Chapters (109)
- Part One
- ONE
- One day earlier
- TWO
- THREE
- FOUR
- FIVE
- SIX
- SEVEN
- EIGHT
- NINE
- TEN
- ELEVEN
- TWELVE
- THIRTEEN
- FOURTEEN
- FIFTEEN
- SIXTEEN
- SEVENTEEN
- EIGHTEEN
- NINETEEN
- TWENTY
- TWENTY-ONE
- TWENTY-TWO
- PART TWO
- TWENTY-THREE
- TWENTY-FOUR
- TWENTY-FIVE
- TWENTY-SIX
- TWENTY-SEVEN
- TWENTY-EIGHT
- TWENTY-NINE
- THIRTY
- THIRTY-ONE
- THIRTY-TWO
- THIRTY-THREE
- THIRTY-FOUR
- THIRTY-FIVE
- THIRTY-SIX
- THIRTY-SEVEN
- THIRTY-EIGHT
- THIRTY-NINE
- FORTY
- FORTY-ONE
- FORTY-TWO
- FORTY-THREE
- FORTY-FOUR
- FORTY-FIVE
- FORTY-SIX
- FORTY-SEVEN
- FORTY-EIGHT
- FORTY-NINE
- FIFTY
- FIFTY-ONE
- FIFTY-TWO
- FIFTY-THREE
- FIFTY-FOUR
- FIFTY-FIVE
- FIFTY-SIX
- FIFTY-SEVEN
- FIFTY-EIGHT
- FIFTY-NINE
- SIXTY
- SIXTY-ONE
- SIXTY-TWO
- SIXTY-THREE
- SIXTY-FOUR
- SIXTY-FIVE
- SIXTY-SIX
- SIXTY-SEVEN
- SIXTY-EIGHT
- SIXTY-NINE
- SEVENTY
- SEVENTY-ONE
- SEVENTY-TWO
- SEVENTY-THREE
- SEVENTY-FOUR
- SEVENTY-FIVE
- SEVENTY-SIX
- SEVENTY-SEVEN
- SEVENTY-EIGHT
- SEVENTY-NINE
- EIGHTY
- EIGHTY-ONE
- EIGHTY-TWO
- EIGHTY-THREE
- EIGHTY-FOUR
- EIGHTY-FIVE
- EIGHTY-SIX
- EIGHTY-SEVEN
- EIGHTY-EIGHT
- EIGHTY-NINE
- NINETY
- NINETY-ONE
- NINETY-TWO
- NINETY-THREE
- NINETY-FOUR
- NINETY-FIVE
- NINETY-SIX
- NINETY-SEVEN
- NINETY-EIGHT
- NINETY-NINE
- GLOSSARY
- Acknowledgments
- Continue reading
- Part One
- ONE
- TWO
- THREE
Abena became a little teary. Out of the blue, her son had become special. He had a talent that had been hidden away all this time, and to Abena, that was a thing of joy.
SIXTY
SIXTY
Even in a relatively mellow, cannabinoid state, Bruno was becoming agitated. “Please, why?” he demanded of Ponsu. “I killed the crocodile, which is very tough, and now what again?”
Nii Kwei, sitting quietly at his side in Kweku Ponsu’s Accra courtyard, sent Bruno a warning look. Don’t argue.
Ponsu, opposite them, curled his lip. “So, you think you’re a big man just because you killed the crocodile?” he said. “You don’t decide what you must do to meet Godfather, I do. I know him, he knows me. People just can’t meet him like that. They must prove themselves. Nii Kwei is a loyal sakawa servant. He makes plenty, plenty money, much more than most of the boys. But you, you are far away from that. So, you must do something else as proof of your loyalty. Otherwise, you can forget.”
Bruno’s jaws clenched and released repeatedly. He looked at Ponsu with resentment and doubt. “Is this the last task?”
“Yes,” Ponsu said. “This last one, and then you meet Godfather and become one of the special boys—like Nii.”
Bruno took a deep breath and let it out. “Okay,” he said, resigned but still irritated. “What is it you want me to do?”
“You are to bring me the shirt of a devil child,” Ponsu said.
Bruno frowned. “Please, what is that? A devil child?”
“They can’t talk and you can’t tell what they are thinking, but inside they have power to control you.”
“Like deaf and dumb?” Nii Kwei suggested.
“No, it’s not deaf and dumb,” Ponsu said. “They can hear, but they don’t understand. And they won’t look at you too. Just turning the eyes round and making strange noises.”
“Do you know what he means?” Nii asked Bruno.
“I think so,” he said. “My sister takes care of those children at some place. They call it otistic or something like that.”
“Then you can ask her to bring one of those children,” Nii suggested.
Bruno shot him a withering look and then turned back to Ponsu. “Please, what will you do with the shirt of the devil child?”
“You bring it first and you will see.”
“Please, do you have something else I can do instead?” Bruno begged. “This one, I don’t know.”
“Kwasea!” Ponsu shouted. “Don’t come here and waste my time if you can’t do anything. If you like, refuse this one and see what happens to you. You go die.” He dusted his hands in a gesture of finality. “Just you try and see.”
He got up and walked into his house without another word.