<p>Alas, I have seen the devil, for he is made of flesh and bone</p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p>I did hope that TJ would not come back for a very long time. The last time I saw him, he was being pulled away by some men in uniform. He kept yelling “I didn’t do anything! It wasn’t me!”
</p><p>Mum kept crying and trying to beg the men.
</p><p>“Please”, she said “he wasn’t there!” she said
</p><p>The men pushed her away, not caring whether she was hurt or not. I stood at the corner of the room, watching everything until the men had disappeared. Mum sat on the ground, crying and I watched her and she watched me, I wasn’t going to console her, so I just walked away.
</p><p>We thought it was the last time we would ever see him but I guess not, he must have found a way to get himself out of that mess or better yet, mum bailed him out. I wouldn’t be surprised if she did. I was distracted from my thoughts when I heard a loud bang on my door, followed by a male husky voice I knew too well, It wasn’t a knock. Before I could ask who was there, the door swung open. It was TJ. Nothing had really changed about him. His dreadlocks looked a bit longer but still messy. I have always known him to have a few pair of shirts and trousers. It was either blue, green or black. His shirts were never his size. He always had to pull it down. It was as though he stole the shirt from a child, I wouldn’t be surprised if he did. He is a man in his mid forties however, there was no day he didn’t smell like cheap alcohol. He had big black circles in his eyes like he hadn’t slept in years. There was absolutely nothing fascinating about him, he reeks of disappointment. I have always found that strange because all he does is sleep, drink and smoke, hit my mum and sleep again, the same old.routine. He smokes so often that his lips seem to be forever black.
</p><p>“ What are you doing over there? Won’t you greet your father?” He said with a grin
</p><p>That’s what he always says but he isn’t my father and he isn’t Aaron’s dad either. He is just my mother’s husband..
</p><p>“Welcome home TJ!” I said as I held Aaron’s hands and knelt down to greet him .
</p><p>I could see his grin fade away. He has never liked it when we call him by his name. He looked over at Aaron and said
</p><p>“Won’t you greet me too?”
</p><p>I interject immediately,
</p><p>“We are both greeting you.” I said as I knelt down again.
</p><p>He looked disappointed and headed downstairs, probably to scold mummy and I was right.
</p><p>“Your children are so disrespectful! Can’t they greet? Do I look like their mate?”
</p><p>We didn’t hear mummy defend us but we hear him strike her. I could hear her whimper in pain so I head to the door and shut it, since she has decided to stay with him, she should bear what comes with it. I am in no mood to listen to that again. We stayed upstairs until it was late in the evening. I imagined TJ would have gone to bed by then. If he drinks his usual amount today, he would probably be asleep by now. So we quietly went downstairs. We checked the living room and he wasn’t there, neither was mummy. We haven’t eaten all day. Aaron brought out the leftover stew from the fridge and I checked the pots to see if there is any more rice, there wasn’t. I went to the store and fetched two cups of rice and made some. I heated up the stew and waited for the rice to get ready. We tried as much as we could to remain quiet. And when the rice got ready, I served our food in a plate and gave it to Aaron while I washed the plates in the sink. I hear my brother close the door to my room upstairs.
</p><p>“I’m almost through!” I told myself. It was something Leila told me to say to myself when I am anxious or scared. I said this to myself over and over again until I head a thud coming from upstairs. I turned around and realized that Aaron wasn’t beside me. I dropped the sponge in my hands and headed upstairs. My mother’s room was wide open and TJ was nowhere to be seen. I rushed to my room immediately. I tried to open the door to my room but it was locked.
</p><p>I try again but it’s futile. All of a sudden, I could hear Aaron screaming.
</p><p>“Ozi!!! Ozi!!!” Immediately, I start screaming back as well. TJ was in the room with Aaron.
</p><p>“Open the door!” I screamed.
</p><p>“TJ let Aaron go!”
</p><p>The screaming only got louder. And my voice grew even louder, bolder.
</p><p>My mum made it to the door and could see me banging the door with all my strength.
</p><p>I know she tried asking me something but I wasn’t paying attention, I don’t even know what she was saying, I just needed Aaron out of that room. It wasn’t until she held me down that I realized what was going on.
</p><p>“it’s okay, Aaron asked for it.”
</p><p>I looked at her, with tears in my eyes, wondering just what kind of woman she is. Aaron’s voice became more faint and TJ moaned louder until I couldn’t hear Aaron any more. The door swung open and TJ came out, he was still adjusting his zippers as he walked past me and my mother and headed to the living room to relax.
</p><p>“I’m hungry” he said
</p><p>“Boil more rice for me.” He said as he kicked the plate of rice away from him.
</p><p>She left me and followed TJ downstairs. I looked at Aaron on the floor, curled up like a ball. He trousers were below his knees. His bare ass revealed to all who wanted to see. I couldn’t see his face until I got closer to him. I saw the bruise on his face. He wasn’t crying but he just laid there, like a statue that had fallen to the ground. I was the one that was crying. I picked up the blanket from my bed and covered him with it. I held him to my chest. And that was when I felt something wet in my shirt, it was his tears, he was crying. I stayed with him till he slept off. I left him on the ground and headed downstairs. TJ was watching the match and mummy was no where in sight. I walked quietly into the kitchen. I looked at what I could use to hurt him, I needed to hurt him. Mummy had kept a pot on the stove. I picked up the pot. The water in it was hot and it was boiling, she hadn’t poured the rice in it yet. I ran to the living room and before he could react, I poured the entire pot of hot water on him. I hurt him, but it wasn’t enough. Before he could stand, I swung the food turner I picked from the kitchen on him, hitting his legs. He yelled in pain as he limped outside and I followed him with the food turner on my right hand and a knife on my left hand. This was it, he needed to pay. Some of our neighbours heard us, I know they did but no one stepped outside. He fell to the ground and was trying to get away, but he wasn’t going to. I hit him with the turner again and again, not giving him a chance to retaliate I wanted to stab him but my mother called me
</p><p>“Ozi!” please she said
</p><p>“Please!” Her voice stuttered and her eyes were red. I looked at the woman who couldn’t defend my brother. I looked back at TJ and told him,
</p><p>“Don’t ever come back to this house, or I will kill you!” I stormed inside and didn’t look back. My brother was waiting for me at the door. There was nothing much to say. I just hugged him and he hugged me back. I didn’t see TJ or mummy throughout the night.
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