The little girl continued running. Her feet were hurting. The blisters had turned reddish, yet she kept running. Her lungs felt as though they would go up in flames. Her breath came in sharp rapid bursts. Her heart raced faster than she ever thought possible, as though the poor thing wanted to race out of the tiny frame that held it. The long wrapper she tied around her chest bellowed in the wind and caught between her legs at intervals, obstructing her sprint. But she didn't mind. She had fallen a few times already. She just got right up and continued running. She had no idea which way to go. But she didn't care. The heat of the sun burned her dark skin, drying up the beads of sweat that seeped out of unseen pores.
Amina knew she couldn't stop. The men had been most brutal with her parents. They had appeared from nowhere in the mid-afternoon. Her parents' screams had brought her away from inside the hut where she had been busy making 'kunu'. She had been about to run out the front door when she stopped short. The body of her father lay lifeless in the sun. The men wore military uniforms. They had then dragged her mother inside one of their big vans. Amina couldn't bear the sight, but she knew she couldn't come out either. Her mother's eyes said it all.
***
Zainobe saw her daughter as soon as the nine year old came close to the door. Through her blurry vision she could still make out the dark face, the frightened eyes, the bright red wrapper she had on... From her perspective, Amina looked lost and helpless. But there was nothing she could do.
The men didn't know there had been someone else in the house. They had searched through the whole of it. When they came out without Amina, Zainobe had thanked Allah for His mercies. As her little girl retreated back into the shadows, Zainobe offered more prayers to God, asking Him to protect her baby. She didn't want to lose the two most important things to her in the same day...
***
The little girl could hardly walk. Her bones felt like rubber. Her feet were raw and bleeding. She was in shock, a dazed expression blanketing her face. Her head reeled; she knew she was going to faint. Her throat screamed with thirst. Totally exhausted she fell down and moved no more.
***
It would be weeks later before the body would be discovered. None knew the story of the corpse that lay by the roadside. None knew that she had been a beautiful child. None knew that she had had a happy family, and none knew what she would have become. None cared...

U wlcm on board,grt begining,kip it coming.ply invite nairalanders to come and see oo