I left for my house and when I got to the gate Law was waiting for me like a kid waiting for his mom. I just shoved him but he held my hand and started crying like a baby. He knelt down begging for forgiveness. I asked him to leave because I didn’t want my parents to know what happened. Besides, I wasn’t in the right state of mind to take a decision. His words were “Please don’t cancel our marriage. I promise this will never happen again.”

I should have cancelled that hell of a wedding but I didn’t. Neither did I tell my parents what happened. I just kept it as our little secret which only Jonna knew. When Jonna heard I didn’t cancel the wedding, she was shocked to the core. She laughed hysterically and stared at me as if I were stupid. She didn’t pass any comments but I knew she felt I didn’t know what I was doing.

Law started acting right again. I was so sure that I was safe with him. We got married and our first year was heaven on earth. We did almost everything together -even my friend Jonna got convinced that Law had changed. However, the second year was hell for me; my bundle of joy degenerated into deep sorrow. He tortured me emotionally and haunted my soul with his words. I died inwardly with each passing day. I was just his sex toy and slave instead of his wife.

Before marriage, we decided we would have a joint account into which 50% of our monthly salary would be contributed. In our first year of marriage, everything went as planned. I didn’t even realize when things started going wrong.
I was trapped in a marriage I wanted to break free from but “for better for worse” was a devotion I upheld. I prayed daily that things would return to how they were but the more I prayed the worse things became.

He asked me to stop working since he was financially stable to take care of me. I objected because that was the only comfort I had. He gave me two days to decide. He feared that he wasn’t getting full control over me because I was independent and earning more than him.
He felt intimidated by my work so he went on to instigate my boss to fire me from my job. Call the devil and my husband will be the one you will see- he was just a monster! I couldn’t tell anyone what was going on. I just cried myself to sleep and faked smiles just to cover my bruised soul.

He broke me into pieces and snatched every little thing that gave me joy. He treated me like an animal. There were days I had to sleep on an empty stomach because he claimed he had no money. He had the effrontery to start withdrawing money from our joint account and when I questioned him he told me that he needed the money for our project. Our project?? A project I knew nothing about.

My prayers were only tears. How could a man who once loved me turn out to be a monster?
Jonna one day called to know how we were faring and I couldn’t hide my pain. I cried my heart out to my friend and told her everything that was happening. She patiently listened to me. I didn’t need her to scold or advise me. I was glad that I was able to talk to someone who understood my pain.

She asked me “how much do you need for the week to stay alive for me?” There’s a saying like “women are their own enemies” but Jonna was different- she was my support system. Before I could tell her the amount I needed, I received an alert of GH¢1000 in my Momo wallet and she asked me to come over. I was reluctant to heed her request because I knew that stepping out of the use without telling Law meant trouble. She could feel my reluctance so she said “he won’t allow you to come over to my place right? Then I will come over. I hope that’s okay?”

I gratefully replied “Thanks for understanding me even in my silence. You’re the sister I never had. I will be waiting for you but Jonna call before you come over. I don’t want Law to know” “Is it really that bad? You ain’t allowed to visit or receive visitors. Wow, If this is what they call marriage then I’ll remain single, Nana”
“Jonna don’t say that. Not every man is like Law. I didn’t listen to my mom when she told me to take my time to observe him well. Now I am the only one in hot soup, hmmm. Please do come”

Law came home that night and asked me to start work again. “Why should I start work? Weren’t you the one who told me you would take care of me? What went wrong now?”
He said I was challenging him. He arrogantly affirmed his authority as the man of the house.
“Man of the house? Which man are you talking about? The one that uses every second to abuse me verbally and emotionally? Or which one? Don’t ever see yourself as a man because a man who makes his wife go to sleep on an empty stomach isn’t a real man. I don’t love you anymore. I’m just filled with bitterness and I hate you with everything inside me. Remember, I won’t ask for a divorce but I will make your life a living hell so much that you will beg to leave me. You’ll pay for every tear I’ve shed, this is my promise!”

He stood there speechless and confused. I felt good telling him the words I should have told him several months ago. I meant every single word I said to him that night.

“Was I wrong wearing my heart on my sleeve?”
“Where did I go wrong in loving you?“

These questions run through my mind when I reminisce all the moments I had to act like everything was okay.

This is how my love life started. It was all roses waking up in his arms; cuddling, caressing and kissing each other with so much passion.

He did all the right things in a perfect way. Who would have thought I would live with a monster one day?
He was in a rush for us to walk to the altar. My mom told me to take my time to know him better because we had been together for just 8 months. But I told her that he was the one I wanted to spend my life with. She was surprised with my comment but nothing could she do. All she said was “Okay, if you say he is the man you want to spend your life with I don’t have anything to say but don’t run back when things start to explode” She sighed heavily.

Lawrence (I normally called him Law) came to see my parents to formally ask for my hand in marriage but my dad objected to it because he felt we were rushing and we needed to take our time to get to know each other better. He sounded just like my mom. With his persuasiveness, Law managed to convince my dad and so our wedding date was fixed for next month. We started preparing for it… from buying the wedding dress and suits to looking for someone for our decor. We just wanted to have a perfect and memorable wedding. Although we didn’t want a big ceremony, we wanted something that would be imprinted in our hearts forever.

About two weeks to our wedding, Law started acting strange. He was no longer picking my calls and he was always lost in thought. I reasoned he was experiencing cold feet so I let him be. Hmmm… everyone saw the red flags expect me. I walked on blinded by love.
Somewhere down the line, I called Law and told him that I was coming over. He responded while panting “Don’t come, I will be at your place tomorrow”
“Where are you? And why are you panting as if you have been running?” I spontaneously quizzed.
“I’m not home and I’m really busy at the moment so we can talk when I get home, please Nana”

But the detective in me wasn’t convinced so I went to his house to know what I was missing. When I got there his lights were on, soft music was playing in the hall and the door was locked. I just sighed wondering what had come over me to doubt Law in this manner. As I turned to leave, I heard voices. One sounded like Law but the other was unmistakably the voice of a female.

Almost involuntarily, I reached for the spare key from my purse, opened the door and walked straight into the bedroom. My fears were confirmed; they were right before me, stark naked. I was dumbfounded. I didn’t know what to do so I ran from the scene as fast as I could. He pursued me asking for the chance to explain himself. But I wasn’t ready for any of the lies anymore; no, not after what I saw.

I took an Uber to my best friend’s house because I didn’t want my parents to know about what happened. When I got there, Jonna, my best friend, hugged me tightly. My tears started flowing freely, wetting my cheeks. She asked what was wrong but I couldn’t speak. I choked with tears and I didn’t know the words to mumble. She just held me to her chest and asked me to cry it all out. “I’m here with you, and I won’t leave you so cry it all out. When you’re ready, tell me what happened” Jonna reassured me.

Law called me an hour later but I refused to talk to him. Jonna with a puzzled look enquired “Ah hubby is calling, why ain’t you picking? Or is he the reason why you are crying?” I nodded and wiped my tears.
“Jonna, he has pierced my heart with a poisonous arrow. I don’t think I can forgive him” These were my words which made Jonna more confused.
“What exactly did he do to you? Has he called off the wedding? Has he cheated on you “Jonna was trying so hard to know what really happened.
“Yes, he has cheated on me. He lied to me and played with my emotions”

When I told her all that happened her blood boiled with rage, “I knew he was not good for you but I didn’t know how to tell you. I didn’t want you to feel that I was your enemy. But all the same, I’m glad he has shown his true colours before the marriage. Cancel this marriage because he has nothing to offer you, Nana”

Law continued to call countlessly but I didn’t pick up. My mom finally called to ask where I was. I told her my whereabouts and she asked me why I sounded so low and worried but I told her that I was okay. She finally said “Law is here looking for you. He said he has been calling you several times but you ain’t answering. Is everything okay? Are you having cold feet?”

I just sighed and said I would be home soon.
She gave the phone to Law to speak with me. When I heard his voice I just ended the call.
I told Jonna I had to go home. Although she didn’t like the idea, I explained to her that going home was the only way to make my parents to quit worrying.