Soiled #ProjectNigeria ✔️

Chapter 30: Vutterfly Kisses

The first thing I feel is a butterfly kiss on my right eyelid and in a flash my eyes are  open. Adeel is bent over me, his hand in mine and a worried look on his face.

"Alhamdulilahi, you are awake." I nod and notice a intravenous drip  passed through my left hand over the back of my palm. I sweep my eyes round the room. Adeel is in a black pair of sweats he left in Abuja.

"Where am I?" He let's go of my hand and sits next to me on a cushioned stool next to the bed.

"You and Ajike were airlifted to Abuja about an hour after you were rescued from the hideout. Ajike was unable to be operated upon in Katsina, so we had to bring her to Abuja, you hadn't woken up and the doctor says its due to the residual fumes of chloroform you inhaled." I nod and ask ask if he called my parents.

"I did but your father only came here to check you and he left after a few minutes." I nod and think of how long I've been sleeping. I seemed to have slept off the effects of the drug at the hideout. How come I'm missing a lot of time. 

"How long was I asleep?" He sweeps his thumb over the back of my palm in what i make into a comforting gesture

"A whole day. You were sedated." I nod and ask what time it is.

"Just after Asr, today is the day after eid." My mind flickers and I remember that Ajike fainted after being in Mu'adh's arms.

"How's Ajike?" He removes his hand from mine and sweeps his hands over his curls, my heart stops beating for a second  and the heart rate  machine in the room begins to beep louder. He looks up in alarm and waves his hands to calm me down.

"Ajike is fine. She's in a coma though." I relax into the bed and he holds my hand again.

"I told you we drove straight to Katsina after rescuing the both of you. Ajike's blood pressure had shot up. Higher than normal and the general hospital in Katsina declined her. Saying they didn't have enough facilities to save her life. They could only let her sleep in one of their wards. So Mu'adh and Baaba called an ambulance helicopter from Abuja and we were dropped on the roof of The Nigerian Turkish Hospice. She was operated upon four hours later, and she has a baby girl."  I smile and he nods. My eyes sweep round the room again to the painting on the wall of a hand.

A gentle knock sounds on the door and Maama's hesitant head is what I first see. Adeel leaves my hand to open the door properly for her before taking the basket in her hands.

"Thank you Adeel. I asked Zarah and Safiyya to sleep. They hadn't slept a wink since they returned to Abuja this morning." She answers in response to Adeel's question about bringing someone to carry the surely heavy basket.

She reaches my side in no time and has a hand on my dripless arm in no time. "Afrah. I was scared. I shook like a leaf. And I had to help all those women Cook and do as though kidnappers hadn't just taken my daughter away. So unfair." I looked at her fair face and saw how pale and tired she looked.

"I'm sorry." She pats my hand before shaking her head with vigour

"I didn't tell you to make you sad or feel sorry. Its not your fault she couldn't teach her own husband a lesson. Astagafurlahi. If I had a husband like that. I'll beat him ehn till Allah returns his sense." Adeel and I laugh and she waves her hand like she always does.

"I brought you rice  porridge. You know, the Korean type." I try to put my hands to my mouth in surprise but the drip has me returning it to the bed gently. So painful.

"Thank you Maama." She nods and scoops some from a stainless steel warmer into a soup plate and places a soup spoon on it.

"Eat." I spoon the first bite into my mouth and the taste transports me back so when I went to Korea for a make up seminar. I had this as lunch. Except Maama's own has chopped parsleys and scallions decorating the top.