7 Years Without a Child, Her Mother-in-Law Kicks Her Out and Makes Her Son Marry Another Woman

PART 2:

 So, why,  Doctor, 7 years of testing, prayer,  sacrifice, herbal tea that my mother  makes me drink and nothing? Aida, in a  couple, infertility comes from the  woman in only one out of three cases.  Another third comes from the man and  for the last third, we never find a  clear explanation. Do you mean Moussa  should also do the tests? That would be  the logical step.

 Yes, I already  suggested it to you 2 years ago. Do you  remember? His mother said that it would  be insulting, that a Sardinian man  doesn’t need his virility to be doubted  like that in a laboratory. I understand . Listen Aida, I can’t impose anything  on you, him, or anyone. But as long as  half of the couple has not been  examined, no serious medical  conclusions are possible.

 Remember that . None. I see, I see a closed door. A  door that someone closed voluntarily a  long time ago. Who would have done this ?  The Coris do not give names, Sornakumba , they give paths. What I see is that  this woman who lives under your roof  carries an old blockage within her.  Perhaps jealousy from her own family  even before her marriage.

 I knew it. I knew it from the beginning . This girl was never made to bear my  son’s children.  Here is some holy water. Make this  woman drink it for 7 days in a row  without her knowing it. It is important . And the blockage will be lifted or  the truth will reveal itself.  May you bless you, you alone tell the  truth in this city of false devotees.

 Big brother, Mom went to see Serine  Modou about Aida. What is this  charlatan again? Fatou, the maid, heard  him talking about it on the phone with  Sornahaawa. She says that Aida is  blocked by an evil spell. My mother is  going to drive me crazy. I will talk to  her tonight. Moussa, and if for once  you let her talk until the end, she may  also have other ideas for the business  with Serind.

 What does Serin’s business  have to do with my wife? Nothing.  Nothing. Forget what I said. Listen to  me carefully, Awa. Serin wants this  partnership more than anything. His  fabric business has stalled for 2 years . He needs us. If Moussa marries  Binetta as his second wife, the  contract will be worth double, maybe  triple, and most importantly, I will  finally have my grandson.

 And Aida, she has been here for 7 years  in Kumba, she has always respected you.  Respect does not make business Awa.  Aida will stay in her place as long as  she can keep it. Otherwise, there is  always a door that opens onto the  street. Moussa. What a coincidence, and  his daughter is having dinner right  here. Sit down with us, let’s see.

 Don’t be shy.  Of course. Good evening Binetta.  Good evening Moussa. Your mother told  me much about your business sense.  She always exaggerates a bit, my mother . Not this time, Moussa, I saw your  numbers. You are a man on whom we can  build something solid. Put down your  phone, my son. Enjoy the moment.

 Aida  will understand. You are coming home  late. I learned from your cousin Day  that you had dinner at the Corniche  with Binetta and her father.  It was a trap by my mother, Aida. She  organized it without telling me. I  didn’t ask for anything.  But you stayed there. You could have  left.  Sering was there too.

 He is an  important partner. I couldn’t just  stand up like a sulky child in front of  him.  You didn’t even answer my call. Aida,  listen to me. Nothing is happening.  Nothing will happen. You are my wife,  the only one, I promise you.  I want to believe you, Moussa, but in  this family, promises have a very short  lifespan.

 Did you come? I was afraid  you wouldn’t come.  Babakar, we can’t go on like this. Your  mother has plans for me, big plans.  I know, she wants to marry you to  Moussa, my own brother.  My father insists too. The contract,  the family honor, all that. I have no  say in the matter, Babakar, you know  that well.  So say no,  tell them you don’t want to.

 And what will you say? That you love  your brother’s future wife? Do you  think that will fix anything? Let the  family know that the Sar family  receives their request with honor.  Binetta and Moussar’s marriage is  blessed by both our families. Amen. If  I had been warned, Mamkumba, that my  presence would disturb, I could have  not come with the biss Aida, my

 daughter, it’s not against you, it’s  for the continuity of the family. You  will remain the first wife, the eldest.  It’s a great honor, not a punishment.  Moussa, look at me. Tell me you didn’t  agree to this without asking me.  Aida, not here. We’ll talk about it at  home, please.  No, we discuss it now or never talk of  it. Aida 7 years old Mousa.

 7 years  that I’ve been getting up at 5am to  make your breakfast. For 7 years I’ve  defended your mother to my sisters when  she disrespects me. And you, you agree  to marry another woman without even  consulting me? It’s not that simple.  The contract with Serind represents  half of our turnover for next year.

 If  I refuse Binetta, my mother says that  Serin is retiring and my father’s  company that I took over after his  death will collapse. Babakar loses his  job. The 20 warehouse employees lose  theirs  and my heart Moussa, how much does it  weigh on your scale? I love you Aida.  That has never changed and it never  will.

 Binetta will only be a paper  marriage, a business marriage. You will  remain my wife, the real one, the one  of my heart. Do  you know what we say back home? The  boubou that is lent always ends up torn  between two hands. One day, we will  have to choose Mousa. And on that day,  I am not sure that you will choose me  again.  Aida, I promise that nothing will  change between us. Nothing.

 You are  promising a lot of things tonight. I  hope that Y there hears you because I  don’t know if I should listen to you  anymore. My daughter, I won’t tell you  that what they’re doing is right. It is  not right. But I will tell you  something that my own mother told me.  No one can take away a woman’s dignity,  except herself, if she decides to lower  herself to please those who despise her .

 If I leave, if I move on, you will  depart with your head held high, not  running like a guilty soul. But don’t  leave yet, my daughter, not before you  know the whole truth. There are things  in this story that don’t smell good. A  mother who runs to the marbou instead  of having her own son treated, that  smells of fear, not certainty.

 What are  you thinking, Y?  I think that a woman who is afraid of  the truth is a woman who already knows  it. May this union between Moussaar and  Binetta Gagne bless him and grant them  numerous and pious descendants.  Auntie Aida, you don’t have to stay  until the end, you know. If I leave now

, the whole meddina will say that I  left crying with jealousy. I will stay  until the last drum. After that, I will  cry at home in my bed where no one is  watching me. Aida, I am glad you came.  It shows everyone that you are a woman  of value who accepts her fate with  grace.

 It is not my fate that I accept,  Mamkumba. It is yours that I watch  unfold. O Allah, I am not asking you  for a child tonight. I just ask you for  the strength to wake up tomorrow  without hate in my heart. Hm. Fatou,  first pour Binetta some coffee. She

 must be getting her strength in the  morning. Don’t worry, Fatou, I can  still pour myself. Auntie Aida, are you  sure you’re okay? You seem so tired  lately. I am doing very well, Binetta.  Better than you think. Hey. Aida, my  daughter, I’ve watched you for weeks.  You are carrying a burden that I know  well.

 I went through the same thing  with my first husband. May he forgive  him.  You have been through it too, so many  marriages, an imposed co-wife, a  mother-in-law who prayed for my  disappearance rather than for my  pregnancy. Today, I sew bridal boubous  for other women and I have never been  so free. Remember this, my daughter,  the day they chase you away because  that day will come, I know it, I saw it  coming at my house, my door will always  be open to you.

 Why do you say that?  You hardly know me. Because a woman  recognizes another woman who is still  standing in the storm. It is  unmistakable. At that time, where does  she go without even taking the car from  home? The bad guys Moussa, I am  pregnant. Alhamdillah. Finally, finally

 a grandson in this house. I knew it. I  knew the blockage came from the other,  not my Binetta.  But you have only been married for 6  weeks, Binetta. Are you sure about the  date? The doctor said 8 weeks, “Moussa,  these things are never exact to the day , you know very well. 8 weeks doesn’t  fit Binetta. It doesn’t fit at all.

 Fatou says she saw Aida enter Binetta’s  room yesterday afternoon. The next day,  her necklace disappeared. Explain  yourself, I haven’t set foot in this  room since the Mamumba wedding. Fatou,  look at me and repeat this lie to my  face. I saw you, Auntie Aida, around 4  p.m.

 Mousa, at 4 p.m. yesterday, I was  at the market with my mother and Aunt  Raya. 20 people can confirm this.  Aida, I don’t know what to think. Maybe  there was some confusion. Confusion  Moussa, you doubt me in front of  everyone over a necklace. A jealous  woman is capable of many things Aida.  Especially when she sees someone else  doing something she’s never been able  to wear.

 I don’t want a thief under My  roof, Aida. 7 years of sterility and  now the theft. That’s enough. I didn’t  steal anything, Mamkumba, but I can  clearly see that the truth never had a  place in this house.  Mom, we can’t throw her onto the street  without proof.  This is my house, Moussa, built by your  father, maintained by me.

 If she stays,  I’m the one who’s leaving. You don’t  need to chase me away, Mamkumba. I’m  leaving on my own. But remember what  I’m going to tell you. The day the  truth comes out in this house, remember . Remember that you were the one who  closed the door first. Pack up your  things and get out of this house. Aida,  7 years.

 7 years I’ve endured you for  nothing. Mam Kumba, please, where do  you want me to go at this hour? It’s  raining. The sky is crying for you.  This is already more than you deserve.  Be careful not to slip, Hey, that would  be a shame. 7 years of silence to get  to this one. I wasn’t expecting you  this night, but I was expecting you. So

 much so, I have nothing left. No home,  no husband to defend me, no honor in  front of the medina. You still have  your head, your two hands, and a friend  who has a sewing workshop that needs a  second pair of skilled hands. Honor, my  daughter, is not what others say about  you.

 It’s what you know to be true  within yourself, even alone, even in  the dark.  My mother, I have to go see her. She’ll  be worried  tomorrow, my daughter. Tonight, you  sleep. Just one night, without having  to fight anyone. Aida, your mother had  a blood pressure drop last night when  she learned what happened to you. We  were very scared. Yaï, sorry, sorry.

 I  shouldn’t have left you alone for so  long with all this on your mind. It’s  not your fault, my daughter. It’s my  mother’s heart that couldn’t bear to  know her daughter was out in the rain  like a stranger. I just need medication  for attention. The doctor said it’s not  serious if I take good care of myself.

 So I’m going to work with Tantaya and  I’m going to pay for your medication  myself like a woman who can stand up  for herself, not like a woman who’s  been chased away. Oh Rohaya, who did  this embroidery? It’s extraordinarily  fine. She’s my new partner. Aida has a  gift, believe me.

 In 2 years, she’ll be  dressing all the brides in Dakar.  Tantreaya always exaggerates a little.  Aida, I’m coming back especially for  you. My cousin told me that you sew the  most beautiful wedding boubous in the  neighborhood now. Thank you. Give me  your measurements. We’ll make you  something that the entire medina copies . Silence, silence.

 I was  told that you embroidered the boubou  that Sornaba wore at her daughter’s  wedding. A work of art of rare elegance .  Thank you, she said. It’s between who  taught me everything. What can I do for  you?  Two boubous. For my daughters for the  tabasquie. But I admit to you, young  lady, that I came as much for the order  as for the pleasure of conversation.

 Is  it fair to say that, in your opinion?  It’s fair to  say, she said. But a woman who is  barely mending her torn heart is not  very good at conversation these days.  So, I’ll wait, as with any beautiful  and elegant woman who deserves time to  be tailored properly. Take your  measurements for the boubous.

 The rest,  we’ll see in time. We’ll see in time.  She’s agitating herself, coming to  court another under the guise of buying  boubous. My daughter, you don’t even  realize your worth. I’m not even  officially divorced yet, aunt. It would  be dishonest to listen to that kind of  talk now.

 Dishonest towards whom? A man  who left you in the rain without a word ? My daughter, you owe your dignity to  yourself, not to a marriage that has  already broken you once. You don’t have  to close the doors to yourself. Just  look at them, without feeling guilty.  We’ll see. Tantra, we’ll see. We’ll see . The demon Aida is already agitating.

 Yes,  I heard what happened. The whole town  is talking about it. I had to see you.  I can’t keep quiet anymore. Doctor Nour ? What do you want to tell me that you  couldn’t say in 7 years of therapy? 3  years ago, I had Moussa sign some tests  discreetly, without his mother knowing,  at his request because he was starting  to have doubts too.

 The spermogram  revealed moderate oligospermia, a count  clearly insufficient for easy natural  conception.  What? Moussa knew and he let his mother  humiliate me for 3 years knowing that.  Not exactly. Mamumba found out the  results in rummaging through her son’s  belongings. Instead of accepting it,  she paid the former administrator to  make the official file disappear and  convinced Moussa to keep quiet to  protect the honor of the Sars men by  promising him that it would be settled  discreetly with a second, younger wife

 with better chances. 7 years doctor 7  years bringing alone the shame of a  problem that was not mine. Why didn’t  you tell me before? Medical  confidentiality bound me to Moussa, not  to you legally. I begged Mamumba for  months to tell you the truth. She  threatened to have me struck off the  medical register if I spoke.

 I was  scared, Aida, and ashamed. That’s why I  came today. I kept a copy of the  original file. Here it is. Aida. Keep  this paper safe. You don’t brandish the  truth in anger. You bring it out at the  right time for the right people. I  could destroy everything, Aunt Oaya.  Their entire house, their contract,  their marriage, their honor in a single  gesture.

 You could, but will that give  you back your tendencies? Will that  give you peace? No, but it will do  justice. And there’s something else,  aunt, Binetta’s pregnancy dates don’t  match. 8 weeks I was married for only 6  weeks when the announcement was made  and I saw him sneak out one night to  get into a car behind the villa. Do you  think this child might not even be  Mousa’s? I don’t know yet, but I’m  going to wait.

 Wait for the right  moment, as you say, on the day of the  baptism, perhaps in front of everyone,  just as they humiliated me in front of  everyone. Babakar, we have to stop  seeing each other, even to talk. Your  mother is starting to look at me  differently.  My mother looks at you like the trophy  she paid for, Binetta. Not as a person.

 And how do you look at me? Like a  problem that you want to make disappear  now that I might be carrying your child . Don’t  say that so loudly, brother. If my  mother finds out,  then shut up too, Babakar, like  everyone else in this house, shut up  and smile for the ceremony.  Hello N Fatou, how is Aida? She is  doing very well, Moussa, better than  when she lived under your roof.

 In any  case,  I did not defend her that evening. I  regret it every day since.  Regrets do not repair anything, my son.  Only actions can repair. If you are  truly sorry, one day you will have to  find the courage to do more than just  talk at a market stall. Moussa, I  learned from a contact at the tax  office that your warehouse has debts.

 You never mentioned them to me. Is that  true? What? Old debts inherited from my  father, it is nothing that threatens  the contract we are preparing. I hope  for the good of my daughter and my  future grandson. I did not give my  daughter to a man whose business is  silently collapsing. As is his  reputation.

 If the Rumors of this  stolen necklace story are true; what  rumor is more sine? The whole medina  talks of an innocent woman thrown into  the rain, Moussa. This kind of story  ruins a family’s name much faster than  a debt. Why are you crying, my daughter ? You carry the future of this family  in your belly. You should be beaming.

 It’s just the hormones, Mam Kumba,  don’t worry.  Binetta, look me in the eyes. This  child is my son’s, isn’t it?  Of course, Mam Kumba. Who else could it  be? Let everything be perfect, the  notables of Dakar will be there,  Serind’s partners too. This baptism  must mark the birth of a new big family  in this city.

 Mom, are you sure you  want such a visible event?  The bigger the event, Babakar, the  greater the honor of the family. Why  this question?  For nothing, Mom. For nothing. Are you  sure you want to do this one day?  Baptism, my daughter? This is a sacred  day, an innocent child’s day. It’s not  against the child Yi.

 He didn’t ask for  anything. It’s against the lies that  destroyed 7 years of my life and will  continue to destroy other lives if no  one says it out loud. So the three of  us are going. A woman alone, we can  easily destroy her. Three women  standing with the truth in their hands,  we don’t do that. I’m not going to get  revenge.

 I’m going so that the truth  finally has the right to exist in this  house. What are you doing here, Aida?  You no longer have a place in this  house.  I have as much a place here as anyone  else. Mam Kumba. I came to attend this  baptism as the whole Medina is  attending.  Aida, let her stay a mother, please.  Strange, this child has neither the  Sars ‘nose nor Sering’s forehead; those  eyes, I’ve seen them before.

 in this  family. It’s true that this child looks  strangely like Babacar. No, look at the  chin. That’s enough. This is just  ceremonial gossip. It happens at every  baptism.  Stop, stop all this. I can’t keep quiet  anymore. Babakar. What are you doing?  Sit down,  big brother, forgive me. This child,  this child is mine.

 Binetta and I loved  each other even before Mom organized  this wedding. We’ve never been able to  stop.  Binetta, how could you dishonor our  family in front of the entire city like  this? 7 months Binetta 7 months that  I’ve called you my wife and you were  carrying my own brother’s child. Since  we’re on a day of truth, Mamkumba, I  have one to share too.

 A truth that  you’ve known for 3 years and that you  paid to bury. Aida, don’t do that. Not  here. Sperm test results Mousassar  dated 3 years ago. Moderate  oligospermia. 7 years Mamkumba, you let  the entire medina believe that I was  sterile, that I was cursed while your  own son’s file was hidden in a drawer  that you paid to have made disappear.

 Mom, is it true? All this time, you  knew and you let Aida bring this shame  on herself.  I only wanted to protect your name, my  son. Protect the honor of the men in  this family.  You destroyed an innocent woman to  protect a lie. Mom, there is no honor  in that. There is only shame. The  contract is canceled, Moussa, and take  my daughter away from my eyes.

 She has  caused enough shame for two generations .  Aida, I don’t even know where to begin  to ask for your forgiveness.  Start with the truth, Moussa, that’s  all I’ve ever asked for since day one.  I will not chase you away like you  chased Aida away from Mom. That’s not  what that Dad would have wanted and  that’s not what I want to become.

 But  you will never set foot between Aida  and me again. Never again.  I was so afraid, Moussa, afraid that  your father’s family would die with you . Afraid of what others would think. I  built one lie upon another and ended up  destroying the very thing I wanted to  protect.  Fear doesn’t excuse you, Mom, but I  still choose to forgive you one day.

 Not today. Today, I must first repair  what matters most. Your mother told me  that I would find you here. I saw what  you created with Tantokaya. It’s  magnificent, Aida, you are magnificent.  What did you come looking for, Moussa?  Forgiveness or just peace for your  conscience? I came to tell you that I  had my marriage to Binetta annulled  this morning in front of the imam and  the elders.

 I came to tell you that my  mother will never decide anything for  me again and I I came to humbly ask you , without demanding anything, if you  would ever consider taking me back. 7  years of silence, Moussa, can’t be  fixed in a day or a month. You’re going  to have to show me through your actions , not your words, that you’ve truly  changed.

 I’m not promising you anything  more than a chance to prove it to me.  That’s  already more than I deserve. I’m going  to seize this chance every day, for as  long as it takes. I brought some  mangoes from the market, apparently  everyone’s favorite here.  Hey, the model son-in-law who’s racing  for mangina won’t get over it. Let him  try.

 He deserves to be made fun of a  bit after all this journey.  I have some news, Aida. I saw Dr. Nour  last week for a routine check-up.  So what?  She also reviewed your old file. She  found a small, benign uterine polyp  never detected before. She removed it  the next day. Last week. A simple, safe  operation.  A polyp could really interfere with a  pregnancy.

 That’s  exactly what she said. And now, with it  removed and my treatment, there is no  longer any known medical reason, Allah  willing. 7 years of silence, my  daughter, one day of truth was enough  to change all. Not one day, 7 years of  patience, one day of courage, and a  whole life still to build, stone by  stone, truth by truth.

 And this time, I  promise you, with my eyes open in front  of witnesses, not hiding behind a  curtain in the rain. Never again will I  let silence speak for me. We say that  the truth is like oil in water. We can  cover it up, hide it, push it down as  much as we want. It always ends up  rising to the surface.