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8th MARCH, 2017.
ABUJA, NIGERIA.
Ameerah exhaled lowly, running her fingers across her knuckle as she watched the car park in the parking lot. A minute later, the back door opened and she stepped out, her gaze landing on her daughter immediately.
Lami rushed over to where Ameerah stood, pulling her into an embrace before she pulled back a few seconds after, checking her for any sign of injury. "Are you okay? Are you hurt somewhere? What happened to you?" She rushed out, holding Ameerah at arm's length with worry seeping out of her tone.
Ameerah offered her a small smile, placing her hand over her adoptive mother's. "I'm fine Mama"
Lami's brows furrowed, "But you said..."
"I have something to tell you" Ameerah said, as she trailed off. She blinked, "I'm sorry for calling you over like this but I need you here" Her voice came out steady, and low pitched.
Lami glanced at the person that stood a couple of feet away from them, noting Mubarak's presence for the first time since she arrived. She blinked, moving her gaze between the two. "What's wrong?"
Ameerah pressed her lips together, holding her chin high a bit. "Let's go in first" This was it; she wasn't planning on going back or staying quiet again. She had stayed in silence for over a decade, it's time to face the truth.
She led Lami into the house, Mubarak followed quietly behind them. When the mother and daughter settled on a couch, he opted for leaving and giving them privacy. However, one look from Ameerah had him rooted in his spot by the door. She might not say it, but she needed his presence and assurance at the moment more than anything. She couldn't do this alone. Not when they had been together throughout.
They will face everything together, just as they had been doing.
"Ameerah..." Lami's voice had her looking back at her mother.
Ameerah smiled, though it was a small, barely visible one. She inhaled deeply through the nose, then exhaled through the mouth as she tried to figure out the right words to start the conversation. "Mama, there's something I have to tell you"
"What is it?"
Ameerah held her breath, lips folding for a brief second. "I sent you that message"
Lami's brows drew in, "What message?"
"The day I went back to school. After you came back from Umrah" She left out the part that she sent a similar message to two other people. Tahir and Rahma. Though she wasn't sure of Rahma's identity at the moment, she still sent her one since she heard Tahir has taken an interest in her as Mubarak said. She couldn't let her fall into his traps, not when she could help it.
She sent Tahir the message too, something that she had always wanted to do. She wanted him to feel fear, though it was admittedly going to be a small one but still. A heads-up maybe? So he'd know that she will come after him. That she will get the justice for her and the girl, along with her mother that passed away.
