Farouk stared at Khalid with furrowed brows as I placed a lid over the flask and stepped out of the car.
“Who’s
that?” Farouk asked with an eager tone.
“Khalid,
Rasheedah’s fiancé,” I replied with a whisper as I joined Khalid.
Khalid
placed both hands in his jeans pocket and started to walk away to ensure that Farouk
wouldn’t hear what he was about to say.
When
he was confident that we were far away from where Farouk was seated, he whipped
his head up and greeted me with a wince. “Asalamu ‘alaykum, Rafiah. How have
you been?”
“Wa’alaykumu
salam. I’ve been trying to stay positive. You?”
Khalid
groaned. “I haven’t had up to three hours of sleep since the dreadful incident
happened. Where could Rasheedah be, and who the hell is behind this?” Khalid sighed
in frustration as he placed a hand over his head. “Your parents are not even
giving me the chance to speak to them. This isn’t fair. I’m hurting as much as
everyone is. But, unfortunately, it is my wife-to-be that got missing. On our
wedding day!” he screamed.
“They
are not listening to you because it is all your fault! We are in this mess
because of you and your family members. My family is simple and easygoing. We do
not involve ourselves in people’s businesses. We’ve been living peacefully until
Rasheedah got engaged to you. Discuss with your parents. You guys need to sit
down and analyse those you’ve offended. One of them is holding my sister
captive.”
“Rafiah,
please, you’ve got to listen to me,” Khalid said as sweat dripped down his
face. “I don’t know where your sister is, and I’m also trying hard to make sure
that we find her. I love Rasheedah. Do you know how it feels to lose your love
when you’re a minute from tying the knot? So please, let’s work this out
together.”
I
swallowed hard and nodded. “That’s fine. I guess we’ll talk over the phone. I urgently
need to be somewhere.”
“Where?”
Khalid asked.
“To
see your ex, Mutmainah. She’s also a suspect.”
Khalid
laughed incredulously as he glared at me. “Mutmainah? What has she got to do
with this?”
“Everything!
Rasheedah talked about how she keeps disturbing you to return to her. Don’t you
think she might have a plan?”
“You’re
saying that twenty-five-year-old Mutmainah would have the guts to capture
Rasheedah…because she is getting married to me, isn’t it, Rafiah?”
“Yes.
Look, I’m not a psycho. I’m just doing all it takes to find my sister,” I blurted
out as I walked out of his presence and returned to the car.
Khalid
kept staring at us with a shocked expression until Farouk drove out of the
compound.
About
five minutes later, I gave Farouk a shooting look. “We’re not crazy, right?”
“Of
course, we’re not! Don’t let anyone make you see yourself that way. We’re going
to study Mutmainah until we’re certain that she doesn’t have Rasheedah. Cést fini!”
“Yeah,”
I muttered as I scrolled through Mutmainah’s Instagram posts.
Mutmainah
wasn’t just the only daughter of a wealthy politician; she also had a great fan
base on Instagram. She promotes brands and shares pictures of memorable places
in Nigeria. And based on her daily schedule, she was currently at De Cuisine, having a meeting with some
of her clients and planning on taking more photos for her Instagram page.
Throughout
the short trip to De Cuisine, Farouk prepped me on how to spend time at the restaurant
without signifying that I was there on a unique motive.
At
exactly 03:15 pm, Farouk drove into the restaurant’s building and parked the
car. And there Mutmainah was, looking dashing as ever as she smiled
affectionately and talked to two men, dressed in suits.
“She’s
adorable, isn’t she?” I said as I stared at her through the glass walls.
Farouk
ignored my question. “You’ve got this, Rafiah! I believe in you,” he smiled at
me as I nodded in response and alighted from the car.
My
heart jammered in my chest as I walked towards the entrance. I took deep
breaths before stepping into the large room that smelled of lemon and raspberries,
and I smiled appreciatively at the waiter, who opened the door.
‘Rafiah, you’ve got this. All you
have to do is order a drink and secure a seat close to where Mutmainah is. She wouldn’t
even notice you’re here. She’ll…’ I thought when I heard
someone say the teslim.
I
whipped her head up in shock to see Mutmainah grinning at me. She looked
prettier in person.
Mutmainah
was dressed in a red gown with puffy hands, and her lips shimmered in red. I gingerly
lowered my eyes to catch a glance at her gold pointy heels. How could someone look
this perfect?
“I’m
sorry….can you hear me?” Mutmainah stared at me with confused eyes. However, she
still had a bright smile plastered on her face.
“Oh…pardon
me. I just can’t believe that I’m seeing you in person. You’re one of the few
personalities I admire on Instagram. You’re so beautiful…” I was saying when
Mutmainah pulled me into a hug.
“Oh,
you are beautiful! I couldn’t help but notice you when I stepped into the
restaurant. You have a lovely skin. Brown and smooth. This is the first time my
manager is choosing the right model for the shoot,” Mutmainah said as she
continued to stare at me.
I
chuckled. “Model? Oh, I’m not a model. I’m just to relax after a busy day.”
“My
bad. I’m sorry once again. But, please, can you join the shoot? You are
gorgeous. What’s your name?”
“Rafiah.”
“Great.
Rafiah, please, I need you to become one of the faces of Zurie Moisturizer. Not
free, obviously. Are you free? Can we have a drink and talk about random
things?”
“Err…okay,”
I said as Mutmainah squealed in excitement.
“Great.
I just found a new friend! What would you like? Here’s the menu…” she was
saying when my phone chimed in my bag.
I
brought it out and checked the new messages, certain that it would be from
Farouk.
What’s up? Have you guys met
before?
-
Farouk.
LOL. We haven’t! I’m also
surprised. She’s been gushing about my beauty and all that…
-
Rafiah.
Hahaha. I can see how you’re
blushing over there. Well, this is also a good strategy. Get to become Mutmainah’s
best friend and see if she’s hiding anything.
-
Farouk.
I honestly do not think she’s
hiding anything. I mean, look at her! So sweet and adorable. I was expecting to
meet a proud lady, but Mutmainah is really friendly. So I don’t think she
should be one of her suspects.
-
Rafiah.
We have to be sure before clearing
her name off the list. Better safe than sorry.
-
Farouk.
Okay. I’m hanging out with
Mutmainah till evening. After that, we want to go for a shoot with other models.
-
Rafiah.
BE CAREFUL.
-
Farouk.
Be careful? Would Mutmainah drive
elsewhere and hold me captive? Does she look like someone capable of doing
that? No wonder Khalid was staring at me like a psyc…
-
Rafiah.
I
was still typing when Mutmainah called my name. “Rafiah?” Mutmainah stared at
me and lowered her eyes to the phone in my hands. “Gosh. Have you been
listening to me?”
“I’m
sorry. I had to discuss an important issue with someone,” I explained.
“Your
fiancé?” she said with a smirk. “Or…are you married?”
“Well,
my fiancé to be.”
“Wow.
I love love stories. Tell me
everything about him!!!” she sipped from her watermelon juice and giggled
excitedly.
I
gingerly waved my hands at Farouk as I dropped my phone and started to talk. “He’s
amazing. Really amazing…”
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