Thomas enrolled her for computer classes since she liked spending so much time on the internet. Brian had offered to pay for the fees but he turned him down by making it clear that Maggie was his responsibility and that he didn't need help in order to take care of her. Besides, the guy had paid their parents a lot of money so they'd leave Maggie alone. He'd done a lot for them and while he was thankful, they weren't a charity case. He could look after Maggie's needs just fine.

It also wasn't hard to believe that their parents were capable of doing anything for money but the fact that they needed to be paid so they'd leave Maggie alone was disgusting. At some point, he had to agree with what Brian had said. That she wasn't their daughter. He was seven years older than her, therefore, remembered the day they brought her home from the hospital. The moment they'd arrived, his mother had sent a word out that she'd given birth to a girl and she was looking for suitors.

Since he was still a child he thought his parents were doing what was best for her. But while growing up, he'd resented how badly they treated her. Thomas hadn't been able to say anything because Maggie never complained. She was always jumping through hoops in order to please their parents. But enough was enough. His sister had a right to be happy. She had a right to laugh, fall in love and marry whoever she wanted. Which was why he'd decided to go back to the village one last time.

He needed to have a talk with his parents and also ask for Maggie's documents because she would need to have an ID soon. As he got off the bus, he thought that the place hadn't changed a bit. The women still did all the work as if they were slaves while their husbands sat around in little groups chatting. He wondered what the women would do once they discovered gender equality. That they didn't have to serve their husbands because they were both equal. Wouldn't that be quite the scene? To see the men help in household chores or change diapers. Christ, did they even know what diapers were?

Shaking his head at that absurd thought, he walked the narrow path leading to his parent's house. If there was one thing he knew for sure was that this village would never change. It would always continue living in the past and practicing ancient rituals until Jesus came back for the second time. The men there hadn't evolved at all and they didn't want to. They were still archaic, chauvinistic, Neanderthals who treated women like property. He pitied them. Women and men alike. It was their fault that they lived like that. No one wanted to change anything and he couldn't interfere. He was just a man looking to make his sister's life better. Even though he suspected that they didn't share the same blood.

"The prodigal son returns," his father said sneering at him from where he sat. He had a stool in front of him with a cup of untouched tea and bread. Living like a king as always. Whatever did his mother see in this man? And what did she see in him? They actually suited each other. God should have blessed them with a child like Monica. They would have made the perfect family.

"Hello father" he replied, dispelling those thoughts. There was no use in thinking like that when it wouldn't come true. Maybe they would get what they deserved in another life.

"What do you want? If you're here to ask for money then forget it. You sided with that man who is keeping our daughter away and therefore we don't owe you anything"

"I don't want your money"

"Good. Because we wouldn't help you even if you were dying"

Thomas sighed "Some parents you are. First, you try to sell your daughter and now you're telling me that you wouldn't help me? Shame on you father"

"You can't speak to your father like that. Have some respect boy" his mother said coming out of the kitchen. She looked like she had just finished doing the dishes judging from the patches of water on her clothes. She had gotten used to treating Maggie like her servant that now she couldn't even remember to wash dishes carefully.

"I didn't come here to argue with you. I just need Maggie's birth certificate and I'll be on my way"

"Why do you want those papers? And why didn't Maggie come for them herself?"

"Because she's not stupid. The second she sets foot in this village, you'll never let her leave. And as to why I want those papers, that's none of your business. Just give them to me and you'll never see me again"

"If they are so important to her, tell her to come get them herself. We won't give them to you or anyone else for that matter"

They were being difficult. He knew they would try to lure Maggie back and he had come prepared "Tell me something mother, are you refusing to give me those papers because you expect Maggie to come for them or because you just don't have them?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Let me put this in simpler terms. You won't give me Maggie's birth certificate because you don't have it. And why don't you have it? Because you're not her biological parents" Thomas watched his father's handshake as he placed the cup he'd raised on the table while his mother blinked rapidly. "So? Cat got your tongue?"

"Listen, Thomas, we're grateful that you came to see us but we're busy so I suggest you leave"

"I'm not going anywhere, mother. You either give me Maggie's birth certificate or tell me the truth"

"The truth is that Maggie is our daughter and we can do whatever we want with her"

"Yes, my boy. Listen to your mother and please leave"

"I Won't Leave. I want the truth or I could call Brian and tell him to find out the truth. You saw how much money he had and how willing he was to do anything for Maggie. If you ask me, I think he loves her and plans to marry her. It's up to you guys to decide whether you will give me the documents or should I send him here. You should also know that he won't come alone. He'd probably bring the police"

"Are you threatening us?" his father asked standing up. "Do not forget that we are your parents Thomas. We gave you life, fed you, clothed you and even paid for your education"

"I'll never forget that. Trust me. But I will also not forget that you mistreated Maggie all her life. You've used her and if she wasn't such a kind person, she would have thrown you in jail for Child Abuse"

"Maggie would never do that" his mother replied with a shaky voice. All he had to do was push them a little further and they would finally cave in.

"She could if she wanted to. In fact, I could tell her to do it and she wouldn't think twice about it. So tell me the truth right now if you don't want to spend the rest of your lives in jail"

His father grabbed his shirt and started shaking him "You ungrateful little...."

"No Peter. Let him go"

"Why? He is threatening us even though we are his parents. He's shameless. We shouldn't have sent him to the city"

"Just let him go. I don't want to spend my life in jail because of that girl. It's time we tell him the truth"

"But Mrs. Baraka...." Mrs. Baraka. He couldn't remember what his mother's first name was because the second she married his father, she had shed off her identity in order to be his wife. It was as if she was an extension of his father and nothing more. How could they want the same thing for Maggie? She was beautiful, intelligent and kind. She deserved a husband who loved her. Someone who would treat her like the queen she was. No way. He wasn't going to leave until he'd gotten all the answers he came for.

"Sit down. Both of you" she pointed to where his father had been sitting. Shrugging his father's hands off, he pushed the utensils off the stool and sat on it.

"Start talking" Thomas commanded, tired of their bullshit.

"I was in labor and since we didn't want any of the midwives to deliver our baby, we decided to go to the hospital. We couldn't find any cars so we walked. I was so determined to give birth in a hospital that I didn't think about what could happen to my baby. By the time we got to the hospital, it was too late. My baby had died. The doctors said that she had been strangled by the umbilical cord.

"I was so angry because my child had died. In a fit of rage, I left the hospital before they discharged me. I remember walking aimlessly, not knowing where I was going. When I came to my senses, I was in the forest. It was almost dark and all I could think about was going back before it got darker and the wild animals attacked me. But when I turned to leave, I heard a baby cry"

"I thought I was hallucinating it since I'd just lost my baby. But the cry didn't stop. I followed it thinking that if it was in my head then I wouldn't find anything. To my surprise, I found her there. Lying in the middle of the bushes, covered in blankets. At first, I was shocked. I mean who could leave a child in the middle of the forest? I had just lost mine and someone was throwing theirs away?"

"I eventually decided to take her. It was as if God was replacing the baby I had lost. I wanted to go back to the hospital and register her as ours but your father said it was a bad idea. What if whoever left her came back for her? We lived in a small village. Most children aren't registered because they don't need certificates. They barely leave the village to go anywhere, especially girls, so no one would know if she was ours or not. After all, when I left I had been pregnant"

"And? You kept her just so you could torture her?" Thomas asked not believing his parents. They'd practically stolen a baby. True, they had rescued her but they should have handed her to the authorities and adopted her the right way.

"No. I wanted to love her like she was mine. But I couldn't. Every time she cried, I was reminded that I'd lost a baby who I wanted while this unwanted child lived. Why? If her parents didn't want her then why didn't God take her life and spare my child? I wanted to have a little girl. I would have loved her and found her a good husband. I'm not a bad person Thomas but Maggie had no right to live while my baby died"

"That doesn't excuse what you did mother. Trying to marry Maggie off to that disgusting old man? She's a human being who has feelings. She deserves to be loved and be happy"

"I gave her food, a roof over her head and clothes. The least she could do is pay me back" his mother said so vehemently that Thomas shook his head in disappointment. These people were crazy. Plain and simple.

"Mother, no one forced you to take her in. It was your choice to keep her. If you hated her so much then all you had to do was take her to the authorities"

"Why? She was useful. Obedient, never complained and she was making us money. Every man who took one look at her wanted to marry her. Why give her back? She was our golden ticket. It was the least she could do for us for taking care of her"

"You're the evilest people I've ever known. You will burn in hell when you die" he stood up abruptly, kicking the chair he'd been sitting on backward.

"Until then we will enjoy the money she made us. We also expect that man to pay a dowry if he wants to marry her"

"I hope I never see your faces ever again"

His mother laughed "You're our son Thomas. Sooner or later you'll come back"

"Goodbye," he had taken a few steps when his mother stopped him.

"One more thing"

"What now?" if they asked for money he would shove them in the house, lock it and set fire on it.

"There was a man who came looking for her a few months after we brought her home."

"What man?"

"We don't know. All I can tell you is that he was white. One of those foreigners who have white skin. He didn't say his name. Just that he was looking for a baby that was abandoned. We sent him away immediately because we didn't want him to see Maggie. He never came back"

"You're telling me that a man who could have been Maggie's father came looking for her and you hid her?"

"We had already gotten so many proposals. How could we give her back? Besides, they threw her away. Cha kuokota si cha kuiba. Mwenye mali ndio mjinga."  (basically translates to Finders keepers losers weepers)

At a loss for words, Thomas turned around and left. He realized that his parents never considered Maggie as a person let alone their daughter. If they had chosen to keep her then the least they could have done was be kind to her. And what kind of people left a child in the middle of the forest? Was it a misunderstanding or were they hoping she would get eaten by wild animals? Poor Maggie. Where was he going to start?

Would he tell her that the people she thought were her parents weren't or would he start by telling her that her real parents had abandoned her in the middle of a forest? How would she take it? He couldn't do it alone. No way. He had to ask for Brian's help when breaking the news to her. Maggie trusted him, so he'd be able to comfort her.

Instead of going home, he stopped by Brian's house first. He didn't find him but his sister, who told him that Brian wasn't in and that he shouldn't show up unannounced because she had better things to do. Since Thomas didn't want to start an argument with her, he nodded then left. He didn't have to break the news to Maggie that day. He could do it tomorrow or another day when Brian wasn't busy. To ease the guilt he felt for keeping something so important from Maggie, he bought her chocolates. Just like every other girl out there, she loved them and she would be happy for a few more hours before her world as she knew it came crashing down.

At least that's what he thought. Until he walked into his house and found Monica lounging on his sofa while reading a magazine. "Why the hell are you here?" he snarled, dropping the things he'd bought on the table.

"I'm here because this is my house too," she said nonchalantly.

"This is my house, Monica. And if you don't want me to throw you out then I suggest you leave on your own"

"Surely you wouldn't throw the mother of your child out Thomas. Would you?"

He froze. Did she just say.. "What?"

"I'm pregnant" the only coherent thought that was left in his mind was that his life was the one that had come crashing down. Not Maggie's.

*****************************************

Did you really think Monica was gone for good? 😈 😁 😂