章節 43: MELANIE'S PAINS
Phyllis tossed in the bed while she kept staring at Melanie. She was in deep thought about Melanie's life. "What at all will keep a woman in such a marriage? Where's her parents and family? Why would they keep their daughter in such a a marriage? A marriage that could kill or destroy her" She's heard stories of married women being abused by their husbands and their in laws but she's never experienced it or had anyone close to her experienced that. She saw scars and bruises on Melanie and noticed that, she hadn't only been emotionally and verbally abused but she's also been physically abused and that really made her angry.
She was angry with Melanie because she thought she was the one responsible for the death of her child and no one else. If she hadn't stayed with such an abusive husband and in laws, her daughter wouldn't have died. "What kept her silent and sustained her with them? Didn't she even see any red flags during their courtship?" These are things she couldn't understand and get answers to because to her, there's no tangible reason for her decision to give back to her husband and not to talk about living in the same house with his evil family together.
She also realised Melanie was a strong woman to have survived all these abuse and hadn't lost her sanity. She was in tears and lost in her thoughts until she heard her phone ring, it was Denzel calling so she went to their bedroom because she knew he was calling because of Beryl. She was crying loudly, so she took her from Denzel and first changed her diapers because it was wet. She breastfed her and played with her until she fell asleep. Denzel leaned on the wooden side of the bed and sat quietly. Phyllis realised that he hadn't slept throughout the night so she asked him the reason for his loss of sleep. "How can I sleep when I keep seeing Serwaa anytime I close my eyes? Her bruises were so brutal and you could see that she was in excruciating pain but the most painful thing is she couldn't even talk about her pain or show where she was suffering from. All she could do was cry uncontrollably until she's sedated. Baby, it was heartbreaking. How in hell could someone do this to a three month old baby? How appealing is she? Couldn't he have gotten a woman from outside? This was sheer wickedness." Her broke down into tears and was very broken. " I fear for Beryl, baby. I'm really afraid for her but how can I protect her from devils like this goat?" She placed Beryl down and went to sit with him.
They both lied down in each other's embrace with cuddles. She apologised to him for being angry with him earlier when they were discussing her resumption to work because she didn't understand him. They both lied in silence until they fell asleep. They were woken up by Beryl's cries and they noticed they had over slept so they both woke up quickly and Denzel ran to shower while Phyllis took care of Beryl. They both saw that their entire house had been cleaned and dusted when they stepped out of the bedroom. Phyllis decided to go to the kitchen to prepare breakfast but when she got to the dining hall, there was an aroma coming from there so she went to check and lo, there was scrambled eggs, salad and fried sausages with bread and oats and hot water for beverages. She called Denzel to the dining hall and showed him the meals Melanie had prepared and asked if he would eat or she should prepare something else for him but Denzel sat down to eat and told Phyllis to also eat so as not to offend Melanie and besides she had put a lot of effort in doing that.
She called Melanie to join them on the dining table but she was hesitant about it in the first place but Denzel convinced her to. They had an intense discussion about her and agreed that Phyllis finds a job for her and she continues to stay with them until they get a place for her to stay as they continue with the trial. Denzel left for the office and left the ladies in the house. Phyllis and Melanie continued their talk so that she would get to know her well. She realised that Melanie had a rough childhood which prevented her from even furthering her education. She also had to stay with different people who mistreated her to the extent that she had to sometimes go to bed without food for an entire day. She also had relationships that were abusive and because she had a low self esteem.
Phyllis now got an understanding of why Melanie had to cope with her husband and his family. She suffered low self esteem and that's what kept her with him. Phyllis took her to see one of her clinical psychologist so that she would assess and counsel her. The psychologist attended to her and gave Phyllis some guidelines to help her monitor her. Phyllis was concerned about Melanie and because she was going to live with her for a period, she wanted to know if she was mentally stable so that she would feel safe but the psychologist assured her that she was well so she paid for the consultation fee and took the prescribed drugs for her before they left.
She drove to the mall with her so that she would pick some clothes, cosmetics and footwears for her. She also made sure she paid for every basic and essential items she would need to be comfortable. She asked if Melanie had any allergies so that it would inform her shopping but she didn't have any so they went for grocery shopping and then drove her through the city for her to know the important places so that she would know where to go for anything if the need arises. Phyllis attended to Beryl when they got home while Melanie tried her clothes and footwears on. She gave out a loud cry after trying them on so Phyllis rushed to her room to find her crying while staring at the mirror. Phyllis was worried and confused to find her in that state so she enquired of her to know what was wrong with her because she shook her head when she asked her if it was her loss that was making her cry.
" I have never worn anything as beautiful as these and besides all the clothes and shoes I have ever wore are second hand. I have never worn anything new in my life if my memory serves me right." She hugged Phyllis with her tears and Phyllis could actually feel her shivering so she took her to the living room and had a talk that calmed her down. She served her with a juice and biscuits and then left Beryl in her care so that she would go to the kitchen to prepare supper. Melanie joined her in the kitchen but she politely asked her to leave with the baby so that she would do the cooking.
Denzel got home after a while and they all sat on the table to eat. Denzel informed both of them that her hearing would begin in three days time so Melanie should prepare and brace herself for it. He told her it was going to be a tough case and therefore she should prepare for it because it would bring out old wounds. She thanked both of them and invoked blessings on them. They listened to the news after supper and then went to their bedrooms after it. Melanie asked Phyllis to allow her sleep alone because she was doing better.
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