I closed early from work that day, pleading a headache as the excuse. The headache was for real because after the stuff Shelly told me, a massive headache came upon me and I sat glued to my chair as if paralyzed.
I managed to get home, however and I went straight to bed as soon as I entered the house. My usual routine after work was to do some chores and prepare dinner for my husband.
But that evening, I had no energy to do any work. I laid, curled up in bed, all kinds of thoughts going round and round in my head.
'How could this have happened?' I kept thinking. 'And what was I supposed to do?'
At that moment, I wished I was back home in Nigeria with my family and close friends. But I was all alone in this cold city with no one to talk to or seek advice from besides Shelly. I felt so miserable and sorry for myself, I broke down in tears.
"How could Henry do this to me, after all we've been through?" I said to myself, remembering Shelly's words.
"When he came to the country newly, he got married to Milly. It was an arranged marriage, done to enable him get his papers so he could remain in the country to avoid deportation as his visa was about to expire.
"They were supposed to stay together for a while before filing for divorce and going their separate ways. But the 'business' arrangement turned to something else when Milly got pregnant with Henry's baby.
"You must have seen the little boy- she brings him to work once in a while. Anyway, some of us who knew about the arrangement thought perhaps, they had decided to make the 'arrangee' marriage real and remain together.
But it wasn't to be. They still got divorced after the baby was born. And sometime later, you arrived on the scene." At this point, she paused to take a sip of water before continuing.
Drawing close to me, she said softly:
"I thought with your arrival, whatever they had together would end. But from the look of things, they are definitely back together- they are surely dating. He goes home with her most evenings after closing from work and people have seen them at different spots in the city acting very cosy like a couple in love.
I know he's supposed to visit her once in a while because of the child but this is different. I'm telling you all this because I like you and I feel bad that all these things are happening right under your nose and you are completely ignorant about it.
What Milly is doing is bad. Since Henry is married to you now, she should lay off. And you need to do something fast to get your husband out of her clutches..."
But what could I do? I thought. Confront him and give him an ultimatum? Tell him to stop seeing the woman? Would that work? What if he denied everything? Could he do that with the child's existence?
I had seen the little boy named Ray a couple of times and each time, he often reminded me of someone. Back then, I couldn't really make the connection, but with what Shelly had told me, I now knew who he reminded me of. My father-in-law!
The boy bore an uncanny resemblance to Henry's father whom he resembled as well. So, the family resemblance was there. What explanation would Henry have for that if he said the boy wasn't his?
Feeling suddenly thirsty, I went downstairs to the kitchen to get some water. I was drinking it when I heard the key in the door.
Henry was back.
"Sweetheart, I'm home! Where are you?" he called out.
"In the kitchen," I said calmly
He came up to me and held me by the waist.
"How are you feeling now? Shelly told me you came home early as you weren't feeling too fine. I tried calling but your phone was switched off. Is the battery dead or what?" he stated, as he turned me round.
"I'm fine," I said, averting my eyes and slipping out of his arms.
"You don't look ok. And your eyes are red. Have you been crying? Is everything alright?" he asked in a worried voice.
"I said I'm fine. Just leave me alone, ok?" I said sharply. I left him and went upstairs to my room, locking the door after me.
He came up and started knocking.
"Abby, what's the matter? Is it something I've done? Open the door, let's talk about it," he stated.
"Just go away! And leave me alone!" I nearly screamed at him.
"Why are you behaving like this? I come home from work and you refuse to talk to me! What have I done this time?" he said, knocking repeatedly all the while.
It was at this point that I opened the door and he came in. I stood with my arms crossed on my chest, ready to do battle with him.
"You are asking me what you've done? Ok, I'll tell you. You are nothing but a cheat and a liar! You've betrayed our love and I will never forgive you for that," I declared, glaring at him.
He looked at me, puzzled.
"What on earth are you talking about? Now, you are really beginning to piss me off!" he stated in an angry tone.
"You pretend not to know what I'm talking about, isn't it? Ok, let me tell you. About your mistress or lover, Milly, the son she had for you and how you have been cheating on me all this while and I didn't know! Henry, how could you do this to me?" I cried.
"Oh, that!" he stated quietly before going to sit on the bed. "Shelly must have been opening her big mouth again," he noted.
That got me incensed even more.
"Is that all you can say? After I have caught you in the act? No wonder you are always too tired to make love to me. Now I understand!" I said angrily.
He looked up warily at me.
"Look, Abby, calm down and let's talk about this like adults. It's not what you think..." he began but I cut him short.
"What am I expected to think? Just tell me!" I demanded, glaring at him.
He sighed before he began to speak.
"My involvement with Milly was due to the situation I found myself in when I got to this country newly. It's tough being an immigrant here, with no job, no papers and the fear of deportation hanging over one all the time.
My friend, Syl who invited me over disappointed me. It wasn't really his fault as the business he was planning to do could not take off; he could not get the necessary funding from the bank. So, it was like I was on my own," he disclosed.
Continuing, he added that it was at this point that Milly came to his rescue. "She really helped me a lot. She agreed to the 'arranged' marriage without collecting much money from me and also got me the job at the care home," he said.
"So, how come she had a baby for you when it was meant to be an 'arrangee' marriage?" I asked in a sarcastic tone.
He explained that it was a mistake; that they had gone to a party one day and had returned home drunk. "One thing led to another and we ended up in bed together. She insisted on keeping the baby when she found out she was pregnant though we were supposed to get divorced some time later.
I had told her about you, that I had a fiancée back home and there was no way I could remain with her," he explained.
I was silent for a while as his words sank in.
"But why didn't you tell me all this earlier? And why are you still going to her house, spending time with her when your so-called 'arranged' marriage has ended?" I wanted to know.
"I planned telling you but I wasn't sure how you would react. And it's because of my son that I visit her," Henry stated.
I looked at him coldly.
"And you expect me to believe that?" I queried.
He didn't answer but sat staring at the floor.
After his explanation, I calmed down a little though I was still angry with him. What annoyed me most was the fact that he did not tell me about what happened between him and Milly earlier and I had to hear it from someone else.
As my husband, I felt he should have confided in me and even told me about the baby she had for him. Now, he was using the child as an excuse to keep seeing her. I didn't feel very comfortable with that as I did not trust the woman.
So, a few days later, I suggested to him that he should get custody of the boy; that I was even ready to look after him- that way his interactions with Milly will be on official basis only. He said it would be difficult as the courts usually gave custody of children to the mothers.
Then, one Saturday morning, Milly came to our house to pick up my husband for a day outing with his son as it was the boy's birthday. I was angry that she was acting as if she had a right to my husband and I told Henry he could not go with her.
But he defied me and still went, stating that he needed to spend some time with his son.
"Don't bother coming back to this house! You can stay with her if you want!" I screamed at him as he was entering her car.
It's been over a month now and I've not seen or heard from my husband. He has not been at work either. Worse still, I heard Milly was on vacation and she had travelled outside the country.
My fear is that they've gone together with their son as a family, leaving me behind. I'm very confused right now as I still love my husband very much and I don't want to lose him. Or my marriage.
Have I, with my attitude driven him to the arms of the other woman? What should I do? I'm thinking of calling his family members back home especially his dad so they can talk to him to return home as I miss him so much. I want him back. Please I need your advice. Thanks.
The End!
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