Where Shadows Reach

The Letter

Meerab sat down where she was asked to, Mari made herself comfortable on the arm of the same seat right next to Meerab.

Murtasim sat down on the empty single chair left between Anwar's chair and his mother's sofa. 

He did not like the vibe in the drawing room.
He knew his mother very well, she had that half smile on her lips she usually got when she was sure things were going the way she wanted them.
The other adult's nervous faces did not help dispel his assumption. They looked unsure of what was about to happen.

She began with "As you all know after Shahnawaz's passing away I have tried to keep things going for all of us, always keeping his wishes in mind.
Our yearly get together is something we do in his memory.
It helps alleviate our sadness of his absence and keeps our friendship alive even after all these years. 

Thank you Waqas and Aneela for keeping up the tradition every year. I truly love our families having this unbroken bond."

"Babhi Begum, you dont have to say that, it is our happiness to come here and be able to spend time together. Our friendship has stood the test of time and distance." Said Waqas as Aneela nodded, smiling in agreement.
"Insha Allah we will continue the same always."

"Ameen." Everyone echoed.

"That is the wonderful thing about our two families and Shahnawaz had one final wish that he shared with us before he passed away. And I believe it is time we shared this with our children. Especially since Meerab will be turning twenty one in a few weeks."

This made Murtasim's eyes turn to Meerab's face that was looking quizzically at his mother.

'Is she going to sign away some land deeds as a birthday gift?' Murtasim wondered, but he had not been consulted about anything like that, he would have to talk to his mother about not making decisions like this without speaking to him first.

He would not mind giving Meerab or her family anything that belonged to his family but not all land was equally profitable and his mother had no clue about these kind of details.

Ma Begum took out an envelope from the coffee table in front of her and taking out the letter inside, gave it to Murtasim and asked him to read it out loud.

"My darling Begum,

If you are reading this letter, it must mean that I have left you. Make dua for me, know that I have always loved you and will continue loving you till we meet again.

I know things are going to get hard once I am gone.

Anwar my brother, I know you will have to take care of everything until Murtasim is able to take over. I trust you with my children, please take care of them and love them in my absence. They will need a father figure and you are the best person (after me of course)."

Everyone laughed at this as it was typical of Shahnawaz to add a bit of humour even in a serious moment.

The letter continued.

"Murtasim and Mariyam I love you both so much. I wish I could be there to watch you two start your own lives, marry, have kids and even meet my grandkids

but it is Allah's will that my time in this world will end before all that. Love your mother and take care of her. Be good to each other."