"Who tells you to walk during the curfew hours?" Mukama growled in the darkness.
Jacob knew it would be futile to explain his case. He had broken the military government regulations and would be treated as an outlaw.
He tried to talk, but no words came from his mouth. He thought of pleading for mercy to his stepbrothers but realised it would only worsen matters as they appeared quite drunk.
He was still thinking of what to do when Nsubuga roughly grabbed his shoulder.
"And what's this glittering object you've got here?" He said as he began to examine the gold chain on Jacob's neck.
Jacob caught the foul smell of beer on his mouth and turned his face, nose, away as he tried to move.
"What the hell? This looks like precious stones, isn't it? It's gold! That's mine, I'm having it!" Nsubuga chuckled.
"Hey, not so fast, brother," Mukama spoke drunkenly: "It's mine too!"
Nsubuga tried to reach for Jacob. Then Jacob remembered one of the shoplifting tricks he had learnt from Sonny.
He knew that unless he acted very fast, he would lose the only possession his dying mother had left him; the only key to convincing his grandfather about his identity.
Jacob pretended to stumble and fall in front of Nsubuga, who was nearer. Nsubuga steadied himself and tried to prevent him from falling.
That was his undoing. A hard, powerful fist zoomed out of the darkness and smashed against Nsubuga's jaw.
He started falling as Jacob reached for his the gun and snatched it from him. Nsubuga dropped like a dead elephant and rolled on the ground unconscious.
Mukama, who had seen what happened to his brother and colleague, raised his gun in an effort to open fire. But Jacob, who had taken Nsubuga's gun, struck out with the gun, and Mukama's gun dropped off his hands.
Mukama cried out in pain as Jacob raised his gun and struck his head. He fell down, Jacob kicking his unconscious body several times.
Then running footsteps could be heard coming towards him. Jacob dropped the gun when he realised more soldiers were coming after him, saw a dark alley ahead of him, and broke into a run before disappearing into the darkness.
But the footsteps kept on coming and following him. He was still running when he heard a gun roar in the darkness.
And then he felt a sharp pain in his thigh as a bullet hit him; he dropped on his knees and started crouching in the darkness for a few minutes.
Then he felt his trousers becoming warm where the bullet had penetrated his thigh and further down the leg, and he realised he had lost a considerable amount of blood. He looked up and saw some light on his right.
He started crawling towards the light but felt his body begin to weaken. The light came even closer as he continued crawling in the darkness. He immediately understood it was someone's house.
A sudden surge of hope came to his mind as he made his way into the darkness and reached the gate. But a sharp pain shot across his body as he climbed over the gate and dropped into the compound. As he fell, Jacob saw the door of the house swing open, and an averagely built man appeared in the doorway.
Then, somewhere in the darkness inside the compound, he heard dogs barking. His heart sunk, and he felt strength begin to desert him as he heard the sound of running dogs and approaching footsteps. Darkness began to settle over his eyes, and he felt consciousness leave him.
He was only dimly aware that someone was carrying his body and dropped him onto a bed.
He woke up with a start the next day and found himself in a large hall. Looking around, he saw men lying on their beds and looking quite sickly. He knew he was in hospital. Then he tried to raise himself but a sharp pain shot across his leg.
Jacob never knew who shot him on the thigh, but his only guess was one of the Musani brothers. He did not completely rule out any of the soldiers who pursued him.
His memory suddenly returned. He recalled crouching in the darkness and dropping into the compound on the fateful night, before passing out and later someone carrying him into a house.
Had he known that he had narrowly escaped death from the Alsatians as their owner tightly held them back, Jacob would have thanked his stars, guardian angels, God for his grace and love and even thanked Him for his protection. But his only preoccupation at the moment was the pain he felt in his body.
Then a thought struck him. Where was the gold chain and Marian silver medal? As this thought came to him, he touched his neck and realised the Marian medal and the gold chain were missing.
His hand searched over his entire body, but it was no longer there. His only key and security to convincing his grandfather and obtaining a piece of land was gone. Gone forever, he thought helplessly.
Whoever had found him unconscious and taken him to hospital, thought Jacob had also taken the chain. His gold chain and Marian silver medal were stolen!
It was valuable possession that could tempt anyone. With the gold chain gone, Jacob thought sadly, there was no need to try to trace his grandfather.
Its sudden disappearance killed any hopes of ever convincing his grandfather or even getting a share of his inheritance. His mission was blown up.
At that moment, he saw a nurse approaching him, a medical kit in her hands. She was middle-aged and in white uniform.
"How are you, Mr. Peter Ozo," the nurse asked as she stopped at the foot of his bed.
For a few seconds, Jacob stared blankly at her. Then suddenly, he imagined that was the name he must have been registered as a patient in the hospital by the man who brought him to the place he found himself, the hospital.
He replied, his voice sounding weakly, "I am feeling a bit fine."
"Let me have a look at how bad your thigh is," said the nurse as she reached out and touched his bandaged thigh. "You bled a lot, but you will be quite fine after we carry out a minor operation to remove the bullet."
Jacob said nothing. He just gaped at her. Then the nurse asked: "Are you the brother of Johnny Ozo? You don't look alike at all."
"Who's Johnny Ozo?" He asked his face searching her and apparently confused.
The nurse gave him a strange look. This patient seems most confused. Something was wrong somewhere. This patient had been brought to the hospital shot and bleeding. No identity. Was he an outlaw? A man shot in armed robbery but escaped arrest?
The hospital authorities were under strict rules issued by the military government. Should she call the police or military intelligence?
Suppose it was just an innocent man attacked by robbers? She was at a loss of what to do.
She had to act very fast.