Exception - by Friday Okwori

There are only two rules. Rule 1 – There is always an exception to every rule. The second; believe the first with all your life. Aunty Rahana (no, I didn’t make a mistake) was a beautiful and influential lady. She was born and brought up in a prominent and wealthy city. She spent all her life here. It was a small city with a population of roughly 3,000 people. Somehow, this city had brought her immense fortune. She had a thriving business. Well, many others argued against calling it a ‘business’ but then it didn’t matter because it brought her huge gain and popularity. She was the ‘commodity’ displayed for sale. You should know what that means. She wasn’t your regular call girl who stands by the road in late hours of the night. Not the ones you’d see on social media parading their ‘services’ too. The city's entrance was right where she was. It was a strategic location for her business. She had built a decent ‘office’ space that could accommodate several customers. She was the first point of call for any big man in town. She was for the elite. They were the ones who had her business card. Oh, you had to book ahead. She was a huge brand. Rumors even had it that she once had a thing with the governor. One day, two forensic intelligence experts—likely members of the US Navy Seals—came into town. Since it was a small city, everyone knew each other. These guys had a completely different appearance. It is easy to get through the eye of a needle than to enter this city; their security was impenetrable; no one knew how they got in. It seemed like they were on a special kind of mission. Or maybe not. They went straight to Aunty Rahana’s office. Maybe she had started getting foreign customers. Business was truly thriving. They were strangers in town, according to rumors that had already begun to circulate. The city was highly hostile to foreigners. Nobody was allowed to leave or go in. The governor had sent armed soldiers to pick up the strangers if true. If the men were discovered in Aunty Rahana's flat, it would be disastrous for her. It will be the end of her blooming business and everything she had worked for. She had put everything on the line for total strangers. No doubt she was excellent in branding and sales but there was serious question marks about her risk analysis. It was outright foolishness. Why throw away all what you’ve labored for just like that? She knew she was in serious danger. The men had to leave. More importantly, she needed to convince everyone that she hadn’t entertained strangers in her apartment. It was going to be her word against the rest of the city. She was a skilled seductress so it wasn’t going to be an issue. The two men were smuggled out of the city. They left in the dead of the night. They knew they’d be dead men if they were caught. They miraculously left the city before anyone could find them. Jason Statham would have been proud. They were actually on a mission to gather information. This city was a notorious one. It had been on the watchlist for a long while. It was time to bring the city down. The intelligence experts needed information about the security architecture of this city. They got everything they needed. How they were able to convince Aunty Rahana to part with such information still remains a mystery. Actually, she gave them willingly. They didn’t hold a gun to her head. She was more useful than they imagined. It felt like she was already one of them. She didn’t care if the city went down - her business and all? It was time to strike. The rule was to completely destroy the nation and everything in it. They were a morally depraved nation. Everything was ready to burn down the whole city. A more powerful nation was going to destroy them. But there was going to be an exception. Yes, there is always an exception. Remember? Aunty Rahana had unbelievably negotiated a deal. She struck a deal that preserved her whole family. Her lifestyle was condemnable but her faith was unwavering. Her whole story changed completely because of her faith in a God she hadn’t experienced personally. Her faith made her an exception. Article is culled from the bible; the story of Rahab – Joshua 2.

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