“Come and see, I swear this child’s eyes scare me. Then at night, I turn around and don’t find her where I laid her down. Truly, Alhaji, you should look into this matter before it gets out of hand.”

“Look Hafsa, I don’t like this kind of suspicion from you. The child hasn’t even completed forty days after birth, yet you keep saying strange things about her. Honestly, I don’t like it.”

“You haven’t even thanked Allah for blessing you with such a beautiful daughter who looks like an Arab girl.”

Quickly Hafsa cut him off, saying, “Alhaji, I have thanked Allah, the One who gave me a child after eight years of marriage. I was happy to conceive, if not for anything else, at least so that your relatives who had set a trap of hatred for me would stop now that I’ve gotten what they envied me for.

But alas, all my joy ended the day I went into labor with Miemie, because only I know the danger I faced in giving birth to her. And since her birth, only I know what I feel at night when we lie down.

This child’s beauty frightens me, because she doesn’t resemble anyone in our family line at all. To me, she looks exactly like Jasmine, the woman we met in Egypt when we went on vacation.”

Alhaji thundered at her, fuming, “Don’t you ever compare my daughter with that Jasmine who had traces of jinn, otherwise you will see my anger!”

In fury, Alhaji stormed out of the room, breathing heavily. Hafsa remained seated, holding her head, staring at Miemie with tears running down her face.

In a trembling voice, she said, “I beg you, Miemie, for the sake of Allah’s greatness, if you are not a human being, please leave our lives and our peace of mind. Don’t torment me. I can endure childlessness, but I cannot endure this—seeing you with this form. Miemie, please, help me and let me release the sorrow inside my heart.

I love you deeply in my heart, that’s why I don’t want you to face any harm. But your beauty is overwhelming, and I fear I won’t be able to bear the sorrow it might bring in the future.”

Suddenly, she felt herself kicked. Turning, she saw Miemie had raised her leg high, laughing.

Terrified, Hafsa said, “Miemie…” her eyes wide in shock 😱.

Miemie only looked at her and kept laughing. In panic, Hafsa began reciting Suratul Jinn. Then she saw Miemie collapse, closing her eyes as if she were asleep.

Shaken with fear, Hafsa rushed out into the living room and sat down, completely unsettled, not knowing how she would continue her life.

As she sat there, Alhaji came out of his room intending to leave. He saw her wiping tears off her face. Quickly, he walked to her side and asked, “Hafsa, what’s wrong with you?”

She lifted her head and looked at his face. “Nothing, Alhaji, it’s just worries. Please, just go to your work.”

Gently, he sat down and pulled her close, saying, “Hafsa, I don’t want you to trouble yourself with assumptions that aren’t true. Please, stop worrying. Miemie is your daughter; you gave birth to her. You shouldn’t be thinking bad things about her. Please stop, my wife.”

She nodded, showing she understood, wiped her tears, and said, “Alright, Alhaji, I’ll stop.”

He smiled, “Good, my wife. Now, get up and accompany me.”

With a smile, Hafsa stood up to escort Alhaji.

---

Flashback:

Malam Bukar was born in Kano, in Yakasau neighborhood, where he lived with his family. He was about seventy years old, with three wives. The first wife was Bahba Laure, with five children: Kabir, Suleiman, Hadiza, Sadiya, and Murja.

The second wife was Bahba Asabe, with four children: Abdulkadir, Mansura, Rashida, and Mansir.

The third wife was Inna Amarya, with two children: Mahmud and his younger sister Sa’adatu.

Malam Bukar’s house was big, since Allah had blessed him with some wealth, and because of his many family members, each wife had her own household.

There was peace in the house, though Laure and Asabe were close, while they distanced themselves from Inna Amarya. But she didn’t care much; her children were enough for her.

All of Malam Bukar’s daughters had been married off right after finishing secondary school. Even among the sons, some were already married. Only Mansir and Mahmud were unmarried.