Chapter 1

• **** MELINA P.O.V ****
• I looked at the orphanage again, knowing how much I would miss it. I can't stay there any longer. I'm old enough to buy my own food.
• Since I was young, all of my friends have moved, and so have I. As a sad child, I didn't have any parents.
• I don't understand why my parents did witchcraft. I tried not to cry as I walked out the door. My guardian pleaded with me to stay, but I didn't want to.
• I am twenty years old. I need to keep living as a young woman with no ties. I need to know what it looks like out there.
• My clothes and other things, like my cream and hair comb, were in my bags, which I was holding in my hands.
• I looked around the streets because I didn't know where to go. I didn't want to turn around, though, so I kept walking.
• I will lay my head down wherever the night takes me. I had food in packages in a small bag. When I insisted on leaving, my guardian set it up for me. The food would be enough for everyone for the whole day.
• She said something to me that kept going through my mind. This means, "There are bad men out there, and all they want to do is get in between your legs." Beware." She told me, and I've been thinking about it ever since.
• When I got to the main road, I saw that a lot of shops were open. Don't be surprised that I'm acting now where I've lived for 21 years.
• They never let me leave the compound because they knew that people in the town could hurt me or kill me.
• Right away, some shop owners saw me. They ran into their stores and shut the doors. Some people ran inside and started talking to themselves.
• I was just as embarrassed as they were. I can see now why they never let me leave the compound. They expected this to happen.
• I got up and ran down the road because it hurt. I realized that if I wanted to start a new life, I had to go somewhere where no one had ever heard of my parents.
• Around here, no one will ever hire me.
• I kept running even though I thought my heart would stop any second. I went into two buildings to get some fresh air.
• I put my back against the wall and took a deep breath. I looked around and saw that I was somewhere else.
• "Had I really run that far?" I thought I had run almost five blocks when I looked back.
• "Wow."
• I guess this is where I can start my life. When I walked out of the building, people looked away as if I were a normal person.
• I was so glad no one was after me or something. I was a stranger to them. I was sure of that.
• It seemed to be a different town. Or will I say something else? As I walked through the shops, I saw a store that had pigeons in it.
• "Wow!" I said to myself. They were pretty and came in many bright colours.
• I got the rice balls that Ma'am Rose made for me and put some of them in my hand. I put out my hand, and when they saw the grains in it, they rushed over to eat from it.
• When their beaks tickled my hand, I laughed. I looked up and saw a woman inside the shop looking at me.
• I thought she owned the shop and the pigeons, of course. From inside the shop, she watched as they ate the rice in my hand.
• After they were done, they flew back into the shop. I smiled, looking at the birds one last time before turning my back to go when the woman spoke up.
• "They like you." She said something, and when I turned around, she was smiling at me.
• I said as I got closer to the shop, "I like them, too."
• "You're new, right?" I said yes when she asked.
• "Yes, it's pretty clear, isn't it?" I asked, holding up one of my bags. She shook her head.
• "No, not that. People around here don't bother other people. No one had ever fed my birds before, so I knew you were new when you did. She told me what was going on, and I nodded. I'm new. "I am looking for a place to live and work," I told her, and she told me to come in.
• She told me to sit, and I smiled and did so.
• I said, "Thanks," and she sat down in front of me.
• "What are you called?" She did.
• "My name is Melina," I told her, hoping she wouldn't ask what my dad's name was.
• "Well, I am Susan." She told me, and I smiled and nodded.
• "Where do you come from?" She asked, and then she started to think. I can't tell her where I'm from because she might kick me out of the shop if she finds out.
• My mother died the day before I was born, and my father died before I was born. Since then, they have taken all of my things away from me, and I have been living on the streets. " I told her what happened, and she looked sad.
• "You don't have a family, do you?" She asked, and I told her no.
• I told her, "No, I don't," and she sighed.
• I can help you. I can tell you are good at heart. Today is the day you can start working here. But you have to sleep here because my husband won't let a stranger stay in our house. " She said it, and I was so glad.
• "Thanks a lot, Ma'am. I am so grateful. I won't have any problems here. " She smiled when I said it.
• "Good. "Drop your bags in the shop, and I'll show you how things work here." She said, and I stood up with my bags and nodded.
• When I was leaving, I could hear cars and see women of all ages peeking out of their shops with big smiles on their faces.
• "What's happening?" I asked Mrs Susan because I saw that she, too, was looking out the window of her shop.
• Jonathan would soon die. Those three cars in front are filled with his men. " She said this while pointing to the chairs that were coming at us very quickly.
• Why do they seem to be in such a hurry? Don't they know that kids sometimes play in the street? There's a market here. " I said something, and she put her finger to her lips to stop me.
• Never say anything against Jason. You won't make it one day. Even more so, his mother. " She said that, and I looked at the cars, which were moving in a line.
• "Well, who is this?" I thought that when they got closer and I saw a pigeon eating rice on the road.
• "Look, a pigeon!" I yelled as I looked at the car and saw how close it was. The pigeon needs to be saved.
• I ran out of the store and heard the woman yelling, but I didn't answer because I didn't want that pigeon to die.
• When I got to the pigeon, I picked it up and threw it into the shop. Then I closed my eyes and braced myself for the worst.
• Surprisingly, I didn't feel anything, but I heard the sounds of hits. The car slammed on its brakes all of a sudden, and I think the cars behind it hit it from behind.
• ......