Vijay sat beside my hospital bed, his fingers lightly tracing the edge of the white sheet. His face was expressionless, his voice quieter than I'd ever heard it.
"How are you feeling?"
I stared at him, unsure how to respond.
Weak? Empty? Terrified?
"Better," I muttered. It wasn't a lie. Physically, I wasn't in as much pain. Emotionally? That was another story.
Vijay sighed, rubbing his forehead. "I know I've been… difficult."
Difficult?
A part of me wanted to laugh. Another part wanted to scream.
His fingers drummed against his thigh. "I don't want to be that man, Ivy. The one who hurts his own wife. I don't know what gets into me sometimes."
I said nothing.
He exhaled, staring at the floor. "I'll change," he murmured. "You'll see."
I should have scoffed. I should have turned away.
But something in me, the same foolish part that had made me believe in love once,wanted to cling to those words.
Maybe this time…
Maybe this time, he meant it.
***
I stepped into the house, expecting warmth, expecting softness, expecting even the tiniest sign that Vijay meant his words.
Instead, his mother and sister sat on the couch, waiting.
I barely had time to settle before his mother spoke. "You should cook something. You've been lying around enough."
I blinked. I just got back from the hospital.
Vijay didn't say anything. He removed his shoes and went to the bedroom.
I felt his mother's hard stare on me.
"Barren women shouldn't rest too much," she muttered.
Her words landed like a slap.
His sister chuckled. "Maybe she's pretending to be weak so she can sneak out and meet her lover."
I froze. "What?"
vijay's mother leaned back, smug. "You didn't think we didn't know, did you?"
"That doctor," his sister added. "Raymond."
My stomach twisted.
"He's just our neighbour," I said carefully.
His mother scoffed. "That's what all adulterous women say."
I turned to Vijay, silently begging him to defend me.
But he was already walking to the bathroom, his face unreadable.
And just like that, I knew.
His promise to change? It had been nothing but words.
***
Days passed, and I tried to survive in silence. I did everything they wanted; cleaned, cooked, obeyed. But it was never enough.
Then came the town's annual gathering, a cultural event where families celebrated their heritage. Vijay's entire family dressed in fine traditional attire, his mother and sister in expensive siras, their jewelry shining.
I stood by the bedroom door, staring at the nearly empty wardrobe. The last of my good clothes had been taken by Vijay's sister. The only thing left was a faded gown from my waitress days.
Vijay walked in, adjusting his outfit in the mirror. "Why aren't you dressed?"
I swallowed. "I… I don't have anything to wear."
He scoffed. "Whose fault is that?"
I bit my lip. "Can I at least rush out to buy something decent?"
Vijay turned, giving me a hard stare. "Wear whatever you have. You're not there to impress anyone."
His words stung, but I said nothing.
***
The venue was grand, filled with music, laughter, and the scent of rich food. Men sat with their wives, women dressed beautifully, their husbands' arms around them.
I stood at the edge of the crowd, feeling out of place in my worn dress.
Vijay barely acknowledged me. Then, as people gathered for food, he turned to me with a smile.
"Go and help the servers," he said.
I blinked. "What?"
"You're not sitting around like some queen," he snapped. "Go and serve the guests."
People turned to stare. My face burned.
"Vijay…"
"Go!" he barked.
The murmurs started. I felt their eyes crawling over me, judging.
Shame swallowed me whole as I picked up a tray and moved toward the serving area. My hands shook as I passed snacks around, my heart pounding with humiliation.
Then came the final blow.
Vijay's voice rang out across the gathering. "Look at her! Dirty woman!"
Laughter. Whispers.
I wanted the ground to open and swallow me.
I wanted to disappear.
Laughter filled the air, cruel and merciless.
I stood frozen, my hands clutching the tray as Vijay's words echoed around me. Dirty woman.
The women whispered behind their hands. The men chuckled. Even the children pointed.
Shame burned my skin, but Vijay? He just sat there, grinning.
As I turned to retreat, my eyes caught him across the gathering. With another woman.
She was beautiful, dressed in a fine sira, her hands resting lightly on his arm. He leaned in, whispering something that made her giggle.
I clenched my fists. Of course.
The humiliation, the cruelty, it was never enough for him. He needed to flaunt his betrayal too.
***
Back home, I was still shaking when Vijay's mother called me into the kitchen. She sat with a cup of tea, her expression calm.
"You embarrassed my son today," she said.
I swallowed, keeping my gaze low.
"But don't worry," she continued, her voice light, almost cheerful. "We have a solution."
I frowned. "What… solution?"
She sipped her tea, then looked up with a smirk. "We're getting Vijay another wife."
The words punched the air from my lungs.
"A fertile one," she added. "A real woman who can give him children."
My blood ran cold.
"Once she's here, you can stay if you want," she shrugged. "As a servant, of course. That is if Vijay still allows it."
Silence. A deep, suffocating silence.
Then, something inside me snapped.
I had endured the pain. The insults. The beatings.
But this?
This was it.
I would not let them bury me alive.
Not anymore.
***
That night, as I lay on the cold bedroom floor, staring at the ceiling, my mind wouldn't stop racing.
Is this love?
I left everything behind for this man; my luxurious home, my ƙng size bed, business, my power, my name. And for what? To be treated like a slave? To be called barren? To be beaten while his mother and sister watched in silence?
My body ached, my arms felt like dead weight, and my stomach throbbed from the pain of losing another child. I had miscarried thrice. And nobody cared.
Kene had warned me. "You're giving up everything, Ivy. Are you sure?"
I had laughed back then, believing love was worth more than money. Believing Vijay was worth it.
But here I was, curled up on the hard floor like a discarded rag.
A weak laugh bubbled up in my throat, bitter and empty.
Maybe Kene was right. Maybe I had been a fool.
I turned my face to the wall, squeezing my eyes shut. But the darkness didn't comfort me. It only whispered the truth.
That night, as I lay on the cold floor, the pain in my body was nothing compared to the fire burning inside me.
I had given up everything for love, and all I got in return was chains. They had taken my freedom, my dignity, my children.
But they hadn't taken my mind.
Vijay thought I was weak. His mother and sister thought I was trapped. But they had no idea; something inside me had snapped.
I wasn't going to cry
anymore. I wasn't going to beg.
I was going to take back my life.
And they are going to watch me do it.