Jabali's Redemption - Episode 32

 

Neema stepped out of the car and instructed the driver to wait for her. Jabali had hired her a driver to take her whenever she wanted to go.

She had been in the mountain for so long and decided to come down and visit Lulu and her mama. Jabali had turned out to be considerate and he came home early enough after her attack. He increased the security in the house and more CCTV cameras were installed and security lights.

Though he was home early enough, he busied himself in the study room and working . He joined her in the bed very late when she was already asleep and woke up very early in the morning before she had her eyes open. Neema understood he was busy because of the upcoming election in the company. He had informed her that she should prepare for the closing ceremony the following day. He would take her to the company. Neema couldn’t stop the butterflies in her stomach, she didn’t know if she was ready for such publicity. Jabali had said that there would be media to film the whole event.

Neema shook her head to clear her thoughts and turned towards Lulu’s home. It was a Saturday and Lulu opened her shop much later, Neema hoped she was still at home, they needed to talk.

She pushed the old rickety gate and walked in and was nearly ran over by a small boy chasing a ball. If she hadn’t been steady on her feet, she would have been on her behind on the wet grass

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. Neema didn’t think that Lulu had a younger brother, certainly not this young.

Then the boy raised his eyes to look up at her, the ball on his hand and Neema felt all the energy vanish from her limbs. She dropped to her knees, her hand bag falling beside her on the wet grass.

Before her stood someone a carbon copy of young Naiti. Her late brother.

The boy resembled Naiti on the old dusty album her mama kept on her head rest.

Was this Naiti’s child? Oh God it couldn’t be. She would have known.

‘Sorry aunty, I didn’t mean to make you fall,’ the boy said in a small trembling voice thinking that he had probably hurt her and Neema felt a tear drop from her eyes.

He even frowned like Naiti, Neema’s hurt squeezed tight, she was standing before Naiti’s child but she had to confirm. With trembling hands, she touched his shoulders,

‘Am fine, is your mama Lulu?’ she asked waiting for an answer and fearing what she might hear.

The boy frowned even more, ‘Please don’t tell my mama, she will be mad at me for playing with the ball on the wet grass again,’ Neema shook her head trying to control the tears falling, she was frightening the boy for nothing.

‘Don’t worry, I will not tell her. What is your name?’ Neema shook her head and tried to smile through her tears,

‘Naiti Kadiri,’ he said and Neema felt her head exploding

‘Naiti, where are you?’ Lulu’s voice carried through the front door and a second later it opened and she was out seeing Neema kneeling before her son,

‘Neema,’ Lulu’s voice registered surprise, seeing her mama, Naiti went and stood beside her,

‘Am sorry mama, I didn’t mean to make aunty fall down,’

Neema picked herself up from the grass and dusted her cloths, the knees were damp and stained with grass. She didn’t care about her look; Lulu had a lot of things to explain.

‘Naiti why don’t you go in and take your food, I will be right in,’ Lulu spoke to his son but her uncertain gaze was on Neema the whole time, Naiti nodded his head and went back inside the house. Neema took a step towards him wanting to see him more but he disappeared inside the door and she turned her seething gaze on Lulu.

‘You have a lot to explain Lulu,’

‘Not here, come behind the house and we will talk. I don’t want him to hear us shouting,’ Lulu stared Neema with pleading in her eyes,

‘You should have thought about that before you tried to hide Naiti’s son from me,’

‘He is my son,’ Lulu said with conviction that Neema hadn’t seen in her friend for some time

‘He is Naiti’s son too, my nephew. He has the right to know about his father’s family. You can’t keep that from him.’ Neema’s voice rose higher and higher, ‘you shouldn’t have kept him away from me,’

‘And tell me Neema, where have you been the last few years?’ Lulu marched Neema’s ire and was shouting too, standing before her house, ‘you have been hiding away in the city trying to run away from your past, how was I to talk to you about my relationship with your brother and the child we had together?’

‘You were dating Naiti? How? When?’ Neema regretted asking the question the moment it left her mouth, of course they were dating, that was why they were able to sire little Naiti. How couldn’t she see that? The last few months leading to Naiti’s gruesome death, Lulu had been behaving strangely in her brother’s presence. Were they in a relationship?

Lulu scoffed, ‘if you weren’t hopelessly in love with Jabali you would have noticed.’ And Neema looked away guiltily, it was true Jabali had managed to make her forget about everything happening around her.

‘Still, it was not right for you to hide my nephew from us, does my mama know?’ Neema asked her anger raising again, she felt like Lulu had betrayed her.

‘No, I have managed to keep this information from your whole family,’ Lulu looked remorseful at that, ‘except Naiti, he knew I was expecting before his death. He was very excited,’ teardrops dropped from her eyes and Neema felt herself crying too,

‘Naiti knew about his baby?’ Neema tried to swallow back her tears and she sniffed through the tears,

‘Yes, he knew I was expecting and he couldn’t wait to tell the rest of your family, he was planning to propose too but then he…was murdered in the mountains,’ Lulu voice trembled and Neema forgot about her anger and moved closer to hug her friend.

‘Its okay Lulu,’ Neema was having a hard time controlling her tears too, life was so unfair,

‘All I could do was give his son, his name.’ Lulu held Neema by her shoulders, her teary eyes intent,’ I was going to tell you about Naiti junior I just didn’t know when to do it, you came back to town and everything was happening so fast with Jabali and I have never found the right time to do so,’

Neema nodded her head in understanding, ‘I know, I believe you Lulu,’

And she meant every word she said, she believed Lulu would have opened up eventually about her child with Naiti.

‘Neema, you must know something else,’ Lulu said a few seconds after silence and Neema wondered what other secret her friend could be hiding.

‘What?’

‘You should know what your Naiti was doing deep in the mountains on the night he was killed,’ Lulu bit her lower lip and looked at Neema nervously, she wondered how her best friend would take the news.

‘Why? He was going to confront Jabali and they fought,’ Neema didn’t know why Lulu would bring that up. The story was old as time. Her brother was killed by Jabali in a fit of anger. A sword she had seen in Jabali’s bedroom had been used to mutilate Naiti. She could never get the sight of her brother’s dead body from her head.

‘No, Naiti and Jabali never fought instead they were fighting to save their lives from other assailants,’

‘What do you mean?’ Neema raised her delicate eyebrows at Lulu, ‘I don’t understand,’

‘Come with me and we will talk and promise me to be open minded about this,’

Neema nodded and followed Lulu up to the door.

…………………………………………………

‘Why are you looking at me like that?’ Jabali raised his cut eyebrow at Neema as she sat there openly staring at him in the dim light of the car that was transporting them to the company for the closing ceremony. He was clearly going to announce their marriage there, Neema cared less about that, something else was gnawing at her mind. How was she going to confront him about the story Lulu had told her?

What did Jabali know about her father’s strange disappearance? About Naiti’s strange quest deep inside the murderous smuggling band? How much will he tell her?

And the most important question, had she really been blaming him for something he had not done? Was he really innocent and was trying to help her brother?

‘Neema,’ his deep voice made her refocus her attention on his dark contemplative face, his gaze concerned. Jabali was a handsome man, this night he was dressed in a charcoal dark three-piece suit with a crisp white shirt. He looked distinguished even in the dark of the car.

‘I…’ Neema opened her mouth to speak but she didn’t know what she would tell him,

‘We are here Mr.

Read " The Dancing Bride And Her Spirit Warrior " by the same author ( Razia Iminza )

. and Mrs. Kasri,’ the driver’s voice came as a relief to Neema. For some reason she was not ready to face the truth. If Jabali wasn’t her brother’s killer, the real killer was still out there walking free of charge. Jabali had tried telling her earlier but her anger at him stopped her from listening. She had been stubborn and hard headed for nothing.

‘Hey,’ Jabali took her hand in his, she watched as her slender hand contrasted with his larger warm palms, ‘why the long face? Is something wrong?’ he bent his head and dropped a peck on her knuckles, her whole body warmed on the contact.

‘Am…anxious Jabali, this is the first time we are stepping out as husband and wife and I don’t know how it will go,’ the lie flowed easily from her mouth. It was true she was bit nervous about the party and the announcement Jabali was going to make. But what was eating her on the back of her mind was the revelation Lulu had told her.

Jabali raised his eyebrow at her quizzically, a new look on his eye.

‘What?’ Neema asked, wondering why he was giving her the eye,

‘It is your fist time admitting that we are husband and wife,’

‘Oh…um…well its true. We are married after all,’ Neema fidgeted on her seat, her eyes down cast. She internally slapped herself, what was she talking about? She sounded as if she was satisfied with her situation. Neema reminded herself she was going to seek divorce as soon as possible.

‘Jabali I didn’t mean…to…um…’ she started correcting herself but Jabali only smirked and stepped out of the car, stretching out his hand towards her,

‘Come on dear wife, we have to show the whole world what you have just admitted,’

Neema mentally face palmed herself.

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