I lie back on the bed, gazing at the ceiling feeling a little better than I did three hours ago. I had a panic attack that even managed to freak Celine out in the car. As if that was not enough I arrived at the house and vomited before I finally calmed down enough to beg Celine not to call any doctor. She was relentless about it until I blurted out that I think that I am pregnant.
The shock that masks her face make me no want to look at her anymore so I lie on the bed facing the impassive ceiling.
‘Are you sure?’ Celine manage to say after a hundred seconds.
‘no.’ I admit softly.
‘Why would you--.’
‘Doctor Focus’ diagnosis.’ I explain briskly
The silence that follows makes me to sit up to check whether Celine has fainted or what. No she hasn’t fainted. She has the most horrified look on her face. Okay so at this point I can conclude that this family don’t take news of new babies very well.
‘Celine?’ I stare at her. I think she is not breathing. Her dark skin is darker and her eyes are almost lifeless as if she has just vanished into another realm. Not knowing what to do I only stare at her waiting for her to snap out of it.
After like forever, she cries out loud, hands into her hair and her body sinks onto the floor. I spend a precious seconds bulging my eyes before I leap into action by coming to kneel at her side asking what’s wrongs. She starts sobbing loudly before she calms down enough to flare her red swollen eyes at me her face masked with such a broken look my heart goes out to her even though I have no idea what in the living hell is wrong with her all of a sudden.
Quack mentality symptom. Logic says. Yeah definitely insanity symptom mixed with over reactions and dramatic acts. That’s from sense and emotion. Next thing I know she will be charging after me with a large kitchen knife. That’s from my wild mind.
‘Oh Heather.’ She starts to speak at last, ‘my son.’ She sobs again for a precious seconds before she could speak again, ‘they killed my son.’
The last statement is met with incredulous raised eyebrows from me and my brain companions. I can’t believe what she just said such that I forget it the moment she says it. , maybe she knows that I have raised it from my brain already so she says it again.
‘That same doctor focus—he is one of the clan doctors, he found out I was pregnant and they forced me to terminate the baby.’
Kind old Dr Focus who don’t even look like he can hurt an ant?
‘After what you have seen you have to know that I am serious.’
I back away from her and sit in the bed, ‘oh you are serious—I mean--.’ I go speechless as she continues to rub her swollen eyes.
‘Heather—when did the doctor tell you that?’
‘This morning.’
She shakes her head, ‘they are going to get rid of the baby Heather,’ she says seriously and a fear falls upon me like a dark cloud, ‘Mr. Abiwu is serious about terminating this marriage—they’ve been fighting about it with Taylor for weeks now until he chose to get rid of your entire family through other means.’
My hand comes to my stomach, ‘what—why—
‘I met a man I loved five years ago Heather… I was like you, I had no idea what I was born into and when I found out I didn’t want to be a part of it. My father wanted to marry me to some man from a stronger family in order to strengthen the clan or that nonsense they always talk about.’
I fixed my gaze on her as she continued her story;
‘Nicholas was an amazing person—we had this fairy tale future planned—he wasn’t just my boyfriend, he was my best friend. When all this started happening I wanted to leave him for his own safety, my father was a ruthless man. At the end we decided to run away together. The world seemed like such a bigger place until they captured us.’ She shut her eyes and flinched at what I only guessed is a painful memory flashing in her mind.
‘Nicholas died, I watched him dying. I was in a traumatic daze for days afterwards. They all just left me because I would eventually snap out of it. I guess I did and found out I was pregnant with Nicholas’ baby.’ A slow smile comes on her face and it’s gone as soon as it appears, ‘I hid it for the first four months while trying to figure out how I can hide and have my baby safely. It didn’t last long before they found out—I came down with a serious fever one night, my aunt panicked and called the family doctor.’
‘Doctor Focus!’ I say in realisation.
She nods, ‘he then said it was just the pregnancy and there was nothing to worry about. It was so painful I thought I was going to die. I was in pain for days. Physically and emotionally. They had the courtesy of telling me the gender of the baby before they killed him.’
I stare at her with wide eyes, ‘oh my god--.’ Is all I can say as realisation dawns on me
‘it was about that time that my aunt—Taylor’s mother found out the stranger she was married to and Taylor also learned who he was—everything went downhill since then. My father was then killed in a gang war or something and Mr. Abiwu took me in.’
I think by now my face must resemble the white sheets I am sitting on.
‘Heather you have to get it together,’ she stands and comes close to me, ‘you can’t be freaked out right now—at least most of your family managed to flee… if you don’t, they will get rid of your baby. That last thing Mr. Abiwu wants is an heir from your union.’
Why didn’t anyone explain this to me before I went ahead and married all this trouble? My heart starts twisting in so much fear I don’t know what to do with myself.
‘He killed his own wife and sabotages his own son to this life this baby won’t mean anything to him other than the simple embryo that is in you.’
I hug my arms. I don’t think I can hold a breakdown anymore.
‘I can help you.’
Despite my shock I laugh, ‘what? Why?’
Celine is silent for a moment, ‘I won’t watch them end another innocent life--.’
I narrow my eyes at her, ‘is that what you meant by getting rid of Taylor’s women?’
‘He is the heir to the entire empire—it’s no joke, unsuitable alliances are no joke either—he went along with this wedding because he was in a vulnerable position.’
I shake my head.
‘I am not asking you to run…’ she pauses, based on her expression I am so not going to like this, ‘you can leave Taylor and live with Lawyer.’
You could have heard a feather hit the ground with the silence that follows. I blink. Gape. Then settle for a snotty laugh that soon borders towards hysteric. Now Celine is the one looking at me like I am insane.
‘What?’ I manage to stop laughing, ‘that’s just sick.’
‘Lawyer would make sure they leave you alone and he can adopt the child as his.’
‘Why would he do that?’
Celine shrugs, ‘it was his suggestion.’
I raise my palm at her, ‘now let me get this straight—why would a man want to take someone’s wife and adopt someone’s child?’
She hesitates and shrugs, I narrow my eyes and she inhales deeply before she says, ‘look I am positive half of these people are insane.’
‘Celine.’
‘I think he got infatuated with you or something—I don’t know—maybe it has something to do with his closeness with Taylor—all I know is that those two can jump in fires for each other.’
To say that I am taken aback would be a major understatement. What in the living hell?
‘I don’t know what’s wrong with him Heather—people have their own reasons—like Taylor keeping you when he shouldn’t—like your father forcing an alliance with a powerful man when it was dangerous – like--.’
‘You telling me—no advising me to leave Taylor and stay with another man like I could actually do it.’
‘Don’t you want your child to live?’
‘Yes I do—and it hasn’t been confirmed that the child is even there in the first place.’
Celine tilts her head to one side, ‘and if it is?’
I am about to blurt out a stupid answer when a bang echoes throughout the house. Celine and I jump, startled as our eyes turn simultaneously to stare at the closed bedroom door. The loud knock comes again and we don’t even move.
Minutes pass, the knocker is very persistent and I don’t think dangerous horror scenarios in Celine’s head are any less than mine.
‘Celine open the damn door!’ a man bellows.
‘Who is that?’ I mouth wide eyed at her and by the way her fright is quickly replaced by irritation and how she straightens her posture its someone she is not afraid of.
‘Stay.’ Celine mouthes back at me before she struts towards the door, leaves the room and shut it. I hear her feet shuffle down the corridor and then the front door opening followed by a snippy
‘What do you want Alex?’
I freeze—what the hell is he doing here?
‘Where is Heather?’
‘How should I know? And why is everyone looking for Heather anyway?’
‘Celine I don’t have time for this, tell me where she is.’
‘Where is Taylor?’
‘Celine!’
‘That’s not where he is Lex, in case you haven’t noticed I am here and he is not.’
A moment of silence.
‘Let me in.’
‘I am not letting you into my house Alex--.’ A gasp then, ‘how dare you.’
Then Alex yelps followed by a grunt.
‘Didn’t your mama never tell you to not force yourself inside a lady’s house?’
‘You little…’ Alex growls before I hear a loud snapping sound like dry twigs against the glass of the window.
I unfreeze from where I am standing in the room and start frantically seeking for a place to hide. I can’t fit under the bed and the rest of the furniture has no under. The curtain is—useless, maybe behind the door? My heart start thudding as I hear him stomp down the passage and doors opening and closing. I know I am trapped when the door opposite the room I am in slams shut.
I stare at the door as the shadow of him standing at the other side is visible at the tiny space under the door. He stops for a good one minute before the handle start turning. I back away until my back hits the wall. The door cracks open revealing Alex with the evil smug smile I had only ever seen in my nightmares.