BRAVE

Chapter Eleven

The silence was overwhelming and suffocating. Three people, six eyes and different tone of breathing.

Ahmadu's head was aching, his mind rolling. Without a single doubt, one look at Omar and he knew this man was without single doubt, his father.

Indo shifted her weight from one foot to another. Ahmadu wondered if she would start crying.

"Forgive me, but what is your name?"

Umar spoke bowing his head. He had indeed shamed fatherhood and all fathers in the world. Here he was, facing his own son, all grown and even married and yet on the first day they meet, he has to ask for his name.

"My mother has taught me not to give my name to strangers." His eyes were clear, not a ripple of emotion filtered through them. "I am afraid, I can not tell you."

"What's happening? Is everything okay?"

Lami who had just woken up inquired. All heads turned to her and she stopped midway to her walk.

"Welcome" She greeted Omar in Hausa, her eyes questioning indo when their gazes met. She'd never seen Ahmadu so angry and  could hardly meet his eyes.

"He is Ahmadu's Father" Indo provided an answer, her gaze returning to the man who stood flushing.

The pair of mother and son standing sided by side, the same cold and detached expression on their faces intimidated even Lami who was only a bystander.

Ahmadu stared at the man who now had his eyes on him. His face twitched and his jaw hardened. His father?

Crossing his arms across his chest "No. He is not my father" he answered his gaze not leaving the man's face.

He knew he couldn't deny it, not if he was looking at a face totally identical to his own but he did not want to accept it and so he would walk away.

Lami lingered, she felt bad for the old man seeing his broken look and hurt clearly spelled on his face.

"Lami" Ahmadu called and the tone in his voice indicated clearly that he didn't want her there. With a last sympathetic look, she followed and they left the man out there, all alone.

Umar watched his son walk even further away and that piece of regret he buried deep inside his heart surfaced again. He looked at Indo, willing she would say something, maybe stop him but she said nothing, he knew she would not.

"I hope you heard him and I hope it is an answer enough for whatever reason you came to seek me out after twenty four years."

She too, left him alone, standing there and feeling totally helpless. He laughed bitterly inside his heart at the twist of fate. Years ago, it was he who turned his back on her but now, karma has caught up on him.

The skies were darkening, he didn't know where to go. When he heard from the private investigator that she had finally been found after ten years of searching, he had been giddy with excitement and quickly took the address from him and drove straight here for six hours straight.

He was excited, he would see her but what was he thinking?

That she would fall into his embrace and willingly love him again? Did he really think that  twenty four years, would be enough time to make her forget everything he had done to her?

Finally, the strong wall cracked and the bricks came tumbling down. Today, all the resistance, all the calmness Indo had built painfully inside herself crashed just after seeing him.

How she would like to hold his hand and say 'look, this is our son. Look at him, this is the son I bore and raised for you while you were away all these years.' But some things could never be easily overlooked.