THE UNFAITHFUL HUSBAND ππ
Written by Henry Zibima
Episode 37
*****
Sonia’s POV
Tony fumed with anger and I became even more scared. He pushed me on the floor and the broken pieces of the plate pierced deep into my skin.
“You are sorry” he shouted, furiously throwing blows at me. I screamed for help but he placed his hand tightly against my mouth.
“You are sorry ba, I will teach you never to take me for granted.”
He kept throwing punches everywhere, I dodged most of them but those that hit me hurt badly. He aimed for my head but I was quick to dodge, I raised my head upward and the punch landed on my stomach.
“Ahh!” I screamed in excruciating pain.
I felt blood flow from in between my legs and unto the cold floor.
“Ahh! What have you done?” I groaned.
He immediately withdrew from me as he noticed the trail of blood leading to my legs.
“How come there is blood on the floor?” He asked looking very shocked
“Tony I’m in pains, I’m in pains. Please take me to the hospital right now”
“I’m sorry, I’m very sorry. I never meant to hurt you”
“Argh!!!” I screamed as I felt more blood gush out.
“Tony, if anything happens to this pregnancy consider your…Ahh!” The pain I felt was so agonizing and I strongly hoped that I wasn’t experiencing a miscarriage.
“You must be bleeding seriously” Tony said pacing about the room with his hands on his head.
“What do we do now” he asked anxiously.
“You have to rush me to the hospital NOW”
“I can’t go outside, do you want me to get arrested”
“Ah, Tony you are wicked. You came into my home and I helped hide you from the police, instead of you to reason things with me, Tony you started beating me up. You turned me into a punching bag, refused to listen to my pleas and now you see what you have caused. Tony you have to rush me to the hospital”
“Sonia, this isn’t the time to apportion blame”
“Then take me to the hospital, you freak”
“You know I can’t do that, do you want me to get caught”
Chei! At once I knew that my end had come. I had always warned Tony to tame his anger but he refused. I was soaking in a pool of blood and Tony didn’t even care about it.
“Do you want me to dΔ«e?? Please for the sake of the relationship we had, just take me to any nearby clinic… please” I cried hoping that my dad tears would touch him. He stood for some seconds, staring at nothing, I could only wonder what he was thinking.
“Do you have a face cap or face mask here?”
I nodded affirmatively because I felt too weak to talk.
“Where is it?”
“My wardrobe” I answered
He rushed inside and some minutes later, he came out wearing one of my face caps and a face mask.
“I’m going to get a keke (tricycle) to carry you to the hospital”
“Oh thank God. Please call my mom and inform her that I’m at the hospital”
“I will do that as I’m going”
“Please hurry up, I can see life fading out of my eyes”
Tony picked up his phone and quickly rushed out of my house. I saw myself dieing and I cared less about the pregnancy, I just wanted to be given a chance to to live.
In what felt like hours but was actually a few minutes; Tony finally came back. He ran down to me and placed my face in his hands.
“You’ll be fine, ok?”
He lifted me up and placed me on his shoulders. He hurriedly ran with me to the door, I felt dizzy but I could see a tricycle parked in front of my house. A man whom I presumed to be the driver ran up to us to help carry me. He assisted Tony and they soon placed me in the tricycle. The driver swiftly rushed to the front seat and started the vehicle.
Suddenly, we were caught flat-footed when a police van halted before us preventing us from moving further.
Tony was astounded and he became very alarmed. Some Police officers jumped off the back and although I felt very dizzy, I could recognize the Inspector.
“Is that not the lady we met the other day” one said to him pointing at me.
The inspector stared keenly at me and noticed blood all over my dress.
“What is going on here?? All of you come down now” he roared.
Tony and the driver immediately alighted from the vehicle. The driver was obviously scared and wondering what may have happened. I lay on the seat, totally weak. They were wasting too much time but death wasn’t.
“Raise your both hands up!” He ordered.
“Where are you taking her to??”
“Officer abeg, me I no know anything o. Na just driver I be”
“We’re taking her to the hospital” Tony said boldly. He acted like he wasn’t worried but I knew he had broken down inside.
“Why? What happened to her?”
“She fell down at home sir” Tony lied.
“Fell down? And she is covered in blood like this. What kind of fall is that? Where did she fall from?”
“Sir, we can’t be answering such questions now. She is dieing and we have to rush her to the hospital” Tony said and got back on the tricycle.
“Driver, enter make we dey go”
The driver quickly did as he said, he got unto the tricycle, ignited the engine and was about driving away. The relief on Tony’s face was very visible even through the face mask he put on.
“Wait!” came the voice of the Inspector. “Who are you to her and what were you doing in her house when she fell?”
“Officer, what is all this now?” Tony grumbled
“Young man, I asked you a question; who are you??”
“Sir, I am her brother. Can we go now?”
“Take off that face mask!” He ordered.
“Sir…”
“Do that now before I ask my men to assist you”
Slowly Tony pulled, taking forever to get it off it’s face. As soon as he was done, their mouths threw open in disbelief.
“You taught you could keep running forever, now the long arm of the police has caught up with you. Arrest them!” He roared.
Two police men brought out their handcuffs and immediately seized the driver and Tony.
“Officer I no follow” the driver cried.
“I no even know wetin dey happen, them just call me to come carry person.”
“You better save it for your statement in the police station”
“Ahh, station? Officer I get family for house o, my wife and six children and na only this my driving business we dey use survive”
“My friend you better remain silent” the police man slapped him hard on his head. “Because anything you say or do will be used against you in the court of law”
The driver didn’t shut up, he kept on crying and whining about how innocent he was.
“Take them to the van” the inspector ordered.
“And I need three of you to rush this lady to the hospital, it is also part of our duty”
Femi’s POV
My phone buzzed and it was the inspector calling. Positive news was all I needed to hear, anything negative would just break me down.
“Hello, good afternoon sir”
“Good afternoon Mr Ibrahim”
“I have good news sir”
“Good news? What could that be?” I asked keenly.
“We have the culprit in our custody sir”
“Which culprit?” I asked just to be sure it was what I was thinking.
“The one responsible for your kidnap sir”
“Wow!” I got up from where I sat and leaped for joy.
“By the time we are done with him, he will confess to his crimes and lead us to arrest all his accomplices.”
“How were you able to get him” I asked cheerfully.
“We caught him in the process of moving Miss Sonia to the hospital, she appeared to be in a very critical condition, so I asked some of my men to take her to the hospital while we arrested him.”
“Wow, that’s awesome” I said.
“Yes sir. I suggest you go see her. She was admitted at Tondis hospital”
“Okay sir. Thank you very much for not letting me down”
*****
I began dancing and jumping around like someone who just won the lottery, I was filled with so much joy and ecstasy. Indeed God never fails.
But then I recalled what the Inspector said, what could have happened that would make Sonia to get admitted at the hospital. My wife wasn’t even around for me to share the good news with her, I just took heed to the Inspector’s advice. I changed into something better and left for the hospital.
*****
I was asked to sit outside the ward, I tried asking the nurse what happened but she refused giving me any information, she said it was “confidential” and that I would get to know later.
I met Sonia’s mum already seatted there; the master planner of all my problems. I gave her a deadly look while she rolled her eyes and faced the other corner of the room. I sat on one of the chairs and totally ignored her. None of us said a word to each other.
After an hour plus of waiting, a man dressed in surgical greens came out of the ward. I supposed him to be the doctor, he signalled at me to meet him at the corner of the room.
“Good day sir”
“Good day” I replied.
“Sir I called you because you are younger and the older woman there is at a higher risk of a heart attack. I have both good news and bad news”
“Ok go on” I said.
“The good news is that she is alive…”
“And the bad news?”
“We lost the pregnancy”
Tbc
