Nneka and Kunle were traveling to Onitsha from Lagos on that particular Friday night when they had an unforgettable experience. To start with, the day had begun on a funny note. They had overslept and woken up later than they had planned. Then when it was time to leave, their car developed some mysterious fault…

Nneka and Kunle were traveling to Onitsha from Lagos on that particular Friday night when they had an unforgettable experience.

To start with, the day had begun on a funny note. They had overslept and woken up later than they had planned. Then when it was time to leave, their car developed some mysterious fault, despite the fact that Kunle had ensured it was well serviced just days earlier.

Cancelling this trip wasn’t even an option. They were scheduled to attend Chekwube, Nneka’s younger sister’s traditional wedding the following day. Since Chekwube was like their first daughter and had been with them through some really tough seasons of their lives, missing her wedding was simply inconceivable. So Kunle called in the mechanic, and after a few hours, the car was ready to go. Yet they didn’t leave Lagos till past 4 pm. The traffic on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway was simply unbelievable! 

Nneka was convinced it was the devil trying to do everything to stop them from being a part of Chekwube’s day, so she began to pray earnestly. Kunle was too busy manoeuvering the highway to argue with Nneka’s logic. When the traffic finally cleared, the real journey began and they found themselves speeding towards Onitsha. 

The trip was smooth and they travelled peacefully until they got to somewhere around Benin-bypass, around 8:47 PM. That was when Kunle noticed that other vehicles were reversing to either follow a bush path or go back towards Lagos.

“What is going on?” He inquired from a bus driver who had just reversed in front of him and about.

“They’re shooting in front o! Armed robbers are in front and they’re coming this way!” The driver shouted as he sped away.

Kunle immediately reversed to follow the others through the bush path, but just at the beginning of  the path, the car chose that moment to breakdown.

“This can’t be happening!” Kunle shouted as he frantically tried to start the car to no avail. 

It was like a film trick. Of all the days and time, the car couldn’t have broken down at the worst time!

“Kunle what will we do o! This can’t be happening to us!” Nneka started to cry.

“You better start praying, while I try to fix the problem,” Kunle commanded as he got down to check the car.

But before Nneka could say “In Jesus name”, they heard the first gunshot. Then the second, and soon it was endless. Not too long after, they started hearing screams and the sound of people running towards them from all direction. Kunle couldn’t even think at this point. He beckoned for Nneka to get out of the car and together they ran into the nearest bush and laid flat on the damp earth. 

From the shouts of people all around them, Kunle and Nneka understood that they had been trapped. The armed robbers had blocked both the main roads and the bush path. They could even hear them, barking at people, their gunshots as loud as a megaphone. 

Terror like never before gripped the couple. It felt like they had walked into a horror movie that just wouldn’t end. Kunle and Nneka laid in the bush, eyes closed, holding hands and muttering unintelligible prayers till … surprise, surprise, they passed out!

Kunle was the first to wake up. Then he woke Nneka. They looked at each other, shocked at how they had slept off; even more shocked that no one had discovered them. They didn’t understand what had happened; one minute they were paralyzed with fear, and the next, they just passed out. It didn’t make sense, but they were grateful to be alive and unhurt.

It was quiet now, so quiet, the hairs on their body stood at alert. Nneka whispered that they wait a while to see if someone will come along, but no one did. So Kunle suggested that they get back to the main road and walk back to the nearest town. They found their way to their car, only to find it totally damaged its glasses shattered and seats torn. They didn’t even try to examine it further, they ran back to the main road and started walking back. But they didn’t even have to walk for long when a pickup truck drove past them and stopped just ahead. Kunle and Nneka ducked into the nearest bush. The passengers – two young men around Kunle’s age – began to call out to them to know if they were fine.

“Are you alright? We are not robbers! We will not harm you. We came to help!” They shouted and soon Kunle jumped out of his hiding place.

“Are you really here to help?” Kunle inquired and the men assured them they were.  

They explained that they had heard about the raid from the drivers who managed to escape and that the robbers weren’t just robbers but also kidnappers. They had kidnapped a lot of people and also killed a lot of people and many travellers who hadn’t gotten to this point, had refused to continue their trip, choosing to camp two towns away or return home.

“But what are you doing here? Why are you here?” Kunle asked the men.

“We are here to help. Come now, we can’t stay here all night, chatting. This place is not safe,” one of the men replied.

“Where are your luggage?” The other asked

Kunle and Nneka began to explain about their car and how it had been badly damaged, but the men insisted they go check if the robbers had taken anything. To Kunle and Nneka’s bewilderment, they returned to their car to find their bags intact. Even Nneka’s handbag which she had thrown under her seat in a haste was secured. It was a miracle. Other than the car, nothing else was missing. And so they transferred everything into the pickup truck and soon they were on their way. It was around 3 AM by this time.

The men chose to drive through the bush path as they thought it safer than the main roads. They drove for a while, then stopped just in front of a badly burnt vehicle. They explained that they had seen a figure and wanted to confirm. They were right, a woman and her two sons hid not too far away from the burning bus. When the woman got into the vehicle and the men began driving, she narrated how she and her sons had ran into the bush along with other passengers when it became clear that they were trapped, but they had fallen into a small ditch and dare come out, because the robbers had followed, shooting mercilessly at everything and everyone. She also couldn’t explain how all three of them had found themselves inside the ditch and how they had survived without being seen.

Kunle and Nneka started sharing their own story of how they had mysteriously slept off, but were interrupted when the men stopped again to pick up yet another person – an elderly man. The elderly man was walking on the road when they picked him up. His own story: All he could remember was getting down from his bus, then he had woken up on the side of the road, a good distance from where his bus had parked.

Everyone was gobsmacked. Their different accounts only made sense where the gunshots had began in earnest. Everything else after was a blur.

“It must be God at work, don’t you think?” One of the young men quipped and everyone agreed. Then silence descended in the car as everyone processed this thought. 

Soon they all slept off, to be awoken only when they got to Onitsha. The time was 7:30 AM.

The men dropped the three families at the nearest garage, but before they could leave, Kunle and Nneka pestered them for their number, so they could at least keep in touch. They also exchanged numbers with the woman and the elderly man, and then everyone went their separate ways. 

Two days later, they were back on the phone with incredible news. When they called the men to inform them that they had gotten to their various destinations safely, a pastor had picked the phone. Upon further discuss, the pastor explained that he had just started praying at around 8:30 PM and couldn’t stop till 4 AM. He felt a strong burden to pray against untimely death and kidnapping and the burden wouldn’t lift till around 4 AM. He told them that ever since then, he had gotten nothing less than 50 phone calls from people calling to thank him for saving them. 

Apparently while the pastor prayed, angels went on assignment to save as many that cried to God for help. Indeed, God was at work.

SCRIPTURE – Ps. 91:11