THE EMPTY GRAVE

THE NUMBER UNDER THE GATE

I woke up at 5am. I did not sleep. I was sitting on the floor of my one-room apartment, looking at the small window. Outside was still dark. My baby's wrapper was on my lap. I was holding it and smelling it. It still had that small baby smell.

Today I will know if I am mad or if my mother-in-law is a liar. Plot 14B. Holy Ghost Cemetery.

If my baby is inside that grave, then I will accept that I am mad and I will go to Psychiatric Hospital in Bwari. But if the grave is empty, then it means my baby is alive inside that yellow house with black gate at No 14 Old Aba Road.

My knee was still bleeding from the night I hid behind the dustbin. I tied it with old wrapper.

At 6:30am I took Keke to Gwagwalada Police Station. Inspector Musa was already there. He is a good man with big stomach. He used to bring his small daughter to my shop to plait hair.

"Ada, you are early," he said. He was drinking Lipton tea with bread.

"Sir, please, let us go now. Before my mother-in-law runs away," I begged.

He put his tea down. "Okay. Let me carry my constable. We will go to that cemetery first. If the grave is empty, then we have criminal case. If not empty, then you need to see doctor. You understand?"

"I understand sir."

We took his small police car. The driver was a young police man. We drove to Holy Ghost Cemetery in Mararaba. It is far. On the way, Inspector Musa was asking me questions.

"Who told you baby died?"

"The nurse at the private clinic. And my mother-in-law."

"What is name of clinic?"

"Divine Mercy Private Clinic. At Old Aba Road, near the black gate house."

Inspector Musa wrote it down. "That clinic has been reported before. But big men always come and stop investigation."

We reached cemetery at 8am. The sun was already hot. The cemetery is very big. Full of graves.

The gate man is an old man with rubber boots. He was burning dry leaves.

"Plot 14B?" he said. "Yes, I remember. Two weeks ago, one fair woman with big church wrapper came. She said her grandchild died in hospital. She paid 50,000 naira cash. She did not price at all. She said bury quickly. She did not even come for burial. She just paid and left."

"Take us there," Inspector Musa said.

We walked inside. I have never entered cemetery before. I was very scared. Some graves have tiles and flowers. Some have just sand. Some have no name.

We walked for about 7 minutes. The old man stopped at a small fresh grave. Fresh sand. No flower. No name. Just a small wood stick with "14B" written with black marker that was already fading because of rain.

"This is it," he said.

My legs could not stand. I fell on my knees. My heart was beating fast like drum. Gbim gbim gbim.

Inspector Musa held my hand. "Relax."

"Open it," Inspector Musa told the old man.

"Oga, to open grave you need permission from chairman. I cannot just open grave," the old man said.

"Open it now! I am Inspector Musa from FCT Command! If you don't open, I will arrest you for obstruction!" Inspector Musa shouted and showed his police ID.

The old man was scared. He started digging with his shovel. The sand was soft because it was new. He dug for 10 minutes. Sweat was all over his body.

Then GBOIM. His shovel hit something.

A small white coffin. Very small. Like shoe box. Painted white but dirty with sand.

He brought it out and put it on ground.

Everyone was quiet. Only my breathing.

"Open it," I whispered. No voice came out.

The old man used his cutlass to remove the small nail.

He opened it slowly.

Empty.

Completely empty. No baby inside. No body. No burial cloth. Just white satin cloth inside to make it look full if you look from far. But inside, nothing. Empty like empty plate.

I fell on ground. I did not cry. I laughed. I laughed like mad woman. I was rolling on cemetery ground.

"EMPTY! IT IS EMPTY! I TOLD YOU! MY BABY IS ALIVE! MY MOTHER-IN-LAW BURIED EMPTY COFFIN! SHE IS A LIAR! SHE IS A THIEF!"

Inspector Musa's face turned red. He was very angry.

"Close it," he told the old man. "We are taking this coffin as evidence."

He called his Oga on phone immediately. "Oga, confirmed. Grave is empty. Coffin empty. Suspect is Madam Rose Okoro, No 7 Unity Estate Gwagwalada. And hideout is No 14 Old Aba Road. Send men there now. Block all roads to Lokoja. She will run to village."

We drove back to Gwagwalada fast with police siren. When we reached No 7 Unity Estate, her house was locked with big padlock outside. Neighbors said she left at 5am with small Ghana-Must-Go bag, saying she is going to village for emergency.

She ran away.

At 12pm, we went to No 14 Old Aba Road with 4 policemen with guns.

The tattoo man tried to jump fence but they caught him.

Madam Uju tried to hide inside toilet but police woman broke door and dragged her out.

Inside the house, there were 7 babies on dirty mats on floor. Crying. All girls. No boy. The room smelled of urine and Dettol.

And in corner, on blue wrapper, my baby. Wearing small pink cap with "Baby Girl" written on it.

I picked her. She was light and hungry. She opened eyes, saw me, and stopped crying.

"My baby," I cried. "Mama found you."

That day police rescued 7 babies. And I got my Miracle back.

I named her Miracle because she came back from empty grave.