Parveen and the others widened their eyes in surprise, their mouths slightly open as they stared at the door. A deep and indescribable happiness appeared on their faces. They almost screamed in joy, but Angel quickly stopped them.
“Did you forget what I told you? No matter what you see, stay silent! If you make noise, they will discover us, and our plan will fail.”
Haris and the others looked confused. They didn’t understand what she meant. All they saw was a metal cover on the wall. Then, they remembered Batul saying this was the door they were looking for.
Naufal, puzzled, spoke up. "Angel, you left us in the dark. We don’t understand what’s going on!" He looked at her face, noticing she was still smiling. Parveen and the others were also smiling widely, as if they had already escaped from prison.
Javed asked, "Tell us, what is this metal cover on the wall?" His voice was weak due to exhaustion, just like the others. Mubeen was barely standing, leaning on Hannah’s shoulder as they entered the room. He had no energy left.
"I’m confused, Angel. Please explain; we can’t wait anymore," Gabriel begged.
Angel looked at each of them, following their lips as they spoke. She was so happy that she couldn't find words to speak.
"If Angel won’t explain, Deeja, you tell us! What’s going on?" Haris turned to Deeja and the others, who stood still in shock.
Seeing their frustration, Angel took a deep breath and finally began to explain everything about the door. However, she did not tell them about her secret conversation with Salsabeel.
They were so shocked that they kept looking at each other. But soon, their hearts were filled with an overwhelming joy. Without thinking, they rushed toward Angel, lifting her from where she sat against the wall. They hugged her tightly, as if they would break her bones—especially Gabriel, who wanted more than anything to escape this cursed prison.
Tears started streaming down Angel’s face. But she didn’t know if she was crying out of happiness or sadness. She looked at each of them after they let go of her, but one thought kept echoing in her mind: "Do not think that all of us will survive." This thought stayed with her, weighing on her heart. She prayed that death wouldn’t take any of them inside this horrible prison.
She shivered as she remembered the young prisoners she saw in a room earlier—hanging lifelessly from ropes like animals. The memory of how they were skinned alive, their body parts taken, made her sick.
Their happiness quickly turned into worry when Angel suddenly broke down crying. She leaned against the wall, feeling dizzy, her face soaked with tears.
They immediately called out her name in concern.
"Angel! Why are you crying? Please don’t make us lose hope. Can’t you see how happy we are? You just found the door that will help us escape this cursed prison! The place where we have been trapped since we were babies, unable to live freely.
"Angel, all of us here are teenagers now. None of us is under fifteen! How can we not be excited about finding this door? We want to escape—even if it’s the last thing we do! We just want to see the outside world, to feel the air outside this prison, even for a moment.
“If you think not all of us will survive, we will pray for God to give us the chance to escape. We do not want to die in this cursed place! If we must die, let it be outside, where we will at least taste freedom for once in our lives!”
Their words broke Angel’s heart even more. She looked at them with teary eyes, filled with love and deep sadness. She didn’t want to lose any of them, but she knew death was inevitable.
For a long time, they all cried together, especially Batul and Azeeza. The girls’ eyes were filled with unshed tears.
"We are wasting time, Angel. I will try to break open the door," Gabriel said, even though he wasn’t in good health. He stepped forward, knelt, and started feeling the door.
"I will help you," Naufal said, kneeling beside him. Together, they tried to force the door open, sweating from the effort. But the metal cover didn’t move at all.
Haris joined them, adding his strength. The others also tried. Even though their bodies were weak, they were determined to open the door. Meanwhile, Jemimah was still lying in bed, covered with a blanket, sleeping. She had no idea what was happening.
They thought it would be easy, but the door was too strong. It had been locked for years, and there was no way weak prisoners like them could open it with bare hands. Still, they refused to give up.
"Haris! Gabriel! Stop wasting your energy," Angel finally said. “This door will not open without the main key.”
Hearing this, they all stopped and stared at her, breathing heavily.
"The key? Where can we find it? Tell us, please!" they all asked at once.
Angel’s heart sank. She could see the desperation in their eyes. All they wanted was to leave.
“Angel, you are silent. Please answer us!”
She sighed, licked her dry lips, and finally spoke in a calm voice.
“Danish. He has the key. He is the only one who can open this door. But he is not here with us… He is still inside the prison. If we want to escape, we have to find him first.”
Login to leave a review.
No reviews yet — be the first.
