Page 20 of Choosing the Chief

Adom pulls out a seat for me. “We were making wild, passionate love.” He grabs two pieces of bacon off of Ella’s plate and sticks them in his mouth. “How was your morning?”

Ella pretends to clutch her pearls. She picks up a piece of bacon and points it at Adom. “You’re impossible. Don’t mess up. You know if you do, Maya gets me in the divorce.” She breaks the bacon in half and pops it in her mouth.

“HA!” I shout and point at Adom. “I told you I was her best friend. You, sir, are replaceable.” Adom looks slightly annoyed. I grab his hand and pull him down to sit in the chair next to me. “But I wouldn’t have anyone else sitting right here.” I place a kiss on his lips. He grabs the back of my head and takes my mouth hostage for an indefinitely pleasurable amount of time. When we come up for air, Ella is fake gagging.

“You win, Maya. Seeing you two suck each other’s faces off at the breakfast table has made me lose my appetite.” I laugh. “What are you two getting into today? Kofi and I are heading back to Bonbiri shortly.”

Adom answers. “We are going to Tafo to see my grandfather”. This is news to me; he never told me our plans for the day. He hates his grandfather. I wonder what prompted him to make this call.

Kofi leans forward in his chair and slides closer to the table. “Tell me why are you going to see the old man. He is sick—this is not the time to bring old hurts and grudges to the surface. Those should have been addressed years ago.”

Adom crosses his thickly muscled forearms across his chest. “Why do you assume I am going to cause a disturbance? Did you not say the old man called me home to talk about succession? I do not intend to talk about my future through a representative, even if it is the king. This is between me and the elder. We will deal with whatever needs to be said or done without your oversight.”

The silence that ensues is deafening. Two powerful men sit and look at each other like lions contesting the leadership of a pride. They study each other, looking for any sign of weakness or lack of resolve. I am in awe of the mixture of respect and contempt that permeates the air between them. They are equals in every way and I think they appreciate what they see of themselves in each other. At the same time, they seem to fear and hate what they don’t know about each other. Finally, Kofi responds.

“You think you are prepared to face the old man? You do not have the skill or understanding to decipher his thoughts. His words will lead you down one path, while he executes plans on another. It is easy to finance mini kingdoms around the world. That is a temporary affair. I stayed here and provided steady leadership to the kingdom that birthed you.” He slams his hand on the table and stands. Ella places her hand on his wrist, and I see his clenched jaw soften slightly. “And this is the kingdom that will offer you peace and mourn you at your death. I intend to ensure our grandfather is afforded the same privilege. You have no comprehension of the level of skill it takes to manage all the competing centers of power that seek to influence this nation. A single misplaced word could do irreparable harm.”

Adom swallows and I watch his Adam’s apple move down his throat and disappear. He stands to meet Kofi eye to eye. “I will not hurt your precious grandfather. Maya and I are going to determine what my duties are after he joins the ancestors. You may have forgiven him over these past few years, but I’m not looking for closeness or closure. I just want to fulfill my responsibilities.”

Kofi smirks. “You think the old man and I are close? He is a necessity. You are less prepared for this visit than I thought.”

I can’t help but to think he’s right.If the young palm tree wants to stay alive, it grows next to the Odum tree.Kofi, Ella, and Adom all turn to me and I realize my “thought” was actually verbalized. I look at Adom. “I’m sorry, did I say that out loud?”

Kofi breaks out in laughter and turns to me. “I take back what I said. It seems Dr. Taylor may have done enough preparation for the both of you. My compliments on your skill with the proverbs of our ancestors. The old man will appreciate it.” He looks at Adom and then gestures toward me. “Go with God and make sure to take her with you.”

Chapter Twelve

Royalty

Adom

When we enter my grandfather’s home, I understand Kofi’s reluctance. No one is glad to see me, and the reception from the butler at the door is chilly. When we are seated, the cook offers Maya and I rice and palm wine, but his demeanor is cold and taciturn. I cannot tell if the mood is contempt or pity. Maya feels it, too. She tightens her grip in my hand and draws closer to my side. Instantly, I regret bringing her with me. I do not want her worrying about me or the scars I carry from the past.

The old man calls for me right away. I want to go and test the waters alone at first, but Maya insists on accompanying me. So together we walk into his quarters where he is draped in an ornate kente cloth and sitting upon the chieftain stool. He is much older than I remember. Even when I returned once to see him as a young man of 23, he looked the same as he did when I was a child. The past 12 years seem to have aged him dramatically. Still, he doesn’t look a day over70. I do some quick math in my head and realize he is 91 years old. The ancestors have been good to him.

He beckons us closer by nodding and raising his staff. “Ah! My young chief has come to watch me die. Come and wash your grandfather’s feet.” The old man is still keen. He knows I hate him, and he has no qualms calling me out on it, but to make me wash his feet, the ultimate sign of humility and forgiveness in our culture, is a commentary on my animosity. I would like nothing better than to take a bucket full of water and dump it over his head. But I hear my cousin’s voice in my head and decide not to be baited into a confrontation with the old man so early.

“With pleasure…chief.” I release Maya’s hand and nod at her with a half-smile. She returns it with a wink, and I feel like I can take on whatever will transpire while I am here. I roll up my sleeves and kneel in front of a basin that has been prepared.

My grandfather leans over with an uncertain breath and touches my head. “Kwaku, I am your grandfather and you shall address me as such.” I grit my teeth at his use of my Ashanti day name and continue to pour the water over the old man’s feet. No one ever calls me that. A day name is determined by the day you are born. Kwaku signifies I was born on a Wednesday. When I was growing up, some of my family members preferred to call me that instead of Adom. I hated it, and once I left the village to attend the King James Preparatory School in Britain, I never used that name again. Him using it reminds me of how hard I worked to never have to kneel at his feet again.To never have to be here again.I answer him in the most detached tone I can muster.

“Above all else, you are Chief Yao Asante, leader of Tafo. That is what I will call you.” I end his feet washing and look him in the eye as I begin to roll my sleeves back down. “Now, chief, my cousin has called me away from my business in America on your behalf. Tell me what it is you need from me.”

He searches my face, looking for my eyes. I know his vision has dimmed with age, but it is odd seeing the man who terrorized me as a child be so weak. He points his long finger in the direction of Maya. “Is that the American woman you sent for once you finally arrived?”

This is annoying, he’s not answering my question!I release a heavy sigh. “Yes, Chief, that is Dr. Maya Taylor. She is a professor of African studies and…a dear friend.” I hope Maya does not mind. Of course, she is more than a friend to me, but it will do us no favors for my grandfather to know that.

He gives a dry cackle. “Anh hanh. Your mother tells me she is a former model and drug addict who you have brought here to rehabilitate and keep your bed warm. Isn’t that so?” He stands and beckons to Maya. “Come closer, dear, these old eyes cannot see your world-renowned beauty from so far away.”

I raise a hand and take a deep breath. “Chief, I am not here to entertain the idle gossip that has landed in your ears. I came here for one purpose, and that is to discuss your succession. Please remember I did not call this meeting, you did. We will not speak of the woman I am with nor any other topic. Otherwise I am leaving, and you can appoint someone else to wash your feet and kiss your ass for the chieftaincy. I do not need the title nor you. You need me to carry your bloodline old man, and as of this moment, I’m not inclined to oblige.”

An audible gasp from multiple servants fills the room, and my grandfather rages. “You insolent fool. A house full of money is nothing compared to the blood running in your veins. You wish you could be worthy of it. I don’t want you as my successor any more than you want to be here, but God has seen fit to punish me with the knowledge that an ungrateful jackal will one day sit on my chieftain stool. I don’t know what error I made in life to deserve this.” He starts to cough and falls back on the stool. A servant rushes to bring him water, but then Maya intervenes.

She takes the glass and places it in his hand. He drinks it greedily. I look at her in amazement. I can’t believe she is giving him water after what he just said about us! My grandfather grabs her wrist as she takes the empty glass away. He stares at her and breathes heavily. “The ancestors smile on you. Why do you walk with a man with a hardened heart when you can have so many others ready for the love a woman of your beauty deserves? Kwaku has many women, you know. His mother worries.”

Without so much as averting her eyes from my grandfather, she raises her hand to cut off the protest that is beginning its escape from my lips. She leans into my grandfather and says, “Love doesn’t listen to rumors.”

My grandfather smiles. “You know the words of our ancestors. Did your fancy degree teach you the way to speak?”

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