The Homeless Widow Episode 2

“I never knew I will be in this kind of situation. My life has been turned upside down.” Love said to herself.

Loveth and her two children were still on the streets, suffering like strangers.

Life had become very hard for them. Her children were no longer going to school.

“Mummy, when will we go back to school?” The children asked.

But Loveth had no answer. Her husband’s family had thrown her out and taken everything. She had no phone, no ATM card, no clothes, no food. She was living like a beggar with her children. The pain was too much. Sometimes she wished she could wake up and realize everything was only a dream.

Loveth thought of going back to her family in the village. Her parents were poor but they would welcome her and her children.

“Should I go back to my parents?” She asked herself.

She thought of running to them for comfort, but each time she remembered the shame, she changed her mind.

“How will I tell them that my husband’s family threw me out like a dog? How will I carry my children and return empty-handed to the same people who gave me out in marriage?” Loveth asked herself. She could not bear the shame. Besides, her heart refused to abandon everything Jacob had worked for. She wants to fight back.

She remembered Jacob’s words before he died. “Loveth, you are my everything. If anything happens to me, take care of our children. Protect what belongs to them. Don’t allow anybody to cheat you.”

Those words continued to ring in her head. Loveth wiped her tears and said to herself, “I will not abandon everything my husband built. My children must inherit what belongs to them. I will fight back.”

It was this decision that gave her the courage to return to her husband’s house and confront Ndu. She held her children’s hands and walked bravely.

When she got to the house, she could not believe her eyes. The place had changed. Ndu had moved in. He had repainted the house. He had brought in new furniture. He was walking around like the owner of the house.

Loveth’s heart burned with pain. “So, this man has taken everything my husband worked for?” she asked herself.

She gathered courage and walked in. Ndu’s eyes turned red the moment he saw her.

“Why are you here again? Didn’t I tell you never to step into this house again?” he shouted.

Loveth fell on her knees and pleaded.

“Brother Ndu, please, have mercy on me. I am not here to fight you. I only came to beg. Please give me my phone. Please give me my ATM card. I don’t have anything. I have been on the streets with my children. They have not eaten good food for days. They are not in school anymore. Please allow me to have access to my husband’s bank details. Give me my ATM card let me get some money from my account. Give me my husband’s bank details. It belongs to his children. I beg you in the name of God, don’t let us die of hunger,” Loveth cried bitterly.

But Ndu laughed loudly and looked at her from head to toe. “So, you still have mouth to talk? Don’t you know you are nothing without my brother? Everything here belongs to me now. If you want me to give you your phone, your ATM card and access to Jacob’s accounts, there is only one condition. One thing only. If you agree, I will give you everything.”

Loveth raised her head in confusion. “What is it? Please, tell me. I will do anything to take care of my children,” she said desperately.

Ndu moved closer to her and whispered, “You must marry me. That is the tradition. When a man dies, his brother inherits the wife. You are too beautiful to waste away. Jacob is gone. You must become my wife. If you accept to marry me, everything will be in your hands again. You and your children will not suffer. I will treat you well. But if you refuse, you will remain on the streets forever.”

Loveth was shocked. She stood up slowly. “What did you just say?” she asked.

“I said marry me. It is our custom. It is the tradition of our fathers. You have no choice. You cannot remain a widow forever. Don’t waste your beauty. Don’t waste your life. Accept me and you will live like a queen again. If you refuse, you will suffer until death. Think well, Loveth. Think of your children.” Ndu said.

Loveth shook her head in tears. “God forbid! I will never marry you. I can never marry my husband’s brother. I am not an object to be inherited. I am a human being. Don’t insult me like this!”

Her rejection made Ndu very angry. He pushed her violently and shouted, “Then get out! Get out of my house and never come back again. Since you have chosen to remain stubborn, go and continue suffering on the streets. You and your children will beg for food until you die. You will see the kind of hell I will put you through. Get out now!”

Loveth staggered out of the compound with her children. She could not believe her life had turned into this. She held her children’s hands and walked aimlessly into the streets.

Loveth found a corner on the roadside and sat down. Tears flowed freely from her eyes as she held her children tightly.

“My children, forgive me. I have failed you. I don’t even know where our next food will come from. But I will never marry that wicked man. I will never betray your father’s memory. I will fight for you. I will keep praying to God. One day, He will answer me,” she cried. That night, as her children slept on her lap, Loveth looked up to the sky and wept bitterly, “God, why me?”

The Homeless Widow — Episode 3: https://ha.colofandom.com/82wtmd

The Homeless Widow — Episode 4; https://ha.colofandom.com/fa3t01