ORNAMENTS: A Love Story

Chapter Fourty Four

Dasuki State, Nigeria.

2022

The justice walked out and the four of them—Hajiya, Bello, Alh. Yabo and Asad were now held each by two officers. They were taking them away.

Asma slipped from the chair she was seated on to the ground. Death by hanging—her father. She has also been asked to pay a fine for wasting the court's time and denying it yesterday but the fine is the least of her problems. Her problem right now is her parents atleast she'll see Asad after eleven years but her dad is going to die and hajiya has a new home now—prison for life. She didn't stop the tears from rolling her cheeks or the dizziness she felt.

Everything in her life just came crumbling down, just one day, one verdict and it destroyed her family. Why did they choose this lifestyle? now look what it has caused them. She doesn't even know what to think, this is justice with mercy? If not her brother would have been sentenced to 20 years? And her mother will go too.

Ya Allah, this is too exhausting. But you never burden a soul with more than it can handle. They caused this upon themselves, this is the same way the victim's family they killed felt.

She ran behind the police men that held her family—her whole family. She ran towards them.

"Hajiya i told you we shouldn't confess. Maybe Barr. Ali Yakubu would have done something and then you can ask God for forgiveness.Why? Look now." She cried.

"Asma'u" Hajiya called. Hajiya never addressed her as her full name so why today? Maybe because today's situation was too serious " It's better to atone for our sins here, okay. Go and stay with my sister. Be a good and dutiful girl Asma, don't walk in our footsteps, make a difference. Please"She said the last part like she was begging.

Asma's tears only worsened and they kept strolling down her cheeks. The officer dragged her mother away and she was inside the van—This was it—Her reality check.  Everything came crashing down. For what? For the name, for the power, for the influence, for the wealth, for the riches and respect. And now where is it? Everything has faded away. She only cried as the figure of her mother was tucked inside a van, Her Father was already taken too, she quickly ran to her last hope, her brother. Nabeel also ran to Asad and begged the officers to let him speak to him.

They didn't at first but the way he begged, they let him right in front of the van.

"Asad please i beg you divorce her." Nabeel begged his hands folded in front of Asad, the desperation, urgency and helplessness all in his voice.

In a million years if you told him, he'll ever beg Asad Yabo for something—anything, he'll deny it till his last breath but then he prefers Begging than giving up Umaimah. Yes, you heard right.

"If you're ready to, my foot is down there" Asad replied uninterested.

Yazid quickly walked there. "Didn't you hear when Nabeel pleaded for mercy. That's why your sentence was reduced you ungrateful arse."

"Whose fault is it that i got sentenced in the first place? Don't think you did me a favor." Asad spit back bitterly.

They didn't need to come to court did they? They could have solved everything at home.

"I will do it" Nabeel replied.

"No, we can go to court and have khul'i between them, we can seperate them by force."

"Yazid i don't want any other complications with this divorce, what if khul'i comes with another complication? I'd rather he divorces her out of his own free will."

"What are you going to do?" Yazid asked, he knows Asad won't miss an opportunity to humiliate Nabeel but he didn't think the humiliation will reach this.