The Easiest Target

I Need Her

I wake to an arm sliding beneath my shoulders as I lay in the hospital bed. At first, I don't understand what I'm seeing as he lifts me slowly. I crane my neck back, staring at the strange light brown hair with red tips. Every hair on my body stands on end — that's not red, it's blood. He lifts me and I start sobbing, pushing and trying to scream through the brackets they put on my teeth for the broken jaw he gave me — the second time in a year apparently.

It's been three months! Why is he here?! Why's he back?!

"Shh, it's okay, Hadeel. I'll take care of you," he whispers, his breathing irregular. He smells like he hasn't showered in weeks. His facial hair's grown into a full filthy beard and mustache. I barely recognize him.

I reach for the familiar nurses that takes care of me as he carries me out. Their eyes go wide and before I know it, a wall of nurses and staff quickly stand in front of him. "Sir, you need to put her down —"

"She's my wife. I'm just taking her home."

"Her condition isn't stable," one nurse tries to coax him. Another speaks and another. I squirm until my legs are freed but his grip tightens around my waist, holding my head to his chest. I scream in pain, the brackets in my mouth and jaw tugging at my skull.

"She's fine. She's just dramatic," he chuckles it off. "She'll be better by tomorrow."

They argue back and forth until a big bulky nurse ventures closer from the side. "C'mon, man. Let's get her back in bed —"

Athan whips away from him, holding me tighter. "Bed — no. No bed! I'm not gonna sleep with her. I can't!"

I squeeze my eyes shut from the pain. I thought this was over. I thought we were through.

I hear several footsteps come running. "Mr. Sworski, you can't be here. There's a restraining order against you." He swings me around to face who just spoke. Several officers are standing there. And among them are my dad, Ali, and Toki.

"Restraining?" Athan says with some clarity. "She's my wife."

"Let go of my daughter."

Athan chortles then laughs. "My daughter?" he says mockingly almost like he's reading my mind. I haven't seen a single piece of shit family member in frikin months. Ever since he showed up with the police and Tokyo that day, I've been all alone here. 

Athan's chest starts heaving, his heart pounding violently against my face. "My dad might suck but at least he knows my voice and behavior enough to know whoever the hell called you was not your daughter."

My blood runs cold. What the hell does that mean? Why does Baba go so pale?

"What did you do?" Baba asks him in horror.

"That niqabi cousin of hers bet she could get you to let me marry Hadeel with just a few phone calls."

Ali drops his phone, his face paler than Baba's. "What cousin?"

"Your closet whore sister," Athan says with taunting cruelty. "You dumbasses were obsessed with keeping the wrong cousin in check."

Baba and Ali exchange a look of horror. "Sumaya?" Baba asks him.

I blink out the tears gather in my eyes. Now it all makes so much sense. Sumaya called and pretended to be me to convince Baba to marry me to Athan. I choke down a sob, refusing to look at Baba. He didn't even realize it wasn't me? Why would I call him when I live with him? I didn't even have a phone! Is he that stupid?!

My attention shifts to Toki — for some form of a distraction. His eyes are pinned to me, the softest hints of a smile flashing across his face before he turns his attention to Athan. He's so calm and collected, standing back uncharacteristically. Why?

Police close in and make a grab for Athan. He lets my waist go to swat their hands away. "Get the hell away from me! I'll have you all fired. ALL OF YOU! Don't touch me."

They pry his arm off my head and quickly catch me, carrying me away as they wrestle Athan to the floor.

"NO! GIVE HER BACK! SHE'S MY WIFE! Hadeel — HADEEL! No," he starts to cry. "Give her back. I need her. Please," he bawls. "I need her."

"For what? Haven't you done enough to her?!" Ali snaps.

"No," he cries childishly. "Please. I'll take care of her. Please, she's my wife. Please ...."

Police tug him onto his knees as they set me down in the protection of the staff. His eyes scour the hall with desperation but the nurses surround me, hiding me. "Hadeel, please. Please come home. I love you."

Almost as soon as he says it, he silences, like he can't believe the truth that just burst from him. It sobers him a bit, quiets his tears. Police pull him up. Our eyes lock and horror flashes across his face, his tears renewed.

"Hadeel? What happened to you? Who hurt you?"

I shiver, choking down a sob. He's the unstable one. It was never his mother. It was him. He starts screaming and thrashing, demanding to know who hurt me, swearing he'll kill him until Ali says it was him. I've never seen something die faster. His knees give out and his eyes lose focus. He starts crying, his gaze roaming aimlessly. "...I love her. I'd never hurt her.... I missed her. I missed her so much. Where's my wife?" he asks as they try to get him to his feet.

Blood dribbles down his chin. He takes a slow breath then goes rigid and starts convulsing.

He took his mother's pills! Again? No, this time's worse! That's too much blood.

Nurses run over to him as I try to scream through my locked jaw and tell them he needs help. When they lay him down and I catch a glimpse of his filthy, bare bleeding feet, it truly guts me. My knees give out and I sit there and shiver, tears streaming down my cheeks. Baba and Ali help me back into my room. I cover my head with my arms and force myself to stop crying before my nose gets clogged and I start to suffocate.

I don't know what to think. I don't know what to do anymore.

I wish he never showed up.

***

Ali comes the next day, his eyes bloodshot. Of all things, he begs me to drop the charges of the investigation opened on his sister for impersonation and a list of other things she's done to me. He promises his parents already agreed to send her to Yemen and deal with her there. I just stare at him in silence until he gets the message himself and leaves.

It hurts deeper to imagine he was supposed to be my husband — that he was supposed to be on my side and he seemed like he always was. I guess Sumaya lucked out on having a good brother to protect her, too. But I won't drop anything for her for all she's put me through. All I can do is cry, gradually learning not to trust anyone or anything anymore.

Even Toki abandoned me. I've been here for three months already and he's never visited once. It's so cruel. Is that what God's trying to teach me? To not get attached to anyone?

I learned. I hate everyone. Yet I don't think I'm supposed to.