Hina couldn’t believe what had happened. Her father, poor father couldn’t have been - . He had promised to stay with her forever. He had promised never to leave her, but - . Tears flowed down her eyes and cheeks but she didn’t notice. Her heart was at fire, it couldn’t stand such pain, not after her mother…1

Hina couldn’t digest in the fact that her father was gone, that he would never return. That he would never be there for her. To share her feelings, sadness, happiness, anything. That he wouldn’t exist…2

Hina felt her surroundings swing to and fro and she thankfully drifted into darkness, anything to escape the horrible situation…3

---------------------------4

When she came around, she was still in her bedroom and there was a terrible pain in her head. She rubbed the place with her head and felt something sticky on her hand. Something sticky and hot and red. Deep red. Blood! She looked around and saw some of her blood on one of the bed’s legs. It was drying out, and was sticky. Hina stood up began walking towards the stairs. ‘Must have hit my head’, Hina thought, ‘better go downstairs and get that First Aid kit, maybe dad will help me put something on it-’5

She stopped dead. A horrible thought struck her, her dad! Forgetting her own pain, Hina rushed downstairs. A horrible smell hung there but she didn’t care. She ran into the lounge, hoping after hope that the bad news wouldn’t be confirmed. Gasping for breathe; she hit the lounge door as she hurriedly tried to dash through it. Frustrated that everything was coming in her way she stopped at the middle of the lounge and a terrible sight met her eyes. The dead body of her dad.6

Hina’s surrounding seemed to walk to and fro again, and she slowly but steadily began to walk towards her father. He was lying, eyes closed, face up and seemed to have been shot in the front. Hina’s eyes began to feel watery again but she didn’t notice. They seemed to be a part of her now: tears. They were always there, but this was too soon. Too soon, just after her mother…7

Hina had no one to care for her but she didn’t seem to care. She didn’t want to live; her parents seem to be so peaceful after death, they had chosen it, perhaps death was the way to escape…8

Hina dropped on her knees beside her dad. She wondered how her father was now, how he would feel. What was life after death? Or was it life? Maybe, he wouldn’t know at all. Maybe, it didn’t feel…9

Hina closed her eyes and grasped the cold hand of her father. If it had been any other occasion she would have been afraid to hold a dead person’s hand, but – this was her father. This was different.10

Hina remembered how her father had been prepared for this, how he had foreseen this. Did he ever think that he would be leaving Hina alone with no one? Probably not; or else, he would have stayed…11

Hina remembered Alphrood saying12

“You are going to die, Malik.” And a feeling of hatred for this man erupted inside her. Hatred, so strong that she felt like she couldn’t control it. As though she had a dragon inside her, which was breathing fire.13

She didn’t know who Alphrood was and why he was here, but she did know one thing. That she wanted revenge.14

With a thought, she stood up, determined, and walked towards the front door. She remembered something her father had said, as she opened the door and stepped out into the cool morning air…