As Angel sat at the dining table for breakfast her eyes ran to Zuri. She had been growing thinner by day from when they lost their mother. Her brother Tom sited beside her was no better. She remembered how he had hidden himself for days in his room, when he received the devastating news of their mother's death. It took days and when he come out of his room, he looked soulless. He sat by the coach in the living room and narrated to them his own ordeal. It had been the hardest days for the family. Angel and Zuri hugged him for minutes and comforted him.
The recent days had been the best for Angel as her father was away. The peace was however short lived as her father was permanently posted in Nairobi. This meant he would be around to be a constant reminder of the darkness that lurked within their home.
Angel couldn't believe the turn her life had taken since that tragic night when her father had taken her mother's life. The weight of her secret had been a heavy burden. This is because she had shouldered to protect the image of a man who had shattered their family.
Just then a knock came by the door and a tall figure invited itself in.
"Mr. Justice, are you here with the essentials?" her father asked.
"Yes, Mr. Mwabili, everything is going on smoothly. This shall be over soon," the man answered.
He handed Mr. Mwabili a file and left. When the man was gone, Mr Mwabili went ahead to explain to them that those were his office documents. He excused himself and left for his bedroom. He shortly came back ready and head them goodbye. Angel and her sibling's bid him farewell and they all dispersed for their daily chores.
Angel however had an idea in mind. She quietly sneeked into her father's room. She went straight for his working desk. She was eager to find out whether the file delivered belonged to her mother's ongoing case. She quickly reached out for the file. She was hoping to find some solace and closure. With trembling hands, she opened it, revealing a collection of names, dates photos and cryptic notes.
Her heart sank as she began to decipher the coded language, realizing that it was a record transaction. Shock and horror gripped her when she saw the pictures of drugs, money laundering, women trafficking and guns. All this revealed her father's true nature. Emotions washed over her as she came into a realisation that she had given her father a chance to take advantage of the poor. She wondered how her father, the man she had known her whole life had been consumed by so much greed and how he had turned to be so cold and dangerous. "Could it be her father had been entangled into this illegal business out of necessity?" she wondered.
She read and reread the document in disbelief. Tears ran down her cheeks when she saw the details of how her father abducted young vulnerable girls and sold them in the middle east as slaves. There were also details of how the drugs were being transported together with the aid that was given to the refugees and the poor. Her heart torn at how her father was taking advantage of the poor for his own benefit.
Suddenly she heard heavy footsteps approaching the room. She quickly ran and hid in the closet. As the door to the room opened, Angel struggled not to make a sound. A tall figure approached the working desk and from the closet Angel could see it her father. She wondered what made him return. She peeped and watched him as he held the documents in his hand. In the closet, she prayed that he would not notice her presence in the room.
Her father put the documents in a briefcase and then left the room. Angel waited for some time to make sure everything was clear before leaving the closet. She quietly tiptoed out of the room and ran to her bedroom.
As she sat on her bed, thinking about her next move, her mind reeled with fear and uncertainty. She knew that confronting her father would put her life in danger. He was a dangerous man, capable of unspeakable acts and she had seen the proof herself. But she also could not bear the idea of letting him continue to commit these crimes.