Drum Bits of Terror: Drum Bits of Terror

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87 13 he next morning, Sam’s day began at dawn. Being it was his first day of real work, he was at his most ebullient. He expeditiously jumped out of his couch, which was his bed, and hastened to get ready. That was even before the sun graced earth with its starry rays. Achaga was already up and had prepared tea— their breakfast. Hurriedly, he washed his face, brushed his teeth, ran a brush through his knotted hair and got dressed in his khaki overalls—perfect for construction work. Sighing deeply, he mumbled to himself: ‘Not bad!’ The two companions took their tea in silence—it was dry tea without an escort as they always say. They were out of the door in a jiffy, before seven in the morning. They wanted to be among the first people to arrive at the construction site. Sam knew the routine of such jobs all too well because he had done it many times when he was at Bumbe—from measuring wheelbarrows of sand, hauling cement, to fetching water. He remembered how, with the use of a shovel, he scoped sand depositing it onto the wheelbarrow until it reached its maximum. He would then drop the shovel onto the ground, spit in one of his hands, bring both hands together, and gently rub them several times. He remembered how he would then wipe them off on his posterior and, afterwards, wrap his fingers around the handles of the wheelbarrow tightly clutching onto them. He would lift-up its hind legs, and by exerting all the energy in his body, he would bulldoze the sand filled wheelbarrow to the mixing site. There, he would deposit the sand through a sieve to remove any impurities. Then he repeated the process again, of shovelling sand, wheeling it to the mixing site again and again and again until he had the required amount. Yes! He knew and understood what awaited him once he got to his first job . . . He would give it all his best. His employer would not regret hiring him. As the two walked out of the house, the sun was just gradually beginning to ascend the eastern sphere, leaving a bright orange glow on the horizon. Achaga closed the door right behind them and T 88 pushed the latch in its place. He inserted his giant gold padlock in the latch, positioned it, and pressed on it hard until he heard a clicking sound. He pulled on it to ensure that it was secure. He dropped the keys in his pocket, as the two started walking toward the gate, passing through its two brown colossal steel gates. They turned right and started heading up the steep embankment, past the Primary school, toward the construction site at the outskirts of town. The hostels were located about a half a mile away from the tarmac road. ‘You will see it . . . just look for the empty field with an already existing foundation. Someone had already begun the job, but quit in the process,’ Koza instructed. The men’s hike was long and hard, not like when one walks to Maraba. They toddled in silence, like two perfect strangers, but Sam’s face shone with delight and his eyes sparkled. He had not, in his wildest dreams, imagined landing his first job on the day of his arrival into town. What a blessing. The morning was still chilly, and he wished he had taken his jacket, but that did not deter him. He walked on with a steady pace. Soon, beads of perspiration begun oozing off his brow and forgot altogether the chillness of the morning. It took them a good forty-five minutes and by the time they arrived, they were already exhausted and their bodies all sweaty. They were not the first to arrive as they had hoped, but there were a little over twenty other young men already lined-up awaiting their chance for employment. Suddenly, Sam experienced this hollow feeling in his stomach. What if Koza’s brother did not like him— being new to town and all that? What would he do? What if he did not hire him? His body broke into a cold sweat. His hands became sweaty and beads of perspiration began to form on his brow. He even began to feel nauseous—what an icky feeling. He pushed these thoughts and feelings out of his mind the moment he saw Koza. Immediately, he recognized him from the previous...