Vengeance Mission

Chapter One The Orphans Lanre is a male, a teenager, of about 170cm tall and has a weight of 82kg. He is huge, handsome and good looking. He has the ability to influence people anywhere he goes. He soft in speech and easy-going, in fact this endears him to the people. He's from an average family background. Lanre and his siblings lived in a town called Ayedade with their parents, Mr. and Mrs. Peter. He had three siblings and they lived happily. Their parents though educated but they are into business. Their parents pampered them, because they had the means with which to provide for their needs as school children. Until one faithful day when the six of them travelled to the University of Ibadan on sightseeing, Lanre wanted to see what a university environment looks like, since he would become a university student in the next one year. On their way back, their vehicle ran into a barricade made by armed robbers which led to a ghastly accident that claimed the lives of their parents on the spot. The incident was like a nightmare to Lanre and his siblings though, the four children escaped from the accident unhurt. They became panic, shocked and dump founded and couldn't believe what had happened to them. It took almost thirty minutes before they were able to come back to their senses. At this point, Lanre moved closer to dad, to lift him up but he discovered he was lifeless. Lanre quickly went to find out where their mom was under the weight of the vehicle. Obviously he could not lift up the vehicle up to get their mom out of where she was stuck. Eventually, more hands came and she was brought out lifeless. The survivors were rushed to the nearby hospital for treatment while the lifeless bodies were deposited at the morgue, including Dad and Mom. My siblings were almost too young to comprehend what had happened to the family. Lanre, was weeping profusely, but managed to pack up their belongings in the vehicle especially Dad and Mom's hand bag. "The documents there were intact." The news of the accident went viral. The news of the demise of our parents spread among friends like wild fire in harmattan. An immediate arrangement was made for their burial the following day as there was no need keeping them in the hospital morgue, because all their children were around to say a final good bye to them. It was at the point of burial that my siblings knew they would not see dad and mom again to show them love as they used to do while alive. Our uncle, Mr. Kunle did not play any significant role in their burial arrangements, as he complained that he had no money. The presence of sympathizers and mourners around us did not allow us to feel the absence of our parents too much, but as soon as they left a couple of days of staying with us, it now dawn on us that we were now orphans. Folake the last born of the family asked “what it meant to be an orphan?’’ Lanre could not help his tears from flowing, as he said, "we are now without dad and mom." "When will they return to us?" She asked again. "They will no longer come to us here", Lanre said. "The implication is that we will now be alone in this house," we will have to fend for ourselves to keep us moving. We will have to look for how to pay our school fees by ourselves and the rest of them". "But man must survive and that means we must work hard o". These words soon became the family's slogan. "But this is wickedness," Folake cut in. "No it's not," Lanre said "it was natural that men should die." Before the death of their parents, Lanre was addicted to playing football and watching club matches, no room for domestic chores. It was left in the hand of the mom. One day, Fred, Lanre's friend came and invited him to go and play football, though he was not aware that he had lost his parents. Lanre's reply was "man must survive, man must work hard". "How do you mean?" Fred asked him. "No more time for footballing but hard work." Why? Fred asked. "We lost our parents in a motor accident a couple of weeks ago." "No wonder I have not been seeing you on the field. And no one told us". Fred said and was suddenly quiet. Again Lanre could not hold is tears, he went in to prepare dinner, so that they can eat, sleep early and wake up early to prepare for school tomorrow. My siblings were not pleased with what I prepared. I wanted something fast while they wanted something delicious. It has not occurred to them that mom was no more the cook but Lanre. Each time any one of them mistakenly called dad or mom, I answered, "yes dear what do you want?" I was now playing the roles of dad and mom to them. We ate and we went to bed. Having, prepared their minds that we had to go to school for the first time after the death of our parents the following morning. Very early in the morning, I woke up and I prepared their breakfast, because they were used to eating breakfast before going to school. After preparing the breakfast, I went to wake them up and take their bath. This, they did, one after the other. I got them dressed for school, made them to eat and set them out for school. I put on my school uniforms and got out to my school. I had to wait in front of my class for our captain who was holding the key to our class. He came, and met me waiting. He asked me two questions in quick succession. "Where have you been, and why have you come this early?" I could not dodge any of his questions so I told him I was bereaved, that I lost my parents. He moved very close to me and held my hand but he soon realized that I was no longer the cheerful Lanre that everyone used to know in the class. Soon, others came in and they all noticed two things in me, one, that I was no longer cheerful and two, that I came very early unlike before. Our class captain knew I was disturbed and would not want everyone to start asking me what was wrong one after the other, so, he stood up in front of the class and "he asked them to keep quiet as he was about to pass to them a very important information." After a while, they all paid attention to him and "he told them what has befell Lanre. He ended by saying that he should accept their condolences." Most of the class members could not hold their tears and this made Lanre to burst into tears too. Lanre asked everyone to wipe their tears that "man must survive but only hard work is required". Everyone marveled at this new slogan. He told them, "Life must continue." Lanre never disturbed anyone in the class but was seated writing his notes. The thought at the back of everyone's mind was that this is a new Lanre: quiet, extra cool and also writing in the class. This is unlike of him." It was a great surprise to all the subject teachers that visited a class today. Some of them could not hide their feelings "that the demise of Lanre's parents had really brought a positive change in his behavior and attitude to work." "That's good, anyway one of them remarked." At break time instead of his usual routine of playing football, Lanre retired to a lonely place where he sat under a tree. His friends spotted him from afar and wondered what he could be doing there alone there. Two of them decided to walk quietly behind him. He was caught in the act of soliloquizing aloud, saying things like "why at this time that we need you most? Things are hard, no one to help us". He heard the sound of footsteps on dry leaves and he looked back and found his two friends and said I would love to be alone. They knew he could not have forgotten his parents so quickly. They reminded him that it was just a few weeks to the commencement of their final examinations. He told them he was aware of it. He added that he would do everything possible to pass with flying colors. Lanre's siblings were reminded at school that they were yet to pay their school fees. They felt so sad that they have never been school fees defaulters before, but now who will pay for them? After closing from school, Babatunde, told his siblings that he had an idea that they should go and meet their parents in their new residence to ask them for their school fees. After all they owe us the duty to pay our school fees. They knew the place where they were buried and more so their names were written on their cemeteries. They sat down as if one of them would anxiously open the door to welcome them. They decided to get stone and knock on the tiles to attract their attention. But to their dismay, none of them opened the door to welcome them. "Does it mean dad and mom no longer love us?" Babatunde drew the conclusion that they possibly had gone out or on their way to visit us. They decided to drop note for them, reminding them that it was time to pay their school fees. They added that they would appreciate if they would come in person to give them their school fees and food items. They left the note on the cemetery and left for home. Lanre was already waiting to receive them at home, hugged them one after the other as they came in. "They told him that they branched at their parents new home to inform them that they had been asked to pay their school fees and how they dropped note for them because they were not around." Though Lanre knew that it was not possible for their parents to come and pay their school fees, said good of you, showed them their food. He locked the bedroom door behind himself asking of way out as he wept profusely, though not loudly.