War Kids (20 page)
Authors: HJ Lawson
Reborn.
JADA
This morning I wake up… reborn
“She’s awake, she’s awake!” a young girl squeals.
I know that voice – it’s Waliyah.
My body is in a deep sleep, but I can hear her. Her excited voice has broken my slumber.
I can feel Zak’s warmth in my hand, his fingers stroking my palm softly up and down.
He’s alive… we both are…
“See, her eyes are moving,” says Waliyah.
I hear feet moving toward me. I push open my eyelids from the darkness, but this time I’m not terrified. I want to see that the people I love are really still here.
My eyes flutter open. Instantly, a smile appears on my face.
“Jada, Jada! I’ve missed you!” Zak whispers. Then he leans over and kisses me affectionately.
Finally he releases me from his lips. “Don’t leave me again,” he says, smiling as he steps back.
“Let her get some air,” Haytham laughs. My cheeks immediately turn red as I notice the room is full of people. They’re all here. Sahar is holding a baby!
“Sahar… congratulations!” I croak out.
She smiles. “Jada, please meet my new daughter, Jada. I named her after you.” Sahar’s face is radiant with joy. It is infectious, and everyone starts smiling.
“You named her after me?”
“Yes. You and Zak will always be part of my family. Thank you for what you did for us.”
I have to wipe a tear of happiness from my eye.
“Jada, this is my brother, Ali,” Zak bursts in excitedly. “Haytham found him!” Ali places his arm around Zak’s neck and grins.
Whoa..! Alive this whole time...?
“So this is your girlfriend, little bro? It’s nice to finally meet the girl my brother will not stop talking about,” Ali says with a wink.
Zak wiggles out from his brother’s arm, embarrassed.
“It’s nice to meet you, Ali,” I say.
Ali smiles at me.
“Okay, everyone… Jada needs time to rest. Actually, you all do. Time to go.” Faith steps forward proudly.
She’s alive!
Everyone slowly leaves the room. “Zak, that includes you,” Ali says, throwing his arm around his brother.
“I’ll be fine,” I tell him. He leans in and kisses me one more time, leaving me alone with Faith and a man I don’t know.
I turn to her and wince. “Faith, I’m sorry for standing on you.”
“Jada, no need to apologize. I’m just glad you’re alive! We all are. I’m not sure if you remember Gérard....” she motions to the tall man beside her, “He was one of the doctors at the hospital. He helped find you.”
“Thank you for rescuing us,” I say to them.
“You’re welcome. We will always protect you,” Faith says. She turns to Gérard. “Can you watch over Jada for a minute? I need to go get someone; I'll be right back.”
With that, she leaves Gérard and me alone. He stares at me in a caring way.
“Jada, may I show you a picture?”
“Yeah… sure.”
He takes a photo from his pocket and slowly passes it to me. It is of my family, from our living room. I feel my eyes well up. Why is he showing me this?
“Don’t cry, Jada. Is that you? Are they your parents?”
“Yes, that is me and my family. Why?”
“Jada, I knew your mother and father. We were friends.” Gérard pushes his lips together, forming a tight smile. “I can’t really talk about it now… I can tell you more when we’re alone. Faith will be back soon, and she doesn’t know.”
Does he know my family? Why can’t he speak in front of Faith?
The door opens again and I gasp. A dog is limping next to Faith.
Oh, my God, it’s Liquorice!
One Month Later.
JADA
“Hey, Jada, how was school?” Gérard asks me as he walks into the kitchen. “Have you almost finished your homework?”
“Good, homework nearly done. Kyra is a good teacher!” I say as I smile at Kyra. She really has been kind to me. She’s taken me under her wing at school. We became friends instantly when Faith introduced us at her welcome-home party put on by Faith’s sister, Victoria.
Kyra is very much like her aunt Faith, showing me friendship, and they are both always there when I need them... unlike Victoria. From the day I met her, I've been able to tell she resents me. She looks down on me the same way she does her house staff.
I know she wishes I’d stayed in Syria, but Faith and Gérard had insisted that I return to the U.S. with them. I needed to fulfill my mother’s dying wish.
“Get out of this country,” my mother had said. She’d told me to follow my heart, and my heart told me these were good people. Gérard, Faith, and Zak stayed by my hospital bed in the camp as I recovered from the gun shots. Haytham told me that they refused to leave until I was awake. They took turns watching over me. One would sleep, and another would get food.
The TV in the kitchen distracts us. News of Syria.
“Kyra, can you turn it up, please?” Gérard asks.
“Sure… I’ll leave you two alone,” she says as she adjusts the volume and leaves the kitchen. Gérard takes a seat in the chair next to me.
Laura appears on the screen, standing inside a refugee camp.
“More than 2.1 million Syrians, women and children, make up three-quarters of the refugee population; the vast majority of the refugees are dependent on aid, arriving with little more than the clothes on their backs. Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, and Turkey have opened their borders to help refugees; unfortunately there is an uncertain timetable for when they can return to their homes. It is estimated that, by the end of the year, half the population of Syria will be in need of help. This is Laura Leeming, live from Syria.”
As quickly as Laura appears on the TV screen, she is gone again. Gérard grabs the remote and turns off the TV.
“Zak told me about your father training you. When we were at the hospital, he told me everything you went through.” He pauses and looks down. He seems uncomfortable, but I don’t know why.
“Jada, you know how in the hospital I told you I went to school with your parents?”
“Yes, I remember, why?”
“I didn’t tell you what kind of school it was… would you like to know?”
“Yes,” I quickly reply.
“Are you sure? You may be surprised.”
“Yes, I’m sure.” Now I want to know even more!
“We were taught to be spies,” he says.
“Spies? Really?”
He nods.
“Wait… you said you went to school with my mother, too. Was she a spy as well?” That doesn’t make sense.
“Yes, they both were.”
What on earth?! My parents were spies?! Jesus, what else do I not know about my family?
“Jada, I can continue teaching you like your father did. Faith doesn’t know anything, and she must not know.”
What is he saying? He’s going to continue to teach me how to be a killer?
He locks eyes with me and clenches his jaw.
“I will help you get your father back.”
Zak pulls me toward the locker at the airport. “This is it… this one here,” he says.
I take the silver key from my pocket and then check to make sure its number is the same as the one on the locker. They are a match.
Father, I made it.
I insert the key in the lock and turn it. The door opens.
Inside the locker is a metal box. I slide it towards myself and pry the lid off.
Zak leans in for a closer look. There is an envelope with my name on it, written in my father’s handwriting.
I take out the envelope. There is another one with Gérard Mynatt’s name on it, but this one is written in my mother’s handwriting.
“My father knows Gérard, and it looks like my mother did as well,” I mumble.
Zak nods without speaking. Then his eyes bulge as I move a paper aside, revealing a large stack of cash. “Whoa, you’re rich,” he says.
“Shush,” I say, quickly glancing around to make sure no one is noticing us. No one is. “Quick, help me get it into my backpack.”
We quickly stuff the money into my bag.
At the bottom of the tin is my father’s old leather wallet, filled with bank cards. I place it in my pocket. I will inspect it later.
All that is left are the envelopes – one for me and one for Gérard. I look at Gérard’s for a moment, trying to decide whether to open it or not. I set it in my backpack. Zak lets out an impatient sigh.
“Are you going to open the other one?” he asks me.
“Yes.”
Nervously, I open the letter.
Dearest Jada,
My dear child, I know you’ve been through a lot to get here, and your journey has just begun. I have been informed that I will be taken soon. I need your help to find me. I will not ask that you do it alone; you will need to get in touch with the people on this list. The first person you need to find is Gérard Mynatt. He will train you and help you find me. You can trust him. Please tell him I am sorry… that we are both sorry.
For your safety, your mother and I had to change our names. Your mother’s real name is Mia Andréa, and my name is León Coupe.
Jada, I ask that you be patient. Take your time to learn everything you can from the people on this list. Blend in and try to be a normal teenager. Have some fun in these hard times, and remember what your mother and I taught you.
I love you, Jada. I’m thinking of the day when we will be reunited.
xxx
I hear my father’s voice in my mind as I read his words. Silently, I fold the letter and place it back in the envelope, and a lone tear drips down my cheek.
I will find you, Father. Even if I die trying.
I hope you found the story interesting.
If you have time to write a review, please know that I will read it and take the feedback seriously.
Every review increases the chances that other readers will discover this novel and influences what I write in the future.
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www.hjlawson.com
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All profits from War Kids – A Syrian Story will be going to
www.savethechildren.org
Other books by HJLawson.
Survive The Day: Book 2 in the War Kids series.
Jada and her friends have been living in America for over a year now. At school she blends in with the other children, but she knows that she is different. They didn’t have to kill for their freedom.
The memories of her past haunt her each time Gerard takes her to visit someone from her father’s list as they try to find out where he is being held. But what they don’t realize is they would have been safer in Syria… A hidden enemy is attacking America from the inside, and no one is safe…
Annabel dreams of a happier life. One with a normal family instead of one that chooses heroin and the Wild Boar Riders biker over her. The only person she can trust is Brandon, another person living on the streets. They bond over their hatred towards Troy, a pimp and drug dealer who takes great pleasure in ruining lives.
As the passion grows between Brandon and Annabel, so does the chaos in New York City as it is now under attack. They are forced to flee to an unknown hideout beneath the heart of the City.
Ethan is scarred by his father’s death. He has spent his entire life planning for revenge.
…And the day has finally come...
Available on
Amazon
Revolting Youth: Episode 1.
Luko thought life couldn’t get much worse after his mother died, and his father turned to alcohol.
He was wrong.
A childhood hatred between Shihid and Luko takes a deadly twist when Shihid joins the army.
Luko’s life is ripped apart when soldiers invade his hometown, recruiting men to join their army.
When Luko’s father and his best friend are taken… Luko does the only thing he can do - fight against an army of killers.
Revolting Youth is a short story - 6500 words long.
Available at
Amazon
Revolting Youth: Episode 2.
The boys get together to make their tent like a home for the new arrivals. Ali uses his charm to get a photography job for Haytham but are is unprepared for the life-threating consequences they will face.
Available at
Amazon
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank the following people who supported War Kids.
My supportive husband and loving daughter, Callie.
Wendy Schirmer, my wonderful editor.
And my encouraging family.
Special Thank you to my Kickstarter backers, without you this book would not be possible.
My Best friend Jodie Underwood, my muse Hsuante Tsai, My mother Louise Hicks, My mother in law Susan Lawson, Carol-anne Hamilton, Grandma, Donna Shorrock, Jon Davies, Hannah Gordon, Nick Byrne, Cindy Xiao, Robert Daddario, Scott D Contrera, Bruce Ekstein, Michael Siemank, John hicks, Eduard Gabrielyan, Cara Richmond, Nancy Ashthorpe,
Laura King Pattie, Charmaine Buffong Shinault, Richard Krulik, Vilayte essa, David Va, Patricia Rafferty, Jade Clarke-Mackintosh, Chloe Brooks, Jessica Muñoz-Vuillet, David Connor, Tiffany, Edwin Colon, Jordan Brooks, Helen Camm, Jenny Sung, Loana Vatavu, Emma Underwood, Bernadette Fritz, Paul Wright, Georgene Rada, Marie Lawson, Carol, Layo G, Gary Lee Vincent, Khaled Mahmoud Almesbah, Liz Rubio, Lisa Donoghue, Kerry bora, Brendan Hetherington, Laura Ballereau, Kelly Townley, Lorraine Johnson, Hazel Mhairi, David McCready, Stephanie wagner, Tracy Barlow, Beverly Brawer, Caroline woodruff, Juliska, George Hope, Paul Howarth, CJ Schindler, Julius J. Spedale, Julia Taylor, Victoria Defraeye, Carly keating, Amber Mauldin, David G Underwood, Kelly Morgan, Cristina Marques, Rachel Bell, Reis Armstrong, Jennifer Childs, David shorrock, Yvan Bergeron, Douglas Motschmann, Mike Brown, Martin Fung, Donald Gary Hanlon, Terrance Boykin, Kenai Reis, Susan.