Oya I've kept my promise.
Let's do this once more, but I'm raising the comments count since the first one was too easy apparently🫢🤣
150 comments for the next chapter.
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KUBI CALIPHATE.

"I am here. What's wrong? Why did you sound teary over the phone?" Tareeq inquired, immediately after uttering the Taslim and stepping into the living room of his brother's side, where he found Asma seated, alone, her eyes red. His brows drew in, his lips tugged into a deep frown as he settled himself on the couch beside her, "What's going on? I can't stay for long because I've left Karima alone, and I'm sure she's curious. But why would you ask me not to inform her of your condition? I thought you loved her company?"

Asma dragged a sniff, wiping the corner of her eyes with her finger. "It's precisely because of that I do not want her to know." She whispered, her voice low, broken, unlike what he was used to before. Blinking as she tilted her head up, as if to hold back the tears, she stayed like that for a few seconds, before she found his gaze, more noticeably calmer this time around. "I do not want her to worry about me anymore."

"I think that's going to be hard though," He had said, his tone soft when he spoke of his wife. "She cares about you a great deal, and you know that."

Asma held his gaze for a moment, knowing how true his words were, but she was questioning everything she's known about the people around at that moment. Her eyes glossed over once more, and she instantly looked down, feeling the traitorous tears spill onto her hand. "I'm sorry." She whispered once more, trying to wipe the tears away but more kept falling. "I'm sorry, I do not mean to be emotional but I just..."

Tareeq kept his lips sealed, looking away as he gave her the moment to herself.

A handful of tears more spilled down her face, and she had to bit down on her lower lip hard, certain it would leave a bruise later before she was able to keep the tears at bay.

She sniffed, wiping the remnants of tears with her handkerchief before she cleared her throat, forcing herself to be composed. "I'm sorry, Tareeq, I didn't want to disturb you and Karima knowing you need the time to yourselves but, I want to ask you something if you do not mind. I also have a favor to ask."

Tareeq finally turned his head around to look at her, only to find her awaiting, firm, tear-rimmed ones staring back at him. "What do you want to ask?" He inquired cautiously. "What favor could you possibly ask from me?"

She did not hesitate when she asked her first question.

"Were you aware Amir Qasim had married Hadiza?" Her voice was low, regardless of how she was trying to make herself appear composed.

Tareeq's expression did not waver, his eyes held onto hers, and unlike Amir Qasim, he did not hesitate to respond. "Yes." He confessed, despite knowing how it would come off to her. He still believed it was better than lying to her. He never intended to lie to her, or anyone else really.

Her lips parted, a breath escaping as though it had been kicked right out her lungs. So Tareeq knew all along as well. She barely held back a scoff, folding her lips in instead as she gathered her thoughts so as to not act irrationally.

She had to remind herself to use her mind and not her emotions.

So, she paused for a moment, pondering his words over.

And instead of throwing a tantrum and accusing him of betraying her as her mind whispered at her to, her voice had dropped once more, though now clearer, calculating even when she asked once more.

"There is something about this wedding you're hiding from me." It sounded like a question, but they both knew it was not. Her eyes narrowed slightly. "There's a conspiracy Amir Qasim is hiding from me. I know he would not marry her for no reason."

No, she was not trying to be in denial. She was simply trying to be rational despite how hard it was.

It had been a few hours since the news broke. She had not seen him, nor the devil's spawn he'd taken in as a wife since then. The house had been too quiet even. She'd cried, she'd screamed her heart out, and she'd destroyed her room. She'd vented her anger out and though the pain still remained clogged in her heart, her brain still worked, and whispered something rather sensible.

For her to look beyond what she was seeing, and using her knowledge of everyone.

Tareeq exhaled a breath, shaking his head. "I am afraid I cannot answer that—"

"So, it's a yes, then." She cut him off, already getting her answer. When he did not deny it, she suspired, her shoulders slumping.

His voice came once more, this time soothing, almost suggestive. "Why don't you speak to him about it?" He'd suggested. "I am not saying this because he is my brother, but he won't do anything to hurt you intentionally, at least, not without a valid reason."

A light scoff escaped her lips. "You're just saying that because he's your brother."

"I am not taking sides here," He was quick to defend himself. "Yes, Amir Qasim is my brother but you matter to me as well. We're family. I've looked after you all these years, even if you weren't my sister-in-law, I'd care for you the same way I do for Aidah, and my other sisters. We've come a long way, don't you think?"

She could only hum, her mind going back to when she first met him, and how she'd found him so intimidating at first. She nearly smiled at the thought, but the weight pressing her heart down was too heavy that she could not muster the act.

"I should thank you even," She'd said instead, her voice softened. "Zayd's end has come and some of my grievances has been reduced. I have to thank you for your support this whole time. And, because of that, I do not know how to say my next words to you."

"What do you mean?" His brows drew in. "You know you can tell me anything."

She held his gaze for a moment, before she released a heavy breath that had her shoulders slumping. Her lips pressed into a tight line, a crease forming between her brows. "So much has happened since we returned Tareeq, and I thought I was prepared but it's too much," She confessed, her voice low. Her expression had sharpened a bit more than how it was initially. "I do not think I can keep doing this anymore."

Tareeq understood what she was trying to say instantly. "You do not want to get justice for what happened to your family?"

"Let's be honest, Tareeq, there's nothing we can do." She said, her tone knowing. "And you know it too. We can continue doing what we've started, but we won't be able to bring Giwa to justice. She raised you, and..." She paused, exhaling a heavy breath. "...she's Amir Qasim's mother no matter what."

"Asma—"

"I know you want to get justice for her," She cut him off, referring to his reason for helping her—the woman whose identity she was personating. "But can you really go against your family? You know Giwa the most between us, do you really think she's that heartless?"

Tareeq's brows drew in. "You do not think she did it?" That's what it sounded like to him—as if she was doubting if the woman truly did it, if she was that heartless.

"I'm not sure I know anything at this point to be honest, and I am not certain knowing would do anything." She shrugged. "If there's anything I have learned in the past few months, then its that whenever I think I have gotten a hang of the situation, something new comes up. And it's the same with our loved one's case." She paused, folding her lips in for a moment. "Listen, Tareeq, I am done with it. Whoever it was, I've left it all in the hands of Allah, they'd surely get what's coming for them. And I know I cannot tell you what to do..."

He did not say anything, he simply listened, his gaze holding onto hers.

She suspired, her shoulders slumping once more. "...but," She continued. "I think you should do the same thing. You've become Karima's husband now, and I know you care about her too, it's not fair to her if you still hold Asma in your heart. I know you loved her, and I am sure she knew that as well but you've done so much since then. It's time we both let go of the pain and grudge we've held in our hearts. Let's stop living in the past."

Tareeq looked away, his hands clasped in front of him as his expression hardened, and she knew she'd touched a part of him he didn't want to acknowledge. She felt it was only right she did though.

He did not say anything for a moment, but when he did, he did not respond to her earlier statement. Instead, he changed the topic. "What favor do you want?"

She pressed her thumbnail into her index finger, hesitating, before he vocalized it. "Can you speak to your brother for me?" She'd asked in a low voice, making him turn his head to look at her once more. "I know I will not be able to convince him, but maybe, you can."

"Convince him to do what?"

She swallowed a thick lump. "To divorce me." Her shoulders slumped noting the way his eyes instantly narrowed at her. "Tareeq I'm really tired. I cannot do this anymore." She did not care if she sounded desperate, she just wanted a way out at that point. Any way out. It did not matter how it came.

He shook his head. "I can do anything for you, but I would not get in between you and your husband," His tone was resolute. "I won't get involved in your marriage; I've made that clear to you right from the very beginning."

"But, Tareeq—"

"I will not do that." He'd cut her off, unwilling to back down. "You two need to talk and find a way to fix your issues, I am sure if you need space he'd give you as much as you need, but I will never be the one ruin your marriage. Kema kin sani. I'm not that type of person."

She sighed, burying her face between her palms in resolution.

He continued. "If you need anything else, let me know, I'd try my best to give it to you. But do not bring this up to me ever again."

She refused to look up, or say anything to him. What was there to say? He'd already turned down what she wanted the most—what else could she possibly ask?

When she did not say anything, he suspired, glancing at the time on his phone. "I've been gone for a while, I need to go back home now," he announced, getting on his feet. "I hope Allah eases your affairs, and gives you the strength to get through it. But, between you and I, you're stronger than this. And since you've letting everything go, how about letting Amir Qasim in instead? You never know, maybe that would be the solution to your problems? Everyone knows he'd give you the world if you'd let him. Trust him this once."

With that said, he turned around and walked out, leaving her all alone.

As the door closed behind him, another sigh escaped her lips before she slouched back on the couch, the weight of the house's silence closing in on her. And for the first time in a very long time, she truly felt alone.

~*~

"I'm no psychic, but judging from my perspective, you've offended your wife, badly." Sadiq stated as a matter of fact, closing the refrigerator behind him while holding two bottles of water—one in each hand. Making his way back to the adjoined living room of the hotel room he's staying in Kubi, he approached his eldest brother, whom had found abode in the three-seater there. "And it's a no-brainer to figure out it's your first wife whom you'd offended." He added, extending the water bottle in one hand out to the man.

Amir Qasim peeled his heavy lids open, dropping the arm he'd draped on top his forehead, before collecting the water. "What gave me away?" He grumbled, pushing himself up to a sitting position, before popping the cap open.

Sadiq heaved out a breath, giving his brother a look as if to ask if he was truly asking him that. "Let me think, oh wait, maybe it's the fact that you remarried without her knowing, or the fact that you've been hiding here since afternoon, refusing to go back home." He fixated himself on a single seated, so he was facing the man. "Face it, Dan Iya, the only reason is that you're scared to go home. Otherwise, with the way you brag about her and after the feat of taking down Zayd, you wouldn't have come here under any circumstance. Da yanxu kana chan wajen matar ka. Ganin ka kuwa said ai ikon Allah. Isn't it the same with Tareeq? Yanxu ka ganshi a nan? Shima yana wajen matarsa."

Amir Qasim threw his brother a quick glare, before he successfully opened the water bottle. "Don't you have a wife too? Go to her." He tilted his head back as he brought the bottle to his lips. After a few sips, he then added. "If you had so much time to care about mine and Tareeq's marriage, why not try salvaging your crumbling one? Have you fixed your issues with Jasmine?"

"Man, you know I want to, but she's giving me the cold shoulder since I refused to allow her to go back home." Sadiq exhaled a breath, instantly defensive as he sat up. "Hauka nake? If I allow her and she returns home, do you know how much her father favors her? Wallahi Daddy can pressure me into divorcing her if she complains to him, I cannot risk it. Her being a divorcee wouldn't bother him, tashin turai ne kasan. It's not my concern but the next thing I'd hear is sharing child's custody. That's how she will take our daughter and leave."

Amir Qasim hissed lightly, his lips curved into a permanent frown as he leaned down to drop the water bottle on the center table. "If you were that easily scared, then why did you allow her to catch you texting another woman? Especially knowing what kind of wife you have and from which kind of family she came from." Deep down, he knew he wasn't that far better given his own case with his wife, but he still took up the elder brother role to scold his brother.

"I was tempted, okay? I admit. Amma haba, my wife is so much better than the women outside, I know that. Kawai dai yarinyar tanada hankali ne, that's why we started talking. But I never intended to marry her or anything. It was just to pass time." Sadiq added, as if that were enough to lessen the impact of what he'd done.

Amir Qasim tutted, shaking his head, deducing one thing from his brother's complaint. "You deserve what you're getting," He deadpanned, leaning back, his legs crossed. "But especially for the sake of your daughter, you better fix this before it blows out of proportion."

"I will, as soon as I return to Sokoto." Sadiq sighed with slightly hunched shoulders. "But enough about me, what about you? Isn't your own wife upset with you? Your case is worse than mine even."

Amir Qasim threw his head back, knowing his brother was right. He shut his eyes, feeling another migraine resurface. The sound of Asma's scream replayed in his mind and he shuddered at the thought, goosebumps appearing on his skin. "I've messed up badly." He mumbled to himself, but his brother heard him clearly.

"To be honest with you, man, I have never seen a story as crazy as you two." Sadiq had admitted, his expression turning serious. "But that's also to say I have never seen any couple meant to be like the two of you. Look at everything you've been through, and you still ended up being married. Shouldn't that speak loud enough?"

Amir Qasim could hide things from everyone, but not to Sadiq. He told his younger brother everything, and that included Fulani's true identity because he was the one that was there with him at his worst when he though he'd lost her. He did not have anyone he could confide in better than his younger brother truly.

It was almost the same with Tareeq, except Tareeq had spent the better half of his life abroad, and when he had returned, military work kept him busy. He had a mind of his own, and Amir Qasim found him to be a riddle of his own. They were all on good terms though it was not quite the same.

It was not about the fact that Sadiq and Amir Qasim shared the same mother while Tareeq's mother was different, it was simply about how they grew up.

And Amir Qasim did not for one second regret sharing everything with Sadiq, how else would he carry the weight of everything alone. Heck, how did his Fulani carry it all this while?

"I've messed up though, Sadiq." Amir Qasim had confessed. "You didn't see how upset she was. I'm afraid I've broken our relationship beyond repair."

"Then tell her the truth, I'm sure she'd understand where you're coming from." Sadiq offered a way out. "You did it to protect her after all. If you had not married Hadiza as Sardauna wanted, she would have been in danger. Kaima ka san what would happen if he exposed her identity to everyone as he'd threatened you he would." Sadiq went silent for a moment, before a hiss tore past his lips. "I wonder how he found out even. I thought only she, the Calipha, Zayd, then you and I know?"

"That's what I have yet figured out as well," Amir Qasim ran a hand down his face, "But he seems to know a lot, and until I figure out who is behind him, no one is really safe. Especially not Fulani."

"Precisely." Sadiq nodded, dropping his own water bottle aside, abandoned without even being touched. "So just be honest with her. About the reason you've always hated Kubi as well. Tell her the truth, that Malam Tukur was originally from Kubi, of how he was respected and wealthy before he was accused—"

"Enough, Sadiq," Amir Qasim stopped him, massaging his temple with his fingers, feeling his headache intensify as his brother tried to bring up the past. It was a lot to handle, and if he feels that way then what about her? He couldn't possibly add to her pain and make her have more doubts about the people she had believed and trusted all this while.

"Sooner or later, you'd have to tell her." Sadiq pressed his lips together. "We both know the Calipha only took her in out of guilt for what he did to her father. There's no way about it."

Amir Qasim shook his head, before he straightened his spine, aligning his gaze with his brother's. "So I should make her start to question him after he'd taken her in and has been a father to her? I'm not that heartless, Sadiq."

"You know he did it out of guilty conscience."

"Still," Amir Qasim pressed, "Even if that were true, he's treated her well, and I will not pin her against him. Let's just leave this conversation. There's no point of it holding." He waved it off.

"Alright, if you say so." Sadiq exhaled a heavy breath, giving in. "But what will you do about your situation with her? If you allow it to continue, you'd be creating a bigger riff between you two."

Amir Qasim buried his face between his palms, staying in that position for a few seconds as he came to a decision. "I guess I'll give her what she wants then," He lifted his head, so his gaze found his brother's. His heart ached as he uttered his next statement. "I'll set her free."

****

Tohhhhhh he will set her freeeeee. Do you think he would divorce her??

Besides, Sadiq has started to say the truth but Qasim don stop him like this. Chaiiiiiiii when will this truth come out ne?

Amma things are happening. I pity my girl Asma the most Allah sarki baiwar Allah🥲😭 Omo things need to come an end soon.

But it's like making Asma and Qasim fall in love would be hard o, because Omo, they are too stubborn Wallahi!!

What do you think would happen next? Any suspicions??

I'll see you in the next chapter then.

Love, Jannah Mia 🤍