The Garden

The garden was her favourite place to be in.

She loved being in the rectangular shaped garden at the back of the semi-detached duplex.

It was often a moment of quietness and peace for her. Just nature and her, enjoying the sunset, and watching the flowers sway gently to the breeze as dusk approached.

The garden had a variety of flowers planted in four long rows of a single column.

There were also flowers planted in old pots along the side of the fence that bordered the garden.

The flowers were at different stages of growth, but most of them were at the chest level of her five feet three inches frame.

It had been over a week since she had been to the garden because she had been on bed rest at the hospital. Weeds had begun to sprout between the rows of the flowers.

Her growing belly bump was visible in her long, brown gown. The belly bump made bending over or even squatting uneasy for her, so she got on her knees to pull out the weeds. The doctor had warned her not to indulge in any tedious task, or else she might have to spend the next four to three months on bed rest. This could mean her 30th birthday party won’t go on as planned.

She looked up to see if any light had come up in the building. It was usually around this time that her husband got back from work.

She didn't like staying home alone. The four bedroom duplex always felt too big anytime she was alone at home.

She turned her back to glance towards the fence. She thought she had heard a scratching noise. But she wasn't sure, so she continued pulling out the weeds.

She contemplated getting up to put on the flood lights that surrounded the house. The fast disappearing Sun had cast the shadow of the building on the garden, so it seemed darker than usual. But she knew if she got back into the house, she probably won’t return to the garden, and she was due to travel again tomorrow morning to spend time at her mother’s place. Her husband had insisted on it as he was going to be away on a business trip.

This means it will be another week before she is able to return to the garden. That probably means more work to be done in weeding out the weeds.

She continued pulling out the weeds. Then she stopped. She listened. There was definitely some scratching noise somewhere along the length of the fence. It seems something was either trying to dig its way out or, worse still, dig its way in.

She paused to zero in on the actual spot. It seems to be coming from her left. She turned, but the scratching stopped.

"Rats? Rabbits? Or what else digs?" She thought to herself.

On the other side of the fence was an abandoned housing project. The place had been deserted for years now and had become a place of residence for all sorts of people, birds, and animals.

She turned sharply to her right as the scratching noise started again. Louder and faster.

She slowly got to her feet. And the scratching stopped. She moved towards the right, and the scratching started again on her left.

The approaching dusk and the flower pots that dotted the side of the fence made it hard for her to see into the shadows.

She tiptoed to her left, trying to zero in on the actual spot the scratching was coming from.

Just as soon as she got close, the scratching stopped. But she had seen the unsettled dust. She moved closer. She froze. It was a big hole. It was too big for a rabbit.

She felt goosebumps along her arms and shivered as the air seemed to get colder. Her heart started pounding.

She quickly got on her knees and moved a big flower pot into the hole. The hole easily contained the pot.

She sat up and listened. There was no sound.

In the enveloping darkness, she glanced behind her, and it seemed two big spots were darker than the rest.

She shivered as she cautiously got up and slowly turned around. There were two pairs of eyes staring at her.

Her back was to the fence, and the house was on the other side of whatever was in front of her.

She slowly began to move to the side to get around what was in front of her. There was a low screeching, guttural growl as teeth were bared. Their breath stank of stale blood and rotting flesh.

She wet her pants as she stared into the eyes before her.

The shadow grew larger as the eyes moved closer.

She made a run for it, aiming to get into the house through the back door.

She felt the ground vibrate as they chased her. She felt their breath as they snapped at her neck.

The door was just a few feet away, she fell, and their weight pounced on her belly.

She felt blood burst out between her thighs.

She screamed.

She woke up.

Signed

Olumide Holloway (King Olulu).