Daughters Of The Deep

At 6:35 pm on Saturday evening, seven beautiful girls, aged seventeen to nineteen were crammed inside my small room. Shola, Awele, Edore and Tamuno all squeezed themselves onto the bed. Dakore and I sat on the floor; our knees drawn up against our chests, while Kirah was sitting on the only chair. All eyes were fixed on her. “Sisters,” she began, “I was kidnapped and raped three nights ago by a guy on campus called Ejiro. Two of his friends were also involved.” Suddenly, the faces of the five girls we had invited were twisted in disgust and rage as they cried out, “What!” and they all began speaking at once. “Please let me finish,” Kirah pleaded. “There will be time for you to speak your mind.” It took about a minute or two before they finally managed to calm down. “I didn't report it to the police,” she continued, “because of the embarrassment it would bring to me and members of my family should it become public knowledge. As an alternative, I have decided to deal with it my own way and I'm going to need all of your help.” She paused to observe our faces. “The purpose for this meeting is for you to please join me in carrying out my plan.” “Why don't you just report it to the police instead?” Awele said. “I think that's the only right thing to do.” Edore, who was looking quite uncomfortable in her sitting position between Awele and Tamuno, also suggested the same thing. I was glad they both shared my opinion, and waited for the others to give the same response. “Girls, please let's hear her out,” Shola said. “What do you have in mind?” she asked Kirah. “I lost my virginity the night Ejiro assaulted me. He took from me what I'll never get back. I also want to take from him something he’ll never get back.” “And what would that be?” Dakore asked. “His life,” Kirah said quietly. “What! You want him dead?” we all cried. “Yes,” Kirah replied darkly. How she could speak of taking someone's life with so much ease surprised me. “I'm not in favour of that,” I told her right away, and then glanced at the other girls to see their reaction. “I'm a born-again Christian,” Awele said firmly, “so I cannot and will not be a party to that kind of thing. God! Did you even hear yourself?” Dakore who sat next to me shook her head slowly. “I won't be an accessory to murder,” she too said firmly, “not only because it’s wrong, but also because I’m a devout Muslim; it's totally against my faith.” I was glad that she and Awele sided with me. Edore was also against the idea. She too said she could never bring herself to murder anyone, so wouldn’t be a part of it. That now left Shola and Tamuno. I waited for their response which I thought would be no different from ours. I knew once they took sides with us, Kirah would have no choice but to abandon her evil plan, at least for the moment. She was the kind of person who, after making up her mind to do something, hardly ever changed it. “I'm in support of it,” Shola said to our surprise. “What!” Awele cried. “Yes. I'm in support,” she continued. “Girls, what happened to Kirah could easily have happened to any one of us. Just imagine for a moment that you were the ones being kidnapped at gunpoint and then taken to an unknown location and raped. Being violated is an awful way for a girl to lose her virginity. It was sad enough to have been deceived into losing mine to a guy who neither really loved nor truly cared about me, let alone being raped! Just put yourselves in her shoes for a moment and I think you'll understand.” Tamuno also said she supported the idea of murdering Ejiro. “A guy who kidnaps and rapes girls does not deserve mercy. I'm quite sure Kirah wasn't his first victim. So, to stop him from further raping sprees, as we don't know who his next victim will be, and it could be any one of us in this room, we should find a way to kill him.” I was shocked beyond belief, as it had never crossed my mind that these seemingly-innocent and gorgeous girls could hurt a fly, not to mention committing murder. At that moment my eyes opened to the unpredictability of offended humans; even the ones we presumed the weakest! “Whether or not somebody deserves to die,” Awele argued strongly, “for a crime committed, should be decided by the Law Courts and not us. It's the court alone that has that authority. The appropriate thing to do is to report the incident to the police and let the law take its course.” A flicker of irritation crossed Kirah's features. “Involving the police is strictly out of the question,” she said angrily. “How do you intend to do it?” Shola asked Kirah, ignoring Awele's protest. “I haven't thought of that just yet. That's why I need all of your help.” “Count me in. I'll give you all the help you need,” Shola told her. “I hate all kinds of feminine oppression,” Tamuno said bitterly, “and so would do anything in my power to fight it as long as I live. I'm in too.” When Edore suddenly changed her mind, for no obvious reason, and gave her consent, Awele and I shared a look. We couldn't believe this was happening! “I wouldn't want to lose my virginity in such a terrible manner,” Dakore said after a while. “For that reason, I'm in.” “My God! What's happening?” I muttered. Kirah turned to me. The expression on her face seemed to suggest that I should also give my consent. Awele noticed and quickly shook her head; a gesture that meant I shouldn't. What if you were the one, Enore? Would you not have wanted him dead? I heard a voice in my head saying. “I guess I would,” I muttered to myself. “I'm in too,” I told Kirah before I could stop myself. “I'll also help you out.” She smiled, and then turned to Awele. “It's easy to think and talk sanctimoniously when you're not the victim, you know,” she told her in a hard, angry voice. “I just can't,” Awele said quietly. “And when he's dead what next?” “The world will become a much safer place for women,” Shola said coldly. “If he's apprehended, tried and found guilty,” Awele argued, “he and his friends would be jailed for a long time. That too would make the world a safer place. And furthermore, it would also serve as a warning and a deterrent to would-be rapists.” “No doubt,” Tamuno said. “But just imagine for a moment that you were the one in the hands of those animals and being ravished, not knowing if you'd make it out alive. It's a miracle she's still here. What if she had been murdered as well? How would you have reacted to her death?” “I'm glad it didn't turn out that way,” Awele replied. Shola threw her an exasperated look, and then turned to Kirah. “Sister, I'm with you all the way and I believe I speak for those of us who truly have feminine interests at heart.” “Thank you all so much,” Kirah said softly, a half-smile on her face. “I'd like us to take an oath of allegiance,” Shola suggested to the five of us who had agreed to murder Ejiro. “Oath of allegiance? What does that mean?” Dakore, who had a confused expression on her face, asked. “It means that we should take an oath,” Edore explained, “to show that we are truly committed to the cause of murdering Ejiro. In that way we can all trust each other as there would be no fear of betrayal.” Isn't that cultism? I wondered. Anyway, the six of us agreed. “Me too,” Awele said to our surprise, and we all turned to look at her. “I know it's morally wrong, and also not the right thing to do, but I don't want to be the odd one out.