Celeste's family home had become a mourning house. Six months after her abduction, she was released but she was not alone. In her belly was a wrongfully implanted embryo. She had been raped so many times she lost count.

The daybreak that heralded her return darkened at noon. No rain. No storm. Just the silent wails of a wounded lion pride.

Barely sixteen, she clutched her belly, unable to meet her parents eyes or stand in their presence.

" They must be so disappointed with me. I wish I could tell them I never meant to see them hurt." She said to Samuel, her eldest brother.

Heartbroken, the couple responded from the door side. “ Which is why we would want to know if you want an abortion.”

Celeste flinched and took cover behind Samuel. Her silent disapproval was enough to tell them she had bonded with the child. 

Although she could not picture her the face of the man who fathered her child without a hole in her heart, she had gone five full months nursing the baby in her belly until it became her companion. Losing it felt like she was being stripped of her life all over again.

Her mother assured her it was solely her choice. Abortion or not, only she could determine what to do. No one would take her babies from her if she wanted them.

Spring of that year came with the shrill cry of a two newborn. It was like sunshine after a heavy rain. The cribs welcomed the twins, and her family was there by her side. Every inch of the way. But a time came when Celeste wasn't sure she wanted to keep them anymore. She couldn't bear the thought that the boys would turn out to be like their father.

That was when she learnt of the condition of Samuel's birth.

" I stood by you when you wanted to have them because I have been here before. I chose my son and I had him." Her mother recounted the horrifying experience of a gloomy day in a ghetto. “Today, he is a miracle. My miracle.”

Samuel's eyes lit with a ray of sunshine. Long before then, he had learnt of the circumstance of his birth. Living through each day knowing he was a product of rape was depressing enough to keep him awake every night. His mother never spoke of it. He knew it was a nightmare for her. Finally hearing her thoughts about him was a balm over a wound he had nursed in secret.

They shared a glance that locked for eternity. " Thank you," he mouthed and looked away.

That moment congealed Celeste's resolve. It was all she needed to go through that season of her life. She braved the future, knowing she was never alone. With Samuel in the picture, she could already see the light at the end of the tunnel.