Sinaitas’saga left me jobless and with serious injuries.Ihave ner set foot in Kangemi ever since,i had to lie to my neighbours that bi was attacked at the bridge which i learnt later was called Mau Mau bridge and was famed for quite a number of vices
A week inside the house and i was well and i could walk properly again,only the scratches and the ugly scars were left to remind me of the ordeal.i decided to never go to projects ever again i was done.
A week later i landed a soja’s job in a nearby town but it was a walking distance it was in a pub that closed daily at midnight.All was good.
It was now mid 90s and in the area cropped up a group nicknamed the 42 Brothers they had instilled fear and had been rumoured to kill and maim anyone that stood on their way,machetes were their choice of weapon and they were also romoured to carry those big travel bags and could sweep clean any place they visited
The government had by then rolled out a door to door permit search operation and this is what they rode on. they could invade a whole ‘plot’ knock door to door and rob all the victims bllind.they could fit all they could on those huge bags and whoever resisted they could break down the door using those 9 by 9 stones beat you up and a times kill.Most tenants cleared from the area.
One fateful night,wide eyed with my small radio seated at one corner of the gate,i heard loud voices from a far and drawing nearer,i switched off my radio and hid in a corner armed with a rungu.climbed the fence for a better view when i saw the multitude of people coming towards my direction. i slid inside the mabati gate and just hoped that if indeed it was the notorious 42 brothers that they ndont target the pub.i was wrong. they started with the mabati gate brought it down then the pub door next taking turns to kick the wooden door down while chanting very weird songs i could not blow the whistle it could have been my death sentence so i took off and headed to my employer’s house woke him up and explained what was happening,he made me wake up all his neighbors s and gave some sort of speech they had all agreed to help so me my employer and a small mob of neighbors armed with all manner of crude weapons headed towards the pub along the way waking people with whistles we looked like a small army,he had called the police and they had promised to come but in the area police responce was known to be slow .
A few meters to the pub one slim ninja was lookout and on sighting us he rushed inside to alert his partners in crime who were busy dismantling the counter in minutes the whole multitude of thugs stepped outside their arms carrying pangas lifted up stood outside facing us and ready to attack.it was like a scene from Brave heart movie.We were outnumbered ,outsized and out weaponed(hehehe)No one spoke to the other we all turned around and took to our heels and we could hear loud roars of laughter from the thugs.I ran straight home
Come morning i was the earliest to arrive and the place was quite a mess and the police arrived the boss also arrived .Iwas taken to the police station to record a statement and upon return i was fired on the spot and all my pleas fell on deaf ears.What could i have done, i was one man armed with a rungu against a multitude with pangas.I was sent off without pay and it was a few days to pay day.
I spent the whole week job hunting without success.all my savings were now gone.I was broke and facing starvation.My mjei neighbour came to mind, we had lost touch due to work schedules,im paid him a visit hoping to land supper,we had alot to of catching up to do.I was welcomed with tea a few slices of bread and i was now convinced of supper so stories came in plenty and they were left in stiches,he had recently taken up anew wife, the food aroma was motivated my storytelling,finally supper was ready
To my astonishment ,supper was served for two,the wife apologizing “aki pole zimekua kidogo” they watched mouth agape.I have never felt soo embarrassed and just walked out.
The following day no success on my job hunt,hungry i could not find sleep i stepped outside there was this avocado tree with hanging avocados just outside the gate i climbed up the tree and managed to pluck a few but on trying to reach further up the tree the branch i was leaning on broke and PU! like a sack of potatoes i came down.i was lucky i did not break any bones.Neighbors passing by found me lying down there writhing in pain and i quickly pretend i was drunk,they where half ripe but i ate them hungrily.I slept and the next day proved fruitless again i was seriously hungry it was now around 8pm and i decided to take a walk and in a plot nearby i see a chicken tied outside a house,against all my principles i untie the rope and pounce on the bird,the clueless chicken is caught off guard holding it by its wings itake off,it would shut up kokoko-koo,kokoko-koo,i cut afew corners and iam gone.Isell the chicken for 150bob at a nearby hotel.I spend the 50 on supper. Two days later iam broke again and even forced to eat Mbaare for supper(a fried flour-like ingredient used to brew busaa)
the following day tired from job hunting i enter a small hotel and ask for water,i do not what she heard but she came back with two plates,one with ugali and the other beef.she turns aroud too quickly before i could say the order wasn’t mine,the place was abit crowded and i mesmerized by the site of food before me i said Fuk it i hungry cleared the plates with 3 options in mind 1. to give an excuse that i had lost my wallet as i fumbled in my pockets 2.slip away when no one is looking and 3.suffer the humiliation of either being beaten or being paraded to the kitchen and made to peel potatoes and wash dishes.I took option number 2 and pulled a Houdini
Iwalked for hours and finally i decided to take a nap in a field nearby.Idont know for how long i slept but on waking up i noticed a furniture shop and tried my luck.Iwas practically begging the guy for a job.he offered me one,for 100 bob a day i was to be his errand guy plus i was to do all the cleaning. 50bob for food each day and 50 for rent,i could manage.from my house it was quite a distant but i could walk.Soon i moved nearby,close to Sospeter my boss’s house
Business boomed and soon iwas taking home 500 bob a day.All was good.one evening were startled by my Sopeter’s wife who comes crying loudly with their baby in her hands,Shikata the baby was not moving Sospeter quickly administers first Aid and the baby is breathing again and they decide to take him to the hospital nearby.
8pm.matumbo fry ready,ugali ready,i remove my shirt ready to pounce on the food i hear aloud bang on my door(Sinaita comes to mind) i stand my ground,finally Sospeter shouts "fungua ni mimi"opening the door the man storms in in tears i give him a minute,he explains after they took the kid to hospital. they fed the kid gave it medicine and it slept but never woke up,he was gone i sink on my skeleton sofa.
Sospeter had just returned from paying the remaider of the wife’s dowry balance the week before he had nothing.Sos explain how costly the whole procedure is and the transport cost to Kakamega.Iam awed. He bursts into tear again and i let him.
After a long silence i decide the unthinkable,an idea that could land us both in jail,it takes me 30 minutes to convince the guy.He had looked at me like i had just made an appearance from the Jupiter when i first suggested the idea.We book the 10pm bus and head back to the house,we confirm Shikata is really gone aqnd turning away the wailling mother.i wrap the corpse in a polythene bag then two bedsheets.Sos pulls out the big travel bag from under the bed he throws in afew clothes and we lay the corpse in the bag and again cover the bag with clothes on top…we could not go with the mother who was now crying uncontrolably but she understands he hands her 500 shilling note and we leave.
i say a short prayer (the last time i prayed i was under Sinaitas bed)
we board the bus and leave with me carrying the bag and Sos busy trying to fight back tears the whole journey we never spoke and even on those stop overs we dont leave our seats
Due to frequent carjackings,those days the police could sometimes stop the bus check for any suspicious people and ride for a few kilometres and then alight.we hekld our breaths each time they stopped us ,We arrived at 4:30 and rested on their reception until%:30 when we boarded two boda bodas(bicycles that time) to their homestead.He went straight to the shed and took out two shovels and lead me to a corner on the farm and we got to work digging a grave in silence
Done with the digging we took a moment of silence, he took the bag,nunwrapped the bodyu, this time iwas in tears he removed the polythene and wrapped the boody with the two bedsheets and we buried him.
he left and i could hear him cry loudly alone at a distance.Before i proceed a moment of silence.
51 Likes
Endelea pwana
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waaah man hebu write a book… no seriously
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A moment of silence indeed.
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shh.
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@mr slices maliza hekaya pwana!
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Soonest Elder States man and thanks for following
hekaya ikwuom.
Soonest sir thankyou.
From home nilikua napitia dwaru Road, riruta, Muslim, mau mau bridge alafu naingia Kangemi via thiongo Road, had relatives who lived hapo kajinga high, still remember the day wakinyonga was shot at nyakiambi bar.
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A moment of silence indeed…sasa endelea na hekaya. Nacheka hapa hadi jnr na a fellow klister wanashanga karii kii
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Till I get the courage itakuom
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Thanks.Thinking about it sir
hekaya ni mwoto sana
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Silence bro
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Following
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i can see you know the place well i have lived hapo ndwaru nyuma ya KREP bank,muslim apo kwa mosque kwa shabbik and hapo 56 kuteremka hapo Kajinga high.most bank robbers from CBD used that road to Kangemi alot ingepita hapo mau mau bridge iingie Kangemi it was never recovered.I personaly witnessed a few
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Noma sana
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hehehe hapo sawa.
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Asande
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