در کشتی

CHAPTER FOUR

On the Ferry

It was dawn and Shauna and Harminda looked at the red and orange sky over Dublin as the ferry slowly left the port.

‘When was the last time you saw your parents?’ Shauna asked Harminda.

‘Four years ago. At my eighteenth birthday party,’ she answered sadly.

‘Wow. That’s a long time.’

‘They wanted me to marry someone else. Somebody they chose.’

‘An arranged marriage?’

‘Yes,’ said Harminda.

They stood in silence for a while.

‘In Indian tradition, a marriage is more than just a woman and a man being together. It’s a marriage of two families. I’ve always known that it was very important to my family. But then I met Declan. I was only 17, but I knew that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him. We saw each other in secret for months. I was too frightened to tell my family about it, because they believe in arranged marriages. But then my parents told me the big news: at my eighteenth birthday party they wanted to introduce me to my future husband, an Indian boy. I knew that I had to tell them the truth. I’m the only daughter. I’ve just got one brother. and my father was very angry. I had to choose, he told me. And I chose Declan.’

‘Are you still together?’

‘Yes,’ said Harminda, and she touched her stomach.

‘Are you pregnant’ Shauna asked with a smile.

‘Yes, I only got the news last week.’ She laughed, ‘You’re the only other person that knows. I haven’t told Declan yet!’

‘I’m sure that when your Dad knows he’ll be happy too!’

‘Maybe.’

Three hours later, they were in England.

Harminda drove fast; they had to drive for another six hours before they arrived in London.

After a few miles, Harminda noticed that Vanessa was looking over her shoulder.

‘What’s wrong, Vanessa?’

‘I. Nothing.’ she said. ‘Can’t you drive faster?’

‘I’m already driving over the speed limit. Why?’

‘No reason, it’s only. I don’t want to frighten anyone. but I think somebody is following us. There’s a dark blue car behind us. It’s been there since we got on the ferry at Dublin.’

Harminda looked in the mirror. Her heart began to beat faster when she saw the sunglasses.

Suddenly, they heard a horn. Harminda looked back at the road and saw that an enormous lorry was coming directly towards them.

She turned the steering wheel to the right and pushed her foot down hard on the brake. But the lorry was getting nearer.

The car seemed out of control. Someone screamed.

But then the lorry passed by them. The car slowed down and Harminda’s body relaxed.

Suddenly there was a loud noise. The three women all turned around.

They saw the lorry crashing into the car that was following them.