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 washed her hands hurriedly, opened the package and unfolded the shirt for Kojo to see. “Look,” she said. “See what your Uncle Bruno brought you.”
Kojo grabbed it, apparently attracted to the bright color.
“Yellow is even his favorite color,” Abena said, delighted.
“Let’s see how it looks on him,” Emma said.
“I hope the size is correct,” Bruno said, getting his phone ready.
“Oh, I think so,” Abena said, pulling off Kojo’s present shirt. She put it aside and Bruno discreetly took a picture of shirtless Kojo.
Abena persuaded her son to let go of the garment and then put it on him with a mother’s practiced deftness. “It’s perfect,” she said, laughing. “Bruno, thank you so much.”
“Take a pic of us together,” he said, handing Emma his phone. He crouched beside Kojo and made a cool finger sign.
“Such handsome young men,” Emma said, snapping several images.
“Yes, that’s very true,” Bruno agreed. He looked at Kojo and gave his head a friendly rub. The boy did not appear to mind.
SEVENTY
SEVENTY
Next morning, Bruno and Nii were ready to take Kojo’s yellow T-shirt to Ponsu, but Nii was uneasy.
“Be careful,” he cautioned. “Maybe Ponsu has the power to know that the boy didn’t really wear it.”
Bruno, said, “Is that so?” Then he shook his head and dismissed the notion. “He won’t know. And if he challenges me, I will challenge him back. Let’s go.”
Still, they were in some suspense as they watched Ponsu examining the garment. Bruno then showed Ponsu the before and after phone pics. He grunted and nodded. “Okay,” he said, apparently satisfied. He turned and yelled, “Ama!”
A young woman came running. “Yes, Papa?”
Ponsu handed her the T-shirt. “Take this, burn it, and make into a powder and bring it back.”
“Yes, Papa.” She went away.
“One of my daughters,” Ponsu said with pride to the other two men. “She’s here from our hometown.”
Bruno and Nii murmured appropriate approval. Ponsu excused himself and disappeared around the corner somewhere. He seemed to have been gone for a long time, but when he returned, he had a black powder in an old chipped bowl in one hand and a sachet of water in the other. He sat down and silently mixed the water in slowly with the black powder.
“Please, that’s the boy’s shirt?” Bruno asked. “You burned it?”
Ponsu nodded, mixing diligently. Bruno shot Nii a knowing look of disgust. He knew what was coming next.
The priest held out the dark concoction. “If you don’t fear to become a madman like the boy, drink it.”