LAURA

CHAPTER THIRTY NINE

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Two months after the naming ceremony one late evening Laura received the most unexpected guest in their house.
Hajiya Abdulrahim’s grandmother came knocking.
With her came Ummi’s elder brother Baffa Dahir with Ummi and Abba.
Laura was surprised as to why the sudden visit but she served them water.
Few minutes later Abdulrahim rushed into the house.
Ummi called him on their way to the house that he should come quickly.
Confusion was written all over his face about the sudden visit and that too from Hajiya and Baffa Dahir.
He greeted everybody.
Hajiya who was holding her great grandson Adeel told him to sit and wait for the rest of the guest.
He sat beside Laura and gave her a questioning look which she shrugged, because even her she was confused as to who are the rest of the guest were.
Thirty minutes later Inna, Safiyyah and Dr Auwal to came into the house.
Abbah called Dr Auwal earlier and told him their attention is needed in Abdulrahim’s house and if possible they should come with Inna.

Hajiya quickly passed the baby she was holding to Ummi and stood up when they came in. She then pulled a confused Ummah into a tight hug.
She broke the hug after some time and starter speaking “Sabeeha my child it is truly you, my baby you are alive.” She touched her face.
On hearing that Inna knew her greatest fear is finally coming to life.
Finally safiyyah’s real mother is here to claim her.
But how did she find her?
It took a lot of consoling before Hajiya calmed down.
She even dragged Ummah to where she was sitting previously and made her sit by her side.

It turned out that Ummah Safiyyah biological mother is Hajiya.
Sabeeha was her real name.
She was Hajiya’s third and last born. Hajiya gave birth to her when nobody ever taught she will be given birth again. Considering the age of her last child ummi who was sixteen years old.
Because of the age difference with the other two children, she became the apple of her parent’s eyes.
She was spoiled rotten by her siblings too.
Everybody loved and adored Sabeeha.

Until she went missing years ago during Ummi’s wedding.
With the house full of wedding guest no one noticed a three year old leaving the house.

For many years everybody searched for her but eventually they gave up except her siblings and parents.

Two months ago Ummi overhead the conversation Inna had with Laura and Safiyyah in the room on Adeel’s naming ceremony.
When she heard Inna said that it happened forty years ago she did the calculations and it was as of that time her sister went missing.
But she couldn’t be too sure so she had to find a way to confirm it before she told anyone. And the only way was through DNA test which she is going to match with hers.
So she decided to visit Umma at her house two weeks ago.
She told Ummah she wanted to borrow on of her dress so she can give her tailor to make something like that she saw her wear it some days back.
Ummah ushered her to her bedroom and opened her closet so Ummi can pick the dress and when Umma was not looking she took the comb which had some strands of hair on it from the vanity and put it into her bag without Ummah seeing her.
She was very sure it was Safiyyah’s hair because safiyyah is the only woman in the house.
The DNA test came out this morning and it was positive.
She could not contain her joy of finding her long lost sister that she had to call her brother and mother. Who took the next available flight to Abuja.

Inna knew that finally the day she has been dreading had come.
Safiyyah biological daughter have come to claim her.
The world will know that Safiyya and Laura are not related to her by any chance. Saffiyah will refer to another person as mother and her will be the other woman who was selfish to return the girl she found many years ago.
From the way Hajiya is hugging her daughter tightly she knew that woman missed her dear daughter badly.
And if Hajiya decide to press charges she will end the rest of her miserable life in prison as the selfish woman who never returned the girl her husband found forty years ago.
If only she had rep…………………………….

Her thought was interrupted by Hajiya who called her name.
“Inna we have been in-laws for some time now but I am only meeting you today. Truly everyone was right when they said you are a good woman. I cannot thank you enough for raising my daughter well all this years.
Thank you for showing her a mothers love when I was not there. I don’t know how to thank you enough” Hajiya sobbed