Sip and See are celebrations done in honour of newborn babies after birth and one would have expected that the child deserved to be celebrated in her own home at least but as usual, the Matriarch of the Jones family had her way when she suggested to her family that it would be better if the celebration was done at her place. “Seeing as I have a bigger yard compared to that small thing you children have at the back of your house. It would only be sensible that you do it here. That is if your wife would allow it. What does an old woman like me know anyway” she had said before she added that the decision was all up to them. They moved the Sip and See to her house. It was their idea, of course. Serena geared herself up for what she was about to face as she spotted her mother-in-law’s drive. It was a garden party and she knew there would be people all around the house. She just hoped she would have been able to adjust herself to the apparent stare she was bound to get from people when sh

“What was that?” Serena thought as her eyes caught on something by the roadside. Well, not exactly at the road but she had seen it. Just right there by the brush. She had decidedly kept her mind free of any errant thought and jerked when she saw the fleeting movement. She almost convinced herself that it was a squirrel but she knew that the flash she had seen was bigger than any squirrel she had ever seen. When she looked around, she realised that she had come farther than she intended. This part of the city was not where she was familiar. “Keep going, girl” her subconscious whispered to her as she braked and reversed the car. She ignored the impertinent voice and parked. She couldn’t see much of anything now but she was sure she had seen something. She was mostly a homebody and don’t go out much, so the area she was in looked a bit strange to her. She knew it couldn’t be that far from familiar terrain though. She couldn’t have driven that far yet could she? Serena crossed to th

“Call someone and you will find yourself to blame” the kid had said. What the heck? Serena thought in rage. Well, the person on the other end couldn’t have been much of a kid but she was sure that he was no adult either. Ridiculous, isn’t it? That she had felt a frisson of fear run down her back even as she had let out the enraged “Excuse me?” He had simply replied that they would join them soon before he disconnected the call. Her anger had not let her ask him just how he intended to do that when she did not tell him where they were. Not that he gave her the opportunity, though; the phone had gone dead in her ears. She might not be so sure of where she was at the moment, but she did remember where she had started her drive, didn’t she? She had not taken any detour and telling him something at all would have been better than he or they, whoever they were trying to locate them without direction. The arrogant ass. Serena was too angry at the moment to bother about how easily swe

Serena had no idea what she had been expecting but it was not this. They arrived at Kiribati Island country the following day close to midday. She had a chance to look outside when the pilot announced that they were close to landing. Somewhere along the flight, they had finally uncuffed her. Thank God, since she had felt pressed some minutes after that and simply went to the restroom without asking any of them. Annoyed as she was with the impertinent young man, she couldn’t begrudge the fact that he was genuinely worried about his brother. Though he was with the pilot at the front, he had been to the back to check on the unconscious man so many times that she stopped herself from almost telling him that he shouldn’t worry so. No, she had no business extending any assurance to him when he was the reason why she was here now. The reason why they were looking for her at home right now. Oh, Mathew would be so worried. She deliberately took her mind off the inevitable trouble she woul

Serena had never dubbed herself as religious. Of course, she said her prayers. When she could, but the influx of deadly pinging sounds that had been bouncing off the bulletproof car followed by the tense waiting moment as the masked men circled them made her spout out prayers randomly, half unaware of what she was saying. There were four of them. Four mean-looking, brutal men with even more mean-looking guns. Their ammo belts slung carelessly around them. “Get down, I said” Kincaid yelled at her and she blankly looked at him. She wanted to shout at him not to yell at her again, wanted to tell him it was all his fault that she was in this situation. Not in a thousand years would she have been in this kind of dangerous situation if she had just been at home where she belonged. But all she could do was tremble as tears came to her eyes. A sinister voice in her head seemed to gleefully shout “You are going to die!” His alert eyes seemed to fill with sympathy. Then he stretched his hand