WHEN STARS ALIGN

~CHAPTER SIXTEEN~

Third person's POV.

Zara woke up, startled, her scream piercing through the suffocating darkness with beads of sweat formed on her forehead. "No!!" The cry was gut-wrenching, full of despair and terror. Her heart pounded as she struggled to orient herself in the pitch-black room. Panic set in as memories from her past resurfaced, threatening to drown her in fear.

She had a fear of dark places, and there she was in a dark place with no source of light. She was shaking uncontrollably, her breaths coming in short, shallow gasps. She wished for an end to her torment; she wished God could take her life right there and then so that everything would be over and everyone would be free, but the darkness remained, unyielding and oppressive. Just as she was about to succumb to despair, the small piece of cloth covering the window fell, allowing a sliver of light to penetrate the darkness. The dim illumination made her smile, but the smile left as soon as it appeared because there was nothing to smile about.

Zara stood on shaky legs, scanning the room. Her eyes fell on a metal bucket, an axe, a shovel, some farming and gardening tools, a stack of firewood, and a stool ladder. Her body was sore, and she felt dirty. She looked down to find her dress from earlier gone, replaced with an oversized black jallabiya.

Desperately, she searched for a door. When she found it, she launched herself at it, but it was locked, just as she had feared. Determined not to give up, she eyed the window again. She tried using the stool ladder to reach it, but it wasn't tall enough. Turning to the metal bucket, which was slightly taller, she climbed on top of it.

"Alhamdulillah," she whispered when she could finally reach the window. She climbed back down, grabbed a piece of firewood from the stack, and then climbed back up onto the bucket. "Bismillah," she muttered before striking the glass window hard. The glass shattered with a loud crash, and Zara froze, realizing someone might have heard the noise.

The door began to move, and panic surged through her. She didn't know who was coming or if they could be trusted. Acting on instinct, she climbed through the broken window, closing her eyes and reciting every prayer that came to mind.

She landed on her feet, but the pressure of the impact made her left ankle twist painfully, but she pushed through the pain. Her head throbbed with agony, and she wanted to scream, but she held it in. Regaining her composure, still shaking, she looked around. To her surprise, she recognized her surroundings: she was still in the Abbas' household.

"These kidnappers must be amatuers to keep me in the very house they kidnapped me from. Shegun yara kawai," she said, shaking her head.

Zara dragged her injured leg and walked as fast as she could to go to a familiar building, but when she heard footsteps coming closer and someone yelling, "I see her over there!" she didn't know when she started to make a run for it, suddenly becoming the Nigerian and female version of Flash because never in her life has she run that fast. Not even when husband number one was chasing her with a gun.

She did not know how, but Zara managed to make her way out of the far, secluded area of the house and to the front of the main building. Dragging her injured leg, she pushed open the huge door that led to the main building and walked straight to the living room. Whispers and gasps of surprise filled the air as people noticed her presence. The girl they had been searching for was standing right in front of them.

When Zara arrived in the living room, she saw everyone there. The only words she could utter were, "Umma na. He's coming for me," before slipping into unconsciousness. The room fell silent, and all eyes turned to see an unconscious Zara.

Ashraf was the first to react, rushing to his new bride's side, followed closely by Umma and her friends. Amina was noticeably absent among her friends, but no one dwelled on that as Ashraf scooped Zara into his arms and carried her to the nearest room, which was Madam Aliya's.

Panic spread through the household. Alhaji Suleiman Abbas was the only one with the presence of mind to call a doctor. The urgency in his voice was clear as he made the call, his eyes never leaving his son and the unconscious girl in his arms.

When Doctor Summaya arrived, she was rushed to where Zara was lying on Madam Aliya's bed. Unlike a few minutes ago, when the room was packed with different people and members of both families, the room was spacious with only Umma, Madam Aliya, Alhaji Suleiman, Nana, Fatoo, and Amina, who arrived together with the doctor, and Zainab, who was trying hard not to fall asleep on the other side of the bed, with her Amir massaging her stiff shoulders.

"What is wrong with my wife?" An impatient Ashraf asked. To him, the doctor lady was wasting time with whatever it was she was doing, but lucky for him, she was done.

"Your wife is in stable condition now," Doctor Summaya said while putting her hands in her white lab coat pockets and looking at the occupants of the room one after the other. "She passed due to too much stress and, in her case, fear. I am neither a therapist nor a psychologist, but it is evident on her face that she is going through or relieving a traumatic event. I've prescribed some medicine and a very good therapist for you." she handed a paper where she scribbled somethings to Ashraf. "Be sure to have someone by her side when she wakes up because she'll need someone. And please," she says, putting her hands together. "Do not stress her, and make sure she rests well—I mean, a day or two of sleep. That's all."

"Thank you, Doctor," almost everybody in the room muttered. Summaya smiled at them before exiting the room, with Nana escorting her out. 

~*~

Sallama nakeyi. Hello good and bad people of the world. 

I won't lie to anybody, i forgot i was writing a book and now that i have remembered, i want to kill a character, someone you people hold very close to your hearts. Oya comment your favorite characters and least favorite. I promise I am not killing anybody *side eye*

Ashe Hajiya Zara din ninja ce. Jumping out of a window ai aikin ninjoji ne, koh ba haka ba? 

Don't sha forget to vote, comment and share. Share with friends, family, enemies, lovers, frenemies, e.t.c

If i get satisfying engagement, I'll publish another chapter before tomorrow because of how nice i am. HAHA

with love and hatred, Minaarfo