“You’ll be fine.”
She stood to her feet again, but her limbs were shaking so badly; she slumped back into the bed.
“You’ll be okay in no time. It’s normal.”
She closed her eyes and a thousand stars bubbled in her brain. She opened it again. Her stomach began to rumble and her body became hot. Minutes later, she began to shake and shiver. Sweat ran down her brow.
He felt her temperature. “Are you okay?”
A kind of clumsy weakness coursed through her body and her mouth felt dry. Her jaw felt stiff. She tried to open her eyes, but she could not. She tried to raise her hand; she could not. She was having difficulty breathing.
Voices spoke in her head and she floated in and out of consciousness.
She felt a strong urge to ease herself, but she could not stand up. She tried to speak, but she could not.She started bleeding, the blood coming out in a gush.
***
Miriam's mother took another cursory look at the clock. It was nearly 11 pm. She yawned and changed to another TV station. Already she was feeling sleepy, but she was determined to wait up for Miriam. She must teach her a lesson. “You’re still awake, mom?” Kele, her second son asked, coming into the sitting room. She rubbed her hand across her eyes. “You don’t expect me to sleep when your sister is still out there?” Kele was silent for a second or two. “I wonder where she must be.” “Wherever she may be, today two of us will know who owns this house. She must go back to wherever she is coming from.” That is, if she comes back at all, Kele thought but refrained from telling her so. In the recent months and weeks, Miriam seemed to have grown wings. Going and coming back whenever she wants. He attributed it to her newfound status as a prospective undergraduate. “Should I lock the gate?” “No, leave it open. I will lock up when she comes back.” “If you say so, mom. Good night.” “Good night, dear.” As soon as he exited the room, she dialed Miriam’s number again. It was switched off. She tried it again and got the same answer. Frustrated, she dumped the phone on the sofa. Where could she be? Could she have met with an accident? When and where or could it be possible that she slept over at a friend’s place? Why didn’t she call? She was still wondering on the ‘hows’ and ‘whys’ when she dozed off. A few hours later, she woke up with a start, her heart was pounding so hard and her body shook like a leaf under the wind. She dreamed she was drowning and struggling to swim to shore when she suddenly woke up. She did the sign of the cross, grateful it was a dream.Then she remembered Miriam and her heart missed a beat. Could she have come back while she was asleep? She wondered as she picked up her phone to check the time; it was 9 minutes after 4 am. Sighing, she got up from the bed to make a physical check. A quick search revealed nothing. She went outside; the gate was still open. *** The sun hit Maya across the face; she stirred and blinked.  “Wake up, sleepy. You have a visitor,” her mother’s voice pierced through her subconscious mind. “Good morning, mom,”she stirred and opened her eyes and saw her mother drawing the window blinds. “Morning, dear. Miriam’s mother is here to see you. Get up.” She got off the bed. “What a time to visit,” she yawned. “There’s no right time to visit.” She did not say anything but maintained a faint pout as she followed her to the sitting room. “Good morning, ma.” “Good morning, Maya. How are you?” “I’m good, ma.” “Why didn’t you tell your friend to come home last night and why is she still in bed?” Maya’s eyes widened. “Don’t stand there looking at me, tell her I’m here.” She blinked. “I don’t understand.” “Where is your friend? Go and wake her up.” “She is not here, ma. I haven’t seen her in 3 days.” The skin around Mrs. Ndem’s eyes wrinkled. She took a deep breath. “I’m looking for your friend. She didn’t come home last night, and I thought maybe she spent the night with you.” Maya frowned. She was in total shock. “She didn’t sleep here.” “Do you have any idea where she might be?” “Have you asked Kate?” “No. I thought I should ask you first. I think I should go and see her.” “Okay, ma.” “Bye, and sorry for disturbing your sleep.” “It’s okay, ma.”