“Twin sister, Sunjiya. I’m guessing she never mentioned me.”
“Never,” Pritha hisses. She shifts her glare from Sunjiya to the tall, handsome man standing to the side. She examines him from his head to his shoes. “Let me guess? You’re the twin brother. Y’all triplets?” she quips while shaking her head.
“No ma’am,” Akeem says. “I’m?—”
“That’s Akeem. He’s helping me find Tanjaya cause we think she’s in trouble,” Sunjiya says, interrupting. “Do you know where she is?”
“I do. She’s standing right in front me,” Pritha says, then she steps closer to Sunjiya and whispers on the side opposite of Akeem. “Tanjaya, do we need to go inside and leave him out here?” she asks seriously.
“We can go inside. All of us if you allow it, but I’m really Sunjiya. Tanjaya and I are twins. We just didn’t know about each other until we were teenagers.”
“You’re sticking with this?” Pritha asks.
“’Cause it’s the truth. We really need to find her,” Sunjiya says, pleading.
“I guess…okay. Come in. I was just about to heat up my leftovers from last night. You hungry? It’s my Crab Shala you… Well, yourtwinsisterloves,” Pritha says before grabbing her baby’s hand.
Because she is so happy to see Tanjaya alive and well, Pritha will entertain and feed them. She’ll take any time she can get with her Tanjaya. After waving her hand for Akeem to join them, Pritha leads Sunjiya into the house. Akeem closes the door once they are inside.
Pritha’s four-bedroom, two bath home is as beautiful as it is spacious. Eight foot ceilings and engineered vinyl plank flooring runs throughout the home. The large living room is adorned in shades of brown. Its cool air and sweet vanilla scent are welcomed by all because of the eighty-nine degree Florida sun. Pritha directs Akeem to sit on her large sectional.
Pritha leads Sunjiya to the modern kitchen. Beautiful granite countertops, white cabinetry, a large center island with cabinets underneath for extra storage, a spacious pantry, and stainless-steel appliances make up the bright space.
“Do you have any bottled water?” Sunjiya asks the moment they enter.
“You know I keep my fridge stocked with Zephyrhills. Come wash your hands and grab him one too.” Pritha is at the sink so Sunjiya joins her on the other side. Convinced Sunjiya is truly her Tanjaya, Pritha snakes her arm around her then pulls Sunjiya into her side. After kissing her cheek, Pritha utters, “When you leave here, get as far away from Florida as you can. I can always come visit you; don’t come back here. If he catches you this time, he will kill you.”
“I’m—” Sunjiya begins but Akeem’s baritone interrupts from the kitchen entrance.
“My bad, ma’am. I was wondering if I could use your bathroom?” he asks so politely that Pritha grins.
“Manners.” Pritha smirks. “You don’t see that often. It’s right down the hall on the left. You hungry?” she asks.
“Yes, ma’am. I can eat,” he admits.
“Well, come back in here when you’re done. I just need to warm the food,” she says and he nods before walking off. The moment he’s down the hall, Pritha turns to Sunjiya. “You like him, don’t you?”
Chapter
Eleven
Lunch with Prithais nice and the pasta with blue crabs is delicious. While Akeem learns more about Tanjaya’s time with Pritha and their close bond, he doesn’t gain any knowledge about her current whereabouts. Pritha has no idea where Tanjaya could be.
“As long as she never comes back to Florida, I can rest. I’ll go wherever she lands when I need a hug,” Pritha says as she squeezes Sunjiya’s knee under the kitchen table.
“Miss Pritha, she won’t have to run for long,” Akeem assures her.
“Aunt Pri,” she corrects him. “My babies and anyone who protects them can call me Aunt Pri.”
She smiles, expressing her genuineness. Over the years, she’s fostered twenty-one children in need of a good home and love. Some she had for days and others for years but each one holds a special place in her heart, especially Tanjaya. She was only five days old when the social worker brought her to Pritha. They removed her two years later for a permanent home. Years later, Pritha learned the permanent home never materialized forTanjaya and she ended up back in the system. They reconnected when Tanjaya was seventeen and have been in touch since then.
“Yes, ma’am,” Akeem says, then offers a nod of respect. “This home looks new,” he comments. “Have you been here long?”
“No. I just moved here at the end of last year. I lived in LA when she managed to get away from Marcelin the last time. She came to me broken, physically and emotionally. I did what I could but he found her though. Sent his goons to my house and they kicked my door in and dragged her out,” she says and her voice cracks. Her love for Tanjaya is loud and clear and fills the entire kitchen. “I thought he killed her but thank God she was able to call me months later and let me know she was alive. I prayed and prayed she would get away from him. God still answers prayers.” She wipes tears from her cheeks.
“He does,” Akeem says.Especially with the help of 9mms.“Can you think of any place or anyone else Tanjaya would go to? Has she ever mentioned anyone else? Maybe one of her foster brothers or sisters.”
“No. Not that I can think of,” Pritha says regrettably. “When I had her, she was my only baby, so she doesn’t know any of them.” She sips from her lemonade then abruptly puts her glass back on the table. “You know, there may be something but I have to check some things here to be sure. It might even be in my storage unit though. I still have a few boxes there.”
