Good morning,
I want to make a few changes to scheduling of posts here. Unfulfilled Promises remains as is, on Tuesdays and Thursdays while Take Me As I Am will come only once a week (Mondays) since it has less episodes. Also, this is to let you catch up because I noticed from the site and newsletter statistics, some of you read the post a day, two or sometimes three days later.
Then on a side note, please I need your prayers. My health has been off and on over this past month and I’ve been under the weather a lot. As I post this, I’m lying on my bed. Please, pray earnestly for me. I need to get well and enjoy my Christmas, mbok.
Thank you and have fun reading.
MAHMUD
This was his first visit to her gravesite since she passed. It had been unbearably difficult for him to make the trips to the cemetery to see her. He would usually drive there, park his car outside the gates for a couple of minutes or so and then drive away. Her death had torn him in a way he could never explain to anyone. Sometimes it was still hard to imagine her gone.
The decision to visit her on this particular morning had been a difficult one but one he knew he had to make, nonetheless. He left the house quite early and drove up to the private cemetery in Ikoyi where she was buried and parked outside the gates. As usual, he bore no intentions of going in, but he was going to remain in the car a little longer this time.
He sat in utter silence, trying to listen to the bustling sounds of a busy street nearby. However, it was futile. Nothing could fight the stony hush that came from the departed souls behind the cemetery gates.
Mahmud lit a cigarette and smoked it slowly like he had all the time in the world. His mind was fixed on the day Tracy was buried and how peaceful she had looked in her casket. She seemed to have been asleep that morning, like he could have just kissed her lips as he usually did and she would stir awake in his arms. It took weeks after then for him to finally come to terms with the fact that he was never going to see her, giving way to a new type of pain which continued for over a year until it turned into something dull that allowed him pick the pieces of his life once more…
Someone tapped on his window and he turned. It was one of the security men. A new one, it seemed. He didn’t recognize Mahmud, so Mahmud had to explain his presence in the premises. The man wasn’t satisfied with his explanation. He ordered him to leave or visit whom he had come to see.
Mahmud nodded and the man walked away. He didn’t go far, though. He hung around to see if Mahmud would keep to his instructions.
For a second, Mahmud considered driving away, but he knew he couldn’t. He was there for his final goodbye. He needed to tell Tracy the words he never got the chance to say.
He stepped out of the car and put out his cigarette. With heavy steps he made his way in through the cemetery gates and took a long walk to Tracy’s gravesite. The flowers surrounding her gravestone were fresh and well-trimmed. For the money he had paid to secure the site, someone was doing a good job of keeping things beautiful, as with every other gravesite. Mahmud pushed his hands into his pockets to stifle a strong force of emotion that pounced upon him.
“Trace…” he began to say but felt odd. He had always felt it silly when people spoke out loud to the dead. Thus, he continued the rest of the conversation without audible sounds.
“I’m not here to say I’m sorry or to ask you to forgive me. It’s too late for all that. I was an asshole to you and I don’t deserve to be forgiven. But I think I deserve to have a life, screwed up as I am, because that’s what we do. We move on.
“I’ve been putting off this visit for a while now and I feel really guilty about it. And that’s because I fell in love with someone else and I’ve been keeping her away from you. Her name is Wuraola. She’s…beautiful, sings like a thousand angels and has taken away the pain of losing you.”
A draught of gentle wind blustered over him and he looked about him, as if expecting to see something. He continued when the air settled.
“The creepy part is that Wura somehow looks like you, and no, I didn’t go looking for your doppelganger just to keep your memory fresh or anything like that; it just happened. I went shopping at the mall about a year ago, in October, precisely, and I saw her. I freaked out, Trace. From afar, I thought I was looking at you. I thought you had returned… until she smiled… and then I had this moment of relief. But it was temporal because something strong kicked in and suddenly, I wanted to know more about this girl. And so I visited the mall for every flimsy reason, just to spy on her. I was too scared to speak to her, at first, and it took me four whole months to work up the balls to say hi. Of course, some fool had to be harassing her before I stepped in like a hero to save her.”
Mahmud chuckled.
“From then on, I just wanted to be around her. It was curiosity at first. I needed to know if she was like you. Unfortunately, she wasn’t. She had this terrible past and when she shared it with me, I was put off for a while, but babe something strong drew me to her. Some power beyond my control. And you know I don’t believe in these supernatural things but I have this feeling that that power that drew us together was you. Your energy, your essence was still there. I felt it. Or else why would someone who looked like you come my way and I would fall so deeply with her in such a short while? Why would that happen?”
He paused, as if expecting an answer. But only chirping birds responded to his heart’s monologue.
“Then I became fixated on her, obsessed with the idea of having her and no one taking her away. So, I got sneaky and knocked her up. It was one lucky window I had and I dove in and hit the target. I wanted to own her, to love her, to protect her and give her everything I never gave you. I was desperate for another chance, Trace. But somewhere along the way, real love happened. We got to know each other, despite our differences, and you began to fade away. I could literally feel you leave and I didn’t fight it because each time I looked at Wura, all I could see was her alone; the woman I wanted to spend my life with.
“Tracy, I’ve felt guilty for letting you go so quickly, although Asma thinks I’ve taken too long. But I’ve felt guilty and maybe that’s why I’m here. I’m also here to say goodbye. I want to build a life with Wura. I hope she sees us beyond our differences and says yes to me. I plan to propose today, immediately I get home. She’s made me a very happy man and a proud father.”
Mahmud’s lips lifted upwards in a smile.
“We have a son. He’s just eleven days old. His name is Toba but Wura likes to call him Billy. It’s short for Bilal. My dad named him that. The family is still trying to get acquainted with her and I hope they do, soon. I’m not acceding to anyone’s wish this time. I won’t be a coward anymore. I need you to know this. You didn’t die for nothing, Trace. Your going away changed me. It made me a man. It made me see life through different eyes and I promise I’ll never make the same mistakes I made in the past.”
Tears engulfed his eyes and he blinked to clear them.
“I am sorry,” he said aloud. “I know I said I wasn’t going to apologize but I am so sorry, Trace. If I could… I’d bring you back. I’m sorry.”
He drew in a sniffle but it didn’t prevent the tears from falling. He took his hands out of his pockets and turned away from the gravesite, without looking back. He walked back to where he parked his car, lit another cigarette and sat in for a while. No one bugged him this time.
He drove home in a light mood, knowing the weighty feeling he had carried around for a while was finally off his shoulders. When he got into the house, he found his mother bathing his son in the living room with Asma and her baby as company.
“Daga ina?” the old woman asked when she spotted Mahmud. “This early morning.”
“I just took a stroll.”
“With your car?”
Mahmud smiled ignored whatever insinuation she was building in her mind. He entered his bedroom and was welcomed by the sound of Wura singing in the bathroom. He opened his wardrobe and took out an engagement ring that was in his possession for a while. He hoped she would say yes. The past few days had been filled with love and warmth, the baby bringing them both closer.
He waited until she was done showering, and then stood outside with a towel spread open for her. When she saw him, she grabbed the towel, covered her nude body and dashed back into the bathroom, shutting the door.
“Mymood?” she called seconds later.
“Yeah?”
“This is embarrassing… Erm…can you please check that drawer where my things are and get me a pant and sanitary towel.”
Mahmud shook his head at her silliness. “Embarrassing? Woo, I was there when that boy came out of your vagina. You didn’t seem embarrassed then. In fact, if I remember, you asked me to put my hand in there and pull him out. And let’s not forget that I put him there in the first place.”
“Tokunboh! Just bring what I asked for!”
He opened his wardrobe and pulled out a drawer that had a few of her things. He picked the items she requested for. Smiling naughtily to himself, he placed the engagement ring on the sanitary towel which he put over her underwear and passed them all to her when she opened the door.
“Thanks.” The door shut again. He waited. There came silence from her end for a while and then the door creaked open.
“Tokunboh, what is this?” She was holding out the ring.
“A ring.”
She stared at the ring as if she wasn’t sure about Mahmud’s reply.
“You could wear it,” he quipped.
“Is this…diamond?”
“Yep. You like?”
“Are you proposing?”
“Yes. Marry me.”
“You’re proposing to me on a sanitary pad?”
He winced. She made it sound like he had committed an abomination.
“Um…”
She handed the ring back to him.
“I want my proposal to be a surprise. I don’t care how you do it but let there be music involved, just like when you asked me out. Something grand.”
“Okay, ma.”
He understood her need to have a fairytale life and he was ready to make her dreams come true.
“But just so you know, my answer will be yes. I’ll marry you.”
He didn’t ask her if she was kidding or if her tongue had slipped. He took a step towards her and accosted her waist with his arm possessively.
“I can’t fight it anymore,” she confessed. “Billy makes it hard for me to say no to you. I’ve fought it and I’ve prayed… and I’m no longer afraid. Billy is more important. He needs a stable home and parents who love each other.”
“You love me?” Mahmud inquired, pulling away a bit; her fingers between his lips as he half-kissed, half-nibbled on them.
She smiled at his question and gave him an answer. “Yes, doctor. Like tay-tay.”
She leaned in closer as she wrapped her arms around his neck in a snug squeeze. He rested his chin on her shoulder and they rocked to a silent beat they alone could hear.
“I don’t have to be called Alhaja, right?”
Mahmud laughed. “No, mami.”
“Okay, cool.”
They continued swaying, the tempos of their beating hearts almost falling in sync. It felt like the world around them didn’t exist. The feeling was better than any high and Mahmud didn’t want to let go. It would take the shrill cry of their son to bring them back to earth.
DOMINIC
It was his wedding day and he had no idea. He was the only one oblivious of what Genesis had planned for both of them. Everyone else, including family members and old friends who were in town for the ceremony, knew what was going down. As far as he knew, it was Seyi’s wedding.
Genesis and Lexus had left the house very early, not informing him of their whereabouts. He concluded Genesis was putting together the last minute details for Seyi’s wedding and Lexus just wanted to tag along, hence he didn’t bother calling either of them. He sat in and spent time with his dogs, something he hadn’t done in a while. After that, he made breakfast but it did not turn out good. By 11am, he hit the gym out of boredom and when he was done an hour later, he called Seyi to ask if there was anything he wanted done in the meantime. Seyi told him to relax and wash off the aftermath of the previous night’s bachelor’s eve which had left him filled with nostalgia. The party had been more of an old school reunion than a typical bachelor’s eve. No one paid much mind to the half-naked girls hired to entertain them. Most of the men present had either had their share of bawdy women or were pretending not to be turned on by them. They were just middle-aged men recalling good, old times and building new business relationships. Dominic did enjoy the evening and couldn’t wait to meet the guys after Seyi’s wedding. Most of them were successful men whose monies he wanted in his business.
Dominic heard the crinkling of plates and looked up from where he sat at the backyard in the company of his dogs and cat. Iya Idya was making her way toward him with a brunch tray. His stomach approved of the midday surprise with a low rumble and he lowered his newspaper.
“I know you did not eat, sir.”
“Rightly so, ma’am,” Dominic replied as she lowered the tray on a cane table before him. “Thanks.”
He picked his paper again but noticed she was still standing by.
“Is there anything you need?” he asked. She shook her head. “Okay.” He lifted his paper again but she still wouldn’t go away.
“Iya Idaya?”
“Daddy Tonbra…” The woman rubbed her palms over her skirt and cleared her throat. “I want to give you small advice.”
Dominic removed his reading glasses.
“Go ahead.”
“As God bless your marriage, please be having patience with your wife. You know, we women, we’re not strong like man. So, do things jeje with her. Small-small, small-small. You know you have hot temper. Please, don’t use it on madam Genesis. She is a good woman. Full of kindness.”
Dominic smiled, adding a nod. “True.”
“Your baby that have die, God is not sleeping when it happen. So, don’t be discourage. He will give you another one. Twins sef. You will become Baba Ibeji.”
Dominic laughed. “Amen.”
“Since when I know you, you are working, working, working. But now, God have bless you, so just relax, let him do you better thing. He will bless your marriage. Evil eye will not see your family. Winch go burn before they come near you and all your enemies will die by fire.”
“Amen.” He left a kind smile on his face. “Thank you, Iya Idaya.”
The woman nodded and turned away. His smile widened, almost to a grin as he watched her walk away.
What gave her idea that he was getting married to Genesis any time soon? Did Genesis tell her something?
Oh well, he hoped she was prophesying. He earnestly wanted Genesis to be his wife. After listening to his friends the evening before talk about their wives and marriages, he was certain it was time to make the shift from bachelorhood to married life.
“Well, amen to all your prayers, ma’am,” he muttered once more to himself and turned to his brunch. However an unwelcome image broke into his mind and it presented a recollection that turned his appetite sour.
He pushed away from his meal as Bashorun took full control of his concentration. It was hard to come to terms that his lifelong friend and enemy was dead and in a most gruesome way—cut in pieces, stuffed into a metal box and dumped under a bridge to rot for days. Dominic wouldn’t have believed that what was presented to him on a cold table in a mortuary was Bashorun if Rasheed and his NSS boys had not shown him Bashorun’s customized ring and necklace found on the dismembered corpse. Still Dominic was not convinced until DNA taken from Bashorun’s first son tested positive to samples taken from the corpse.
The question on everyone’s mind then was, who had committed such a crime? Who hated him that much to have him savagely murdered that way?
Of course there was a world of women raped by him that would make the list but which of them could wield a knife so expertly or carry out a crime so perfectly without leaving a trace? Rasheed was sure it was done by an assassin, making it more difficult to track down who gave the order to kill.
Unfortunately no one was really interested in his theory or finding out who the murderer was; not even Bashorun’s family. His exposed acts had left a dirty stain on their family name already. The crowned monarch even went as far as ensuring the news of the death never hit the media. He gave Dominic and Seyi permission to have Bashorun buried quietly. No one from the family attended. Fatefully, he was buried in the same compound where he had held Genesis and Lexus hostage and not in his residence in town.
No one was going to miss him. Well, except Dominic. Ironically, he had wanted him dead, even by his own hands, but now that he was gone, he somewhat missed him. Who was going to antagonize him and try to pull him down at every turn? Hard as it was to face, Bashorun used to be an important part of his life, the provoking voice and presence that always reminded him that there were milestones to cover, dreams to achieve. But maybe Iya Idaya was right; maybe he had reached a point in his life where he could relax, take in the air and enjoy his blessings. If there was anyone who knew how fleeting life was, it was he.
His phone rang out of the blue, startling him. It was Seyi calling. He answered the call as he uncovered the dish of fried rice and vegetables on his tray. One look at the meal and he knew he was staring at something Genesis had specially prepared for him before she left the house.
“Best man, the wedding’s starting by five,” Seyi reminded him over the phone. “I need you in the next couple of hours to sort out some last minute details.”
“Okay. You have the rings? I thought they were with me but…”
“They’re with me.”
“Good.” Dominic ran a few things through his mind. He hadn’t been a best man before or even experienced a wedding from behind the scenes. He had zip knowledge of what it all entailed, so he stuck to what he knew.
“Dude, I hope you mind is settled on the tux.”
He heard what sounded like a grunt on the line.
“Please tell me you didn’t call the shop back and ask for a suit.”
“I did not.”
Dominic was relieved at the reply but he could hear the uncertainty in Seyi’s breathing. It had been there since they went shopping for the wedding clothes.
“Repeat after me: a suit is debonair…”
“But anything you can wear to an office is no match for a tux. I heard you the last time, bro.”
“Good. Wear that tuxedo with pride. Your wife will thank me later.”
“I don hear. Just do and come.”
“Just relax. I’m sure everything is cool. If it’s Novocaine Knights handling it and Gen is behind all that, you’re fine.”
“Just come.”
“I’ll be there.”
Dominic faced his meal when the engage tone hit his ear. His dogs stood expectantly before him with panting mouths, waiting for morsels. He wore his glasses, lifted his newspaper to block their view and took his first bite.
GENESIS
She was all nerves. Everyone said it was normal to be nervous but their assurances didn’t settle in quietly. She was grateful she wasn’t alone or she would have hit the panic button. Her hotel suite was full of women who had been or were still part of her life in one way or the other—the girls who grew up with her at Mamisi’s and a few friends from university. The usuals were Nancy, Lexus, Wura, Ehi and Chichi.
“Gen, the cake has arrived,” Nancy burst into the room from an adjoining living room, her phone to her ear. “They’ve taken it to Seyi’s.”
Genesis sat up from the bed Lexus had confined her in earlier. “Is it four-tiered?”
“Is it four-tiered?” Nancy asked the person on the phone and nodded to Genesis.
“Tell them to send a photo. I want to see it.”
“She wants a pic,” Nancy said into the phone and hung up.
“How about the makeup artist? Is she here yet?” Genesis asked.
“No,” someone replied.
“Please, somebody call her. We have just three hours left.”
“I’ll call her,” Nancy said.
“Okay. What about the décor guys? Are they through? I told them to set the arch against the setting sun. It has to be perfect. There has to be that glow behind me when I’m walking in. Do you think those guys know where the sun sets in Seyi’s house? It’s at the poolside–”
“Genesis!” Nancy shouted, stopping her.
“What?” Genesis stared at her, kitten-faced.
“For the hundredth time…”
“Relax!” came a unified chorus from everyone else in the room. Genesis ran her eyes over them and they all erupted in loud laughter.
“I’m sorry.” She slipped back under a comfy duvet and Lexus who was sitting nearby tucked her in. The ladies all went back to what they were doing and nobody caught the cry of Wura’s son amidst the noise. Genesis did. She figured the outburst of laughter must have upset him. She flung the duvet aside, hurried to the boy’s bassinet in a corner and picked him up. Patting his back and making small circles round the room, she cooed to him. Wura rushed in from the adjoining room but stopped and smiled when she saw them. She retreated.
The smell of the baby and the touch of his cheek somewhat calmed Genesis, yet her fears loitered.
What if Dominic got mad that she sprung a wedding on him? What if he walked out on her at the altar? What if he didn’t love her as much as she loved him after all this time?
She clung to Bilal and inhaled his scent some more.
She would be torn if the day turned out to be her worst. She had invested so much in one man and in one dream just to find happiness. The image of waking up in his arms the next morning, flushed after a night of lovemaking as husband and wife was one she had carried in her head just days after she first saw him and although he already gave her many mornings like that, this one had to be special.
Bilal closed his eyes and long, curly lashes flapped down. Genesis ‘awwwed’ silently. Then she also closed her eyes in prayers over her most important day yet.
From God, all she wanted to hear a ‘yes’ and an ‘amen’. And from Dominic, an ‘I do’
The final episode comes next week. Anticipate and share. But before you go, just a quick question. Do you think in reality the type of stunt Genesis is pulling would work on a Nigerian man? Do you think some men need such drastic measures to get them to commit? And how about what Seyi did? Do you think he made the right decision to have his friend murdered? What other way could Bashorun have been handled?