THE BIG RE-UNION

My mom took a bold step, summoned all courage in the midst of her pains and made a call to my dad using a different number to call him. He picked and asked for the caller ‘I spoke with fear and trembling, it must have shown from my voice too.’ He said, “and who is that fearful caller from the other end?” “It is me,” “who is me?” he teased having recognized the voice. “Your w-i-f-e I suppose?” “My wife? Really my very own wife bone of my bone? You mean my estranged wife?” He continued teasing. “Yes, I am Ray I’m on my knees, I’m very sorry for letting you down”. My mom was weeping profusely. My dad joined her and both were actually weeping from both ends. What a love made from heaven! When they were fully satisfied, they exchanged all the greetings pleasantries and what not. My father asked her a very big question, “are you willing to leave your new husband and return to me now?” she sighed deeply, “Yes, I am willing but you have to give me time to work it out from my end. I have messed things up by hooking with a beast of a man”. A very loose, immoral man that have no respect for women; A man that cannot control his libido. He sleeps with anything on skirt. Do you now see that God has judged me? I am serving my punishment for breaking my marital vow. I’m sentenced to a life of pain and misery. Only God knows when he will show me mercy.

Out of deep frustration, I rushed unto another marriage instead of me to wait and calm down fully. I got engaged to this man. He was friendly and romantic. I feel fall him, not studying him enough to know he was a womanizer. This man had impregnated several ladies and broken up with them. For me, I refused to sleep with him. I told him he would have to wait till we got married legally. We got married in court. I complicated issue with this man. I also wanted to prove to you that men too want me, that I am still attractive. I messed up my life, one thing I know I refused to do is to get pregnant for him. He has about six children, though they may even be more. The ones I know are six in number with different mothers. I made up my mind not to be pregnant. He, himself told me he is not interested in marrying someone in need of children. He is satisfied with the ones he has. Since you are legal practitioner we will pick up the divorce letter for him to sign, till he agrees. We can use your colleagues to start it but you give me a little more time, my mother blurted out to my dad, “Hmmm, I quite understand it may not so easy to know you are the only woman that has ever stayed for long period of time. We must agree together and get evidences of his assault on you. Try and start recording on a daily basis please my wife.”

“I am ready to have you back even now. If you ask me to come and pick you, I will do so; I have secretly been waiting for this day. I am the happiest man in the whole world. I felt like shouting, screaming, crying at the same time. I want the whole world to know that my wife is fully back, I pushed you unto doing this. I won’t put the whole blame on you. I started it and it is high time we handle the intruder. I am in” he said. They ended it by declaring their love for each other. Quite interesting, one of his friend’s heard him saying “I love you deeply my wife.” He asked my dad, which wife? What do you mean? Do you mean you’ve re-married and you never allow us to know? Man! That is not good enough.” My dad said I do not have to re-marry when I’m married, I have never divorced. He became confused. “You mean your former wife that has re-married one Mr. Bade?” ‘Yes, but point of correction, she is not my former or my ex,’ she is my wife, we have never divorced. She only packed out and later brought a paper of divorce for me to fill. I never did fill those papers. I kept them aside till to day, so, legally, I’m married.   

They all laughed and laughed, calling my dad “insane man” “joker”! Listen folks, my dad screamed at them, “I pushed my wife into the temptation she is in today. I betrayed her trust I spoilt our beautiful relationship. I have to take responsibility. I will also support and stand by her to come out of this situation. I will be with her through out the rest of the journey to my house.”

My mom told me she was really surprised at what my father was saying about her. I never knew he loved me so much like that. He was a bundle of joy to me to discover he was still madly in love with me. He was willing to give me a second chance when I never gave him his own. He is a man of love and patience. I love him. He is a real man’ not a mere man. She said my dad said “I’ve missed you so much that I will not even know what I will do if I see you. Maybe I will carry you off your feet, take you inside my car, drive you around the whole town, from one restaurant to another, from one boutique to another, until you sleep off, I will travel out with you to Paris in France for a honeymoon or I will re-marry you again, give you a new ring before that special honeymoon. I will start to save money for the new journey of life with you.”

Dad and mom decided to restore their relationship. Like new couples, they call themselves sometimes three times every day, their dormant love was revived.

It got to a point Mr. Bade, the womanizer got to know something new had happened to mom. One day, he called her and asked her some questions. “It seems you are happy these days. Your face is different, you are more lively and getting excited. What is happening? Or should I say what has happened to you? You behave like a woman that has just falling in love with a woman. Are you tired of this relationship? Who have you being seeing? Hmmm” he said, “be very careful. I will not tolerate adultery.”  He kept on ranting for the answers. Mom kept quiet and never answered him. Silence is golden. ‘Sadist, he doesn’t want me to be happy. He is busy enjoying himself and having fun with numerous ladies leaving me in sorrow everyday’ she thought in her heart she told herself that her days are really numbered in the house. She will start to arrange her things one by one.

She later called him and sat him down telling him. “Since I got married to you, I have not looked back, I have kept myself from everyman but look at you, you have defiled our matrimonial bed several times, and you have made me regret ever marrying you. You are a womanizer and a wife beater. I have really endured you, no woman can stay with you, but I determined to do so, but you have repaid me with evil. I forsook all my children because of you, you have kept yours. Anyway, I will be travelling to see my children and my husband. Do not forget, that I did not divorce him, he is still my husband. He just left me alone out of deep love and respect for me. So I want to go and see my family I have left for years. I am going home.” My man said he stood up in anger shouting on top of his voice saying, “You are an ingrate, you are an ingrate. You are simply ingrate.” He stormed out angrily and left with his car and did not come home throughout the night.

By morning she packed her bags and went to see my dad and the children. As soon as she got to the house, it was only our last born at home. He screamed and shouted calling the neighbors that his mom is back. A lot of the neighbors came in and saw my mom. She was weeping; some of the neighbors were in tears too. It was emotional scenery. Everyone welcomed her and left. She later called my dad to inform her, she is at home. He shouted too, and quickly rushed back home. He couldn’t believe his eyes. He was in tears too; they held each other for a long time. What a re-union. They were completely broken down. My mom got to the kitchen and started to cook. Oh! What a lovely sight. Neighbors kept coming to see my mom and then king her for her courage to return to her real husband. 

Meanwhile the other husband, Mr. Brown was railing when he got home and swearing that he would charge my mom to court. He called her and was shouting at her, commanding her to return immediately. My father had to collect the phone from her and rebuked the man fiercely. He told the man boldly, “you are a thief who stole my wife. I will get my wife back. I will sue you right away.” By the following day, my father had filed a suit against the man for marrying a married woman. My mom also sued the man for maltreatment and assault. 

My mother wanted to return to the man until the case is settled, but my father bluntly refused. “You will not go back to the man; he may kill you or maim you for life. I will not allow you. Never again.”

My mom was happy and decided to stay though she left most of her things there but it does not matter, better her family than material things. My father told her to prepare to go out, because he would do good shopping for her. Wao! It was sweet union. All of the children were very happy for the reconciliation.

I thought of Paul, how I wished he were around to witness our plan that had been successful. I missed him, he was a kind man. Whoever marries him is most fortunate.

Thank God for our last born that had accident. He was able to recover; he had to be suing a support when he was able to walk. He had just graduated from the use of support. He started walking on his own. He sat for WAEC and did well. He made his paper in one sitting. He sat for Joint Admission Matriculation Board. (JAMB) he got a little over two hundred and gotten admission into the university. We thank God for restoring the family again.

My dad left drinking, clubbing immediately; His friends had been calling him to come, he had to tell them that his wife was back, there was no reason returning to his vomit. He withdrew immediately and promised his wife that he had learnt his lessons and wouldn’t expose his family to such attacks again. Family is important. Family must be protected from intruders. I was really proud of him for taking his stand.

The court case had begun between Barrister Ray and Mr. Bade. Barrister Ray sued him for marrying his wife illegally. My mom sued Mr. Bade for taking advantage of her, when she was vulnerable and suing him for violence against her. He had battered her severally in the presence of neighbors. She had gotten enough evidences against him. She had evidences of his wayward character towards women. His ill-treatment of women was bad. 

My mother had filmed severally his attitude towards the women he brings to the house. There was the case of a prostitute he brought home. The girl wanted certain amount given to her. Mr. Bade had refused and had to resort into battering of the lady in question. She had to run for her dear life. The lady tried to resist him but he overpowered her and dealt with her mercilessly. It took the intervention of the man’s friend who came in, to separate them and gave the lady a chance to escape. 

There was another case when he brought another woman to the house, he was giving through the woman’s phone and discovered other men on her life. He got up and started beating her for deceiving him. The lady was trying to explain that the men were his uncles; he bluntly refused to listen to her. He became furious, he said he had just bought a house for the lady because he felt she is somehow better than all others, but he never knew these women were the same. He had spent heavy amount of money on her. He vowed to deal with her. She must return all the things he had given her. The lady left with injuries that day.

“The man is a beast, his beastly bastardly acts are numerous. He is easily provoked, has a very, bad temper. Everyone knows his character including his secretary, manager and all his workers. He sacks his employer anyhow, his friends knows who he is, unless they want to lie.” Those were the words of my mom.

The court kept on dragging the Mr. Bade was bent on having my mom back out of sheer ego not because he cared for her. If he had cared, he would have been content staying with her and not bother with other ladies too numerous to count. The way of a sinner is hard.

My dad, Barrister Ray Pepple believed he would win the case not because he was a lawyer but because he knew he had never divorced his wife and legally it was wrong a court to have joined a married woman without the legal document from the former husband that she was free to re-marry. Being a seasoned lawyer, he had the technical knowledge or the know how to knock out the case from court. He would take full advantage of that. His colleagues supported him in court. Though the other man was richer, they knew they had no case. The case was being postponed to gain or buy more time. The man later resorted to gifts, he believed that every man has a prize, it is to discover it. Being a rich man, he decided to be sending gifts to my mom. A man that never cared while she was with him suddenly became generous. I think that was the way he got her the first time not knowing that things had changed. She knew where she belong it is with Barrister Ray Pepple or no one.

The first gift was a very fine car, one of the exotic cars then, ‘Toyota Camry’, it was brought by a driver who located my mum and told her, that her husband wants her back, he sends the car to appease her wrath. What! My mom screamed, “I cannot be bought by material things.” I knew he was very rich, yet I left him, I can only be appeased by good character. I do not need his gift of a car. No, thanks she told the driver, the driver drove back the car quietly in shame of course! Neighbors around booed the driver just to get at Mr. Bade. People hailed my mom while the driver was booed.

At another times, he came by himself to speak to my mom. He begged her to come back to him. Since she left, he had not being able to sleep fine. According to my mom, he told him plainly, “I never belong to you. You know this very well; you have always been bringing ladies to the house. I have bot being able to satisfy you at all. Go and bring ten or more, you will sleep please.” Neighbors came, I never knew has they know he was the one, they gathered and told him to leave Barrister’s wife alone. Go home and leave people’s wife. Go and marry your own, thank God my dad was not at home. The man was pained and vowed to revenge. He left in violent anger swearing that he would revenge