“I won’t, Mother,” Isidora replied.
And they walked away.
They hurried home before dawn, passed the small river again, and slipped into the compound as the sky turned pale gray. They separated quickly, went into their huts, lay down on their mats, covered themselves with wrappers, and pretended to be asleep—as if they had been there all night, as if nothing had happened, as if a young girl had not just been thrown into a river of crocodiles.
Morning came.
Birds began to chirp. Women swept their compounds. Roosters crowed.
Inside the main hut, Jon—Sarah’s father—woke with a smile.
Today was his daughter’s traditional wedding.
“My daughter is becoming a wife today,” he murmured proudly.
He walked to Sarah’s hut and called cheerfully, “Sarah! Wake up! It’s your big day!”
He pushed open the door.
Her mat was empty.
Her wrapper was neatly folded at the side.
Jon frowned. At first he thought maybe she had gone to fetch water. But as the sun rose higher and Sarah still did not return, his smile disappeared.
He went to Agnes’s hut and knocked.
“Did you send Sarah on an errand this morning?” he asked.
Agnes opened the door slowly, pretending to have just woken up.
“No. I have not even seen her.”
He turned to the children.
“Have any of you seen Sarah?”
Isidora shook her head quickly. “No, Papa.”
Matilda, the youngest, hesitated.
“But Papa,” she said slowly, “I heard Sarah’s voice early this morning. And Stepmother’s voice too.”
“Shut up!” Isidora shouted.
Jon turned sharply.
“Why are you shouting at your sister?”
Isidora looked down. “Maybe she was dreaming.”
Jon’s stomach tightened.
Now he knew something was wrong.
He searched everywhere—the stream, the paths, the nearby bushes—but there was no sign of Sarah. By the time he returned, his forehead was wet with sweat and fear sat heavily in his chest.
“I cannot find her,” he said.
The compound went silent.
Sarah was missing.
Then, suddenly, Isidora spoke.
“Papa… I have something to say.”
Everyone looked at her.
“A few days ago, Sarah told me she did not love her suitor. Maybe… maybe she ran away.”
“What?” Jon shouted. “She never said that!”
Matilda interrupted at once. “She was happy about the marriage!”
“Be quiet!” Agnes screamed at her.
Then Agnes collapsed dramatically and began to cry.
“Why would Sarah disgrace us like this?” she wailed. “On her wedding day! What will we tell the suitors?”
Isidora slowly lifted her head.
“I have an idea,” she said.
Everyone stared.
“We should not allow Sarah to disgrace this family. I will disguise myself as the bride. I will marry the suitor in her place.”
Matilda gasped. “That is not fair! It is Sarah’s marriage!”
“Shut up!” Agnes screamed again.
Jon was horrified.
“How can you even suggest such a thing?”
But Agnes snapped back, “Do you want the whole village to mock us? Do you want shame to follow this family forever?”
Jon’s shoulders fell.
By noon, Sarah’s suitors arrived.
Only two chariots.
Agnes froze. She had expected a grand procession. They had been told the groom was a prince from a powerful kingdom far away. She expected warriors, drummers, a royal entourage.
Instead, only three men stepped down.
“Where is the king?” Agnes asked quickly.
“He could not come,” one man answered. “There is serious trouble in the kingdom.”
Agnes forced a smile and asked no more questions.
Inside the hut, Isidora was dressed in Sarah’s bridal cloth—coral beads, wrapper, veil. The rites were rushed. Gifts were exchanged quickly. No one examined the bride too closely. Before sunset, Isidora had been married off in Sarah’s place.
As the chariot left, Agnes smiled proudly and waved.
Matilda did not come out.
She had spent the entire day searching and whispering Sarah’s name into the bushes.
Jon stood in the compound and watched the chariot disappear, his face unreadable.
The journey lasted for hours.
They crossed one river, then another. Seven rivers. Seven mountains.
When they passed a certain kingdom, Isidora sat up nervously.
“That is your kingdom,” she said. “You told us you were from there.”
The groom said nothing.
The chariot kept moving.
“Where are we going?” she asked again.
Silence.
Soon the sky darkened. The trees grew tall and thick. The road disappeared into deep forest.
“There is nobody here,” Isidora whispered, her voice shaking.
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