Chapter 80: Chapter 80

Love? Adyan felt all the bitterness of this world slowly filling up his soul. He fixed his unshakable gaze on Kassim whom looked unscathed by his words. Is he in his right senses? How could he love the woman that is married to his brother with a child between? Just how!

It took minutes, minutes that Adyan thought Dad couldn't utter another word_because him? He has lost his voice the moment he learnt that Kassim was the one that kidnapped Hayfah.

"Are you insane? Kassim are you inebriated?! What the hell is this? How can you love the woman married to your brother and even bore him a child?! How!" Dad was now standing on his two feets, the veins on his head wear loud clear to show the boiling rage in him.

Kassim clasped his palms and looked down on his feet, he knew this would happen; but he didn't thought of it this soon. He thought it would happen when he was already married to Hayfah and they couldn't do anything to make them estranged.

"I've loved her even before he knew her!" He declared and looked up, their eyes meeting together with Adyan's bloodshot orbs.

The next thing they all heard was a punch being thrown on Kassim's face, and they saw Adyan on him throwing punches at every angle of his face.

"How could you say that? Despite knowing you kidnapped my wife and my seven days old daughter, I didn't hate you, and now this? Do you know of the sleepless nights I had because of her? How dare you say this? Well...because you never cared to know!!!" Adyan roared and he was beating, punching, and muscles were being flexed.

Kassim lifted himself up and started returning back the punches towards Adyan! They got into a heated fight that Dad had to do nothing hut stare at them as they throw punches at eachother's face and hurtful words he never wished to be shared within his family.

"I wanted you to hate me! So you could know how it feels for you love to be taken away by the person you cherish the most in your life! Let me tell you one thing, I've hated you since the day I knew you got married to Hayfah!" Kassim thundered and smacked Adyan until his face touched the bare floor of the room, spurting out a churn of blood.

Adyan stood up but the weight of Kassim's words kept taking him aback until he kissed the floor yet again. He wished this to be a nightmare he would trade his world for_to end.

He slumped on the floor and woke up again, hoping the intensity of the rage within him might outraged that of Kassim's words_and it does. He stood up and landed a punch on Kassim's nose_to which he bled for.

"You don't know what love stands for? How illiterate of you to love someone's wife? That too your brother's wife? How guile of you! Let me tell you what you didn't know Kassim, I met her the day I escorted you-ugly bitch-to Zaria for a supervision during Waec, remembered the day? When a lady came late and was being asked questions by me that you called for my attention? I know you do! Because from that day; my life changed! Her love changed my life completely!!!!" He was crying, yelling, and punching Kassim from every angle he could lay his fist on. It was heart, this was the most painful heartbreak he could ever wish for.

He got Kassim on his knees and kept giving him a pummel on his face, until he got tired, emotionally exhausted and he fell on the ground; crying in sheer melancholy.

"If I had known, I wouldn't have married her! I would've left her for you; atleast your love towards her could soften your heart and you couldn't have became a monster like this! Why!" Adyan was crying hard, rocking himself like a baby looking out for this mother.

Kassim scoffed and spurted out a pitch of blood from his mouth before he wiped away the traces of blood on his nose. "If you really mean your words, then divorce her for me!" And both Adyan and Dad looked at him as if he had grown some horns over his head.

"You must be an illiterate! I'm beginning to question about you, Kassim; are you really well? Have you ever seen someone in the history of the Islam who divorces his wife for someone to marry? Not to talk of a brother marrying his brother's wife! That's haram! A brother couldn't marry his brother's wife unless he's dead! Think Kassim, it's Adyan on this plate not some random man!" Dad infuriately flew his hands in the air, looking Kassim that seemed unbothered about his words, and Adyan that couldn't close his mouth due to the shock of his brother's level of maliciousness.

Kassim shrugged his shoulders and shot a hateful glare towards Adyan before he looked at Dad. "Then he should divorce her with three talaqs, the pain of that divorce might take him to his grave_from all indications he loves her much for that, and I'll marry her after he died." Nonchalantly, he spoke_but before he closed his lips, a loud striking slap landed on his cheeks from Dad's palms.

And Adyan lost the little bit of hope, love, and respect he has for his brother. They all vanished within the beat of his heart.

"Get out of this room, you ignorant fool! And make sure; we all wake up and see Hayfah in this house. Kassim you shouldn't leave this house unless she's back here safely and sound! Send the money to them, so they could do what I said!" Dad roared with the voice that startled both Kassim and Adyan, and he didn't bulged as his paining limbs lifted him up and off he was out of the room.

Dad looked at a completely shattered Adyan and felt as tears slowly streamed down his cheeks. He could imagine how he could feel, when his brother wished death upon him because of his wife! His halal wife! What a world we live in.

***

Throughout the night, Adyan couldn't let the blankets on his eyes to close; because he know_he might close them and find himself being killed by his brother, making his Rania a widow and his Mysha fatherless on the second week of her birth.

After subh prayer, Dad went to Mom's room and called them and they all gathered in the living room_were an almost mentally distorted Adyan sat down with eyes fixed on one spot. They spoke to him but got no response, which made them think the worst had happened.

Dad went to Kassim's room and called him; from the expression he saw on Kassim's face, he knew he was determined and he dread what would be out of today.

They all sat down in the living, and still_Adyan doesn't seem to be aware of their presence. Dad looked at Kassim and he looked away from his gaze. He cleared his throat and all their attentions turned on him, they got startled at the hard expression being plastered on his face.

"You women need to listen and don't panic about this. Kassim," he called for his attention and continued. "You see this woman beside your mother? She's the one that gave birth to Hayfah, and fortunate enough_she's your mother's younger sister; which makes Hayfah your cousin sister. Are you willing to bring out this woman the daughter she spent 20 years of her life without setting her eyes on? And wickedly, you took away her daughter the day she sets her eyes on her after all those years of waiting!"

Mom and Mama stood up abruptly, they looked at Dad and Kassim with an expression that screamed the fear drumming the walls of their hearts. "What does this mean?" They asked at the sametime, as they felt their limbs gone weak and prayed internally for what they're thinking not to turn out true.

"Sit down please." And they did. Dad called out Kassim's name and continued.

"This man here we called out son is the monster we've never imagined him to turn out. He kidnapped Hayfah because he loves her so much; hoping Adyan would be dead because of the divorced between him and Hayfah; so he could have the chance to marry her. Yes Ni'ima, I too didn't know he was the cruel."

And Mom burst into tears that made Adyan looked at her with his robotic eyes. He is numb to anything now; but seeing tears rolling down Mom's cheeks softened a spot in his heart.

"This isn't the boy I gave birth to. Kassim, call those people and make them release her this instant! I want her in the next thirty minutes sitting right there beside her husband!!!" Mom thundered and stood up, squeezing the collar of his jallabiyya, crying as though her eyes would come down on their own.

Kassim acted as if he didn't acknowledged what was happening around him. He kept clenching and unclenching his fist. He wanted to blurt out a word, but all he could see through his eyes was Hayfah's eyes drenched with tears, crying as she held her phone reading out the Qur'an_the images of her in his office at the company kept teasing his orbs.

How her face looked broken yet deadly gorgeous the day he slapped her. Her words that still shook him to sweats, her veil that was slightly draped over her head revealing some parts of her black hair, and lots more he felt her love could drive him insane.

"I'm sorry, Mom, but I cannot. I love her too, we should lose her both." And he closed his mouth together with a slap from an angry crying mother of his.

Mama hurriedly came to his rescue, she took Mom's hand off his collar and made her sat down before she went back to where Kassim was seated and her next action took them all off guard. She knelt before him!

Both Dad, Mom and Adyan bulged their eyes out and stood up_but before they could reach out to her; she has already started talking.

"Here's a mother on her knees, crying her eyes out to gain herself a pity from her daughter's kidnapper. Kassim I beg of you, please and please set my daughter free. I spent the teenage years of my life in grief just to bring her into this world. And all I was given from her life was three years, from then; she was taken away from me. I spent another twenty years of my life seeking out for her, got to the extent that I denied my next daughter because she reminds me of her. I deprived myself the joy that comes out of a female child because of her.

I didn't know she was married; married to my nephew. I got to know that she was still alive on the naming ceremony of her own daughter well. Pity my frail heart, wallahi I've never tasted what happiness means without her in my life; it was all a façade; my last genuine smile was twenty years ago the day we were broken apart, until the day I saw her, that's two days ago. Dan Allah, help me, please Kassim set Hayfah and Mysha free..." and she placed her head on his knees crying her eyes out that her body was completely shaking; vehemently.

Mom came to her in tears, tears that revived every ounce of pain they've experienced in their life. What a life they lived? They could her Ruru Am kneel down on her knees and beg her son? From today, Kassim is no more her son!

"Rukayya! Let him be, if he like; he can take her away to the end of the world. But one thing is written from today_he's no more my son. I only gave birth to one son, that Adyan. You all should be a witness." And she lifted up her Rukayya in tears, together; they trudged out of the living room.