Silent Screams - Season 1 - Episode 25

Episode 4 years ago

Silent Screams - Season 1 - Episode 25

.
Continues…
It had been two weeks since Abby had given birth to her daughter and she was exhausted, she had not been able to rest the past two weeks, the baby had been crying none stop for no apparent reason especially at night.
‘Can you help me with the baby so I can take a bath,’ Abby yawned loudly

Daniel looked at his wife and shook his head.
‘You still don’t wanna touch her?’
‘No.’

Abby responded with silence.
She couldn’t understand why her husband was being so harsh on an innocent child, Daniel had not held the child since she was born he didn’t even want to look at her.
‘You are not being fair Daniel this child has done you no wrong.’

‘This child is not ours.’
‘I don’t get how you can harden your heart towards a child.’
Daniel shook his head,

‘Le t me get the room ready for the ceremony,’ Daniel walked out of the room.
The Kalufyanya’s were coming over for the baby naming ceremony and they had asked for a room in the house where the spirit of their son would live.

Abby rocked the baby to sleep before placing her back in her crib then she undressed and headed for the bathroom.

She left the door open and got into the shower, just before she finished showering, she heard the sound of the bedroom opening and closing afterwards, she heard footsteps outside the bathroom door.

She did not get scared because maybe it was her husband, she thought.

A minute later, Abby heard a voice singing to the baby, ‘Go to sleep! Hush!’
‘Honey is that you,’ she called out to her husband but got no response.
She quickly finished bathing and turned off the water, she grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her body then she walked out of the bathroom.

She looked around the bedroom but did not see anyone in there,

‘This is strange,’ she thought to herself
And then she walked towards the baby’s crib, she was surprised to find the baby awake though she wasn’t crying like she usually did each time she woke up.
She stared at the baby for a while and when she looked up she saw the dark figure walking towards the bathroom.


‘Daniel!’ she yelled out.
‘What’s the matter?’ Daniel who had just rushed into the room asked.

Abby was so scared chills were going down her back.

‘What’s going on?’ Daniel asked again
She pointed towards the bathroom.
Daniel walked into the bathroom, he looked around but saw nothing then he walked out.
‘There is no one in there, tsup!’
‘I thought I heard someone singing to the baby but when I walked back here, I didn’t see anything and then after a while I saw the figure walking to the bathroom.’
‘What figure?’ He asked
‘The same figure who appeared at the graveyard.’

‘Abby just stop already. The figure is a figment of your imagination.’
‘I saw that dark figure I don’t know why you can’t believe me,’ she yelled.
‘There is no one in this room Abby, please get dressed already.’

He was furious, his wife’s tantrums where slowly getting on his nerves.

*

It was almost 21:00 when the Kalufyanya’s finally arrived at Daniel’s house. They stepped out of the car and walked up to the door, Kalu knocked thrice and Daniel opened the door for them, he warmly greeted them before he stepped aside to allow them into the house.

He led them straight to the room he had earlier cleaned for them, then he went to fetch his wife and child.

Abby was nervous, she had a sickening feeling at the pit of her stomach, if this was up to her, she would hide her baby from the Kalufyanya’s.

‘It’s for the best Abby,’ Daniel said when he noticed the tension on her face.
‘I just wish there was another way of handling this, my baby is so young.’
‘We are doing this for Alfred we are doing this for our baby boy.’

She took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, ‘For Alfred,’ she murmured.
Clad in a white rob, Abby carried the baby in her hands and walked out of the room, her husband followed her behind closely.

When she walked into the room where the members of the Kalufyanya family were gathered, they all stood up and started ululating.

She handed the child to the traditional healer who in turn placed her on a small traditional mat at the center of the room.

As soon as they all settled down, Kalu presented a piece of paper to Daniel who in turn passed it around to everyone in the room.
‘Her name is Leila,’ the message on the piece of paper read.

‘Leila!’ the healer said before he let out a loud piercing sound. His body began to shake and his hands were clapping to the deep rhythm sound of the drums.

The other members of the Kalufyanya family were chanting in a strange language as the bang of the drums filled the air.
Suddenly the room became very hot and the smell of smoke filled the air. When Abby looked at the far end of the room she saw a fire burning brightly.

‘Lord!’ Abby gasped in disbelief
‘It’s a sign,’ Kalu exclaimed and everyone else ululated again.

The healer took Leila in his hands and raised her up in the air, ‘we offer you Leila, daughter of the night and queen of darkness to have and to hold.’

The dark figure eventually appeared in the middle of the fire and smiled back at them before he whispered, ‘You are mine forever.’

Kalu and his family screamed out for joy, the spirit had accepted Leila to be his.

The fire and the figure slowly vanished and everyone became silent.

Tears were pouring down Abby’s eyes as the whole ceremony was going on it was surprising how the baby was calm with all this commotion.

The healer placed the baby back on the mat before he sat on the floor too, they all quietly watched as he took dry herbs in powder form and mixed them with ashes.


When he was done, he carried Leila again and cut tattoos (inembo) on the sides of her head up to her ears with a new razor blade.
Leila cried out loud as the healer cut through her skin.

Her scream was so piercing and loud it was almost driving her mother crazy.
‘No! My baby,’ Abby cried, ‘Please let her be!’

Daniel held her tight, ‘its okay,’ he soothed her.


When he was done, the healer rubbed the mixture on the bleeding cuts before he placed the crying baby back on the mat.
‘It is done and sealed,’ he announced
They all stood up once more and danced around the crying baby while singing a strange song.


A few minutes later, Abby was allowed to get the child.

‘This child finally belongs to us,’ Kalu said ‘You shall ensure that she remains a virgin until my son marries her, she will never be allowed to date, any man that gets too close to her shall die, if it so happens that you go back on your word, your son shall fall sick and calamity shall befall your family.’
‘We shall ensure to raise her in an upright manner, I promise she will never disappoint you,’ Daniel responded.
.