  Running low and barefoot through the deep gutter, she was able to evade the soldiers stationed on the street. It was night already and she tramped in the direction where she knew there would be more people and traffic.
      The unrelenting evening breeze was chilly and she could feel the cold all over her exposed arms. She had no choice but to hug herself as she walked. Having spent so much time behind closed doors, living the good life, she had almost lost touch with nature. The elements were affecting her more than ever in her life. She was never one to feel cold from contact with such breeze, but here she was, shaking like a marionette in action. Before long, her teeth would begin to chatter like castanets and being alone in such a condition was quite risky. She had to get to a busy area, fast.
      Her entire body was crawling with goosebumps from the cold when Caro finally sight

  Living and working with the orange seller whom she had come to know as Madam Mary was nothing short of normal and natural for Caro. She missed Trisha as a friend, but making the switch from luxury to lower middle class was not difficult in any way. Both were far above the standard of living in which she had spent the first fourteen years of her life and she had absolutely no complaints whatsoever.
      She had totally forgotten about her decision to avoid policemen and had now regained the attributes of her old self except for the fact that she now woke up at 6am and slept at 10pm.
      She had lost all her excess fat and was now back to being trim, slim and muscular. She had even rose to become the captain of the neighborhood girls football team of six who played only on weekends.
      At the moment, they were looking to renew their persuasion of their male counterparts in the area

  Nine Months Later
      "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you are pregnant."
      "Why?", Caro shrieked.
      "You're getting fat in all the right places, your skin is much brighter... and you're getting taller too."
      "Oh come on, Trisha. Just say you're jealous."
      "True that. If I could have a backside like yours..."
      "Ah!"
      "What?"
      "There are children in this house!"
      "Don't children have backsides? Or should I could it rump, bum, buttocks..."
      Caro covered her ears with her palms.
      "You're acting like you're one of the children."
      "I'm a Christian."
      "Really? Last time I checked, there was a lot of fucking in the Bible."
      "Oh God, Trisha," Caro moaned in frustration. "Why can't you say something righteous?!"
      "I'd be righteous if Absalom didn't bang his father's concubines in public for all Israel to see."
      "Goo

Running low and barefoot through the deep gutter, she was able to evade the soldiers stationed on the street. It was night already and she tramped in the direction where she knew there would be more people and traffic.
      The unrelenting evening breeze was chilly and she could feel the cold all over her exposed arms. She had no choice but to hug herself as she walked. Having spent so much time behind closed doors, living the good life, she had almost lost touch with nature. The elements were affecting her more than ever in her life. She was never one to feel cold from contact with such breeze, but here she was, shaking like a marionette in action. Before long, her teeth would begin to chatter like castanets and being alone in such a condition was quite risky. She had to get to a busy area, fast.
      Her entire body was crawling with goosebumps from the cold when Caro finally sighted lights on a main road ahead. It was night market by the roadside and most of the female sellers w

Chapter 18