Junior locks the door after they step in. Liyana kicks the heels off and takes one of them as a weapon, determined to defend herself. Junior ignores her actions and plops himself onto the bed. This confuses Liyana and she stands anxiously, waiting for him to do something.
“I am not going to do anything to you,” he breaks the silence and looks up at her. “Please put on something decent and relax.”
“I-I don’t have anything else to wear,” she mutters.
Junior shrugs and goes back to his thoughts. She is taken aback by how young he looks. He has a fresh haircut that frames a round, gentle face. His eyes, when she had a brief glimpse at them, were piercing but honest. Liyana lowers the hand with the deadly heel and leans back against the far wall.
“Why would you do this?” he suddenly asks.
“What?”
“Why sell your body instead of working for a better future?” he clarifies.
“Excuse me!” Liyana cannot help but get offended. “Why are you here?”
“Unlike you, I have to be here,” he snaps defensively.
“Well, I don’t have a choice!” she cries. “My aunt brought me to this place. She was supposed to help me get into university but she dumped me here. So don’t you dare judge me.”
“Oh, I didn’t kn–”
“I just want to go home,” Liyana cuts in. “Please lend me your phone. I need to call my mother.”
“I can’t,” he searches himself out of habit. “We have to leave our wallets and phones at the door when we get in. To ensure that we pay afterwards.”
“What kind of a police officer gets caught up in something like this? Why don’t you arrest these people?” Liyana breathes out in disappointment.
“It isn’t easy. There has to be concrete evidence to be able to make an arrest. Worst part is, there are corrupt police officials who work with the people here in exchange for free services.” He looks at her apologetically.
“You are also here, are you also corrupt?” she asks.
“No, Not at all,” he waves his hands defensively. “I am one of the good guys and I will think of a way to get you out of here.”
“Thank you, uhm …” she raises an eyebrow.
“People call me Junior,” he offers. “You look tired. Come lie on the bed and get some sleep.”
“My name is Liyana,” she says as she hesitantly walks towards him.
“All right, Liyana,” he taps the bed, “go on, I won’t do anything to you.”
*****
The vibration of the message comes through in the dead of night, shaking Thobile out of her sleep. Johan groans, coughs and flops onto his side next to her. She pulls the phone from the dresser and squints against the brightness of the screen. It is a message from her daughter.
Hey mama, I forgot to say that we arrived safely. I love you.
Thobile sits up in her bed and reads the message again. It sounds nothing like Liyana but she decides to call. Her fingers fly over the dial pad before she presses the phone to her ear. It goes unanswered, along with several more tries. As a last resort, she calls Dalia who answers immediately,
“What?” Dalia snaps.
“What’s happening? I have been calling and both your phones have been off,” Thobile fumes.
“We got home late yesterday and we have been busy the whole day.” Dalia states.
“Oh …”
“Is there anything else?” Dalia sounds bored.
“Can I talk to Liya? She isn’t answering her phone,” Thobile pleads.
“Maybe next time. She is asleep at the moment.” Dalia lies before she hangs up.
Thobile sits staring at the phone. Something definitely isn’t right … she thinks.
***
Tell us: What do you think about Junior?