“Are you serious about this?” Gladys asked open-mouthed.
“I am telling you the complete truth. We had a major quarrel that time and he said so many hurtful things. Prior to that, he‘d always claimed that I could only travel when he was on vacation with the children due to scheduling conflicts. That day, he told me that the fact that he had married me did not mean he had to accept my poor relations or waste his money on them or their wretched situations. He said even worse things which I won‘t repeat.”
“I can‘t believe this!” Gladys felt as if someone was squeezing at her heart.
“I cried and railed at his words but when I calmed down I knew I was powerless. You see, he threatened me with separation and estrangement from my children if I went behind his back to do anything. I did not have anything to secure a living for myself and the children if I disobeyed him. I was very young when we got married so I had very little stability.”
Gladys felt some wetness on her palm and only then noticed the tears that had trickled down her cheeks. She jerked to her feet and then dropped back again beside her aunt.
Aunt Isioma took her hands and gripped them. “I tried all I could to make him change his mind, but he was unwavering on the issue. I had to choose between him and the children and your family. There was nothing I could do even if I wanted to. I had no money I could have sent to your family or any way to send it. It was a very tense period; he monitored and even restricted my movements and calls. Of course there was no email or mobile phones in the eighties.”
“Surely there was something you could have done?”
“I could have returned to Enugu empty handed but that wouldn‘t have benefitted anyone. So I remained; the hollow image of a perfect wife. My husband bought me everything and made sure I had no access to money. He‘d gradually cut me off from the few friends I made before our marriage. He effectively buried my past, and even lied to some of his friends about my family background. I pretended that all was good and hoped that he would change.”
Gladys took a deep breath and let it out. “But he never did.”
Her aunt‘s smile was poignant. “No, he didn‘t. After a certain stage there was total breakdown. I just stayed on because I couldn‘t bear to lose my children.”