, she stopped at a depot and deposited the money for the drinks and told the woman attendant that she would come by the  following day take them.

Molested.

The following day dawned bright and shining and she left home as early as possible and began the day’s journey. Selling soft drinks proved more profitable and easier than selling satchel water.  She made enough profit on a bottle of drink than she used to make on five satchel of water. By the time she got home that evening, she was already full of imagination of how much she would have at the end of the year and continuing her education in January of the new year.

She was fast asleep when her uncle came home that night. If she had been awake when he came in, she would have seen the lust and the greed in his drunken eyes but because of the stress of the day, she was asleep even before she hits the bed. Suddenly, she felt strong hands clamped tightly shut over her mouth and another pinned her down.  She struggled violently but her uncle in his drunken state was way too strong for her. She cried for help but her voice only came out lower than she wanted, nevertheless, her neighbours could have hear her shout for help but no one came. Soon, he forced himself on her and despite her protests and pleas, he didn’t stop. She kicked and bite him but he didn’t let go of her until he was sated then he rolled of and fall soundly asleep.

She cried bitterly and few neighbours came into their room to inquire if anything was wrong. She wanted to curse them all but she was too drained.

Where were you all when he was molesting me, where were you all? Where were you when I was screaming, crying out for help? You pretended as if you did not hear but you did. She screamed at them and one after the other, they all went back to their rooms and bolted their doors.

Early the following day, she went to the nearest police station and reported the case.  Immediately, two uniformed policemen were sent with her to arrest her uncle and they took him into custody. Kim spent greater part of the day in the station, writing her statement over and over again. By 3PM, she was finally released and told to come back the following day. By the time she got home, she couldn’t go out again so she lay on bed and wept endlessly. Some neighbours came into the room to sympathize with her. The women among them brought food and water while the men told her what to say at the police station in order to make sure that her uncle did not go scot free. Some of them confessed that they had heard the noise but they didn’t want to poke nose into other people’s affairs. They apologized and promised to stand as witnesses if the police demands witnesses. Kim thanked them all and she was unable to sleep till 11PM when the last of them had gone.

Kim was able to resume her business four days after the unfortunate incidence.  Though it was hard to forget, yet she decided to put the incidence behind her. The most painful part of the incidence was that everyone on the street seemed to have heard about it and behind her back, the people were laughing and snickering but in her presence, they treated her with exaggerated courtesy. It was this that made her cry every night.  There was no one she could speak to and everyone pretended to understand how hurt she was but it later turned out that the ones who pretend the most are the ones who made jest of her the most.

Her business began to pick up after three weeks. She put all her energy and efforts behind the business in order to escape from the trauma of the incidence. Her uncle still remained locked up in cell but as days went back, his family members began to mount pressure on her to drop the charges against him. They begged, cajoled and later resorted to threats  but she was adamant in her resolve.

A month after the incidence, she was summoned to the police station where her uncle was locked up. She was led into the DPO’s small office where the DPO, her uncle and his family members were waiting for her. When she entered the office, she had a feeling that she was entering into a trap because they all looked conspiratorially at one another. She noticed that her uncle was no longer in cuffs and that he had shaven and worn new cloths. She was told to sit and she sit. She felt alone and lost among those strange people. The DPO began by advising her to drop all charges against her uncle and that it was the best that she could do. When she said no, he further told her that if she dropped the charges, her uncle’s family was ready to give her a certain amount of money that she could use to do business or further her education if she chose.  Kim thought a lot about this. She desperately needed moneys to go back to school and if she had to raise the money on her own, it may take years before she was able to raise it and then it might be too late. But now, the opportunity was presenting itself for her to realize her dreams.

“No, Uncle…gbo….has…gbo….made me a laughing stock…gbo….in the streets. Everywhere…gbo, I go, people…gbo….point accusing fingers at…me!” she said and broke down weeping silently.

The DPO spoke again.

“If you continue with this stubbornness, you will regret it. It is either you drop the charges now and let us release him and you will be given the money OR you let this case go to court. Now listen, if this case goes to court, you will lose because you have no money to hire any lawyer that will defend you, it is a lost cause and you might even be penalized for accusing him wrongly…”

“But he…gbo did it!” She shouted “As our neighbours. Gbo, they will tell you that he did it!” she said angrily.

“May I have the names of those neighbours that you are talking about?” the DPO asked and Kim gave the names of the neighbours who said that they were ready to be witnesses against her uncle. The DPO wrote down the names on a sheet of paper and gave the list to an inspector to bring those people to the police station. About forty minutes later, the people arrived and they were ushered into the DPO’s office. They were four in number, two women and two men.

“Who among you saw Mr.  Sayid rape her?” the DPO asked challengingly, angrily but no one spoke “You people should talk if you were there in the room when she was being raped, were you?”

They said no.

“If no, how come you are willing and ready to corroborate her lies against her uncle?” the DPO asked angrily.

“I heard the noise” One of the witnesses said, they called her mama Dada. “I was sleeping when I began to hear the screams. I left my room and when I got to the door of their room, it was locked from inside but I could hear the noises from within and the struggling. I banged at the door several times but no one came to open the door and I was there for almost ten minutes until she finally opened the door, crying. Her cloths were torn in several places” Mama Dada said boldly, looking at the DPO without flinching but the other witnesses shrank under the baleful stare of the DPO.

“Is that true?” the DPO directed the question at the other witnesses but the remaining three witnesses were suddenly dumb.

“You people should talk or why are you so quiet?” Mama Dada asked with agitation.

“Madam please keep quiet!” the DPO snapped at her. It is obvious ds that you are a liar and you just made this up, you will remain in our custody until you say the truth. Inspector, take her to cell 3”

Mama Dada was dragged away from the office amidst struggles and noises. When she was gone, the DPO turned his attention to the other three witnesses. “Is there anyone among you who saw anything?” he asked and they all shook their heads no. “Okay then, you may go back home. Inspector, please give them transport fare back home. Thank you all for helping the police and saying the truth” he said and the three witnesses left the office with their heads bowed in shame. The DPO turned his attention back to Kim where she was sitting shivering with rage and anger.

“Now, where were we?” he asked and smiled at her “Those are your witnesses, look at them. The police know liars when we see one and they are all nothing but liars. Once again, I advise you to drop this case and move on with your life” he said and signaled to a policeman that was standing nearby “Bring the envelope” he said and the policeman passed a bulky brown envelope to him. He opened it and peeped inside then he closed it and tossed it on the table in front of her. “That is a hundred thousand naira. It is enough for you to pack away from that house and rent a new house in a new street where if you are tired of being laughed at where you currently live. You can start schooling again with it and one day, you will graduate and forget all these unpleasant memories….”

A man was led into the office; this made the DPO to pause from what he was saying.

“Yes?” he asked the stranger.

“I am Mr. Daud; my wife has been detained here…”

(To Be Continued)