It must've been morning by the time the nurse came again with food. Sadia was so hungry and weak that she couldn't reject anything especially when she hadn't eaten anything since she was abducted.

The nurse brought another tray of a syringe and the familiar vial of insulin. Sadia obliged and took her dose after which she started to eat, hungrily chewing and not even bothering with tasting it. She missed the food that her chef made; it was so delicious.....,Suddenly, Sadia stilled, her mouth hanging open.

A gasp left Sadia's throat when she realised something.

At that moment, she felt as if the world had stopped around her.

This sudden realisation chilled her to the bone as her sobs stopped and her mind became a little clear.

Whether the mind accepts it or not, subconsciously, many things fall into perspective. And that's why, her subconscious just gave her a reality check.

She is a hostage. So far, she had only figured out that she was a vital part of whatever these criminals wanted from the army. And whether they got what they wanted or not, Sadia was not going to make out of this situation alive.

She didn't want to think about this and put it at the back of her mind because she had hoped with all her might that her father would surely save her. but now she couldn't deny this reality. Especially not after what had happened with her.

Her father couldn't do anything about her. He couldn't possible save her now. How could he? When he was forced to watch his only child being shot down, just to intimidate him into action.

and what's more, How many hostage situations ever turned out right? She was a psychiatrist, she had studied about such cases and even those who had made it out, they are never same again. But that's a very small chance of that happening in her case. With her present injuries, it became clear to her that these criminals will not let her live: they will kill her as soon as she had fulfilled her purpose.

How naive of her to ever think that she would make it out of this alive.

'Nothing personal. Although I appreciate all that you were able to do for my wife, but know this, if your father doesn't agree to my demands, this might as well be your last night.'

She recalled what Shehryaar Ghulari had said to her.

The MMM were a vicious Mafia group that have been on a killing spree throughout the Sikhai province and the city of Karachi for the past few years now. And they were not about to let her go out alive. There was no way out of this. No one was going to help her.

Now Sadia knew why she had dreamt of that memory.

Death was very apparent now.

Her heart tremored at the thought. But it wouldn't be a thought for long, she knew that it would turn into a reality real soon.

So, if she was to die, now it depended on her how she would want to embrace her inevitable fate.

She could either die a helpless cowardly death. Or, for the firs time in her life, she could be brave and face death with a strong spirit.

Getting up, she carefully ripped out the IV from her arm. Wincing at the pain, she ground her teeth in and fought back her tears. They might fix her up for the time being but Sadia refused to be naive and fearful anymore.

Slowly, she got up. Pain shot up in her leg from the wound but Sadia tried to fight it off. She saw a mirror in the corner with a sink so she staggered towards it. She didn't look at herself in the mirror but she noticed that her breath was shaking and her hands were trembling.

Breathing in deeply, she tried to calm her nerves so that she may think properly.

They wanted something from the army. And by now, Sadia knew that it must have something to do with the situation in the Sikhai province and Karachi.

'Welcome to the dark world of the mafia, Dr. Sadia. You've just become our most important collateral at winning many battles in this mafia war.'

It was right there in front of her. That's what Zameer had said to her when he had abducted her. How could she have been so naive and stupid? For someone so smart, it was foolish of Sadia not to have pondered on something that was there to begin with. Now it just confirmed that whatever they wanted, it had something to do with national security but the Army was hindering it from happening. This mafia was a terrorist organisation and they were working to disrupt the peace in the realm.

This revelation was all too sudden but it was by far the only logical thing she could think of. And now, she wanted to be brave to face this reality. She didn't want to be afraid anymore. And that decision alone calmed her.

Because she wasn't thinking about herself anymore. She was thinking of the bigger picture.

The army never got involved in local matters unless it required military action against anything that would threaten national security.

And whatever reason that they interfered in the Sikhai province, it must've something to do with stopping the local mafia wars. And the MMM, for whatever reason that they had to go so far as to kidnap the daughter of a high ranking General in the intelligence, the key to the military, it must be so strategically important that it might cause the army to compromise on the National interest.

This was her best guess. And now that she had thought it through, it was time for her to make a decision.

Too much was at stake. she had to choose: whether to die a cowardly death while knowing all of this which was a selfish yet natural way.

Or.....die an honourable death.

For the sake of her country.

Now Sadia knew why she dreamt of that memory. Her mind wanted her to grasp this reality.

Slowly, she raised her head and glanced at her reflection. Her hands gripped the side of the sink more tightly for fear of her legs giving in. Standing up straight, Sadia removed the dressing from around her eye.

As she stared into the mirror again, her brown-blue eyes looked back at her. She hated her eyes but for the first time, she glanced into those strange orbs and observed herself; Sadia saw something there that she thought she would never see in herself. She saw a fire in her eyes.

Her eyes were always insightful but her shy nature never allowed her to raise her eyes. She would always start her day with a smile. She was an optimist by nature and she loved to feel positive energy. But this whole time since she had been taken prisoner, she couldn't help but feel threatened and afraid. Too much negativity around her didn't allow her to think clearly.

But now, she was willing herself into composure as she looked at herself and a small sad smile spread on her lips.

'You're my brave little girl Sadia.' Her father used to say that to her whenever she be upset or afraid. Sadia wasn't one to cry much but she could easily get scared.

"That's right Baba," Sadia whispered to herself. "I'm you're brave little girl." She felt relieved that her voice wasn't stammering now. With the amount of stuttering that she had been doing for the past few days, anyone would think that she was a stammer which really wasn't the case.

A random chuckle left her throat. What is she thinking? Preparing herself for death? This was so stupid. She was a psychiatrist. She had perfect understanding of what and where her thoughts were leading her.

But right now, the girl staring back at her in the mirror, she wasn't the famous Dr. Sadia Rehman M.D. And right now, she wasn't what the world knew her to be. Right now, she was just a girl being held captive.

No, this person was just a simple girl caught up in something big and dangerous.

She never asked for something like this. But did she have much of a choice?

No, she didn't. If she were to ask herself about her medical opinion, she would say that she was losing it. But right now, she couldn't possibly think with a logical perspective. For some reason, all logic had flown out the window the moment she began to think about all of this from a victim's perspective.

And what's more, she was going to shed off her cold logical exterior and give into what she truly was: a passionate girl.

she was a kind at heart. She was selfless. That was her main inspirations to choose psychiatry as her field of medicine because it was the least understood field and people died of so many psychiatric illnesses in misery and pain.

And Sadia wanted to take that pain away. She wanted to work on groundbreaking research that could cure such people. What worse way to die when your mental integrity isn't even intact? Sadia wanted to rid the world of such a cruel fate.

But more then anything, she wanted to get rid of this curse on her own people. She wanted nothing more the to serve her country as best as she could, that's why she had stayed in Pakistan despite multiple invitations from abroad.

Her passion and love for Pakistan ran deep. It was, after all, in her blood.

Raising her head, she looked at her reflection once again. The woman staring back at her looked so weak, her skin looking pale and clammy, her lips dry and her face seemed to have sunken into her bones. She didn't look like herself at all. But there was something different about her.

She grimaced to herself as a sudden sadness filled her. "You won't be able to achieve your goals Sadia."

She smiled at herself, feeling light all of a sudden as her trembling heart started to calm.

"But you can do something far greater." She whispered to herself. Her face looked bright. And that's because something awoke in her. Her deep passion.

She wasn't a soldier. But she was a patriot.

Death, she had never thought about it. Like every normal person, Sadia always thought that her death would be an ordinary one.

But everyone must die. And it was just a question of when and how.

Sadia felt like she could have some control on the situation.

Yes, she may die. But she would die of her own choosing; a martyr's death. No one would ever know except for her family. She would be an unsung hero, one of those who would give up their lives in the shadows just so that their country could remain in peace. And Sadia loved Pakistan with a passion.

And now, her motherland called on to her to sacrifice her today for the tomorrow of the millions of citizens who lived peacefully in Pakistan.

And that in itself was the greatest honour that there could be.

And Sadia embraces it wholeheartedly.

Because it was a calling.

So What if she had to die? At least with an honourable death, her death would mean something. It would lay another brick in the strong foundations in which her country was standing and would remain standing.

And just that boosted up her spirit.

Sadia felt strong and for the for the first time in her life, she felt as if she could do anything. She felt brave.

**********

CHAP 14 HAS BEEN UPDATED ON INKITT

THE LINK IS IN MY BIO