CHAPTER 3

'Knock!Knock!'

I jump awake and check the time, it's 11PM so, it can't be my brother right?? The knocking gets louder and louder. I don't know why but I have a really bad feeling about this. So many scenarios rush through my mind as I get out of bed, grab my robe and put my slippers. To answer all those crazy questions in my head I was going to have to get that door opened see who was behind there.

As I come out of my room, I see my mum coming out of hers. We both go downstairs and open the door for the uninvited guest or guests...it was the police!!!! I was just standing there staring at them with my heart beat increasing every minute. I didn't even know why they were here I just wanted them to leave because police always meant bad new right?

" Sorry to disturb you so late. I am officer Singh, this is my partner officer Jenny and this is our team . We have been authorised a warrant to do a full house inspection of your son Hadi. He has been placed under arrest."

I wanted the ground to open up and swallow me after hearing that. I looked to my side and my mum had become pale. I had feared this day would come. There had been this feeling inside me that had been repeatedly telling me that something would go wrong. So many scenarios like this had come to my head many times I had to pinch myself to check if I was awake or not. These were here to turn my house upside down and there was nothing I could do to stop them.

As they came in, I noticed that some were out of uniform and some weren't. I guess one half of the team had gone undercover in order to catch him. The feeling of imagining my brother in a prison cell made my stomach turn. I didn't want him to be locked up in a single room which was not hygienic in a place with the most dangerous people in the country. My mum was standing in a corner shivering looking all pale. Her lips had lost their colour and she had tears coming down her face. I quickly grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around her and then went to get her a glass of water. I just didn't know what to do to make her better. I couldn't stand to see her like this looking like a ghost. I helped her take a sip but that was all that she could take. All she wanted to was ask the officers questions trying to find out what had actually happened.

My mum asked them what did he do but they told her that he's over 20 so they can't say anything and checked the whole house. They even brought 3 search dogs. Turns out they didn't find anything but took old nokias even though we told them that all of us used them when our phone broke or we didn't have phones but they said everything that was in his room belonged to him. I felt like punching their faces. Like do they not have their own family members? Don't there family members leave things laying around their room? They wouldn't call those things their own would they?

They left around 12AM and I sent my mum to bed to sleep. She had tears running down her cheek I don't know how I managed to relax her. I fell asleep as soon as my body hit the bed because I was so exhausted. I would think about todays events tomorrow for now I needed sleep.

Before they left, they told us that he can call us tomorrow.

3 days later.....

He still hasn't called. It's probably because he feels guilty and doesn't know how to talk to us now that he's not here with us. I needed to hear his voice so that I would have to motivation to be strong and overcome this problem.

I miss him a lot I wish I could've helped him out of this, I wish I could've stopped him getting involved in this crap. Maybe if I talked to him about it just maybe he would've gone down a different path. All these maybes and what ifs were swarming my mind like a tornado.

An hour later....

"Inaya!!" I heard my mum shouting so I went running to her. She told me," Hadi is on the phone he wants to talk to you."

My hands were shaking as I took the phone and put it to my ear. " Hello Inaya. How have you been little sis?" I tried to control the tears threatening to come out. Hearing his voice was what I had been craving for for the past few days. I just wanted him to come back home so that everything could be the way it use to be. But I knew for the time being all of this was not possible so instead of throwing a tantrum like a kid I replied,

"Hi Hadi. I'm fine, how are you?"

"I'm fine too. How's college been?"

"fine"

I heard someone talking to him in the background.

"Listen, I have to go my time's up I'll call again soon bye"

I didn't want him to go so soon. I wanted to tell him to stay on call. I hated the idea that someone else got to control How much time we had to talk to each other. I hated the fact that I could not text him whenever I felt like it. But I knew for now i had to surrender so I replied,

"Bye"

"Mum he said he had to go and he'll call again soon"

"I'm gonna go back to my room call me if you need anything"

"Ok dear"

As soon as I got to my room, I hugged the stuffed minion Hadi got me me from the fair he went to with his friends and let my tears flow down my face like an endless waterfall. I fell asleep soon after that.

The next morning I woke up with swollen, puffy eyes. Yesterdays events were still fresh in my mind but my eyes were exhausted from all that crying and my tear-tank had become completely empty.

I took my phone from the side table to check the time. 30 miss calls. All from my besties, looks like mum told them what happened already...

'ENOUGH!!' I inwardly shouted at my thoughts. I was thinking of taking a day off today from college but I think it's best if I go, it will be a good distraction from all these brick-heavy thoughts in my mind.