The Antelope's Journey

2. My father is alive?

They were taking me away. I never liked that man, but I was traumatized to watch him get killed like that. They were pulling me along and all that time, my eyes locked with those of my murdered father on the carpet.

I was taken to “The boss’s” house. Surprisingly, they treated me like a guest. They had me refreshed and dressed in better clothes. He gave me his son’s clothes to wear, he said he had a son. I was sitting in the living room waiting. They had to explain to me why I was brought there and why they took out my father. I did not feel sorry for him. He deserved it for how he’d treated me my entire life, but I was curious what that was about.

“Look at you!” he finally came in. “You remind me a lot about your father. He used to wear my clothes as well, just like you are wearing my son’s. We were tight—”

“Then why did you kill him?”

“Ow that?” he was making tea in two cups. “That is not your father. He’s just some scum who goes stealing kids. Have a cup, dear—”

“Don’t want your cup.”

He saw that she was hostile. He did not want that. He knew he had to tell her the story to make her understand him, “It was on one afternoon that your father came with us and all our friends on a trip to Dubai. That’s where we lost you. That man, he’s just a thieve. Kids get stolen and they are sold to become labourers… or what they called in the day, a slave. Sometimes these kids are turned into soldiers. He probably stole you or he just bought you.”

She would not say anything, only she just glared at him drinking his tea. Seeing the distrust in her eyes, he put his cup down. He went on his shelve and brought an envelope. He gave it to Francina and sat back down. He continued his story as she opened the envelop, “You must have always wondered what that mark on arm is about. You probably have these weird dreams when you sleep…”

She pulled out what was inside. Those were some papers of what looked like copies of IDs, a proof of address and medical bills.

“Your actual name is Joseph Peterson. Your father, Gabriel Peterson. It took so long to find you because your name said we’re looking for a boy. You will also see a few pictures of your father and our friends.”

She saw the photos and instantly, she recognized a man with a broadest smile of all of them in the picture. She remembered him from her dreams. In her dreams, he was putting a baby in a basket and he gentle let off to the waters. His face would always haunt her nightmares.

The boss leaned forward and pointed into the picture, “That’s your—”

“Father…”

“Yes. The locket. It encloses a watch. Oh, he used to love that piece of jewellery, wouldn’t go anywhere without it.”

She had the locket in her hands, she could also see it on the picture around her father’s neck. Next to the father, was a woman but she had her face turned away. “What about my mother—”

His phone rang, “Excuse me, dear. I have to take this.” He left the room. She noticed that he was almost limping. She turned back to the material in her hands. All of this was starting to make sense.

She was provided a place to stay for the night. She could not sleep. Her mind was still doubting the new reality presented to her. The story did make sense, but also, many things were left unsaid and she had a lot of unanswered questions. She was stuck a mental loop, and a back-and-forth energy. She paced around the giant room. She had never been to such a fancy place. All her fancy experiences were limited to the malls and of which she would be working on wires. She started looking more into the room. She spotted a few cameras.

Why would he put cameras in here? She decided to leave. Down the passage, she saw more cameras. She had even begun to learn the placing pattern of the cameras. She figured out how and where to hide. She remembered her way out of the house. It was not hard for her as she was an electrician. However, she was not as by profession. She had learned wiring from her father (who had been shot some hours ago). He was once a professional wireman. But he lost his practise certificate due to a corrupt crime he was found guilty of many years ago. Since then, he had been wiring without a licence around his small community. From him, she learned working with electricity and reading an architectural plan. From her many experiences, she had found a consistent building plan among the rich. Just by locating the master bedroom and the study, she already knew where exit door would be.

Hiding behind some giant plant pots, she could see through. Two men were being forcefully dragged in to the house by the same guards that brought her there. The boss tore out each one of their sleeves and she could see the same diamond mark she had on their biceps. “These are the last of them,” he smirked. “Two decades of my life, searching and intolerable patience. Finally, I have gathered them all. My boys, let the game begin!”

They dragged them along. Now, she could approach the door. She swung the door open. A gun pressed against her head, “Where do you think you’re going?”

She turned and saw that it was a guard. He had her moving with the threat of a bullet. She was brought down in the secret basement. The basement resembled a prison. She saw many more of the others with a mark like hers, they were hanging by the bars and each one in a separate cell. She too was tossed into her own cell. Locked in and lights out.