by Emma Easter
He looked up with a thoughtful expression on his face and then focused on her again. “Peru,” he said. “Umm, okay. I think it will be an interesting place to visit. And Bryan is a hoot. Okay, Audrey. We will spend the vacation with Bryan and Sienna in Peru.”
Audrey’s eyes widened in surprise. Ken had just agreed without any argument. She whooped and then stood up to do a little jig around the room.
Ken laughed and shook his head at her. After a while, she came to sit beside him again. She hollered, “Peru, here we come!” Then she hugged him tightly and kissed his cheeks.
She started to pull away, but he held her to himself and kissed her tenderly on the lips. When he started to draw back, she held on to him and she sighed in contentment as she wrapped her arms tightly around him. If only things could always be like this between them, instead of the constant fights they had every single day now. But in order for total peace to reign, it would mean someone had to compromise and give in to the other’s desire. And that she could not do. She could not give up on her desire to have a baby now. Which meant they would have more fights in the future. That would not be good for their marriage at all. She wasn’t looking forward to any of that.
She thought about Sienna’s invitation again. She was looking forward to seeing her sister and spending time with her nephew, but she knew that seeing Ethan and taking care of him would probably make her yearning for a baby worse. Still, she couldn’t wait to go to Peru. Hopefully spending time there would give her and Ken a well-needed break from the fights, at least for a month. And then it would start all over again. And there was nothing she could do about that, as she wasn’t going to give up her dream.
She sighed again and whispered to herself, “If only Ken would let us have a baby.”
Ken rubbed her back and said, “What did you say, Audrey?”
“Nothing, Ken,” she replied. “I said nothing.”
*****
After Dauda’s driver had lugged her suitcase into the trunk of Dauda’s silver jeep, Leila hugged Rekiya tightly and said, “Thank you so much for everything you have done for me.” Tears swam in her eyes as she looked at the senior wife’s face.
Rekiya held Leila’s hands and said, “Can’t you still go with me to Paris instead of leaving immediately? Surely, you can postpone your trip back to Mali and travel with me.”
Leila smiled sadly and shook her head. “I would have loved to go with you, Rekiya, but I need to go back to Mali as soon as possible.”
Rekiya searched Leila’s eyes and said, “And you won’t tell me what is so urgent that you have to leave so quickly.” She squeezed Leila’s hands. “However, I already know why you don’t want to go with me.”
Leila raised her eyebrows and stared at Rekiya, surprised. She asked, “You do?”
“Yes, I do. You are in love with someone. I can see it in your eyes. Actually, I have guessed that that was the case for some time. Now, I am sure about it.”
Leila smiled sadly and then nodded. “You are right, Rekiya. I am in love with someone. I have to get to him now. We would have been together if I had not married Dauda.”
“I understand,” Rekiya said.
Leila nodded. “I know you do. You love Dauda even after all these years of…” She pressed her lips together, pushing back the words that had nearly slipped through her lips. It would not be right at this time to question Rekiya for loving a man who seemed to care nothing about her feelings.
Rekiya sighed sadly, but she didn’t seem angry or put off by Leila’s words. She drew Leila close and hugged her tightly again. And then she let her go.
Leila opened the car door and got in. She shut the door and stuck her head out the window. Waving at Rekiya, she mouthed, “Thank you so much. I’ll never forget you, Rekiya.”
Rekiya waved back.
The driver began to drive away from the house and Leila kept waving at Rekiya until the man drove out of the gate and Rekiya’s figure disappeared. Leila turned around and settled on her seat. She wasn’t surprised that none of the other wives had come to see her off. Actually, she wasn’t even sure any of them knew she was leaving. However, she had thought Dauda would say goodbye today before she left. But he had not. Instead, he had stayed in his room and had not come out at all. But she guessed that was for the best.
She looked back one more time at the mansion and kept looking at it as it grew smaller and smaller. At last, she turned around again and sighed in relief. Waves of excitement flooded her body as she thought about finally leaving this country. Soon, she would see Malik again. She had been dreaming of seeing him for such a long time. Her dream would finally come true.
Her excitement suddenly turned to nervous anticipation, and then uncertainty and dread overwhelmed her. What if the same thing that happened last time happened again? Even if Karim Keita did not have another husband to marry her off to, if he saw her in Nira, who knew what he would do to her? Besides, if she got to Nira and Malik was not there, how would she find out where he was and how to get there?
She looked out of the car window and sighed. She had to put all these fears and concerns out of her mind and focus on the fact that she was now free; free to see the love of her life again and even marry him one day, when her marriage to Dauda was dissolved.
But you can’t marry him until he becomes a Christian, a voice in her mind said.
That was true. There was no way she could marry Malik until he became a Christian. No matter how much she loved him, the word of God still held sway over her and the decisions she made. And the word said she could not be unequally yoked to an unbeliever.
Worry began to envelope her and she shut her eyes. I can’t think about all that right now, she thought to herself. She had to be positive. The Lord had miraculously delivered her and now she was leaving this country and going back to look for Malik. Surely He would not do all this for her if He did not want her and Malik to be together. She had to believe Malik would become a Christian soon. She would take everything one step at a time. For now, she would find Malik no matter what, and then they would have a happy reunion. She couldn’t wait to hold him and kiss him.
The meddlesome voice in her head screamed again, You can’t kiss him when you are still married to someone else.
She sighed wearily. Well, she couldn’t wait to at least hold and hug him. Soon, by God’s grace, she would be able to do much more than that. Soon, she would be his wife.
*****
After a long day’s work, Malik went back to his house near the farm—a tiny one-bedroom unpainted building. Around the farm were huts where the other workers stayed. Because his father owned the farm, Malik acted as the overseer here in Dogon and lived in the only home that wasn’t a hut.
He went into the kitchen to get the loaf of bread he had bought this morning. Unlike his house in Nira, the kitchen here was just a tiny space with a single kerosene stove. He never cooked anything here anyway. Usually, he bought food from the sole canteen near the small market or ate bread. He got the small loaf from the wooden shelf, took a tin of milk, and went to his small living room. He sat down on the old couch and ate his food. After that, he went to get water from the well outside with a metal bucket and then went in to bathe quickly with the water.
He felt more relaxed after his bath, went to his room, and stretched out on his narrow bed. Once again, excitement ran through him as he thought about seeing his daughter, Fanta, tomorrow. He could hardly wait. As usual, he would be staying in Nira for only a few days, thanks to his heartless father, but he tried as much as possible to enjoy the time he spent with Fanta.
It was getting more and more difficult to be away from her, but it wasn’t as if there were any jobs in Nira. Most of the people who were employed had their jobs because of his father and worked on this farm. He was glad his mother and stepmother took good care of Fanta, but he was still perturbed by the fact that he couldn’t do so himself. He needed to be there for her but he never was. Plus, he hated the fact that she stayed in
his father’s house. If only he were married, his wife would watch over her while he was away.
His mind immediately went to Leila at the thought of being married and he groaned. Would he ever be able to forget her? He sighed loudly and then turned his face to the wall. He shut his eyes and tried to go to sleep, but Leila’s face appeared in his mind and refused to leave. He needed to wake up early tomorrow for his trip to Nira, but he couldn’t sleep. He tossed and turned, until finally, he thankfully drifted off.
From inside his dream, he heard someone wailing and then jerked up as someone banged loudly on his door. He could hear loud voices outside his small house and he wondered what all the commotion was about. Quickly, he climbed out of bed, put on a T-shirt over his pajama pants, and opened the door.
Abu, the caretaker, barged into his room, sweating profusely. “Malik, there’s a fire!”
Malik’s mouth fell open and he shook his head. “What do you mean there’s a fire?” he asked Abu, scowling at the diminutive man.
Abu put his hands on his head, his eyes red. He shouted, “You need to come now. The farm is on fire… Come outside. It’s burning away all the crops… the harvest.”
Malik’s eyes widened in alarm and he raced past the caretaker and ran out of the house. He skidded to a stop as he reached the farm. The sight before him was unlike anything he had seen. Fire and smoke rose high. The fire had consumed the farm and was spreading fast to the huts near it. Many of the men who worked on the farm were running helter-skelter, fetching buckets of water from the nearby well, carrying them to the farm, and pouring water continuously on the fire, trying to put it out. The flames began to spread to some of the huts where the farm workers lived.
For a moment, Malik stared at the scene in front of him with his mouth open, his feet refusing to move, and then he took off running. He found an empty bucket near one of the huts, grabbed it, and raced to the well to fetch water.
For what seemed like an eternity, he and the other workers on the farm when to and fro, from the well back to the site of the fire, pouring water on the flames.
Finally, the flames began to lessen until they died out completely. However, billows of smoke rose high in the sky, causing the farmers, including Malik, to cough violently.
Malik gazed all around him. The farm was burnt to the ground. All the crops were gone, burnt to ashes. He put his hands on his head and stared at the ruin, feeling completely devastated. Everyone had worked so hard to make sure the abundant crops the farm had produced this year were harvested. Half of the crops had been harvested already, but had not yet been stored in the barn. All of the crops—those harvested and those yet to be—were gone, burnt to ashes. He felt like crying as he looked around him. Some of the huts near the farm had also been burnt to the ground.
For a long time, he couldn’t speak. Some of the men whose huts had been burned down stood where their huts had been, lamenting over their personal property and items that had been destroyed. Malik did not know what to do or say to them.
Abu the caretaker came and put his hand on Malik’s shoulder.
“Do you know how this fire started?” Malik asked the caretaker.
“I don’t,” the man answered.
“We have to find out what really happened.”
“It’s all been destroyed!” Abu exclaimed as though he did not hear what Malik had said.
Malik sighed and said slowly, “Not all of it. There is still some part of the farm that the fire didn’t touch. We have to start planting as soon as possible.” As much as he felt an overwhelming sadness, he knew not to give into his feelings. There was no use doing that. Instead, they would have to start all over again, planting crops. Thankfully, there were a variety of seedlings in the barn.
He sighed. This meant he couldn’t go back to Nira now and he didn’t know when he would be able to. If there were no crops to be harvested, the men who had been working and laboring for weeks would not be paid. They were already very poor. Their plight would be much worse if they were not paid.
His heart sank to his feet as he realized he would not be able to see his daughter for a long time.
She’s in good hands, he told himself. But he didn’t like the fact that she was in the same house as the man who called himself his father. That man was wicked.
Once again he thought about marrying a wife; someone who he could trust to take care of his daughter. At least his daughter would be able to stay in his house and not have to live in the same house as his father. Like before, Leila’s face appeared in his mind. This time, he refused to let it stay and forcefully pushed it away. This was not the time to think about Leila. She would never be his. She now belonged to someone else.
For now, he had to stay focused on planting the corn and millet, and helping the men who had lost their personal items with some of their basic needs. Once he was able to get back to Nira, he would have to start searching for a wife. Obviously, it would not be a love match the way he and Leila were . . . or had been. But that didn’t really matter. All he wanted was a mother for his daughter, not a lover. His late wife had not been a love match either, but they had lived in peace with each other. Their marriage had been arranged by both their families.
He moved toward the men who had lost their property and houses, and put away thoughts of finding a wife and mother for his daughter so he could concentrate on the matter at hand.
Chapter Eight
Nick settled back on the couch, opened the dating app on his phone, and went to his profile. He slowly scrolled down the screen, reading the messages he had received and looking at the profiles of the different girls he had been chatting with. After about half an hour, he sighed and logged out of the dating site. He was tired of swiping. He had been chatting with a few girls for some time now, but he hadn’t found any one he actually wanted to meet up with.
He felt slightly lonely and bored in Rosefield. He’d been here for about a week now, but apart from Frank and his wife, Trisha, he knew no one. He had gone to work early every day, including Saturday, and always came home late. Sundays were his only free days. He’d hardly had any time to socialize here. The only socializing he had done was on the online dating site. Since today was a Sunday and the restaurant was closed, he had decided to come to Frank’s house and spend the day with him and Trisha rather than stay in his room at the Bed & Breakfast alone. He looked up when Frank walked into the living room.
Frank came and sat beside him on the couch and asked, “Were you on that dating site again?”
For some reason, he felt defensive. “What if I was?” he said. Frank raised his eyebrows and Nick sighed. “I’m sorry.” He gave Frank an apologetic smile and focused his gaze on Frank’s face. “It’s just that I’m used to having company. Lots of company. I know I have only been here for a week, but I am bored and kinda lonely.”
Frank gave him a small smile. “By company, you mean girls, right? You are used to having girls always flocking around you, isn’t that so?”
Nick rolled his eyes. “Frank, stop looking at me like that,” he said. He opened his mouth to tell his friend that he was actually ready to start dating seriously when Trisha walked into the living room. He stood up and briefly hugged her before sitting down again. She sat on the sofa facing him and smiled at him. When Frank got up and went to sit next to Trisha on the single sofa, Nick hid an amused smile. There was more than enough space on the couch, but Frank chose to squeeze in beside his wife.
“So, how have you been enjoying Rosefield so far?” Trisha asked.
“I can’t say I am really enjoying it,” Nick answered. “I mean, it’s a beautiful place. But like I was telling Frank just now, it’s a bit boring, and I’m lonely because I haven’t had time to make any friends yet.”
Frank smirked and said to Trisha, “Nick was on a dating app just before I came into the living room.”
Trisha raised an eyebrow and said with a tease in her voice, “So, you’ve been busy swiping left and right, have you? And have
you found anyone yet, Nick?”
Nick ignored Frank’s smirk and Trisha’s incredulous expression and said, “Not yet. But actually, I think I want to start dating seriously now. Maybe in a few years, I might even consider getting married like Frank.” He smiled at Trisha. “That is if I find a smart and beautiful woman like you.”
Trisha leaned slightly forward and gave him a look that melted the smile off his face. He frowned slightly. The look on her face was one of disbelief, as though the very thought of him settling down was completely laughable.
Frank said, “I told Nick I might know someone who would be perfect for him, Trisha.”
This time, Trisha raised both eyebrows. “And who might that be?” she asked.
“A certain divorced friend of yours,” Frank said.
Guys, I am still here, Nick thought, slightly amused. He opened his mouth to tell them that, but was taken aback when Trisha’s features hardened. She said tersely, “I don’t think she and Nick would be a very good match, Frank.”
Nick felt slightly angry at Trisha’s words and the look on her face. It was a look that clearly said whoever that friend of hers was, she was too good for him. He sighed and let go of his anger. Why would he blame Trisha? She knew he had a reputation as a player. But nobody really understood him. It wasn’t as if he enjoyed tagging girls along. It was just that he was afraid of commitment.
And isn’t it time you put away that fear? a voice in his head said.
He pressed away the voice and said defensively, “I guess you’re right, Trisha. I’m probably not ready for anything serious now. It’s why I am on a dating app. I’m just looking for someone to hook up with.”
Trisha seemed to bristle, but Frank chuckled. “You know what, Nick? I actually think you are ready for something serious now.”
Nick stared at Frank inquisitively and then said, “No, Frank, I am not. Just as I said, I am only looking for something physical.”