Ese quickly went to the police station, hoping that the puzzle in her mind since she lost her brother would be solved.

When she got to the police station, they brought Livinus to meet her because he told them that he wanted to talk to Ese.

“I am here, what exactly do you want to tell me? Why did you kill my brother?” Ese asked in anger. With  the level of fury that was in Ese, she could have strangled Livinus if she had the opportunity.

“Madam, I did not kill your brother,”Livinus told her.

Ese turned to the policeman with them and asked, ” why did you bring me here to waste my time? Did you think I don’t  have a work to do?” She was very angry and it showed in her voice.

“Madam calm down . He will talk to you,” the policeman assured Ese.

“Madam, I am sorry for the death of your brother,” Livinus  told Ese.

“Will your being sorry bring back my brother? Answer me?” Ese shouted at him.

“Madam, please allow him to talk” the policeman begged Ese. Afterwards, he signalled Livinus to continue  with what he was saying.

“I was angry with Eric because he was owing me. The money I gave him was a borrowed money. I did it because he was my course mate in school. But when I needed the money, he refused to pay back. The person I collected the money from was harassing me, so I had no choice than to harass Eric too in order to get the money.  On  that fateful day, I sent him a message of threat. I thought it could make him pay the money. Towards afternoon, I decided to check if he was around. When I came out, I saw him trying to open  the gate in your house. When he saw me coming, he went in and locked it.  I went back to my house. After about 2 hours, I decided to go and check him again. When I got to your compound, I discovered that your gate was not locked. When I came inside, I saw him in a pool of his blood. I ran away in fear. I feel that whoever killed Eric have a key to your gate.”

“You are talking rubbish. Officer, is that why you brought me here?”Ese asked in anger.

The policeman could not utter a word.

“I am out of here. Officer I am not impressed at all . What is this?  This man has a hand in my brother’s death, force him to say the truth .”

“I am innocent. If you kill me, you are killing an innocent person,” Livinus cried.

“Shut up your mouth stupid man. Get up and go back to the cell. You will rot in jail, since you don’t want to say the truth,” the police man told Livinus.
*******
Eric’s mother went back to the native doctor that she and her husband’s brother commissioned to  invoke Itohan to come to the village . She wanted to know if Itohan had arrived.

“Eyes of the gods, I greet you. Is she  getting close to this place?”

“The native doctor looked at her with a corner of his eyes and refused to answer her.

After a while, he told her that the gods needed  2 cocks and 14 yams to appease them because they were no longer talking to him.  She quickly went to bring the items.
The native doctor started performing incantations. Then he looked up.

“Woman! You have scattered things for me.”

“Eyes of the gods, what is the matter?”

” When you came here, I told you to give me the correct name of the person you want me to invoke and the address. I also warned you of the consequences of  giving me a wrong information. From the  look of things, you gave me a wrong information.”

“Eyes of the gods, I did not give you a wrong information. She is my son’s wife. I know everything about her,”Eric’s mum told him.

“If that is the case, why did she not come. I, that can invoke people from abroad, and they would come home, why would the person at my my back yard here not respond. Even if she does not  have transportation money, she would see free motor that would bring her to my shrine here. This is the first time that I am having this experience. Anybody that I call must answer me. Why did she not come?”

“I am confused. I don’t understand this,” Eric’s mum answered.

“As it stands,  the gods are angry. They are demanding a plot of land as a fine for desecrating my shrine and making them look as if they are powerless.”

“Plot of land for what?” Eric’s mum shouted.

“To appease the gods.”

“You are a thief.  I made a mistake by coming here to waste my time. Infact, you must refund everything I have given to you,” Eric’s mum ranted.

“What did you call me?”, The native doctor asked in shock.

“I said that you are a thief. Common criminal.  Fake native doctor. Instead of you to admit that you cannot do what you claimed that you can do, you are here talking rubbish.”

“You called me fake. Okay, I will show you a little of my power,” The native doctor told her. He lifted a stick from his shrine and pointed at Eric’s mum and she became deaf and dumb.

When she discovered what happened, she ran out of the shrine and went to meet her husband’s brother.

“What is the matter with you,”he asked

She kept touching her mouth and ears while weeping. Her husband’s brother was confused. He quickly took her to the native doctor’s  place.

“If you bring that woman into this place, I will make sure that you become like her,” The native doctor threatened.

Mr. Irabor  signalled his brother’s wife to stay outside while he went in to meet the native doctor.

“Eyes of the gods what is the matter,” Mr Irabor asked.

“Your brother’s wife said that the gods I’m serving are  powerless. So, they decided to show her a little of their power. They would have  killed her. She is lucky that they spared  her life.”

“Eyes of the gods please have mercy on her. “

“It’s not me o. It’s the gods ,”the native doctor told him.

“Please, speak to the gods. Plead on her behalf.”

“To appease the gods, 2 plots of lands must be sacrificed to the gods,”he informed Mr. Irabor.

“No problem, I will give my lands. Please have mercy. Remember that I was the one that brought her here. Her daughter will say that I killed her. Please have mercy and restore her.”

“She must be in this condition for 1 week so that she will learn to respect the gods”

Because of the encounter that Itohan had, she  rededicated her life to God and started a serious prayer.

For a period of 3 days she didn’t eat food. Her prayer was that God should reveal the the person behind Eric’s death. On the 3rd night. The person was revealed to her. She knew  that she heard from God, but she finds it had to believe that the person was really responsible for the act.

In the morning, she was so quiet like someone that was poured cool water on.

“Could this be true?” She muttered. She didn’t know that Ese was standing at her back.

“Could what be true?” Ese asked.

Itohan turned in shock and faced her.