I am beginning to suscept De john. Nice one. Keep us guessing.

I am beginning to suscept Bartholomew why is it that no one knows were he stays.
Nice one. Keep us guessing.

Sexyolori:
@Souloho19, you are giving me just what I like. Crime novels with deep suspense just the way Agatha Christie pens it. The killer is right under our nose but we can't smell him,Lol. I think Steven is the killer tho. The way the victims are comfortable and don't scream @ all shows that its someone they are quite familiar with and who they don't feel can harm them.
Nice one dear, Write On!

Tankiu..I've never heard of Agatha Christie
but iI'd be sure to check her out. tnx for ur comment

SleekHoyeen:
Omo! I'm scared... You're doing pretty great, Mr Souloho19; keep it up. I eagerly await the next update.

Lol..don't be too scared yet, save some forlater bbecause it would be needed I assure you (wicked laff)
Gracias sleeky I appreciate you reading and commenting

Bleeze2:
You re such a great writer bro
Keep it up

Samexdx:
You're too good bro... Your source of inspiration will never run dry!

Amen brothers God bless you

PoliticalThuG:
Hmm Who Could The Devil Be?

One thing for sure the devil is a sleek 'thug' lol
I appreciate bruv..tnx

tillaman:
Mehn, if you don't publish this story, I will pee at your door step every day until you do so,.you are really a good writer , we need more people like you, you just earned a big fan here, I will keep following!!! Way to go bruh, right now I think the devil should be either one of the elders or the white man, I am outta clue

Lol d pee part really cracked me up..I'd pull a 'rancho' on you o..remember 3 idiots
But no worries hopefully I hope to.see this story in paperback someday. Jah bless bro, I'm a fan of a fan

iamloyalty:
I am beginning to suscept Bartholomew why is it that no one knows were he stays.
Nice one. Keep us guessing.

9ja police. U are just suspecting everybody

mean while dis suspense finally made me to comment. its just like watching a movie in 10D
been visualizing the characters and de scenes
#mybeststoryonniraland

cyber5:
Souloho19 Baddest


Funnily enough there's this osi at my church. He is also tall and has long legs.

Lemme goan finish reading

Lol hope he's not a pastor too o..lemme just hide behind disclaimer
Nice to have you here bro

succyblinks:
Op I understand how hard it is to write, being a writer myself. But I think that u should have at least half of the story before indulging viewers. This very thing has made lose interest in the whole literature sections cos they keep delaying and the urge for the stories disappear and am sure it happens to others too

So please op, next time have at least half of the story first before posting, I know it's hard to write even for money talk less of writing for pleasure, great story u have here and I really don't want to lose interest

My 2cents

*Takes two cents.. Puts it under hat*
Thanks for your observation I understand no worries any delay if would not be intentional most times the story flows when it has started so penning half initially may not work out. Please keep ur interest full it would be worth it

jupitre:
I think it's time i commended your good story...nice one souloho19

Tnx for commenting bro Jah bless

Jazmiynne:


This particular writer has not been guilty of such delays on this story at all. I think he has been quite consistent with the timing of his updates

I sight you jasmiynne tnx for having my back.
May ur Aladdin fall on you

Raintaker pinkfeet iamloyalty ladysunshine94 Frankenstein you guys are d bomb..jah bless

souloho19:

May ur Aladdin fall on you

Amen

And now the update....*rubbing hands*

Awake, alive and waiting.

Waiting for the update.

Judging by Dé John's horrified reaction, Osi had an idea of the kind of eyesore that awaited him inside the house. A part of him was reluctant to look at the violated body of the woman he had set eyes on just the day before.
But a man's got to do what a man's got to do. He knew she had been killed for a reason and he could bet she knew whoever the killer was. It was up to him to search and observe and pray he would find answers.

He could hear voices coming from the parlour. Pa Kenneth was talking in a calm voice. He was speaking in his native dialect which Osi didn't understand but he guessed the elder was trying to calm down the woman who had to be Gladys judging by the muffled sobs coming from the parlour.

He avoided them and went straight to the room. He stopped at the door and scanned the room, purposely averting his eyes from the bed as he studied the room.

The first thing he noticed was that the room was a mess. Clothes were strewn about, the table was upside down and the little wooden drawer in the corner had been emptied and dumped on the floor.
He moved around gently, subconsciously edging away from the bed. He was not ready for that...not yet.

He decided the killer had turned the place inside out, he must have been searching for something. Or maybe he had instructed the woman to find whatever it was..after he had subdued her of course.
No...the set up of the room and the rate of the mess brought to mind the actions of a mad man. The killer had been searching for something..searching frantically for something important.

He looked around for 5 minutes but didn't see anything of interest. Maybe the killer had been looking for something that ties him to Ozioma...maybe a gift, who knows maybe the clothes he had given her..or maybe a letter...a love letter with his identity...that sounded more like it!

Finally he felt the guilt wash over him as he studied the dead woman. She had been killed in such a gruesome way and it was his fault. It was all his fault.

He could see the pestle on one side of the bed and thankfully someone had covered her lower half with the bed sheet. Still he had an idea of what lay underneath as the whole region was stained red and it wasn't zobo.

He felt his guilt turning to anger. Whoever this person was he; Osi Azikiwe would not rest, would not sleep and he would not leave Amaife until the killer was exposed.
He made the solemn promise to the corpse before him.

°•°•°•
"I saw him! I saw Okudili..I saw the killer...he's hiding along the stream path!!!" Ezinne ran round the market square, screaming at the top of her lungs. She held an empty pot in her hands and she thrust it up to emphasize her point.
"I was going to fetch water but I saw him hiding in the bush drinking..I thought he would pursue me!"
"Where did you see him?" Someone asked from the growing crowd.
"Along the stream path...near the palm trees!"
"What are we waiting for..let's nab the bastard!" Benedict shouted and was rewarded with a high spirited roar. They began marching towards the stream but they soon broke into a frantic race. None of them had any weapon apart from Benedict who had been on butchering duty and thus held a dangerous machete.
It didn't matter though, the sheer volume of the mob and their anger was enough weapon.

°•°•°•
The house had two rooms and a parlour which suprised Osi because from outside it looked like it was just a room.
The second room was smaller however and when he stepped in he knew it must have belonged to Ozioma.

This room had also been searched. It was even messier than the first. Her clothes had been dumped from the closet and the other furniture in the room: a small reading table had been pushed on its side.
Osi felt the killer hadn't found what he was looking for but he himself had no idea what 'it' was. Still he began to poke around praying for some kind of clue that would serve as an insight into the kind of life Ozioma had lived.

"Pastor...young pastor are you there?" Dé Nwachukwu called from outside.
"I'm in the second room..I'd be out soon" he replied as his eyes scanned a bunch of papers that must have fallen off the table.
He heard footsteps and turned just as Dé Nwachukwu entered. "I think you were wrong..its Okudili that committed this crime"
"Why do you say so?" Osi stopped and observed the old man.
"Because he was spotted in the village..our youths are combing every corner for him as we speak"
"Hmmm...who saw him?"
"One of our daughters going to fetch water...in fact it looks like he was ahead laying ambush for her but she spotted him first and ran away"
"Hmmm...so he's been in this village, but that doesn't mean he-"
"Look son, I like you that's why I'll tell you this...whatever theory you have its best you keep it to yourself, we're not buying it and frankly it would only put everyone in a state of panic"
"but it would be better they know the killer might still be out there so they can be security conscious and aware of the danger"
"The keyword is 'might' You yourself are not sure...is there a high possibility that Okudili is the killer?"
Osi nodded
"Then that's good enough" Dé Nwachukwu said dismissively

°•°•°•°•
"Ezinne calm down..calm down...I'm sure our youths have caught him by now, they are probably beating him to a pulp right now"
"Or forcing his rotten eggs down his throat" Oluchi added with so much venom that Amara winced.
"I just saw him..hiding there...he must have been waiting for me, I didn't even know..if not that I heard him burp..."
"You heard him belch" Amara said with a frown "he was drinking then?"
"Yes...as usual"
"And I heard he killed Ozioma's mother last night."Oluchi whispered.
"I heard she was raped with fire wood" mama added her voice almost breaking down as she forced the words out of her mouth.
"So he plans to go for the mothers now? Okudili is very sick..I so much hate that beast, death is too lenient for him!" Amara's voice hardened.

The truth was mama Ozioma was a very cheerful woman, always one to smile and talk to you when you bought something from her shop. The death of her daughter had taken some of the life out of her eyes and dimmed her spirit and now she was dead! She didn't deserve this.

"I heard pa Chisom got himself a gun..in case he comes for his wife" Ezinne commented.
"I trust pa Chisom.." Oluchi said standing up "I want to get water..who else is thirsty?"
"I'd like some..stupid Okudili didn't let me fetch my water again" Ezinne said

(Chisom was the third girl to be killed the one who had been found in the stream.)

The girls had gathered in Oluchi's house this time around. Joy had gone to a friend's house just a stone throw from here and that had beeb the main reason Amara had insisted to Ezinne they visit Oluchi. They had met mama on the way coming to the house and so they converged in Oluchi's cramped compound.


There was no sign of Paul. Speaking of Paul, Amara leaned in so Oluchi wouldn't hear as she went inside the house.
"Do you know Paul has been in the neighbouring village for like two months now?"
"Are you serious...I thought it was Lagos"
"Me too..apparently he used to visit Chinaza's maternal home and one of her cousins recognized him during the burial"
"Poor Chinaza...we've lost a lot of girls to this beast" Ezinne said shaking her head.

"I just knew it had to be Okudili! deep down everybody hated him, no girl ever gave him the chance and he loves women..that would have angered him a lot" mama said

"You just reminded me of something...the tall pastor asked me and I've been thinking since"
"What is it?"
"Ezinne...you were the closest to Ozioma, if anyone can remember it would be you...can you recall her dating anybody few months back?"
"Hmmmm" Ezinne narrowed her eyes and frowned as she thought back.
"Not really...okay there was this man that used to give her clothes one time like that...you should remember now!"
"Yes I do..but I can't remember who the person was..can you?"

Ezinne thought hard but she was already shaking her head "no...she never told us..I can't count how many times I badgered her but she was tight lipped about his identity...I thought she really loved him then"
"Hmmm..."
"Why are you asking that all of a sudden? What did the pastor say?"
"He believes she dated the killer"
"No...I can assure you that Ozioma didn't date Okudili"
"How can you be so sure..Ozioma was a secretive person" mama added
"I'm sure because I have a letter...she gave me a love letter he wrote to her. she was scared her mother would see it and wanted me to keep it safe, Believe me Okudili can not pen what was written there"

"Paul!" Oluchi shouted her brother's name suddenly from the house.

Amara was too excited to notice "the letter...you have it?"
"Yes"
"Was it typed or handwritten"
"Typed ke? It was handwritten"
"Then we can check the handwriting.."
"I'm not sire Okudili knows how to write sef so what would we be crosschecking?" Ezinne asked with a slight frown.

"Unless you think Okudili is not the killer!" Mama gasped as her eyes went wide.
"Of course not...I'm just curious..I'd like to find this clue..honour my friend's memory and discover who it was that she loved so much and Left her heartbroken"
"How are you sure they broke up?"
"Remember for like two days before her death she was a wreck, very sad and didn't come out but locked herself inddors and cried....I know because I stopped by once. It was very sad"

Oluchi appeared with a glass of water which she handed to Ezinne. She walked briskly and opened the main gate and looked both ways before locking it. When she returned she was out of breath.
"What's wrong?" Mama asked her
"Sometimes this my brother dey fall hand" she complained shaking her head dismally.
"What did he do...I've forgiven him so don't worry" Amara assured her.
"No not even that...from the kitchen I noticed movement and saw this reflection of someone standing outside close to the gate. The way he was standing like he was eavesdropping on what you people were saying"
"Did you see who it was?"
"Not really..it happened fast, when I called out Paul? the person took off immediately which was strange"
"How long was the person standing there?" Ezinne asked
"I can't really say...but its probably nothing...I'm sure Paul was feeling bad about that incident and thought we were talking about it" Oluchi offered apologetically. Recently she wasn't as proud of her brother like she used to be.

"Is it possible for someone to hear us from outside?" Amara asked her brows drawn together in a serious expression.
"Honestly...I think so especially with the direction the wind has been blowing"

"Ezinne..we need to see that letter now and I think you should be very very careful" Amara told her in a no nonsense voice.
"Now you're scaring me" Ezinne sounded worried
"Me too" Oluchi said
"Me three" mama added

Souloho19! I give you not only standing ovation. I also doff my hat for you.
Kilode! Despite the fact that I saw October 1, still I'm still confused. I still don't know who the rapist/killer/ psychopath is. At one point, I thought it was Paul, now I'm thinking another thing: Steve. Infact Everybody is now a suspect.

You are just too much. I love the spiritual part and doctrines too. You are entertaining and passing messages at the same time.

I said it when you were running 'Delayed Diagnosis' and I'm saying it again;
This gift of yours will make a way for you beyond your comprehension. And you will sit with Kings and not mean men in Jesus name.

I love and appreciate your work with everything in me. God bless you, see you at the top my brother.

souloho19:
"Me three" mama added

Me four o

I can't find any adjective good enough to qualify ur work bro but i will say kudos

Souloho19........
What can I say....
This story is really captivating.
And I think the killer is Paul or maybe Stevenson. It's got to be one of them.
Nice piece.....I'm loving every bit of this story including the suspense.

souloho 19 u ave done a nice work.

thumb up.

Lol..but I feel more like OP wanna burst our brains by making the devil be someone we cant even be thinking of.



by the way, R.I.P Ezinne.

alarmednigerian:
Me four o

me Five

souloho19:


Lol..don't be too scared yet, save some forlater bbecause it would be needed I assure you (wicked laff)
Gracias sleeky I appreciate you reading and commenting

Lol. Issokay o. You're welcome sir.

Lol, urine expulsion Abi, skip d rancho part haba, someone cannot pee Again lmao, I wish you the best man, and if you ever need me help as per the publishing thing you can mail me, I got niqqaz that knows niqqaz, bless u bro

souloho19:


Lol d pee part really cracked me up..I'd pull a 'rancho' on you o..remember 3 idiots
But no worries hopefully I hope to.see this story in paperback someday. Jah bless bro, I'm a fan of a fan

ayodijex:


by the way, R.I.P Ezinne.

like seriously

I'm just scared of everyone in the village, though I still suspect Steve.

I think he's stalking Amara, 'cause of her closeness to the osi.

I hope nothing happens to osi, I'm just waiting for the painful death of the maniac.

Thumbs up soul.....

Toyin223:
me Five

'me six'....... I'm more scared than the people in that village.

souloho19:

Lol hope he's not a pastor too o..lemme just hide behind disclaimer Nice to have you here bro

lol
We call him Pastor Osi. No worry nothing do you. Leave disclaimer

Countrygirl:
like seriously

I'm just scared of everyone in the village

very interesting story you get here bro, keep it up.