THE TIMOROUS DUNYA✅

THIRTY-TWO

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*****

Finding Jane's shop was not a difficult task. It took a few taps on Sufyan's phone for a map to take them to it's doorstep. The car ride was quiet, with Sufyan solely concentrating on driving and Maryam busying herself with glancing back every now and then. She was silently wondering how Sufyan managed to pull it off so quickly every time she glance back to see the three convoy of police cars trailing behind them. If she had known Sufyan would do this for her, she would have told him everything a long time ago.

Maryam hopped to meet Jane when they got to her shop. The doors were closed, just as she had confirmed to Maryam. Pieces of papers and wraps of other goodies littered the front of the shop, reminding Maryam of when she used to sweep it every morning. She had wanted to tell Jane she was doing okay, and find out how she has been doing herself. But she had never went to her house. There is no way they would meet again, unless Allah plans it. She really hoped so.

"Miriam, which way is it?" Sufyan pulled Maryam from her train of thoughts. She blinked, processing what he had said. Peeling her eyes back to the road, she pointed right.

"Take the right turn." She said.

*****

Even when Maryam rose from her bed in the morning, a part of her was still skeptical about leading the way back to Madam's place. One of the main reason being that she thought she might have forgotten the way. But the other, was undoubtfully fear.

She had had second thoughts, her mind was a jumble of thoughts as the water swept through her body in the shower. As she rubbed the lotion on her damp skin, she scorned the idea of going back to that godforsaken place. The place that brought nothing but ugly, terrible memories. As she skimmed through her closet for an outfit, Maryam's thought had taken a whole new turn. If she has to go back all the way there, if she has to meet Bilki again, meet Madam, meet Chief, and meet Dawood to be with Zeenah, then so be it. Bacause she will do anything, anything at all to see Zeenah again.

She stared at the incompleted building she passed the night in, it turned smaller and smaller as the car passed it. Maryam's heart hammered in her heart, they were getting close, very close. She could feel the atmosphere getting denser. The sun has hidden behind the thick stems of trees, which stretched and entwined themselves like little children playing.

Slowly, a brown blur of a building began to appear. It got much bigger and clearer as the car neared it.

Maryam gulped. "That house." She pointed at the old building.

Sufyan parked, leaving a reasonably distance between them and the house. The police cars halted as well. He exited the car to go and talk to them. Maryam chewed her nails as she sat in the car, watching the policemen walk to the giant brown gate. Sufyan and one other policeman stayed with her, incase anything happens.

Maryam watched quietly as one of the policemen banged his fist on the gate. The immensity of the hit jerking the door open. Maryam gasped, that door was always kept closed. Unless if Madam and the others were going out, and it will be closed back the moment they walk through it.

She had a bad feeling about this. She could feel it in her guts that something is about to happen, something terrible.

As per their head's instruction, three police men went West, three went North and three South. All of them disappearing from her line of sight.

Maryam can't tell how much time has passed. It could be thirty minutes, an hour, two or more later when one of the police men exited the house though the opened gate. He walked up to Sufyan.

"We have checked the house thoroughly. It's deserted. The furniture are covered with dust. I'm assuming the house has being empty for a month or so." He told Sufyan, yet occasionally he'll turn to glance at Maryam to make sure she isn't left out.

Out of all he had said, Maryam only heard the word 'deserted'. That's it, every other thing was a blur as her thoughts raced against eachother. It couldn't be, could it? Or have they come to the wrong house? No! This is the house, there's no other way to it.  The  caramel paint is still as she had remembered it, peeled off at the lower sides. The brown gate is still old and rusty, but how could they say there's no one inside?

Maryam recalled how vast the house is. With a plethora of doors leading to more other  doors. Peharps they were hidding somewhere inside. It had to be that.

Sufyan cleared his throat to speak, but Maryam beat him to it.

"There are alot of rooms, sir. Have you checked them all? They could be hiding..." She let her voice trail off. The officer nodded.

"I assure you, Mss. Maryam, we have gone through every room." He replied.

Maryam wasn't having any of it. "The house is huge. Please check again. She's in there! She has  to be in there!" Her voice came out high and hard yet, tears were sliding down her cheeks.

"Maryam calm down. It's okay. We will find her." Sufyan assured, giving her some tissue to wipe her tears. Maryam suddenly remembered that by helping her, Zeenah had endangered herself. That must have cost her alot of punishment from Madam. Maryam did not want to think about all that, yet the only place she could think Zeenah might be in, is that little cell.

Her eyes widen as she spoke. "There's a cell in the basement!" She continued to give directions to it, as much as she remembered anyway.

The officer nodded at every detail, then went back inside as he spoke to the others through his radio.

The wait was more agonizing and slow than the last one. This time, Maryam had paced the length of the car for God knows how long, sat down to chew on her nails, got back to pacing again ... It was a continuous process until finally, someone emerged from the house.

It was thesame officer that spoke to them earlier. Murtala, as Sufyan had addressed him.

"It was hard locating the cell. It is hidden and barely noticeable." He said, bringing out a handkerchief from his pants pocket to wipe away his sweat.

Looking up, he addressed Maryam with a solemn voice.

"I'm sorry. There's no one there, too."