Chapter 111: Escape

As soon as Sheharzaad hung up the call, she turned towards Amna with a pale face.

"Amna, we need to be quick. We don’t have time on our hands now. We have to run," she

said and began to collect things, stuffing them into a bag.

"What happened?" Amna asked, confusion dancing on her face.

"He knows everything. I swear, I swear he knows everything."

Amna’s face paled too. "What? How do you know? Did he tell you anything?"

"My sixth sense says so; he knows everything. He was talking as if he knew everything."

"Maybe you’re being paranoid."

"The first thing he asked me was if I was planning to run away. Amna, I know him; he first

drops hints. He first warns before pouncing. He knows."

"Sheharzaad, relax. Maybe he doesn’t. Maybe you’re thinking negatively," Amna tried to

sound convincing, but her voice, even to herself, didn’t sound convincing.

"I don’t know, Amna. Let’s pack essentials and get away. I know him."

"You know, his men are stationed outside. How would we outrun them?"

"Either way, we’re dead. I swear, Amna, he knows everything. Even... even it could all be a

trap. Khaleda herself could be a trap set by him. Everything could be his trap. You never

know. Let’s try to run away. At least we should try," Sheharzaad's voice shivered.

Amna gave her a nod and began packing essentials with her. They had some money, which

they took, got dressed up. They didn’t have many belongings, just some money and some

clothes.

The real task at hand was getting out of the house, as it was surrounded by men, invisible

men. A man would walk past her, and she would never know whether he was working for

Shehryaar or not. No solution came to her mind for escaping the house while it was

surrounded when the doorbell rang.

They both got startled and exchanged glances with each other. Worried glances. Sheharzaad

proceeded to open the door, and Amna followed behind when she found two women

wearing black abayas at their doorstep. Their faces were covered with a niqab. Upon

inquiring, she was told they were selling certain products and wanted her to try them.

That's when a bell rang in Sheharzaad's mind, and she welcomed them in.

She seated them in the lounge and walked to the kitchen. She told her plan to Amna, who

was too surprised. Nevertheless, they decided to act upon it.

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

She was now able to understand the meaning of this sentence as she offered both the ladies

some juice. They thanked her and drank it, while telling her it had been a while since they

had been knocking on doors in every house on the street and barely managed to get any

products sold. Sheharzaad listened to them with a smile as they kept on talking.

As some time elapsed, they both began losing control over their consciousness and at last

drifted into oblivion. She looked at them with guilt and muttered a "sorry" before retrieving

a black abaya for herself and Amna, putting them on, concealing their faces, and stepping

out.

They both tried to act normal, yet their hearts leaped into their mouths as they hurriedly

walked out of the street, kept on walking until her house was far behind them. That was

when she called a taxi and asked the driver to drop them at the bus terminal.

Once they reached there, she booked two seats for Multan. The bus was about to leave in

half an hour as they both waited in the waiting area.

.....

A feeling of exhilaration coursed through his body as he looked forward to the day. The

wedding festivities of his brother, Irtaza, and Zahra were done. And it was one hell of a

wedding that he wouldn’t forget. He remembered warning Irtaza about not completely

falling under the charms of his dear wife because, in that case, betrayal would hurt the most.

But his brother was a little too much in love with Zahra to see she had been betraying him

all along.

This incident refreshed memories of his childhood, and like a fresh gust of air would elate

one’s mind, this rush of memory made his resolve become stronger as he began to

reconsider the independence his wife would get after marriage.

That was one reason he had told Sheharzaad she was free from him until marriage. Because

after marriage, this weird obsession of his, which was starting to bother him too, wouldn’t

end. Then, the four walls of the mansion would be the only thing she would have to stare at

all day and all night.

He wouldn’t be giving her the same freedom his father gave to his mother and his brother

gave to his wife.

Today was Irtaza and Zahra’s walima (wedding dinner), and his grandfather had decided to

host a small feast at the haveli. He was to introduce Sheharzaad today to his family

members.

He had spent a few days at the haveli because of his brother’s wedding. Family gatherings

were not his thing. He had always been private throughout his life. He never gave anybody

enough authority to question the decisions he made in his life. Including his father, his

grandmother, and the slight margin Irtaza had given his grandfather, he excluded that

margin too. He didn’t let anyone bother him.

Yet he was close to his younger sister, Dua, after his elder brother, Irtaza. Dua was too

young when their mother had passed away. Everyone in the family was in a state of shock.

His father was heartbroken and forgot he had three children. Irtaza, Shehryaar, and Dua

were left on their own, and as an elder brother, he grew more and more protective of his

little sister. He always protected her. He took care of her like a father would take care of his

daughter after their mother’s suicide.

He had noticed Dua the days he spent here. She looked happy, lost in her thoughts, smiling

to herself, sometimes placing a protective hand on her stomach. His mind was hinting at

something; his sixth sense was alarming him of a danger, but he pushed these thoughts to

the back of his mind.

His sister wouldn’t go to such an extreme length.

His thoughts broke when his phone rang, and he picked it up.