Eerily, the day of Nii’s funeral was Ashiley’s happiest day. It was the first time she was ever happy about a decision taken by his family. They decided to bury him within a month, claiming that it was best to have his body recognized by God when he got to heaven. Ashiley hoped he missed his way there and landed in hell instead.
Ashiley applied makeup even when she knew her in-laws would disapprove of it. In fact, nothing about her was ever approved of, and hadn’t it been for the bodyguards Nii hired to guard the church on the day of their wedding, the ceremony would have been disrupted with sticks and stones by his cousins. She stood up from her dressing stool and preened in front of the mirror. A laugh escaped her lips, and a tear trickled down her cheek. She was happy with what she saw, and her black dress perfectly carved the round lumps on her chest and back. She was back to looking like the graceful woman she was before Nii married her, and vowed to remain so till her last day on earth.
As she descended the stairs to the living room, she heard a bump behind her, and someone rolled over the stairs with a yelp and landed on the floor. Ashiley clutched the handrail and stared at the person in terror. The sound of her breath echoed in her ears and her chest danced to the rhythm of her heartbeat. The person on the floor slowly raised her head, and to Ashiley’s utter shock, she was staring at herself. She turned her back and found Nii glaring at her. Ashiley quivered and almost slipped off the tread. She tightened her grip around the handrail and the door to the living room flung open. Mamle’s chubby figure appeared at the door, and she glowered at Ashiley with her hands on her waist. The image Ashiley saw of herself slowly disappeared, and so did Nii’s. What she saw was real, only that it happened a year after she married Nii. She had threatened to leave him the day she caught him on their matrimonial bed with his first mistress. In trying to stop her, Nii threatened to kill her and pushed her down the stairs. She sprained both her ankles and walked with crutches for weeks. The woman glaring at her now from the door, was the same person who threatened to kill herself if Ashiley brought shame to her by leaving her husband. “What will people say about our family? We will become a laughing stock, and your husband will no longer spend lavishly on us,” Mamle had said in the coldest voice Ashiley had ever heard. Now, Ashiley wondered how her life would have turned out if she had actually left.
“We are almost late for the funeral service, hurry up!” Mamle left the room again and banged the door behind her, startling Ashiley. She headed for the door and before stepping out, she stared at her wedding picture which hung loosely on the wall. In the picture, Nii stood behind her and wrapped his hands around her waist. His smile was the widest and his dark skin contrasted with Ashiley’s caramel skin. Ashiley remembered how Nii always complimented her skin and how he admired her bounteous kinky hair. The same hair he cut with scissors, after she refused to quit her job as a doctor. She wiped a tear away and joined Mamle and Shika in the car.

***
The sound of the violin was soothing, and Ashiley nodded slowly, with her eyes fixed on the high ceiling. She nodded vigorously to greetings and responded to prayers that were whispered to her by the guests who passed by her to their seats. Ever since Ashiley started attending Nii’s church after their wedding, she had never seen it full. There was always a vast majority of empty seats and the pastor, in a bid to console himself and his congregation, made it a point at the beginning of every sermon, to state that those seats were occupied by angels and it was best that they remained empty. But that day, it appeared there would be no angels present because their seats had been occupied by people Ashiley knew and those she didn’t know. The pastor didn’t seem bothered either. For a funeral service, Ashiley felt he sounded too enthusiastic and smiled inanely. When it was time for paying tribute, Ashiley wished she could walk out of the church or probably feign illness. She took a deep breath, and her heartbeat intensified as Nii’s brother, Armah, narrated how kind-hearted Nii was, and how his smile was the brightest. Ashiley’s eyes became misty as memories of Nii’s frown clouded her mind. He only smiled at her whenever he wanted to sleep with her and never asked about her health or took her to the hospital when she was sick and unable to move. Nii’s younger sister spoke about how generous he had been and how he had financially supported underprivileged schools and children. Ashiley nodded slowly and remembered the last time Nii gave her money, or a gift was four years ago. Ashiley closed her eyes and tears gushed down her cheeks.
“Stop crying my dear, tears will not bring him back,” Mamle consoled her. If tears could really bring Nii back to life, Ashiley would make sure to never cry for the rest of her life. When Nii’s best friend, George, mentioned in his tribute that Nii was a good friend, husband and father, Ashiley scoffed, drawing the attention of the people sitting behind her. She shut her mind to the rest of the service and hummed a tune. When the service finally ended, she responded to a few condolences and disappeared into her car.

To be Continued…

© Nasreen Zankawah,2025