Episode Sixteen: The Consummation

Seven Days Later

Wuraola had kept her promise and helped Adeyeri and Tade to get married. It wasn’t as easy as she had made it sound when she offered her help, but she had been determined to assist them at all cost. She even paid the heavy bride price the Chief Priest had requested as a show of her wholehearted support. Adeyeri’s love for her expanded. He was grateful he had shared his problem with his mother even though Tade still had doubts. 

Each time she prayed about the marriage to Adeyeri, she felt peace, confidence, and an assurance that she was doing the right thing. This peace had finally eased the guilt that he might be doing something that could ruin his chance at royalty. Wuraola kept assuring them that it would not,

and just yesterday, the Chiefs had requested that Adeyeri come in for a meeting today to discuss his coronation. They wanted to start the proceedings. However, every moment they spent in the presence of Wuraola left the hair on her skin standing. She even had a dream the first night they met where the Queen had been washing Adeyeri’s head with water, and it had turned to blood. It was impossible to communicate this fear to Adeyeri. He took her revelations very seriously, but this was his mother; his only living parent, and she had been so helpful with regards to helping her change her fate as Abobaku.

“Maybe I am just scared of her as my mother-in-law,” she said to herself to be at ease, but throughout the whole proceedings, she remained uncomfortable with the woman; a woman that deserved her gratitude.

They would never have been able to get married without her help because Tade had no family Adeyeri could seek her hand from. However, there was a practice for marrying people who had migrated to Iludoyin for work, or safety, and Wuraola had helped them get married under that clause.

Ten years ago, after the Modayegbe war, a lot of people had fled for their lives and had come to Iludoyin to start a new life. Such persons were allowed to marry by taking a bride price to the Chief Priest, who received it on behalf of the village, and the couples were joined. If the families of such people at any point came to Iludoyin to contest the marriage, the village usually settled them. This was why such bride price was charged very high to discourage such marriages, and to have enough to pay off aggrieved families who felt that their child was not married properly.

It was hard getting approval to marry Tadeyeri through this method. The Chief Priest had wanted to call the attention of the other Chiefs to the matter. He couldn’t wrap his head around why a man who was set to become King very soon would rush into marriage with a girl who had no family. In another few days, if the coronation went as it should, and the King’s guards arrived with the Abobaku, Adeyeri would be able to simply point at any woman he admired, and she would become his wife.

Wuraola had to arm-twist him, even giving him a bribe to convince him to hasten the process, and keep it a secret, after all, the marriage wouldn’t affect anything. Adeyeri was entitled to marry more women in the future. He could even determine who would be crowned Queen if Tade no longer pleased him. Tade had rolled her eyes when Wuraola mentioned this. It was awkward to agree to marry a man who had the open ticket to marry others, but it wasn’t a rare thing even with men that were not Kings.

“Lord, help me,” she had prayed, and God had answered.

The actual marriage was officially done. After seven days of staying in hiding and fearing that any minute, someone would find out her secret, she was now the wife of the beloved Prince of Iludoyin Kingdom. She didn’t feel different, yet she was different. Only one thing stood in the way of completing the process. She was still a virgin, but tonight, depending on what Adeyeri wanted, she would no longer be one.

They had both come alone to the Chief Priest for the wedding, with Banji and Alani accompanying them to serve as witnesses of the joining. Wuraola was still in mourning for the late King so she couldn’t attend, but she had prayed for them that morning when they went to greet her. Adeyeri had told her to keep the marriage a secret till he had a meeting with the Chiefs about his coronation, and all was sorted. This was so that enemies of the throne would not investigate his bride as a reason to cast aspersions on his ambition to be King, and she had said she understood.

However, even before they got to the palace, they could hear the sound of celebrations, with laughter, drums, and music.

“What is going on?” Adeyeri asked no one in particular, panicking.

Alani smiled as though this was good news. “The Queen said I should not tell you till you got here, but she organised a wedding ceremony for you, and sent the town crier to announce that the whole village should come here to celebrate your wedding.”

Wuraola smiled as she heard the sound of the party from her room. Today was the grand finale of her efforts to finally ruin Adeyeri’s claim to the throne. The gods were definitely in support of her. Three days ago, Alani had brought a message to her that the Chiefs were discussing a woman who said she knew the Abobaku, and was convinced that the girl was in Iludoyin. They had asked her to point them to where they could find the girl, Tadeyeri, to help them finalise Adeyeri’s coronation plans, but she claimed that the girl was in hiding.

Wuraola had organised this event as her way of publicly condemning Adeyeri. She had told Iyalode to specially invite the woman to the palace in celebration of Adeyeri’s marriage to his childhood sweetheart. Iyalode and the other Chiefs had been surprised by the secret marriage, but it meant nothing to them. It was good for a Prince to be married before he became King, and a party was always a good idea after all the mourning.

“Make sure that the woman who can recognise the Abobaku comes. We will give her a seat in front. I am convinced that today is the day we find the girl.”

Now, all that was left was for Alani to lead the couple into the palace. The marriage would openly soil Adeyeri and weaken his claim before the villagers and the Chiefs. Yet, he wouldn’t have had time to consummate the marriage, and so Tade could still become the Abobaku to whoever the next King was, and in this case, it would be her son, Adeloye, the young Prince who was wrongly cast off. He would come back to claim his throne, after all, he was the first son.

The event felt like a betrayal to Adeyeri, but it was impossible to believe that his mother would ever betray him. She was the only reason they had achieved this marriage feat in the first place, and if she threw a premature party to celebrate it, she must have had a good reason. Trust and loyalty were two sides of a coin. She had proved her loyalty by helping him, he had to prove his trust by not doubting her. 

Tade didn’t share his faith. She was stomping away in frustration, and he couldn’t blame her. What he could do however, was to ensure that all their efforts did not come to a waste. He spirited Tade away from the palace and told Banji and Alani to join the ceremony and let everyone know that the couple would join them soon. Tade wondered why they had to go to the hut to hide when they planned to still join the event, but didn’t say anything. She was sure that Wuraola had betrayed them, and may not mean well for them, but again, it was impossible to prove this to Adeyeri. A part of her also wondered if Aunty Shade’s betrayal was making her paranoid and suspicious.

Why are we going to the hut?

Shouldn’t we face whatever is happening head on?

She didn’t ask him the questions in her heart, but when they got to the secret hut and entered the room, Adeyeri’s intention dawned on her. In light of what was waiting for them at the palace, she did not understand his hurry. Without speaking to her, Adeyeri went to the back of the hut briefly, then came back, still quiet. The rope of his trouser was already loosened, and he didn’t bother tying it back.

“Do you want to ease yourself?” he asked, and Tade shook her head. He nodded in understanding then led her into the room. 

Immediately they got in, Adeyeri removed his buba, revealing a very beautiful body. His skin was smooth, and even though he wasn’t a slim man, there was no fat accumulation. He was all muscle, standing tall like a beautiful man. She was attracted to him, and it didn’t start today, yet she couldn’t imagine herself about to look at him a bit more, or allow him to see her naked. She turned away swiftly as soon as Adeyeri tugged at his trouser.

“Please keep it on. Don’t take it off.”

Adeyeri sighed. He had imagined that this experience would go a different way. If he was truthful to himself, this part of the affair made the thought of marrying her juicy. He wanted to have her, but he had planned to make it special. Unfortunately, they had no time for that. He was like a man with a ticking bomb tied to his waist. He had to consummate the marriage before anyone found out that she was his Abobaku, and with all the Chiefs seated and every single villager of Iludoyin focused on them, it would be a miracle not to find out. The Chiefs would also have questions. Everyone would want to know where she was from, and who her people were. As King, telling a lie about a woman who would become Queen was wrong on all grounds. He wished they had more time, and again wondered what his mother was playing at, and why she didn’t give them the time he had asked for, but he was committed to trusting her, so he waved thoughts of her away. He had to focus on his wife.

“I am afraid. I don’t know how to do this,” she said, shaking slightly as Adeyeri moved closer and held her from behind.

For the first time since he met her, Tade’s confidence waned. “I am going to teach you. We will learn how to make this special,” he said, turning her to face him.

“Must we do it now?” she asked, and Adeyeri cradled her face, bringing his lips to her neck. The touch curled her toes and she hugged him to keep her balance. It felt good to be in his arms.

“I wish I could take it slow. You deserve it, and it would have helped this first time,” he replied with regret as he pulled her deeper into his arms.

They were in a mess of a situation, but together, he felt as though nothing would be insurmountable.

“Must we do it now?” Tade asked again, and Adeyeri lifted his face from her neck to meet her gaze.

“It’s the final step to ensure you won’t have to die with any King. You need to lose your virginity urgently.”

“Okay,” Tade said, trying to find courage as Adeyeri tugged at her wrapper and pulled it free till he loosened it. He then slowly pulled her blouse over her head, revealing her thin underdress that left nothing to imagination. 

“Wow!” he exclaimed, unable to look away.

“What?” Tade asked, oblivious of the effect she was having on him.

“You have the most beautiful body I have ever seen,” he confessed.

Tade blushed. Her husband was impressed. It felt good, and reduced her shyness.

“I am going to remove my trousers and then your undergarments so that we can start,” Adeyeri informed her gently.

“How long will it take?” she asked.

“It can be slow or fast, it depends on us, but in this case, it has to be fast. Unfortunately, either way, I will enjoy it, but being too fast, especially the first time, will mean that you won’t enjoy it, and you will have pain.”

Tade smiled at his explanation and honesty. “I can handle pain,” she said as she watched him drop his trousers, and Adeyeri’s heart went out to her. While he had lived a sheltered and protected life, she had gone through a lot, fending for herself.

“Maybe we can take it a bit slow. I will try not to hurt you,” he assured her as he pulled her into his arms and put his lips on hers in his first attempt at a kiss.

The contact shocked both of them. It was like nothing they had ever felt before. Being together here, with their lips touching, felt like it would be a sweet prelude to intercourse, and it was. Gradually, Tade began to loosen up, wrapping her arms around Adeyeri’s neck. She didn’t even know when he pulled her underdress from her body. It wasn’t until she felt his naked skin on hers and he carried her to the mattress that she knew she was naked; naked, and surprisingly not ashamed. In a few minutes, she would no longer be Abobaku, and it felt good. A weight disappeared from her chest, and pleasure moved through her body because it felt like her life was truly about to begin in a positive way.

Adeyeri couldn’t even think of anything else beyond the woman in his arms. She was soft, pure, and though innocent and clueless, had been capable of arousing him more than any other woman he’d ever been with. At that moment, he was sure that as long as they both lived, he was never going to be with any other woman again. She was enough! She was his! And she would become his Queen.

Alani’s news unsettled Wuraola! 

Adeyeri took his wife away.

Did he suspect her plan?

How could he be so wise?

Was he going to consummate the marriage?

Wuraola shook in frustration. Adeyeri was more intelligent than she gave him credit for, and he was determined to help the girl. If she had known that the matter would turn out this way, she wouldn’t have helped them get married. She sighed, but decided to calm down. It was only one loss. Adeyeri and his wife would still lose. There was no way the Chiefs would endorse his rule now. The only problem was that no coronation could happen for a long time. The Council of Chiefs would have to solve the issue of getting a new Abobaku.

Wuraola was in deep thought about all her issues when a man broke through her window and jumped into her room. She screamed, but knew no one could hear her because of how loud the party was. As the man pushed her to the bed and tore her wrapper free, he pinned her down with one hand and tugged at the rope of his trousers.

She screamed again hoping to be heard, but no one came to her rescue as the man plunged deep into her. He didn’t even bother to cover her mouth to stop her from shouting. It was as though he was enjoying her protest as he thrust into her furiously. Done, he rose and dressed himself then sat on the wooden chair near the window, looking out, and trying to catch a glimpse of the party, not in a hurry to leave.

“You can stop crying now,” the man said, his eyes scanning Wuraola. “I am also very hungry, but that can wait. I am here on a mission. I need to find someone, and you will help me.’

Wuraola was still sobbing profusely. “You bastard. I will make you pay. Do you know who I am?” she screamed at him, trying to cover herself.

The man gave her an amused, mocking look as he responded. “I am going to get away with it,” he said confidently then became serious. “I am here for three things; to see my mother, kill my brother, and become the next King of Iludoyin. If you continue to please me, I can make you one of my Queens. I intend to marry the first six on the same day,” he said proudly.

“Who are you?” Wuraola asked, her voice trembling in fear and trepidation. She already knew even before he responded.

“My name is Adeloye. Cover yourself up woman, let’s find my mother!”