Affairs Of The Hearts |✅

45| Shattering Pieces...

Abuja, Nigeria.

Three days had passed in a blur, and there was still no news of Jalilah's whereabouts. The Marshall household was enduring one of its most trying times.

For Jalal, he was on the brink of losing himself. He would bark at the officers who brought bad news and even lash out at the people around him. Sometimes, he would cry alone. Yes, the ever-cold Jalal Marshall, crying.

"I've hired a private investigator. Hopefully, there will be progress, In Sha Allah," Alhaji Abdurrahman said, placing his phone on the coffee table.

Hajiya Khadijah nodded, her eyes swollen from intense crying.
"In Sha Allah. I wonder what condition my baby is in right now. Has she eaten? Has she slept well? Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un," she said, bursting into more tears.

"What would they gain by kidnapping her? What has she ever done to deserve this? What bothers me most is that they still haven't called for ransom! Could they have killed her?"

"No...no...no, don't say such things, Khadijah. Nothing has happened to our Pumpkin, In Sha Allah. She's safe wherever she is. Allah is with her, In Sha Allah," Alhaji Abdurrahman said, pulling her close.

"We should keep praying. Allah is above everything and everyone."

"When did the incident happen?" the PI asked the family.

"Three days ago. On the 6th of September," Alhaji Abdurrahman replied.

"How old is she?"

"Seventeen," Hajiya Khadijah answered.

"Can I know who was with her when the incident took place?"

"Her sister was there," Alhaji Abdurrahman said, pointing at Banina.

The PI nodded and turned to her.
"Can you tell me what happened?"

"We were together when she received a call from a delivery driver who said he had a surprise package for her from Ya Jalal. She told us about it and handed me her phone to hold before leaving to get the package. When she didn't return after ten minutes, we assumed Ya Jalal had come to pick her up, so we didn't worry much," she explained, wiping a tear that had escaped.

"Why didn't you call her?"

"As I mentioned, she left her phone with me, so I couldn't reach her."

"Oh, right. Can I have the number that called?" he asked, and Banina nodded, handing him Jalilah's phone.

He noted the number in his notebook before giving the phone back to her.

"We've tried calling the number since that day, but it's been switched off," Hajiya Khadijah said.

"We can still have it tracked, Hajiya," the PI assured, and they nodded with some relief.

"Who is Jalal to her, if I may ask?"

"He's her husband, as well as her cousin."

"Can I see him here?" he asked, and they nodded before Nabeel was asked to call Jalal, who had been staying at the house since Jalilah's disappearance.

Jalal entered the parlor shortly after, his eyes red and puffy from lack of sleep and tears.
"Salamu Alaikum." They exchanged pleasantries with the PI.

"Were you with her on the day she was kidnapped?"

"Yes, we were together in the morning, but I left for work around 9 a.m. I knew that place wasn't entirely safe, but she insisted on going, so I had to let her. I even called one of my guys at the office to check on the security there. He said it was about eighty percent safe due to the officials present," Jalal said calmly, and the PI nodded.