BURNED

Chapter one

Friday evening when Halal's husband breezed back into their house after a two months trip in Port Harcourt, she didn't know whether to be happy that he was back again or sad.  Happy because, there would be no more lonely days or lonely nights or sad because there would be more deafening silence and coldness or perhaps cruelty.

It had been eight months since her last miscarriage, eight months since she had a decent conversation with her husband. After the night they spent at the hospital together, he buried himself in work and continued to ignore her.  It was one business trip or the other and even when he was around, he was still barely around.

Halal pressed a palm to her stomach and remembered the pains she'd felt when she lost the baby, she'd had high hopes for the baby. The priest from the miracle working church she'd been attending had assured her that if she gave a huge donation to the church, fasted,  prayed and come to the church regularly she'd get her wish. 

And she had,  she'd gotten pregnant. She briefly remembered Valentino's joy,  her extreme happiness.  The love,  care and attention he'd showered on her,  the plans she made for her baby. She was barely into the second trimester when she lost the baby.

Olive, she'd even picked out a name for her baby. Olive was gone now,  she thought sadly and looked down at her wedding band. The day she lost Olive, the day she lost her marriage.

She was dwelling in a broken home now.  It was obvious Valentino couldn't stand her, she was sure he regretted getting married to her. As a matter of fact, she wouldn't be surprised if he asked for a divorce soon.

It was eight years and she still hadn't been able to give him what he wanted from her.  A child, Valentino wanted a child but all her efforts to give him one was fruitless. 

Halal got up from the stool beside the bedroom window and walked to the full length mirror beside her dresser. She inspected her expression and her dress before walking out of the bedroom.

Valentino was already in the living room taking off his shoes.  His luggage was beside the door and his blazer was slung right on top of the suitcase.

"Val," she said after standing in the living room unacknowledged for a few minutes.

"Take the suitcase into the bedroom, what's for dinner? " Val asked without sparing her a glance. 

"Welcome,  how was your trip?" Halal asked moving towards the door to pick up the suitcase and the shoes.

Valentino let out a breath of irritation before fixing his eyes on her.  He tried not to pay attention to the awful black dress she was wearing or the obviously fact that she'd grown leaner.

"Did you at least make dinner?" he asked in a snappish tone.

"I didn't...I had no idea you were returning today. You didn't tell me,  you never called" she didn't add that he'd not also bothered to answer her call or reply to her texts.

The only thing that made her less worried was his occasional tweets on Twitter and a few posts on Instagram. If not,  she would have assumed him dead or worse.

"Of course you didn't cook,  is there anything you know how to do Halal, anything?" he sneered and stormed into the next room.

Halal stared after him unable to say anything. She didn't blame him for being so cold to her, it was her fault.  She'd frustrated him with her inability to give him a child.

She pulled the suitcase into the bedroom where she met him grumbling and taking off his clothes. "If you could just give me a few minutes Valentino, I can make dinner. What would you like to eat?" Halal asked helplessly.