Chapter Twenty: The Foe!

How did this happen? More importantly, how could you let this happen?" The Waziri fumed, pacing back and forth in Talatu's room. It had been one week since Fantah came back to Balda, and he was only getting to see Talatu that day because he had been avoiding Hayah like a plague. He knew Fantah was in town because he had eyes and ears everywhere. As soon as he learned of her arrival, he sent for Auwalu, the messenger who had pretended to be delivering all of Hayah's letters to Fantah in the past three years but, in reality, delivered them into the hands of the Waziri, and dispatched him out of town before Hayah could find and interrogate him. Then he waited until Hayah had left town before going to see his niece.

"I did not let it happen, uncle. She just came back on her own," Talatu protested.

He paused and thought for a few seconds. "The efficacy of the potion must have waned. I need to get you another one."

"I don't want another one."

"Excuse me?"

"I don't want to use charms anymore... it did not work, and it is not right, and it doesn't even work." Her heart was beating so fast, she thought she was going to faint. She had never defied him before. That was the first time she stood up to him, and it caught him by surprise. He was speechless for a while.

"Ok. Have it your way," he said and left.

But there was still the matter of Auwalu, the messenger, to take care of. If Hayah ever finds him, he will pay with his life. Even though the Waziri had sent the messenger away, far from Balda, it didn't stop Hayah from sending search parties to find him, and they brought him back. He was lashed harshly with leather whips until he confessed. Hayah was furious. He wanted to kill the Waziri, but he knew he couldn't do that. In fact, he didn't have the power to even kill this particular messenger, with the current Lamdo as the Waziri's puppet. So, he instructed his servants to lock him up.

However, he found a way to vent his anger on Talatu by ignoring her completely. He stopped going to her bed and spent all his nights in Fantah's room. He stopped going to her room to speak to her or even to eat any food she prepared. When she gave birth to their second son, an event that should have brought him great joy, he still ignored her. He only organized the naming ceremony but barely acknowledged the boy, who was named Mu'azu after his uncle.

He bestowed all his affection on Fantah. He gave her gifts of clothes, jewelry, horses, lands, and even slaves, including things she didn't even need to make her happy. He also took her on many outings around Balda and beyond. He wanted to show her the world, starting with his domain. His followers and subjects admired her and showered her with gifts. Even when he was preaching in the mosque, she would be in the female section listening. Since most people had never laid eyes on the princess, they mistook Fantah for her.

Fantah was delighted with all of it, taking everything in with the innocence of a child. She appreciated the gifts, and it was always a delight for her to meet his friends and subjects. She quickly learned how to interact well with them, which made them love her even more. She also used her knowledge of nature to help him make decisions concerning his domain. A case in point was when the people of Balda experienced a drought, and the river almost dried up, with the food supply getting low.

She advised him to dredge the river and channel the water from the highland towards the town. It was a system the Bororo always adopt to survive in dry and harsh terrains. Granted, it was mostly done on a smaller scale, but in this instance, Hayah had both the manpower and the resources to do it on a larger scale. Within a short time, the river was flowing into Balda, and it gave its inhabitants a new lease on life. To many of them, it was a miracle and proof that the man deserved veneration as a deliverer. His followers increased in droves, so fast that it set off alarm bells in the surrounding towns.

It gave Hayah much pleasure. Fantah wasn't just a pretty face, but one with an intelligent mind. He imagined her as queen beside him when he finally regains the throne as the Sultan of Sokoto. Such were the kind of beautiful thoughts he was having lately. Silently, he prayed for her to give him a son, an heir as gracious as herself. Unbeknownst to him, the answer to his prayer was already on the way.

One fateful day, he took her on a tour of his maize farm at the outskirts of Balda, escorted by one of his trusted lieutenants, Adamu, and ten servants. They were having a good laugh as he showed her around the farm and the soon-to-be-harvested ears of corn. Suddenly and without warning, she fell off her horse! She was rushed back home, and a traditional healer was brought in to attend to her while a Mallam recited prayers outside.

But Hayah, in spite of several assurances to be calm from well-wishers, kept pacing nervously from end to end in front of her apartment. After a couple of moments that seemed like forever, he was given the good tidings; she was expecting a child!

"Alhamdulillah!" he exclaimed, and everyone present chorused their congratulations. She would make him a father soon. He couldn't have wished for something better, and his love for her grew even stronger.

Talatu sat in her room, lost in thoughts. She had heard the rumor that Fantah was pregnant. It was something she had feared from the beginning but knew it was inevitable. "What if she gives birth to a son?" she thought. "That would be the end of me." Even though she already had two sons, she knew that Fantah's son would still be favored ahead of hers in Hayah's eyes, and she was not about to let that happen.

When her father told her that she was going to marry Hayah, she couldn't have been happier. He was the fantasy of many Balda's maidens back then - handsome, young, and brave. A prince from the most prominent Fulani royal family. To marry such a man was a dream come true. Even though he wasn't a direct heir to the throne, there was a chance of him ascending it if his uncle and his two sons were to die before him. Effectively, he was fourth in line. Being a princess herself, she knew the system; she had heard enough to know that it wasn't entirely impossible. In times of war and unrest, things had a way of changing in an instant. Moreover, even if he did not become the Sultan, there was a slight possibility he could usurp power in Fombina. That was what her uncle had feared all along. At first, she did not like the idea, but now that her father, the Lamdo of Maroua, was dead and the title was no longer with their immediate family, she welcomed the idea wholeheartedly. Either way, she would be queen, and her sons would get to inherit great power.

However, that dream was being threatened by this unfortunate turn of events. This young Bororo girl came out of nowhere and was threatening to take everything away from her. Even if she was just a concubine, it wasn't unheard of for the son of a king's concubine to inherit the throne. It had happened more than once before. When a king names his successor before his eventual demise, the kingmakers will be left with no choice. She wouldn't let that happen. Her uncle had been right all along. This girl was nothing but trouble.

In the beginning, she never cared about it because she was in love with Hayah. She had admired him, even before he noticed her. When they got married, she built so many palaces in the air about a happily-ever-after. But he never loved her. He treated her worse than a concubine, all because of this whore, Fantah. All the love she had for him now turned into pure hate, and she wanted him to suffer, to pay for every tear that she had shed. Both of them would have to pay. If getting in bed with the devil is what she had to do, then she would do it, for her children and for revenge!

"Are you sure about this?" The Waziri asked her. She had called on him earlier to apologize and ask for his help.

"Yes, Kawu. I am ready to do anything."

"I thought you loved him?"

"I used to. But love is nothing but fool's gold. What I want now is power."

"You know, you will have to do some things that you may not be comfortable with, things that may be too extreme," he cautioned.

"I am ready to sell my soul to the devil, if that is what it takes."

Her determination frightened him. "That's enough!"

Their plan required time and patience. For it to work, Talatu needed to swallow her pride and endear herself to Fantah. First, she went and apologized to her and pretended to be intimidated by her, while also insinuating that she was just a jealous rival who had learned her lesson and would never do it again.

Naively, Fantah believed her and let her guard down. For three months, they were the best of friends. Every day Talatu would visit her, and at other times Fantah would return the favor, and they would talk for hours, sharing personal stories and beauty secrets. Talatu even went ahead to tell her what she thought Hayah preferred in bed. And they giggled.

Fantah cherished their new friendship and even felt sorry for judging Talatu harshly at the beginning. She tried to imagine herself in Talatu's shoes, then concluded that if she were in the same situation, she might have done what Talatu did to save her marriage too. Touched by this thought, she forgave Talatu wholeheartedly.

Talatu manipulated Fantah to plead with Hayah on her behalf. That night, as Fantah was serving Hayah his supper, she waited until he was very relaxed and then brought up the issue of Talatu. He tensed up immediately.

“Did she hurt you?”

“No, my stranger,” she replied softly. “In fact, she has been so nice to me. She seemed genuinely sorry for what she did and wants to make peace.”

“Really?”

She could see that he did not believe her. “Yes, my stranger. I feel like I understand why she did what she did. It is because she loves you so much. I would have done the same thing if I thought I was going to lose you.” She sat next to him and gave him a pleading look. “Please, my beloved, give her another chance. She will not do it again.”

Hayah gave her a quizzical look and felt sorry for her. She was so naive in matters of power and probably incapable of understanding the ruthlessness of royal families; cold-blooded snakes who would do anything to hang on to power. And so, for the sake of peace and the love he had for Fantah, he decided to accept her plea and forgave Talatu.

“All right my beloved, I have forgiven her. But be careful, things are not always what they seem around here.”

“Thank you, my stranger,” she said happily.

Sadly, she fell for an elaborate ruse from Talatu. While they were playing besties, Talatu was stealing some personal items from her, items that her uncle would use as ingredients in a very volatile and wicked spell to get rid of her once and for all.

At first, she stole her comb, but soon after helping her to braid her hair. She wanted the residue of hair in it for her charms. Next, she cut a little piece from her wrapper before it was washed. After that, she got some of her nail clippings, and finally, she gathered a handful of sand from the footprints that Fantah left at the front of her apartment.

All the items were then handed over to her uncle, who took them to the Boka. The Boka cast a spell on the items, then tied them up in a black piece of cloth and gave it back to him with instructions on what to do.

One week later, the news came from Yola of the death of Lamido Sanda, with a successor appointed immediately. The coronation of the new Lamido was planned for the following Friday, and other minor Lamdos and notable men like Hayah were expected to attend, which meant he would be away for at least a week, leaving Fantah alone and vulnerable. It was an opportunity Talatu and her uncle, the Waziri, were waiting for.

The day after Hayah left for Yola, the Waziri got a black pigeon and tied a little black bundle to its foot. He then went on top of a hill and waited until just before midnight and started to chant.

First, he held the bird in his hands and faced the East, saying, "Oh, jinn of the West, hear my plea and send my enemy on an errand. Here is my gift. Please accept."

Then he turned and faced the West, saying, "Oh, jinn of the East, hear my plea and send my enemy on an errand. Here is my gift. Please accept."

Next was the South, as he said, "Oh, jinn of the South, hear my plea and send my enemy on an errand. Here is my gift. Please accept."

Finally, he faced the North, saying, "Oh, jinn of the North, hear my plea and send my enemy on an errand. Here is my gift. Please accept."

Then he returned to his initial position and released the bird. It flew towards the North, then turned East.

That night, Fantah did not pray before going to bed. She always prayed the Isha Prayer before going to sleep, but for some reason, she felt too tired to do that, probably due to the physical exertions of the pregnancy. She intended to do so but decided to catch a few winks first.

While she slept, deep in her subconscious, she heard someone calling her name. It was almost as if she was dreaming or in a trance, but it felt so real. Somehow, she got up and walked towards the voice. Quietly sidestepping her servants Ladi and Asabe who were sleeping at the foot of her bed, she reached the door. Her headgear fell to the ground, but she didn't stop. She evaded the guards at the main entrance and stepped out. Almost on impulse, she looked up and saw a black pigeon flying toward the North, and she followed it. Barefooted, without a veil or scarf over her head, she kept following it until she left the town behind her.

[End of Chapter Twenty]