Patsy (the victim)

34

2 weeks in Alhaji amin house Zahra'u notice the slight change in Bilal attitude, ever since the incident that transpire between she and Bilal sister she make sure never to open the door to any of the family members it reach to a point where Alhaji amin himself have to caution Zahra'u to  take things slow with the family members, as promise her daughter start schooling until now Zahra'u haven't let Bilal know she have a daughter, she make sure mama stay in the bedroom and don't make much noise especially when he's in the parlour.

Zahra'u is preparing lunch as she glance at the wall clock, still suprise that Bilal is still in the parlour by this time, she have master the time he stay in the parlour usually he sit in the parlour from 9am to 12pm, he enter his bedroom and comes out at exactly 12am he spend the night sitting and staring  the parlour walls, the only development is that he now eat and doesn't break the mugs and ransacked the house like a maniac.

"Bilal aren't you going to your bedroom?" Zahra'u ask standing by the kitchen door, until now she hasn't hear him speak, it's odd and mika'il tells her bilal hasn't say a single word for the past two years.

Bilal stare at Zahra'u, he's still studying her features he's trying to decipher any difference with the girl in his sketch but there are no differences only undiscover similarities, he glance at the wall clock and turn his gaze back to the wall, there's a knock on the door and he can see how tense she become, she glance at him before walking to the door.

"Good afternoon." Zahra'u greet mika'il with a smile and he nod.

"Tomorrow is her dialysis session do you want to come?" He ask and Zahra'u nod excitedly making mika'il to give her a lopsided smile as she collect her daughter's lunch bag.

"You should try asking him to come with you." Mika'il say and Zahra'u glance at the man in the parlour before turning to mika'il.

"Have a wonderful day." She say and close the door with a sigh.

She turn and is suprise to see her daughter standing in front of Bilal playfully touching the bridge of his pitch nose and that isn't the only thing that fascinate her,
Bilal is smiling, he grab her daughter's small pinky and do a slight childish trick that makes the little girl giggle.

"Mama." Zahra'u call the little girl and grab her by the hand but Bilal refuse to let go the girl.

Regardless how hard Zahra'u try to hide her daughter he knows she has a daughter, he saw her that day when she arrived with the little girl and for the past two weeks he could stand by the window and watcb mika'il taking the small girl out of the compound, children are the only people Bilal believe he can trust, they don't judge and they are pure,
Seeing the little girl close today Bilal somehow find a sense of closure.

"Let her be." He say and Zahra'u mouth literally drop, he can speak she thought.

She stare at Bilal for a while and then leave the little girl with him, she head back to the kitchen to round up the cooking with a smile on her face,
Maybe Bilal is getting better or perhaps he wasn't a psychopath,
Maybe he needed attention?
Maybe her daughter will give him a reason to be happy? All the positive thoughts keeps churning in her head and for some minute Zahra'u want to believe there's hope for a bright future for her.

****************

The next Morning zahra'u cook the breakfast and keep it on the dinning table for Bilal, she hurriedly dress up and grab the few things her daughter might need in the hospital before exiting the bedroom, she is suprise to see Bilal in the parlour, he dress neatly and even shave off the scruffy dirty beard

"Bilal." Zahra'u say confuse and he just stare at her.

"I want to go out." He say and that sentence comes out like a request which makes Zahra'u to smile.

"Really,
Where are you going to ?" She ask and he give her a confuse look making her to instantly nod.

"Ohh,
You want to come with me?" She ask and he nod making her to chuckle.

This is indeed a big change, she can't wait for Alhaji amin to see his estranged son.

"Ofcrse you can come with us." Zahra'u say and Bilal glance at the little girl making Zahra'u to smile.

"Shall we?" She say and Bilal nod, he surprisingly pick mama which makes Zahra'u wonder if this is really the bilal from last two weeks, they both exit the apartment and Zahra'u lock it with the key and put the key inside her daughter's small backpack, she didn't trust anyone in this house,
Now she begin to wonder if Bilal is really mentally unstable or was it Alhaji wives doing, they saunter to the garage and Zahra'u can see the suprise reaction on mika'il face.

"Bilal." Mika'il say suprise and he just give him a bored look as he open the car and slip in.

Mika'il give Zahra'u an approving smile and slip inside the car.

For Bilal, he knows this is a drastic change and it seems odd but he couldn't help, he want a life of his own and maybe Zahra'u will give him a reason to live again but as he stare at the little girl sitting on his lap, Bilal see it,
The similarities, the large black birthmark patch on the little girl ankle, his eyes wander to her ear and he spot the similar black mole, he grab the two girl hands and compare them with his and he spot the white vitiligo patch similar to his, he slightly turn her face studying her two layers of eyelashes which is uniquely similar to his, Bilal feels his palm sweating, the little girl smile at him and her dimples dense in, at that instant Bilal knows Zahra'u was the mistake of the past he's been hiding from and there's no denial and no DNA needed for him to know this little girl is his daughter,
Bilal wonder why God chooses him to be the victim when he wasn't the only one that committed the horrible sin that night, that moment bilal had an epiphany and he knows somehow that happiness he is yearning for he can never have it because there's no way Zahra'u will still be with him after knowing he was among the 6men that ruined her life 2years ago.

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