Saleem's POV
There was no way in the world we could give Habeebah what she wanted so collaborating with the police and tracking their call down was our only option. They didn't want money, I'm sure she already has a lot of them hidden because she's been in the game for years now. I'm certain only the surface of her stolen wealth had been seized.
" was the call long enough to track them?" Zakiyah's father asks the DPO, as we all watch him walk into the office. " it was not. But we were able to get close, they're somewhere in the bushy areas of Igabi" He says. " Toh, I'm going to call a military friend of mine for backup, we're getting my daughter back today no matter what"
" I'll ask my dad for help as well" Being from an influential home makes us lucky enough to have the privilege of having these connections. " Alright then, we'll be ready in 30 minutes"
Zakiyah's POV
Different thoughts and ideas have been going through my head on how to get out of this intoxicating place and only one seems feasible. " can't I get something to at least drink?" I ask with a dry throat, I'm sure it's been complete 24 hours or more since I last put something in my system. The horrible smell of cigarettes around me is making matters worse.
" Shut up" the husky voice responds. " Please, I'm going to die of thirst and hunger here"
" You'd make things easier for us" he replies and I hear his partner whisper. " We're not killing her until our boss can freely walk around these streets" lol, the fact that it's never going to happen is funny. Habeebah's demand is even completely absurd, because who in their right mind will let her go free?. Even with all the corruption in the country and I'm more than sure that the country wouldn't stoop that low. " Get her some food and water from the back" the partner of the husky voice owner sounds more considerate, definitely smarter.
The blindfold around my eyes slowly begins to unfold and a wave of relief sweeps my entire being as I slowly blink my eyes open. The space was dark and small, with small rays of sunlight finding their way through the holes in the roof of the uncompleted building. My goodness, the place's a mess. Used cigarettes are all around the sandy floor of the building alongside planks of wood with nails sticking out of them. " Maybe you could convince your father to meet our boss's demands early. The situation you're in doesn't suit you" the man says from behind me and I tilt my head to the side to try to catch a glimpse of him as he unties the rope around my wrists. The sand has literally ruined my feet, I can imagine the different kinds of insects that have feasted on me.
He's young and I dare to add, actually strikingly handsome. He's light skinned, he doesn't look Nigerian even. He looks like all these arabian Instagram black guys with a well kept beard. How in the world is he a kidnapper?. " But you know that's not going to happen right?" I carefully ask and he smirks while walking to stand in front of me. " It's not going to happen, I know" He has a different agenda. " Then why in the world am I here?"
" Well, I'm obeying my boss"
" and I believe that's not Habeebah" I say and watch him laugh, Juwairiyah would be more than mesmerised by this sight. " You're smart, I like you. Don't think of trying to escape when you go pee" Well, way to ruin my only feasible plan.
" Who are you really working for?" I ask and after seconds of a staring contest, he finally decides to answer. " Habeebah's indebted to my boss, to get out of her debt she needs to be able to roam around freely first. She told my boss about her plan to hold you captive and regain her freedom and he became interested in you. So just so you know, we'll be heading to Qatar by midnight"
" I'm the price for Habeebah's debt"
" Yeah, his majesty's going to love how smart you are" You've got to be kidding me. " this is a joke"
" Well laugh if you find it funny"
" I found this pack of chin chin and malt for her" I hear the husky voice say while approaching us. Now he's Nigerian, his head's shiny and dark in complexion, plus he has a huge build. He probably found me weightless to carry. " Eat it and get some energy at least" the handsome kidnapper says, throwing the packed snack and can to me. " can I get some water?"
" How ungrateful" the husky voice owner snaps, about to lunge for me. " Calm down man, just get it for her"
" you get it for her, stupid girl" he responds and pulls a chair to sit in front of me. " You'll probably beat her if I leave, so go"
" she needs serious beating, she dey craze"
" please, no vex. Go and bring the water" with a stink eye at me, he finally leaves again.
He can't possibly be right about sending me out of the country, it definitely can't be. I can't let it happen no matter what. I'd rather die than ever be put in a situation where I have to submit myself to someone for any use.
C'mon, slave trade isn't a thing anymore. It sounds entirely absurd and crazy. " Please tell me you're joking"
" I told you to laugh if you found it funny" he answers and slams his behind on a chair. How could Habeebah even be in debt with all the crazy millions she has been stealing for years?.
Gambling, that has to be it.
How greedy and thirsty for money can one be?.
What in the world did we get ourselves into?
" aren't you going to eat?" He says, getting me out of my thoughts. " I need water first"
" Take the malt first" I really don't have a choice right now. The husky voice owner finally arrives with a bottle of water and literally uses it to smack my forehead. Oh Allah, I can't believe this is what has become of me.
I honestly can't let things escalate from how they are now, I can't really continue like this. I can't even wait to be rescued, it's either I start with Allah's name and find how to escape this place or nothing. There's no guarantee I can be rescued before what that guy said earlier actually happens. Maybe he's just messing with me right?
I mean these things don't happen anymore.
It only happens in movies, olden days movies even. The world has evolved, who sees a girl, picks interest and kidnaps her for himself now?.
What if he's not interested in me?
Organ harvesting is getting high now, what if that's it?.
Subhanallah.
No there's no way this is going to be how my life ends.
" I want to pee" it's now or never Zakiyah. The rays of sunlight were beginning to slowly disappear indicating the approach of night time. " Use the empty water bottle" as expected, the husky voice owner responds first. " I'll take you, don't pull any stunt"
" You know she's going to pull a stunt. Let her take her piss in front of us here"
" She's a young lady"
" ehen, what does she have that you haven't seen?"
" Yeah I can't deal with you anymore" he says and within seconds there's a syringe sticking out of the big guys neck. I gasp as I watch him fall to the ground helplessly, thats a tranquilliser I hope. Or did he kill him?.
My heart begins to race faster as he walks towards me and I close my eyes tight shut, holding back the tears. Nothing happens, he's not stabbing me with anything.
I feel the ropes around my ankles loosen and finally open my eyes to meet him staring at me intently. " Do you want to pee or are you trying to escape?" He asks softly, making me swallow a lump as I stare back at him and the lifeless body of the huge guy lying metres behind him. " did you kill him?" Voice shaky, I ask. " Uhmm maybe, if he's found on time he'll be fine" Inalillahi wa ina ilaihi rajiun. " Are you going to kill me too?"
" my boss needs you without scratches" he responds with a smile. How can you kill someone and be smiling?. " Don't worry, you're going to get used to seeing a whole lot of dead bodies" he says again. " so do you want to pee or not?" It's either you escape or nothing Zakiyah, pick yourself up and be strong.
Peeling my eyes away from the body in front of me, I stare back at him, " I need to pee" I say. " Alright, we have a pretty long walk ahead of us. Let's go" he says, standing up from his squat position. " Get up" he says to me and I try to locate my slippers around me.
They were beside a bunch of rusted nails scattered on the sandy floor and i find a way to slip a few inside my Jean pocket under my hijab, they shall be my weapon against him. I feel a sudden sting on the left side of my head and I gently tap it to try and at least calm myself down, only for me to find it moist, from blood. " I'm bleeding" fear filled in my voice, I say after letting out a loud gasp. " You'll get treated on the plane. For now, let's move, use the space on the left to do your thing" he says and I slowly walk into it, there's water there, luckily it doesn't stink.
Staring at the blood stain on my palm, images of Ameerah in her soaked dress cloud my mind, almost destabilising my stance. She wasn't the best of people, but she really didn't deserve to be shot to death by her own mother. She might have been a bitch countless times, but she had underlying trauma, she could have been better with therapy and I would have been able to get an elder sister figure in my life.
If I do get on that plane, I can't imagine how my life's going to completely change. I don't know what they'll do to me, I don't know what my life's going to turn to, even with all the wealth my father has, what if he won't be able to find me?. I have a beautiful future I've envisioned for myself and I'm more than certain getting on that plane will ruin me. I can't pay the price for Habeebah's bad deeds, In Sha Allah I won't.
Zipping up my jeans after washing up, I take a nail out from my pocket, the same way he stabbed the big guy in the neck, I plan to stab his stomach. I can't reach his neck without him noticing my movements, so it has to be his stomach. It'll be enough to slow him down.
" it's about time you come out. I'm warning you, Don't try anything" I hear him say from outside and I open the door finally, hiding my hands under my hijab. " Open your hands, Don't hide them under your hijab" obey Zakiyah, you're going to definitely find an opportunity to get him. I swiftly place the nail back into my pocket and expose my palms so he can see them. " Don't pull any tricks. Walk in front of me" he says and takes out a gun from his pocket, scaring the hell out of me. " try anything silly and I'll shoot. Now, walk"
" I thought I was needed with no bruises"
" Think again, I can kill you if I want"
" You're just bluffing" I say and instantly hear a loud gun shout, making me scream out of my lungs. This bastard.
" I missed intentionally. Now, walk" he says and I calmly obey, I'll stay patient, an opportunity to hurt him would present itself, I'm certain.
As we walk out of the uncompleted building, he hands me a torch light to hold in order for us to see a clear path. We're surrounded by bushes and the only thing running through my mind is the amount of dangerous reptiles and insects that can be here, Subhanallah. It's like I'm really bound to die here.
I find myself reciting ayyatul-qursi and kalimatul shahada as we walk in the pitch dark night around bushes, with crickets singing out as loud as possible. " So you're abandoning Habeebah, how did she even get into debt?" It's a question that's been running around my head since I found out what the real plan for me was.
It took him a while to finally realise that speaking to me was going to make things less scary for now. " She gambled all her wealth" he answers. Her obsession for money led her to that, now that's just sad. I don't know if I should be sad for her like how I feel for her son, they were both obsessed. Instantly stopping my pace, I shine the torch light around the bushes as I hear a hiss. Subhanallah, " there's a snake" I whisper slowly, moving backwards to stay closer to him, not forgetting to take out my nail. " give me the torch" he says and I obey. He finally gets in front of me and I use the opportunity to stab his lower back with the nail, for more effect, I drag the nail across his skin, making him groan loudly pain with a deep, long cut. He finally falls to the ground and I stare at the blood stain on my palm, images of Ameerah in her soaked wedding dress cloud my mind again but I snap out of it instantly and take to my heels. I know the cut won't stop him from running after me, but It's going to buy me time even if I have no idea where exactly I'm running to.
At least I know the path won't take me Qatar.
Even while slowly trying to catch my breath, my legs kept moving on their own with the torch in my hands. He doesn't have a torch with him so it's going to be hard for him to find me, because it's literally black out here, a deep shade of black even, if anything like it exists.
I reduce my speed as I begin to hear muffled voices around me, in order to listen to know if I should run back or run forward. " we'll continue searching for her tomorrow, it's already late" I hear the voice say. They came for me. " Daddy" I scream instantly and begin to run towards where I could hear voices. " Saleem" I scream again. " Zakiyah" That's my dad. " Zakiyah where are you?" Saleem screams and a sense of relief fills me as I could clearly hear their voices, I'm close to them. " Saleem" I scream again, running faster. " Da.." I lose my voice from a throbbing pain I could suddenly feel in my neck. Trying to keep my eyes open as I fall to my knees, they meet the dark pair of the handsome kidnapper.
I was so close.
Saleem's POV
She was about to scream out to her father again when we lost her again and heard a gunshot, making us all panic, her father, even more. " Follow the sound of the gun, they're close" the military head of the operation orders and we all follow.
I really hope she's still alive. As we ran closer to where we heard the gunshot erupt from, my light from my flash shines on a tree, with the back of a man's head sticking out.
It's not a gang of kidnappers, it's just a man. He had shot into the air to lead us away from where they were. How sly.
I turn off my flashlight and signal to Zakiyah's father to inform the others of my finding.
Slowly walking towards the tree I saw him hiding behind with a gun in my hand from behind, a handsome man reveals himself from behind the tree, aiming his gun at my head.
" Drop your weapon" he says and his blood stained shirt catches my attention. Don't tell me he killed her. " where is she?" I ask, walking closer to him. " I won't hesitate to pull the trigger if you come any closer" he snaps but I don't stop.
Within seconds, I hear multiple gunshotz from behind the man and he falls to the ground. The military had surrounded us and shot him right in the of the back of his head. There's no way he can survive it. " Zakiyah wake up, she needs medical attention" I hear Zakiyah's father cry out behind the tree and I rush there as well to find a lifeless and blood stained body of Zakiyah in his arms. I fall to my knees and take her hand in mine to check her pulse, she's alive Alhamdulillah. " We need to get her to the hospital before it's too late"
In Sha Allah, it won't be.