Song: My life is in your hands by Kirk Franklin (Christian song)
Chapter 2
My mind still couldn't get over today's earlier incident of Sanusi. The same boy that chased Mama and I few years ago.
His death was something that has never happened in Mansur. It was such a pity that we still didn't know who did it. Now everyone had to watch out for their loved ones, especially their sons. Situations like this made me thankful that I didn't have a brother. But it wasn't like being the only child alive was any better.
I was sitting on my bed in the dark room while thinking of today's incident and I looked outside the window like I always did. There was no light and to make things worse, it was raining heavily. It was such an usual condition for rain to fall in November, let alone a heavy rain. Harmattan never took time to show up, so why now?
Suddenly my attention caught the front of Mallam Audu's gate. The homeless woman and her little daughter were still sitting outside in this heavy rain. It was such a pity to watch this happen to them.
The woman wrapped the black pashmina she used to cover the little girl's face to cover both of their bodies. They were shivering in the cold as they held each other tight.
The weather wasn't safe for these people and there was no one to help them. Something inside me told me to help them, but I had to battle with my mind before I came to a conclusion that I should actually help them. But I was not going to keep them in my house for the whole night. Once the rain stopped, they were going to leave.
I stood up and walked to the sitting room and took the umbrella that kaka always kept behind the long couch. I knocked on her door before entering the room.
She was sitting on the edge of her bed, close to the lighted candle on her left bedside. She sat there with eyes glued to the newspaper in her hand.
"Kaka?" I called her.
She turned to look at me, silently waiting for what I have to say.
"Did you hear about mama Sanusi's son?" I asked randomly.
She nodded her head slowly.
"It was sad." I shook my head in disdain and looked away.
There was a little silence before I spoke up, saying what I actually came here for.
"There is a woman and her daughter sitting outside mallam Audu's house. The ones we see everyday." I said, "Can I bring them in? Rain is beating them anyhow."
She furrowed her eyebrows and looked at me. I knew if she could talk, she would tell me to mind my own business.
After a short staring contest, she just nodded her head and gestured for me to leave, like I was disturbing her. I smiled at her before closing her door and walking to the front door.
The moment I opened the door, a huge volume of water splashed over my body from the rain. I opened the umbrella and walked outside to the house gate. I unlocked the gate door and came to stand in front of the gate door.
The woman and her daughter looked up at me immediately I stood outside. I looked at them and gestured for them to come in.
The mother pointed to herself, questioning if I was talking to her. I nodded and she stood up with her daughter immediately and ran towards me without watching out for any car passing in between them.
The moment they got to the gate, I shut it and took them into the house. Once we got inside the living room, I shut the door and they both removed their slippers because the living room floor was covered in red carpet.
The two of them were soaking wet, like clothes removed from a bucket of water. She held her daughter really close to her but yet the little girl was still covered with the black pashmina all over her face.
"Na gode sosai yar'uwar. Allah ya albarce ki." The woman said the moment I shut the house door.
I looked at her, knowing I didn't understand anything because she spoke too fast. Plus, I wasn't fluent with Hausa either.
"I'm sorry I don't know what you just said." I replied.
"Kina jin harshen Hausa?" She asked.
There were so many ways people have asked me this question in Hausa, but every time I heard 'Kina jin' and 'Hausa', I assumed they were asking if I can hear or speak Hausa. And my response was always the same.
"No." I shook my head.
"My apologies. I just said thank you very much my sister and God will bless you." The woman said with her thick Hausa accent and looked at me with so much empathy.
Looking closer at the woman, she looked way younger than expected. Somewhat in her early or middle twenties. She was dark and skinny and wore a grey hijab over her body. Her eyes were traced with thick black kohl (eyeliner), like most young women in Mansur put. Her right cheek was bruised and her mouth was very dry. She looked like she has been suffering from beatings from a hard fist.
"No problem." I said, having little trust in this woman, especially with her looks. "You can sit down."
She smiled pleasefully and took her daughter with her to the long couch and they both sat on it while I left the opened umbrella to rest by the door.
I walked into my room, hoping they don't steal anything. I opened my bed side drawer and brought out two candles and walked all the way to the indoor kitchen to light them with matches.
Once both candles had fire, I walked back into the sitting room with the woman, and her daughter just staring at me throughout. I dropped one of the candles on the table beside them, and held the other one with me. Besides my useless kerosene lamp, this was the only source of light we had in the house because there was no light and since it was evening, the clouds were getting really dark fast as it rained.
"Menene- sorry." The woman stopped herself, probably remembering I did not speak Hausa, then asked, "What is your name?"
"Miriam." I replied, while sitting on the rough brown single sofa opposite them.
"My name is Hauwa." She smiled, "But you can call me Uwar Maiya."
I frowned in confusion, "What does Uwar Maiya mean?"
"Mother of a witch."
I looked at her dumbfounded. I didn't know whether to laugh, thinking it was a joke, or act serious. Why would somebody want to be called the mother of a witch? I mean, I knew people called her daughter 'Maiya' (witch) because of the story of how dangerous she could be, but that didn't mean they needed to carry the names on their head.
"I will call you Hauwa." I said, "Inna Hauwa."
Inna meant Aunty in Hausa but it wasn't used by many people. I only wanted to give her the respect by calling her Aunty Hauwa, even though she wasn't my aunty, but because she was older than me.
She looked at me like that was the best thing she has heard in ages. "Thank you. You're the first person to call me with respect. Everyone just calls me Uwar Maiya and that is not even my name."
I just stared at her, not saying anything. I knew what people called her but I had to give her that respect because she was older than me. She deserved it.
"So what is your daughters name?" I asked, hoping she wouldn't say 'Maiya' as well.
She looked down at her daughter and smiled, "Kauna. Her name is Kauna."
I looked at Kauna whose face was still covered with the black pashmina. I really didn't understand why this woman covered her face, whether she was embarrassed that her daughter was ugly or she had a man's face.
"Why do you cover her face?" I asked.
"That's the way she wants it and I don't know what is wrong with her." Inna Hauwa gave a light chuckle. "Let me take it off."
She was about removing the pashmina but Kauna placed her hand on it to stop her. After few seconds of curious stare from me, she let her mother remove it.
My eyes stopped blinking once the pashmina was removed. Her face was not what I was expecting. She was not ugly. Neither did she look like a man. It was just something about her eyes. They were not like everyone's own.
Her right eye was baby blue. The most unusual color for any black person's eye color. Her other eye was the normal dark brown eye color everyone of us had. Her skin was very smooth and she had a long natural hair, reaching to her upper back. She was dark skinned like her mother and also had the thick black kohl traced around her eyes.
Kauna looked away the moment she noticed my startled expression.
"What happened to her other eye?" I asked still staring at Kauna in dismay.
"I never figured it out, but she was born this way." Inna Hauwa said with a disapproved expression as she stared at me. "Some people say it's jinn. But I doubt anything is wrong with her, as long as my Jesus knows that my daughter is fine."
I raised my eyebrows at the woman in confusion. My eyes traced at the grey hijab she wore and the dark kohl around her eyes and the faded red henna on her fingernails. Her appearance was that of a Muslim woman, so why did she just say Jesus?
"You're not Muslim?" I furrowed my eyebrows at her.
"Supposedly I am. I was born in a Christian home but now that I am married to Audu, I take it as my second religion." She responded.
This was when I stopped and stared at her in shock. Did she mean mallam Audu?
"You're mallam Audu's wife?" I asked with a surprised expression written all over my face. "The man that lives opposite my house? The teacher?"
She nodded her head without bothering about my surprised expression.
Mallam Audu had a wife? And a daughter?! Who knew.
"How come nobody knows?" I asked like she knew the answer either.
"Because he is ashamed of us. Please don't tell anyone because he will be very disappointed." She begged. "He never lets us out of the house. He even stops me from going to church but I leave secretly every Sunday evening."
I didn't even know where to start. I looked at both of them in the dim light. They were people that needed love. Nobody wanted them, not even their father and husband. This woman was like a homeless person. She stayed outside mallam Audu's house almost everyday and everyone would think they were begging and looking for a house. I even thought she was a widow that came from very far.
"Why do you people always sit outside mallam Audu's gate then? Isn't it your house too? I thought you and Kauna were homeless?" I asked.
She sighed and smiled like she knew I was going to ask the question.
"Everyone thinks so too." She replied. "He gave us instructions that once that Karuw- Rosey woman comes into the house and they are about to start their 'trade' we should go outside the gate."
Funny how she was also aware about the 'trade' slang in town too.
"Miss Rosey? As in that woman that wears the NYSC uniform everyday?"
She nodded and continued her explanation. "We once used to sit downstairs whenever they were upstairs but they would make very loud noises and when I complained one time about it, he said I should never be inside the house again when she is around. Out of anger, he said I shouldn't even be in the compound. So we decided to sit outside the gate every time she comes to do... 'trade'."
"Wait." I scoffed, trying not to laugh at how crazy this situation sounded. "Your husband is sleeping with another woman in your house and he chases you out of the house whenever they're doing it?"
She nodded with disregard as her eyes were looking to the ground this time. I stared at her not knowing what to do. This woman has surely suffered. But who would let their husband sleep with another woman? And let him chase them out of the house whenever it happened?
"Why do you let him do it? He is your husband." I said, starting to sound like a fighter.
"My parents always wanted to get rid of me soon and he was their only choice. When he took my hand in marriage while I was 14, my mother said I should obey everything he says because he is my husband. Whatever he does, I should allow him do it because he is a man." She shrugged. "He gives us very disrespectful instructions. Like when visitors come to visit, he locks us up in the kitchen store and tells us to be quiet. He is so ashamed of us."
"Your parents are not here, so you have every right as a wife to fight for your husband."
"That's not my problem. His azzakari is very small so what should I fight for?" She said with a small chuckle.
"Azzakari? what is that?" I furrowed my eyebrows.
She looked at me surprised that I didn't know what she was talking about. She touched her private part to illustrate that she was talking about penis.
"Oh." I looked at her wide eyed when I got what she meant. I didn't know if I should laugh or keep quiet.
"It's the men with that size that always have the guts to have more than one woman." She scoffed. I still stared at her in amusement and she added, "Don't worry you're a small girl. You wouldn't need to know about these things now."
Neither did I even want to know about it.
I sighed and just shook my head. Her eyes looked back to the ground as she was still playing with Kauna's hair.
"Did you ever wish you married someone better?" I asked.
Her eyes looked up and caught mine before she smiled, "No."
"Why not?"
"Because I would have never given birth to her." She stared down at her daughter and played with her hair. "She's so precious."
I looked away from inna Hauwa and glanced at Kauna who was quiet the whole time. I've never heard her talk. So I decided that she will join the conversation too.
"What school do you go to?" I asked Kauna.
She looked at me and then turned to her mother to give her response.
"She doesn't go to school." Inna Hauwa responded for her. "Her father educates her at home."
I looked at Kauna and knew why she never said a word since. Maybe she didn't know English.
"She doesn't know how to speak English, right?" I asked.
Her mother chuckled. "She does but not too well." She played with kauna's hair. "She is not talking now because she is probably shy."
I nodded slowly. Silence fell as the only source of noise was the rain that never wanted to end. I sat there staring at the side window and watching the trees move as the heavy rain and wind pushed them back and forth.
Kauna laid down on the long couch with her head on her mother's lap. I was pitying for the couch because it was going to get damp from their wet bodies.
Kauna's mother was just humming some songs to keep herself busy as she was playing with kauna's hair. Throughout the silence, I could feel Kauna staring at me.
"Ummah?" Kauna finally spoke up with her little voice as she looked at her mother. Her Hausa accent was no much different from her mother although hers was that of a smaller child's own. "Please can you sing that song you alway sing when mallam Audu finish beating you?"
According to what I learnt from my friends, Ummah was another name for 'mother' other than the term 'mama'.
Inna Hauwa looked at me in embarrassment and turned to look at her daughter before she gave a small laugh. "You didn't have to say it like that. And, yes I will sing for you."
Kauna didn't say anything again as she just turned back to staring at me. I looked away from them immediately, avoiding kauna's eyes.
"You don't have to worry and don't you be afraid.." Inna Hauwa started singing. "Joy comes in the morning, Troubles they don't last always.."
I listened closely to every word although I knew the song very well. It was one of the most popular Christian songs sang in Nigeria.
"For there's a friend named Jesus, Who will wipe your tears away.." She touched kauna's face, "And if your heart is broken, Just lift your hands and say..I know that I can make it, I know that I can stand.."
"No matter what may come my way, My life is in your hands.." She continued singing from there.
I looked at her as she sang. She sang it so courageously, so confident. She sang it like she knew everything was going to be okay. But looking at her, I didn't think there was any hope, not anytime soon. She was suffering and she didn't know it. Her daughter was known as a witch. She was known as the witch's mother. Her husband was sleeping with another woman. She got beaten by this same vending machine. Her parents were probably struggling at home and yet she was sitting down here like everything was normal.
"I like when I sing this song." She said, cutting me from my thoughts. "It makes me have nothing to worry about."
I looked at her weirdly.
"You're suffering." I finally told her. "All these pain you're going through and you think there's nothing to worry about?"
"My sister" She smiled, focused on Kauna's hair, "What is life without pain?"
'Nothing' was the first thing that came to my mind. Before I could respond, Kaka walked into the sitting room with eyes focused on Kauna and her mother.
Immediately inna Hauwa caught kaka's eyes, she removed Kauna's head from her body and squatted to the ground to greet her in Hausa. Kaka did not smile but just nodded her head in response.
She turned to me and gave me a piece of paper before walking back to her room. On it wrote:
'Take them to your room and let them stay for the night. After today, never allow them inside.'
I really wish I could argue with kaka now but it was impossible to argue with a mute woman. I really could not let inna Hauwa and Kauna enter my room, they were complete strangers and their bodies were still damped from the rain.
Unfortunately, there was nothing else I could do but obey.
Three hours passed and the rain was still there. The last time I checked the clock, it was 9:25 pm. I was getting sleepy and tired but I couldn't sleep off with inna Hauwa and Kauna still inside the house. Please was mallam Audu and miss Rosey's trade really that taskful?
We were in my room and I sat on the floor facing the bed while Inna Hauwa and her little daughter were both on my bed. Kauna was lying down again on her mother's lap and her mother just stared into space with a very sad expression. I was really curious to know what was on her mind but I knew it was not my business.
"Ummah," Kauna tapped her which caused her to look at her daughter and smile.
I had a feeling Kauna was her only source of happiness because every little thing she did, she smiled.
"Mother bird story." Kauna said to her mother, like it was a code word.
"Not today."
"Dan allah, Ummah." She begged, burying her face into her mother's stomach.
"I've heard." Inna Hauwa responded while giving me a glance before turning back to playing with kauna's hair. Then she started, "Mother bird, mother bird?"
"Story." Kauna responded.
"Once upon a time?"
"Time time."
I chuckled at how they started it. Any normal human being would have started the story with a simple 'Story story'.
"There was one special mother bird who hatched just one baby bird. She was nothing like the other birds who all gave birth to plenty birds. One day, she could sense there was trouble outside her and her baby's nest. Guess what she did? She took her little baby bird to another bird's nest and told the other mother bird, who had other baby birds, to look after her baby bird.
"The mother bird flew away to settle the trouble, leaving her baby bird with a stranger mother bird. And guess what? She never came back." Inna Hauwa said as she shook her head.
"Why didn't she come back?" Kauna asked, looking her mother attentively.
Her mother just stared into space. "I don't know why but she never did."
"What will happen to the baby bird?" Kauna asked.
Inna Hauwa looked at Kauna. "Do you want to know?"
Kauna nodded her head.
"They ate her." She said.
I was the one that got startled this time. Then curiously I asked, "Why would they do that?"
"Because that is how this world works;" She said, "Once something does not belong to you, you take it for granted."
I nodded my head slowly. It was a meaningful story. But wasn't it too deep for a little child like Kauna?
Suddenly, there was a loud banging on the front door of the house. Everyone jumped and became startled. Who was banging the door by this time of the night?
The banging sound repeated again.
We all looked at each other not knowing what to do. What if it was Sanusi's killer?
I went to my window and peeped through the curtain. The gate door was wide open.
"I forgot to lock the gate." I groaned while staring at it. The window could not reveal the house door, making me unable to see the person knocking on the door.
The banging got louder again. No shouting. No name calling. Just bangs.
Where was my dog when we needed him?
"Who's that?" Inna Hauwa whispered to me. Kauna was clung to her, wrapping herself around her mother for safety.
I silently left the window side and looked at the two of them and they both looked as scared as I was.
The banging sound was still there. This made my heart drop in fear but I knew I had to get to the door.
"I'm going to check." I whispered to them.
"I will follow you." Inna Hauwa whispered back and turned to Kauna. "Hide behind the drawer."
Kauna nodded her head fearfully and silently went behind my bedside drawer and hid behind it. She was lucky her small body could not be seen behind it.
The banging still continued. I blew away the fire from both candles in the room and the room eventually went dark, but the moonlight from the window was giving a little light to the room.
I opened the door gently and tip toed into the parlor. The moment I got there, I jumped by the sight of Kaka's presence. She was standing outside the kitchen door with a long mortar stick in her hand.
She gestured for me to be quiet and once inna Hauwa saw the mortar stick, she yelped.
"Shhh." I hushed her.
The loud knock came on again, louder and scarier because we were in front of the door. I was scared to go closer, so kaka came infront of us and took the courage to open the door.
She unlocked the main door, opened it as fast as she could and held up the mortar stick to the person by the door.
I was about running but then I stopped when I noticed that the person by the door was no other than mallam Audu.
His tall black body was wet from the rain and he looked a bit tattered with his blue kaftan shirt buttons undone and his kaftan trousers falling loose from his waist. I could tell he just finished his taskful 'trade' with Miss Rosey and went about to look for inna Hauwa and Kauna. He had an angry expression plastered on his face. This was the first time I saw him since the strike started.
I sighed in relief and moved closer and gestured for kaka to bring down the mortar stick. I unlocked the net door as well and opened it for him.
"Good evening, mallam." I gave a light chuckle because of the fear that was in me. "You scared all of us. What can we do for you?"
He refused to answer as his angry eyes focused on the person behind me. He pushed me away and walked inside the parlor forcefully.
Out of surprise, I turned to look at kaka who had an annoyed expression. If she could talk, she would have kicked him out of the house.
"So this is where you have been?! And I went round the street looking for you!" He roared at inna Hauwa. "Where is Kauna?!"
He looked around the semi-dark parlor but did not find her.
"Where is she?!" He barked and turned to me and kaka.
I was about to tell him where she was when inna Hauwa said, "I left her in the street. I only came here to ask for food."
Then I knew we had to cooperate.
"Are you out of your mind?!" He pointed his index finger to his temple and rushed in front of her, making her move back and almost fall down. She looked so scared of him. Never have I seen such a human afraid of someone like the way inna Hauwa's facial expression was.
"Me and you are going out now to look for her!" He pulled her by her ear.
Kaka came rushing towards them to stop him from his madness but he halted his hands in front of her. I, on the other hand, was just standing by the door and watching in fear.
"No disrespect but let me handle her myself. Ki jin ko?" He told kaka calmly before pulling inna hauwa's ear to walk out of the door.
She was in pain and struggled her ears off mallam Audu before she fell to the ground. He turned back angrily at her and started kicking her by her stomach.
"You think I'm here to play?!" He shouted and continue kicking her. My eyes widened in shock. Anh anh? In our house again?
Kaka came closer to pull him away but he brushed her hands off and almost fell her to the ground. I rushed to an annoyed kaka who was ready to beat the life out of mallam Audu. I patted her and told her not to worry.
Mallam Audu yanked inna Hauwa's hair from under her hijab and started pulling her out of the house. I was holding on to kaka as this was happening. They were by the door when suddenly, a bang sound came from my room.
Mallam Audu stopped and turned to look inside the house with curiosity on the face.
"There is someone else in this house?!" He yanked her hair back as he entered the house. "I knew you were hiding this girl!"
He slapped inna Hauwa's head and pulled her with him to my room. I rushed to the room with them to try to save Kauna but unfortunately, mallam Audu caught Kauna standing in the middle of my room.
"So this is how it is baa?" He looked at inna Hauwa. "I will deal with the two of you today."
Kauna stood there in fear and what happened came unexpectedly. She peed on herself. It came dripping down to the floor. My floor!
"Maiya!" Mallam Audu shouted at her while pulling a disgusted look. "This cannot stop me."
Even her father called her a 'witch'.
He pulled Kauna's hand and dragged both of them outside. He dragged them to the ground with one on each of his hands and off they evacuated the house. It was such a pity to see the sight of a mother and daughter suffering in the hands of one man. Just one stupid man.
I looked out the door and watched them being dragged outside the gate in the rain. I really wanted to help them but I knew it was not my business to interfere with their personal lives. I was not a friend or family to them. I was only their neighbour who had been a stranger all these while.
*******
It had been over an hour after the incident and I could not sleep. I lay on my bed and faced my room window to stare at mallam Audu's house. There was still no light in any house in the street. But I was still really curious to know what was going on in his house right now.
My room still had a faint smell of Kauna's piss, even though I cleaned it off.
Inna Hauwa and Kauna. They were all I could think about now.
What really surprised me was that I never knew who mallam Audu really was. He was only our history teacher, but who knew this went on in his life. He was such an aggressive man to Kauna and her mother. I wonder how Miss Rosey handled him in bed.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the front door. The second time this evening. But this time calmer.
I got up from my bed and checked the window immediately. The gate door was open again.
Why did I always forget to lock it?
I walked quietly into the dark parlor as the knock came on again. Kaka did not come out and I knew she should be deep asleep. I looked at the clock with the little light from outside and it was 11 pm. Okay, I was scared now. Who knocked at someone's house by this time of the night?
Before I turned to the door, I saw inna Hauwa and Kauna's slippers beside the door. They forgot their slippers when mallam Audu was dragging them outside.
I looked back at the door and swallowed up all the fear in me. If I die, I die. Then I opened the door. Standing there was inna Hauwa with Kauna sleeping in her arms.
"Please help me." Inna Hauwa whimpered as she was looking troubled. She was slightly wet because of the rain that was still outside. Her face was wet but this was definitely sweat and not rain.
"What happened?" I asked curiously.
"Please take Kauna." She said while handing over a sleeping Kauna to me. I quickly held Kauna so that she wouldn't fall to the ground.
I was so confused at the moment and was trying to figure out what was wrong when suddenly, my eyes caught the bottom part of inna Hauwa's grey hijab which had blood stain. I could have said this was period blood but the stain was in front of her hijab and not behind.
"Did he injure you?" I furrowed my eyebrows while looking back at her in concern.
She looked behind her back worriedly without responding. Then turned back to face me.
"Please just take care of Kauna." She said lastly.
With that, she turned around immediately and ran away to the gate.
"Wait!" I shouted but it was too late as she was already stepping out of the gate.
What was that all about?
I looked at Kauna wrapped around my hands and shoulders. She was sleeping peacefully like there was nothing happening.
I looked up and stared outside the opened house door in front of me. The rain looked heavier than it was earlier on and it was hard for me to trace inna Hauwa anywhere.
After tucking in Kauna on my bed, I sat at the edge of the bed and stared outside the window. I still couldn't process what just happened this evening. Why did inna Hauwa just leave Kauna with me? I was a stranger to them but yet she just kept me of all people with her daughter. Why did she look so troubled? Why did she even have blood on her hijab?
The thunder rumbled and this caused me to jump a little. I turned around to check if it woke Kauna but thankfully she was still sleeping.
I turned back to the window to see mallam Audu's gate open. I stood up immediately I saw inna Hauwa coming out of it.
I quickly ran out of my room and left the house. I didn't care if it was raining, I refused to go out with anything over my head as I was just focused on catching up with her.
Once I opened the gate, I found her walking a few metres away from her house.
"Inna Hauwa!" I shouted, which caused her to stop walking and turn to look at me.
I quickly ran towards her and stood close to her. Then I noticed she had a heavy ghana-must-go bag with her. I could tell she was running away.
"What of Kauna?" I asked while standing under the rain, "You're leaving but not with her?"
"She's with you." She replied in a haste.
"You can't keep your daughter with a stranger like me."
'"Please just take care of her." She begged. "You're the only one that I can trust."
"Why me?" I shook my head.
"You're a very kind person I know and-"
"But what of you?" I cut her.
Before she could answer, there was a loud sound coming from inside mallam Audu's house. This caused both of us to look back in fear.
"I have to go now before he catches me." She said immediately, getting ready to run.
"Wait." I stopped her, "Where are you going to now?"
She didn't say anything as she looked hard at me. Her eyes were very sad and her bruised mouth was in a faint thin line. She opened her mouth to say something but before she could say anything, she turned around and ran away as fast as possible so that I would not catch her.
I couldn't stop her this time and I couldn't run after her. It was not safe to be running in the street by this time when someone just got killed yesterday.
I looked round at the rain around me and I held myself together. I quickly ran back to the house and locked the gate door this time.
I entered the house and took my slippers off before walking into the living room then on to my room. I stood by my room door and stared at Kauna sleeping on my bed.
She looked so peaceful and innocent. If only she knew what was going on right now. If only.
I didn't enter the room, I just shut the door behind me quietly and leaned against the door outside the room. I put my hand on my head and stared at the ground with my frustrated self.
The moment has come for me. The unexpected turn. I was only being kind to inna Hauwa and Kauna and this was where it led to.
I opened the door a little and stared at a sleeping Kauna again. I sighed as I continue staring at her before I looked up to the roof in my worried and confused state. I have never had to look after someone else way younger than me in my life.
God, what was I going to do with a stranger's daughter now?
A witch for that matter.
________________
END OF CHAPTER 2