WHISPERS OF ENCHANTÉ

29: obscured turns

Abuja, Nigeria.

Abdullah arrived in Maitama after fifty minutes, knowing they should've been there fifteen minutes earlier, based on his usual timing. Maybe he hadn't driven as fast as he normally would? He wasn't sure, but it didn't matter now, they had arrived.

He asked Yasmin to call whoever she was meeting so they could direct him to the exact location, as he had promised Baba Lawal he'd drop her off safely. Yasmin had been on the phone for a minute, but nothing seemed to be coming of it.

"Uh, maybe you should speak to my Whisp—uh, driv—friend? He probably knows the area better than I do," she said, her voice tinged with frustration, clearly baffled by the directions.

She turned to him, offering the phone with an almost sheepish look, her eyes wide with expectation. Abdullah glanced at the phone, then back at her, waiting for her to explain further. Yasmin nearly rolled her eyes—wasn't it obvious what she wanted? Surely, he had heard her.

"Can you talk to her? She's trying to explain the address, but I can't for the life of me understand what she's saying," Yasmin admitted, muting the call with an exasperated sigh.

Abdullah took the phone and pressed it to his ear, offering a quiet, "I'm listening." After a brief exchange, he handed it back, having deciphered the directions with ease.

"So, you get it?" Yasmin asked after reassuring the person on the other end that they would arrive soon.

"Yes," he replied simply, shifting the car back into drive and focusing on the road.

There was something peculiar about her earlier slip-up, Whisp something. She had caught herself and corrected it to 'friend.' Was that what she thought they were? Friends? Abdullah couldn't agree. Not with how she had pried into his personal life earlier, especially about his love life.

What was going on in this girl's mind?

He couldn't quite figure her out. Yasmin was like an open book, and yet, somehow, the most perplexing mystery he'd encountered in his life. An enigma. And for once, Abdullah wasn't sure he wanted to solve it.

He followed the directions from the call, pulling up to the address: a plaza. Why would they want her at a plaza if she was here to plan an event? Shouldn't it be in an event hall or a house somewhere?

But then, it wasn't his problem. He'd brought her here, as promised. After dropping her off, he'd call Baba Lawal and be done with it, then get back to ensuring Anas arrived as soon as possible.

Originally, Anas was supposed to travel with him, but that morning, Anas had decided he wasn't leaving the cozy warmth of his wife's side. Abdullah had thought he was joking and waited for him —but no.

It was as if Anas was determined to make Abdullah jealous of his marriage, and Abdullah wasn't interested. What was there to envy? Being tethered to one person for the rest of your life? Sure, he could handle that, just not the kind of obsession Anas had with his wife.

"Gosh, Abuja is so beautiful," Yasmin gushed suddenly, pulling Abdullah from his thoughts as she gazed out the window, finally shifting her attention away from him.

Abdullah eased the car into the plaza, parking in front of the address given, a salon, judging by the flyers advertising women's services.

As Abdullah parked in front of the plaza, Yasmin peered curiously out of the window. The building wasn't what she had imagined, far from it.

Instead of a grand event hall or a lavish house, it was a modest salon, with brightly colored flyers plastered on the windows advertising manicures, pedicures, and hair treatments.