I realized I was in Buka's hut. What was I going to do now? Buka sat on a mat with a small table in front of him. He didn't even look up or even turn to see who just entered his hut. I felt like crying. All my plans were in vain now. How was I going to explain how I got here to him? Buka sat in his corner concentrating on what looked like a war plan. He stared hard at it, ignoring me. At last, he said, "Aren't you going to put off the fire on the stick?"
I dropped the stick and rushed to the pot containing water in his room to fetch water to put off the light. I poured enough water on the fire to make sure it was completely off. The water I poured on the fire started to spread towards Buka's laid mat. "Take these to wipe them!" Buka said and threw some clothes at me. They were the clothes I hid! I suddenly realized how powerless I was. I dried the floor with the clothes and tears began to stream down my face. I have been cheated! Why did I even believe Nana was going to help me. It looked like I fell perfectly into Buka's trap. What was I going to do now? I have never felt humiliated as such in my life.
"Spread the mat and sleep. We will talk in the morning" Buka said and left the hut. He didn't look angry but his features were stern. I didn't know what kind of fate awaited me in the morning. I laid on the mat unable to even wink. Buka knew how to make people's conscience torture them. He knew I was not going to sleep but ordered me to. This was a day I don't think I would ever forget in my life. Now, I would have no other choice than to marry the King. No, certainly not the King but a prince! Suddenly thoughts of the unknown man who helped me came rushing into my mind. Who was he? Was he sent by Buka to return me? Why didn't he want to disclose his identity to me? And what was he doing in that cave as at that time? I wondered. He ruined all my plans! I scuffed. I heard Buka whispering to someone outside the hut but I was too immersed in my thoughts to even think of eavesdropping. I laid wide awake on the mat until Buka entered again and said, "Sit up and let's talk. It seems you can't sleep"
I quickly sat down on the mat and faced him. I was not going to argue with him now, however, I was not going to give in that easily.
"Where did you think you were escaping to?" he said and waited for me to reply. When he realized I was not going to talk he continued, "do you know how the world works? It gives more power to the already powerful and strips off the power of the less powerful. No servant can beat a master. It only happens if the servant listens to the master. I gave you a chance to prove to me that you would listen to me no matter what, but you failed. You failed miserably! You know better than anybody what the punishment for dishonoring the King's decree is. Do you have any means of preventing the punishment?" "Papa, help me. I don't want to get married now"
"Can you even see the severity of this issue? Can you not think of the marriage for a moment? News of your sudden disappearance has reached the palace. I don't think it will be easy to escape punishment". "Do you want me dead?" I asked. I knew Buka doesn't want me dead. He will definitely toss his last coin to save, but how to have him assure me he was going to save me was now the issue.
"You won't die for escaping a betrothal decree. You will be taken to the palace to be a maid."
I felt a little relieved to hear that. Buka rose to his feet took a large pot and placed it on the entrance of the passage. That pot has always been in that corner. It has never been moved because it was so heavy. But Buka lifted and held it like it was the lightest he had ever held. After sealing the entrance, he came to sit beside and said; "Now the ball is in your court. You have at least till dawn to decide if you would want to marry or be a palace maid. The choice is all yours now."
"Will you be surprised if I choose to be a maid?"
Buka raised his eyebrows in surprise and looked fiercely at me. He was stunned. I didn't know what he was thinking but he looked like someone who just heard the scariest tale.
"Zui, why don't you want to marry now?" Buka asked.
"I don't want to join the royal family"
"So, you mean you will marry any man who is not a member of the royal family"
"And not from the aristocrats too"
"Why?"
"I can't have a happy family in the palace"
"Hmmm" Buka sighed. Looked calmly at me, with softening features, and said; "Your happiness in the palace will depend on you. If you obey the rules, you will be the happiest person in there, but if you don't, it will be a leaving hell"
"Do you mean all I have to do is to obey the rules?"
"And be smart as well. Control your tongue, which I know you are very good at, and live like you don't exist."
"Only servants can live like they don't exist! I am not marrying a prince. I won't marry a prince."
"Why?" "I don't want to share my man"
"Fair enough!" Buka recalled a conversation he had with Rwanwa, when they were newly wedded. "Buka" Rwanwa called him and said "I can't share my man with any woman. Can you promise you won't marry any other woman?"
Without hesitating, Buka replied; "I promise, on this day that I won't marry any other woman unless the circumstance is far beyond my control."
Truly, circumstances got beyond their control since Rwanwa couldn't conceive a child after several years of marriage. The pressure from Buka's family was so intense that he broke his promise to her. He then married Gjala, the daughter of an aristocrat family. Gjala conceived a child three months after she married Buka. Buka, even though was happy, could sense the pressure of Rwanwa. Gjala would intentionally pick up fights with Rwanwa and used her inability to conceive to taint her. Rwanwa would cry herself to sleep every night and act like she was doing well during the day. He decided to separate the women by building huts few meters away from his hut but on different sides of his land for them. Four years after separating them, Rwanwa came to plead with him to marry her friend Nwa to save her from being sold as a slave. Nwa's father had committed treason, so he was going to be lynched at southern border of the land. King Oyibo II had ordered that Nwa's mother and siblings should be sold as slaves. But Rwanwa pitied her friend and didn't her to be sold as a slave. Buka married Nwa to please Rwanwa. He built another hut for Nwa at another side of his land. Nwa obeyed Rwanwa and made peace with her until she, Nwa, became pregnant. Gjala and Nwa realized they were nothing near Rwanwa in Buka's eyes and became drunk with jealousy and decided to make life more difficult for Rwanwa. Their jealousy got to its peak when they realized Rwanwa had finally conceived a child. All of Buka's attention was switched to Rwanwa. Six months after Rwanwa gave birth to Zui, there was an outbreak of a disease in Wailand. Unfortunately for Buka and Zui, Rwanwa got infected and died. Nana, Buka's mother, took care of Zui since then. All these thoughts came rushing into Buka's mind after he heard what his daughter just told him.
"Am I going to join a long queue of wives or I was going to be the first and only wife?" Zui asked looking at Buka.
"You're going to be his first wife, but as to being his only wife depends on the circumstances that you may face together" Buka replied.
"Even some slaves marry more than one woman. You shouldn't be disturbed if he marries another woman. You shouldn't get jealous in case another woman joins you. Just make sure to get on his right side and you will be fine"
After a brief period of silence, Buka asked; "Have you made up your mind? Do you want to be a princess or a slave?" "What will happen if I want to be a princess now?"
"There's only one way for me to save you. I'll toss that coin to see if it will work. I am glad you've finally taken that path" Just then we heard a knock on Buka's door. He rose to his feet, peeped through his window, opened the door and went out. I heard everything that went on outside.
"News has gotten to the palace that your daughter, Zui has escaped? How true is it?" a husky male voice asked.
"She didn't escape. She came to me looking frightened because her hut caught fire in the middle of the night. Seeing how frightened she was, I made her stay here with me"'
"Where is she? The voice asked.
"Zui come out!" Buka ordered. I went out of Buka's hut and stood beside Buka with my head bowed.
"Raise your head!" the voice ordered. I raised my head. Mbigu, the second prince, has been sent along with four elders, four guards, two eunuchs, and two palace maids to find out if the news was true. "We have to bring her with us to the palace, to ensure her safety" Mbigu said. "We are both aware that the arson is likely to occur again. Until we find the culprit, we can't let our guards down" he continued with a smile. Somehow, Mbigu and Buka looked like rivals. They stared fiercely at each other. Everybody there could feel the heat and tension between them. "Papa, I will go with them. Don't worry, I will be fine" I whispered in a very low voice. I knew Buka heard me but he didn't like the fact that Mbigu was the one to lead me to the palace. Mbigu was highly known for his cunning nature. Buka would never entrust anything of his in his care.
"I'll bring her myself" Buka told Mbigu. "I'll bring her in the afternoon".