LEILA

The Beginning

"Come Leila," a redhead woman said to a little girl. "What do you see?"

‘‘I see a man,’’ the little girl answered.

‘‘And what pray tell is the man doing?’’ The redhead woman asked.

"He is working on a chain saw," the little girl said.

"Oh my, I love chainsaws. What great things one can do with them," she said rubbing her palms together in glee. "Leila, please be a good girl and take this blind woman to that man, would ya?"

The little girl nodded and held the woman's hand and led her to the man.

"We're here," the little girl said.

"Good girl, now step aside," she said to her. "Good day fine sir," she greeted the man.

"Good day ma'am, how can I be of help?" The man asked.

"Could you lend me your chainsaw? It's really urgent, I promise to give it back when I'm done," she said.

"Of course, would you like me to help you cut whatever you want?" The man asked.

"You don't have to worry about that, I can manage," she said and the man switched off the chain saw and gave it to her. She held out her hand and muttered something under her breath and the man stood still, she turned on the chainsaw and chopped off his hands and leg. Blood oozed out like a broken water pipe.

The man stood there without making a sound, "are you enjoying this Leila?" She asked the little girl and she shook her head.

‘‘Please stop,’’ she begged.

‘‘But I still have one more thing to do. Have you ever wished to see the inside of your body? Well we can see the inside of his body,’’ she said smiling.

‘‘Please no more, I want my mommy,’’ the girl cried.

"You be quiet!" She said threatening to hit the little girl but she stopped and turned to the man she "working on". She used the chainsaw to cut the man in half, vertically. Warm blood splashed on the little girl, she covered her eyes with both palms and screamed out.

‘‘That's right Leila, scream as much as you can,’’ the woman said cackling.

* * * *

Kelly was making a phone call in her room when she heard the deafening screams of her daughter, Maya. She had gotten used to the screams and cries every morning and every night, for two years now. She quickly ended the call and rushed to her daughter's room, she had covered her eyes with both palms and was screaming.

"Wake up Maya!" She said shaking her. ‘‘Honey please wake up. It's only a bad dream,’’ she said comfortingly.

Maya woke up still screaming, when she realized that it was her mother holding her and not the woman with red hair, she relaxed. Her screams turned into sobs and then she started crying. “She cut a man in half mom, she killed an innocent man and I helped her. I stood there doing nothing, I watched her cut a man in half and I did nothing mom," she cried.

“It's just a dream honey, it wasn't your fault.” Her mother said consoling her. ‘‘Please don't cry anymore, you don't know how sad I become anytime I hear you scream. When you have these terrible dreams and I can't do anything about it, I feel so helpless that my daughter has to go through this pain over and over again, my heart aches to see you suffer this way.’’

‘‘I can't take this anymore Mom, I'm losing my mind. I am so scared to go to sleep no matter how tired and heavy my eyes maybe. I just wanna die, maybe I'll finally have peace when I'm dead,’’ Johanna said in between sobs.

"No honey please don't say that, we'll find a permanent solution for this. In fact I have booked an appointment with a very good doctor, get up and freshen up let's go," her mother said. Reassured that she was sober, Kelly went to get ready for the visit to the doctor. Maya went down from her bed went into the bathroom, she stared at her drooping face. She was a shell of her former self, gone was the cheerful and enthusiastic girl, in its place was a person who has lost every reason to live due to some crazy nightmares that can't allow her to close her eyes. She couldn't count the number of doctors, therapists, shamans and priests she's been to but none could profer a permanent solution. She was tired of going to see them but her mother wouldn't relent, she still had hope that she would be able to get rid of her nightmares. 'Who knows, maybe I'm meant to die this way, ' she thought to herself.