Chapter 9, The Twins 2
Zainab stepped out of the bathroom with Afna by her side, both of them now dressed in matching purple nightgowns. After settling Afna into bed, she slipped on her jalbab and quietly made her way downstairs to the parlour. Ever since they returned home, she'd grown used to the unexpected guests that often gathered there—friends of Alamin and Atika, business partners, and others she barely knew.
What she didn't expect, though, was to find her brothers—Alamin and Yusuf—seated with Kamal, Mubarak's cousin and also a friend to she hadn't seen in three years.
"Oh, he's here?" she thought, surprised. She hadn't even known he had come from Kaduna. Then again, she'd been locked away in her room, lost in a storm of confusion and unanswered questions. Was Mukhtar truly not Mubarak? Was Zima not Zara? If they were, how had they survived? And why had her family told her Mubarak was dead?
She had planned to ask all these questions. But now, as she stood before them, Kamal's presence only stirred more uncertainty.
Before she could speak, Alamin looked up and said, "Zainab, please have a seat."
Wordlessly, she obeyed.
Kamal turned to her, his expression serious. "I came to tell you something important," he said quietly. "It was my brother who fabricated Mubarak's death."
The words hit her like a wave. She sat still, numb—but not shocked. She wasn't sure if anything could surprise her anymore. Not after the whirlwind of events that had already unraveled today.
___
Jamal was slapped by one of the officers before Yusuf stepped in to stop him. The officers exchanged tense glances before stepping out, leaving Jamal alone in the room with Alamin, Yusuf, Lukman, and Zainab.
They were all hurting—especially Yusuf, given that Jamal was his brother-in-law, and Zainab, for whom Jamal was not just a betrayer but also Mubarak's cousin.
Just yesterday, when Kamal revealed the truth about Jamal, they had called and asked him to come over this morning. Jamal came, assuming it had something to do with the long-delayed marriage talks with Zainab. But it wasn't. They had immediately started questioning him. When he refused to speak, they involved the police.
Her brothers had assured her that the body buried was never seen or examined them. Jamal and his family had already carried out the burial before they even arrived in Kaduna, informing the rest of the family only the following day. They collected the death certificate from Jamal and his relatives, and later moved Zainab and Lukman to Abuja.
Zainab couldn't look at him without trembling. This was the man who had put her through so much pain for years—all based on a lie. Alamin stood behind her, arms crossed, his silence loud. Yusuf's jaw was clenched tight, while Lukman sat quietly, observing them all.
"You better start talking, Jamal," Yusuf said coldly. "Why did you lie about Mubarak's death? Who was really buried?"
"I know, I'm sorry," Jamal apologized, his voice trembling. "I know what I did was unforgivable… but please—"
"We didn't ask for apologies," Zainab cut in sharply. "Just tell us what happened."
Jamal looked up, eyes glassy, his voice barely steady. "I didn't mean for it to go this far… After only Zainab and Lukman were admitted to the hospital, and there was no trace of Mubarak and Zara, someone else was brought in—an unidentified body. No family, no name… and I—I let them declare it as Mubarak's."
He couldn't finish. His voice broke, and he looked away in shame. A heavy silence hung in the air.
"You declared someone else dead, Jamal!" Alamin barked, his voice shaking with anger. "You fabricated his death! For what?"
"For her!" Jamal shouted, pointing at Zainab. His voice cracked as tears filled his eyes. "I did it for her!"
Zainab flinched but held her ground, refusing to look away.
"I thought… if she believed it, she'd mourn. And later, maybe she'd agree to marry me…"
The room went still.
No one spoke. The weight of his confession settled over them like a dark cloud.
Jamal looked down, defeated. "But it was all for nothing," he whispered. "Even with him 'gone,' you never looked at me… never cared. Not once."
"Are you sure you have nothing to do with Zara and Mubarak being missing?" Lukman asked Jamal, his voice heavy with suspicion. This was the one question that had brought him here, and it was the only thing that mattered now to him.
Zainab's gaze was sharp as she spoke. "Yes, answer us."
'This is what matters to us right now more than anything, so we can finally get to the truth about this whole Zara-Zima, Mubarak-Mukhtar thing' Zainab thought.
"No, no, I have nothing to do with that," Jamal confessed quickly, his eyes darting nervously.
Yusuf stepped forward, skepticism written all over his face. "How would we be sure about that?"
Alamin's voice was cold, firm. "Do you want to rot in jail, Jamal?"
"I swear I didn't," Jamal said desperately, his hands trembling.
Despite his repeated denials, everyone continued interrogating him. But there was no progress, no clue, not a single thing that could lead them to the truth.
Finally, they had no choice but to leave him there, unanswered questions hanging in the air like a cloud. Zainab and Lukman, especially, were left even more worried and concerned. How could their partners claim not to know them, yet still be planning to get married by the weekend?
___
Lukman and Zainab sat quietly in the parlour, both lost in their thoughts, each weighed down by confusion and uncertainty.
"So tell me," Lukman finally broke the silence, his voice low, "can a married woman get married again while still in her marriage?" His question was directed at Zainab, clearly referring to Zara—who was about to marry Salim while still married to him.
Zainab didn't respond. She stared ahead, unsure of what to say.
Just then, a voice interrupted their heavy silence. "Please… can I speak with the two of you?"
They both turned quickly, startled, to see Mrs. Amira standing just a few feet away in the parlour.
They were utterly taken aback. What was she doing here, and how did she find their house?
Lukman's expression hardened, his defenses immediately rising. "If this is about Zara and Mubarak, you should leave," he said coldly.
"Lukman, please don't say that," Zainab said softly. She then turned to the woman. "You're welcome here, ma'am."
Mrs. Amira gave a small nod, stepping forward. "I came to provide some clarity, to explain everything. You both deserve to know the truth and put an end to this confusion."
Lukman and Zainab exchanged a glance before sitting back down, their attention now fully on Mrs. Amira, waiting for her to continue.
Mrs. Amira took a deep breath before speaking. "The truth is… my children—Salim and Halima—are dangerous people."
The room fell silent. Lukman and Zainab stared at her in disbelief.
Was this some kind of trick? A scheme? Why would a mother speak so harshly about her own children?
Despite the doubts swirling in their minds, they remained seated. They had no choice but to listen, no matter how unbelievable the situation seemed.
"I need you both to listen to me carefully," Mrs. Amira said, her voice filled with desperation.
She inhaled deeply and then dropped the bombshell. "Zima is actually Zara… and Mukhtar is Mubarak. Everything you've seen and heard until now—it was all lies. The reason they never returned to their family isn't because they didn't want to. It's because… they can't even remember who they are."
She paused, allowing the weight of her words to sink in.
Lukman's face twisted in disbelief. "I knew it," he muttered, standing up abruptly. Without another word, he reached for the car keys, ready to take matters into his own hands.
Mrs. Amira and Zainab hurriedly tried to stop him.
"What are you doing, Lukman? Please, calm down and listen! You need to handle this carefully, or else..." Mrs. Amira's voice trembled with urgency.
"Or else what?" Lukman snapped, his frustration bubbling over.
"Please, just listen to me first," Mrs. Amira pleaded. "If you do, I'll help you get your wife back."
Lukman hesitated, his emotions raging inside him. After a long pause, he finally sank back down into his seat, giving a reluctant nod.
"Fine," he said, his voice tight with frustration. "But this better be worth it."
"They were made to believe they were cousins from two separate families—lies completely crafted by Salim and Halima," she continued. "They were the ones who fed those stories to Zara and Mubarak—who made them think they had no past worth remembering."
Mrs. Amira's voice trembled. "I know I raised my children to always get what they want. But now... I think things have gone too far."
Then came the truth no one had expected.
"Salim and Halima first saw Zara and Mubarak at a wedding they attended three years ago. That was when the obsession began. They wanted them so badly, they came up with a plan to separate the four of you—so Salim could have Zara, and Halima could have Mubarak."
Her eyes welled up as she revealed the rest. "The accident… it was never an accident. It was pre-planned. Zara and Mubarak were kidnapped that very day. When they woke up a day later, they were desperate to return home. But by the next day… everything changed. Their memories were gone."
"I don't know what Salim and Halima did or are still doing to them. But to this day, Zara and Mubarak have no memory of who they truly are. All they know is the false life that was forced upon them."
After listening to everything Mrs. Amira had said, Lukman could no longer hold back. His voice rose, frustration lacing every word.
"But out of all the people in the world—why them? Why would Salim and Halima go after married people?!" he snapped. "How can Zara, who's already married, be married off to someone else again?"
His patience was wearing thin, barely held together.
Zainab turned sharply to Mrs. Amira, her voice cold. "And you knew all this? Yet you still supported them at the police station?"
Mrs. Amira lowered her gaze, guilt washing over her features. "I didn't have a choice. They never listened to me. They're more powerful than I am, and even if I didn't support them, they would've still won. They've been planning this for a very long time, preparing everything down to the last detail. Nothing could've worked—not unless Zara and Mubarak themselves filed the report or told the truth. Right now, they're fully under Salim and Halima's control."
She looked up, eyes pleading.
"What I want you both to do now," she said softly, "is not to pressure them. Don't force them to remember. Instead, find the root cause of their memory loss and help them recover it. I'll help you… if that's what it takes to earn your forgiveness—and bring your spouses back to you. But you must be very careful."
"How?" Zainab asked quickly.
"Just leave everything to me," Mrs. Amira replied, then turned to Lukman. "And one more thing—before it slips my mind… Three years ago, when we found Zara, she was already two months pregnant."
She paused, then added gently, "You have a daughter, Lukman. She's three years old now."