Ridayya was kneeling down, holding her swollen stomach in pain. The bottle of poison was lying in one corner; she had already taken its contents. Sweat was pouring all over her body, and at first, her body trembled, but then she became too weak to even move or help herself.

Her eyes were closed, but hot tears rolled down her cheeks. A deep pain spread through her heart, slowly taking over every muscle in her body. She never thought about how the poison would affect the baby inside her. More importantly, she had not felt any movement from the baby since earlier.

“Oh, Allah!”

She whispered weakly as foam started coming out of her mouth. She squeezed her eyes shut, not knowing if she was still alive or already close to death. But even in this state, she could not stop the terrible memories from replaying in her mind. The pain of her husband's betrayal was still there, strong and clear, even more powerful than the poison she had taken. She struggled with her heart, trying to stop loving him.

Ridayya had no idea how long she had been lying on the plastic mat in the middle of her room, her body shaking. Then, her breathing stopped completely, and she could no longer hear the voice of MEER, the voice she always compared to the sweet sound of an Algaita flute.

"Baby, I think I heard a knock on the door," a scared voice said weakly. The speaker was a woman, terrified. She had lived in Ridayya’s house for some time, but she had never seen her sit with MEER, let alone share a room with him.

Zameer didn’t respond immediately. He just stood up, adjusting his short trousers, and walked toward the door. When he opened it, he saw no one outside only the glow of the streetlight. He sighed, assuming it must have been the strong night wind that made the door shake.

He put on his slippers and headed toward Ridayya’s room. When he entered, she was lying on the floor, her back facing the door. Thinking she was asleep, he simply shrugged and left without bothering to check why she was lying there.

Meer let out a quiet sigh of relief. The fear that had gripped him disappeared. It was the middle of the night, after all.

When he returned to his room, he found Khairiyya standing there. As soon as she saw him, she asked, “Was it her?”

He remained silent. She took a deep breath and said again, “Innalillahi wa'inna ilaihi raji'un! Your wife saw us, baby.”