Encounters

Pastor Alfred yelled, "Open the door!" As he went closer to the door, fear licked at the bottom of Charles's stomach.

Before he slammed the door shut, his heart pounded with erratic pulses.

As he stood there seeing pastor Alfred take a bottle of anointing oil from one of the deacons, the prayer warriors began to sing a warfare gospel music as they headed into the house.

Pastor Alfred moved throughout the home, bashing in tongues and spreading the oil in every place.

While moving with him, the deacons and prayer warriors backed him up with prayers.

"Can you tell me where her belongings are?" Pastor Alfred inquired, pausing from his prayers.

"In my room," she says. Charles responded with zeal that went beyond his admiration for women.

Pastor Charles commanded, "Get them out!"

They pulled Mamila's bags out and outdoors with the help of John and three other boys from the prayer band.

Pastor Alfred stated, "She can't stay here much longer," and the band responded with an Amen.

"The devil flees when the spirit of God comes into a place," Pastor Alfred continues.

”Exactly.” A deacon yelled, affirming his words. Pastor Alfred remarked, "Bring fuel and a matchstick, we're going to burn these clothing."

Charles paused for a moment, debating if it was wise to burn her belongings, but when pastor Alfred requested again, he dashed to the generator house to collect a gallon of fuel.

One of the prayer warriors dashed to the kitchen of the house to get a lighter.

Charles followed Pastor Alfred's instructions and poured the fuel over the garments.

Pastor Alfred grabbed the man's lighter, lit it, and threw it on the garments, where the fuel ignited on contact and a furious fire erupted.

"As these clothing burn, so does every hold she has on you," Pastor Alfred remarked. "As her clothes burn in this fire, so she burns wherever she is." The prayer band replied, "Amen."

Pastor Alfred told Charles, "You're free." Perhaps that was too easy for Charles to believe, but there was no certainty she was dead or out of his life.

"God has preserved you, and you will never see her again as long as you trust in him."

After several minutes of watching the fire burn, Charles exhaled a sigh of relaxation.

They decided to return to the house for one last intense prayer session.

Pastor Alfred remained still as the prayer warriors sung worship hymns as they gathered in the home once more.

Because Charles' thoughts wasn't totally relaxed, he moved further away from them, towards the kitchen door.

When he heard something fall, a clanking sound from the kitchen, his heart skipped a beat.

When he recovered from his shock, he took another step towards the kitchen to make sure it wasn't someone who had thrown anything down..

When he suddenly saw Mamila leaving the kitchen, his eyes grew big with terror.

Charles hastily retraced his steps before erupting in a shrill scream.

His loud scream and presence drew everyone's attention.

Charles cried, "Pastor, pastor!" as he ran towards pastor Alfred.

He yelled even louder, "That's her, that's her!" Pastor Alfred's cheeks flushed with terror when Mamila appeared before them all.

He shook off his nervousness and took his place in front of the rest of the prayer band and deacons.

It didn't take long for everyone to start praying destructiion prayer points.

Mamila yelled, "Shut up!" The air became tense and fearful, and everyone began to shiver.

Pastor Alfred responded, "You shut up." " For he has delivered us from the domain of darkness and welcomed us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption."

As a result, I command you to return to where you came from in the name of Jesus." He exclaimed.

"Are you sure you understand what you're saying?" Mamila inquired, pausing to examine him.

Pastor Alfred said, "I know exactly what I'm saying." He says, "I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, as well as over all the enemy's might, and nothing shall harm thee."

"Is that correct?" Mamila clarified.

" Pastor, where is your heart?" she asked.  "My heart is in the right place with God," Pastor Charles responds.

"When it comes to money, your heart is on the dirty track." Mamila snuck in with a brusqueness.

"Deceit, you adore the cute face of money and bask in the body, you're full of lies and yet you think yourself one of his?."

Take a glance in the mirror; your reflection is repulsive."

"You will not tempt me," Pastor Alfred declared.

"Even he who must not be named replied, 'War the good warfare of faith,' and she asked, 'What fight are you fighting, money, fame, you hypocrite?'

"I bond you in his name," he declared. 

"He knows his people, and we know him too," Pastor Alfred added. 

"Can you tell me what this boy has done to you?" Pastor Alfred had inquired.

"Let him go," he said, "or his fury will descend upon you."

"I'm giving you forty seconds to get out of here with your sinful crew," Mamila stated as she sat down.

Charles and John were both terrified, and Charles was ready to walk towards the door when he heard pastor Alfred and the prayer band engaged in earnest prayer.

Mamila was enraged by the prayer, so she stood up and walked towards Pastor Alfred.

Pastor Alfred moved away from her, but it was too late; her palm had brushed up against his face.

As Mamila slapped him across the face, Pastor Alfred's eyes blurred and his head spun before collapsing on the floor and being dragged into an oblivion of sleep.

The prayer band and deacons who had accompanied him bolted out the door and out of the compound as fast as they could.

Charles and John tried to follow suit, but Mamila closed the door behind them before they could leave.

As Mamila approached him, a faceless horror gripped Charles.

When Mamila looked his way, steaming urine dripped down John's legs.

"Please don't kill me, Mamila, don't kill me," Charles begged.

As Mamila approached them, a tear streamed down John's cheek.

Both guys were frozen in place, unable to move as the terrifying terror drained them of all warmth.

Charles' spines were tingling with cold chills as he didn't know what to say or do. At the last moment, a concept formed in his mind.

He screamed, "I,I,I love you Mamila, please don't kill me!" in his shivering state.

As Charles remained as still as possible, sweat flowed down his body. A cold wave engulfed him, causing the hairs on the back of his neck to stand up and his mouth to dry up.

Mamila's teeth gritted in terror as she approached him.

"You do," Mamila says again. Fear swelled above Charles' shoulder, yet he managed to divert his attention to her.

"Now, why would I kill my husband?" Mamila asked, reaching out her hand to him.

Fear flitted through his gut, and for a few moment, he sat on the ground, staring at her hand.

He took her hand and she pulled him up, realizing he had no choice but to take it.

"However, I will not say the same about your friend," Mamila remarked, her gaze falling on John.

Terror rained down on John, causing him to back up.

His gaze flitted to the comatose body of pastor Alfred before returning it to Charles and ultimately settling on Mamila.

Charles whispered, "Mamila." His voice was filled with real panic. He said, "Please let him go, this is not his fault."

"Wasn't bringing this leach his goal to get rid of me?" Mamila enquired, cringing at Pastor Alfred's unresponsive body.

"No, no, no," she says. "I,I," John exclaimed, "You what?" Mamila had a grimace on her face.

Fear gripped John's throat, and for a brief moment, he couldn't speak.

"Mamila," Charles said, mustering the bravery to approach her.

"Please spare him," he said as he reflected on Zuba's heinous demise.

"Please," John pleaded as he went down on his knees, "I wasn't thinking straight, please spare me."

"Get out of here," she said . Both men instantly turn towards the door when the command was given by Mamila.

"Not you sweetheart," Mamila says, putting her hand on Charles' shoulder to stop him.

As terror gnawed at his insides, Charles' throat clenched.

John dashed to the door, turned down the knob, and the door unexpectedly opened.

He was about to leave when he remembered why he had gone to Pastor Alfred.

Mamila's words to him the night she came to plead for Charles were still vivid in his mind, and it bothered him.

He turned back to face her, his heart racing, and his sight fell on Charles, who was telling him to leave while he still had the chance.

He couldn't, though, since he didn't understand what Mamila meant when she stated he was already dead.

"Are you sure you don't want to leave?" Mamila enquired. John inhaled deeply, his apprehension rising as he struggled to find the strength to speak up.

”I,I,.”

I need some alone time with my husband, and your presence here is obstructing that. Mamila said.

"If you want to say something, say it now or stay mute forever," Mamila said.

"I'm looking for answers," John yelled.

"Who am I, Google?"  Mamila replies. To calm himself down, John inhaled deeply once more.

John continued, "I need to know what you meant when you said I was already dead."

"John, you need to get out of here," Charles says, concerned for his friend's safety.

He is well aware that he is not safe. Mamila could turn on him at any point, so he'll simply have to keep playing along until he gets rid of her.

"Please tell me," John urged, oblivious to Charles's remarks.

"Are you sure you want to know?" Mamila enquired. "I'm not going to ask if I don't," John said.

Mamila scoffs and moves away from her original position.

He took a few steps back before she stood up to face him once more.

Are you familiar with Maddalena? John was questioned by Mamila.

"Magdalena, ring a bell,". ”Magdalena,!” John repeats himself.  "No," He says . I can't recall.

"On January 16, 2018, you slept in a hotel room with Magdalena."

John tried but couldn't remember; he'd taken so many girls to hotels to lay with over the years that he couldn't even remember their names.

He inquired, "What does she have to do with what you said to me?"

"She robbed you of your life, your future, and your destiny."

John gulped dryly but remained silent. "Magdalena is a witch, and she belongs to a pack of witches called the rashudus.

Every year at the start of the year, each member is tasked with bringing 400 souls to the rachudus god as a sacrifice.

You're wrecked if you lay with any of them; no matter what you do, no matter how hard you strive, you'll never succeed." She explains.

"You said 2018," John pointed out. "That was four years ago, and I've improved since then." "If you think you're living well, you're a fool." Mamila had a grimace on her face.

"Let me tell you what will happen to you."

Everything you have, everything you've worked for, will start to go in a short time.

You'll try to reclaim them, but no matter how hard you work, your efforts will be in vain; everyone will cut you off.

Everyone will abandon you, including your friends, family, and relatives.

You'll be a laughingstock, completely bereft of hope.

When you're weary of leaving like that, you'll fetch a rope and hang yourself, and your pitiful life will come to an end."

John stepped backwards, stunned. He didn't believe it, and he didn't want to accept it.

He swung around and walked out of the house, paranoid.

"Did you tell him the truth?" Charles inquired, attempting to overcome his trepidation.

Mamila's face lit up with a smile before she turned her glance to him.

She said, "Yes." "What makes you think you'd tell him that?" He inquired.

"Can you tell me who you are?" With trepidation, Charles inquired. "I am your wife," she replied.

"To become my wife, I'll have to put a ring on your finger," Charles explained.

"You did," she remarked as she approached him. As she trotted closer to him, he took a step backwards.

He gazed down at Pastor Alfred, unsure if he was alive or dead.

He moans again before returning his sight to her. "No," I say. "Do you recall that dream you had?" Mamila had a question.

"What dream,?" Charles asked dryly. "You came underwater, and we married," she says.

With the startling news, Charles' eyes grew larger, and the dream came flooding back to him.

He was a mermaid and she was underwater. "No, you were a fish in a dream?" he inquired. "A mermaid," Mamila clarified as frown lines appeared on her face.

"You vowed to cherish me, and you claimed you'd stay with me for the rest of my life.

"I have bestowed upon you my most sacred virtue."

Charles's heart pounded against the inside of his throat

"Make love to me," she says. She insisted on approaching him, but he took a step back.

"I'd like to feel you inside me once more," she says. She continued to strip off her clothes till she was completely naked.

"I'm still the girl you praised, the girl you declared your love for every night."

As he fought to keep her gaze away from her nude body, Charles' heart thumped hard against his chest.

When he couldn't get any further backwards, he turned away from her and began rubbing his body with her hands.

please, please, He despised her guts because she was a mermaid and he was human.

He just wished he had the bravery to tell her that humans and mermaids don't mix.

He's still reeling from the fact that he slept with a mermaid. 

She hissed and said to Charles, "Make love to me."

When he refused to respond to her advances, she became enraged. 

When Charles observed her demeanor had changed, terror raced across his eyes.

Charles excused himself by saying, "I need to be in the mood to make love to you."

She walked away from him, frustrated, and picked up her clothing to put on. "Please accept my apologies," Charles added.

"We're married, Charles," she continued, still dressed, "and we'll be wedded forever."

I'm bonded to you, and you're bonded to me, so never you try to call or meet anyone who wants to get rid of me, because what happened to Zuba will be nothing compared to what I'll do to the next person."

Fear licked at the bottom of Charles's stomach, and he remained motionless for a time as his thoughts caught up with him.

He was correct, she murdered Zuba; yet, madam Alisha hasn't called him since their previous conversation; could she be dead?

He lowered his sight to pastor Alfred, terrified to his core. "Is he no longer alive?"