HAYTHAM

Whatever I'd been expecting, it was nothing like what she said.

Ziio's words hit me squarely in the chest, stealing all breath I had. I could not even gasp. My mouth opened and closed in astonishment. I struggled to feel anything. No shock. No anger. No indignation. Nothing.

I looked deep into her eyes again, searching them for signs that she was lying. But why would Ziio lie to me? The only lie she'd ever told was 'I'm fine.' But no; her eyes (although flickery and pained) were truthful.

At last it was her who spoke. "You seem shocked."

I wasn't entirely sure what I was thinking. It simply would not sink in. "I...but...how? When?"

"I tried to tell you," she mumbled sleepily, "the day...the day we settled our differences."

I gulped. The sight of Ziio was taking me back to events I dared not think of. Her trembling hands, placed on her belly. The "illness" described by members of her tribe. The hidden sadness behind her beauty for our final weeks. But worst of all (my goodness, it came with such a blow) I remembered the night that we sinned by the riverbank.

Of course.

I was a fool not to think that this would happen. I still tried to stay impassive as I tossed the events over in my mind. Why did I not read the signs presented to me? Now, I was...

A father.
I have a son.

Son. The word sounded like a poison in my head; an innocent poison which plunged deep into my senses. A poison that paralysed any feeling I had left. I supposed I'd had so many surprises over the last two days; I was immune to even the most shocking news.

"The boy...he was...he is..."

"Our son." Ziio spat out the word 'our' like an odour.

"I..." what was I to ask next? "How old is he?"

"Our tribe do not keep an exact record like you," she said, "but he is about five years of age."

Five years. Five years ago, a new creation which I triggered, entered this world. Among the layers of shock and disbelief, I felt a sort of pride. I had a son. I had seen him, not knowing what I was to him. It was only a fleck; an ember. But it was an unmistakable warmth in my cold, calculated heart.

Of course. I saw something in that child that I trusted. It was because of him I had rescued his mother. It was his eyes: shimmering even from the distance, making me swallow my dignity. It was the same sensation whenever Ziio used to look into my soul.

She pulled back her bed sheets; she was obviously too warm in them. She sat up slowly, and immediately my eyes flashed to the eyesore burns on her legs. Ziio, too, stared at what remained of them for several long moments, before she asked:

"What has become of my clothes?"

"They were burnt to ash, Ziio. You could not stay in them."

Her lip curled as she inspected her white gown. Though I thought it gave her a purified beauty, her opinion was nothing of the sort. She huffed deeply.

"You could have prevented this," she hissed in a low voice.

Again, I was so worn by surprises that this unusual (and threatening) statement had no effect. "Could I have? I do not think so."

"Stop pretending. I know of your plans."

"Plans?" I felt my fists clench in annoyance. "For your information, I haven't a bloody clue what you are talking about."

"You may not know everything about what happened." She indicated her legs angrily. "Yet you had power to stop your heartless men. And you did not!"

"My men? What the – my men?"

"Yes, Haytham, your men!" Ziio shouted.

Despite all the dull discoveries, this shocked me the most. Ziio – who only hours ago lay looking innocent and bewitching – displayed anger as raw as her skin. Her voice seemed to echo into the silence; it was a crashing wave rolling around the room. She looked tense in her bed, as if ready to pounce. But she could not. Even this exclamation had tired her fragile body out. She closed her eyes and lay down again. Perhaps she was in pain.

Thus, I dared not flare up. "Please inform me what my men have done." Assumptions filled the back of my head...and they were all too drastic to believe.

"What your men have done," Ziio repeated, her eyes closed. "Very well. I shall tell."

Sorry, I had to cut it off there because the next bit is literally enourmous. It's just huge chunky paragraphs! You know, the kind you look at and think 'Omg, that's big...gonna take a while to read that *huff*'...so anyway, next up is an explanation from Ziio! Dun dun dun...