Chapter 25: Chapter 25

Chapter 24.

I am not relaxed at all. My breathing isn’t even at all. I am thinking that she must have mistaken me for someone.

Who in their sane mind would want to tell her traumatizing story such as this to someone like me who cannot even console them? Someone who is just from the village and is as confused as a headless chicken? One who in real sense isn’t gonna do anything about the story?

I feel Harrison’s warm fingers on my shoulder and I automatically know that he has read my confusion. He knows something isn’t right with me by the way he is doing it. He is trying to calm me down and I swear it is working completely.

‘’I want to respond to that question at the end of this story. Will you allow me to?’’ did she just ask me that in such a polite manner? Something isn’t right here.

In as much as I don’t really wanna say yes, I say it either way. She is my boss, she is the master of the story and she will proceed with it and respond to me later anyway. I know that the choice belongs to her and my response here doesn’t count complete.

‘’Hey, calm down. Aliana will not continue if you look that tensed okay.’’ Dr. Harrison says and I nod gently to him.

‘’I wasn’t as young as the children in that home. I was supposed to have someone taking me from there or rather adopting me.so that I could get an education. The children’s home only accommodated just up to four years maximum. They didn’t have a school for people my age, neither was, there space for the same but they accepted me after listening to my story. It was pure torture and trauma. They had to get a shrink who happens to be my foster dad today. Harry’s dad.’’ I shake my head in disbelief. What could be so bad that a parent decides to do this to their child?

‘’A few months later, the home discovered that I was pregnant and wanted to send me away. Dad spoke to them and they accepted to let me stay there until I gave birth to the baby. Someone from the orphanage kept calling the baby that was growing in me, a bastard child. I know this doesn’t sound good but I hated myself so much, I hated the infant growing in me and today, I really regret that act.’’

‘’Sorry about that.’’ She doesn’t say anything, she doesn’t look at me either. She is really trying to avoid eye contact.

‘’Months later, my baby was born, guess what!’’

‘’What,’’ I ask with a creased face.

‘’Since I wasn’t even sure if my dad was amongst the people who gang-raped me, I wasn’t allowed to even know the sex of the baby. He or she was taken away when I was still unconscious. When I woke up, I cried myself to sleep. I was bothered. I wanted to see the baby, know the sex of the baby but that wasn’t possible. My shrink assured me that it was okay. That all would be well at the end of it all. I couldn’t know how to call the baby. If it could be my brother or sister or child. I didn’t even know who took me to the hospital, whether it was the drunkards or a neighbour. Actually, that was a hidden knowledge for some time until dad showed up.’’

‘’So, you never saw that baby completely?’’ she nods.

‘’They said that if I ever set eyes on him, then he would die. I wasn’t going to let him die. After all, that baby never ever applied to be born, it was an outcome of an unplanned rape but it had a right to live. After that, I was taken away from the hospital, the posh one and guess what!’’

‘’MH…. ‘’

‘’He took me home from there. He said I needed care. Real care that could have seen me get better soon. He got a lawyer who processed some legal papers and just like that. He had a daughter with him. Someone he really loved. I have never seen such kind of love and if not for him, I would literally be dead right now. He saved my life.’’

‘’Mum, even though she was just this young into marriage, never really welcomed me, but after she heard my story, she changed her mind about me. Just a little. She treated me like shit a number of times and sometimes even accused dad of having sexual intercourse with me. At some point, she even said that that baby I paraded around with was dad’s baby.’’ She pauses and sniffles. ‘’That I was lying about being gang-raped. She had so many unpleasant things to say about me.’’

‘’You okay, Alia?’’ she nods.

‘’Perfect. I have never felt this perfect before. I have spoken to you a million times but having Clarita and Harrison here with me is superb. The feeling is refreshing a lot.’’ Wow, some of the things she says worry me. Why would… anyway, that’s her and I personally cannot control what she feels. I am really glad that she is feeling that though.

I want her confidence but I know I am yet to get there. I am not a psychologist like her foster brother and I am really touched by what happened to her. I hope she got over it.

Well, I will have to find that out, right?

‘’Dad never gave up on me. He was and is still God sent. He regarded me as his firstborn daughter and always taught me important things. He took me back to school. He advised that I don’t visit the orphanage because that would mean risking the baby’s life. I didn’t, I wanted my baby to grow despite not knowing the father. If at all my dad fathered my baby after killing mum, he would meet God’s wrath and that was my prayer all along.’’

‘’In school, I was bright. I did well most of the time and the next thing I knew was me getting a scholarship and now my education was fully assured to the end. I was so relieved that he wasn’t going to pay my fees anymore because mum never liked it. The only thing I needed was shelter and food. Most of the time I had food in school so, I would stay in my room doing assignments just to avoid mum’s pique and indignation.’’

‘’When I fished school, I knew what I wanted. I was going to look for my son so I could go back to dad and have a DNA. I knew dad was still alive because my current dad had hired an investigator. Dad was sorry and was crazily looking for me. I never wanted to go back home as a ‘nobody,’ I wanted a favour from dad, I wanted to do something for dad, I didn’t have a job or any money but my foster dad came to my rescue. He did it for my sake. He took my drunkard dad to a rehabilitation centre for old people and that’s one of the reasons I am happy today. My foster dad is a hero.’’

‘’I feel fulfilled because he is in good hands. That answers your question, Clarita. Dad is alive. He asked me to forgive him and I did. He explained that his friends gave him alcohol. Tricked him and left him in the bar as they disappeared on him. He said that when he got home, they were all naked and were in the act. That the alcohol disappeared completely from his system and he shouted calling neighbours to come to my rescue. He took me to the hospital and was super ashamed that he didn’t want to see me. He therefore disappeared but started to regret soon but it was too late because there wasn’t any trace of me. He went back to the hospital but I had gone away. The home didn’t disclose to him where I was for privacy and confidentiality issues. He took his friends to court but were released on condition that there was no evidence showing that they defiled me. He wallowed more into drinking and in the process, he even got himself to depression. He is lucky to be with us today. He is now old but I keep shouting a prayer that he shouldn’t die without seeing his grandson. That boy that I begot at a very young age but due to the therapy sessions I have had with my psychologists, I want to locate him. Harry’s dad actually went behind my back and did a DNA. When he revealed this I was the happiest person in the universe. He drove me there after renting a small apartment for me and you cannot believe what happened.’’

I tilt my head to face her fully. ‘’What happened?’’

‘’The baby had been given to someone for adoption.’’ A lone tear rolls down her face. ‘’The administration had changed and the page where his history was recorded on was missing.’’ She pauses for a few seconds. ‘’My baby was missing. My son was nowhere to be seen and the people who adopted them, we couldn’t know who they are.’’

‘’Really? Who could be so malicious as to do that to you?’’

‘’No idea. They told me that my baby was a boy. But I am so paranoid with any stranger in my life. I want to do a DNA on every person that I suspect could be related to me. They could have done a mistake, who knows?’’

‘’Don’t tell me that …’’

‘’You are that baby?’’ she smiles sweetly at me. ‘’I wish but no. Harry and I did a DNA on you when you fainted. Sorry, we did that without your consent. You are not that baby but I wish you could be.’’

I sigh heavily. A sigh of relief. I am really relieved that my dad remains my dad. I wouldn’t wanna be the baby born out of wedlock and as an outcome of rape. No wonder Janet thought that she seems to be having a history untold when it comes to babies.

This explains it well.

‘’I tried all I could and I have been trying all I can to locate my son. He is nowhere to be found, he disappeared without a trace and wherever he is, I hope he knows that I am alive and looking for him without any sleep.’’

‘’Why am I being told this, madam?’’

She smiles at me then at Harry. ‘’Because you are a good girl. My instincts tell me that you are a good soul. I have seen how you work here and I know you are going far. I am telling you this story because you heard my conversation with Harry and it would only be fair if you got to know about it.’’

I nod gently my eyes on Harry. ‘’Why was I to be interrogated?’’

‘’Because as I have told you before, I am usually very paranoid with strangers. I want to clear my doubts every time I see a stranger. I know all these could sound very strange to you but I still feel like every stranger who comes to my house, is being brought by fate and could be that baby I lost.’’

‘’Is that the reason Harry keeps parading himself around me?’’

‘’Let him respond to that.’’ She says looking at Harry.

‘’Not really, beautiful. I am just around you because I have fallen for you.’’ I don’t believe this nigga, so, I shake my head when he says that. ‘’I have never met a girl your type.’’

‘’You mean a village girl? Naïve and with no idea what to do with her life?’’

He shakes his head. ‘’No, I mean so beautiful, very ambitious in life, big dreams and is actually working towards achieving her dreams without fear.’’

‘’That doesn’t make me something you should admire.’’

‘’You are not supposed to tell me what to and what not to admire. Matters of the heart can never be decided by anyone else, except the beholder. Right now, right here, I have made a decision and …’’

‘’A final one?’’ He ignores me.

‘’It doesn’t matter who opposes you and I. I will have you as my beloved wife and if anyone opposes, then I will marry you in secret then fly us out of this country and they will never see me.’’

‘’Why would you think I would do that with you?’’

‘’Thank you, Clarita. Be careful with Harrison. Don’t get pregnant for him. His mum isn’t the best woman I know, Harry listens to her half the time and she controls him too much, he never defies him and if that never changes, then you will literally go nowhere with my brother.’’

I nod. Good advice there. Harrison is looking at Aliana like he could slap her in the face. Aliana smiles at me and I smile back.

‘’Thank you for the advice, madam. I pray that you get your son soon.’’

‘’Thank you, I got to go. I don’t want a slap from my small brother here. He is hurt just because I have told the truth about him.’’ She says and stands up. She gives me a genuine smile before disappears and closes the door behind her.