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“Well, I’m certainly going to miss this place.” Professor Jones said as held his hat in his hand and gazed across the settlement of the Bacchwesi. “A pity no one will ever believe that.”
Chloe snorted and shook her head. “Can we get out of here before they change their minds.”
Susan chuckled as she put an arm around Chloe.
“You could have stayed,” Muku said as she stared at Susan in the eye as she blushed. “You could have become queen and I would have been your consort.”
They all chuckled as they made their way back towards the Mount Elgon. After the fighting and the burial of Isimbwa known to them as Jack Quainoo, the team had learnt that when Isimbwa had learnt that Nyinamwiru had been killed after her child had been spirited away. He had invoked a curse on the Bacchwesi and that their spirits would never rest once he hadn’t taken his revenge. Behind the group the rest of the Bacchwesi had lined up to see them off.
The team entered the cave where they had fallen into the pool and paused when they didn’t see the body of Mark. Muku was going to remark on it when a hard stare by Susan stopped him. They headed towards a section of the wall where they had been told to insert the two amulets. Susan inserted the amulets and the wall slid away to reveal the path to the cave they had entered earlier. They saw a body lying on the ground and Chloe rushed towards it and screamed.
They were frozen as Mark woke up and touch his chest and head. “I just had the weirdest dream.”
Chloe hugged him and began to fuss over him. “You’re alive.”
“Of course, I’m alive but I don’t understand I had the weirdest dream that someone was pulling me from some pool and that I didn’t belong in this time—”
Susan choked and Mark stared at her strangely.
“Well, we have had a very long day and we all need some rest.” Jones winked at the group. “Must have been the air in the cave. Maybe we passed out.” He said as he stared hard at each member to refute his story. No one did.
Susan turned to stare at where they had come from but all she saw was an image of a hunter bowing to a woman with two amulets around her neck. “How did it get there?”
Muku came to stand close to her and chuckled. He looked towards the image on the wall and stared at Susan.
“What?”
“You still don’t see it. Look at the image of the woman well.”
Susan stared hard at the image of the woman on the wall and a coy smile played on her lips. “I guess no one will ever know.”
“Maybe we can change that”
“How?”
“We can tell their story. How one woman, Nyinamwiru’s bravery saved her people.” Muku said this while gazing deep into Susan’s eye. The kiss when it happened was short and deep.
Susan playfully pushed him away, her hand lingering on his chest. “Well, I don’t think we can write the story of Nyinamwiru under these conditions.” She said biting her lips as Muku laughed.
“Are you guys coming or not?” Jones shouted back there, eliciting giggles from Mark and Chloe.
“Take the lead I will follow.”
Susan Nyinamwiru Ndembe Williams stood under the sketch of her great ancestor Isimbwa and clutched the two amulets around her neck. Strange that the group had not mentioned Jack, but she was the only one who remembered him. Maybe it was part of the curse being lifted. He would be forgotten.
She placed her hand on the sketch of the woman with similar amulets around her neck. She knew who it was now.
“Long live the Bacchwesi. Long Live Nyinamwiru!”