by Ashley
Ezekiel made it clear that she was to tend to the duties of his house and to avoid the brutal punishments she saw other women and kids endure, she obliged. A week had passed, and Liberty still had not spoken a word. Untrusting of everyone and too afraid to open up, she did what was expected and nothing more.
A’shai watched her from the side of the house as she washed clothes in the wooden basin out back. He couldn’t figure her out and the more he tried to get her to interact, the more she withdrew. He felt badly about her family and knew that she was hurting, but his youthful ego took a blow each time that she snubbed him. A youngin’ with a schoolboy crush, he was determined to make her pay attention to him. As she washed diligently under the blazing sun, A’shai snuck up behind her. The clothes that hung on the makeshift clothesline hid his approach.
“Arghhhh!” he screamed obnoxiously, startling Liberty. Her first reaction was to flee but as she stepped backwards she tripped over a metal bucket, causing her to fall into the large washing basin and soaking her to the bone.
Enraged she screamed at the top of her lungs as she lunged for A’shai and pulled him into the water.
He fell face first into the basin and came up spitting out sudsy water. The two wrestled and grunted as they fought one another, pushing and shoving and cursing. They tipped over the basin causing clean clothes along with themselves to spill out into the dirt.
“Look what you made me do!” Liberty shouted in frustration, knowing that if Ezekiel saw the dirtied laundry there would be serious repercussions. Soaking wet, she fell to her knees and picked up the clothes.
A’shai could see the terror fill her as she scrambled nervously. As much as he hated chores he knew that he owed her one. He wouldn’t be reprimanded if Ezekiel found out but she would, and the last thing he wanted to do was get her into trouble. He bent down and helped her out.
“Just go away,” she mumbled as she put the clothes into the basin and grabbed water buckets to go retrieve more water from the river.
“Sorry!” he screamed after her. “I was only playing. Hey, wait up!” A’shai said as he ran after Liberty. “Where are you going? Hey! I want to help.”
“You’ve helped plenty!” she shot back as she stomped away.
A’shai knew that if she tried to bring the water to the well it would take all day. A’shai scooped up the dirty clothes and ran after her. He was a thinker and would rather let his brain do the hard work than his body.
“What are you doing?” she asked in annoyance.
“You can wash and dry the clothes by the river. Trust me. It’ll be done before my dad even knows we’re missing,” A’shai stated. He ran past her. “Come on!”
Reluctantly Liberty ran after him until she was out of breath. By the time she caught up to him, A’shai had the clothes in a fishing net that he threw into the flowing water. She stopped and looked at him in amazement while thinking, Why didn’t I think of that?
He sat on the shore and then patted the space beside him. “So what’s your name anyway?” he asked.
She sat down a few spaces down from him and replied, “Liberty.”
It was all they said to one another the entire day but the ice had finally been broken, and Liberty appreciated A’shai’s offer to help. Hours later as the sun began to set, A’shai helped her remove the clothes from the tree branches they had dried on and then they raced one another back to the village. Ezekiel hadn’t arrived home yet causing Liberty to breathe a sigh of relief. As Liberty prepared for bed, A’shai approached the makeshift cot that she slept on. Without warning he leaned forward and kissed her on the lips. The peck was so quick that Liberty wasn’t even sure that it even happened and without saying anything, A’shai nervously retreated to his own room. His confident swagger hid the nervous butterflies that danced in his stomach. A small smile spread across Liberty’s young face as she touched her lips gently. She had never kissed a boy before, and it made her blush in flattery. It was the first time that Liberty hadn’t been afraid in her new surroundings. Although she did not let him know, A’shai made her feel comfortable. She didn’t think about the rebels, the war, her family, the blood-stained hands of his father. In his presence, Liberty felt safe… as if the little boy could protect her from the big bad world.
THREE
LIBERTY AND A’SHAI BECAME INSEPARABLE. SHE DISTRACTED him from his duties as an up-and-coming rebel because he wanted to spend all of his days with her. They never spoke about the raid of her village, but just looking Liberty in the eyes made A’shai realize how wrong the rebel campaign truly was. If girls like Liberty were hurt in the process then A’shai wanted no part of it. He was smitten by her infectious laugh. Taken aback by her flawless skin. Enthralled by her remarkably kind heart. They were best friends, and as each day passed she opened up to him more and more.
Ezekiel was pleased with the way his son had cracked Liberty’s hard exterior and as he watched the two playing behind his home he cleared his throat, announcing his presence.
Liberty stopped dead in her tracks as her eyes grew large. She was terrified of Ezekiel, and she avoided him whenever she could. She had seen him carry out the most lethal of threats and although they had not interacted much, he intimidated her.
“Shai, we need wood. Stop all this playing and go retrieve a few bundles,” Ezekiel stated sternly.
A’shai nodded and tapped Liberty’s arm. “Come on, let’s go!” he shouted.
“Go alone. She has chores to do,” Ezekiel said.
“But I’m going to need help carrying…”
Before A’shai could get the sentence out of his mouth Ezekiel shot him a cold stare that silenced him instantly.
“Go get the wood,” Ezekiel demanded. He walked over to Liberty and placed a heavy hand on her shoulder and then led her back into the hut.
Liberty craned her neck as she watched A’shai kick a rock in frustration as he headed out to the woods. She wanted to call out to him or to even run after him, but the hold Ezekiel had on her fragile neck was so strong that she was afraid he might snap it if she disobeyed.
Ezekiel had waited long enough for Liberty to become accustomed to her new life. He hadn’t needed her to cook or to clean or to wash or to sweep. She was one of the spoils of war, a sexual conquest. She was too beautiful to kill like the others of her village. He wanted her, and as he closed the door, he unbuckled his army fatigue pants as his manhood grew in sickening anticipation. Ezekiel approached Liberty. Shirtless, his hairy chest trapped the scent of his funk as he grabbed her wrists and pulled her down onto the floor forcefully.
His hands roamed her body, and she pushed them off repeatedly. “No, stop,” she cried as his fingers penetrated her, hurting the space between her legs. “Stop!” she screamed.
A’shai got halfway into the woods when he realized that he had forgotten to take an axe. Knowing that this was going to set him back and keep him away from Liberty even longer he took off as his youthful speed brought him back to the village in less than ten minutes. A’shai trudged to the back of the hut to retrieve his axe when Liberty’s shrill screams cut through the air and pierced his young heart. A’shai ran into the house and when he saw his father struggling to subdue Liberty on the ground he snapped. He had seen his father do horrendous acts, but the sight before him made his stomach hollow in utter disappointment.
“Get off her!” A’shai barked as he lunged at his father’s back, swinging with all the might that he could muster. His fists did not faze Ezekiel, they only incited his anger. Ezekiel stood, sweating and heaving like a crazed bull.
Liberty’s eyes met A’shai’s as she wiped the blood from her nose. Like a deer in headlights, A’shai froze as Ezekiel approached him menacingly. A’shai stood his ground as he looked his father in the eyes. Inside he was fearful because he knew that the conflict to come was an unmatched and unfair bout, but he still stood tall, firm, his fists balled as he prepared to defend Liberty.
Ezekiel didn’t say one word as he loomed over
A’shai. Without warning he issued a blow to A’shai’s chest that sent him flying backwards into the door. His twelve-year-old chest caved in, making it hard for him to breathe and causing stinging tears of shock to accumulate in his eyes.
“Shai!” Liberty called out.
“You want to be a man?! You want to barge in here like you are a man?!” Ezekiel shouted as he looked down on his son. “She is a whore! A Liberian whore! That is what she is here for!”
Ezekiel was enraged that his son had the gumption to go against the grain, and he was determined to beat him into submission. If A’shai was willing to buck against him over Liberty, he would eventually buck against the rebels in an attempt to have his own mind. Ezekiel was determined to teach A’shai a lesson he wouldn’t soon forget.
“Stand up!” Ezekiel demanded with fiery anger burning in his menacing eyes.
A’shai staggered to his feet while Liberty looked on fearfully. As soon as A’shai planted both feet on the ground, Ezekiel leveled him once again… hitting his son so hard that it felt as if A’shai’s chest cavity had been broken. Tears threatened to spill, but A’shai refused to cry, especially in front of Liberty.
“Stand up!” Ezekiel yelled.
Panting on the floor, A’shai knew that he could not take much more of this. He glanced at Liberty who was crying and staring at him with worry in her eyes. He couldn’t let his father hurt Liberty. It was in that moment that he knew he had to make a choice between his father, a man who he had admired all his life, or Liberty, a girl he barely knew.
“I’m sorry,” A’shai whispered. Ezekiel smiled wickedly as he watched his son concede defeat. He turned to finish what he had started with Liberty but he didn’t take two steps in her direction before he felt the sharp blade of the axe split his back wide open. A’shai wasn’t apologizing for defending Liberty. He was apologizing for stabbing his own father in the back-literally. Ezekiel fell to his knees as he tried to reach behind him to remove the blade, but his arms were too short.
“Come on!” A’shai yelled as he grabbed Liberty’s hand before running out of the hut. They could hear Ezekiel’s screams as they darted through the village. A’shai knew that his father wasn’t dead and if he caught them there would be hell to pay. The beating would be so severe that it would be worse than death. They both understood this and it was that fear that caused their legs to keep flying as their hearts pumped furiously. They didn’t stop until they were on the outskirts of the village and Liberty could no longer keep up with A’shai’s pace. Out of breath, she called out, “Shai wait!”
His momentum slowed as he looked back. He stopped completely when he saw her panting from exhaustion.
“Are you okay?” he asked. “Did he hurt you?”
She shook her head. “No, no… you came in before he could. Where are we going?” she asked. They had no food, no money, and no direction but the one thing that they did have was each other and for A’shai that was enough. He had no idea where they were headed but he wanted to seem like a man… like he knew exactly where to lead her. He wanted her to feel as if she could depend on him. So even though he had no plan and felt just as lost as Liberty, he grabbed her hand and asked, “Do you trust me?”
She hesitated before answering, but she knew that A’shai was all she had left and after what he had done for her today she couldn’t say no. Nodding her head yes she replied, “I trust you.”
They interlocked pinkies, sealing their faith in one another and took off in the opposite direction of what was once home.
They ran for hours, until the soles of their feet were so tender that they ached. As the leader of the rebels, Ezekiel was too powerful not to fear. His reach was long and if they stopped moving, undoubtedly they would be caught.
“Shai, I cannot run anymore. I’m tired and I’m hungry,” Liberty said as she nursed the cramp that had been building in her stomach.
Breathing heavily, A’shai looked at her. He could see her distress. They had traveled two towns over but were not far enough to feel safe. Traveling by foot would only be delaying their inevitable capture. They needed a ride and as A’shai looked around he formulated a plan in his head. The busy capital of Freetown was bustling with traffic, allowing A’shai and Liberty to go unnoticed. Noticing a man leave his car unattended, A’shai grabbed Liberty’s hand and ran to the back of the vehicle. Lifting the tarp he ushered her quickly inside before climbing in behind her.
“Where are we going?” she whispered.
“Wherever he takes us,” A’shai replied as he wrapped one arm around her shoulder while holding onto the side of the Jeep. They heard the car start and the relief that filled them made them optimistic, feeling as though they were home free.
As soon as the car stopped moving A’shai and Liberty hopped from the back and took off. They didn’t know where they were, but as long as they were far from Ezekiel they no longer cared. The smell of salt water filled the air as Liberty stared out at the single ship that was docked in the port. She was amazed at the sight. She had never seen so much water in her life. As she held onto A’shai’s hand she wondered how so much water could be in one place when it was so scarce in her old village.
“I’m going to get you some food,” A’shai said. “Stay here.”
“No I want to come with you,” Liberty said. A’shai was all she had left and despite how they had been brought together, she never wanted to be torn apart from him. He was the only friend she had and the only person who had ever made her heart’s pace pick up. The puppy love she had for him was one of loyalty and protection. He made her feel safe, and she trusted him without limits. They noticed a metal crate that sat open on the port that contained imported vegetables. Knowing that he didn’t have much time, A’shai ran over to the shipping crate to steal a snack. He lifted his foot and kicked through one of the wooden containers, causing tomatoes to spill out onto the crate floor.
“Hurry, Shai,” Liberty whispered as she shuffled her feet nervously.
“Here, wrap these in the bottom of your dress,” he instructed. He handed her five large tomatoes and then stuffed as many as he could into his own loose pockets. They were both running on empty and just the sight of the ripened fruit made their mouths water. Something as simple as a tomato was like a luxury dish for them. It was what the wealthy people in Sierra Leone had access to.
It looks so good, Liberty thought. She could hardly wait to bite into it.
She was jarred from her thoughts when a firm hand grasped her shoulder.
“What are you two doing in here? You little port thieves!” a man yelled as he turned Liberty around forcefully, causing the tomatoes to fall out of the folds of her thin fabric dress.
A’shai immediately sprang into action. “Let her go,” he yelled, trying to force bass into his voice.
“You’re not supposed to be here. You’re…” before the man could finish his sentence A’shai had kicked the man square between his legs, causing him to double over in pain. Without needing instruction, A’shai and Liberty took off, running to the other side of the port.
“You see those kids?” A’shai asked as he looked in the near distance.
“Yeah!” Liberty shouted.
“Run to them… go… we can blend in with them,” A’shai shouted. He turned his head to look back at the man who had given chase and as he turned back around he collided head first into a woman, the impact sending him to the ground. He looked up into the eyes of the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Like a model on a TV screen, her blue eyes made her angelic and he was momentarily star struck by her magnificence.
Liberty stopped running and looked behind her. The man was coming up on them fast.
“Stop them… stop them!” he shouted as A’shai scrambled to his feet and grabbed Liberty’s hand as he looked around desperately for a way out.
“It’s okay,” the white woman said as she put her hands up. “Everything will be fine.”
The man came running up, breathing hard as
he finally caught up to them. “These two… stealing… stealing fruit…” He was so exhausted from the chase that he could barely get the sentence out. He put both hands on his knees as he sucked in air.
“He’s lying!” A’shai shouted back defensively.
“It’s okay. They’re with me. They just got lost,” the white woman insisted as she looked the two kids up and down. She pulled out money from her pocketbook and handed it to the man. “This should square things, right?” she asked.
The man grumbled something underneath his breath, snatched the money, and then walked away.
Confused and skeptical, A’shai looked at the woman as he stood in front of Liberty.
“Is this your sister?” the woman asked.
“She’s my wife,” A’shai stated proudly as he stuck out his chest all the while still shielding Liberty.
“Ohh,” the woman responded with a slight chuckle, slightly caught off guard by his mature response. “Well I’m Ms. Beth, and your names are?”
“I’m A’shai, and she’s Liberty,” he responded.
“It’s very nice to meet you both. You have a very pretty wife, A’shai,” Ms. Beth responded.
A’shai nodded his head, his lip curled from mistrust as he eyed the blonde-haired, blue-eyed, Ms. Beth.
“Where are your parents?” Ms. Beth asked.
“They’re around here somewhere,” A’shai acted as though he was searching for them. “They’re probably looking for us right now. We better get going.”
Ms. Beth stopped them and said, “If you need some food… you know while you wait for your parents… I can help.”
A’shai shook his head and replied, “We’re fine. I told you our parents are coming soon.”
Liberty tugged at his arm while whispering, “Come on, Shai. I’m hungry. Let’s just eat something. She said she can help us.”
Knowing that Liberty was running on an empty stomach put A’shai’s back against the wall. He knew that they had drawn too much attention to themselves and he wanted nothing more than to keep moving, but he could withstand the hunger… however, he would never expect Liberty to.
