Episode 1

A.N. Hi my lovelyz, this right here is a new one!

This book means a lot to me; it's a true story about a dear friend of mine who went through a lot...we both truly believe that her story deserves to be told and heard by you all.

Please feel free to ask any questions, I will provide all the right answers.

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It all started when Eke stepped into the beautifully decorated restaurant of Metro hotel.

A set of complex emotions took over Michael. You could call it love, infatuation, or even lust; but whatever it was, he knew right then and there that he would regret his life's decisions if he ever allowed her to walk out of the restaurant without him by her side.

'Eke' who hadn't heard of her? The black beauty, the jewel in every man's eyes, the envy of women of all ages, the perfect balance between brains, beauty, and grace; and to top it all off, the daughter of a powerful business tycoon. She is what her admirers referred to as reaching for the impossible skies. She was out of anyone's league.

Michael knew all these intimidating attributes about her but he refused to let the excessive pounding of his heart or the never-ending discouraging pleas of his friends accompanying him at the restaurant to deter him from the task he was set out to accomplish. And although he knew his many limitations as a roadside motorcycle repairer, he was still inflexible to climbing the difficult, yet not impossible, mountain set before him.

And so it came to pass that Michael made his move and the beautiful, difficult mountain known as Eke succumbed to his bravery, smooth charms, sweet talks, and his never-ending praise and worship of her.

Going against her family's petitions and concerns for her future with a roadside motorcycle repairer, furthermore giving her detailed accounts of her past mistakes, Eke adamantly made her stand clear to them that if it wasn't him, there could never be anyone else. So yielding to her many tyrannical tantrums and overpowering theatrics, they finally gave in and allowed her to have what she so desired-marrying Michael.

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"For the last time woman, let go of my shirt before I snap your neck in half!"

Five long years had passed after their marriage, now with two very beautiful children Nellie and Peter Adeleke Michael, to show for it; one perhaps would have thought they would be living the perfect life; after all, they so earnestly did fight for their love but unfortunately, that wasn't the case for our-once upon a time- lovers anymore, their love had diminished quickly and soon, it became a star-crossed affair.

Maybe If Eke had any idea that her life would suddenly turn into a living nightmare after five years of hunger-sacrifices and ridiculed-marriage existence, then maybe she would have paid mind to the constant warnings that were so graciously provided to her by her family and friends to stay away from the ill-fated Michael Adeleke.

She couldn't take it anymore. The constant beatings from over-exuberance of drunkenness, the never-ending parade of his young, beautiful conquests, the relentless hunger and abject poverty, or the complete loss of self-pride and dignity, filled up her glass of tolerance until she was forced to crack and shatter into a million pieces.

Eke packed her bags and disappeared from his life, never looking back, not even at little Nellie who cried and chased after her until exhaustion took over her little heart and legs. Life could sting no crueller than this.

With two years gone and Eke never thinking it was wise to go back to Michael or at least, go looking for her children; Michael thought it was wise to find himself a new bride, and besides seven years old Nellie and three years old Peter needed a mother figure to look up to. On the account of that decision, Michael went ahead and married Gift, one of his numerous conquests that stood out from the rest, a young woman in her late twenties.

She was nothing like Eke; she lacked her kind of class or better still, the charisma that he so admired in his first wife and she wasn't even close to her beauty. But, Gift had what Eke never possessed -the willingness to put up with his numerous bad habits and that was enough to dime her the perfect candidate for the title Mrs Adeleke. And so things returned back to normal; the children now had a new mother, Gift had a roof over her head, and Michael now had acceptable freedom for exploration.

Six years into the alliance, life became unbearable for Gift. Anger and frustration became the order of her day, "For how long will this continue?" She would lament to herself; she couldn't fight the consistent hatred that was slowly eating away at her system like a termite-infested log. She desperately needed an outlet, a place to vent, and from that desperate need, her step-children whom she once loved as her own became her relief outlet.

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Hi, it's me again! I just wanted to thank you for taking the time to read through this chapter, it really means a lot❤

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