Healing ✔

Chapter 7

Zachariah

I knock on the door until a deep voice tells me to enter.

"AssalamuAlaykum." I greet first.

"Wa AlaykumAssalam." Sara's father greets back. I take note of a few open folders in front of him and some files lying around his desk. He must be busy yet he took time out to have a word with me. I wonder what could be so important.

I take a seat without being asked to and then immediately regret it because this was in actual fact my father in-law, I should have more respect for him. I look to him to see his reaction to my disrespectful action but he only smiles at me and with that my regret just flies out the window.

"Sir you wanted to speak with me?"

"Yes. I just wanted to see if there has been any progress with my daughter."

I almost choke on my own breath.

"Uh..what do you mean?" I already feel uncomfortable talking about this subject as it is and to talk to Sara's father out of all people was way out of my comfort zone. I would so get my butt kicked if he found out how many times I already made her cry.

"Well..for instance my daughter isn't very social she doesn't like to associate herself with anyone. Have you both at least had a decent conversation?"

I think back to the times we spoke which mostly consisted of arguments but then we did have our okay conversations at times.

"She doesn't really like to speak to me much but yes we have had small decent conversation."

"Well that's a pretty good start considering the way she refused you..." He clears his voice backtracking. "uh never mind." I understood where he was going and although it didn't feel good to be rejected, I had done the exact same when I was given this job.

"Is there anything else that I should be concerned about. She doesn't open up to anyone about what had happened to her so I'm hoping with time she will open up to you if things go as I imagine."

"Well there is one thing that I'm curious about."

"And what's that?"

"Every night around 2 o'clock she has these nightmares. She starts to scream and cry."

"Ah yes. The nightmares." Sara's fathers face fell slightly at the mention of it. "The day she came home that very first day she slept the whole day and as soon as it hit 2 o'clock she bagan to cry in her sleep. I was sitting by her in the hospital of course and I tried to wake her up and when she did she gave me a look that almost broke my heart. She wouldn't let me comfort her nor touch her and I felt so helpless, even the nurses tried to calm her down but in the end there was nothing anyone could do so we just waited until she calmed down herself. I remember the first two weeks she wouldn't even let me-her own father-touch her or hug her. It just makes me think what really had happened to her down there."

"I'm sorry you had to go through that." I add taking this new piece of information in.

"It wasnt easy losing my wife and son all within the space of a month but Alhamdulillah It gets easier with time. The day Sara finally let me hug her I cried out of happiness and that was the first real happiness I felt after a dreadful long month. Now we are back to normal but everything else as you know isn't."

After the news of Ismails death and Sara's kidnap, Ismails mother couldn't cope and shortly after fell ill and passed away. In the report I had read from the files, Sara's mother had passed away when she was a just few months old.

"I will do my best In Shaa Allah to help but the problem is she has a problem with me. If I talk she has a problem. If I move she has a problem. If I breathe too loud she has a problem. If I don't pray she has a problem." At my last statement he raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. "Most of the day she keeps her distance from me...I mean that's fine by me but then we hardly make any progress."