Chidi gently wiped Ugochi’s forehead as she let out a weary sigh. She had been in labor for quite a while and was growing exhausted. Chidi, holding onto the prophecy, reminded her not to lose hope: “A great man will be born into this family,” he reassured her. He reached for the bible and began to recite Psalm 121 in his native Igbo dialect. The midwife, her concern growing, anxiously paced the room, sensing impending danger for both the mother and her unborn son. Meanwhile, agadi nwanyi (elder woman) and the other women in the compound concealed their amusement in the darkness as they watched.

The first rays of dawn were breaking, yet Ugochi struggled intensely to give birth to her baby. With her weakening breath, she whispered in Igbo dialect, “ekwela ka m mee out a”(don’t let me die like this). Chidi, drenched in sweat, fervently prayed, sang, recited scriptures, and clapped thunderously. The midwife understood it was a hopeless situation but persisted in supporting the young couple. As the sun set, two loud cries filled the air. One welcomed Ikem into the world, while the other signified Chidi’s anguish as Ugochi departed from him.

The next day, on the way to the farm, Chidi bowed his head in contemplation, weighed down by the recent misfortune that had befallen him. He couldn’t help but recollect that his father had faced a similar fate, and he clenched his teeth in sorrow, knowing that his own young son would also have to grow up without a mother.  As he worked to clear the overgrown area and create mounds for yam planting, painful memories from the past rushed to haunt him. He vividly remembered  the tears, the hardships, the isolation, the injustices, and the maltreatment he had endured at the hands of his father’s new wives and their children. Almost immediately, he quivered and expelled saliva onto the crimson earth beneath him. In a pensive mood, he continued working on the farm till sunset.

When the clock struck midnight shrouding the earth in mysterious darkness, the gathering of the coven seethed with intensity. Their unanimous decision was to punish the midwife as a traitor for aiding Ugochi’s son in entering the world. Had she conveniently disregarded their shared aspiration for Chidi and Ugochi to remain without offspring? Had she overlooked the fact that Chidi’s mother had also succumbed to the coven’s power, and by all rights, Chidi’s father  was spared, to perpetuate the pattern within the family. However, there was no room for negotiation when it came to this new baby. It had been determined that he must not survive because his destiny was not aligned with cooperating with darkness.

Aware of the coven covenant, she refrained from pleading. However, she did propose a trade by presenting the child’s placenta to the assembly of elders. To her immense joy, agadi nwanyi (elder woman) erupted in hearty laughter ‘nke oma emela!’(well done) she exclaimed in Igbo dialect. As dawn broke, she set off for the neighboring village, fulfilling her duty as the preferred midwife.

TO BE CONTINUED