Laliana arrived at her and her husband's mansion with the accompaniment of her mother and sister. A huge bandage was tied around Laliana's forehead. The trio had taken a cab to be where they were at that time.
Sally watched in amazement as the big bronze gates automatically open. That was probably the hundredth time she saw those gates but it seemed like the first time for Sally every time she came to visit her daughter. Merina could not stop laughing at her mother's naiveness as they headed for the main entrance to the house.
"Hey Beni I'm home!" Laliana shouted excitedly her voice bouncing on every wall of the expansive building. Beni could be seen climbing down the super shiny white marble tiled stairs. He had on a dark blue velvet Rob and golden slippers under his feet. His eyebrows furrowed and arms crossed against his broad chest in anger sending shivers down Laliana's spine.
"Laliana please ask your relatives to leave?" Beni said, his voice deeper slower and unusually spooky once he reached the end of the stairs. Laliana looked at her husband confused. "But they just came here, they are the ones who picked me from the hospital or have you forgotten I was admitted!" Laliana sadly said, tears already welling up her eyes. She was dissapointed at Beni for not coming to see her when in the hospital or even be the one to pick her up from there.
"Laliana I said make them leave now!" Beni exclaimed, almost shouting. "No I can't, they're my only family...are you calling security!" Laliana asked when she saw Beni talking through the house phone that was only used to deal with security matters. Beni uncaringly nodded at Laliana while he was still giving instructions through the phone. It didn't even pass a minute when two beefed up men in uniform showed up in the house. They escorted Merina and Sally who became strangely quiet with much ease as if they were moveable mannequins.
Laliana ran as fast as she could to try and stop the men from taking her mother and sister out of the house. She suddenly felt Beni's strong arms encircle her waist and she was roughly thrown to the side. She hit the side of the designer rosewood coffee table that was in the middle of the living room. The bandage that was covering her forehead started to become loose. Laliana could feel warm liquid dripping
down from her head to her nose. Touching it using her fingers, she saw it was blood.
"Beni...why are you doing this to me!" Laliana cried. "Oh shut up! Please just shut up!" You don't know how tired I am of you!" Beni said."Me!" Laliana said while struggling to get up from the ground. "I missed my one and only chance of becoming the king because of your foolishness!" "Are you trying to say... that my condition made you loose some kind of investment?" "That wasn't some kind of investment, I was going to be KING!"
Beni walked to where his wife was holding to the arm of a sofa that was near her just to stand straight. He could see how disoriented she was as her legs were staggering and her head hung low with blood painting her once snow white bandage a nice shade of red. He got so close to Laliana that he could practically smell the fear from her. Laliana could suddenly feel Beni grab both her arms roughly. He then slapped his wife hard across her pretty face. Laliana was crazy scared but surprisingly, she did not move from where she was.
"I want a real wife. I want a wife who I don't have to take care of like some kind of terminally ill person," Laliana kept quiet and painfully engulfed every hurtful word that came out her husband's mouth. "Your disease has crossed the line this time. My very influential allies were about to offer me a nice deal. When they saw me dancing with a woman who was not competent enough to mark her "special days", they immediately pulled the deal out. Do you know why they pulled it out? DO YOU?" Laliana timidly shook her head with difficulty as she continued to look at Beni's unique eyes.
"Good, it's because I married a careless,mannerless and stupid woman and that ultimately makes me one too," "Are you saying that I lack morals and...I'm stupid because I'm endometriotic?" "You have no respect for yourself and especially for me...do you even love me!" "Of course I do Beni, I love you," "Then why don't you let me fully enjoy my conjugal rights!" "You know I would if I wanted to but I can't. It's too painful for me, you know that," The two stared at each other briefly with their mouths shut. Mario by Franco Luambo Makiadi could be heard being played slowly and lowly in the Hi-fi system.
Laliana closed her eyes and let her head sway slowly to the beats of the song. Beni watched his wife in awe as her graceful neck moved side to side like a majestic cobra. That was always what attracted him to her. He remembered the first time he saw her in a night club where she was working as one of the back up dancers of a local Rhumba artist. More than five young women danced the same dance moves behind the artist but someway somehow Beni got hypnotized by only Laliana's way of artistic movement.
Beni saw more than just beautiful hands and legs moving left and right in a seductive manner. Beni saw a priceless painting that portrayed a thousand stories being carefully painted every time Laliana danced. It was as if she changed into a supernatural being while dancing, a majestic supernatural being. The song finally ended bringing the two back to earth.
"I want a divorce!" Beni said acidly. Laliana could not believe her very own ears. A divorce meant an end to her marriage with Beni. "A divorce, but I'm your ua (flower) ! You said that just the other night..." beating Beni's chest using her both hands she continued, "yes you did!" She went ahead and hugged Beni who still had his grip on her arms.
"Get off of me, don't you get it, I am tired!" Beni said as he tried to get himself out of Laliana's embrace which was surprisingly strong. "Please don't be tired of me love, nakupenda ( I love you)," Beni pushed Laliana away from her so hard that she hit the lower corner of their seventy two inch flat screen television causing it to fall down on her. Laliana did not realise that her head was throbbing until she hit that television. Her vision gradually became blurry as her sense of consciousness slowly faded away.
"Put your hands up where I can see them! You are under arrest... LALIANA!"those were the only words Laliana heard before she blacked out.
