Unfulfilled promise 2 episode 10 – 11

Unfulfilled promise
Season 2

Episode 10
Oleng spent a week in the hospital. Dave didn’t
come to see her, not even once. He didn’t call
either. Oleng decided to give him time. The
doctor had talked sense into her for her to
realize she would lose both her husband and
the baby if she continued like that. She got a
grip on herself and decided she didn’t want to
lose the baby after so many years of wanting
one regardless of who the father was. She
prayed that with time, her husband would
come to love her again.
Aunt Vien stayed with her till it was time to go
back to school. Oleng was sorry to see her go.
Aunt Vien didn’t want to go either but she had
no choice.
“It’s okay, aunty. I’ll be fine. You can see for
yourself that I’ve improved greatly. I no longer
cry.”
“But the sadness is still there in your eyes. My
company has stopped you from thinking and
stopped Dave from maltreating you but when I
leave, you’ll be lonely again, he’ll start
maltreating you again and you’ll go back to the
former state I met you.” she said with sadness.
“No aunty. I know better now. I can’t lose both
of them. I want this child so much that it would
be foolish of me to lose it. I’ll be fine. Truly.” She
tried to convince her aunt by smiling but she
wasn’t fooled.
“Come with me. Let’s go back to Calabar so I
can take care of you there.”
Oleng smiled and shook her head slowly. “No
aunty. My place is here. I can’t run away now
because things are bad.”
“You won’t be running away. You’ll just be doing
what’s best for you and the baby. Besides, who
knows? Dave might miss you so much that he
would come to look for you over there.”
“That is unlikely, Aunt Vien. Thank you so much
for everything but I can’t go with you. Maybe I’ll
pay you a visit when the baby is born but I can’t
leave here. That would be throwing in the
towel. What if he refuses to allow me in when I
come back with the baby? I know he won’t
admit it but he needs me more than he knows.
He’s very sick. I still feel hurt by what he did but
now that I’m pregnant and know I’m not
barren, the hurt has reduced.”
Aunt Vien shrugged. “You are a saint! I’ll worry
about you till the baby is born. Thank God I
already bought all the baby things you need.
When you are due, I don’t care if I lose my job;
I’ll come over till you give birth.”
“Thank you, aunty. Thank you for everything.
I’m going to miss you.”
“I’m going to miss you more. If only Linda were
a responsible person she would have…”
“Please aunty, don’t mention that woman’s
name here. I haven’t thought of her in years
and I wouldn’t like to start now, especially not
in this trying time.”
“It’s okay, my dear.” She enveloped her niece in
a hug.
Oleng thought of the woman she had once
called her mother. In the wh0le year that she
had been in Port Harcourt, she had never
caught sight of the woman. She wondered if
she had gone to reside in Dubai for good or
maybe she was dead. She didn’t feel sad at that
thought because her anger wouldn’t allow her
feel for a stranger.
Aunt Vien left the following day and Oleng felt
her absence greatly. She went to work and
came back to an empty house and kitchen. She
recalled with smiles how her aunt would
welcome her with a hug, tell her to go and take
her bath and then she would come back to
meet hot food on the table. Now she had to
make her own food herself.
She had stopped preparing meals for Dave
because she was tired of the wastage; they
always ended up in the bin. Moreover he was
barely at home. Sometimes when she couldn’t
help it, she would break down and cry but she
didn’t make a habit of it.
When she was in her eight month, she came
back home very tired one day. She managed to
make a meal for herself and rested a little.
When it was late evening, she discovered she
didn’t have sufficient air time in her phone to
call Aunt Vien and her doctor, so she decided to
go and get one. She got into her car and drove
off. She had to drive quite a distance to get the
particular unit she wanted. She drove back
home and discovered Dave was back.
After parking her car, she was surprised to see
that the front door was locked when she
wanted to enter the house. She knocked about
five times before Dave came to open the door
with arms akimbo looking very angry.
“Where’re you coming from?” he demanded.
“I went out to buy credit.”
“Credit indeed. At this time of the day?” He
touched his wrist watch.
“Well, if you must know, I didn’t know I didn’t
have sufficient air time in my phone to call my
aunt and my doctor, so I went out to get some.”
“Filthy liar. Eric must be in town. You went to
him to have a quickie, right? So this is what
you’ve been doing all the while I haven’t been
at home. What respectably married woman and
a pregnant one at that would go out at this time
of the day?”
Oleng felt scandalized at his accusation. “Dave,
it’s only 8pm. Please ehn, I don’t have time for
this. I just want to come in and go to bed.” She
made to enter but he blocked her path.
“If you know where you’re coming from, you
better go back there because you’re not
sleeping in this house tonight.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” She couldn’t
believe her ears.
“Exactly what I said. You’re not sleeping in this
house tonight. Go and meet Eric or whoever
your new lover is.”
“Stop being ridiculous, Dave. Stop being cruel.
Please, I’m very tired. I just want to go to bed.”
She retorted sharply.
“Cruel, ehn? You ain’t seen anything yet.” he
barked and slammed the door hærd against its
hinges.
Oleng knocked and knocked but he didn’t open.
She sat on the steps and hissed. She couldn’t
believe Dave could be so cruel, so wicked.
When it was 9pm, the gate man feeling so sorry
for his madam pleaded with her to go and rest
in his cubicle but she refused. He then knocked
on the front door, calling out to his boss.
“Yes, what is it?” Dave snapped from the
window.
“Oga, abeg allow madam enter house. Na true
she talk. She tell me say she dey go buy credit.
Abeg no vex with am. Pity her condition.” he
pleaded.
“Chike, if you don’t have anything tangible to
say, you better go back to your post.”
“Oga abeg. Sorry for madam. I dey sorry for am.
Abeg.”
“It’s as if you want to lose your job. If you don’t
get out of my sight right now, I’ll call your
security outfit to get me another gate man
tomorrow morning.”
“Ah Oga, e never reach that stage now. Madam
sorry.” he pitifully said.
“Thank you, Chike. Please go back to your post.
I don’t want you to lose your job on my
account. I’ll be fine.” Oleng quietly informed
him.
“Okay madam. Sorry.” he said and walked away
shaking his head in sorrow.
When it was 10 pm and getting cold, she kept
knocking on the door again, pleading. Dave
came to the window.
“What is it? I’m trying to get some sleep.” he
demanded harshly.
“Dave please. Please let me come in. Please. It’s
getting cold out here and I haven’t taken my
drugs. Please let me come in. I only went to get
credit, please.” She calmly requested.
“Oh! So now you know how to beg.” He
responded with helpless scorn. “What
happened to my cruelty? I promised to deal
with you and this is just the beginning. You’ll
pay dearly for making me look like a fool before
my peers. As for the drugs, I don’t bloody care
if the bastard dies. You don’t know the meaning
of cruelty yet. Weren’t you being cruel when
you opened your legs for a man who wasn’t
your husband? But Oleng why? Why Eric of all
people? I could have forgiven you had it been
someone else.” His voice broke with pain and
bitterness at that moment.
Oleng surveyed him with pity in her eyes.
Dave got a hold on his emotions and spelt out
bluntly, “Better start getting used to the cold
because it is going to be your companion
tonight. Maybe if you imagine Eric’s arms
around you, you’d get warm. Don’t disturb me
again. Good night.” He pushed the sliding glass
back, shutting the window.
“God will punish you!” She shouted at the
window.
Oleng laid down on the floor and lamented. She
had married a wolf in sheep’s clothing. She
knew Eric would never have been this cruel. She
couldn’t help remembering the good times with
Eric. She remembered their love making of
yesteryears and recently and she longed for him. She wondered why she’d rejected his calls
and message for them to meet. Guilt had been
killing her then. She regretted her hasty actions.
She slept off like that, whispering his name

Episode 11
Meanwhile, Dave tossed and turned on his bed.
He couldn’t sleep. He couldn’t help thinking of
the woman he had once loved outside in the cold. When he still hadn’t slept a wink after a
while, he went to the living room and opened
the door for her to come in. He saw that the gateman had used his long coat to cover her
and sat near her. He felt ashamed that it wasnanother man who had showed his so-called
wife compassion at his cruelty.
Was that not what had driven her to another
man in the first place? His decision not to tell her the truth? He regretted that with a passion
now. He was ashamed at the cruel way he wasntreating her now, someone he had been willing
to die for then. But whenever he thought about
her and Eric in bed, rage and bitterness would take over him; making him inhuman. After
sleeping with his wife, the bastard Eric had gone back to America, else he would have gone
to fight him the way he had fought Collins back then.
He turned abruptly and went in,side to take sleeping pills. He was tired of his conscience
flogging him.
The gateman gently woke up Oleng. She stirred
and was surprised to see him.
“Madam, Oga don open door. Abeg go sleep for
in,side. Sorry.”
Oleng stretched and the long coat fell from her
body. She looked at it in wonder.
“As I see as you dey shake for sleep, I come pull
am take cover you.”
“Thank you very much. May God bless you
immensely.”
“Amen. And you too.” he said and helped her to
get up.
“Good night.” she said as she walked unsteadily
to the door.
“Good night.” he replied and shook his head.
Such a nice woman didn’t deserve such
treatment especially in her condition, no matter
her crime.
The following morning when Aunt Vien quizzed
her about not calling and how she had tried
and tried to call her but her phone was
switched off, she broke down and her aunt
what happened.
“You mean he did that to you? How callous of
him! How wicked of him. My God! He’s an
animal! I’ll call him right now and give him the
length and breadth of my tongue.” her aunt
raged.
“No aunty. Please don’t,” she hastily begged. “It
will only make matters worse. I like the way
we’ve been living as strangers.”
“No, it won’t. I’ll let him know you have
someone who will make his life miserable if
anything happens to you and the baby.”
Before Oleng could say something to placate
her angry aunt, she ended the call. She prayed
her aunt wouldn’t carry her threat through. She
regretted telling her what happened but it was
too painful for her to keep to herself. She
regretted the day she met Dave again and
regretted marrying him.
She tried her best but she found herself
thinking of Eric. She felt it was due to the fact that his child nestled in her womb that was what was making her think of him more often
than normal. Zinny had told her he had had to go back to the States because of an unfinished
project and his grandmother was very sick. She
wondered if he had kids She shrugged
nonchalantly. It didn’t matter if he had twelve
kids, he wouldn’t know about the thirteenth
one.
When she came back from the office in evening,
she decided to take a little nap. She was quite
exhausted. She was dreaming of Eric and his
baby when in her subconscious, she heard
someone shouting.
“Wake up you filthy slut!” Dave nudged her
painfully with his hand.
She was wide awake in an instant. She slowly
sat up on the bed and looked at him cautiously
wondering what was the cause of his ire.
“You reported me to your aunt, right? Because
you’re so scared of me you didn’t dare insult
me to my face but you told her to do it for you,
right?” he ranted.
Oleng was amazed. “No. I…”
“Shut up, you liar. You know what? I’ve had it with you. You’re going to leave this house today.” he declared and went to her wardrobe
to fling it open.
His wife quickly got up from the bed. “Dave
please. I didn’t tell her to insult you. I pleaded
with her not to call you. Please Dave.” She
stood before him begging.
He didn’t even pause for a moment in throwing
her clothes into her box. “Well, tell that to the
birds. All I know is that you’re leaving my house
today. I’m sick and tired of seeing you. I’m sick
and tired of watching that bastard’s baby grow
in,side you knowing he is somewhere with a
smirk on his face at my folly. I’m sick and tired
of you murmuring his name in your sleep.” He continued throwing her things into the box with
aggression.
Oleng continued begging. “Dave please. Please,
I beg of you. I don’t have anywhere to go. Just wait for me to put to bed and I’ll leave on my
own accord. Please.”
He paused and looked at her with a sardonic
smile. “Oh! His parents won’t accept you also?
Poor you! Why don’t you go and stay with that wicked witch of your mother?” he disdainfully flung at her and threw her box out of the room.
“Tomorrow, come for the rest of your things or
you will meet them outside because I’m too furious now to pack all of them. I just want to
see your back.”
After throwing the box out the front door, he went back for her. He dragged her roughly till
they got to the living room and he pushed her
out the front door also.
She held her stomach in pain.
“Don’t lie there. Get out of my house this
minute!” he yelled.
The gateman ran to meet them. “Oga, wetin dey
happen?” he asked with concern.
“Take this box. Throw it outside. Then open the
gate for her to leave.”
“Oga abeg…” he began but was cut off as he
gazed pitifully at his madam.
“Are you deaf? I said throw her box out and
throw her out also and don’t you dare abeg
me.”
The gateman stood there transfixed not
knowing what to do while Oleng just laid down
on the interlocks, frozen. For the first time in
her life, her tear ducts refuse to function. Cold
seemed to have enveloped her heart.
Just then the gate opened and Dave’s mother came into the compound. She stood at the gate
for a moment studying the scene before her, before walking quickly to meet the three of
them.
When Oleng saw her mother-in-law walking
towards them, she knew she was finished. She
would leave the house in a more disgraceful
manner. She began thinking of who she would
put up with for the night. Her best option was Marvy’s family house since it was too late to go
to Calabar. What would she tell them? She decided a hotel would be better. Oh! The disgrace of being thrown out of your
matrimonial home for unfaithfulness She
regretted the cursed day she married Dave

TBC
Merry christmas in advance