Imperious

Chapter 22

And do not mix the truth with falsehood or conceal the truth while you know. (Quran 2:42).

The pit of her stomach gurgled with nausea as she walked alongside both her parents.

Zubeda had cried at least three times last night, praying that God would not shame her daughter, that he would maintain her dignity.

Nafeesa had also prayed with earnest devotion, begging Him not to cause any further destruction in their lives.

Yusuf Shah strode over to the barristers' table and approached a female associate. She handed him a sheet of paper before signalling towards Omar Anwar who was engaged in a conversation with Khurram. Yusuf gritted his teeth. Victory was near.

With the usher at his side, the judge proceeded towards his desk, gesturing that the jury be seated when they rose to respectfully acknowledge his entrance.

Nafeesa held onto the bars to steady her shaking legs.

It was as if her mind was playing with the time; strategically building up to a moment where she would either be defamed or delighted. Her delight would lie in witnessing the judge handing Karam the death penalty. Her defamation lay in Karam handing her something of the equivalent.

Her eyes outlined Karam's rustic face as he was marched into the courtroom by two police officers. If booing him was appropriate, she would have done so straight away. He was not only a murderer, but a rapist or even a paedophile if Nafeesa considered her age. Such men were the embodiment of all that was wrong with humanity. A burden on this land, a waste product nurtured in a toxic stomach for nine months.

His face was empty of malicious smirks and jovial smiles. Karam's hands were cuffed behind his back, his chin was cut, his forehead bruised from a beating. Nafeesa assumed it may have been an inmate or an officer, Arham's blows were also a possible cause. Either way, he deserved much more than his face was displaying.

After having demanded silence in the courtroom, the judge commenced, "Two days prior, the sister of the victim was rescued from the Jatoi Residence after an abduction conducted and devised by Karam Jatoi and aided by his father, Chaudhry Khurram Jatoi. Mr Shah, would you explain further the circumstances surrounding this arrest?"

"Yes, my Lord," replied Yusuf, rising from his chair.

Nafeesa inhaled, her eyes travelling towards Farasat and Zubeda. She was comfortable with the script handed to her: do not mention the attempted rape at any cost.

"On the sixteenth of May, my client, Nafeesa Jatoi, was rescued from the Residence after spending three nights in captivity. She was kidnapped on the thirteenth of May, right from outside the streets of her school..." Yusuf then explained how the Jatois eventually learnt of her disappearance after she failed to return from school with Sahm and Mehrisa. He then briefly explained how they sought the aid of Adham in finding her, but to no avail.

Nafeesa listened carefully. She was not afraid of Karam, she was afraid of what he could do to her and her family.

"She was soon found at the Residence after it was raided by the local police. And my Lord, the child was found in an abysmal condition," Yusuf emphasised for sympathetic effect, "Evidently malnourished, clear signs of physical abuse and poor sanitation. The windows were locked by iron grills, the curtains sewn so that she could not pull them apart. The water supply in the bathroom had been closed off, the electricity was not operating in that region either..." Yusuf strode towards the main desk. "Here are some photographs of the bedroom she was found in. You will find the remnants of a shattered vase on the ground. A few drops of blood were found on the duvet cover. These were identified as being Mr Karam Rasool's."