Baccoo on the loose (The conclusion)
(Last week, we ended just when the Lester twins, Denzil and Dennis, came to realize that what they were dealing with was  a ‘baccoo’; now read on to see how this particular little dilemma will resolve itself.) AS soon as their parents and Kimberly left the next day, the hunters sprang into action. One ran to the market and purchased $300 worth of Cayenne bananas, while the other sped to the ‘middle-walk’ to buy three pints of milk. They set about creating the trap.
They divided the bananas into three parcels, and poured the milk into three large enamel cups. One cup of milk and some bananas were put on the kitchen table, a second on the living-room table, and a third on the living-room floor itself. That done, the two amateur detectives went into hiding.
Nothing happened in the first hour. The two became restless and began to doubt their clever plan.  Suddenly, the unmistakable sound of someone eating reached their ears. Then they heard drinking sounds. But this was no ordinary drinking. The person was slurping and smacking their lips in satisfaction. Peeping out from behind the heavy drapes, the pair waited in excitement.
The patter of feet sounded in the living-room. They held their breaths.
GULP! GULP! SLURP! BURP!
The food on the table was being devoured at a fast rate. A banana skin hit the drapes, causing the boys to jump.
GULP! GULP! SLURP! BURP!
The food on the floor was now being consumed. Nodding to each other, the twins jumped out from behind the drapes and shouted in triumph.
“GOTCHA!  YOU THIEF!”
But what they saw took them completely by surprise.
Standing in the middle of the room with two half-eaten bananas in its gaping mouth and milk dribbling down from its shocked lips was the weirdest person they had ever seen.
He stood about two-and-a-half feet tall. The creature had the biggest head and wildest eyes they had ever come across.  A long woolly beard hung from its chin way past the knee. Its eyes were a reddish orange, and teeth a combination of about a dozen different colours. And it was Ugly, Ugly Ugly.
The hair on its large lopsided head was unruly; it resembled compressed spring that was ready to leap out at you. The ear was the funniest feature. They were large, pointed and shaped like eddoe leaves cut down the middle. And boy, did they twitch! The hair erupting from each ear twitched too!
The hands were small; fingers were short and knobby. What gave them an elegantly fiendish look were the nails. These were long and curling. Most of them were at least four inches long, and had the same unrecognizable colour as the teeth. The hand resembled the talons of an eagle.
The scene played out in the living-room was nothing short of hysterical. The boys stood there, mouths hanging open, and eyes bulging. It was no different for the thief. It, too, stood open-mouthed and immobile, frozen by the boys’ clever trap. Seconds ticked by as they stared at each other across the room. Then, from deep within the creature, a voice spoke.
“You tryin’ fuh frighten me?”
The voice was a cross between the deep rumble of thunder, and the annoying rasping of a file on metal.
Both boys shook their heads in a vigorous and frightened “NO!”
An ugly but friendly grin spread across the broad yellowish face.
“I DON’ RUN FROM NUTTEN! IS PEOPLE DOES RUN FROM ME!”
The boy detectives agreed wholeheartedly with that, but their frightened feet refused to obey their command.
“YOU TWO WAKE ME UP!”
A stub of a finger with nails curling round jabbed in the direction of the hapless two. The boys shook their heads so viciously in denial that they felt a bit dizzy.
“No! Not me! Is he!” they pointed at each other.
The large head nodded emphatically.
“Sssssorry neighbour; we ain’t gon do it again; we gon play easy next time.”
The voice rumbled again.
“YOU AND YOU BREAK DOWN MEH PRISON! I GON HELP YOU NOW!”
Though the boys were scared, curiosity got the better of them now.
“Ppppprison?” Denzel asked.
“YOU BRUK DE BOTTLE DEM LOCK ME UP IN!”
It was only then that the boys realised that the Dutch bottle was not empty.
“But how anybody could live inside a bottle?”
“MEH GET TRAP 200 YEARS AGO; DEN YOU RELEASE MEH!”
The smile on the creature’s face was even broader now, threatening to split the head in two at the mouth.
“But is wha yuh name, nuh?” Dennis asked.
“ME NA GAT NAME! ME IS DUTCH BACCOO!” the creature replied.
“Bbbbbaccoo!!!” the boys screamed in unison.
This was too much for them. With shrieks louder than a banshee, they fled the house.
When Mr and Mrs Lesters came home that evening, they found the two frightened boys sitting on the bridge leading into the village. They returned to the home with their parents and Kimberly.  As soon as they entered, the boys burst into an excited account of the day’s  events.
Their parents listened, and laughed good naturedly. They knew that the twins were pranksters, and suspected that they were up to their old tricks again. No amount of persuasion by the two could convince them otherwise. Eventually, the boys gave up trying.
After that day, the twins encountered the creature regularly. They soon realized that it meant them no harm, and only they could see it. As it had promised, their new friend helped them both. All their chores were done for them: Clothes washed, dishes cleaned, and house tidied. They had only one obligation to it.
“IF YOU DON’ GIMMEH BANANA AND MILK EVERY DAY, AH GON MEK ALLYUH LIFE MISERABLE!”
The boys thought nothing of this threat. They got money from the creature, and every day they bought banana and milk. Things went well for a time. Then one night in the middle of the August holidays, Mr. Lester announced that they were leaving the next morning for a one-week holiday in Trinidad and Tobago.
They departed early the next morning. The week passed quickly, and was fun-filled. The family visited many beautiful beaches, Mount St Benedict, a few malls and a Soca show. They returned to Guyana excited after their vacation overseas.
When the taxi stopped in front of their home, the Lesters got a nasty shock; it seemed as though their home was in a war zone. All the windows were broken. Stones and bricks littered the roof and yard. The front and back doors were broken, and everything was in disarray. Someone had tossed everything around, and broken all their dishes. And the TV and stereo as well. The police was called in.
It was soon discovered that nothing had been taken.  Neighbours told them of strange noises coming from the house. Attempts to check the house were met with a barrage of missiles. There were a few busted heads and sore body parts from such attempts. Everyone stayed clear.
The boys tried to explain to their parents about the ‘baccoo’, but they would have none of it. Mr Lester even gave them an ultimatum: “Talk about ‘baccoo’ again in dis house, an ah gon give you both a good cut-ass!” he promised.
That day, there was a massive cleanup and repairs in progress. After a day of hard work, the family settled down for the night.
CRASH! BADDAM! CRACK!
In the middle if the night, they were awoken by quite a din. Dishes were flying every which way; mirrors smashed; windows broken again; and rocks pummeled the roof like falling hale.  Mr. Lester picked up his cutlass and rushed outside, only to be met by a battery of bricks, which caused him to drop his weapon and retreat in fright. Neighbours shouted warnings.
“Stay inside! Is ‘baccoo’! Wait till morning den come out!”
No one was able to go back to sleep that night. The next day, old Cyril came by. He had heard of the ‘happenings’ and wanted to help.
“Gimme $5,000 fuh buy a few t’ings, an ah gon get rid of the spirit for you.”
An anxious Mr. Lester gave him $10,000!
“You and yuh family must go ‘way for three days so I could wuk in peace,” the old codger said.
Needing no further bidding, the Lesters went to Georgetown for a week. When they returned to Fort Wellington, old Cyril greeted them with a smile.
“Ah ketch it!” He sounded contented. “Come see fuh yuhself!”
He led them downstairs and opened a solid greenheart box, which had been secured with a huge padlock. Reaching inside, he took out a small, transparent glass bottle. The bottle’s neck was securely stoppered  with cork. The cover was then screwed on, and sealed with wax. The only way to open it was to melt the wax, unscrew the cover, then remove the cork stopper. Or just break the bottle.
Holding it up to the light, old Cyril showed the Lesters the contents of the bottle. Inside was a tiny looking figure. The boys recognized it immediately as their ‘baccoo’ friend. The creature saw them too, and began to race around the enclosure in a frenzy.
Turning to Mr Lester, old Cyril solemnly said: “Ah got to bury it now, but tell yuh boys dat in future, dey mus’ be mo’ careful.”
And, replacing the phial inside the sturdy wooden box, he locked it away. He then picked up the box and headed for the ‘backdam’. The special rites to bury the critter properly would take another two hours.
Meantime, the Lesters had some more cleaning up to do because the ‘baccoo’ had not surrendered to old Cyril willingly. Up to this day, he has not revealed how he managed to trap the spirit.
So, if you ever visit the countryside for a holiday, and you see an old looking clay bottle with a cover lying on the ground, for Heaven’s sake, DON’T PICK IT UP! AND DEFINITELY DON’T OPEN IT!”
If you do, you’d better have plenty of milk and bananas to feed the occupant. And you’d better hope and pray that it’s not a whole family you release, or is — ‘Baccoo’ in yuh tail!