Bimpe: “Jesus”! She screamed. She ran out to where the housekeeper was still crying, and held her by the shirt.
Bimpe: “What did you do to Alhaji, what did you do to my husband?” she yelled shaking the woman.
Housekeeper: “I swear, I did not kill him. He was supposed to be with Alhaja Zainab, I gave them their food and retired to my quarters, but received a call from here asking for snack, it was a strange call because Alhaji doesn’t eat by 11:50 pm, I came here and saw him like that” she said amidst sobs. By this time, someone had called the police, Bimpe could hear their siren. She rushed back inside and saw the wives on the floor wailing.
Bimpe: “You murderer! Were you so mad that he loved me and showered me with gifts that you could kill him?” You wicked old woman, didn’t you enjoy Alhaji for years, why couldn’t you allow me enjoy my husband” she wailed, pointing at Alhaja Zainab. The police van drove into the estate, and parked in front of Alhaji’s house. They went into the house; soon the coroner came too and began to take down preliminary notes.Right there in the house, just next door, the police set up a make shift interrogation room and began to call in people in the house one after the other. They called the housekeeper before anyone else, since she found the dead body.
Detective 1: “Woman, tell us what happened here?”
Housekeeper: “Yesterday at 8pm, I served Alhaja and Alhaji their dinner, and stocked the refrigerator in the kitchen with the wine they requested for, and left, then…”
Detective 2: “Holl’up holl’up, are you saying you last saw Alhaji Dambazzau with a woman, in the person of Alhaja Zainab?”
Housekeeper: “Yes it was her night to spend with Alhaji, I left them together”
Detective 1: “Was there any other person with them, his body guards?”
Housekeeper: “They are always dismissed when any of the wives are with him, I saw nobody but the two of them”
Detective 2: “Go ahead with your story”
Housekeeper: “Then at 11:50 pm, a call came in the housekeeping quarters, I received it and a woman asked me to bring a snack. It was a strange request, Alhaji doesn’t eat snack by that time of the night, not even when he is with his new wife. I thought it was Alhaja on the phone, so I went. Reaching the house, I saw Alhaji in a pool of blood, I screamed and screamed”
The detectives began to scribble in their notepads, afterwards they dismissed the housekeeper and called in others, the other wives were sleeping, even the children who were resident at the estate, they all came out when they heard the scream. They also interrogated the security men at the gate of the estate, who told the detectives that no visitor was in the estate as at 7pm, and none had come to the estate since then. Also, none of the residents left the estate after 7pm. Bimpe was called in after the children; she was still in her sleeping robe, her eyes were swollen from crying, and she was still carrying her bed hair, she was the perfect picture of grief.
Detective 2: “So madam, what happened here today” Bimpe began to sob, phlegm mixed with tears rolled down to her robe.
Bimpe: “I don’t know how it happened, I know I slept and woke up to the sound of a scream. I rushed out of my house and saw people gathered in front of my husband’s house. We should ask Alhaja why she killed our husband; I just married him and have not even enjoyed him enough. He still had so much to offer to the world, how people can be so cruel. The murderer must be brought to justice”
Detective 1: “Did you kill Alhaji Dambazzau?”
Bimpe: “My heart is too pure to hold such evil intention, all I have been preoccupied with, is taking care of Alhaji, you see, Alhaji married me because he wanted to live longer, anytime I am with him, he feels younger. He once said I was good for his heart rate. He has shown me nothing but love. But Alhaja has been bitter since I got married to Alhaji, yesterday he bought me a gift, Alhaja was watching and I saw the hatred in her eyes, I was even scared. Also she once told me that if Alhaji dies, she would make sure I got nothing. Oh God, how would I have known that she planned to kill him” she began to wail loudly. The detectives looked at each and began to scribble tentatively in their notepads.
Detective 2: “Did you see Alhaja go into Alhaji’s house?”
Bimpe: “Yes, I saw her go in at about 7pm, but I slept around 10 and didn’t see her leave before then”
Detective 1: “Alright, let’s hear from others, we will contact you. In the meantime, you must not leave the state till our investigations are complete” Bimpe left the house still crying, she walked slowly to her room, while everybody looked at her and wondered why she was taking it the hardest.
Woman 1: “Perhaps Alhaji promised her something, and now that he is dead, he cannot fulfill his promise”
Woman 2: “perhaps Alhaji has not updated his will, now she will be left with nothing” They all speculated. Alhaja Zainab was the last person to be called in, she had been crying silently. But now she was also scared, Alhaji died on the day she was to spend the night with him, and the housekeeper saw them last together.
Alhaja: “I did not kill Alhaji” she said immediately she came into the room. The detective kept quiet and just stared at her.
Alhaja: “I didn’t kill him, even though he married a new wife, I am his first wife, and I was here when he married two other wives, why would I kill him for one more wife?” They still did not say anything to her, but they started scribbling again, in their notepads.
Detective 1: “If you didn’t kill Alhaji, who did, tell us. You must know, you were the last one with him”
Alhaja: “The truth is that, I was supposed to spend the night with Alhaji, but after dinner, we were not connecting. This has been the problem since he married that little wench. He spends all his energy on her and has none left for us. Then he asked me to leave that he wanted to go through some of his documents.”
Detective 2: “And this annoyed you greatly, yes?”
Alhaja: “It did, but not enough to kill him”
Detective 2: “Anger is deadly, when it lays hold on you, you lose touch with sense, until you have destroyed the object of your anger”
Alhaja: “Please, I did not kill Alhaji, dan allah” she began to cry.
Detective 1: “We will get back to you, we advise that you do not leave the state till our investigation is complete” They said and packed up. The coroner ordered the paramedics to take the body to the hospital.
Coroner: “Death was caused by the stab to the chest which obviously penetrated the heart. Also the cut wounds on the arms show there was struggle. The arm wounds were close range, means that Alhaji Dambazzau knew his assailant” he explained his findings to the detectives and they scribbled in their notepads. Soon the whole security team cleared off the estate leaving its residents to their mourning.
That same day, burial preparations began in earnest till 7am in the morning. Alhaja was beginning to feel a bit relaxed since the detectives did not carry her with them, now she was looking forward to the reading of Alhaji’s will and testament. The thing that gladdened her heart was the thought that Alhaji had not foreseen his death; therefore he had not updated his will to accommodate his latest wife. Also she, Zainab, was the wife of his youth; she married him when he was still finding his footing in politics and the business world, so she expected that she and her children would get the lion share. She made a note to call her eldest son, Yusuf, who was in the United States, to come back home. So she threw her heart into the preparations. As expected, she kept Bimpe away from the preparations, and she told herself that as soon as the dust was settled, she would throw her out back to the gutters where Alhaji picked her from.
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After washing the body, Alhaji was wrapped in, three, white linen and transported to the mosque which he built at Obalende. Bimpe dressed in a black jalabiya with a veil covering her head, she went with the family to the mosque in a separate car. On her way, a call came into her phone.
Bimpe: “Meet me by 8pm this evening, at the usual location, don’t be late” she said simply and hung up. The funeral was to be held at the open courtyard in the mosque, dignitaries had come from all over Lagos and outside Lagos to attend the burial. Bimpe scanned the audience; she was watching a tall burly man who kept looking at her, that she didn’t realize when Dominic was by her side. He held her hand and turned her to face him.
Dominic: “I can bet my life that you killed Alhaji. I would never think you capable of such, you deceive people with your cool and almost vulnerable exterior, but when I heard of your marriage to Alhaji, I knew you could sting like a black widow”
Bimpe: “What the hell are you talking about, I couldn’t have killed Alhaji, he was good to me, and I am not just talking about finances. He was great in bed, he made sure that I climaxed every time, he was not pretentious, he was open to any fetish I introduced, I was his muse. That is what I never had with you, you only hump and grunt in bed till you are spent, not bothered if I was satisfied or not. So I would gain nothing by killing him”
Dominic: “You met him at that dinner, didn’t you? You are just a whore” he spat and Bimpe gave him a resounding slap.
Bimpe: “Respect my husband, you urchin. You will regret what you have done here, I promise you” she said and walked away. While the prayer was ongoing, a police van drove into the prayer ground, blowing siren. The wives, including Bimpe who were standing at the front, close to Alhaji’s body turned in surprise. The two detectives from earlier came out and walked straight to the wives.
Detective 1: “Alhaja Zainab, you are under arrest for the murder of Alhaji Dambazzau” he said and shoved an arrest warrant to her face. The media men who were given exclusive rights to cover the funeral went into frenzy, they had just struck gold.
Alhaja: “Dan allah, I did not kill me gida” she wailed as she was handcuffed and taken away.
People felt the police should have waited till after the funeral before arresting Alhaja Zainab. But soon, they were more concerned about why Alhaja killed her husband of many years. Bimpe watched the whole show with detachment; she could not wait to leave the funeral. So, as soon as the prayers were done, and Alhaji’s body carried into a car that would convey him to the graveyard, she entered her car and left. She drove off oblivious of a car that fell in line behind her, tailing her all the way to the house.
At the police station, Alhaja was being forced to confess to the crime of murder. She called Barrister Demba, who happened to be Alhaji’s lawyer, but he refused based on a conflict of interest. She had called her son and he was on his way to Nigeria. The other wives abandoned her because they didn’t want to associate with an alleged killer, they didn’t want to be fingered as accomplices. Alhaja called on the help of her friends, they hired a celebrity lawyer, a senior advocate of Nigeria. First they arranged her bail hearing. But bail was denied, someone higher up had called to make sure she was not bailed. All the rich friends and business associates of Alhaji Dambazzau believed Alhaja to be the culprit; she had the means more than any of the wives. They believed she felt betrayed by Alhaji for marrying other wives and even someone young such as Bimpe, so they wanted her to pay for her crime with no leniency. This group of friends was also pushing for an early trial, so trial was set for a fortnight, and Alhaja was to remain in prison throughout the period of trial.
At 8pm, Bimpe dressed in a black jalabiya which had a hood attached to it, and wore rubber shoes which left no foot prints. She drove out of the compound to a deserted place to meet with a man, and this time also, she was being followed and was oblivious to it.
Early in the morning, of the next day. People gathered around a man dressed in a black suit, he was lying in the pool of his own blood and body fluids; he had a knife buried in his stomach. He was already dead and rigor mortis had already set in. Soon the police arrived, with an ambulance team and a coroner. They closed off the place as a crime scene, and set to do preliminary investigation. After a few hours, the case of the dead man was transferred to the division handling Alhaji’s murder case. This was done because, it was found that the dead man was indeed one of Alhaji’s body guards, also, the knife wound was identical to that of Alhaji’s. This meant that he was killed by the same knife used in killing Alhaji. The police suspected that he was the one who actually stabbed Alhaji, and he was killed by whoever contracted him, as tying up loose ends. But the police were baffled by the fact that Alhaja was in prison, was the culprit of the murder, still out there? They wondered. But given Alhaja’s affluence, they concluded that her boys had taken the initiative to tie up loose ends, therefore killing the bodyguard they used. The police held a press conference to intimate the public about the recent developments, for the case was a high profile one, and there was public outcry for justice to be served. Alhaja was not someone who was loved, there were families she had thrown out of her properties, there were girls she had destroyed their lives because they held Alhaji’s interest, all these people, came together and protested on the streets, up to the gate of the prison where she was held. They believed she was capable of killing Alhaji and wanted her to face the consequences of her crime. All these, put a pressure on the police, they didn’t want the public’s ire, so they were in a haste to seal the case and secure a sentence for Alhaja. The press conference was held at the police station gate, both pressmen and ordinary masses gathered to hear about the case. The state prosecutor gave a speech where he linked the dead man found and the murder of Alhaji Dambazzau.
Prosecutor: “This conference is held in respect to the ongoing case of alleged murder of Alhaji Dambazzau by his first wife, Alhaja Zainab Dambazzau. We have other evidences to support our belief that she murdered her husband out of jealousy and deep seated hate for his betrayal. These evidences will be revealed during the trial. Aside that, we have also found the dead man to be one of Alhaji Dambazzau’s body guards, the same knife that was used in killing Alhaji, is the same knife he was killed with. The only conclusion is that he was contracted to kill Alhaji and now, his contractor is cleaning house” the man concluded and gave room for questions. Dominic was the first to ask a question.
Dominic: “Prosecutor, what makes you so sure that the body guard’s death was caused by the defendant; after all, she is in prison. Shouldn’t this point to the possibility of the real culprit being at large?”
Prosecutor: “We cannot be 100% sure, that is what a trial is meant for. However, Alhaja is a woman of means; she could be in prison while her boys do the dirty job.”
Dominic: “If the police is not sure that Alhaja is the murderer, why are they not looking into other suspects, there were other occupants of the house as at the time of Alhaji’s death, why is no one investigating them”
Prosecutor: “Do you mean to teach us our work? Alhaja was the last person found with Alhaji, she was seen going into Alhaji’s house, and no one saw her come out. Besides we have one bit of compelling evidence to justify our claim, which will only be revealed in the court room. Look around you, these people you see have been affected badly by Alhaja, she is the killer” the prosecutor said vehemently. The crowd watched Dominic with derision; they wondered where he was coming from, and why he was supporting Alhaja Zainab, when everyone else saw her as the villain.
Woman 1: “Maybe he is one of her sugar boys, useless people” one woman in the crowd shouted and people who heard her, burst into laughter.
Bimpe watched all these, on her flat screen television, in her big living room. Ever since Alhaji died she was always on edge, but seeing Dominic on air, and remembering what he told her at Alhaji’s funeral, she became really uneasy. She stood up and began to pace the living room. She was pacing up and down when she heard the shouts of jubilation. She rushed out to the balcony and saw a G- wagon had driven into the estate and people were gathered around it. She sighted the other two wives and wondered what the fuss was all about. Then she saw the most handsome man she had ever seen, alight from the back seat of the G wagon.
Bimpe: “Oh my God, he is so cute” she said gazing at him, then he raised his head up and their eyes met.
Yususf was Alhaji Dambazzau’s eldest son; he left the shores of Nigeria after his secondary education,to the United states. Now he was back because his father was dead, and his mother was accused of murdering his father. It was not the type of welcome he expected to come home to, after his long sojourn in a foreign land. And the woman responsible for fingering his mother as the murderer was standing there, looking at him like she had seen a god. It was also bad that, she was the most beautiful girl he ever saw, and it scared him that as they gazed at each other, his heart skipped a beat. He looked away and went with his step mothers.
Alhaja Zainab was not finding it funny in prison. The kirikiri maximum prison was no place for a young woman, much more an older woman. She spent most of her days in the sick bay because, she has having high blood pressure. Her fair, luminous skin had darkened and become shriveled, her eyes had big bags that could hold a coin, and the extension wig she had on was dirty and matted. Her cell mates saw her as wicked. “How could you kill that poor man like that” some told her. While some others who were victims of wrong accusation, were hesitant in condemning her.
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The lawyer and solicitor in charge of Alhaji Dambazzau’s estate, Barrister Demba, called for a meeting, where the sole agendum would be the reading of the last will and Testament of Alhaji Dambazzau, it was to be held in Alhaji’s own house in the estate. That day, Bimpe knew she would meet Yusuf, so she was ready to turn on her charms. She dressed in a charcoal black, midi dress, which hugged her curves, and covered her hair with a silver hijab. She wanted Yusuf to feel her presence when she arrived, so she took her time, wanting to be the last to arrive. Alhaja Zainab was brought to the house in a Black Maria, she was wearing an orange jumpsuit, and her hands were handcuffed immediately she got out of the van. Yusuf’s heart bled when he saw his mother in that state, whatever hypnotic effect, Bimpe’s beauty had on him were immediately dismissed. So, when Bimpe sashayed into Alhaji’s living room, smiling specifically at Yusuf, all he saw was a she-devil, and the hate in his heart grew.
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Alhaja: “You dressed for the occasion, didn’t you? You little whore, too bad you will be getting nothing”
Bimpe: “If I get nothing, I will contest the will, because you seem so sure I will be getting nothing, did you falsify my husband’s last will?”
Yusuf: “Mother” he said with steel in his voice, then turned to look at Bimpe menacingly.
Barrister Demba: “When you all are done bickering, can we get to the business of the day?” He said as he brought out of his port folio, a big brown envelope.
Barrister Demba: “As you can see, the seal is not broken. This is the last will and testament of Alhaji Mustapha Dambazzau” He said and before them, broke the seal and brought out, a lone piece of paper. Everyone present looked on with anticipation; uppermost on their minds was what Alhaji had left for them, the room was electrified with tension. Bimpe got up abruptly, and walked to the kitchen, everyone turned to look at her receding figure with surprise. She poured coffee beans into the Scanfrost coffee maker.
Yusuf: “What, are you waiting for, Barrister?”
Barrister Demba: “Mrs. Bimpe Dambazzau, has to be here for the reading” he said. Bimpe came back after a few minutes, with a cup of coffee in her hands.
Bimpe: “Sorry everyone, I needed this, the tension here is palpable” she said’
Question: What is going to be Bimpe’s fate, will she get anything from Alhaji Dambazzau, or will she be thrown out of the estate. How would Yusuf avenge his mother, what is the fate of Alhaja
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