Drum Bits of Terror: Drum Bits of Terror

6

47 6 wo days after his proposal to Nekesa, Sam went to the Den. It was a dreary dusk and the wide sky above was covered with dark clouds. Where the sun dipped in the western hemisphere, a tiny rainbow formed its ark. That evening, Sam dashed to the Den for his regular fill of changaa. The first drop of rain had not fallen, but there were many colours on the horizon where the sun took its dive: an orange hue, yellow, and blue, of all the different colours of the rainbow struggled to penetrate an almost dark sky. The land was still and strong. Although it was a beautiful evening, the heavenly bowels threatened to explode by the minute. To avoid being caught in the storm, he ran to the Den. As he ran, the clouds above followed. Faster and faster, he ran as the iron wind, with a vengeance, slapped him across his bare skin. The trees trembled in its whipping, but he ran like a mad man driven by an insatiable desire for something. Suddenly, the heavenly bowels opened-up. There was nothing he could do, for the rainbow had failed him. Braving the weather, he pressed on towards the Den. Strong winds brushed violently against his forehead. He struggled to see amid the rain and the wind. That did not bother him. He coveted the reward at the end of his run, of a warm giant bowl of Louise’s nyafu nyafu. He could almost taste its savoury curry flavours, of the tenderly cooked giant pieces of meat submerged in a thick coconut, and tomato base soup. Aah aah aah, delicious! After quieting the pangs of his hunger, he would quench his parched throat with a glass of changaa. As he drew close to the Den, he sprinted for the door, as though he was an uncontested marathon racer. Almost running out of breath, he bumped against the door and nearly tripped. It flew open like a leaf, startling those inside. Louise was in the middle of the room attending to one of her customers. He was completely drenched. Upon seeing him, Louise jumped frightfully. “Oh dear!” she gasped, as in Sam stumbled. “Sam! You are here,” she said concealing her surprise. T 48 Sam did not hear her. Right away, Louise knew there was going to be trouble. She did not know how she would quell the storm once it erupted. Outside, angry winds brazenly and violently swayed tree branches. The door, which Sam left ajar, banged forcefully, startling the two lovers in the room. No sooner had he stepped into the Den than Sam smelt the savoury flavours of Louise’s cooking. He did not bother to sit down before placing his order. He simply dashed to her. And just as he was about to make his request, his eyes caught sight of her, Nekesa, his woman. Yes, he noticed her, beautiful as ever. She was not alone, but in the arms of another man. Surprised, he stopped in his tracks, and his heart raced. The couple was sipping a drink and were oblivious to everything around and about them. Not even the storm outside rattled them. The lovers spoke in whispers, as though the meaning of their shared conversation was extraordinary and infallible. Now and then, the man laughed, and each time, his laughter carried with it a high scale of betrayal. Nekesa laughed too, as her fingers twirled her braids playfully. Not only that, but her eyes, blazed with a familiar lustful gaze. Sam imagined her body burning lasciviously for the man. Similarly, the man’s eyes blazed lustfully. Sam could not believe nor understand it. A twisted anger cropped in his throat. For a second, he wondered if his eyes were deceiving him; that the woman before him was not Nekesa. He was wrong. He squint his eyes several times, trying to acclimate them to the dull Den light. He rubbed them once or twice; all the while, he maintained his gaze at the lovers. Filled with shock and anguish, the pangs of his hunger vanished completely. He could barely express his rage. How could he? There she was, his lover, as beautiful as ever, sitting with another man. Then, his mind flashed to the night he had proposed to her. Nekesa was looking into his eyes, as though she was trying to understand his inner soul. That night, in the bright streak of lighting, he thought he had understood her...