THE STRANGER IN MY HOME

*****

Bang!

Madam Okafor jumped up at the distant sound that woke her up.

Bang!

She shuddered and looked around in fear.

“Where is that noise coming from?” She whispered to herself.

It was 3am and not a single one of the others woke up. Had she been imagining sounds too?

Bang! Bang! The loud noise from outside still continued. It sounded like metal hitting metal. But it certainly wasn’t their house door.

“Honey.” She tapped her husband who was still snoring like her neighbour’s generator.

She slapped him and he shuddered in confusion before looking at his wife.

“Didn’t you hear that sound?” She whispered to him.

“Nne, I’m tired.” He groaned, “Let’s talk about it tomorrow.”

“Shh. The sound will come again, wait and see.”

She waited for a long minute for the banging noise to come again, but nothing happened. She turned to her husband to explain the situation to him, but he was fast asleep. He didn’t care.

Madam Okafor curled under her husband’s arms in fear, though the sound had not come back again. She did the sign of the cross and prayed Our Lord’s Prayer before shutting her eyes and pulling her family closer.

At least if anyone should die tonight, let them die together as a family.

*****

The following night, it was there again.

But this time, Madam Okafor and Chief Okafor were alone in their bedroom.

Madam Okafor got up at the first sound of it and woke her husband up.

“Chief!” She shook him, “The sound is here again.”

He groaned with his sleepy eyes, “What is-”

Bang!

The noise.

Chief Okafor heard it too and jumped up at the sound of it. Madam Okafor was relieved to know she was not being delusional the whole time.

Bang! Bang! It continued.

“Let me go and see what is there.” He got up from the bed, but his wife pulled him back.

“Don’t go outside! Don’t you watch American movies? They will kill you first.”

“I no sabi that one. Me like this,” He beat his chest, “I get Igbo man blood in me. I will strike them back.”

She did not have time for her husband’s long chatter and got up from the bed.

“Let’s go and get the children first.”

She opened the door without waiting to hear what he had to say. He jumped down from the bed and followed behind his wife barefooted.

They both barged into the kid’s room, only to find the kids awake on their shared queen size bed.

“Mummy!” Chidinma jumped down from the bed to wrap her arms around her mother. Her mother grabbed her in her arms and lifted her up to carry her.

“Daddy, where is the noise coming from?” Chike asked, after the last banging noise stopped.

“I don’t know. Just stay together, you hear?” Chief Okafor locked the room door and switched off the room light.

The emergency plan was for nobody to leave the room until daybreak. Chief Okafor and one of the twins slept on the floor with wrapper, while Madam Okafor, Chidinma and the other twin stayed on the bed.

As the others had slept off, only Madam Okafor was wide awake.

She stared at the ceiling, flashbacks of the strange figure by window from last night replayed in her mind. Could he be the one causing the noise outside?

“Mummy,” Chidinma called her attention, “you’re not sleeping?”

“My dear, I will.” Her mother patted her head and pulled her closer to her chest.

“Mummy?”

“Yes, sweetheart?”

“I saw a hand coming out of the closet before you and daddy came in.”

Madam Okafor froze right there. Then turned to look at her daughter.

“Where?”

Chidinma pointed at the half open closet standing opposite their bed. The closet was shaking bit by bit. It was certainly not the harmattan breeze. There was something there. There was definitely something there. A body, perhaps.

Madam Okafor, having watched too many serial killer documentaries, had only one thing to do.

“Close your eyes and sleep, my love.” She whispered into her daughter’s ear while staring at the closet, “It is only just an imagination.”

Chidinma did just as her mother told her to. But as for Madam Okafor, she did not move an inch. Because if she did, somebody was going to die tonight. And it certainly wouldn’t be that intruder in the closet.

She made sure to keep an eye on the closet all night, making sure that intruder does not touch a single strand of her family’s hair.

The following morning, at about 7am, Madam Okafor woke up first.

She had not realised when she slept off while staring at the closet. She sat up on the bed immediately and looked around, then sighed in relief when she saw her family still safe and sound.

She looked at the closet from last night. It was wide open.

Shocked, she got down from the bed and dashed for the closet. She opened it wide enough to see who was inside, but no one was around.

“Nne, wetin happen?” Chief Okafor asked in a husky voice.

Madam Okafor stared at the room door and went for the door handle. She pressed the handle down and opened the room door without unlocking it. It opened.

“Honey, didn’t you lock the door last night?” She asked.

“Yes, I did.”

She stepped back in horror and turned around to look at her husband with wide eyes.

“There is a stranger in our home.”

*****

When Chief and Madam Okafor confronted last night’s issue with Emeka, the gateman had told them he did not see any stranger coming out of the house. He also told them that he did not hear any banging noise from the past two nights.

The couple began to doubt their instincts. Had moving back into a different environment cause them to start hallucinating? Or... was this house haunted?

As they were leaving the security house, Madam Okafor noticed the full plate of isi ewu in Emeka’s room. She had prepared it for her family and the gateman last night.

“You didn’t eat the isi ewu after you begged me to make it yesterday?” She said to Emeka.

“Ma, abeg no vex. This one wey you prepare bitter for my mouth. I no sabi say you never prepare am well like before. You remember oga Simon wey work for here before I come?” He said, referring to the gateman from two years ago, “E tell me say you dey prepare am well well. But I no like this one. Abeg no vex.”

Madam Okafor didn’t seem offended but promised to make a better one next time.

As they returned to the house, Chief Okafor could not help but think of one thing.

“Nne, this gateman... I’m beginning to suspect him oh. Abi he’s lying to us.”

She shook her head, “I don’t think he has anything to do with last night. After all, he is albino and his skin color for show inside that closet.”

Chief Okafor noticed the very little pidgin she spoke. He wanted to tease her about it but he knew his tush wife would hunt him down if he did. So, he kept his jokes to himself and nodded in agreement.

*****