Ayaan Fadel.

Maroudi, Nigeria.

I took Basma to my parents's house.

I didn't need to think hard about a place to take her to—my parent's home was the best option because despite knowing there's nothing romantic between us, my mother still seemed to adore her.

A part of me wondered why she hadn't gone to her parents house—I mean she lives with them, and I'm certain she'd feel secure around them the most. However, I was informed that they are currently out of the country so she'd be alone.

I didn't ask for relatives, not knowing what type of relationship she has with them. My best guess is, it probably isn't a good one else she would've gone to them. And even if she did, I couldn't be sure of her safety with them from whoever she's scared of.

So, my parents house is the best option out there. No one can get to her there. I have that unwavering confidence.

The sound of the door being opened snapped me out of my trance—my gaze falling on my mother who had just walked in. She closed the door softly behind her, before making her way towards me. "Basma had just fallen asleep." She stated, coming to stand beside me.

I got on my feet, towering her small figure. Reaching my hands out, I guided her so she's now sitting where I was; while I leaned on the table. "Thank you, Ammi."

She glared at me, before shaking her head. She always throws a fuss when I thank her for doing things; I guess she must be too exhausted to do that today. She then let out a loud sigh; her shoulders slumping in the process.

A distant look overtook her features, and a crease formed on her forehead. "The poor girl looked petrified." She mumbled, raising her head so her gaze would meet mine. "What do you think could've made her that way?"

"Not 'what'. 'Who'." I slipped my hand inside my pocket, and pulled out the flash she handed me a few days back along with her phone she gave me earlier just as we stepped into the house.

She didn't say anything when she gave me the phone, but the look she gave me showed whatever she called me out for originally has to be on the phone.

Ammi's gaze shifted from me to the two devices in my hands; another sigh left her lips. "This plan of yours seems too dangerous, Ayaan." The worry in her tone was evident. "Is it really worth it?"

Despite both her and my father's unwavering support, it was obvious she still wasn't on-board with the whole ordeal. If it was up to her, we never could've returned to Maroudi. If anything, she'd rather we have a quiet life far away from it.

Far away from the past and the horrible memory as she likes to call it; and she's right—it is.

However, I need to do this...for my sake and for my peace of mind. I don't think I would ever be able to move on without facing this first. I tried, but look where I am right now.

Keeping both devices aside on the table, I reached my hands out to take her small ones in mine; covering them safely. My gaze lingered on our hands together for a few seconds, before they met hers. "It'll all be over soon." I whispered, trying to assure her and calm her nerves. "Very soon." The end is near, I can tell.

Just a little bit more, and we would be over with this chapter in our lives. All it will take is a bit more to hold out; but I know we'll be able to stand our grounds. Ten years worth of hard work would pay off in just a bit more of time.

My words still couldn't assure my mother, it was evident in the look she gave me. She blinked, and looked away for a brief second. She already knew she couldn't talk me out of this—just as much as she knows there's no going back the minute we stepped foot here.

She eventually gave my hands a small squeeze, "Just promise me you'll stay safe, you'll all stay safe and come out well by the end of all this." She whispered, the desperation in her tone hard to miss. "That's all I want. If this will give you peace, so be it. However, I need you to be safe; that's all I want. I don't want to lose another son."

I didn't respond immediately. Instead, I leaned down—my lips meeting her forehead to leave a doting kiss. "You won't. I promise." I take my promises seriously, and as such, mean every word I utter.

I will come out of this unharmed in shaa Allah. We all will.

~*~

My thumb stroked my chin, as I went through the flash drive containing the slush fund. At first, it was hard to get through it since it had a password attached to it—however, I was able to get help and I couldn't say I was surprised by how the person was able to crack it from the very first guess.

The more I look into the document, the more I'm convinced AbdulRahman Hadi—my dearest uncle is a much bigger trash than I ever expected. The documents were all detailed, and to think it all dates back to fifteen years ago—back when my father was still alive and the head of the company; he still stole from him.

No wonder my father was willing to cut him off—a reason he had to die in my Uncle's eyes. 

I thought it was only a 150 million that he had pocketed over the years. I was wrong.

Seemed he had gotten a lot more than that; but to lessen the suspicion he would get, he opted to buy assets with the money instead—most of which were well hidden, no one, including I knew of their existence. All of the assets combined together are worth a price one wouldn't believe.

A slight scoff left my lips; my gaze falling on the one information that will single handedly get rid of the Hadi family out of the business world. How they made the mistake of putting it all on a simple flash drive baffles me.

But, I guess it is the least suspecting thing of all.

No one would suspect the secrets of the family are all contained on a single flash drive, huh?

And it just happened to land in my hands.

Having decided I've gone through the flash enough times that I've had it memorized all in my head, I removed it and kept it aside. My gaze fell on Basma's phone, which I'm yet to touch. The truth is, I've been hesitating. I know I shouldn't be; but this concerns whatever could make someone like Basma look scared out of her wits.

It obviously isn't good news, and I knew I needed to prepare myself before I can do it.

Deciding I could no longer put it off, I picked up. The screen immediately came to life, and with a simple swap of the screen; it unlocked without much of a hassle. Considering I don't know what exactly she wanted to show me, it seemed I didn't have to search long to find it.

Because the Camera app had already been logged; and out of logic, I found myself clicking the last video there without much of a thought.

Now here's the thing, I had expected quite a number of things...and that includes what I found out but never in a thousand years do I think I would ever be prepared to see such a thing. It was brutal, and grotesque.

I could the perfectly understand Basma's reaction—if not that I'd seen a lot of things in my life and experienced some as well, I would've been terrified. Anyone would.

To think she was actually there, and witnessed it with her own eyes...no wonder he looks that way.

And by the end of it, I found myself dropping the phone without much care. Suddenly, the room felt suffocating; and in a desperate attempt to get some air into my windpipes, I reached out and removed the first two buttons of my shirt.

My eyes flicked shut, and yet all I could see was the scene, playing over, and over like it's on repeat. My shoulders slumped, feeling as though a bucket of ice had been dumped on me. I needed a moment to gather my thoughts, as hard as it was.

I was actually glad that Ammi had left before I decided to check this. I can't even begin to imagine what her reaction would be. It certainly would be like Basma's, or even worse. It wouldn't be past her for that to be the case.

I don't know how long I sat there, but at a point I knew staying in that room would've suffocated me. So, I picked up my bike keys and kept the phone and flash in a safe place before leaving the house.

"Double security around the house. No one should be able to go in without my permission." I informed the chief of the guards whom I had ran into, having stepped outside.

He gave me a curt nod, and when I say I have no doubts in the man, trust me, I don't. He's one of the few people I trust with my life. And that means I trust him with my life...I mean it. That means I can trust him with my family's life as well.

"On it." He turned around, tapping the earpiece in his right ear as he walked away; throwing orders as well to strengthen security.

I was already certain the security around the house was more than enough, but after what I just saw, I suddenly wasn't so certain. There were a lot of thoughts running through my head, and for the first time in a long time, I wasn't sure to how tackle the situation.

Picking up the helmet, I put it on before getting on the motorcycle. It's always been a bad habit of mine to drive around on it whenever I'm stressed...you could say it's my stress reliever, and right now, I need it more than ever.

The minute I was out of the house and on the road, the speed at which I was driving increased slowly. I was glad it's late at night; it has to be around 1am I think, so there were barely any people on the road.

And that meant, I could drive around as fast as I could.

So, I did.

The farther I go, the more the memories of everything that has happened so far flashed before my eyes. I couldn't help it. From my parents death, to having to adapt a new life and everything I had to go through to reach this position, it all came back to me.

That included the people I'd gotten involved in this whole thing. The people that died because of it.

It's all on me no matter how much I tried to rid myself of that; I couldn't. And, I don't even try to do so.

You could say this is my own form of punishing myself. I don't try to get rid of the memories, I force myself to relive every single one of them. I allow them to haunt, and taunt me...to swallow me whole. I deserve it after all. That's the price I have to pay for reaching this far. Vengeance comes with a price.

However, I made a promise to myself at that moment...no one else would have to suffer the consequence of my actions. Too many people had done that already; my consciousness can't handle it any more.

From now on, I'll be sure to take it to the very end alone.

With that thought in mind, I increased the speed of the motorcycle, reaching its limit as I drove alone on the street. I could get fined for it, but that's the least of my concerns. I was too focused on getting rid of my current feeling. I need to get that suffocating feeling away.

And in the process of doing that, I hadn't realized the car that came from the side.

Until it was too late, and my life flashed right before my eyes.