Heir Apparent: A Nigerian Story.

XV

She sees Najib and hurries over, almost tripping.
He smiles when he sees her "You thought I wouldn't come?"

She nods "You and Masoud are a lot busy lately. And do we always have to meet here?"

"You love it here and the hind castle is a peaceful place"
"Well I know Masoud and I don't have to meet in secret, you're different".

He shakes his head "I'm the same, I've always been this way"
"Nope".

He wanted to tell her everything, wanted at least one person to understand his reasons but he doubted if she would.
"I have to become Emperor"

She looks at him disappointedly "You have to? I don't care how desperate you are to become Emperor and I'm not interested but doesn't mean you have to turn your back on us".

"Us? Who? Masoud? This fight is between he and I. Raudah is just Raudah"
"You two are a lot alike, just different motives".

He chuckles "You'll be my empress, right?"
"You seem so confident you'll win".

He nods "Do I?" He shrugs "I have my ways and once I have my eye on something I get it no matter what"

She just stares at him. He seemed like a completely different person.

"I don't want to be empress, especially if you win"
He looks at her amused but also hurt by her words "And why is that? Because of the rumors going around? Pay no heed to the trash they're saying"

"No. Because you want to make yourself feel better and I'm all but willing to boost your ego" she smiles "You and Raudah will be perfect together, believe me"

She starts walking as Hasna joins her.
"I'll be emperor" he says with a smirk "It's not because I like you or anything so don't attach some kind of importance to you being my empress. I can get someone else".

"I hope you do, we're still friends and I still think you have a shot at being chosen"
"That's why I'm confident Masoud has no chance of winning" he walks away as his right hand trails behind him.

::

"Welcome, my son" Salis says smiling at Amjad.
"Thank you"

"Please have a seat"
He seats across the 64year old man.
"Welcome to my humble abode, what brings you by?" He asks eagerly.

"I just came back and decided to come greet you, to see how you are"
He nods "I'm glad. Should I call Muhibba? She'll be enraptured to see you" he says talking about his daughter.

He was trying to create a situation whereby he wins both ways. If his son becomes Emperor that would be the greatest accomplishment anyone in their family had ever achieved but if the situation gets complicated and Amjad becomes Emperor then his daughter will become Empress.

"And why would I need to see her? I came to talk to you".
He chuckles "Always so direct. Okay then, what is it you want to talk about?"

"When I got here I didn't understand but now I do"
"Understand what?"

"You're trying to use my father"
He bursts out laughing hysterically "Why would you think that. The brain can contrive even the weirdest things" he jokes.

"I have no interest in being Emperor and even more of marrying your daughter. I don't know which one is your plan A or B but if I were you I'd go with the one that makes Aadil Emperor instead. I mean it fervently"

He stares at him, wondering how he knew.
He smiles "How'd you come up with such wild accusations?"

"The fact that you took your son to a training school in another country, that's the same school the present emperor and the one before him attended. So many political leaders around the world have actually been trained or studied there" he smiles "Everyone knows my father sent me there not because he really wanted me to train but because he wanted me away from all this political hot air but you convinced him to get me back so I can be your plan B? Oh and that's were I met Aadil, he was so motivated to learn because apparently being Emperor is his first and only priority".

"So? You're telling your father?"
"I'd prefer you explain it to him yourself. You can come up with the smoothest lies to soften the blow"

::

Rahim walks inside his room and slowly shuts the door. Tiptoeing to his bed.

"Masoud? Masoud? Wake up" he wakes him.
"What?"

"Calm down" he shushes him.
His right hands shushing and in a low tone alerts him and he immediately sits up "What's going on?"

"I got this" he brings out an envelope "It's a letter sent to you secretly by someone from the royal court"

He snatches it and tears it open.
He opens the letter and reads it.

"Rahim, who gave this to you?" He asks fear evident on his face. He was terrified.
"It was a maid, she works in the court"

"Do you know her face? Or name?"
He nods "I can remember her face clearly but I didn't get her name"

Masoud picks up his phone and looks at the time.
"2:13am. We still have time" he raises his head and looks at Rahim "Get dressed, we're going out and no one can recognize us. Come here when you're done".

Rahim nods and sneaks out.
'I've got to text him too, he needs to see this as well'
He whispers typing on his phone.

::

Salis sat on the couch next to the Emperor's.
He was nervous because things have started tumbling down already but he wasn't having any of it, he had to do something about it and ASAP.

"Salisu, you said it was urgent"
He nods "Yes. It's about Alhaji Hammad's son".

He nods "What about him?"
"You know he just arrived only recently and he's been idle. And you also know his father is someone I really look up to".

Mustapha nods trying to decipher what the man wanted "As of the moment he doesn't have any obligations to this country. Unlike Suleiman, Awwal's son or Hafiz, Abdulateef's son he has no role and someone with his capabilities should be taken very seriously".

He nods agreeing "Yes and it will but only when I hear this from him or his father. Their words I know I can trust"

"I know you don't want to put him in a situation whereby he'll feel used or unappreciated as per he is your wife's nephew but don't you think the next Emperor needs the people around him to be just as responsible as he is"

He raises his eyebrows "What do you mean?"
"Well when you were named Emperor all of us had responsibilities, not only to our country and our people but to our families as well"

"So you mean?"
He nods "Yes. They need to know what real responsibility is. They need to know how it is to have their own families and take care of them. And I mean all of them".

::

::