“I didn’t see her,” he replied. “Maybe she went somewhere.”
He walked inside calmly.
Latty’s mother felt something break inside her. She tied her wrapper tightly and began walking around the village, calling her daughter’s name loudly.
“Latty, my child, Latty!”
Her voice cracked as tears ran down her face. Villagers came out of their houses. Some followed her. Some shook their heads sadly. No one had an answer.
The bridge stood quietly in the distance. The river flowed as if nothing had happened. And the man who knew the truth sat inside his house, eating while a mother searched for her child.
Latty had been blind from the day she was born. From that same day, her father’s heart turned cold toward her. He always said she brought him bad luck. He said her blindness was a sign of disgrace.
Her mother cried many nights, holding baby Latty close, begging her husband to love their child. But he never did.
Instead, he took another wife, saying he needed normal children.
That second wife soon gave birth to a girl named Toro. Toro had bright eyes and a strong voice. Her father loved her openly. He carried her on his shoulders and showed her to everyone.
Latty felt everything even though she could not see it. She heard the laughter. She heard the love that was never for her.
Still, her mother never failed her. She fed Latty with care. She sang to her every night. She made her feel important in a world that treated her like nothing.
When Latty turned nineteen, she made a small wish. She wanted to walk around the village like other girls. Her mother agreed and asked the neighbor’s daughter to guide her.
As they walked slowly that day, a gold seller saw her. He heard her voice — soft, calm, beautiful. Something touched his heart instantly.
The gold seller’s name was Eba. He was rich and respected. That day, he could not forget Latty. He asked questions quietly. When he learned she had been blind from birth, his heart did not change.
He told his mother he wanted to marry her.
His mother refused at once.
“A blind girl?” she said angrily. “Never.”
But Eba stood firm. He told her he would take Latty to the white man’s land to fix her eyes. He believed she was special.
One evening, Eba came to Latty’s house with palm wine and gifts. Elders gathered. He spoke clearly.
“I want to marry Latty.”
Latty’s father laughed loudly.
“Why would a normal man marry a blind girl?” he asked. Then he pointed proudly at Toro. “Look at my second daughter. Beautiful, complete.”
But Eba shook his head.
“I want Latty,” he said again.
Greed entered Latty’s father’s eyes. Eba was rich — very rich. But shame and hatred for Latty burned even stronger.
That night, hatred filled his heart.
“Before she brings me disgrace,” he said quietly, “she must disappear.”
That was why he took Latty to the bridge that day.
Now, deep under the river, Latty floated calmly, holding the mermaid’s hand. Strange glowing stones surrounded them. Latty felt warmth instead of fear.
“Who are you? Where are you taking me?” she asked softly.
The mermaid looked at her with eyes full of meaning but did not answer yet.
Above the water, Latty’s mother’s cries grew louder as more villagers joined the search. Some walked toward the river, some toward the bridge. The sun slowly climbed higher, shining over secrets and lies.w
Deep under the river, the mermaid suddenly stopped swimming.
She was still holding Latty’s hand, but her body became stiff. She listened.
