"Look who is back to where they belong?" Lord Jezebel hovered in front of her, a smug smile across his lips. "I must say, you exceeded my expectations and stayed longer than I imagined."
Omo had no time for the devil's personal servant. "Where is Master?"
"Somewhere whiling away time that he does not have for low levels like you." Unlike her, he was clothed.
"I have something to report to him."
Lord Jezebel sneered. "Do you know the date Father has decided to send his beloved son back to earth? If you don't then get yourself busy before I take laws into my hands and punish you for failing him."
"I'm not supposed to be here, this is a mistake!"
"You all sound like a broken record when you come back. Tell me and I shall consider granting your request to see Master Beelzubub, how did you die?"
She gnashed her teeth in anger. "A priest, but he's—" her voice got buried in the laughter of Lord Jezebel.
"Did you hear that?" He beckoned the other demons and they joined in the laughter. "A priest? A mere human killed you, a piece of divinity?" He laughed again, cutting short whatever Omo had to say. How did she ever forget how annoying the servant of the devil was?
"What did he use in killing you, a knife?" He laughed again. "Did he tie you to a pyre and cut your skin, you a demon and him a human?" He laughed again and the others jeered him on.
Omo wanted nothing more than to strike him, but her powers were weak against him.
"I really would have let you see Master, but he'd be furious—"
"You should let me decide what would make me furious," a strong authoritative voice said. He wore a long robe that flowed as he walked on air, its collar big and raised up to almost cover his head. As he walked, they gave way for him until he stood in front of Omo.
They bowed in unison to greet, "Master Beelzubub," and Omo hid a growing smirk as Lord Jezebel cowered in fear.
"I'm beginning to think you like the attention your title gives you, Vlad, shall I strip it off you and give it to this measly demon here?"
"No, Master," Lord Jezebel bowed.
"Find something for the demon to wear," Master Beelzubub ordered. "Isn't that what you're supposed to do so she can get back to work? Why are you celebrating her return?"
"It was a priest that killed her, Master," Lord Jezebel started to say.
"And so—wait! A priest? A human?"
"He wasn't an ordinary priest, Master Beelzubub, he had inhuman strength. He wanted me to say hi to you."
"Say hi? Is he an angel, a lost brother?"
"I don't know, Master."
"Is he a demon?"
"I don't know."
Behind, Lord Jezebel hid a snicker. Master Beelzubub turned to him. "Strip her to the lowest level."
Back in the living world, the Dean and other priests stood in front of Sister Omo's corpse. They had finished the prayer and now questioned the students who had fled earlier.
"When we opened the door, we saw a wolf eating her body, we thought it was going to bite us too, that's why we ran," they explained.
"A wolf in the school?" Father IK looked perplexed. "But there's no animal in the forest." He waved his hand, dismissing the students.
"I thought same too." Father Osayande said before facing the security guard. "Did you notice anything strange, animal movements?"
"No," the head guard said. "We bring hunters every now and then and they check the forest grounds, it is safe."
"But I saw a cat earlier, here in the school," Sister Gabriel managed to say, still shocked about the state of her friend.
From where she stood, Sister Agatha inhaled sharply. If Father Chibuike didn't get himself into trouble, then he was going to be sent back without them achieving their goal. She had warned him sternly against bringing Amaka or whatever he called his cat.
Beside her, Father Ekene whispered. "We can leave now and allow Chibuike face his mess."
She wanted to slap this one.
"A cat?" The head security guard had a plea in his eyes for her to say no. Under his watch, two wild animals made way into the school, surely he was going to lose his job.
But Sister Gabriel nodded. "When I came to look for her and Father Chibuike, I was about to enter this room when the cat suddenly attacked me, I was scared so I went back. If I had stayed, maybe she wouldn't have died."
"Her and Father Chibuike?" The Dean questioned.
"Ah yes," Father Chibuike raised his hand. "This is where I come in. The kind Sister here, may her soul find rest, wanted to confess all her sins to me."
"And so you came here, away from everybody?" The Dean didn't look a bit convinced.
"Dearest Father, you should know how confession works, as well as the oath of secrecy we're made to take, so don't expect me to tell you all of Sister Omo's secret now she's dead." He looked at her corpse. "It's just so unfortunate that she died right after we finished talking and all of you now think I killed her."
"We do not think you killed her, you were the last person to talk to her so I need to ask questions to see if there's a possibility that—"
"That I killed her," he completed.
"I did not say that."
"And that's the problem, you don't even have the courage to accuse me properly."
The Dean stared daggers at him silently, he didn't want to be seen exchanging words with this staff. He turned to Father Osayande. "We need to tighten our security, if wild animals can break into the school, then the students are not safe."
The head security guard sweated in fear, he didn't want to lose his job. "I'll be extra vigilant, the hunters will come more often, this won't repeat itself again."
The counselor nodded. "But is it normal that blood be black, I've never seen or heard of it."
"There's always a first time." Father crossed over the threshold of the door. "A pupil of mine is currently struggling for her life at the infirmary, I really wish she had taken Sister Gabriella's warning."
In the infirmary, Ivie's eyes fluttered. JohnMary noticed it first and jumped to her side.
"Ivie?" He called softly. "Are you awake?"
"She's waking up, she didn't die," Gaga said, a hint of irritation in her voice.
He ignored her. "Ivie, can you see me?"
She opened her eyes and looked right into him.
"Thank God, we were all scared."
"I wasn't," Gaga rebuffed. "But JohnMary nearly cried and if Father Chibuike had a gun, he would have killed somebody. I don't know how you do it, Ivie, wrapping two men at the tip of your fingers."
"All the nuts in your head are loose today," Ivie responded, sitting on the bed.
"Gaga always has loose nuts," Aisosa said.
"Where is Sister Agatha?"
"Left, something came up, I suppose. What do you want to eat?"
"Anything is fine."
"Sister Agatha said you should eat something solid, something that will hold the infusion in your system to avoid fainting again and have Father Chibuike carry you like a princess."
Itohan rolled her eyes. "Gaga is just jealous."
"Any sensible girl in this school would be jealous. See, Itohan is jealous, she's just hiding it. Aisosa is jealous, but you know how quiet she can be. Even JohnMary is jealous, angry that he is not a girl."
"How did this go from me being on the bed to who is jealous or not?" Ivie groaned.
"Father Chibuike said you're the least of his worries."
"For the love of God me too! I have other things to worry about. Do you know why the Dean called me today? Because he wants to expel me."
"Oh no!" Gaga stepped forward. "Is it because of what I said? Did you do it?"
"What did you do Gaga? What did you say?" JohnMary was shaking her shoulder.
She snapped at him. "Stop shaking me like an idiot and let me think! Are you the only one unhappy that she's going? Are you the only one who cares about her?"
"Guys, it's not anybody's fault," Ivie said, trying to lessen the tension.
But JohnMary and Gaga didn't listen as their eyes were locked on each other in a fierce glare.
Aisosa left the room first. "I'll bring something for you to eat."
Itohan followed her.
Gaga sighed and muttered a few curses before she left too, brushing JohnMary's shoulder in a deliberate act.
"What's her problem?" He asked, rubbing his shoulder.
Ivie shrugged. "You know how Gaga can be."
Outside, Gaga fumed.
"Now you're the one who look like you want to kill someone." Father Chibuike was going into the infirmary when he saw her and stopped. "You should go ahead and have that kill, I just had mine and tell you what, I feel refreshed."
Gaga leaned against the open window, allowing the midday breeze to touch her face. "I can't kill him."
"Another immortal?" He asked, looking askance.
"I don't know if he's an immortal but I do know that he's JohnMary."
"Oh, Ivie's friend?"
"Exactly!" She jerked away from the window as of being struck by lightning. "Ivie is the only friend he has, she's the only one he worries about, the only one he thinks about."
Father Chibuike was quiet for a while, studying her. "You want him to think of you too, don't you?"
"Yea!" She responded almost immediately, breathless. "I don't want to crowd his thoughts, but he should think about me too, at least once in a while. Let's say, once in a month, like on the tenth of every month?"
Father Chibuike laughed. "Then you should tell him that."
"What?"
"Tell him to think of you on the tenth of every month."
She crunched her brows in confusion. "How does that work?"
"The exact way you want it to work."
"He's going to think I'm crazy!"
"That's the point, he's going to think of you. Everybody already knows you're crazy, especially with a name like 'Gaga', so that shouldn't bother you. What matters is that he's thinking of you, then you should shove your craziness up the highest level and get his mind hooked on you."
A slow mile spread on her lips. "Father Chibuike, starting this day forward, you're the absolute love of my life!" She declared.
"Now, that's the craziness I'm talking about." They both laughed.
She nodded to the door. "Go and see your sweetheart."
Father Chibuike laughed and gave her a salute. As he opened the door to Ivie's room, JohnMary was about getting out.
"You should know better than to make a girl cry, where did all our gentlemanliness go to?" He asked.
"I'd really appreciate if you don't talk to me, Father."
"Hmm, somebody is edgy." He watched him leave the room before turning to the girl on the bed.
When Ivie's eyes locked his, her hair pores became erect and she raised her hand signaling that he should stop.
"Don't come any further," she said. For some reason, his aura was stronger than usual, it repelled her.