She felt a sudden, freezing numbness in her feet, and her legs felt as though they would buckle under her like melting plastic. She slid entirely to the floor, setting aside the massive stacks of dollar bills bundled together on one side, and carefully spread out the documents before her, picking them up one by one to examine them. A cold sweat began to break out all over her body, running from the crown of her head to the soles of her feet. Every document was accompanied by its original copy alongside the forged version attached right next to it. If her eyes were processing the truth correctly... all the documents for her lands and properties in his possession had been altered to the names of strangers she had never heard of. There were court affidavits certifying the names and legal ownership attached to the original deeds, withdrawal slips from their joint account, entire bank statements, and proof of the total closure of the account. A sudden, unexpected catastrophe had struck. Everything had changed. Her properties had been transferred from her ownership into the hands of ADAM ADAM, FAINUSA ADAM, and WARISHA KHADIRI—people she did not know at all, save for the name "Adam" attached to each of theirs. As if the tendons in her hands had been severed, she numbly pulled the next document forward. It was a birth certificate bearing the names mentioned above: FAINUSA ADAM and ADAM ADAM. Her mind became utterly entangled. A profound sense of devastation settled into the core of her heart and brain. The dark realization taking root in her soul drove her to frantically scramble through the remaining papers in front of her. Suddenly, her hand caught an official marriage certificate for ADAM and WARISHA. Her hands began to shake violently. So, it was actually true? What Raihanatu had told her was the truth? Adam had another wife besides her? Adam had actually planned this ultimate betrayal? If that woman is his wife, then whose children are these? This looming question forced her to scoop up four passport photographs she spotted in front of her. Opening them felt like looking into a mirror or finding the definitive answer to all the questions swirling through her mind and heart, threatening to shatter her thoughts. The clear resemblances of the children manifested themselves flawlessly. They looked exactly like Adam! It was as if he had spit them out himself, or like a single piece of wood split perfectly down the middle. Everything around her went completely still. She repeatedly turned over the green passports, which looked pitch-black in her eyes. The passports held visas to England—visas that would grant them residency in the country from one year up to a full five years! With immense effort, she forced her tongue to move, seeking comfort for her soul by uttering:
"Innalillahi wa inna ilaihi raji'un, la'ilaha illa anta subhanaka inni kuntu minazzalimin" (To Allah we belong and to Him we shall return; there is no deity except You, exalted are You, indeed I have been of the wrongdoers).
She repeated the prayers as hot, bitter tears streamed from her eyes. She was fighting with everything she had to hold back the overwhelming panic because she could feel her lower abdomen cramping tightly. She was not prepared to lose the unborn child inside her. Therefore, she battled for her breath, drawing it in deeply and exhaling it with the name of Allah. A fragile sense of calm descended upon her, but her heart ached with such burning agony that she felt if a doctor were to examine it right now, they would find it physically swollen. Rising to her feet while fighting off a wave of dizziness, she walked into his bathroom. She stood before the sink, turned on the tap, and performed ablution (alwala), hoping the burning heat radiating from her face would subside. She spent nearly ten minutes meticulously performing and repeating the ablution; she alone knew the utter chaos and terror trapped inside her heart. Finally, she forced herself to shut off the tap and walked back into the bedroom. Sitting on one side of the bed, she stared at the documents and the money—more than half of which belonged to her by right. Is this why she had stopped receiving bank alerts? Had he drained every single cent she had earned through her own sweat and blood? Had he secured exit visas for a wife and children she never knew existed to flee the country? Had he stripped away all her wealth and converted it into his own? He had denied her children, denied her the enjoyment of her own hard work, and subjected her to the cruelest form of deception. He had entered her life at a time when she refused to give any man a chance. He had used his eloquent words, impeccable behavior, and a deep, overwhelming display of affection—the kind of intense care that would force even the most stubborn or guarded woman to accept a man’s love. He combined this with a calculated cunning that her young age could not comprehend, forcing her to fall deeply in love with him until he completely possessed her. And now, he was plunging her into unparalleled ruin. What had she ever done to harm Adam throughout their lives together to deserve such an evil betrayal? She felt as though her heart was melting, and a desperate urge to burst into a loud, unbridled cry gripped her, but her inner voice sharply reminded her:
"This is the time to do what is necessary; now is not the time for tears."
This thought, emerging from the deepest depths of her soul, galvanized her. She jolted up from where she sat, returned to the pile, and neatly gathered the documents, the money, the passports, and everything else, packing them securely back into the briefcase just as they had been arranged. Once finished, she zipped the briefcase shut, carried it out of the room, and carefully closed every single door behind her, returning everything to its exact original state as if she had never entered the room at all. She slipped a smooth long gown over her clothes and wrapped her head with its matching veil. After applying a light layer of powder to her face and tracing a single line of kohl to brighten her eyes—despite how much she had been crying—she walked out to the compound. She opened her car, tossed the briefcase inside, started the engine, and sped out of the house at a frantic pace. She drove straight to her family home. She wanted to store the briefcase in a safe, secure place. She wanted to see how Adam would handle the situation once he realized his leverage was gone, wanting him to entangle himself in his own web of lies in the easiest way possible. She arrived at her family home in less than her usual driving time because she had driven recklessly fast on the road; she desperately wanted to beat Adam back to the house, wanting to ensure he had absolutely no idea she had even left. Two of the house staff rushed forward to welcome her warmly, but today she was in no mood for her usual cheerful and relaxed interactions with them. She gave them a very brief, distant response, opened the back seat to retrieve the briefcase, handed her car keys to the driver (marwa) to lock up for her, and walked into the main house carrying the briefcase. The house was empty except for the house staff moving about. Even Maama was lying down in her room resting at the time. Maama watched her closely as she walked into the room, sitting up on the bed to analyze her further. "I brought something to keep in your custody, Maama. These are some highly important materials. Please do not leave them anywhere exposed. Someone trusted me with them as a deposit, and I am terrified of them getting ruined or being careless with their safekeeping." That was all she said to Maama. Maama stared at the briefcase for a moment before shifting her gaze back to Sa'ahar. "Alright, that's fine. But... are you truly alright?" A heavy weight settled on Sa'ahar's chest. She felt a powerful urge to pour her heart out to Maama, to let her see the sheer magnitude of the sorrow and trauma she was enduring. But she knew that doing so would only plunge her mother into a depression twice as bad as her own. Her family loved her immensely; she held a sacred place in their hearts. "It's nothing. I just feel a bit weak today. I'm heading back home to lie down for a bit. I will get some relief by Allah's grace once I sleep." Maama nodded her head slowly, harboring a slight doubt, but she couldn't see any physical evidence to justify her suspicion. "May Allah grant you complete healing and a safe delivery. You stubbornly refused to let us hire a housemaid to help you with the chores. You are the only one in the entire family who stands out like this, Sa'ahar. There isn't a single household in this family that doesn't have domestic help except yours." Sa'ahar forced a smile that looked more like a painful grimace. "Maama, I will get one after I give birth, by Allah's grace." "You definitely must," Maama replied, standing up with the briefcase in her hand. Just as she had done on her way there, Sa'ahar sped recklessly on her return journey. Within a few short minutes, she reached her house, drove her car into the parking lot, turned off the engine, and walked inside. She collapsed into a chair in the living room, her fragile endurance pushed to its absolute limit. The only images playing on a loop behind her eyes were the photographs of the children in the passports with the name ADAM written as their father, and the woman designated as his wife and their mother. What did all of this mean? Did Adam never love her from the very beginning? Was this merely a marriage of financial convenience for him? Or had pure, unadulterated betrayal simply consumed his heart? Had his evil soul joined forces with the devil to plot this horrific scheme against her? Adam has children? Children she didn't give birth to? Adam has a wife besides her—a fact hidden from the entire world? He had replaced her name on every single piece of her property and inheritance with the names of his children? What kind of cruel, oppressive world are we living in? No matter how hard she tried to maintain her composure, she failed. She sat in the empty living room and wept bitterly, burying her face in the palms of her hands. The distinct sound of his car pulling into the compound jolted her to her feet. She walked straight into her wing, proceeded to her bedroom, and immediately began to run a bath while stripping off her clothes. She absolutely did not want Adam to sense anything amiss or suspect a thing. She prepared very warm water, and just as she was about to step into the bath, he turned the doorknob and walked into the room. His voice carried a vibrant cheerfulness that, for the very first time, Sa'ahar could accurately decode. In a deeply affectionate, romantic tone, he called out to her: "Heart! Heart, where are you?" Hearing this made her close her eyes in intense disgust, hot tears sliding down her face. How much longer did he plan to maintain this disgusting deception before telling her the truth? Or was he planning to string her along until the day she woke up, looked around, and found absolutely nothing left—having packed everything belonging to her and fled the country with his hidden family? She cleared her throat to alert him, and he turned toward the bathroom door. "Open up, let me join you!" He called out. She couldn't utter a single word because her throat was completely constricted with emotion, so she simply cleared her throat again. Right at that moment, his phone rang. He shifted his attention to the call, turning around and exiting the room while answering the phone all at once.
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She stepped in front of the mirror to dry herself. She lacked any vitality or enthusiasm, forcing herself through the motions solely because she didn't want him to suspect anything. She did not want to give him any reason to look closely and realize that something monumental had shifted in his absence; she wanted to catch him completely red-handed and let him walk straight into his own downfall. Forcing herself, she applied lotion and pulled a long gown over her head. Just then, she heard the bedroom door being violently thrown open, slamming against the wall with a loud Bamm! She quickly snapped her head up to look at him. He was staring right back at her. She locked eyes with him. A profound, terrifying panic was written all over his face. She swallowed a bitter, hard lump in her throat. Her own suppressed rage threatened to break through the walls she had carefully built over the past few hours, but with a massive surge of willpower, she pushed it aside. She replaced it with a soft, gentle smile—though anyone analyzing it closely would instantly recognize it as a strained, agonizingly painful mask. "Welcome back. You took quite a while, and you told me you'd be back early," she said in her usual playful, pampered tone. He swallowed hard, a massive lump shifting visibly up and down his throat. A suffocating wave of dread and suspicion completely enveloped him. He made a desperate, masculine effort to summon a smile that looked more like a painful grimace, and in a strained, quiet voice, he replied: "Yeah... I got held up for a bit. I had to escort Momee somewhere." She smiled again, nodding her head, though her heart was burning with white-hot fury. She knew she couldn't keep maintaining this fake smile while looking at a face that had become utterly hideous and demonic in her eyes. Therefore, she smoothly deflected his attention by turning toward the shopping bag, saying: "Let me see what you brought for me." He said absolutely nothing, standing frozen in the doorway before abruptly turning on his heel and exiting the room. She slowly lifted her head, letting the bag drop carelessly to the floor. She stared at the open door he had left behind, tears filling her eyes as every single doubt she held transformed into absolute, terrifying certainty. She couldn't bring herself to eat a single bite that night, nor did she see any more of Adam. However, she could continuously hear his heavy, frantic pacing moving back and forth from his bedroom to the living room. She curled herself tightly inside her duvet, her eyes shut fast as a fever threatened to overtake her body. It was nearly midnight when he finally walked into the bedroom. Even then, she was merely lying there awake, her eyes burning, with absolutely no sign of sleep as she actively monitored his every movement. The moment he switched on the bedroom light, she sat up, forcing a loud yawn as if she had just been jolted awake from a deep slumber, rubbing her eyes as their gazes met. "Don't tell me you're just coming to bed now? I've already had my first sleep," she said, studying his face closely. From the time he had returned home until this moment, she could see a visible, drastic weight loss; his face looked completely sunken, and he was thoroughly terrified. "Yeah, just now... I was sorting out some work." "Instead of calling me to keep you company, you left me to sleep all by myself?" She added in her usual pampered tone. It felt as though her heart was being roasted on an open fire. She didn't even process the excuse he mumbled in response; she only watched him anxiously run his hand over his head. She climbed down from the bed with the intention of using the bathroom and performing ablution to see if it would bring some ease to her aching heart, but a sharp, vicious cramp gripped her lower abdomen completely. She sat on the edge of the bed, biting her lower lip with her head lowered, desperately invoking the name of Allah. "Who came to this house today anyway?" he asked quietly. She slowly lifted her head to look at him. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, having made no attempt to change out of his outdoor clothes. She shook her head. "You left me all alone in this house today to spend the day like an old witch," she answered, locking her eyes onto him. He paused in heavy silence for a moment, then slid down onto the bed, wrapping himself up as if a violent fever was about to claim him as well. When she returned to the bed, she lay down and completely relaxed her body, mimicking the deep, steady breathing of someone fast asleep. She could hear him constantly tossing and turning. He would lie down, then snap awake, stand up, walk out of the room, and come back in. This cycle repeated continuously until her silent prayers finally overcame her senses, and the deep sleep she had been desperately craving finally claimed her. The next morning, she woke up from the deep slumber that had overtaken her right after the dawn (Asuba) prayer. He was not in the room. When she walked out into the living room, she heard his frantic movements coming from his private bedroom. When she peeked in, she realized he was thoroughly turning the room upside down, inspecting every single item down to the smallest detail. "Are you planning to change our furniture or something?" she asked, forcing a laugh. There wasn't a single shred of warmth or joy on his face; he simply shook his head. "Just doing some deep cleaning (sanitation)," he answered curtly. "That's good. In that case, let me make up for yesterday and prepare breakfast for us." Without waiting for his response, she turned and walked away. As she cooked, her heart and soul were flooded with deep reflection. Her only saving grace was that since yesterday, she had not stopped invoking the name of Allah on her lips and in her heart, which brought immense relief to her suffocating misery. She deeply wanted to tell Afifa, but she knew perfectly well that given Afifa’s deep-seated hatred for Adam, she would completely blow the situation out of proportion and ruin her strategy. Was this what her sister had been sensing all along? Is that why she hated Adam so intensely? Why did she herself never sense any red flags about him? Why did she only have absolute trust and faith in him? Was it because she was destined to face this trial? Is that why every single deception of his worked so flawlessly on her? She could never forget how her journey with Adam had first begun at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria (ABU K). He was in his final year (Level 400), right on the verge of their final exams, while she was a sophomore in Level 200. Adam was completely out of her league; in fact, even at that tender age, Sa'ahar possessed an extraordinary aura and charisma that naturally drew people to her. Not just any man could approach her under the guise of romance. But Adam had sworn to himself that he would win her love. He possessed the twin gifts of a highly silver tongue and brilliant manipulation—the exact two weapons used by men of this generation to destroy young women. From the very first day he confessed his feelings to her, she had completely brushed him off, walking away and leaving him stranded just like all the other suitors who constantly flocked around her. But he relentlessly maneuvered, discovering every single detail about her life. He unearthed everything that fascinated Sa'ahar—her deepest likes and her absolute dislikes. He reshaped his entire personality to mirror her ideal man perfectly. Wherever he knew their paths would cross, he would deliberately perform an action guaranteed to impress her or align perfectly with her preferences. He spent a vast amount of time stalking her and studying her life before he suddenly vanished completely from her sight. Human nature dictates that the heart naturally leans toward those who treat it with kindness and grows distant from those who neglect it; thus, from initially not caring at all, she gradually began to feel a deep, unsettling void in his absence. She didn't attend the same university as Afifa; Afifa was at Northwest University at the time. Moreover, during her time at ABU Zaria, Sa'ahar was never the type to mingle or keep a large circle of female friends; she possessed an incredibly reserved, quiet nature. The only time you would see her completely relaxed and flashing her perfectly straight white teeth was when she was around elderly mothers or little children. This distinct trait earned her immense love and popularity among the older women on campus, while simultaneously driving the men crazy with a desire to win her affection. Even those who knew she was elite and completely beyond their social status openly prayed to have her even as a platonic friend or academic colleague. Above all, she possessed a brilliant intellect and profound wisdom; these attributes made her highly famous across the campus. It was only after a long period of absence that Adam finally resurfaced. Even then, she didn't instantly lower her guard, but there was a significant improvement in how she treated him compared to the past. He used this opening to deploy every ounce of his manipulative charm, exhausting his entire playbook before he finally succeeded in planting a powerful, deep-seated love for him inside her heart. He hadn't lied to her about his background; he openly told her that his family was not wealthy. He lived with his mother, who single-handedly financed his education and general upkeep. He had expressed intense fear that her elite family would reject his marriage proposal. But because Dr. Mamman Girema was a man of extraordinary nobility and honor, he stood firmly behind the union, even when her brothers, Ya' Muhyi and Ya' Saifullahi, openly expressed their disapproval. That firm resistance from her brothers was what had kept Adam on edge, but Dr. Mamman ensured everything was executed smoothly without imposing heavy financial burdens or excessive demands on him—an act of pure humility that thoroughly shocked and amazed everyone. Given Sa'ahar’s extraordinary physical beauty, high pedigree, elite status, and class, absolutely no one ever imagined she would settle for a man of such low financial standing and social status as Adam. But she had never looked at material wealth; she was a person who never took the material world too seriously. The sheer love, devotion, and care that Adam's mother (Momee) constantly showered upon her was more than enough to solidify her devotion. Curiously, at the very beginning of their marriage, Adam's mother had exhibited an intense, blatant hatred toward Afifa. She made it crystal clear that she detested her, and no one could uncover the reason behind it. Yet, overnight, everything completely shifted; she brought Afifa incredibly close to her heart, showering her with a level of affection that even Adam himself didn't receive from his own mother. From the very beginning, a strange, unspoken animosity had existed between Afifa and Adam. Sitting there in the kitchen, various puzzle pieces finally began to align in Sa'ahar's mind. She began to trace the root causes and events that could have triggered such deep hatred, leading up to the nightmare scenario she currently found herself trapped in. She quickly whipped up a simple breakfast, managing to force down some tea and chips before setting his portion aside and retreating to her bedroom. She took a shower and dressed in comfortable, simple loungewear. She was currently on a temporary maternity leave from her workplace due to the severe, painful physical toll her pregnancy was taking on her body. She dressed in a simple gown and lay back down on her bed, completely refusing to return to his side, her mind racing with a million chaotic thoughts despite her desperate attempts to calm herself for the sake of her unborn child’s health. She could hear him making frantic, hushed phone calls in the background, though she couldn't decode the exact words he was saying, followed by his heavy pacing back and forth. Nearly two full hours passed before he finally pushed her bedroom door open. Lying down, she lifted her head to look at him. He looked completely unhinged and disheveled. Their eyes locked. Today, he couldn't even manage to summon the fake, strained smile he had been forcing since yesterday; he simply bared his teeth at her in a horrific grimace. "Aren't you going to get up so I can do the deep cleaning (sanitation) in here too?" She rolled her eyes slightly, a wave of intense disgust filling her soul. She understood his hidden motive perfectly—he was desperately searching for the briefcase he had hidden. Therefore, maintaining absolute calm, she replied: "Have you forgotten that every month I hire professional cleaners from back home to do this exact type of deep cleaning for me?" "I know, but today I just feel a powerful desire to do it for you myself," he said, his voice laced with clear panic and frantic desperation. She didn't utter another word to him. She stood up smoothly, gathered her duvet into her arms, and walked straight out into the living room. A cold chill was beginning to wrack her body, signaling the onset of a severe fever. She kept her eyes locked onto the TV screen while listening closely to his frantic movements inside her bedroom until the sleep she had been denied the previous night finally overtook her. It was a shallow, agonizing sleep filled with suffocating nightmares and dark omens. Consequently, she woke up after a short while, her bladder completely full. She threw off the duvet, lowered her feet to the floor, and marched back toward her bedroom. He was sitting flat on her bedside drawer, burying his face in both hands, clutching his head tightly as if hit by a violent, catastrophic migraine. He had returned every item back to its place, but the room was left completely tossed and disorganized. She knew this would happen; he utterly lacked the presence of mind or composure required to restore her room to its exact original state. She had deliberately left him to his frantic search just to see the absolute limit of his desperation, completely throwing him off her trail.
2. Summary of the Original Text
This dramatic excerpt from the Hausa novel Tabarmar Ƙashi by Safiyya Huguma centers on Sa'ahar, a brilliant, wealthy, and elite young woman who discovers a catastrophic betrayal by her husband, Adam. While searching through Adam's belongings, Sa'ahar uncovers a hidden briefcase containing stacks of US dollars, falsified property deeds, court affidavits, and bank statements showing that Adam has systematically drained their joint bank accounts and illegally transferred ownership of all her lands and inherited wealth into his own name and the names of a secret family: a second wife (Warisha Khadiri) and two children (Fainusa and Adam Adam). Furthermore, she finds passports loaded with 5-year UK residency visas, proving that Adam intends to permanently flee Nigeria with his secret family using Sa'ahar's stolen fortune. Despite being pregnant and suffering from severe stress and physical cramping, Sa'ahar exercises incredible emotional restraint. Instead of confronting him immediately, she performs ablution (alwala) to calm her panic, packs the documents back exactly as she found them, and sneaks out of the house to hide the incriminating briefcase with her mother (Maama) at her family home. When Adam returns, he discovers the briefcase is missing and descends into a state of frantic, unhinged panic, turning the house upside down under the guise of "deep cleaning." Sa'ahar plays along flawlessly, maintaining her usual pampered, affectionate persona to catch him completely red-handed and force him into his own public downfall. The text ends with Sa'ahar reflecting on how Adam systematically targeted, studied, and manipulated her during her university days at ABU Zaria, utilizing a silver tongue to exploit her trusting nature and bypass the initial warnings of her protective brothers.
3. Analytics & Literary Analysis
A. Thematic Architecture
The Silver-Tongued Predator & Societal Vulnerability: The narrative serves as a scathing critique of a highly prevalent contemporary issue: smooth-talking, manipulative men who target wealthy, high-status women for financial predation. The author explicitly breaks the fourth wall to note that "eloquence and verbal manipulation" are the twin weapons used by predatory men to deceive young women.
The Mask of Masculine Pride vs. Female Resilience: The contrast between Adam and Sa'ahar’s coping mechanisms is striking. Adam, facing the sudden disappearance of his leverage, completely crumbles physically and mentally—exhibiting physical wasting, frantic pacing, and an inability to maintain his composure. Sa'ahar, conversely, internalizes a massive emotional trauma, uses spiritual anchoring (prayer and ablution) to stabilize her physical health for her unborn child, and executes a flawless tactical counter-move.
The Intuition of Kinship: The backstory reveals that Sa'ahar's sister, Afifa, had an instinctual, visceral hatred for Adam from the very beginning. This highlights the theme of spiritual discernment and protective family structures, illustrating that Sa'ahar’s absolute trust (aminci) blinded her to red flags that outsiders could clearly see.
B. Character Analytics
Character
Psychological Profile
Tactical State in this Chapter
Sa'ahar
High-intellect, elite, deeply resilient, and strategic. Governed by a powerful sense of self-worth and tactical restraint.
Dominant (Passive Control): She controls the entire chessboard. By removing the briefcase and hiding it at her mother's house while pretending nothing happened, she forces Adam into psychological torment.
Adam
Narcissistic, highly manipulative, parasitic, and fundamentally weak under pressure. Relies on systemic deception and gaslighting.
Defeated (Panic State): Completely unhinged. The physical descriptions ("sunken face," "drastic weight loss within hours," "clutching his head") show a man experiencing total psychological collapse as his criminal exit strategy evaporates.
Maama
Nurturing, perceptive, traditional maternal figure. Respects her daughter's boundaries but possesses strong maternal intuition.
Safe Haven: Acts as the unconscious custodian of the evidence. Her dialogue provides a domestic contrast to Sa'ahar's high-stakes marital war.
C. Stylistic & Narrative Techniques
Internal Monologue as a Vehicle for Backstory: The author brilliantly transitions from a high-tension domestic thriller in the present day to a deep, analytical reflection on how the couple met at ABU Zaria. This contextualizes the betrayal, showing that Adam's plot wasn't a sudden impulse but a long-term, calculated parasitic operation.
Somatic Expressions of Trauma: The emotional trauma is expertly grounded in physical sensations: the freezing of feet, legs turning to "melting plastic," cold sweat from head to toe, and most critically, the physical tightening of the uterus/abdomen, raising the stakes by endangering her pregnancy.
The "Yaƙe" Metaphor: The author uses the Hausa concept of Yaƙe—a strained, forced smile used to mask profound agony or hatred. This symbol perfectly encapsulates the psychological warfare taking place in the household, where both characters are smiling at each other while enduring intense internal panic and rage.
KANKANA UWAR RUWA BOOKCOMPELET
She felt a sudden, freezing numbness in her feet, and her legs felt as though they would buckle under her like melting plastic. She slid entirely to the floor, setting aside the massive stacks of dollar bills bundled together on one side, and carefully spread out the documents before her, picking them up one by one to examine them.
A cold sweat began to break out all over her body, running from the crown of her head to the soles of her feet. Every document was accompanied by its original copy alongside the forged version attached right next to it. If her eyes were processing the truth correctly... all the documents for her lands and properties in his possession had been altered to the names of strangers she had never heard of. There were court affidavits certifying the names and legal ownership attached to the original deeds, withdrawal slips from their joint account, entire bank statements, and proof of the total closure of the account.
A sudden, unexpected catastrophe had struck. Everything had changed. Her properties had been transferred from her ownership into the hands of ADAM ADAM, FAINUSA ADAM, and WARISHA KHADIRI—people she did not know at all, save for the name "Adam" attached to each of theirs.
As if the tendons in her hands had been severed, she numbly pulled the next document forward. It was a birth certificate bearing the names mentioned above: FAINUSA ADAM and ADAM ADAM. Her mind became utterly entangled. A profound sense of devastation settled into the core of her heart and brain. The dark realization taking root in her soul drove her to frantically scramble through the remaining papers in front of her. Suddenly, her hand caught an official marriage certificate for ADAM and WARISHA.
Her hands began to shake violently. So, it was actually true? What Raihanatu had told her was the truth? Adam had another wife besides her? Adam had actually planned this ultimate betrayal? If that woman is his wife, then whose children are these? This looming question forced her to scoop up four passport photographs she spotted in front of her. Opening them felt like looking into a mirror or finding the definitive answer to all the questions swirling through her mind and heart, threatening to shatter her thoughts.
The clear resemblances of the children manifested themselves flawlessly. They looked exactly like Adam! It was as if he had spit them out himself, or like a single piece of wood split perfectly down the middle.
Everything around her went completely still. She repeatedly turned over the green passports, which looked pitch-black in her eyes. The passports held visas to England—visas that would grant them residency in the country from one year up to a full five years! With immense effort, she forced her tongue to move, seeking comfort for her soul by uttering:
She repeated the prayers as hot, bitter tears streamed from her eyes.
She was fighting with everything she had to hold back the overwhelming panic because she could feel her lower abdomen cramping tightly. She was not prepared to lose the unborn child inside her. Therefore, she battled for her breath, drawing it in deeply and exhaling it with the name of Allah. A fragile sense of calm descended upon her, but her heart ached with such burning agony that she felt if a doctor were to examine it right now, they would find it physically swollen.
Rising to her feet while fighting off a wave of dizziness, she walked into his bathroom. She stood before the sink, turned on the tap, and performed ablution (alwala), hoping the burning heat radiating from her face would subside. She spent nearly ten minutes meticulously performing and repeating the ablution; she alone knew the utter chaos and terror trapped inside her heart. Finally, she forced herself to shut off the tap and walked back into the bedroom.
Sitting on one side of the bed, she stared at the documents and the money—more than half of which belonged to her by right. Is this why she had stopped receiving bank alerts? Had he drained every single cent she had earned through her own sweat and blood? Had he secured exit visas for a wife and children she never knew existed to flee the country? Had he stripped away all her wealth and converted it into his own? He had denied her children, denied her the enjoyment of her own hard work, and subjected her to the cruelest form of deception. He had entered her life at a time when she refused to give any man a chance. He had used his eloquent words, impeccable behavior, and a deep, overwhelming display of affection—the kind of intense care that would force even the most stubborn or guarded woman to accept a man’s love. He combined this with a calculated cunning that her young age could not comprehend, forcing her to fall deeply in love with him until he completely possessed her. And now, he was plunging her into unparalleled ruin. What had she ever done to harm Adam throughout their lives together to deserve such an evil betrayal?
She felt as though her heart was melting, and a desperate urge to burst into a loud, unbridled cry gripped her, but her inner voice sharply reminded her:
This thought, emerging from the deepest depths of her soul, galvanized her. She jolted up from where she sat, returned to the pile, and neatly gathered the documents, the money, the passports, and everything else, packing them securely back into the briefcase just as they had been arranged. Once finished, she zipped the briefcase shut, carried it out of the room, and carefully closed every single door behind her, returning everything to its exact original state as if she had never entered the room at all.
She slipped a smooth long gown over her clothes and wrapped her head with its matching veil. After applying a light layer of powder to her face and tracing a single line of kohl to brighten her eyes—despite how much she had been crying—she walked out to the compound. She opened her car, tossed the briefcase inside, started the engine, and sped out of the house at a frantic pace.
She drove straight to her family home. She wanted to store the briefcase in a safe, secure place. She wanted to see how Adam would handle the situation once he realized his leverage was gone, wanting him to entangle himself in his own web of lies in the easiest way possible.
She arrived at her family home in less than her usual driving time because she had driven recklessly fast on the road; she desperately wanted to beat Adam back to the house, wanting to ensure he had absolutely no idea she had even left.
Two of the house staff rushed forward to welcome her warmly, but today she was in no mood for her usual cheerful and relaxed interactions with them. She gave them a very brief, distant response, opened the back seat to retrieve the briefcase, handed her car keys to the driver (marwa) to lock up for her, and walked into the main house carrying the briefcase.
The house was empty except for the house staff moving about. Even Maama was lying down in her room resting at the time. Maama watched her closely as she walked into the room, sitting up on the bed to analyze her further.
"I brought something to keep in your custody, Maama. These are some highly important materials. Please do not leave them anywhere exposed. Someone trusted me with them as a deposit, and I am terrified of them getting ruined or being careless with their safekeeping." That was all she said to Maama. Maama stared at the briefcase for a moment before shifting her gaze back to Sa'ahar.
"Alright, that's fine. But... are you truly alright?" A heavy weight settled on Sa'ahar's chest. She felt a powerful urge to pour her heart out to Maama, to let her see the sheer magnitude of the sorrow and trauma she was enduring. But she knew that doing so would only plunge her mother into a depression twice as bad as her own. Her family loved her immensely; she held a sacred place in their hearts.
"It's nothing. I just feel a bit weak today. I'm heading back home to lie down for a bit. I will get some relief by Allah's grace once I sleep." Maama nodded her head slowly, harboring a slight doubt, but she couldn't see any physical evidence to justify her suspicion.
"May Allah grant you complete healing and a safe delivery. You stubbornly refused to let us hire a housemaid to help you with the chores. You are the only one in the entire family who stands out like this, Sa'ahar. There isn't a single household in this family that doesn't have domestic help except yours." Sa'ahar forced a smile that looked more like a painful grimace.
"Maama, I will get one after I give birth, by Allah's grace."
"You definitely must," Maama replied, standing up with the briefcase in her hand.
Just as she had done on her way there, Sa'ahar sped recklessly on her return journey. Within a few short minutes, she reached her house, drove her car into the parking lot, turned off the engine, and walked inside.
She collapsed into a chair in the living room, her fragile endurance pushed to its absolute limit. The only images playing on a loop behind her eyes were the photographs of the children in the passports with the name ADAM written as their father, and the woman designated as his wife and their mother. What did all of this mean? Did Adam never love her from the very beginning? Was this merely a marriage of financial convenience for him? Or had pure, unadulterated betrayal simply consumed his heart? Had his evil soul joined forces with the devil to plot this horrific scheme against her? Adam has children? Children she didn't give birth to? Adam has a wife besides her—a fact hidden from the entire world? He had replaced her name on every single piece of her property and inheritance with the names of his children? What kind of cruel, oppressive world are we living in?
No matter how hard she tried to maintain her composure, she failed. She sat in the empty living room and wept bitterly, burying her face in the palms of her hands. The distinct sound of his car pulling into the compound jolted her to her feet. She walked straight into her wing, proceeded to her bedroom, and immediately began to run a bath while stripping off her clothes. She absolutely did not want Adam to sense anything amiss or suspect a thing. She prepared very warm water, and just as she was about to step into the bath, he turned the doorknob and walked into the room. His voice carried a vibrant cheerfulness that, for the very first time, Sa'ahar could accurately decode. In a deeply affectionate, romantic tone, he called out to her:
"Heart! Heart, where are you?"
Hearing this made her close her eyes in intense disgust, hot tears sliding down her face. How much longer did he plan to maintain this disgusting deception before telling her the truth? Or was he planning to string her along until the day she woke up, looked around, and found absolutely nothing left—having packed everything belonging to her and fled the country with his hidden family?
She cleared her throat to alert him, and he turned toward the bathroom door.
"Open up, let me join you!" He called out. She couldn't utter a single word because her throat was completely constricted with emotion, so she simply cleared her throat again. Right at that moment, his phone rang. He shifted his attention to the call, turning around and exiting the room while answering the phone all at once.
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She burst into another violent fit of crying inside the bathtub, feeling as though her heart was being physically squeezed. She remained there for a long time before finally stepping out of the bathroom, walking slowly due to the persistent, sharp cramping in her lower abdomen. Her eyes fell on the shopping bag he had brought home and left for her. He always brought her whatever she expressed a desire to eat before he went out, but today, she utterly detested the bag and despised the very man who brought it.
She stepped in front of the mirror to dry herself. She lacked any vitality or enthusiasm, forcing herself through the motions solely because she didn't want him to suspect anything. She did not want to give him any reason to look closely and realize that something monumental had shifted in his absence; she wanted to catch him completely red-handed and let him walk straight into his own downfall. Forcing herself, she applied lotion and pulled a long gown over her head. Just then, she heard the bedroom door being violently thrown open, slamming against the wall with a loud Bamm!
She quickly snapped her head up to look at him. He was staring right back at her. She locked eyes with him. A profound, terrifying panic was written all over his face. She swallowed a bitter, hard lump in her throat. Her own suppressed rage threatened to break through the walls she had carefully built over the past few hours, but with a massive surge of willpower, she pushed it aside. She replaced it with a soft, gentle smile—though anyone analyzing it closely would instantly recognize it as a strained, agonizingly painful mask.
"Welcome back. You took quite a while, and you told me you'd be back early," she said in her usual playful, pampered tone. He swallowed hard, a massive lump shifting visibly up and down his throat. A suffocating wave of dread and suspicion completely enveloped him. He made a desperate, masculine effort to summon a smile that looked more like a painful grimace, and in a strained, quiet voice, he replied:
"Yeah... I got held up for a bit. I had to escort Momee somewhere." She smiled again, nodding her head, though her heart was burning with white-hot fury. She knew she couldn't keep maintaining this fake smile while looking at a face that had become utterly hideous and demonic in her eyes. Therefore, she smoothly deflected his attention by turning toward the shopping bag, saying:
"Let me see what you brought for me." He said absolutely nothing, standing frozen in the doorway before abruptly turning on his heel and exiting the room. She slowly lifted her head, letting the bag drop carelessly to the floor. She stared at the open door he had left behind, tears filling her eyes as every single doubt she held transformed into absolute, terrifying certainty.
She couldn't bring herself to eat a single bite that night, nor did she see any more of Adam. However, she could continuously hear his heavy, frantic pacing moving back and forth from his bedroom to the living room. She curled herself tightly inside her duvet, her eyes shut fast as a fever threatened to overtake her body.
It was nearly midnight when he finally walked into the bedroom. Even then, she was merely lying there awake, her eyes burning, with absolutely no sign of sleep as she actively monitored his every movement. The moment he switched on the bedroom light, she sat up, forcing a loud yawn as if she had just been jolted awake from a deep slumber, rubbing her eyes as their gazes met.
"Don't tell me you're just coming to bed now? I've already had my first sleep," she said, studying his face closely. From the time he had returned home until this moment, she could see a visible, drastic weight loss; his face looked completely sunken, and he was thoroughly terrified.
"Yeah, just now... I was sorting out some work."
"Instead of calling me to keep you company, you left me to sleep all by myself?" She added in her usual pampered tone. It felt as though her heart was being roasted on an open fire. She didn't even process the excuse he mumbled in response; she only watched him anxiously run his hand over his head.
She climbed down from the bed with the intention of using the bathroom and performing ablution to see if it would bring some ease to her aching heart, but a sharp, vicious cramp gripped her lower abdomen completely. She sat on the edge of the bed, biting her lower lip with her head lowered, desperately invoking the name of Allah.
"Who came to this house today anyway?" he asked quietly. She slowly lifted her head to look at him. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, having made no attempt to change out of his outdoor clothes. She shook her head.
"You left me all alone in this house today to spend the day like an old witch," she answered, locking her eyes onto him. He paused in heavy silence for a moment, then slid down onto the bed, wrapping himself up as if a violent fever was about to claim him as well.
When she returned to the bed, she lay down and completely relaxed her body, mimicking the deep, steady breathing of someone fast asleep. She could hear him constantly tossing and turning. He would lie down, then snap awake, stand up, walk out of the room, and come back in. This cycle repeated continuously until her silent prayers finally overcame her senses, and the deep sleep she had been desperately craving finally claimed her.
The next morning, she woke up from the deep slumber that had overtaken her right after the dawn (Asuba) prayer. He was not in the room. When she walked out into the living room, she heard his frantic movements coming from his private bedroom. When she peeked in, she realized he was thoroughly turning the room upside down, inspecting every single item down to the smallest detail.
"Are you planning to change our furniture or something?" she asked, forcing a laugh. There wasn't a single shred of warmth or joy on his face; he simply shook his head.
"Just doing some deep cleaning (sanitation)," he answered curtly.
"That's good. In that case, let me make up for yesterday and prepare breakfast for us." Without waiting for his response, she turned and walked away.
As she cooked, her heart and soul were flooded with deep reflection. Her only saving grace was that since yesterday, she had not stopped invoking the name of Allah on her lips and in her heart, which brought immense relief to her suffocating misery. She deeply wanted to tell Afifa, but she knew perfectly well that given Afifa’s deep-seated hatred for Adam, she would completely blow the situation out of proportion and ruin her strategy. Was this what her sister had been sensing all along? Is that why she hated Adam so intensely? Why did she herself never sense any red flags about him? Why did she only have absolute trust and faith in him? Was it because she was destined to face this trial? Is that why every single deception of his worked so flawlessly on her? She could never forget how her journey with Adam had first begun at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria (ABU K). He was in his final year (Level 400), right on the verge of their final exams, while she was a sophomore in Level 200.
Adam was completely out of her league; in fact, even at that tender age, Sa'ahar possessed an extraordinary aura and charisma that naturally drew people to her. Not just any man could approach her under the guise of romance. But Adam had sworn to himself that he would win her love. He possessed the twin gifts of a highly silver tongue and brilliant manipulation—the exact two weapons used by men of this generation to destroy young women. From the very first day he confessed his feelings to her, she had completely brushed him off, walking away and leaving him stranded just like all the other suitors who constantly flocked around her. But he relentlessly maneuvered, discovering every single detail about her life. He unearthed everything that fascinated Sa'ahar—her deepest likes and her absolute dislikes. He reshaped his entire personality to mirror her ideal man perfectly. Wherever he knew their paths would cross, he would deliberately perform an action guaranteed to impress her or align perfectly with her preferences.
He spent a vast amount of time stalking her and studying her life before he suddenly vanished completely from her sight. Human nature dictates that the heart naturally leans toward those who treat it with kindness and grows distant from those who neglect it; thus, from initially not caring at all, she gradually began to feel a deep, unsettling void in his absence. She didn't attend the same university as Afifa; Afifa was at Northwest University at the time. Moreover, during her time at ABU Zaria, Sa'ahar was never the type to mingle or keep a large circle of female friends; she possessed an incredibly reserved, quiet nature. The only time you would see her completely relaxed and flashing her perfectly straight white teeth was when she was around elderly mothers or little children. This distinct trait earned her immense love and popularity among the older women on campus, while simultaneously driving the men crazy with a desire to win her affection. Even those who knew she was elite and completely beyond their social status openly prayed to have her even as a platonic friend or academic colleague. Above all, she possessed a brilliant intellect and profound wisdom; these attributes made her highly famous across the campus.
It was only after a long period of absence that Adam finally resurfaced. Even then, she didn't instantly lower her guard, but there was a significant improvement in how she treated him compared to the past. He used this opening to deploy every ounce of his manipulative charm, exhausting his entire playbook before he finally succeeded in planting a powerful, deep-seated love for him inside her heart.
He hadn't lied to her about his background; he openly told her that his family was not wealthy. He lived with his mother, who single-handedly financed his education and general upkeep. He had expressed intense fear that her elite family would reject his marriage proposal. But because Dr. Mamman Girema was a man of extraordinary nobility and honor, he stood firmly behind the union, even when her brothers, Ya' Muhyi and Ya' Saifullahi, openly expressed their disapproval. That firm resistance from her brothers was what had kept Adam on edge, but Dr. Mamman ensured everything was executed smoothly without imposing heavy financial burdens or excessive demands on him—an act of pure humility that thoroughly shocked and amazed everyone. Given Sa'ahar’s extraordinary physical beauty, high pedigree, elite status, and class, absolutely no one ever imagined she would settle for a man of such low financial standing and social status as Adam. But she had never looked at material wealth; she was a person who never took the material world too seriously. The sheer love, devotion, and care that Adam's mother (Momee) constantly showered upon her was more than enough to solidify her devotion.
Curiously, at the very beginning of their marriage, Adam's mother had exhibited an intense, blatant hatred toward Afifa. She made it crystal clear that she detested her, and no one could uncover the reason behind it. Yet, overnight, everything completely shifted; she brought Afifa incredibly close to her heart, showering her with a level of affection that even Adam himself didn't receive from his own mother.
From the very beginning, a strange, unspoken animosity had existed between Afifa and Adam. Sitting there in the kitchen, various puzzle pieces finally began to align in Sa'ahar's mind. She began to trace the root causes and events that could have triggered such deep hatred, leading up to the nightmare scenario she currently found herself trapped in.
She quickly whipped up a simple breakfast, managing to force down some tea and chips before setting his portion aside and retreating to her bedroom.
She took a shower and dressed in comfortable, simple loungewear. She was currently on a temporary maternity leave from her workplace due to the severe, painful physical toll her pregnancy was taking on her body. She dressed in a simple gown and lay back down on her bed, completely refusing to return to his side, her mind racing with a million chaotic thoughts despite her desperate attempts to calm herself for the sake of her unborn child’s health.
She could hear him making frantic, hushed phone calls in the background, though she couldn't decode the exact words he was saying, followed by his heavy pacing back and forth. Nearly two full hours passed before he finally pushed her bedroom door open. Lying down, she lifted her head to look at him. He looked completely unhinged and disheveled. Their eyes locked. Today, he couldn't even manage to summon the fake, strained smile he had been forcing since yesterday; he simply bared his teeth at her in a horrific grimace.
"Aren't you going to get up so I can do the deep cleaning (sanitation) in here too?"
She rolled her eyes slightly, a wave of intense disgust filling her soul. She understood his hidden motive perfectly—he was desperately searching for the briefcase he had hidden. Therefore, maintaining absolute calm, she replied:
"Have you forgotten that every month I hire professional cleaners from back home to do this exact type of deep cleaning for me?"
"I know, but today I just feel a powerful desire to do it for you myself," he said, his voice laced with clear panic and frantic desperation.
She didn't utter another word to him. She stood up smoothly, gathered her duvet into her arms, and walked straight out into the living room. A cold chill was beginning to wrack her body, signaling the onset of a severe fever.
She kept her eyes locked onto the TV screen while listening closely to his frantic movements inside her bedroom until the sleep she had been denied the previous night finally overtook her. It was a shallow, agonizing sleep filled with suffocating nightmares and dark omens. Consequently, she woke up after a short while, her bladder completely full. She threw off the duvet, lowered her feet to the floor, and marched back toward her bedroom.
He was sitting flat on her bedside drawer, burying his face in both hands, clutching his head tightly as if hit by a violent, catastrophic migraine. He had returned every item back to its place, but the room was left completely tossed and disorganized. She knew this would happen; he utterly lacked the presence of mind or composure required to restore her room to its exact original state. She had deliberately left him to his frantic search just to see the absolute limit of his desperation, completely throwing him off her trail.
2. Summary of the Original Text
This dramatic excerpt from the Hausa novel Tabarmar Ƙashi by Safiyya Huguma centers on Sa'ahar, a brilliant, wealthy, and elite young woman who discovers a catastrophic betrayal by her husband, Adam.
While searching through Adam's belongings, Sa'ahar uncovers a hidden briefcase containing stacks of US dollars, falsified property deeds, court affidavits, and bank statements showing that Adam has systematically drained their joint bank accounts and illegally transferred ownership of all her lands and inherited wealth into his own name and the names of a secret family: a second wife (Warisha Khadiri) and two children (Fainusa and Adam Adam). Furthermore, she finds passports loaded with 5-year UK residency visas, proving that Adam intends to permanently flee Nigeria with his secret family using Sa'ahar's stolen fortune.
Despite being pregnant and suffering from severe stress and physical cramping, Sa'ahar exercises incredible emotional restraint. Instead of confronting him immediately, she performs ablution (alwala) to calm her panic, packs the documents back exactly as she found them, and sneaks out of the house to hide the incriminating briefcase with her mother (Maama) at her family home.
When Adam returns, he discovers the briefcase is missing and descends into a state of frantic, unhinged panic, turning the house upside down under the guise of "deep cleaning." Sa'ahar plays along flawlessly, maintaining her usual pampered, affectionate persona to catch him completely red-handed and force him into his own public downfall. The text ends with Sa'ahar reflecting on how Adam systematically targeted, studied, and manipulated her during her university days at ABU Zaria, utilizing a silver tongue to exploit her trusting nature and bypass the initial warnings of her protective brothers.
3. Analytics & Literary Analysis
A. Thematic Architecture
The Intuition of Kinship: The backstory reveals that Sa'ahar's sister, Afifa, had an instinctual, visceral hatred for Adam from the very beginning. This highlights the theme of spiritual discernment and protective family structures, illustrating that Sa'ahar’s absolute trust (aminci) blinded her to red flags that outsiders could clearly see.
B. Character Analytics
C. Stylistic & Narrative Techniques