Aba was nervous. She knew that something was happening, but she didn’t know what. She had been awakened earlier than usual and allowed to walk around the compound of her prison. Her handler, whom she had come to surprisingly like, had been more quiet than usual, and Aba could tell that she was not happy. It took the second cleansing bath for her to figure out what was happening. Her time had run out, and she was going to be used as a sacrifice.
She felt panic rising within her and tried to stem it. Panicking was not going to change anything. She had been praying daily, hoping that Rami would somehow be able to help her, but even as she thought this, she knew that the mission had been almost impossible. The things she had been allowed to tell Rami were not enough to lead her here, or even point her in the right direction. Aba had wept many times during her capture. The most painful part of the whole situation was that the father she thought had come into her life to make up for the past was the one who did this to her. Knowing that he had only returned to get close enough to lure her into this trap had hurt so much. He had deceived everybody, and Aba wished that there was a way for her to send a message to her mother, especially, to stop trusting the treacherous, wicked man. There was no telling what else he could do if he could set her up this way.
“You lied to me,” Aba accused without turning around when she heard the door to her small room open. “You made me think that I had more time.”
“I am sorry. I didn’t want you to be anxious.”
“So what is going to happen to me?” Aba asked, trying to sound brave even though she was quaking inside.
“You have until sundown. If your people don’t find you, you will be taken into the shrine room.” She didn’t say what was going to happen there. They both knew.
“Nobody is coming,” Aba said neutrally. “I have to accept that.”
“There’s still time. Maybe —”
“Stop giving me false hope! ” Aba burst out. “It would have been kinder to let me accept my fate from the beginning instead of planting this false sense of hope in me.”
There was a beat of silence, and then, “I am sorry.”
Aba deflated. “No, forgive me. I am just —”
“No, you’re right. Maybe my need to save someone is selfish, knowing how impossible it is. I am sorry. I will leave you to prepare,” she said, exiting the room.
“Sister Zenator!” one of the other workers hailed her as soon as she was outside.
“You have a message from your sister. She wants you to call her. She said it was urgent.”
Zenator’s mood shifted as hope creeped in.
Could it possibly be…?
Walking faster, she left the holding compound to talk to her sister.
Aba was sitting on the cot that had been her bed for the past couple of months with her knees drawn up to her chin. She knew it wasn’t her handler’s fault and regretted her little outburst a few minutes ago, but she knew she deserved to feel sorry for herself, and crashing out was allowed for someone in her predicament. Her life was over, and it had ended in one of the cruellest ways imaginable. She wished there was a way for her to tell her people to be careful of the wolf in sheep’s clothing who had deceived her and all of them. The only person who obviously knew him for what he was was Uncle Peter. Unfortunately, he was drunk about 80% of the time, so nobody took him seriously. Nobody would believe the words of a drunkard over a wealthy, respected businessman who was also playing a fake philanthropist. She would try to talk to her handler about it to see if she could help. But she didn’t have much hope because Zenator had told her earlier that she could not take out information that wasn’t already known outside, beyond the message she sent to her family.
Aba raised her head in surprise when the door burst open. In all the months she had been in captivity, no one had ever opened her door in such an aggressive manner. What was even more shocking was the excitement and animation on her handler’s usually solemn face.
“It happened! It finally happened!” Zenator exclaimed, laughing hysterically and confusing Aba even more. Had working here over the years finally made her mad? She got up to face the excited woman.
“Aba, it happened. It happened,” she repeated, uncharacteristically grabbing Aba’s hand and startling her.
“What? What happened?” Aba asked, standing
“They came! Your people came. You’re going to be rescued. They came for you. You’ll be free, Aba. You’ll be free.”
For a moment, Aba was numb. The whiplash of going from no hope to confirmed hope made her dizzy. She almost fell, but Zenator held her hand and gently led her to the cot to sit down.
“You’re going to be free, Aba. Your sister found you. Your sister is here with your friend Lilian and Uncle Peter.”
The words washed over Aba and finally went through her consciousness. “They found me?” she whispered, staring imploringly at Zenator.
“Yes, yes, Aba. They found you.”
Tears filled Aba’s eyes, and silent tears turned into deep, gut-wrenching sobs. They found me. They found me. I am going to be okay. I am going to be okay.
“You’re going to be okay.” Zenator said, echoing Aba’s internal mantra.
After Aba calmed down, still not fully believing her sudden change in fortune, she asked, “Are they here now? Am I leaving now?”
“Remember my sister, the herbalist? They are with her now, only twenty minutes away, and she will guide them here. Let me tell you what’s going to happen.”
****
Rami was shocked by how simple the process was to save Aba once they got to Nokalu. She could simply go there and ask for her sister to be returned to her family. The important part was remembering the words and saying them clearly.
We have come for my sister, Aba Fordjour. Her family does not consent to her service to the Nokalu shrine. She owes her service to her mother, who still needs her in her life.
Rami repeated the words over and over, coached by Uncle Peter, who needed a fresh bottle of water every half hour. Maybe it was the renewed hope in his freedom, but he looked ten years younger and was increasingly more coherent in a way that truly shocked Rami. Uncle Peter was not nearly as old as they had assumed he was.
The herbalist attended to other clients while they waited until 4pm to leave for Nokalu, which was only twenty minutes away by car. They planned to reach the shrine before the sun set to avoid any costly delays.
The herbalist came to them at fifteen minutes to 4pm. “I think I will go with you. I cannot be around there for long, but what we are going to do will not take that long. I have spoken to my sister, and I will wait for you at the threshold after you go and make your demand. You will be directed to go and wait there. We will wait together while my sister is cleared to release her from the bonds and return to her family.”
