Dreaming for freedom

Chapter 8

Hello! You all still reading? Are you ready for what's next? 

I returned to the bedroom and found no one but Harriet.

Great.

" Hey, are you coming downstairs? " Harriet asked me in a pretty-pink-and-perfect voice, stroking her flawless skin, her princess-long hair in twin braids.

Jealousy is such an ugly feeling. Especially when you know it's your own fault it's happening. Especially when people like Basma save your life and you can't even repay them because that person finally gets the nice, sane friend that that person deserves -

Astaghfirullah -

Forget hoping. There's no hope left and I'm being jealous? When about a hundred and fifty innocents could be dead because of me? When children. CHILREN! Could be dead because me?

I try not to sob and clutch the doorhandle tightly, looking Harriet in the eye as fiercely as I could.

I guess I looked more like a cat being strangled because Harriet's face flooded with fear, and pity. Pity. 

I couldn't take it. 

" I know what your doing Ha-ree-AT, " I hissed, staring at her in hatred, " But Bas is mine, she's only showing pity to you, this outsider, so that you give us information on how to get out of this 'house' owned by a cranky old goody-goody and her princess of a grandchild. But what princess doesn't know is that the two sweet little muslims are witch and her black cat, waiting for information. And after that it's ba-bye Princess. "

I didn't know where that came from. Then I laughed the same heartless, hollow laugh.

I didn't know what to expect. But what I didn't expect was the sorrow and hurt on Harriet's face.

Then she raced away, taking care not to push past me,  leaving me in the bedroom feeling broken.

Whatever I'd done couldn't be the fault of an innocent girl.

My shoulders sagged. 

What have you done? 

Auntie Nahiza's voice echoed in my mind.

I absolutely had to find Harriet.

Before Auntie Nahiza, Uncle Habib, Naffiza, Malik, Yaccoub  and all the people who's lives I put in danger's faces began to flood my mind, all bare and expressionless like those soldiers.

Then their faces turned into soldiers faces, their skin merging from brown to white. All the same. All stamped with the flag of UK, all the same. All the same -

Dizzy, I opened the door.

I was in the same hallway and this time I took a better look. 

The fuzzy blue carpet under my feet felt fluffy and light, reminding me of clouds blocking sunshine, of those horrible nightmares in the tunnel where me and Yasmine used to hug each other and whisper prayers to try and ward off Mum and Dad's sad faces that appeared in our dreams.

And whenever I had good dreams about them I always ended up having an aching feeling in my throat for them. And the good dreams always had sad endings.

Like the time I dreamt of Mum smiling at me, holding a buttercup in my hand. 

" Looks like you found a buttercup Sarah, " she took it from me and put it in my hair.

We were in our garden, Dad and Yasmine were laughing behind us talking about something random.

Yasmine grabbed my hand and broke my eye contact with Mum.

" You're amazing my love, " whispered Mum in a choked voice.

Yasmine pulled me away from her, " Come on Sarah, I've gotta tell you something - "

Dad yelled," Don't go too far, girls. I wouldn't like you getting lost! "

" Won't Papa! Promise! " Yasmine giggled.

" Don't worry Papa! " I said, then I noticed his sad expression as he mouthed, ' I do worry girls. '

I blinked, taking a look at my surroundings. Every time I thought of dreams or nightmares I relived them so I did my best not to think about them.

I placed my hand on a pile of clean laundry in a basket, feeling the soft fabric tickle my skin. The wall was a subtle aqua colour, on my left was the bedroom I'd just been in.

 On my right was another room, it's door closed. Behind me was a window overlooking the fresh countryside. On the windowsill was a rectangle shaped thing with a black screen. Cautiously, I touched it, nothing happened. I breathed a sigh of relief -

BLEEP! BLEEP! BLEEP! INTRUDER! INTRUDER! 

I almost jumped out of my skin, breathing heavy breaths, shocked.

I mean WHY was it screaming like a human voice, what, was it? 

BLEEP! BLEEP! BLEEP! INTRUDER! INTRUDER!

I started running away from the noise but it didn't seem to get any quieter. I only had time to glance at the bathroom I had used, and a small capsule kind of thing made of glass opposite it.

I kept running, only able to see two more rooms, one on my right, the other on my left until I crashed into a wall holding a beautiful painting of Jane, a younger Harriet, a woman who looked just like Jane but less wrinkly, a man and a boy, all holding hands and smiling.

After that my world went wildly dizzy and my head throbbed. My leg causing me to fall to the ground.

I saw something fuzzy reach out to me - A hand!

Someone offered me a hand, at first I thought it was Yaccoub.

Then I realised he was probably dead.

A tear escaped my eye, trickling down my cheek. I was absolutely hopeless. I should be dead. On the floor of the dark, endless tunnels, more and more bodies heaped on top of me. Away from the misery of knowing that I caused death. 

My vision went hazy and all I could think of was Yasmine, laughing at me for being such a coward and crying. 

But she would never laugh at me, only with me. Right? 

Sorry that was short everyone but I like it this way. And many of my chapters are way too long anyway. 

What do you think of  Angry Sarah?