All Over Again

Smiling at a photo of Miika, Jub and her, Cressida fixed it in her ebony duffel bag that was placed on the once-smooth finish which gave way to a rugged textured floor. "Hey, Turnbull" She turned to look at the prison warden who stood at the entrance of the jail cell and brusquely called out to her. "It's time to go" the prison warden informed her. Cressida stood up from where she sat and hugged her cellmate, Jehov. Then they bid themselves farewell. "Cressida, please take care of yourself. I truly hope you reunite with your sister and boyfriend."Jehov said woefully knowing that this was the last time they were going to see each other. "Don't worry about me, I strongly believe that I will find Jub and my sister. Thank you for everything." Cressida hugged Jehov. "Hurry up Turnbull unlike you some of us have bigger things to deal with " barked the prison warden. Cressida picked her duffel bag and walked out of the cell. Jehov immediately sat on the decker on watching her friend enter her new life of freedom.It had only been a few seconds but she had already started feeling so lonely. The once vibrate jail cell was now a one man's grave overshadowed by silence and loneliness it was no different from that of a bumble bee's hive. She remained at rest with great knowledge of the jail cell being quiet different from that of the past twenty- three years though she had to get used to it in the upcoming days. Signing out of the prison gate books, Cressida strolls into the free world like a baptized Christian. No path of direction to partake, for she only had her memory to hold on to since Miika, her sister and Jub, her boyfriend suddenly stopped visiting her thirty -eight years ago. She ignored that suspicious fact and still went ahead to visit Jub's residence. On reaching her destination, after a very uncomfortable ride on a bicycle whose cyclist she bravely stopped and requested for a lift that in turn she gave two pennies that she saved while her stay behind bars. Cressida couldn't believe her eyes once she sighed Jub's house in an awful state of disaster. Nothing except the roof that had covered the terrible ramble of the walls looked as it was before. Her heart shuttered and thrown, she slowly turned and walked away. Everything became very frank to her, it was of like an open book but though it was a little bit strange that he didn't tell her perhaps he bore the idea of not worrying her with his personal problems she thought. Perturbed by the mesmerizing view of the Jub's house, she wondered why he didn't inform her that he was moving to another building. All in all she forged a path of hope which uplifted her inner spirit and enabled her to move to her home where she stayed with her sister. Cressida bearing a steadfast heart, she went ahead to her home. Without a doubting thought, she confidently stopped a taxi knowing damn well she had nothing like cash on her. Like a wealthy diva she entered the taxi. "Where are you heading, Madam" the fine taxi driver asked the poor parolee. "Las street" she boldly responded. The physical appearance reflecting a true state of calmness and confidence but her inner self burning with a never ending uncomfortablity, all she could do is think of multiple escape plans to bring her out of the mess she dragged herself into. Driving at the moment and assured of an income which would enable him go out to the bar to have fun with his friends since the distance was quite long, the taxi driver all of a sudden saw the back door of the taxi had open and when he looked at the back, the fine rich diva had stupidly jumped out of the taxi. On parking the taxi, he quickly came out and looked down the streets to get his money from the scammer he transported because he had covered over half of the journey and the remaining was a walkable distance but unfortunately she had already fled from the scene. Cressida with a big gory bruise on the elbow that she covered with an old cloth, kept on trekking to her home. It took her ten minutes to reach there. She ran very fast towards the house but unfortunately there was no one only an empty house that looked abandoned for umpteen years. She sat on the veranda to console her disappointment. After a few minutes of sitting, Jane her neighbor recognized her. "Cressy, Is that you?" she inquired. Raising up her head, Cressida answered "Yeah" She didn't recognize Jane for a moment but she did eventually. "Jane" she said "Cressy, when did you come out of jail?" "I was released today" "Really, you don't say. So how may I help you ?" "I came looking for my sister" "Miika didn't tell you that she left the house!" "Actually, she suddenly stopped visiting me thirty-eight years ago" "Really!" Jane exclaimed "Yeah, so do you have any news on where she might be?" "No, sorry she didn't mention anything to me" "No! maybe she told you but you just don't remember" Cressida insisted "I'm sorry Cressy. It's just that Miika went all of a sudden and also on that day your sister was in such a hurry to leave. It was as if she's running from someone or something" "Was she alone?" "Aaah, No! she was with some guy I had never seen before. Oh wait I overheard her talk with a man who gave her the address the day before she was in a hurry to leave" "Can you try to remember the address?" "Yeah, it'sssss Plot " she paused "246, yeah It's Plot 246, Dem Street " "Plot 246, Dem Street. Your sure" "Yeah " Jane nodded her head. As soon as Cressida got the address, she started her journey to the sister's current residence on foot. It took a couple of minutes for her to reach that area. On reaching she found umpteen buildings and found it hard to identify Miika's new residence.Cressida couldn't let her energy go as spoilt milk so she went to every house checking their address number. Fortunately she checked less than seven houses and found the address "Plot 246, Dem Street." Cressida calmed down and happily knocked at the door of the house. The door was opened and Cressida's eyes opened wide with a smile on her face. On opening the door, Miika stood right beside as the person who opened it. "Cressy" astonished she said while bearing a facial expression of guilt on the other hand Cressida was too happy to see her that she immediately hugged her though it was for a short time. "I have been looking for you" Cressida innocently said. Cutting their reunion short a eighteen years old teenage girl came out to see who the odd visitor was. "Mom, who is this woman?" she arrogantly mouthed. "Mom, she's your daughter?" Cressida bravely asked before Miika got a chance to answer "Honey who is that? You are taking quiet long out" a voice from the inner house. Cressida was waiting to see that person who was talking from inside he seemed to be Miika's husband. Patiently waiting with joy, the person came out only for him to be Jub.