Later on that morning, Amara breathes a sigh of relief as she watches the police car pull away from the driveway. They had taken a look around the house, asked if anything valuable had been taken, and written down their statements. They took pictures of the broken window in the kitchen, recommended that Robert install burglar bars, and promised to investigate further. By the time they piled back into their cars, the neighbours had gathered outside.

“Nosy neighbours. Where were they when that crazy man held a knife to my throat?” Londiwe clicks her tongue.

“We should take Amara home,” Robert declares. He disappears into the house. Moments later, the garage door opens and he drives out in a Honda civic.

“Get in!” he calls out to them.

Londiwe takes the passenger seat and Amara settles into the back. Robert presses the remote to close the garage door as he reverses into the road. The car has lost its shine. The smell of leather has long been replaced by the scent of stale chips and the lemon fragrance pack hanging from the rearview mirror. They drive in silence until they get to Pretoria. Amara directs them to the flat in Sunnyside.

When they arrive, she leads them to their unit. Amara draws in a deep breath before she knocks on the door. It immediately swings open and Thandi pulls Amara into a tight embrace.

“Where have you been? I called you so many times!” Thandi says.

“You took my phone,” Amara reminds her.

“I was so worried.” Thandi holds her at arm’s length.

“I’m sorry. I am so sorry, Ma,” Amara sobs.

Thandi stops listening to her daughter as soon as she notices the people at the door.

“What are they doing here?” Thandi shrieks. Thandi does not wait for a response. Instead, she pulls her daughter into the flat and shuts the door in their faces.

“I was hoping I could talk to you,” Robert calls from the other side.

“What are these people doing here? Where did you find them?” Thandi asks Amara.

“Ummm…I-I broke into their house.”

“What?” Thandi chuckles in disbelief.

“Thandi! Please open the door!” Robert knocks on the door.

“Tell me you are joking,” Thandi begs her daughter.

“I’m sorry, Ma. I snuck out a-and left with Zol…and I told him about the man w-we went to…when I was a little girl a-and…he took me to Haddon. We b-broke into their house,” Amara sobs through an explanation.

“Who is Zol?” Thandi shouts.

“Zolani. The guy who video-called me.”

“Tell me you’re joking!” Thandi begs.

Amara shakes her head. The knocking at the door intensifies as mother and daughter stare at each other.

“He has been looking for us. He just wants to talk to you,” Amara pleads. “Please let my father in.”

“Who said he is your father?” Thandi asks.

“He told me.”

Thandi draws in a deep breath and exhales. She pulls the sides of her cardigan over her chest and opens the door. She looks at Robert, then his daughter, before stepping aside to allow them in. Thandi ushers them in to the dining room and has them sit on the couch. She finds a spot on another couch away from them. Amara joins her mother.

“It is really good to see you,” Robert says.

“Stop with the pleasantries Robert, why are you here?” Thandi can taste the bitterness in her voice.

The stretch of time between their last conversations has hardened her heart. She remembers working for Robert when she was fresh out of university. He ran a packaging business back then and took her on as a receptionist. They got along well but the casual conversations between them had quickly turned romantic. They became inseparable until she fell pregnant. He had tossed her aside and even after Amara was born, he wanted nothing to do with them.

“Thandi, I owe you an apology,” Robert begins.

Thandi scoffs and rolls her eyes. This is not how she planned on spending her morning: confronting a man she wanted to forget. Londiwe does not say a word. She sits looking at the furniture in the flat. When Thandi looks at Amara, her heart drops. Her daughter sits looking back at her with all the hope in the world, eager to know her father. Tears well up in Thandi’s eyes but she blinks them away.

“No, actually, I should be apologising. Amara told me what she did last night. I should have kept an eye on her. Thank you for bringing her home,” Thandi says.

“It is the least I could do after all these years. I was beginning to think I would never see the two of you again but Amara found a way to bring us back together.” Robert looks at his daughter with appreciation.

A wide grin spreads across Amara’s face.

“Where are my manners?” Thandi suddenly remembers, “Can I offer you something to drink? Coffee, or maybe tea?”

“No, thank you,” Robert shakes his head, “anything except tea.”

“We drank a lot of it last night,” Amara explains.

“I think we’ve had enough tea,” Londiwe chuckles.

Thandi tries to hold back her laughter but a few giggles escape her. “You never did like my tea, Robert,” she said.  Robert looked at her nervously until Amara and Londiwe start chuckling. Soon everybody in the room is hunched over and laughing. It is the first thing they do together as a family.

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