Star

Chapter 24- Sunrise

Coal dropped Star off at her home without a word, collecting his ring from her. The sun was already peeking out of the shadows now, the air was moist but the sky was still dark. And she was tired. Star's whole body ached for her bed. She yawned as Coal drove off, past a police car parked on the street.

She entered her apartment complex and her spirits were up, this evening she would have the answer. This evening, she would have her mother back. She imagined what her father's face would look like when—she cancelled the thought. When she brought her mother back, they were leaving. There was nothing else about it. They would drive and just keep on driving until the apartment was just a dot behind the sidemirrors.

She was putting her key in the door when she heard raised voices from the other side. She furrowed her brows and leaned in to listen more. It was her father and three or four strange men. That was odd—he was hardly ever up this early. She opened the door quietly and stopped. Everyone in the living room stopped too and stared at her. The other three men were wearing police uniforms and in front of them was a map of Lagos. Her father rose first, his eyes a strange mix of relief and ungodly anger.

"Where were you?" He roared. He came towards her, his hands jittery. "God, I went into you room to ask if you wanted anything but there was nothing, you weren't even there, Star. Where were you?"

His eyes were watering and Star was just there, standing, unable to say anything. What could she say? She never expected him to check up on her, he never did that. She was thinking of what to say when her train of thought was interrupted.

A deadly punch to the face is sure to do that.

Star was on the floor now, her hand to her face. The other policemen just stood there; it wasn't their concern.

Her father took one more step towards her and she crawled back, her eyes wide. "Where were you?" He asked again, his roar reduced to a bellow.

Star stumbled on the wall and now she was crying.

God, she was crying.

This wasn't the first time he had hit her, but it was the hardest and her jaw hurt, her head ached and her eye was swollen. She was sobbing and crying and everyone was staring at her. Then her father looked at his hands, and then her.

"I...I'm" he was beginning to say but Star didn't care for what he had to say. She ran before anyone could stop her and locked her room door behind her.

***

He came at intervals during the day: sometimes he sounded apologetic, begging her to open the door so they could talk; other times he was angry, screaming at her to open her goddamn door unless he'd break it. At all times she was deathly scared. At some point, she heard the front door bang and let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding.

As if on cue, she got a text from Coal.

Outside. Ten minutes.

Star didn't pack anything, she just left the room coldly, got out of the apartment and walked to Coal's car with a deathly calm she didn't understand herself.

She entered the car, put on her seatbelt and waited for Coal to drive.

"Your eye," he said, staring at her, "what happened?"

"Let's go," she said, her eyes on the dashboard. "It's not your business. You're not my father."

Coal looked at her for one more moment, shrugged and drove. Both of them on their way to what they thought destiny was.

***

Doreen inspected the satchel with the items inside and closed her eyes over it, breathing slowly.