The Dancing Bride And Her Spirit Warrior - Episode 34

 

Vuyanzi paid the bodaboda rider and walked inside the cemetery. Nyati Cemetery was built at the edge of town far away from human settlements and at the fringes of town. The cemetery was covered with blossoming trees that released a fragrant scent in the air. Vuyanzi sniffed back tired of crying.

She stood before the low rust crusted iron gates and looked over the expansive field full off trees and headstones. She shuddered thinking of all the stories she was told by her grandmother about the cemetery . Now Vuyanzi realized that Lishevi did that to discourage her from visiting her parents’ grave. She was ashamed of herself. She blinked away a tear away. Why would her grandmother do this? She didn’t even know where to start from? More tears threatened to fall.

Someone coughed behind her, Vuyanzi was startled. She turned to see an old man pushing a wheelbarrow with some gardening tools in it. She knew him, in the village he was known as mgumba meaning a man who had not married. As a child she used to fear him. He was the cemetery caretaker. He dug graves and covered them up. He lived near the cemetery on an old house that looked like it would be swept away by a strong wind but that had never happened.

‘’Vuyanzi?’’ he called his smoky voice surprised, he released the wheelbarrow and walked towards her. Vuyanzi desisted an urge to move far away from him

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. She needed his help to find her parents grave.

‘’You know me?’’ Vuyanzi was surprised that he knew her.

‘’Um…you look like Lishevi when she was younger,’’ the old man scratched his head a wiry smile on his face. His smile released a row of surprisingly white teeth. They contrasted well with his dark skin.

‘’You know my grandmother?’’ More surprises there.

‘’Yes, she is my friend. We grew up together. She choose your grandfather over me.’’ The old man said with a faraway look on his face.

Well…ok. Vuyanzi was not here to discuss her grandmother’s past relationships. She didn’t even want to know what the old man meant.

What was it with her grandmother that attracted all this old men to her? Like seriously. First Guma the medicine man and now the cemetery caretaker?

‘’Um, sorry to bother you, I don’t know if you can…um direct me to…um…’’ Vuyanzi was finding it hard to say the word my parents. It sounded foreign to her. She was not used to it.

‘’Your parents graves? Lishevi comes here regularly to take care of the place. She refused to let anybody do the gardening,’’ the old man huffed, saying something about how stubborn Lishevi was.

‘’Yes please,’’ Vuyanzi sighed with relief.

‘’Follow me,’’ he led the way opening the creaking gate and allowing Vuyanzi to pass. He locked the gate from behind. Vuyanzi took a deep breath and followed the brisk old man.

‘’Your father used to come and help me around here,’’

‘’My father?’’ Vuyanzi was sure she heard him right.

‘’Yes Adamu was a trouble maker. He used to come and hide in here all the time,’’ he confirmed. Vuyanzi felt nice hearing about her father. She didn’t know much about him.

‘’He didn’t fear the graves or me. So I told him he will have to earn his keep if he would use the grave as a hideaway.’’

‘’What did you make him do?’’ Vuyanzi suddenly wanted to know more about her father. About her parents.

‘’Oh he did this and that,’’ the old man said dismissively, ‘’he helped to weed out weeds, he planted trees and swept the driveway we are walking through. He was willing to do anything to help. I taught him that the dead were meant to be respected and given the value they deserved,’’ Vuyanzi could hear passion flowing from the old man’s words. He seemed to enjoy his work. She respected that. Her father did sound like a rascal, she was loving who he was by the minute. If only he didn’t die. She swallowed back her tears.

‘’Here we are,’’ they stopped at the far end of the cemetery, on a small clearing. The bush appeared well tended to. Dry leaves were swept on the side and rose flowers blossomed besides the two head stones with her parents’ names written on. In the loving memory of Adamu Amani and Keza Zuri. Vuyanzi felt the tears she was holding back break through.

‘’I will leave you to it,’’ the old man excused himself. She didn’t even notice he was gone.

Vuyanzi knees gave way and she collapsed on the ground tears wrecking her body. She cried for her mother, she cried for her father and finally she cried for herself. She didn’t know what to say or where to start. She blamed herself for not being aggressive enough to come sooner. If only she wasn’t born maybe her parents’ would have survived. She asked for their forgiveness for not doing her duty as their child. She should have visited them sooner.

………………………….

Vuyanzi my bride, a Koni’s voice whispered in the air. Vuyanzi turned back to look at Koni standing at the driveway. She didn’t see a car anywhere, he appeared to have walked over. Seeing him she realized that she had missed him. How was that possible? They had been together earlier that morning. Her heart was thudding faster on her chest. Would he judge her if he found out that she had not being paying respects to her departed parents? Then she remembered that she was down on her knees and covered with dirt.

She quickly stood up and tried to wipe the tears from her eyes. Her new dress was creased and had grass stains on. Her hair was standing on end. Her eyes were puffy and her nose running. She was a mess.

‘’Koni, what are you doing here?’’ her voice came out gurgled as if she was speaking underwater. What would he think if he saw her like this? She looked horrible. But then again Koni had seen her at her worst. After being mauled by crazy hyenas, choked by the lunatic Kweyu and now weeping at her parents graveside, she had never given him the best first time impressions. Vuyanzi tried to straighten the creases on her dress as she looked wearingly at Koni.

‘’What are you doing here,’’ she cleared her voice trying to sound more normal but failed miserably.

Koni didn’t say anything, he took off his sunglasses and placed them on his breast pocket. He then approached her and Vuyanzi instinctively ran her trembling hand through her hair trying to straighten it.

Koni came and stood beside her, took her trembling hand to his strong warm ones and laced their fingers together looking at her deep in the eyes. His eyes were coffee brown deep set and intense.

‘’Allow me to pay my respects to your parents,’’ he said solemnly at her squeezing her smaller hand with his. Vuyanzi squeezed him back, a tear running down her cheek. Koni wiped it away with his thumb. He was sad, anguish was clearly written on his handsome face.

His gentle touch and words were her undoing. She broke down again crying fat ugly crying. She tried to control her tears but it was proving futile. Koni gathered her in her arms, she let him. She circled her arms around his waist and clung to him crying her heart out. She burrowed her face into his chest and soaked his expensive shirt with her salty tears. Vuyanzi couldn’t remember the last time she cried so much in her life.

He was warm and steady as a rock. Vuyanzi’s world was shifting underneath her feet but Koni’s arms anchored her down. She would not be swept away by the shifting winds.

Koni kept whispering sweet words in her hair. Vuyanzi didn’t get much of what he was saying but she could feel his empathy. He crooned to her alternating between patting her and running his warm hands on her back at the same time.

Vuyanzi didn’t know how long they stood there embracing but a not so subtle cough startled them. Vuyanzi’s tears had managed to stop flowing, she started to untangle herself from Koni’s arms but he didn’t let her go. She stopped fighting him and leaned towards him once more. She turned around to see Manute standing behind them awkwardly with his hands on his back pocket. He gave her a small smile. Vuyanzi tried to smile back but she was sure she looked like a scarecrow. Manute gave Koni a silent look and Koni nodded back at him. They seemed to be communicating. He then walked away to a car parked at the driveway.

‘’Koni, am sorry I have damaged your shirt,’’ Vuyanzi tried to apologize after looking at his shirt. Was that snoot? Vuyanzi’s face grew warm.

Koni chuckled, ‘’I can remove the shirt if it’s bothering you so much,’’ he joked. Koni’s face transformed when he smiled. He appeared more boyish, charming even and less tense. Vuyanzi face grew warmer, he shouldn’t remove the shirt. With her emotions all over the place, she didn’t know what she would do if she saw his naked chest. She looked away, afraid that her emotions were showing all over her face.

‘’Vuyanzi, look at me. You don’t have to hide from me,’’ he tipped her jaw back with his index fingers. His touch sent warmth through her body. She looked up to him and saw that his brown eyes were now mixed with the shades of orange. Seeing the color her breath hitched. Koni sighed deeply and kissed her on the forehead. He then took her hands and said,

‘’I am sorry about your parents. I would have liked to meet them and thank them for giving me the most beautiful, courageous and a graceful bride like you Vuyanzi,’’

‘’Koni,’’ Vuyanzi sighed it meant a lot to hear him say such words to her.

‘’I lost my mother when I was a young boy, seven years old. She was killed by the amanani,’’ Koni suddenly said his grip growing tight.

‘’I am so sorry Koni, I didn’t know,’’ Vuyanzi heart went out to the little boy. She might not had her parents but Lishevi was always there. Always.

‘Don’t apologize, you did nothing wrong, besides my father dealt with them,’’ Koni said his voice hardening a bit. Vuyanzi didn’t know what to say to that. She didn’t want to ask how Koni’s father dealt with the amanani.

‘’You must love your father very much then,’’ Vuyanzi said absently but a shadow crossed Koni’s eye. Vuyanzi knew she had hit a sore spot. She wanted to hear more about Koni’s father and his life but Koni went mum. He appeared to have been lost in thought for a moment.

‘’It’s not safe here sweetheart, let me take you back to your grandmother’s house,’’ Koni suggested, back to his normal self. The pet name did not pass her. Her heart missed a beat when he called her like that.

‘’No,’’ Vuyanzi refused to go back to her shosho. ‘’don’t let me go back there Koni,’’

‘’She is worried about you,’’

‘’I can’t bear to see her right now Koni. I feel betrayed,’’ Vuyanzi insisted. She was not going back to her grandmother’s house. At least not now. ‘’I will go and stay at the hostels for the time being,’’

‘’No. it is not safe for you there. I won’t allow it,’’ it was Koni’s turn to disagree.

‘’I am not asking for your permission,’’ Vuyanzi pulled her hands away from his, missing his warmth almost instantly.

Koni growled and stared at her, Vuyanzi glared back. She was not backing down.

‘’You leave me no other choice then. You are coming with me to Nairobi,’’ Koni crossed his arms on his wide chest and stared her down trying to intimidate her.

‘’What? I don’t have to go with you anywhere Mr. Jasiri. You can’t make me,’’ Vuyanzi answered back with sass. She couldn’t believe she was now dealing with Koni the bully, where the soft guy that was embracing her moments ago? She shook her clothes and started walking away with much confidence in her state.

She had not taken two steps away when she heard Koni growl.

Read " Jabali's Redemption " by the same author ( Razia Iminza )

. Suddenly she was lifted from the ground and carried bridal style. Koni cuddled her to his chest and Vuyanzi yelped trying to smooth down her clothes to prevent the whole world to see her undies. Koni buried his head on her throat making her arch her neck.

Vuyanzi stilled.

‘’Don’t ever show your back on my beast Vuyanzi. I can’t promise to hold him back if you do that,’’ Koni growled at her, his voice coming out low and deadly. His canines were nipping at the soft flesh on her neck. She tightened her hold on his biceps and whimpered. Asking for more, begging for more. More of his touch, more of his heat.

‘’You are coming with me to Nairobi and that is final. No more arguments Vuyanzi,’’ Koni growled some more, his voice sending thrills down her spine.

‘’Vuyanzi,’’ Koni roared silently at her his warm lips on her throat, Vuyanzi thought she would pass out from the feeling coursing through her body, ‘’answer me,’’

‘’Yes,’’ she mo*ned back then sighed a relief when his lips descended on hers. Yes to everything.

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