Battles in the shadows

THE FIRST SETBACK

"No one will ever love me. I am ugly and bad." She kept telling herself. Now all the other children would laugh at her. More tears fell from her eyes. She sat on the floor of her room and held the picture of her new family; the one they took together. Her life was running smoothly before the old woman came along. She looked so gentle on the outside but once the old woman opened her mouth, everything bad came out. Laura hugged her knees and began rocking herself back and forth. She feared the worst would happen. She will return to the orphanage and her life will be back to where it was. She stood up and lay on her bed still holding the photograph. She didn't come down for supper and nobody came to check on her. That shows just how much she was valued by her new family. She finally gave up waiting and eventually cried herself to sleep.

Just about fifteen minutes to nine, Faye opened the door to Laura's room slowly. Her little girl was already asleep. Faye sighed sadly as she had brought a tray of food for her. She closed the door behind them and put the tray on a table. She looked at Laura and saw the picture lying next to her. Tears fell from her eyes as she thought about what the fight with her mother in - law was doing to her daughter.

"I am so sorry my child." She cried and kissed her on both cheeks.

"I can't let her win. If she does it would destroy me. She will do anything to keep us apart." More tears fell from her eyes. She took the picture and looked at it. She put it on the side table beside the bed. She nudged Laura to wake up but the poor child was sound asleep and too emotionally drained to respond. But Faye refused to relent.

"Laura, please wake up and eat." Faye whispered. After some time, Laura woke up.

"Mum, are you okay?" she asked in a small voice.

"Yes I am. I have your supper here. Get up and eat, okay."

Laura got up and sat on the chair by her studying table.

"You look sad. Is it grandmother?" Laura asked gently

Faye smiled.

"Don't worry about me. Eat your food."

"Why doesn't grandma like me?"

"Laura. Your father and I love you."

"That is enough for me. I will eat now. Where is Father?"

"He went out. He'll be back."

Laura began eating her food. She was about to learn that society has rule and regulations. Class and race was one of them. But the happiness was short lived.

A year later...

All Laura could remember was her mother's stomach rising daily and soon she was told they were expecting her siblings for Faye was pregnant with twins. On the fateful morning of the twins' arrival, her mother had screamed and cried as father drove her to the hospital, leaving Laura with Mrs. Portia.

"Is mum going to be alright?"

"Of course! She has gone to bring your babies home. You will have more people to play with." Portia said kindly.

Laura silently thanked God for expanding her family. She smiled brightly and began to imagine life with the new additions to the family.

Mrs. Robertson gave birth to fraternal twins; a boy and a girl. Lucas Robertson was so overwhelmed with joy. Now his dear mother can have peace of mind and that means Laura must leave. The second day of Faye's admission to the hospital, Lucas called Mma Dikobe to inform her of the latest development.

"It has been hard for my wife and I since my mother found out about Laura and I do not want the poor child to be traumatized any further. With the arrival of the twins, things will get even harder and she might even get alienated by my mother and other family members that will soon arrive."

Mma Dikobe was fuming with anger. How could they do this? How could they want to throw Laura back to the orphanage just because now God has blessed them with children of their own? She said in a robotic voice,

"I will discuss with the rest of the team here and get back to you."

She cut the line and slammed the receiver down. No child should be treated this way especially not the sweet and innocent Laura. But this was beyond her now. Her biggest problem was how she would console the poor child once she gets back to the orphanage.

"How could you do this to her?" Faye yelled at her husband. On arrival back home, she had expected Laura to be there to welcome her. She should have known when Lucas was always giving excuses for not bringing their daughter to see her at the hospital.

"I don't want our children asking unnecessary questions about her! Let it go Faye!"

"What questions Lucas? How could you allow your conscience to perish this way? I will never forgive you Lucas. You should have married your mother's choice instead pf putting me through this trauma. You are wicked! Laura will be in a state! How could you!" she screamed at her husband. He remained silent as he had nothing to say. His mother always wins.

"Don't try to take her back Faye. I already called Mma Dikobe and explained"

"Explained what? That you now have your own children? That you have a racist mother?"

Lucas sighed deeply before responding to his wife's bitter accusations. "This is hard for me too love. I had no choice; it was either you or Laura."

"Who put you in that position Lucas? Certainly I did not do that! Your mother is the authority even in our marriage! Love is surely not enough in a relationship. One must have a good head on their shoulders too!"

"Why are you talking like this?"

Faye threw him a cold look. "You can seriously ask me that? Obviously I am not good enough to make decisions for myself. You undermined my position in this house as your wife when your mother became the final authority! This is the last straw Lucas!"

"Why are you taking the side with a child you are not even related to?"

"Blood is not always thicker than water as they say. You know I love Laura with my entire being and yet you took her away from me! You knew she had nobody to call family and yet you took away the family she has accepted as her own."

Lucas was speechless and understood his wife but he really did not have the power to go against his "dearest" mother.

"From this moment on, I do not want to see your mother step her feet in this house! You are a weak and wicked man Lucas Robertson! I am ashamed to be your wife!" With that she pushed him out of the Master bedroom and slammed the door on his face. She collapsed on the floor and began shedding bitter tears.

For Laura it was a change from grace to grass; her happily ever after has just been shattered.