Enemy from the past

Ebere and Chuka were already married for four years with two lovely children. They lived a happy and very comfortable life but something was not right. Two years after their wedding, Chuka began to notice that Ebere wasn't responding to him sexually the way she used to.

She would say she was tired and wanted her rest. Chuka was not happy with her at all and it was becoming a problem in their relationship and family. It got to a point that their children began to notice but because they were very little, they couldn't ask questions.

Ebere would also sometimes sleep off forgetting to go to the market and as such not prepare her husband's food or remember to pick up the children from school at the right time. 

There was an instance when she didn't remember to pick her children from school until she was called by the school management and made to write an undertaken that she wouldn't do such a thing again. There was also another instance where she slept of leaving what she was cooking on the fire until the smell of burnt food woke her up.

Chuka became very worried. He loved his wife so much. He remembered how they were before they married, how close they became after their marriage and how things had turned out. One night, after the children had gone to bed, Chuka woke his wife up, he said: "Sweetheart, please wake up, I want to talk to you."

He asked her what the problem was, "am I not treating you well, have I changed in anyway since our marriage, is there anywhere I have done wrong or something you want me to do for you that I have not done, please tell me."

Ebere couldn't think of anything, she just stared at Chuka not knowing what to say to him. She wished she could find a solution to the problem. She apologised and promised to change. Her husband accepted and forgave her, it didn't stop. 

They decided they should involve the pastor of their church so they went to church one Sunday and after the church service, waited to speak with their pastor.

After explaining to the pastor, he told them to kneel and pray. He prayed for them for almost 60 minutes and told them to rise thereafter.

The pastor said: "While I was praying, it was revealed that the problem is not ordinary." The couple was shocked. The pastor continued: "Someone is behind this and the person has to be brought to book before all what you are going through can stop but I will pray with you."

They went home confused. They thought of who they have offended that would be doing such a thing to them. They kept on loving eachother and praying together but it still didn't stop, so they decided to start begging those who they thought they had offended. 

They went to all their family members, those who they have offended and those who they haven't to apologise. They bought a lot of things for them and made sure they were not offended at whatever anyone says in the process.

They also apologised to friends but it still didn't stop so they decided to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary where they invited all friends and family including her husband's ex-girlfriends and her former boyfriends.

After the celebration they started taking a list of those who were present at the celebration and noticed that almost everyone came apart from few relatives and friends who couldn't make it and two of her former boyfriends. The one she dated first and the one she dated last before she married.

The next day was Sunday, the weather was right for family indoor activities. They decided they were too tired to go to church and concluded that they would stay at home to clean the environment as a family.

The eldest child was 5 already and the younger one was 3 years. 

While they were cleaning, they suddenly heard an argument from a distance. It was coming from their gate. The gateman was definitely arguing with someone. Chuka told his family to continue with the cleaning while he go to see what was going on.

As he was approaching the gate, he noticed a fearful looking man and stopped. He stood for one minute looking at the man and shouted from the distance "Adamu who is that and what is he looking for here." The gateman replied, "Oga I no no am o, he say e dey find you and madam. E say e no go go anywhere until I allow am see you and madam."

Chuka said "Okay allow him in."

The man who he saw clearly at this time was an herbalist, he came close to Chuka, knelt down and started to beg for forgiveness. He was saying things that were not coherent. Chuka called his wife and told the man to stand up.

When his wife came, the herbalist said "yes, this is the woman. He brought your picture to my shrine and asked me to do a charm for him that would make him come to you and sleep with you whenever he wants without you refusing him."

She screamed in a state of bewilderment and asked who? Then the herbalist said Ugochukwu you former boyfriend. Ugochukwu was her last boyfriend. She told him off when she found out he wasn't a good person and married Chuka. But even after her wedding with Chuka, Ugochukwu couldn't still let her rest, he calls in different occasions, even at night disturbing her that he was still in-love with her but she made things clear to him that she's happily married but desperate Ugochukwu wouldn't just allow her be.

 So one day, he went to the native doctor and requested for a charm that he will use on her that would make her want him whenever she sees him. He will just call her after doing all the incantations he was told to do then the Charm will work on her and she would have sex with him until he was satisfied. It was either at her matrimonial home when her husband had gone to work and her children had gone to school or his own place.

This kept happening for three years explaining why she sometimes couldn't take her children from school on time or remember to go to the market.

But when the pastor prayed for them, the native doctor began to see things and heard voices telling him to confess. He broke the charm and took the picture Ugochukwu gave him to prepare the charm and began to look for her. 

It was while they threw a party on Saturday that the herbalist saw people with souvenirs that carried pictures of the couple and asked for their address. He traced them home.

Asked where Ugochukwu was, the herbalist said after he destroyed the charm, Ugochukwu went mad and is right now roaming the streets.

Story by Medinat Kanabe