TRYING TIMES (teaser)

22. Meetings and Reunions

After exchanging pleasantries with the aide attached to him to make his stay comfortable, they left the departure hall of the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport (NAIA) and proceeded to the parking lot where the government assigned car with the  Driver was waiting to take him to the hotel reserved for the duration of his stay.

They arrived at the premises of the Sheraton and Towers some 45 minutes later. Sa'id was quickly checked into his suites of rooms and the concierge took his luggage up to his room. He bade the representative and Driver goodnight after making an appointment for 8:00am Monday morning to convey him to the venue of the meeting. He was terribly jet lagged and tiredly waited for the elevator to take him to his floor. From his room, he called his parents to inform them of his safe arrival. He chatted a little with his chatterbox sister who kept whining about desertion.
"Yaya, has Nigeria changed from when last I was there? I wish I had gone with you. She pouted. I miss home and my friends. Ehen! Least I forget, can you please bring some Hikma and Dublan (Traditional hausa snacks) when returning? She asked full of excitement as if she wasn't just whining about being left behind.

Sa'id sighed deeply before replying her.

"Ya Allah, Ukhti! Calm down. My head hurts from all your questions wallah. I just arrived, it's night, I'm jetlagged so I haven't seen much of Nigeria yet. It was straight to my hotel from the airport. Question one answered right? "

"Now onto the next; there's no way I would have brought you along. You have school and this is no fun visit, it's an official assignment. I know you miss Nigeria and your friends but Abbi has promised to bring you home for the summer. So that answers questions 2 and 3. As for the last one, I will do my very best to get you those snacks insha Allah" Sa'id answered his sister with an indulgent smile plastered on his face and lacing his voice.

"Now I really do have to go Ukhti! I'm beat and I can feel all the travel grit on me. I need a shower and then bed it is for me tonight "

" Oops! Sorry Yaya, I let my chatter get away with me again. Go take pain killers, have a bath and go to sleep"

"Yes Hajja little" he replied with a mock salute before cutting off the connection while she continued at her own end.

He thought of calling Fa'eezah but then changed his mind because of the lateness of the hour. His curiosity had been awakened since the cryptic message she had sent him the week before. He had been really busy setting up his team, making final corrections to his proposal and putting travel plans in motion.  He didn't get the time to call and discuss in depth. All he knew was it was centered on Nasser, but exactly what? He had no clue. All will be revealed in due time, tomorrow he will call and they would talk. With that resolve, he sauntered into the rest room to take a really hot shower so all the knots tying his muscles could be released. He washed the grit of travel the long hours cooped up in the plane had caused.

The hot water soothed his aching bones and muscles. He stepped out of the shower and dried off with a towel, applied some night cream and perfume before pulling on some comfortable pair of slacks and T-shirt and headed for the bed. He said his nightly prayers before turning off the bedside lamp and drifting off to the land of dreams.

The muezzin pitch of the predawn call to prayer was what woke him from his much needed sleep. With the du'a for rising gently leaving his lips, he stretched and left the bed for the rest room to perform his ablution. He put on his Jubbah before exiting the room and headed to the Masjid located on the grounds of the hotel.

Sa'id returned to his room after the salaat, and like a man starved of sleep he fell face flat on the bed and quickly renewed his acquaintance with the land of sleep. He didn't wake till almost Zhur. He had a quick shower, ordered something from room service before going down to the Masjid. When he returned, he powered up his computer and the necessary CAD applications. While waiting for the system to power up, he placed the call he had been meaning to.