CHAPTER 1

The screams of children fill the streets and like an echo, move from one to the other. A peaceful morning has turned into utter chaos. A lovely weekend transformed into a horror. A day most wish it’s a nightmare and they’ll wake up any minute now. None of them wake up and they realise that this is all reality. Running with bullets missing their bodies by inches. Husbands gather their wives and children.

The Berets are storming the small town of Lunda and destroying everything in their path. Every week this terror happens and every week the government makes empty promises. Not noticing the danger surrounding him, a little boy is busy playing in his father’s garden.

His parents are just around the corner and they are running home to keep him safe. For them, a little quick trip to the shops turned into a whole day standing in queues. His big sister is in the house, blasting music so high, she could barely hear her parents calling to warn them about the Beret attack. Fortunately she remembers to check her phone. Her boyfriend might have called.

Mom

8 missed calls

Dad

5 missed calls

“Oh no, they’re going to kill me,” frustrated, she turns off the music and tries to call them. As soon as the music is off, she can hear the commotion outside.

She runs out and hears people screaming, “Berets! Berets are coming!” All this while distant gunshots can be heard.

Without even thinking twice, she immediately calls her little brother, “Khombo! Khombo u kwihi?(Where are you?)”

She screams repeatedly until she finds him in the garden, sitting quietly under the lemon tree.

“Khombo! Come here quickly!”

The three-year old noticing the terror in his sister’s eyes, quickly stands up and runs to her. She picks him up and runs down the stairs into the basement. It’s where they always go when there’s an attack. It’s nothing fancy and there’s barely room to move around.

They sit quietly and listen to the noise of terrified neighbours running around, followed by gunshots. After some time the noise dies down. Everything sounds calm. Too calm. The sister knows that this is only the beginning.

The Berets who were making a racket with guns are far away but now more of them are coming on foot. Checking every house to see if they can take some hostages or to kill the survivors. It’s the same cycle over and over again.

It’s been 2 hours after the Berets ransacked their house and couldn’t find them. Voices are starting to sprout outside. Familiar voices. Neema knew that only their neighbour, Nina, could complain like that after a raid.

She quickly woke up the now fast asleep Khombo. For hours their parents had not showed up. “Maybe they hid somewhere,” she consoled herself while knowing very well that chances are they’ve been killed by the Berets.