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Just like I saw the sun, I saw the night—my eyes were heavy like fried fish. I couldn’t sleep at all. I was still sitting on my prayer mat when Adda Abida came and found me just after I finished the Subh (dawn) prayer. I greeted her in Fulfulde, and she responded warmly, then asked, “You didn’t sleep at all last night, did you?”

I lowered my head. “I just couldn’t sleep.”

She was quiet for a while before she said, “By now, you should have found a solution for yourself regarding everything that’s been happening. I know you love Abdul-Hameed, but sometimes you need to seek your own freedom. The hatred of a mother-in-law and her relatives can cause serious harm, even if you’re lucky to have a loving husband.”

I didn’t say anything to her—I just folded my legs to one side and kept listening.

“When you go back to your room, do whatever you can to expose the schemes of his family so he can see and understand.”

“Adda, it’s not about them,” I replied. “As long as I know my husband loves me, that’s enough.”

She held her chin, surprised. “That’s what most women think. But if you’re unlucky with your husband’s family, I swear, you’ll never enjoy your marriage. Even if you have children, their hatred will still affect them.”

I let out a deep, heavy sigh and finally said, “I feel like going against Baffa’s decision to marry me off to Abdul-Hameed is what brought all of this upon me...”

She quickly covered my mouth with her hand and said, “Don’t you dare say that. What’s destined to happen will always happen. A wife belongs entirely to her husband.”

She comforted me with kind and gentle words until we had breakfast. Then Adda Abida told me to come outside—Hamma Abubakar had arrived. I found the three of them sitting on a mat. I greeted them and they responded together.

“What’s happening between you and your husband?” Hamma Abubakar asked sternly. I didn’t hide anything—I told the whole truth.

He nodded. “Call his number now.”

I tried calling, but his phone still wasn’t reachable.

“Pack your things and come with us. Wait for him at home, wherever he went. If he wants to divorce you, he should tell you directly.”

That was Hamma Abubakar, clearly furious. Hamma Ahmad then spoke gently, “We should wait and hear from him first before she leaves.”

“She’s not staying here. Or have you forgotten what Baffa said about this marriage? Let her return home. If he has divorced her, he should send her the divorce letter later.”

Hot tears streamed down my face like boiling water. I couldn’t say a word—my throat was choked with emotion.

I stood up, went to the room, and packed my suitcase. I bid farewell to Adda Abida, and we left. Along with Hamma Ahmad and Hamma Abubakar, we returned to the house. My heart was pounding. I greeted at the entrance of Amma’s sitting room. She responded and gave me permission to enter.

I entered first, and they all stared at me as if I were some strange creature.

I knelt and greeted Amma. She didn’t respond. She just kept staring at me with surprise, all the way until I said, “I came with my elder brothers. They’d like to speak with you.”

“Where are they?” she asked harshly.

I lowered my gaze. “They’re outside.”

She signaled with her eyes for them to come in, so I went to call them. She dismissed everyone else—only we three remained.

Hamma Abubakar spoke first. “Hajiya, we came to understand why Abdul-Hameed sent her back home. We’ve been calling his phone without success. That’s why we decided to bring her back ourselves.”

My heart pounded at Amma’s dismissive attitude. I knew Hamma Abubakar had a hot temper. When our eyes met, I quickly looked away.

After a while, she said, “He didn’t tell me his reason for doing that. But you can wait for his return and speak to him directly.”

Hamma Ahmad then said, “We’ll leave and come back. We must speak to him. For now, she’ll return to her room.”

Amma shrugged as if to say, “Do whatever you like.” They greeted her and left, seeing there was no use trying to resolve the issue with her.

As we stepped out, Hamma Adnan sighed and said, “Should we really leave the girl here? Maybe we should wait until he returns.”

“That’s true,” the other replied. “But we don’t want this matter to reach Baffa’s ears or it’ll escalate. Please, go back inside. We’ll speak with him, God willing.”

Feeling weak, I nodded. My eyes filled with tears again.