I was delighted the day my brother died. No, I didn’t hate him.
I only believed he had attained something I had desired for so long before I did.
No, no.....I am not suicidal.
I just don’t see the essence of existence.
Thankfully, he was married with 3 kids and also well established.
The guy was loaded.
So I thought to myself, why let his family have peace when I can make everyone’s life exciting with chaos? Tradition also demands I cause havoc, even if only for a little while.
...................
My younger brother, Umaru, died in car accident on his way to Abuja in 2012.
He had been suffering from severe back pain for years, tried various medications, all to no avail, so he decided to try the house of God, and well... death came instead. Fortunately, unfortunately, depending on how one chooses to see it, but I like to think he finally found relief. Death is not such a bad occurrence when the body has become a burden.
His burial was sad, very sad.
A lot of people shed tears for his demise, especially his wife and his 8-year-old eldest child. That little girl was so smart; she didn’t understand what was going on until she heard her mum wail in our indigenous language, saying, ‘Why did he go?’ and she immediately burst into tears. She had her suspicions, as the house was unusually filled with visitors, and no one yelled at her when she didn’t greet. This I was told; I wasn’t present at the house.
After his burial and an ample mourning period, I launched my attack or rather, my adventure.
I moved into my late brother’s house and started to control everything. I wasn’t mean; everything belonged to me as per tradition, except for his wife, of course, and I wasn’t even interested in the lady.
First, I slept in the master’s bedroom and started to use his clothing,literally everything that belonged to him. He was living the life; I wasn’t jealous of him, far from it. This was an adventure, a new feeling. Being the bad guy felt good, and I wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity.
I took the keys to his shops and warehouses, his cars, and the documents of the house. I visited the bank to get information on how much he had and started discussing property distribution with my minion- a cousin of ours whom I turned against my brother’s family. He lived with them and loved them, but I guess he loved money more.
My brother had kids, right? But there was no way I was going to give them anything. That would have defeated the entire aim of my adventure. So I took everything, every single thing he owned. I sold both cars, emptied his bank accounts, and ran the shops as I deemed fit.
But there was one thing I couldn’t take total ownership of - The house.
I was able to make his family vacate it for a week, but I guess even the quietest of people have a breaking point.
His wife never fought back. She never showed her emotions, even when I told her her meals smelled like used baby diapers and tasted like shit. She never talked back when I said her kids deserved nothing from my brother’s wealth, as they were all below 18. Even when I told her there was no money for food and she and her kids ate yam and palm oil for weeks, even when I told her to withdraw them from the pricey private school they attended, she ignored my taunting.
Until it came to the house.
She called on lawyers and went to the church. Well, she was really loved, I presume, because the heat I faced was unbearable. I had to let them back in.
I eventually went back to my home in Benin City after putting her through so much and leaving her with 3 kids, a house, and empty shops.
I never hated my brother, neither did I hate his kids. I was only looking to spice up my life with something exciting. It’s just so unfortunate that his family- and by extension, my family - had to bear the brunt of my curiosity. The tradition was on my side and as per the rules, I wasn't doing anything wrong. But morally speaking, what I did was cruel and I am not sorry, I am a traditional man afterall.
I was wicked, yes.
I was her enemy, yes.
I’m not going to dispute that.
But we’re family, and family doesn’t always have to love each other.
I have a wife and kids too, and no, I won’t imagine they were in her shoes just so I can have empathy.
If I do that, I would be pretending.
Everyone doesn’t have to be a good person; I believe that’s why the Almighty handed us free will.
And every family member doesn’t always have to be loving.
Sometimes, they are just there to remind you that not every evil comes from strangers.