Chapter Four: WHAT FATUMA WANTED
After Miriam was discharged from the hospital, she returned home with Sarah in her arms and a heart full of gratitude. For the first time in years, she felt that the emptiness in her home had finally been replaced by something beautiful. Sarah was tiny, delicate and completely dependent on her, yet Miriam already felt that her daughter had given her a new reason to live. She spent her days learning how to care for the baby, waking whenever Sarah cried and falling asleep only after making sure that her daughter was comfortable. The difficult nights did not bother her. She had waited too long for this child to complain about sleeplessness.
Omar was happy whenever he held Sarah, although his happiness was never completely free from guilt. He had wanted a child for years, and now he finally had one. But the circumstances surrounding the child's arrival made it difficult for him to enjoy the moment fully. He had married Fatuma believing that Miriam would never become a mother, only to discover that Miriam had conceived around the same time he had taken another wife.
He knew that he had made a terrible mistake.
But instead of correcting it, he tried to convince himself that somehow the two marriages could work.
The family compound had enough space for two houses. Miriam remained in the small house where she and Omar had lived since their marriage, while Fatuma stayed in another house only a short distance away. The houses were separate, but they shared the same compound, the same gate and the same surroundings. Omar could move from one house to the other without leaving the family compound, and that arrangement was presented as a solution that would keep everyone together.
It did not take long for Miriam to realize that living close to Fatuma was going to be harder than she had imagined.
Fatuma had her own space, but she was never truly far away.
Miriam could see her hanging clothes outside.
She could hear Inaya crying when Fatuma gave birth.
She could hear Omar's footsteps whenever he moved from one house to the other.
And whenever Omar stayed with Fatuma for the night, Miriam knew.
There was nowhere for her to hide from the reality of her marriage.
Three months after Sarah was born, Fatuma went into labour.
Omar rushed her to the hospital, and his mother followed closely behind. Fatuma had spent months imagining the moment when she would give Omar the child his family had wanted, but when the pain of labour finally came, all her pride disappeared. She was frightened and exhausted, and for several hours she cared about nothing except surviving the pain and holding her baby.
Eventually, she gave birth to a girl.
They named her Inaya.
When Omar heard that he had another daughter, he smiled, but somewhere inside him he remembered Miriam and Sarah. He had once imagined becoming a father with one woman. Now he had two daughters born to two wives who barely tolerated each other.
Fatuma was happy that the baby was healthy, but part of her excitement was mixed with disappointment. She had secretly hoped for a boy. She believed that a son would give her a stronger position in Omar's family and make it harder for anyone to challenge her place.
Still, she looked at Inaya and felt her heart soften.
The tiny baby knew nothing about marriages, jealousy or family politics. She only knew the warmth of her mother's arms.
That realization humbled Fatuma for a moment.
A child was not a trophy.
A child was not an heir to be used in a competition between women.
A child was a life entrusted to a mother who had the responsibility to protect it.
Unfortunately, that understanding...