Page 6 of Seventeen Years Ago

“Aiza, what’s wrong? You seem to be miles away,” she asked as she looked up from the quilt she was working on.

I couldn’t even remember what she’d been saying when my mind had started to drift. It is unlike me. “Sorry Grandma. I have a lot on my mind.”

“That is obvious. What is it that has you so troubled? Tell me. Maybe I can help,” she suggested.

Smiling, I replied, “You don’t need to worry about me. It’s really nothing.”

“I know you better than that. Is it work?” she prodded.

In a way, it was. Ever since I was invited to join the Hendersons for dinner, I couldn’t seem to relax. It’s not that I found them out of my league, but I felt as though I was betraying my people. Crazy, because Reesa was going, and I knew where her loyalty lay. “Kind of.”

“You usually love your job. What has changed?” she asked.

“I was invited to a... gathering of some sort and I don’t want to go,” I stated.

“President O’Connor invited you?” I shook my head and she asked, “Then who?”

“Zoey Stone is having some sort of party, just women, at her house.”

“I don’t believe I know who that is,” she stated.

Most people didn’t know Zoey’s maiden name. “She was born a Henderson.” I watched for a look of surprise or shock, but nothing. “Grandma, did you hear me? She’s a Henderson.”

“Yes, I heard you, and that she invited you to a party.”

“Yes. Well, no. She didn’t invite me, she invited Reesa, I mean President O’Connor, and asked if I could accompany her to the gathering,” I explained.

“That was so nice of her to do that.”

“Grandma, Zoey is a Henderson,” I said, stressing the last name.

She stopped working on her quilt and rested it on her lap. “Aiza, do you believe that President O’Connor would go someplace that wasn’t safe?” I shook my head and she continued. “Do you think she’d bringyousomeplace dangerous?”

“Of course not, but.... but...” I had nothing to debate. She was right. Reesa would never risk my safety or hers.

She picked up her quilt and started to sew it again as she said, “Then you are worried for nothing.”

I wouldn’t go that far. These were Americans. I had not forgotten the night when I was taken from my home. The last time I saw my parents, they were fighting my abductors. I had been thrown into the back of an SUV with two armed men and driven to a hotel where an American, who paid for me for the night, had been waiting.

Going home after that was no longer an option. My parents had been taken. No one knew where and they were never seen again. If it wasn’t for my grandmother taking me in when I was eighteen, I probably would’ve ended up on the streets, and I wouldn’t be working for the president now. For this reason alone, I should trust her when she said I had nothing to worry about because if it wasn’t for her, I’d have nothing.

What I really owed her was the truth about what happened that horrible night. But that American swore me to secrecy. He said if his father or anyone ever learned about what transpired, my life, as well as his, would be in jeopardy. There had been so many times over the past seventeen years that I wanted to speak up and tell my truth, but if there was even a slim chance that what he had told me was true, I couldn’t risk it.

Sorry, Grandma. I love you too much to risk losing you too.

Pushing away thoughts of what I had no control over, I focused on coming up with an excuse for why I shouldn’t attend Zoey’s party. “Grandma, the gathering is in a week. Do you think you would have time to help me make something to wear?” I asked. It was a foolish question, because my grandmother loved to sew. When she was younger, she had the reputation of being the best seamstress in Tabiq. If I couldn’t get out of attending this party, then the least I needed to ensure was not look out of place. Currently, the options in my wardrobe were either business or very casual.

“I’d be happy to.”Of course. Helping is what you do.“Did you want to start now? I have some blue cloth that will make a lovely dress for you if you want to see it,” she offered.

“You do? When did you get that?” I asked. Not that I knew everything she had, but since I did the shopping for her, I knew most of it.

She smiled. “I went into town during the week to purchase it.”

“Why didn’t you wait for me to bring you?” I asked, not liking the idea of her going into town alone. Not because I thought someone would hurt her, but because she was elderly, and the roads were not in good shape. She was stubborn, a family trait, and would attempt walking to town even though it was unwise.I want to be there to take care of her.

“It was meant to be a surprise. I wanted to make you something special for your birthday.”

Birthday?I hadn’t celebrated my birthday since I was a teenager and I totally forgot that it was next Sunday, the same day as Zoey’s party. But leave it to my grandmother to remember.You have never forgotten me.“Grandma, I don’t want you to use your special cloth on a dress for that party.”

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