ALIYA

Chapter 2 - Bilal

People used to say I am cruel, some used to say I easily get angry etc. If only they knew about my past; how I suffered, and also my present; what I was now facing in my home even though many looked at me as a swith successful man who got married to the only surviving child of late Alhaji Bashir Lado - founder of BLD Construction Company and one of the influential politicians in Nigeria.

Growing up from a poor family, I had to end my education at secondary level in other to engage into tailoring which was better than the mechanical skill my parents once forced me to learn in primary level - the work was hard plus my boss was cruel so I ran away. Tailoring became my source of income, you know in every business all you need is your parents' blessings and that of God. My boss used to pay me more than other people, he believed I was the person luring customers straight to his shop with my handsomeness. Well, women actually loved me... and many had even made advances to me - including married women but thank God I was strong.

One day, a slim beautiful girl wearing black sun glasses visited our shop with two police officers. I really thought our boss had done something wrong but, it was me they came for. She told me who she was, who her father was, and that she had heard a lot about me from her friends. She was very fluent in her speech. She said her friends said I am a good tailor, therefore she would like me to be her tailor. In sweats, my mind told me to nod which I did. That was how I gave her my number and since then my life changed, I became a successful man. She'd spoiled me with money, and eventually she asked me to marry her. I didn't actually like her but I wanted to be rich so I accepted her offer. Her name was Rahina, we got married later on... after facing many challenges with her family especially both her parents. They were against our relationship because I was from a poor background and lacked credible qualification. Also, because a cousin brother of hers (Jibril) wanted to marry her.

After a year into our marriage, her father passed away. And that made her the successor of his company but she was the type that didn't want stress, so she asked me to help her with all her duties as the CEO. That was how I became the acting CEO of the prestigious BLD Construction Company with no Diploma or Degree certificate. Hmm, life can really be funny, sometimes all you need is just connection in order to become somebody!

Rahina and I had a son, he was named Kamal - after her deceased brother. Our son was now three years old and could talk though not fluently. He resembled his mother and I liked him even though I didn't really love his mother like I had claimed. Every day I woke up from sleep, I would stare at Rahina while she snooze. She had made so many sacrifices for me, brought me out of poverty and made me rich yet there was no single day I wouldn't think about running away from her. Yes, running away with all the money I had gathered because I just didn't love her and I couldn't bring myself to loving her. But every time I think about all that, something would tell me to fear Allah and never to abandon our child or my relatives because of selfishness. And if I should run away, what would happen to Rahina? She would probably commit suicide because she loved me with her whole heart.

*******

Today was the day I had been waiting for, it was the day I would be meeting with one of the aides of Kaduna State Governor and the Emir of Zazzau about the Dam construction contract we were given by the government earlier this month but before then, I would firstly go to our head office to supervise an interview with one of our new job seekers. These days, we used to get many contracts both from private and public sectors. They trusted all our projects, and by the way we had the best engineers. Our rivals had long been laying low due to lack of patronage. I believed one day they would definitely face bankruptcy and would just have to collapse.

"Haba, ko kai fa?" Rahina said as she tied my necktie for me. "You look so great, my king!" Actually, I had wanted wearing a caftan but she insisted I must wear a suit. Well, since I didn't have a say in my life I did as she said. "The suit really looks great in you gaskiya"