HE SLEEPS WITH HIS MOTHER EVERY NIGHT BECAUSE OF WHAT HIS FATHER DID

As Tunde entered his mother's room, he pulled down his trousers and dropped his marijuana. His mother begged him to stop and reminded him that she was his mother, but Tunde didn't listen. He overpowered his mother despite her pleas and pinned her down. Tunde said he had no option and believed his mother would understand. Tunde said he was sleeping with his own mother to protect the family's legacy. You will be the judge after watching this and tell me if Tunde's mother deserved it.

In Lagos, there are many rich people's groups. Some are for the purpose of connection, so they can have their class of men bringing them enough money when they have an occasion. Some are simply ritualists, and this is what the Brotherhood family stands for. It is a group that Mr. Adola belongs to.

Everyone knew Mr. Adola the rich. He was very popular. He was so popular that he had a say in who wins an election. This was because of his monetary influence, as people tend to give attention to who has enough money to spend, and Mr. Adola had and spent a lot of it. One thing about Mr. Adola is that his source of wealth is a mystery. His wife, Bisi, married him even when she knew that his source of wealth was questionable. She never wanted to think about where her husband got his money from. She’d never question him. Despite being a Yoruba man, Adola had a mind of his own. He ignored the Yoruba saying that a house built on blood will crumble in shame. Mr. Adola ignored this wisdom. The couple was blessed with three children.

One day, there was a party at Mr. Adola's house. Partying in his house was a constant occurrence. He titled the celebration "Celebration of Life," even when it wasn't his birthday. Just like that. A lot of people attended. His Brotherhood family came. They were about ten in number. They entered the compound in a convoy. All of them put on white caftans and red caps. They held a staff whose head was carved like a python's head.

It is in moments like this that Mrs. Bisi would start showing off. Some of her friends were in attendance, and because she was the one among them that had the richest husband, she always spoke with a sense of arrogance. "See them, see my husband's friends now. Money is good. Whoever says money is not good is a sadist."

Her friends, who always tried to make her feel important so they could stay in her circle, always fanned her ego. Mrs. Katumi was the first to speak. "My friend, you can say that again. Your husband is a real man, the number one that we all know. Please, whoever says money is not good should be slapped on the lips." She laughed while the other women joined her laughter.

Despite her sense of importance, Mrs. Bisi did not go to where the Brotherhood was seated. They were usually highly respected. Her husband sat with them. The important part of the occasion eventually arrived, which was the spraying of money. It was then that Mrs. Bisi went to dance with her husband. The Brotherhood began to spray them with money. They were spraying different currencies: dollars, pounds, euros, and naira. There was money everywhere, and some of it was even flying in the air. Some guests would quickly pick up any money that lay close to them.

After that big occasion that had no real definition, some young ladies were brought in a car. Mrs. Bisi always saw young ladies, about two to three, being brought into their mansion. She never asked what they came to do, and she had never seen them leave. That particular day, the Brotherhood followed those ladies to the sacred room that Mrs. Bisi had never been in during her 15 years of marriage to her husband. As she followed the girls with her eyes into the room, her husband looked at her, narrowing his eyes to warn her against looking. Mrs. Bisi quickly went into her own room.

In her room, she brought out her phone to check through things she could order on Instagram. She began to order gold jewelry, shoes, and bags. She ordered these things despite having so many of them already. Meanwhile, in the secret room, a great sin Award: was being committed against humanity. The girls that were brought, who had simply been lured with money by the Brotherhood members with promises of being taken to Dubai for a holiday, were actually meant for the renewal of Mr. Adola's money ritual. This was who they were. They were all ritualists. The party was simply a celebration of his 20 years in the demonic society, and now he had brought in girls to renew his contract with the Devil.

The girls, before they knew what was happening, were quickly touched with a charm, making them numb. They looked on without any strength to react as one of the Brotherhood members drove a dagger into one's neck, collected her blood in a cup, and poured it on the carved deity that was sitting at a corner of the room. He repeated this for the other girl too. When it was all done, the Brotherhood members began to sing a celebration song. "Congratulations to us," each of them said to Mr. Adola as they shook his hand. As they left, they took the girls' bodies to be disposed of, but Mr. Feyi stayed behind. Mr. Feyi was the one that introduced Mr. Adola to the Brotherhood Society. They had been friends for long.

The duo went to the house bar to sit and to have a chat. "Congratulations once again, my friend," Mr. Feyi said.

"Thank you, but you know, sometimes I just do not see the need for the level of atrocities I have committed," Mr. Adola said.

"What do you mean?" Mr. Feyi asked, sipping his drink and adjusting himself on his seat.

"I have killed innocent people. I will be dead in the next 10 years, and I will be putting my family into a serious crisis when I die. So I really wonder if it's worth it," Mr. Adola said.

"Well, my friend, you just have to remember you did this because of the level of poverty that you were in. Inasmuch as there is money now, then you should have no regrets," Mr. Feyi said.

"I should have no regrets, even when I will be dead in the next 10 years?" Mr. Adola asked.

Mr. Feyi took a little while before finally responding. "I understand you, Adola. I have thought of it too, once or twice, but it is a price we must pay for all we enjoy."

"I feel pity for that woman, my wife. She does not even know what is ahead of her, that her own child will have to sleep with her when I'm dead. She's only enjoying money," Mr. Adola said.

"Well, that shouldn't bother you. After all, when you're dead, you will have nothing to worry about. You have done your best to secure the bag for them. It will now be up to them if they want to keep the bag or not. After all, aren't most of our wives pretending that they don't know our hands are not clean? Or does she think you harvest the money?"

The two friends chatted on and on. At the end of the day, Mr. Feyi was able to convince Mr. Adola to cheer up.

Three months after the renewal of his sacrifice, Mr. Adola was called by his local authority to support his project: borehole drilling across the local government. Mr. Adola was invited by him to his office. "Distinguished sir, we have seen you do it in the past, and we know your love for your community will make you do it again. Please, taking this up will help my office to focus on other things, making community development easier and faster."

Mr. Adola, who had been sitting down and hearing him speak, cleared his throat. "I like people that pay respect. When I paid for your office through endorsement and financial support, you did not go about badmouthing me like your predecessor did."

"No, no, I will never do a thing like that," the chairman quickly defended.

"Yes, you have never done that, and it is why I will be helping you to do this project. But in my name."

"That is not a problem, distinguished. We will definitely do it in your name."

Mr. Adola stood abruptly. "See you next time, my friend."

"Thank you so much for honoring us with your presence," the chairman said, his head still bent as Mr. Adola left.

Truly, Mr. Adola drilled 10 boreholes. He had his face plastered all over them. Everyone sang his praises. During the commissioning of the project, the state government was in attendance. In his speech, he said, "Distinguished Adola is a friend of this government. We know what he has done, and we will not disappoint in showing our appreciation. We will not be ungrateful. The people of Awaro local government, you have a government, but you have Distinguished Adola too, so I do not see you people lacking anything. Once again, we thank our benefactor, the Awaro local government, for calling our philanthropist's attention to this project, and our people for letting us rule them. Just like our mantra, we will not fail you." Everyone clapped, and the governor commissioned the projects, using one of them as a reference to others. He cut the ribbon.

The next day, two women came to fetch water from the borehole. One suddenly began to sing. She recounted how she had always had to go to the stream before now and how this had changed the dynamic of things for her. She sang and danced.

"Hmm, Aya Ola, it is enough. Why are you dancing like this as if you have never seen a borehole before?"

"You know I have seen a borehole before, but isn't it obvious that we wouldn't have seen one in our vicinity if not for Chief Adola?"

"It is well. Since you all in this community decided to welcome calamity into our midst and act as if you don't know that Mr. Adola is a ritualist, do not cry when you become directly affected by his wickedness."

"NN, don't you dare talk to me like that. You know he is a ritualist, yet you are here to benefit from his project. Why not drink your gossip?"

The other woman did not reply to this. It is true that she does not like that Adola has so much relevance when the money he has is questionable. At the end, she said, "Well, at least I am not praising him like I don't have any conscience." The other woman hissed and left.

Mr. Feyi also had to renew his ritual. He got some boys who were ready to do the deal of bringing him humans to use. These boys do not look like the type for the work they do. One of them, Aigu, is a very loving man to his wife and children. To them, he is a songwriter who gets good gigs, especially when he writes for big musicians. But to the Brotherhood Society, he is a body part supplier. It was Aigu he contacted when it was time to get people for his ritual. Like always, the Brotherhood Society gathered in his large compound, celebrating what has no name except to them. Afterwards, Aigu dragged in two girls through the back door at night, and again they killed and used them to renew their ritual. Aigu is still the one who usually disposes of their bodies once their blood has been used.

He was going to dispose of the body when a driver that was driving behind him noticed that blood was trailing down from his trunk. He felt in him that something was wrong, so he quickly called the police and registered his complaint. In no time, the police arrived. They nabbed Aigu and collected two lifeless bodies from his car trunk. The discovery shocked the police division. They beat Aigu and took him into custody.

By morning, news of his atrocities was all over news outlets. It was Mr. Feyi who watched it on the morning news. He panicked and quickly called Mr. Adola. "Have you seen what I just saw on the news?"

"What is that?"

"Aigu has been caught with the two bodies he was meant to dispose of. I hope this boy will not start running his mouth when tortured."

"Ah, that's a serious case, but I'm sure he knows better. And I know we have to get him out as soon as possible."

"Exactly. Even a strong man like Aigu will start to vomit secrets when these evil police that we have these days torture him. Please start making calls. I trust what your connection can do."

Truly, Mr. Adola began to call. He called the local government chairman. "My boy, how are you?"

"I am fine, distinguished. To what do I owe this honor?"

"I want you to put your DPO in order. I have an interest in the case of one Aigu that was arrested in connection with human bodies."

"Oh," the chairman said, and it was later that he added, "Okay, sir."

Mr. Adola didn't stop there because he knew the matter was gaining public interest, and whatever he must do, he must do it fast. So he called the governor of the state. The governor was also very responsive, but unlike the chairman, he was not surprised when he heard Mr. Adola's request. Instead, he added, "If you don't have trusted people to handle your job properly for you, then I can link you with a group that does a clean job."

"Thank you, my friend. I look forward to your swift intervention."

Just like that, Aigu was released. The news outlets began to say something different because they were getting a different report from the police now, something like, "We didn't actually arrest him with the bodies. He called the police's attention to an accident, and since he was the only one there, we assumed he did it, but further investigation vindicated him," the police spokesperson said. Just like that, Aigu was released.

Meanwhile, his family was already facing the wrath of the community. People had stopped talking to his wife and were pointing fingers at her and her children. They had not been going out. Even his children had stopped going to school because of the shame of what their father did. One evening, Aigu's wife decided to go and get food at a nearby store. The woman selling the food began to run when she sighted her. "Ah, it is the wife of a killer! What do you want from me?"

Because her children were really hungry and she could not afford to go to the market due to shame, she didn't leave the stall immediately. "Please, ma, I just want to get some food. My children are hungry."

"Ah, is it not better you allow them to die of hunger than watch them grow into a killer like their father? Or are you planning to make a community of killers? You want to kill all of us through your family!"

Aigu's wife had to leave at this juncture. People looked at her with disdain. One woman who had wanted to know why a woman would decide to marry a killer walked up to her and walked with her.

"Thank you, ma," Aigu's wife said. She felt this would help her to divert concentration from the glaring eyes surrounding her.

"You are welcome. But why did you decide to marry a man like that? You knew he was not into any business, but you were busy enjoying his money. With this, you can't really say you don't know he does hideous business."

Aigu's wife began to cry. She began to cry and even started wailing, to the horror of everyone and the woman that had asked the question. "I never knew he kills! All I knew was that he is a successful songwriter! I was given in marriage to him because he is a responsible man and well-doing! We found some of his interactions with singers, and they paid him! My family investigated him before marrying me off! This is not our fault!"

That was the day the woman and her children packed out of the house that was built for them. She took all the money she could find and properties she could sell and left for another state to start another life.

A day after Mr. Adola made the calls, Aigu was released. His body showed that the police did not play with him upon his release. "I trusted you would seal your lips. I heard they tried all their could to make you mention names," Mr. Feyi said.

"Honestly, they did," he replied, not just to Mr. Feyi, but to the whole Brotherhood family gathered in Mr. Feyi's house. "But I knew you would come for me. I am grateful, my lords," he said, bending his head.

"We are in the mood for celebrating you," Mr. Adola said, and called someone to bring him a wine. Aigu drank the wine and realized instantly that he had been poisoned. He could not speak but held his belly that was tormenting him badly. The Brotherhood members continued drinking and eating until Mr. Feyi said, "We like business associates that do not bring us trouble. That is why we have been able to work with you for so long. But now your identity has been exposed. You are of no value to us again." He called the two men in suits who had been standing close. They quickly carried Aigu out. They would be using him, too, for ritual.

As the years passed, so did Mr. Adola's age approach what he agreed with his spiritual leader: that he would submit his own life to the society. It was supposed to be on his 61st birthday. Despite the sadness this brought him, he would smile when he saw his children, who would be living in luxury after his departure. He hoped they would have the mind to give the spiritual leader the sacrifices he required. Mr. Adola's three children, Tunde, Ayo, and Felicia, had really been spoiled with richness. They attended parties every day and hosted most of them at home. They had many girlfriends and boyfriends and spent money lavishly.

It was during one of the parties that they were hosting in the house that Mr. Adola called his eldest son, Tunde. "Come here." He went to meet his father at his private parlor. He discarded his marijuana smoke as he went in.

"Son, I have something very important to tell you, and you have to listen to all I have to say."

"Okay, father." Tunde listened keenly. Tunde loved his mother and had always respected and protected her, but when Mr. Adola called his first son into his inner chamber, he told him the greatest secret that would change his life forever.

"I am an occultist."

Tunde jumped up.

"Yes, I am. But sit down. That is not all. I use humans for the renewal of my offerings to the gods. I had used my life as the utmost sacrifice, so I use other people's lives to renew. Now it is finally time to give it up."

"Daddy," Tunde whispered, too scared to talk. He was shivering.

"You must put yourself together so you will hear what your role is in all of this."

"No, Daddy! I have no role in all of this! I don't have an idea what you have gotten yourself into, so kindly let me out of your plans!"

Mr. Adola began to laugh, surprising Tunde, who was now really scared. "If you like the life you have, then I advise you to stop acting like a child. Did you ask where the money was coming from when you were busy squandering it? Let me tell you, boy, if you do not sit down and hear what I have to say, you will go really poor. So poor when I'm dead that you will not be able to buy a cup of garri and biscuit. Do you even understand the level of poverty I've just described? It means even the beggars in the street will be richer than you."

Hearing this, Tunde sat down. "What do you mean by you used your life as the utmost sacrifice?"

"I will die the day I celebrate my 61st birthday. That's the oath I took. You will have to take over."

"So I will have to die when I'm your age in order to stay rich too?"

"No, son. I have made the utmost sacrifice with my life. You will have to sleep with your mother every day to stay rich."

"Daddy!" Tunde sprang up. "That's a cruel sacrifice!"

"Well, I am not forcing you, Tunde. I will be dead in a year's time, and the choice will be totally yours to make."

That night, Tunde could not sleep. He asked the three girls he had booked to keep him company all night to stay in their house and not come. He did not want to live poor, but the sacrifice seemed unfair to him. The next day, he told his father that he would do it.

Together, they went to Mrs. Bisi's room. She was so surprised to see her husband in her room. She could count the number of times he had come to her room since their 28 years of marriage. "Chief, Tunde, hope no problem?"

"Sit down," Mr. Adola said, as the two men took their seats too. Mr. Adola told his wife for the first time that he was an occultist. She began to shout and cry.

"Don't provoke me," Adola said. "Tunde might be able to feign ignorance, and I will let it be. But not you. You've always known but pretended you didn't. Or where do you think all the money comes from?"

"I didn't know, Chief! I didn't know! And why are you telling me now?"

Mr. Adola told her he would be dying soon and that their son must sleep with her if they still wanted to be rich. Bisi might be greedy, but this was where she drew the line. "You can't be serious, Adola!" Everyone was shocked. It was the first time she was calling her husband by his name. "Over my dead body will I allow the son I gave birth to to sleep with me!"

"Well, the decision is not entirely yours to make," Mr. Adola said.

"Really? Whose is it then?" Her eyes landed on her son. "Tunde, will you really have the heart to sleep with your mother? Do you have the heart?"

Tunde looked away.

Bisi held her head. "Ah, my son! You will sleep with me to stay rich?"

"Mommy, I am not the devil here. You knew who Daddy was, yet you married him and brought me into this life of luxury. So you can't blame me if I want to sustain it."

Mrs. Bisi began to cry. She made it clear that she would never allow it. The first ritual of mother and son sex ought to be done before Mr. Adola passed, so they tried to persuade her to agree, but Mrs. Bisi refused. She was surprised at how the love of money can make people go mad. "I refuse!" she said and left.

One year before Mr. Adola's birthday, they finally decided that it was time for the sacrifice to be done. They added some substance into Mrs. Bisi's drink, such that she was unaware of what was happening to her but not in control of her body. They brought her to Mr. Adola's secret room and stripped her naked. His son was in boxers, too. This sacrifice was fully participated in by all the Brotherhood members. To them, it was just another day doing what they were now used to. They all began to do the ritual as Tunde was instructed to sleep with his mother.

If you were in Tunde's shoes, would you sacrifice everything for wealth and sleep with your mother, or break free and choose to be poor?

The leader of the cult group shouted at Tunde, ordering him to sleep with his mother. Tunde began to remove his boxers as his father, Mr. Adola, looked on. Mrs. BC lay there helplessly, unable to react due to the drugs she had been given. She could hear everything, but tears streamed down her cheeks as Tunde committed the horrific act with his own mother. The cult group continued their ritual.

When Tunde finished, he rose to his feet, leaving his mother naked on the floor. The leader spoke, "With this ritual, you have become a member of the cult. Your father's ritual has been renewed through you, and you will become a custodian of his commitment to this sacred cult." Mrs. BC was then returned to her room, tears still streaming down her face, but no one cared except Tunde, who felt overwhelming guilt. The shame and pain were so intense that he could almost feel it crawling through his body. Still, he waited until the ritual ended.

Mrs. BC eventually succumbed to sleep due to the drugs and the trauma. Before she woke, Mr. Adola and Tunde had locked the door to her room. When she awoke, she knocked repeatedly, but no one came to her aid. Prior to this, Mr. Adola, knowing the kind of act he was planning, had sent his other two children, IO and Felicia, on a one-month vacation. They were thrilled when told they would be traveling.

Later that morning, Tunde brought food to his mother. He carefully opened the door and entered, avoiding her gaze. With a trembling voice, his mother called out, "Tunde, what have you done? Don’t you have a conscience? I birthed you. I am your mother. How could you sleep with the woman who gave birth to you, who breastfed you for two years? Whatever reason you think you have, it is utterly foolish."

Tunde sat with his back to her and said, "I had little choice, Mother. Daddy said we would become poor if I didn’t do it. You helped Daddy mess up our lives with what he said. I can’t succeed on my own without this. My destiny is tied to his ritual. I’m useless without it. You knew his hands weren’t clean when you married him, and now you think I’m the only one to blame?"

Though weak, Mrs. BC responded, "So you’re going to blame me for marrying someone we all thought was a philanthropist who simply didn’t want his source of wealth known? My family would have disowned me if I refused to marry your father. I only started suspecting him after we were married. I couldn’t leave because it would have been shameful to abandon a wealthy man and start hustling again. So, yes, we were all scared of being poor again after experiencing wealth. But you dare not compare your evil to my fear. You’ve disrupted the sanctity of life itself. I never thought I’d say this to any of my children, but I regret the day I gave birth to you. You are an epitome of disappointment."

Mrs. BC turned away, no longer looking at her son. "I suppose now that you’ve done what you were told, I’ll be allowed to leave this wealth, for I have never hated money as much as you have made me hate it now."

Calmly, Tunde replied, "You can’t leave. You are the link to me and the wealth. What we did yesterday must continue to make the sacrifice work. Father was using human blood; this is all we have to do."

With her last strength, Mrs. BC said, "People’s blood? What kind of man did I marry? What kind of man is this? You were killing other people’s children for money, and now my soul must be sacrificed too?"

Tunde responded, "Father said you knew he was a ritualist."

"You and your father are mad!" Mrs. BC shouted. "You’re stupid for trying to force me to be part of this evil. You’re stupid, Tunde, and I will not be part of this." With that, Tunde left and went to his father’s room.

Mr. Adola was on the verge of death. His left leg had begun to rot, emitting a foul smell, and he was in pain. "Father, Mother doesn’t seem like she’ll ever compromise," Tunde said.

Mr. Adola grunted, "She didn’t, but we did it last time. You must come to terms with the fact that she may always refuse. So, make your plans and do what you have to do."

"You mean I should be prepared to always rape her?" Tunde asked, dumbfounded.

"I told you to do what you have to do," Mr. Adola replied. With that, Tunde left the room, uncertain of what the future held.

Mr. Adola died two months later. At his death, the Brotherhood ritualists came, locked his body in a secret room, and performed numerous rituals. They danced, sang, and made Tunde do many things to take over from his father. Sometimes they cried; sometimes they laughed. It took hours before they finally prepared the corpse for others to see.

The burial was unlike anything the city had seen. Hundreds of cows were slaughtered, musicians performed, and various undertakers carried the coffin and put on displays. Though Mr. Adola died on his 60th birthday, the celebration made it seem as if he were 100. People fought over meat and rice, and few shed genuine tears. The king of the community and other dignitaries attended, giving speeches that praised Mr. Adola as a gift to humanity.

Mrs. BC sat in one of the canopies with family and friends, her children in another with their friends. Tunde, the firstborn, greeted guests and ushered them to sign the funeral register. He wore a white kaftan and a red cap, like the other Brotherhood cult members, and sat facing his mother. She refused to meet his gaze, feeling only disgust for her late husband. When mourners approached to console her, she felt disturbed by their gestures. Her other children cried, still unaware of the evil surrounding them.

Later, Tunde, his mother, IO, and Felicia gathered in the parlor. Tunde addressed the family, "As the leader of this household, I must set things right. IO, Felicia, I’ll provide money to set you up so you can have your own space and start your families. Mother and I will remain in this house so I can take care of it and start my own family."

IO laughed, "Tunde, you’re so funny. When did our father die that you’re already dressing like him and acting like our father? I’m only three years younger than you, and you’re giving orders?"

Felicia, resting her head on her mother’s shoulder, said, "Brother Tunde, I don’t like that you’re bringing this up the very day our father died. Were you waiting to take up his duties? We’re still mourning, for crying out loud."

Mrs. BC, aware of Tunde’s intentions, said, "Tunde, you’ve heard your siblings. This isn’t the time for this."

"Will you keep quiet and let me talk?" Tunde snapped, shocking his mother and siblings. Mrs. BC realized he no longer saw her as his mother but as an equal due to his actions. She began to cry, which angered IO. He charged at Tunde, but Mrs. BC intervened to prevent a fight.

The family dispersed, leaving Mrs. BC and Felicia in the parlor. Felicia cried subtly for her father’s death and the chaos in their family, while Mrs. BC wept for the secrets she couldn’t share. That night, she slept in the same bed as Felicia, using her as a shield to prevent Tunde’s advances. The ritualistic act with his mother was to begin a week after his father’s burial, and Tunde worried that his mother was using Felicia to protect herself.

One day, when Mrs. BC was alone, Tunde confronted her. "I understand you’re using Felicia to protect yourself, but you risk exposure if you continue."

"Exposure?" Mrs. BC said tiredly. "You’re the one scared of being exposed, Tunde."

Tunde gave a wicked laugh. "I have a recording of us having sex. What do you think your other children will think of you when they see that video? What will society say? The shame will be on you."

Stunned, Mrs. BC sprang up and began hitting Tunde. "You wicked ritualist! How dare you?" Tunde pushed her away and left, leaving her to decide between public shame or continued suffering. Too scared to act, she told Felicia to start sleeping in her own room, hoping to persuade Tunde.

A week after his father’s burial, Tunde attended a Brotherhood Society party, where he witnessed a member slit a girl’s throat, collect her blood, and drink it as the others cheered. Stunned and unable to join in, Tunde realized he was now one of them, recalling his own wicked act against his mother. The Society welcomed him, but he returned home feeling shaken. He stopped at a joint, bought marijuana, and went straight to his mother’s room.

"What’s wrong with you?" his mother asked, noticing his expression.

"Mother, today I saw something horrible. I saw a cultist slit a girl’s throat and drink her blood," Tunde said, head bowed as he sat.

"Maybe now you see what I’m saying. Nothing good can come of this. You can still turn back," she pleaded.

Tunde laughed. "That’s why I have to do this. If we keep this up, I won’t have to kill to maintain Father’s wealth."

"You think this isn’t evil enough?" his mother asked, disappointed.

"Not as much as killing many people," Tunde replied, lighting his marijuana and smoking in her room.

"If you’re so sure this isn’t a sin, why do you need to get high to go through with it?" she challenged.

Tunde paused, then continued smoking. "Because of you, Mother. I don’t want to see you as my mom when I’m doing what I have to do."

"But I am your mother!" she cried.

"Stop!" Tunde shouted, covering his ears and standing. "Pull off your clothes."

Mrs. BC began to shake. "Please, Tunde, don’t do this."

"Pull off your clothes, or I’ll send the video to a media house. Let the world see that the famous Mrs. BC sleeps with her own son."

When she refused, Tunde jumped on her, tied her mouth with a wrapper, and bound her to the bed with a rope. Mrs. BC wanted to kill him in that moment, her maternal love replaced by hatred. After ten minutes, Tunde finished, untied her, and left. Mrs. BC pulled a duvet over herself, too ashamed to speak or remove the gag. She cried all night.

The next morning, Felicia found her mother in a mess. "Mother, what happened?" she asked. Mrs. BC wanted to confess but couldn’t find the words to tell her daughter that her brother had raped her. Felicia sensed something was terribly wrong but didn’t press further.

Felicia called for Tunde and IO. Tunde arrived, annoyed. "Why are you disturbing me this morning?"

Felicia, upset, said, "Tunde, why have you become so cold? Why is anger your first response? Don’t you see I’m not happy? What’s wrong with you?"

"You better watch your mouth," Tunde replied. "I’m no longer just your brother but the father of this household."

Felicia scoffed, and IO snapped, "Really, Tunde? What’s your problem with this forced position you’ve given yourself? Whose father are you that you’re now so out of reach?"

Tunde sat, allowing Felicia to speak. "Mother is not fine," she said, bursting into tears. "I saw her this morning, and she was a mess. This doesn’t seem connected to Daddy’s death. Something is terribly wrong."

"Mother is perfectly okay," Tunde said, dismissing her concerns.

IO and Felicia went to their mother’s room. By then, Mrs. BC had bathed and aired the room, reducing the stench of smoke and sex. "Mother, how are you?" IO asked, leaning against the wall.

"I’m fine," she replied.

Because she didn’t share her troubles, IO left. Mrs. BC turned to Felicia. "I feel so dirty. There’s so much I want to say, but my lips can’t form the words. They’re like a knife in the ears of whoever hears them. They’ll forever strip me naked."

Felicia, not understanding but sensing the gravity, said, "I’ll be your cloth, Mother. When those words strip you naked, I’ll cover you. I won’t judge you. You don’t have to tell the world—just tell me, and I’ll be there."

Mrs. BC cried, and Felicia hugged her tightly. That night, knowing Tunde would come again, Mrs. BC felt shattered. She had considered killing him but lacked the courage to take the life she had brought into the world. She also feared for Felicia, worried Tunde might target her next or harm others.

The next day, Mrs. BC obtained poison and placed it in a drink for Tunde. When he arrived, she said, "I kept a juice for you."

Tunde laughed, took the glass, and emptied it into the bathroom sink. "Your show of love to a son who’s been wicked to you is alarming, and I don’t trust it," he said. He then raped her again.

Realizing she had to act, Mrs. BC decided to flee. She packed a box and waited until Tunde left the house. She got into her car and drove to the gate, but the gateman refused to open it. "Oga said I shouldn’t open the gate for you," he said.

"Which oga gave such an instruction in my own house?" Mrs. BC demanded. "Open this gate now! I just need to go to the store."

The gateman revealed it was Tunde’s order but still refused. Frustrated, Mrs. BC tried to open the gate herself but found it locked. She returned to the house, determined not to endure another assault.

She called Felicia, who had returned from a friend’s house. "Felicia, is your offer to be my cloth still intact?"

"Always, Mother," Felicia replied.

Mrs. BC told her everything—her father’s ritualistic practices and the horrors she now faced. Felicia trembled but said, "I have no blame for you, Mother. You married a man you didn’t fully know. You didn’t ask questions when you should have, but you’re not that man. I know you’ve tried to kill Tunde, and I believe we can do it together."

That night, as Tunde entered and began to undress, Mrs. BC lay wrapped in a duvet, facing away. When he pulled it off, she drove a knife into his chest. Felicia emerged from the closet, where she had been hiding, and stabbed him repeatedly in the neck. Tunde fell and died.

Mrs. BC pulled his body close, wailing, "I’m sorry I failed you, Tunde. I love you so much, and I forgive you." Felicia collapsed, and IO, alerted by the noise, entered to find his brother dead. Confused and frightened, he asked, "What happened?"

Felicia explained everything. They decided to cover up Tunde’s death to avoid retaliation from the ritualists. They set a fire in the house, leaving Tunde’s body inside. It was later reported that Tunde was too drunk to escape the blaze. The family fled Lagos State, living quietly elsewhere with the little they had, free from the Brotherhood cult’s evil.

Do you think Mrs. BC should have endured instead of killing Tunde, her own son, or do you think her action is justifiable because of what Tunde did to her?