Bint of Gilgit ~ Pakistani Love Story ~ ONGOING ~

Questionable Concern

The evening had surrounded the land with a darkness that Nazli had rarely experienced before. The night was black and barren from the moon and stars. Perhaps it was the darkness in her own heart that made her feel even gloomier, but she had not moved from the corner of the room after changing and taking care of her needs. 

In another time and place, Nazli would have been grateful for the generosity the man had bestowed upon her. But after what they had done to her - she had nothing, but hatred in her heart for them. They were monsters - the whole lot of them and she could not wait to get back and tell Baba Zaman everything. 

And Baba Zaman had a monstrous temper. He would not spare them after what they had done to the poor animals. And now he would be bloodthirsty for revenge when he would find out that they had kidnapped her too. Nazli's eyes teared up when she remember Shahrazad and Hamza. Those moments felt as if they had been years ago. 

Suddenly a booming sound occurred almost stopping her heart. She had practically felt the walls of the hotel shake and she wondered what kind of hell now awaited her. At the sound of his voice, Nazli felt faint. No! He was here and he was going to kill her. No doubt he was worse than his brother - cold and cruel, but also frighteningly overpowering. Regret surrounded her - she wished she hadn't been so mean to the man who had brought her here. Imad? He seemed the most mellow out of them all and she wished he was here. 

"Fucking Khalid!" This deep baritone voice had been on her mind since the first time he had held her at gunpoint. Now - only mere metres away from her, she couldn't stop the rapidness of her heart. Something about him ignited such terror inside her that she was thrown each time five years back. 

She heard Imad's flat voice. "Is he dead?" The blasé manner in which he asked the question threw her previous analysis into thin air. How could they speak of death and killing as if they were deciding on what to eat? How could these men be so . . . heartless? 

A voice, similar to Imad's but more carefree laughed. It was a hollow laughter. "As good as dead, man!" She choked at his words. Oh Allah, that cruel man was dead? And his own brother had killed him? If he could do that to him, what could he do to her? Oh God, she had to get out of here! 

Tiptoeing shakily towards the window, she stopped when the floorboard creaked. Outside, the laughter continued and she let out a sigh of relief. Okay, she could do it. All she had to do was open the window and climb out. Then she would run straight to her village. But a distant howl of a wolf made her have second thoughts. Oh Lord, why was this happening to her?

"Where is the girl?" She heard him ask out of the blue. Her heart hammered in her chest and she looked to the window with great hesitation. It was now or never! But if they caught her, she would have sealed her fate with her own hands. Several footsteps approached the door and in the moment of great weakness, Nazli crawled under the darkness of the huge bed. Please let them think I escaped! Please let them think I escaped!

The door opened with a creak and ominous footsteps tapped the floorboards. She silently pushed herself to the corner of the bed - her knees drawn to her chest. Oh Allah, she did not want to die by their hands! Maybe being ripped apart by a pack of wolves would have been a better option after all. 

"She isn't here." Even the power in his voice startled her. No one ever spoke like that - no one. Then there was a slight frustration in his tone as he angrily asked. "Did she escape?" A flutter of hope enlightened her briefly. Yes, go away thinking I have escaped!

"She is here." Imad's modulated voice reassured. "The window is closed - she isn't strong enough to open it anyway." Her heart stopped and tears pooled in her eyes. She was so stupid for thinking he was kinder. A part of her had begun to see him as a small refuge against these men, but how foolish of her. He had just followed orders - he had merely done what that scary man had asked him to do.