The sound of the adhzan woke her up and she felt the searing headache that hit her head even before she opened her eyes. Slowly, her eyes began to open and she started taking in her surrounding. At first, she thought it was the Fajr adhzan but the light she saw seeping in through the curtains made her realized what time of the day it was.

Slowly, as she took in her surrounding while she realized she was in Sareena's house and while she questioned what had happened and she had slept in Sareena's house, this long, everything began to come back to her brain and she abruptly got to her feet.

Immediately she got to her feet, Muhibbah walked out and she almost bumped into Sareena that had a tray in her hands. "Addah, you're awake. I was just about to come and wake you up." Sareena said while smiling at her. But Muhibbah's heart was beating vigorously, she had a lot of things to take care of.

Even though she had followed Sareena back into the room, she couldn't stop the first question that came to her mind. "Sareena, did Mama called? Has she looked for me?" She asked, because she knew if Mama found out that she had done what she did to Alhaji Nasir and walked away, she would be doomed.

"I called her this morning and told her that you slumped in front of my door yesterday at night," Sareena answered as she placed the tray down. She looked up at Muhibbah and patted the edge of the bed for her. "Come and sit, Addah. First, you need the energy to be able to fight this battle and then you need to calm down a bit, will you?"

Muhibbah did as she was asked, but she was far from being calm. "My phone got stolen, Sareena, and it has all the evidence I need to show everyone. What should I do? Or I should be clear to you, it got taken away by some men he sent..." From there, she told Sareena everything that had happened to her yesterday. From the warning Alhaji Nasir did, down to her walking up to her house.

Sareena shed a few tears as she spoke and when she was done, she gave her a very tight hug and Muhibbah closed her eyes because she had badly needed a hug for so long now. They stayed like that for a moment before they broke the hug and she looked up hopefully into her eyes.

"Sareena, what do you think I should do to get away from this man? How can I have this marriage nullified. I have all the evidences I may need. I've shown the to you and played it for you except for the last one, right? Who do you think will help you out of this?" She said with her voice breaking because she felt so helpless and so weak.

Sareena wiped at her tears before she thought for a moment. "Your father?" She said tentatively. They all knew the topic of Muhibbah's father was a sore one for Mama and none of them dared bring it up.

Softly, Muhibbah shook her head. She knew bringing her father into this issue will anger Mama more than nullifying the marriage. "I don't think my father could be of any help to me, Sareena. Mama will be furious if she knows about this. I just...I really don't know what to do at this point." She didn't try to stop her tears when they spilled out of her eyes.

Sareena placed both hands on her shoulder and shook her a bit until she looked right into her eyes. "Addah, at this point in your life, you need someone strong by your side. Myself and Muhammad can never do anything to you, we're all under Mama's control and a single word from her could have our mouths sealed. But your father loves you, trust me. And he'd make sure you get out of this, don't forget all the evidences you have, they're enough for any person to pity you and have this marriage nullified before Alhaji Nasir fulfill his desires."

Before Muhibbah was able to reply her, a call came into Sareena's phone and she showed her the screen, it was Mama. "You see? I'm sure she's going to ask about you or something related to you, I'm sure about it." She answered the call and put it on speaker mode.

"Sareena, where's that woman?" They both stared into each other's eyes before Sareena looked down at the phone as though Mama could see them.

"She's here with me, Mama. She's a bit sick, I told you she got robbed last night and walked to my house by feet. Is there anything?" She asked with her voice so slow as she hoped Mama wouldn't say anything invasive.

"I don't care if she's going to walk again, she should just present herself to me in the next thirty minutes, tell her so. Her husband's people are here to take her away, and I don't want more of my wedding guests to arrive and see her in this house. And need I say that I don't want to see her in my house or even yours ever again unless I'm the one that calls for her." With that, Mama ended the call and they both stared at each other with painful eyes.

"You see what I'm telling you, right? Now she had forbade you from coming to my house either, Addah. Do you think you have anywhere else to be apart from your father's house? None of Mama's relatives will accept you, they all hate you, more than they can ever say out and I wonder what it is your father did for it to rub off on you."

Muhibbah was just staring at her as she spoke as the painful realization registered on her. She really had no one to rely on now but her father and she hoped with everything that was in her that he wasn't going to let her be like her mother. She gulped down the churn of agony that lodged itself on her throat and opened her palm for Sareena.

"Can I please have your phone?" She asked painfully, still fighting her tears back. Sareena handed the phone to her and walked out of the room to give her some privacy.

It took her some minutes before she recalled the number she had memorized since when she was a teenager. Then, she used to use whoever's phone she got the chance to to call her father until Mama forbade her from doing so. She sat there staring at the number while her tears cascaded down her cheeks in so much anguish.

Mustering up all the courage in her, Muhibbah dialed the number and placed the phone on her ear as she heard it ring along with the beat of her heart. It almost ended when he picked the call and she summoned the strength and willpower to speak to him.

"Assalamu Alaikum," she greeted with a shaking voice and heard as he went silent for a minute before he spoke back.

"Waalaikumus salam, is it Didi? Or I've gotten the voice wrong?" He always called her that and Muhibbah had never asked him why or what was the meaning behind it. Well, she was never close to him enough to ask him about it.

"It's me, Abba. I got robbed yesterday and lost my phone, so I'm using Sareena's phone to call you..." He cut her off with a voice that showed how concerned he was.

"Oh my god! Did something bad happened? Do you need my help? Should I send someone to bring you another phone? Are you safe? Did they hurt you? Hope nothing worse happened? At your work place or where? Hope you're okay?" Muhibbah didn't know when she broke into painful tears. Well, maybe she had finally gotten her safe haven. Because it was clear to her now that she had misjudged her father and whether or not he would offer his help to her. For the first time since all of this sage began, Muhibbah felt that she really had someone. The one that really mattered in her life.

"I need your help, Abba." She said silently, tears rolling down her cheeks as her lips trembled.

He sighed openly and from the sounds she heard from his end, it was evident he had just found a spot and sat down. "Didi, tell me what happened. It's not just about the robbery, is it? Do you need something? Talk to me, okay? I'm your father, I'll listen and offer you any kind of help you need, no matter how big you think it is."

"Abba, Mama got me married yesterday. The man she got me married..." He broke her off even before he heard the rest of her words.

"What?! Suwaiba got you married?! When? How? Why?!" The anger in his voice was evident enough and she wiped at her tears. This was what she was afraid of. She knew so long as she involved her father, it would never end well.

"Abba, that's not all. The man she got me married is a serial womanizer and everyone knows..." From there, Muhibbah told him everything without being shy of the words or hiding any of the things Alhaji Nasir said to her. Abba listened to her patiently until she was done and by then, Muhibbah had made a serious mess of her cheeks.

"So he was even the one that sent the thugs to you yesterday at night? And now she's asking you to go back and forbade you from visiting her house and her daughter's house, right?" Muhibbah kept nodding her head as though he was there to see it for himself.

"I'm in Abuja today but I'll follow the next available flight to Katsina or early tomorrow morning. Get out of that house now, go and get a phone even if it's a small one before I come. Go to a hotel you know he won't suspect you're in and call me with your line so I'll call you to see where you are immediately I land, okay?"

"Thank you, Abba, thank you." He kept on consoling her until she stopped crying before he ended the call and Muhibbah just sat there as she continued to cry. For the first time in her life, she felt really loved and actually taken care of. She felt that she really wasn't alone and there was someone out there that would do al he could to make sure she didn't cry.

Sareena found her in that situation and rushed to the bed. "What happened, Addah? Did he say that it doesn't concern him or something?"

Muhibbah immediately shook her head. "I just feel overwhelmed at how he reacted Sareena and I'm also afraid of what would happen if Mama knows that I called him. He said he'll fly to Katsina tomorrow morning."

Sareena smiled and hugged her quickly. "You see? I told you that your father loves you and he will do everything he can to make you you're happy. I knew it, Addah. I'm sure nothing will happen and for Mama, she'll come around once she's done being angry."

"I think I should leave, she's expecting me any minute now." She got to her feet. She didn't realize why she didn't tell Sareena what Abba had told her to do. There was this part of her heart that felt Sareena could tell Mama about it and then everything will be busted.

Sareena didn't allow her to leave until she took her shower and changed into her clothes. She begged her to wait until after Asr and the kids are back so they can go together because Bilkisu's wedding was tomorrow but she denied and left. She took a tricycle to the hotel and booked a room after she had bought the phone. Abba sent her some money through the phone seller's account and he gave her the change.

Everything happened so fast. And even though she was in the room and felt that she was safe for the time being, she couldn't help being afraid. She wanted to call Bilaal and tell him everything that was happening and that he should get ready to present the evidences to her but then she didn't have his number on her head.

Remembering that she had once asked them to submit an assignment to her mail alongside their phone numbers, Muhibbah quickly logged into her mail and it took her a lot of scrolling before she found his and dialed the number but it was switched off instead. She spent the entire day calling him but there was no response.

She realized his email was the one he registered into imessage with and she sent him a message there with the hope that he'd response. Five hours later, it showed the 'read' sign but no response. And she ended up sleeping with her phone in her hand as she expected his response. Despite sending him tons and tons of messages that all showed 'read' nothing came from him.

Her entire body went cold when she woke up in the morning and realized he still hadn't responded. She kept trying to recall why he would do that to her but couldn't until she remembered how she had slapped him one night and then everything clicked. He was going to avenge on her when she needed him the most. He was the one that assured her that he got her for life. And stupid as she was, she believed him.

Her body was so cold when Abba called and she told him the address of the hotel. Few minutes later, he called to tell her that he was waiting at the parking lot and she came down with her heart beating wildly against her ribcage. It felt like meeting a stranger for the first time. Yet this stranger was her father and he was here simply because he heard her cry.

She got into the back of the car and realized he was together with his friend. The driver, then the friend sitting at the passenger seat and Abba sat at the back, where she joined him. With her head hung down as she fidgeted with her fingers, Muhibbah greeted them all and they all answered with a warm smile.

She could feel Abba's gaze on her and she turned slightly at him. "Good afternoon, Abba," she greeted again and he flashed her a warm smile while she took in his features. He looked a bit old. Probably around his early or middle sixties. There was a barely invincible stubble on his chin while he smiled at her.

"Didi, no more crying, okay? My friend here is a lawyer, I'm ready to take this to court if things will be hard. Don't worry, okay? Your Abba got you forever. I promise that today won't end without having this marriage nullified."

"Thank you Abba." She thought she would feel immense relief at his words, but she was afraid instead. "But Mama..."

"I'm your father and the right to get you married is on me, not your mother. Don't be afraid, okay? Hope you have all the evidences you told me about?" It would've been better if she was slapped on both cheeks than the question Abba threw at her. Faking bravado, she nodded her head. She knew Amir might be able to reach Bilaal, and even if it proved otherwise, she knew Sareena will testify.

At least she can count on one of them. Or so she thought.

Who else is anxious about what will happen? Because I am!

One more chapter and we'd be done with the preview🥰

Also, complete book is available on Telegram and Selar. The price is currently 1500, but once I complete updating the preview chapters it will change to 2000 naira.

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