Thorn between episode 48

TITLE: TORN BETWEEN

WRITTEN BY OGECHI ALABI

TROUBLE 17

That night, Adim sat with Thelma in his sitting room. Flora had insisted she must not sleep in Eucharia’s bedroom and she had to obey. She couldn’t wait for the building in the village to be completed and she could have her space away from all of them.

“Why didn’t you tell me about your issues with Eucharia?” she asked Adim.

“You knew about it in the beginning, but then it doesn’t concern you.”

“But it concerns me and I was embarrassed in the presence of your family. What is the problem? If she is giving you this much hassles, divorce her and have your peace.”

Adim turned to look at her and said, “I should divorce her? I will never divorce Eucharia; she is my wife and will remain my wife.”

“Adim, what is so special about Eucharia that you do not want to let her go? She is ready to move on, but you are holding on to her. There is nothing wrong with holding on, but I want to know if you took a blood covenant or you used her for rituals to make money that she is so indispensable to you.”

“Thelma, I told you she is my wife and I love her. She is not going anywhere because she loves me too. If she didn’t, she would never have come to my parents to ask for help to settle our differences. It is a plea for reconciliation.”

“What is so special about Eucharia? She is a trader and has no class. I try to make you happy in the bedroom and even make delicious meals for you, but see the way you ate food Eucharia prepared like a hungry lion and even asked for more after being told she made the food. Make me understand what is binding the two of you together.”

Adim did not say a word to her. He instead told her to go and sleep at Njideka’s house flat. Flora was staying with her parents for the night.

Njideka engaged Thelma in conversation. They talked until late in the night and it was a healthy and interesting conversation. She felt connected to Njideka. So she asked Njideka why Adim would not let Eucharia go.

“Are you sure you want to hear this?” Njideka asked her.

“Yes, I want to know what is going on.”

“Adim has been Eucharia’s first and only man. Everything she knows, Adim taught her. Adim loves her to pieces. She knows how to take care of a man. I have stayed with them, and even I will not do all that Eucharia does for my husband. She cooks for him everyday and treats him like a king. Does he know how to pick out his clothes? Does he know where the dry cleaners are? She chooses who to handle what for him. There is one special fish Adim likes. I saw it in the market the other day and told her about it. Before, she will buy every piece in the market, smoke them and keep them in the freezer. Only Adim will eat that fish. She told me not to worry, she no longer cooks for Adim. I was surprised. Adim will not be happy about it.”

“I have been taking care of him, but he complains about some of the things I do that I had to stop. I came back from work and he wanted me to cook fresh soup with some snails and fish. I told him it was impossible. I hired a cook to make his meals every day, but he sent the woman away. How do I compete with a woman who lives her life to please a man?”

“You don’t. You leave the man alone for the woman who treats him right; not shatter the union and not be able to live up to expectations. You saw the way he ate that food, that is how he eats every meal Eucharia makes for him. It is always special and made with love. My advice, make them reconcile, let her get back to cooking for him while you take care of him in the bedroom.”

“But he also wants her in the bedroom.”

“So long as you are in the picture, it will never happen. Take my advice. And do not castigate her in the presence of family or gossip about her to anyone including me. This is an exception. They will listen to the gossip, but trust me, it will get back to the wrong ears. I learned the hard way. What Eucharia says here is law. See how happy our in-laws are that she visited. That is her, she will cook, clean and take care of people with her heart. You have to learn to be kind, follow in her footsteps and let her know you are doing that. It will take a while, but she will come around.”

“They had a misunderstanding, and for some months now Adim has been distant from me. Are you sure it won’t be worse when they reconcile?”

“He will need you to quench the fire she sets, it is better he gets that from you. Do not compete with Uk in anyone’s life. His brothers are worse. She dealt with Flora seriously that Adim banned her from coming to his house. Her husband’s death drew them close. Uk is a nice and hard-working lady. Just maintain your lane and allow her to shine.”

“I observed their closeness. Nda Flora acts as her support and always comes to her defence. She doesn’t regard me or acknowledge me as Adim’s wife.”

“Once Eucharia accepts you, everyone will follow suit. Hang in there.”

Read also:- The king Stalker episode 75 – end

Three days after they returned from the village, Thelma insisted that Adim makes peace with Eucharia. She wasn’t happy about how much Eucharia was going to get, but if this was the only means for her to get the family on her side, she was ready to do it. She made him send Eucharia”s outstanding allowance and the children’s school fees. She sent him to apologise to her in person and make peace.

Adim went to apologise to Eucharia. He came cap in hand and sincerely apologised and confessed that he was jealous she had moved on with her life without him when he needed her in his. He promised never to behave in that way again and would allow her to do whatever she desired as long as she showed him some respect by not throwing it in his face. He admitted he did not deserve it from her, but he was appealing for it. He sounded so convincing that she accepted the apology. She felt emotional and tried to walk away.

“Can we go back to the way we used to be? I have missed you dearly. See how I am, you are the only one that can take care of me. Please take over the care.”

“What is Thelma doing? She has to learn to do it, after all, she is the new wife. Let her leave her job and stay home to tend to you as I did. I will not cook anything special for you, but the maid can cook and serve you food.”

“Maid, Eucharia a maid me serve me food? I can’t believe you.”

“I am too busy to be at your beck and call. What I can do is make the stock and let Thelma finish it up and serve you. I heard you ate the soup I cooked for your parents licking your fingers and requesting for more. I can do it like that, but you have to provide the money for the meals.”

“But you used to take from the feeding allowance to tend to me.”

“That was when I still had feelings for you, I do not any more so you will pay for it.”

Adim looked at her and shook his head. He brought out money from his pocket and gave her. She smiled and told him when the food was ready, she would send for his driver to pick it up for Thelma’s house.

Adim realised he lost this battle. He could not get her to stop the exercise and jogging. Her exercise group was increasing day by day and men were joining. She was adamant about the group and he could not convince her otherwise. He had to make do with what he had. She made his meals and sent them to Thelma for finishing. She gave him the contact details of the drycleaners she used for him. He called her or came to the house for her to arrange his clothes for the week. He preferred it when she chose it.

Eucharia had found peace. She made up her mind not to have any issues with Adim and agreed to cohabit with him. He slept over at her place most weekends in his room. He talked to the girls and every Sunday evening took them out. Sometimes, he took them and the boys out with their mothers’ permission. The girls got to interact with their brothers more and loved them. Dumebi was indifferent and refused to join the outing sighting work as an excuse.

Adim brought it up to Eucharia and she talked with her. Dumebi could not forgive her father for sacking her from her first job. Eucharia asked her to look on the bright side, if he hadn’t sacked her she would not be working with an international accounting firm. Her father had to sack her so she could discover her potential. She agreed with her mother and her relationship with her father improved.

Gradually the boys came to visit Eucharia’s home by themselves with their nanny. Their best friend was Urenna, they came mainly because of her. Before long, they wanted to have sleepovers. To get them to leave was a huge problem. The first night they slept over, Eucharia had to step in as they were trying to drag them out of the house. She had avoided mixing with them or forming any type of attachment but that day, she couldn’t bear to watch them cry that hard. She told the nanny to wait while she called Adim. She told him what the problem was and he promised to call back. He called a few minutes later and asked the nanny to go back home and pack up their overnight bag so they could stay until they were ready to come home.

Eucharia was surprised Thelma allowed her sons to stay. She would never have agreed if they were her sons. She had to ask Adim again if he was sure Thelma agreed for her sons to spend the night.

“Yes, she did. She is not like you who holds on to grudges. She has moved on and has accepted that the boys are your sons too. If they want to live with you, she would gladly release them to you.”

“Sweet talk. If that was the case, why did she insist on marrying you? She should have dropped off her sons and left.”

“You have a point there. She wanted to be secure and she is. She just got promoted and they are upgrading their operating system in the bank, she hardly has time. If Urenna is up for it, the boys can spend more time with her.”

“That’s fine. They can stay for as long as they want or Thelma permits. Do they have food allergies?”

“They are like me, they eat anything you cook with your hands.”

“Very funny. I have to stock up on groceries, boys eat a lot. But these are skinny.”

“They have not tasted your cooking yet and they don’t eat swallow here.”

“They will eat it at my house. The way they play around they have to eat carbohydrates for energy. Don’t worry, I have got this.”

The boys stayed for almost a month. Thelma saw them briefly over the weekend while she worked tirelessly to save her job. Her bank had been bought over and the new management was retrenching people. She did not want to lose her job and had to work to be noticed by the new manager. The boys staying with Eucharia was a huge relief for her. She saved on food, (Adim augmented for Eucharia even though she didn’t ask) and had only Adim to tend to when she returned home.

When the children eventually went back home, they couldn’t stop talking about Big Mummy and what she did for them. They came back more robust and healthier. The nanny told her Eucharia insisted they ate swallow and made sure they had pounded yam with okro, vegetable soup, and other native soups. They preferred the okro and pounded yam. They also liked fufu but pounded yam was their favourite. They took potatoes, both Irish and sweet. She made a special sauce they ate with the potatoes. It was unbelievable. They came home with bowls of the sauce and half-made soups for the boys. She changed their bath soap and lotion and she could see the effect. She gave the nanny palm kernel oil to rub on them at night before they sleep. The best of all were the supplements she gave them for their appetite. They were only allowed ice cream, pastries and soft drinks once a week. She gave them fresh fruits or fresh juice.

Thelma looked at Adim surprised with all they came back looking better and with loads of things. Adim smiled and said, “That’s Eucharia for you. Once you left them in her care, she took over and attended to them. She came back early to supervise them and they went to bed by 8 pm every night and they were up at 5:30 am every morning. They did not watch television on weekdays and they complied because she said so. They loved her and she spoilt them rotten. They ate roasted corn with pear or coconut, she gave them local delicacies and they enjoyed them. You know why, because every other person was eating what they were given. She is an amazing woman. You need to show her gratitude. Get her a gift to say thank you.”

“What do I get her?”

“A television set. She needs one for her room.”

“Why would I buy her a television set?” Thelma asked surprised at his suggestion.

“Because she deserves it and has made your life a whole lot easier. Give me whatever amount you want to spend on her but I will get her the television in your name.”

“We do not have a television in our room, why should I buy one for her.”

“Your children spent some nights in her room, with the television there, she can distract them and rest. They wanted to be with her more than with the children.”

Adim bought the television but got Thelma’s driver to deliver it to her. Eucharia was surprised at the gift. What was it for? She called Adim to ask why Thelma would give her such an expensive gift.

Adim replied, “Let her tell you herself.” he gave the phone to Thelma.

Thelma said, “I cannot thank you enough for taking care of the boys while I was busy. They came back changed men and the nanny threatened them with reporting to big mummy. I have joined her. I never doubted you would care for them as your own but I felt our differences would come into play. But you have taught me that no matter the difference our children are safe with each of us. The boys are free to come to you whenever they want without my permission. And please you will teach me how to make the sauces they eat with their potatoes, they said I cannot make it like a big mummy.”

Eucharia was quiet but the words touched her. It was not bad after all and she missed the boys. She sucked in a sob and thank Thelma. She said they were welcome anytime they wanted, her home was their home. Concerning the sauces, she would make another batch to make it easier for her.

Flora had travelled abroad when the boys came for a month to visit her children. She was surprised to see the television and also heard Eucharia on the phone. When the call ended, the tears flowed. Flora sat beside and held her hand. She enquired about what happened. Eucharia told her everything she missed while she was away. Flora was amazed that Eucharia allowed the boys to stay for a whole month and took care of them.

“Before you know it, Thelma will be just their biological mother while you will be taking care of them. I told you to be patient and see how everything works out. Is that why she bought this television? How did she know you needed it? Adim must have bought it in her name but it is still a beautiful gesture. You have two sons now. The house in the village will be ready soon and you will be a blended family.”

“Blended what?”

“Is it not you? Eucharia you are too good a person to hate anyone. If I were Thelma, I would leave the children for you and face doing fine girl because you thrive in chaos. What will the boys call you now?”

“They call me big mummy.”

“Imagine that. I am happy for you. It remains to forgive Adim.”

“I have. It is over.”

“Can he come and spend the night here with you?” she asked smiling sheepishly.

“I don’t know what you are talking about and I do not share a room with him again, Thelma has him settled in that department. Has he made a fuss about it again?”

“No, because he knows he has to tread softly with you until you succumb. I have asked him to woo you again.”

“Woo me? He will be jumping from one bed to another? It cannot happen, let Thelma have him, I don’t care.”

“And you do not miss him?”

“Not enough to strip naked for him and allow him access to my body. I miss talking to him but we are getting better at it. At least we no longer fight.”

“How long will you keep this up?”

“Until either of us dies. And I am dead serious. Please don’t give him false hope. It will never happen.”

Tbc