Ben Chamberlain's Inheritance

Chapter Two

Ben was lying face-down when the vermin thatwas snooping around his foot brought himback to consciousness.

"Bullocks!" He exclaimed as he felt a sharp pain at the side of his ribs when he tried sitting up. As he sat up, he also felt a pain at the back of his head.

It was as though his head was hosting a rock concert. "Where am I ?" He asked himself, still oblivious of his present state of existence.

He looked around the alley where darkness held sway, to have a recollection of what happened to him but the throbbing in his head did not allow him.

He then closed his eyes and clutched his knees to his chest; placing his head between them. A few seconds later; the events of the past few hours, came back with a force that threathened to bust his head up.

...............................................................................Flash back begins

"God! were you ever going to stop", Scrawny said after catching up to them. Scrawny was bent over with his hands on his knees panting heavily.

"Please I don't want any trouble. I just want to get home to my sick mum, please". Ben pleaded.

"Just give me the money." Scrawny said.

"I am sorry mate, I can't right now".

"Why?"

I bought some meds with it already."

Scrawny just smiled, "Don't worry, those meds 

will make up for the money."

"I can't give it to you because they are for my mum."

Scrawny was close to him no. "I said give 

then to me." Scrawny said fiercely now.

"No I can't." Ben was adamant.

Ben doubled over after he received a punch from Scrawny in the stomach. Ben tackled Scrawny to the ground and punched him.

But he was outnumbered four to one. He was kicked and punched continuously.The final blow was a stick to the back of his head.

Flashback ends.

...............................................................................

"God! What time is it." He asked frantically. Then suddenly he began to search his pocket hysterically for the drugs, he couldn't find it; it was gone.

................................................................................

Ben had a feeling of dread as he dragged himself home.

He ought to have been home some hours ago with the meds. His mother's health condition was getting worse.

His mother needed it like eons ago. As he was getting close to the house he heard the wail of a siren and he wondered what was going on.

When he got closer he saw an ambulance and he knew the worst had happened. He now ran towards the lowly looking house.

"Where are you going kid?" A policeman asked him while also trying to stop him at the same time. He gave no reply and ran passed him.

He was stopped by another policeman, when he got to the entrance. "Stop! you can't go in." He said to him and blocked his way.

"Th-th-that is my brother", Betsy said amidstt ears to the policeman who allowed him in.

"What happened, B? Where is mum?", Ben asked.

"You killed her Ben, you did. Finally, am sure you are happy, right", She said amidst tears.

"I am sorry B, I never......."

"You never did what?" Betsy was furious now.

And for good reason. "If you were here with her 

drugs she wouldn't have died." The tears flowed.

The policeman who was questioning Betsy looked at Ben suspiciously."I didn't kill my mother." He responded to the policeman's suspiciousness.

Ben was speechless. He watched as the tears flowed down her sister's face. He looked at the body bag and he was filled with sadness.

The policeman left Betsy and focused on Ben

"What is your name?"

"Ben", he answered absent-mindedly.

"I am sorry for your loss but I have to ask you some questions".

Ben did not respond.

"Where were you when this happened?".

"I went out to get my mom's medication."

"Where is it now?"

"I don't have it."

"Why don't you have it?"

"It was stolen from me."

The policeman looked Ben over ,"I guess

the blackeye and the blood stained shirt is 

as a result of that?" Ben did not respond.

"So your sister literally did not mean it when she said you killed your mother?"

"No she did not."

The policeman was taking notes as he interrogated Ben. 

"Was anything else taken from you asides the drugs?"

He hesitated, "fifteen pounds was taken from me"

"How long has your mother been........." Ben cut in, "will all this question bring her back?" He asked with a painful sadness.

"Hmm forgive me but one final thing, what about your father?"

Ben looked up straight at him,"I don't have a father."

"Alright I appreciate your time talking to me despite what happened to your mum. Once again, I am sorry for your loss."

He left Ben to his thoughts, "This wasn't my fault; if I had not been chased down by those kids, this would not have happened," he thought.

"But who are you kidding? It's your fault B. If you had fought hard enough, you would not have lost the drug." The other side of his conscience told him.

Ben tried to find justification for the role he played in his mother's demise but he got none. But one thing he knew was sure and that was, he didn't kill his mother.

"My mother would not have died; she would still be alive. But those boys killed her; they killed my mother."

Ben was angry; he was enraged and he vowed to pay them back in their coin regardless of when he did it, they would get theirs.

Ben turned her face towards the body bag that was lying on the floor. "God no! this can't be, this can't be," Ben went on his knees, crying.

It was as though he had just woken up to the reality that he no longer had a mother. The reality was that he was now an orphan.

Ben's mind was in a turmoil; he pondered how was he going to take care of his twin sister but what the female medic was saying brought him back to the present. 

"The girl said, before her mum collapsed she was coughing furiously; then seconds later, she began to Cough blood." The female medic was telling her colleague.

"I see. But why wasn't she taken to the hospital?" her colleague inquired. "She said she had been to the hospital and that she had medications that she was taking.

The female medic had a look around the shabby looking house. "Furthermore, the kid said, she also her mother was asthmatic."

"I do not think I can imagine the pain she must have gone through and was going through before she died?" The female medic's colleague said.

As the body bag was being carried away, Ben noticed a dark figure some few feets away from the house.

It was dark so he could not see the person's face, so he decided to go take a look. As he moved towards the direction of the person, the person moved away.

Ben increased the pace of his movement in order not to miss the person. Behind a tree house, the person stood as if waiting for Ben.

Ben still couldn't see his face because he was wearing a jacket that had a hood.

"Have you not done enough." Ben said with rage.

The person in the hood said nothing to Ben.

He just threw somethings at the feet of Ben.

Ben was stunned when he saw what he threw at him.

It was Ben's mother's drugs and his money

"How did you get this and who are you?" Ben asked.

"How I got it doesn't matter but to answer your last question; Ben, I am your brother." The boy who was about Six feet tall said.