The Curse of Ignorance

After the man was gone, I quickly got under the blanket to begin munching the piece of bread I was given, staring into the darkness. I was thinking about my own situation of course, but half of my brain was worrying about my father.

After I ate about half of the bread, I stopped. By my little hands, I found the small cavity I made on the corner of the room earlier and put the rest of the bread there. I was still a bit hungry, but it seemed wiser to save some for later.

"If this is how they 'welcome' their dear neighbours, I wonder what they do to those people whom they hate." I murmured. "Why, dad, why did you leave me here?"

Cold tears were silently making their way to my chin, before accumulating and dropping down onto the blanket.

"You would never do this to your little Aya... Maybe this devil made him trust them too!"

My slightly angry mumbling was cut in half by a noise from outside the room. I got up, and dragging the blanket with me, I went to the room's door and started listening curiously.

Someone was knocking the door.

I heard the man's -the man who was supposedly our "welcoming" neighbour, the exact same man who was practically keeping me hostage in this empty room of his'- footsteps. Grumbling, he went to open the door.

The wooden door opened with an unpleasant squeak. There was a momentary silence.

Someone spoke, a man I didn't recognise by voice.

"Uh, uhm, hello; I am Doctor Hayati. I've been sent to your village a few weeks ago, but I could only make it here now. The road trip was not as fast as I hoped."

"Doctor? Well, I can't really say we were expecting you, but welcome." The doctor was greeted with the coldest, most distant tone possible. "So, I get you didn't meet The Old Man yet."

"Who? I-I mean, no, not yet unfortunately." doctor responded a bit anxiously.

"A new doctor?" I spoke to myself. "Maybe my father's cries for help were finally answered. After years, another doctor came to Yuvakaya to help us out! I see... perhaps this is why dad went away."

I kept listening to their conversation.

"Are you living alone, Mister uhh-" the doctor spoke.

"Ulvi."

"Oh, yes, Mr. Ulvi?"

"I live alone, yes." he answered.

The doctor wanted to speak, but paused for a moment before going on.

"Uhm... Yeah, well, let me get straight to the point, Mr. Ulvi. I was... I was told that there was a little girl living here with you. So, in that case... should I assume I was misguided?" he asked.

I shivered. I wanted to scream, but I held myself back.

"Who told you this?" Mr. Ulvi asked.

"One of your neighbours, perhaps. Not anyone I know personally." the doctor answered.

"I live alone." Mr. Ulvi repeated.

"Well, let's switch to something else then..." the doctor said. "A while ago, it is said that you had a neighbour just on your house's west side."

"I don't like being interrogated." Mr. Ulvi said.

"I-I understand, if I were you, I would feel the same way; but if I am to serve you, I have to know a couple of things." the doctor insisted.

"If that's how it is, you might as well just pack up and leave now, doctor." Mr. Ulvi said. I couldn't see anything from the room I was trapped in of course, but I could imagine the doctor's surprised face.

"Ex...cuse me?" the doctor said. Mr. Ulvi raised his voice.

"We need not the work of devil here. I was finally free of that crazy butcherer when he left the village and this world for good a week ago, and now without losing any time, you showed up at my doorstep!"

"...left the village and this world..." the words echoed in my mind. I could assume the worst case scenario, but I simply didn't want to understand. I made myself believe that I misheard the sentence. Otherwise, I couldn't... I couldn't stand-

The doctor raised his voice, unexpectedly.

"Now I see, this is why the cradle of civilization never blessed your poor village!" he shouted. "You don't feel the slightest bit of regret for worshipping the men who are far worse than you are, but you also reject the people who try to geniunely help you!"

Both men went silent.

"Out of my house. Murderers. You've had your time." said Mr. Ulvi.

"What? Can you hear what you are saying? We are murderers now, because your Old Man told you so?" the doctor asked.

"No." Mr. Ulvi said. "Because I've witnessed with my own eyes. People would come to him for minor complaints, and he would just send them away with tiny white pills and whatnot. Well, the people would get back on their feet alright, but it is no proof of a healer's ability; we've seen many people get well by themselves or by the help of The Old Man. However, at the first sign of real trouble, that devil began murdering people who came to him seeking for help; and instead of burying them respectfully, he burned the bodies without allowing The Old Man to come close in order to bless their souls for a final time."

"If he didn't do so, I probably wouldn't need to come here." the doctor said. "But not because what you think, rather because you all could be dead by now and I would have no one left to look after."

"Take your so-called civilization with you and get out, doctor." Mr. Ulvi said. "This is my house, and your presence for any longer is an intrusion. It is not a request, and I won't repeat it again."

"So be it." the doctor said. "I wonder to whom you will crawl for seeking help when your bodies fall weak."

The doctor was walking away. This could be my last chance.

I didn't think for a second time, and shouted out as loudly as I could. There was no way the doctor wouldn't have heard that.

The footsteps stopped. My anxiety level shot through the roof, into the skies.