A woman, a dead man and a mob: (Short Story) Written By Isaac Kunmi Olamiju
Straight as an arrow, her shrill wail shot upwards, aimed at a heaven going about its course unmindful of affairs below. With each heaving cry, she rocked the bloodied form cradled in her arms. Clinging tightly to it as if, somehow, with enough will the still limbs could be made to move again, and life imparted to the glazed eyes staring unblinkingly at the crowd gathered round. That extraordinary silent signal capable of rousing entire neighborhoods from sleepy lives and directing their steps to events of an unfortunate nature had been broadcast, and with each passing moment the mass of people gathered on the community main road (narrow, unpaved and eroded for much of its length) swelled. It was about the time of day school children returned home, and so it was, young and old stood side by side glutting on the macabre scene. Clustered in groups, the cause of the accident was disputed by the more vocal section of the crowd. However, the various ‘eyewitness’ accounts dif...