Ch 10 - Don't Say the j Word

“Come on! Open up!” Farrah shouted into the metallic intercom.
There was a burst of static and the gates cracked open. Wasting no time the ladies squeezed through the sluggish gates and barreled up the stone driveway heading towards the double fronted door of a Spanish style villa.Farrah’s sister, Aunt Fozia stood just inside the doorway squinting out into the harsh sunlight. ”What’s happened?” she asked holding the door open.“I need some answers, it’s urgent.” Farrah pulled her into the cool interior of the drawing room and waited for everyone to get settled before securing the door shut.“What’s wrong? You’re scaring me Farrah,” Fozia’s voice broke on her sister’s name. “Welcome to the club,” Nada grumbled fixing her aunt with a hard stare.Pulling up an armchair, Farrah sat inches away from Fozia and recounted the disturbing incidents that had plagued them over the last few weeks. With each sentence Fozia’s eyes grew wider and wider, horrified at the unbelievable supernatural events that were only heard of in science fiction movies.“What’s it got to do with me?” Fozia’s eyes brimmed with unshed tears as she cast a nervous look at her mom.“Everything!” Naani snapped, “what have you been saying to that awful woman, Rihana?”“Rihana?” echoed Fozia. A puzzled look passed her features, “I don’t understand, haven’t said anything. Just tell me what’s going on!”“Right, just answer some questions first. When you came over to visit me, apart from that one time Rihana came over for dinner, did she ever call at the house when I was at work?”There was an awkward pause and all Nada held her breath already knowing the answer, “yes. I invited her over a few times,” Fozia whispered wringing both hands in her lap. “And did you leave her alone in any of the rooms?” “Yes of course. I had to go make the tea in the kitchen. Why? Did she do something wrong?”“You could say that,” Nada ran her hand through her hair stunned at her aunt’s stupidity. “Fozia, I need you to concentrate. Did she ever mention us in conversation? Any bitchy remarks? Any signs of jealousy?” Farrah maintained eye contact with her sister. Fozia blinked and broke away, staring down at her entwined fingers that were beginning to turn white.“Aunty we need to know,” Nada leant forward tapping her fingernails on the armrest.“I…I…” Fozia stammered as tears fell into her lap, she swiped her eyes hoping no one would notice the obvious.“Fozia, what did she say?” Naani grew impatient.“We were talking about girls in London, I… I think I might have mentioned Nada,”“What about Nada?” Farrah interrupted.“Nada is too independent, she isn’t like our daughters. We were just comparing the girls and I think Rihana didn’t like what she heard.”“I don’t understand, why would she even care about me?” Nada burst out.“Don’t you get it?” Farrah sighed shaking her head in disgust. “Your aunty and her best friend had a bitching session, isn’t that right Fozia?” Fozia sobbed as the tears began to flow freely.“Rihana is dominated by her possessive husband. Her daughters have no life, they are always stuck at home under the watchful eyes of their grandmother. My guess is that Rihana was jealous of your freedom, of the fact that there is no man controlling our lives. We can come and go as we please without having to answer to anyone.”“What? Mum, that’s the most stupidest thing I’ve ever heard,” laughed Nada.“Is it? I don’t think you know how women operate, child,” Naani piped up shaking her stick angrily. “It’s in our nature to be jealous, we always seek out others who are better off than we are. We ignore what blessings we have around us within our families and crave what we don’t have.”“Nada, when your father and I divorced, it was horrible. You were too small to remember, but I had to find ways of supporting you. I had to go to work so that I could pay the bills.” Farrah rose and walked towards the window lost in her memories, “my life wasn’t perfect but for someone like Rihana who’s stuck at home with her mother in law for company, an old fashioned woman who controls her and dictates what she can and can’t do. Not to mention her two daughters who aren’t allowed to express themselves in their own homes, well, all this put together makes my life seem perfect, don’t you think? I mean, who would want to be married to a man that sees women as slaves?”“Imagine that, child. Could you live your life like that? That is why Rihana did this, she must have contacted a man of evil to summon that beast. Her goal was to make you as weak as her daughters, so that she was better off than you.” Naani turned to Fozia, “and you! You should be ashamed discussing your niece like that. Do you see what loose tongues can do? I hope you’ve learnt your lesson Fozia. Just remember you have daughters too!”“I’m sorry; I didn’t mean things to get so out of hand. It’s just that my daughters are not like Nada. So I could understand what Rihana was saying. I didn’t know she would do all this, steal Nada’s clothes and plant that wad of hair in her room.”“Yes, she’s clever alright. So now that we know whose doing this, what do you suggest we do next? Should we confront her?” Farrah asked her sister.“Confront her?” Fozia laughed, “She’s an evil bitch, what makes you think a few words will change her mind?”“What shall we do?” Nada asked her aunt.“I know Rihana, if you humiliate her then she will make see to it Havana never leaves, it will be ten times worse than it is now. What did the priest suggest?”The next hour was spent discussing how to eliminate Havana from their lives. The only option was to return home with the Holy water from Makkah and use it every night as protection until the presence left for good or at least until it was kept at bay. The following day Naani arranged for gallons of water to be shipped straight to London so that her daughter could collect it when they arrived at Heathrow themselves. ***“We’re here, wake up Nada.” Farrah nudged her sleeping daughter as the taxi pulled up outside their house in London.“Are you ready?” Nada mumbled sleepily as her mom rooted around in her bag.“Yes. Let’s go.” The taxi had left the luggage and sealed water bottles at the front door and had disappeared into the night, its taillights swerving around the corner. Farrah jangled her keys and breathed deeply, her hands shook as she tried to insert the key in the lock.Watching Farrah’s trembling fingers fail to find the keyhole, Nada gently pulled the keys from her mother’s grasp and opened the door. A gush of stale air met them as they inched over the threshold. Flicking on the overhead light Nada waited for any signs of Havana lingering in the quiet house. “Is he here?” Nada felt a shiver of fear tingle down her spine.“Don’t know, let’s bring the luggage in.”After heaving the water bottles into the kitchen, Nada walked back down the hallway panting with exertion to close the door on the cold night that lay outside. Everything looked the same in her house, nothing had been disturbed and it almost felt like she hadn’t left and traveled half way around the world.“Nada,”the low growl echoed down the stairs and straight into her soul. Nada froze with her back against the door, he was here. Yes it did feel like she never left. “Mum!” Nada cried as she rushed back to the kitchen and straight into the older woman’s arms. “He’s here!”Disentangling herself, Farrah bent down low and ripped the packaging off the closest water bottle. It took a few more minutes to find a surface spray bottle and empty it out into the sink only to refill it with the precious water they had painstakingly brought home. “La illah ha…” Farrah began chanting the basic prayer as she squirted water into the air, Nada followed close behind her until all the downstairs rooms had been sprayed.“I don’t want to go upstairs.” Nada whispered clutching her mum’s scarf.“Ssh, keep praying.” Farrah stepped on the first step and cautiously climbed the stairs pulling on the trigger with each hesitant step.Reaching the top step, Nada flicked the light on in the landing and watched as her mother ventured forward spraying into the corners of the hallway. “Haah,” Nada heard the exhale before she felt the hot breath tickle her neck, she whipped around preparing to fend off her tormentor. There was a sharp smack as something hard connected with Nada’s soft cheek snapping her head sideways where it hit the wall and she crumpled to the floor. Nada curled up into a ball and wrapped her arms around her head protecting her against the further blows she was sure would come.  “Nada!” Farrah wheezed feeling an invisible force push against her chest. Enraged she summoned her inner strength and ran forward bending over her motionless daughter, she let out a shrill scream. “You can’t have her, you bastard!”With one hand on Nada’s still back, Farrah used her other hand to continue to spray the air around her, she sprayed and sprayed, her finger almost trigger happy as she swiveled side to side. Then she heard him, a low pitched grumble resound in her ear. She froze as the sound grew increasing in pitch and depth until it hit the high notes where it turned into a piercing siren of pain and anguish. Then just as quickly as it started, it cut off leaving her ears throbbing in agony. The spray had been emptied and the house was still.“Is he gone?” Nada asked. “For now, yes. I have to go fill the spray bottle again, are you coming?”
*** THE END ***