One love to remember

CHAPTER FOUR - AN UNEXPECTED DECISION

After I got the message from my father, it was clear that we had to be even more careful than ever before. We couldn't take another risk by loosing guard over highly important missions.

"Did the other lords receive such a letter?" I had asked myself, "well, I'll never know until I ask them myself."

It was the beginning of the season in England where British aristocrats introduced their sons and daughters to society in order to secure alliances. Well there were some families who fixed alliances with the interests of the children in mind, most of them used saw the season as a way of making political alliances to strengthen and increase their wealth and power.

"You know I really feel bad for those innocent women who are forced to marry a man against their wishes." said Afia to me on our meeting today."

Every once in a while, we would gather together to discuss business and how well each of us made sure to play our cards right to achieve our purpose.

"You know you shouldn't feel sorry for the enemy." said Ogbonaya, he was the second son of the chief of the Idemili clan.

"Well, Ogbonaya has a point, the British lords didn't feel a pang of guilt or regret when they attacked our villages, burnt our walls and slaughtered our men, just imagine what happened to the Nana of Itsekiri, and you're talking about feeling sorry for just a marriage? that's pathetic." I replied angrily.

"We shouldn't forget our plan was to become a part of their society," said Ogbonaya, "what better way to achieve this than taking advantage of this "season" if you know what I mean."

"We were all present in the meeting back home, and nowhere did the ruling families talk about getting married to these British ladies." I said angrily to Ogbonaya.

"It was implied, what do you think they meant when they said we were to become important members of British society by all means necessary." said Ezebunafor one of the princes of unified Arochukwu.

There was a very heated argument in the meeting room where one part supported a union with the British through matrimonial affiliations and the other part refusing to play a part in such sentiments purely out of hatred for the British.

"We came here to sow disunity among the British and now we're the ones who are being divided," I said to them, "We are fully grown men, we do not need our fathers to make decisions for us anymore, even if they wanted to they can't, they're all on the other side of the ocean, so we should make our decisions on our own from now on."

"Akaninyene is right, if things aren't going according to plan, we should always improvise." said Afia, "we'll achieve nothing if we sit at the table arguing with one another the whole day."

As much as I detested the idea of fixing alliances with British women, I found myself agreeing to get married, if only they wouldn't refuse.

"There is no way those British aristocrats would reject our marriage proposal, replied Ogbonaya, "they only thing they care about is money, which luckily for us, we have."

"You're right." said Afia, for the sake of our money, they wouldn't mind getting their women married to dark skinned men."

"But, not all of us will be getting married to these women, or else they will realize that there's a conspiracy against them." I replied.

"No, not all of us will be getting married to these women, only a select few." said Ezebunafor.

"We only need four men to be exact, nothing more, nothing less," Ezebunafor continued, "I volunteer to get married, is there anyone else who wants to volunteer, or should we rather choose at random?"

"I volunteer," I heard myself say, "This decision shouldn't be forced on any one of us, we must make decisions keeping in mind our family, our kingdoms and our people's hope of regaining our freedom."

"What happens when our mission is successful, what will happen to the women we have married?" asked Afia.

"When we get to that bridge we'll cross it, besides there's nothing wrong if we decide to take some white slaves for ourselves, isn't that what they're doing in Ikot Abasi and Bakassi? asked Ogbonaya.

"Of course." I replied, "we'll simply pay them back in their own coin, that's what they deserve right?".

After some time, the rest of the men, who didn't agree initially decided to give it some thought, their desire for revenge was greater than their principles, after all this was a lesser punishment than all the deaths and destruction the British has caused in our lands.

"I volunteer." said another young lord, one I didn't seem to get acquainted with, "I will make her pay for the crimes of her people."

"Since, there's only one man left, I volunteer" said another young lord.

"Now that it is settled, we will move on to other pressing topics that will be decided on almost as quickly.".

After a few hours of discussions, lunch was served and we all ate together and discussed non-informal issues for the first time that day.

"You know Afia, I wish that these were different circumstances, I would be able to smile wholeheartedly and not have to think about the British anymore." I said to Afia.

"You're right Akan, but I know that one day we'll be back home enjoying the fruits of our labour without worrying about being monitored by foreign powers." replied Afia.

"Let us remember that it is our hard work not our dreaming that will guarantee our return to our families back home". I said to everyone.

"Cheers to us, to our pending victory." I continued.

"Cheers." shouted everyone in unison.

It had started to become dark, which meant the meeting had come to a close and that the time had arrived for each one of us to return to our houses.

After I was on my way back to Birkenhead, I pondered at the discussions made and decisions taken at the meeting.

"Well," I thought to myself, "it's time for me to find a wife, but who's gonna be the unlucky one.".