EPISODE TEN.
MY HUSBAND’S SECOND WIFE
(That which you seek, you shall definitely find in abundance)
“So, you’re telling me you served your wife divorce papers, and she signed them without question?” Frank asked, chuckling as he stared at the signed documents Solomon had brought to his house.
He still found it hard to believe that Winnie—Winnie of all people—would willingly divorce Solomon. That woman practically worshiped the ground his friend walked on.
Frank had been a close friend of both Solomon and Winnie; in fact, he was Solomon’s best man at their wedding nine years ago. So, he wasn’t a stranger to what Winnie had endured in the marriage. He had even secretly advised her to walk away before, but she refused—worried about what people would say if she left her home.
Solomon, in Frank’s eyes, wasn’t exactly a bad man. But his poor upbringing had warped his views on love and respect. He grew up believing that beating a woman was a way to assert control and manage anger—something he had witnessed growing up.
Solomon took a sip of his drink, crossed his legs, and replied with full confidence.
“I think she just signed it because of the new wife my mom brought in. You know Winnie—she loves me too much to actually walk away. This was just her way of throwing tantrums.”
Frank raised an eyebrow, unimpressed by his friend’s misplaced confidence.
“What makes you think Winnie still loves you?” he asked, smirking. “She signed those papers, Solomon. If that’s not proof that she’s done, I don’t know what is.”
“Because I was the one who brought up the divorce in the first place—and I only did it because she was becoming unbearable lately,” Solomon replied defensively. “She’s always threatening my mother and my pregnant new wife. I thought filing for divorce would scare her a little, bring her back to her senses. But instead, she just signed the damn papers.”
Frank didn’t know whether to laugh or pity his friend. He stared at Solomon for a moment, then let out a dry chuckle.
“Did you ever love your wife at all?” he asked, his tone serious. “You lived with that woman for nine years, Solomon. But from where I stand, it never looked like love.” Written by Authoress Winnie . B. Onuh.
Solomon’s expression darkened. “What do you mean? Of course I loved her.” Written by Authoress Winnie. B. Onuh.
Frank shook his head slowly, his voice low.
“Yet you took a new wife the same day your wife lost her baby… a miscarriage caused by the way you hit her. And you call that love?”
Solomon shrugged nonchalantly. “I was actually against marrying that lady as my second wife at first, but my mom insisted—said she already married her for me. I couldn’t disobey her. Besides, Winnie didn’t object, so I just went along with it.”
Realizing it was pointless trying to talk sense into him, Frank simply nodded. “Alright then. Your new wife is pregnant—congratulations. So tell me, why are you so concerned that Winnie signed the divorce papers? Shouldn’t you be happy? After all, she didn’t even demand much from your properties, right?”
“You don’t get it, Frank,” Solomon said with a calm smile. “Yes, she signed the papers—but she’s still living in my house. Doesn’t that tell you something? Winnie isn’t ready to walk away. I know her. She still loves me. She’ll come back… with time.”
“Wait—hold on,” Frank said, blinking in surprise. “You mean Winnie still lives in your house after signing the divorce papers? She didn’t pack up and leave?”
Solomon nodded casually. “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. That was her only condition—she asked to still have access to the house, but she agreed to stay in the boys’ quarters.” Written by Authoress Winnie. B. Onuh.
“And you actually agreed to that?” Frank asked, clearly puzzled.
Solomon took a slow sip of his wine and replied, “Of course. I mean, yeah, I have a new, young, beautiful wife now… but that doesn’t mean I’m ready to let go of Winnie. She’s still a part of me.”
Frank fell silent, offering a moment of internal pity for his friend. He knew just how possessive Solomon could be when it came to women. The man never let Winnie associate with any other man—not even harmless friendships. And now, after divorcing her, he was foolish enough to let her stay under the same roof. Frank could already sense the revenge Winnie was brewing, and the thought alone made him smile quietly to himself.
Women are wickedly creative when dealing with men who break their hearts, he mused.
After a moment, he looked back at Solomon and asked seriously, “Are you sure you can handle it?”
Solomon raised a brow in confusion. “Handle what?”
“Your ex-wife… living under the same roof with you.”
“Oh please,” Solomon chuckled proudly, reclining in his seat. “Winnie is already an old lady—who would even be interested in her? I’m just waiting for the day she comes crawling back to ask for forgiveness for signing those divorce papers… when she finally realizes no man in his right mind would want someone else’s second-hand, aging wife.”
“I beg to differ, buddy,” Frank said with a knowing smile. “Twenty-nine is not old. Just because she got married at twenty doesn’t make her ancient. A lot of women her age aren’t even married yet. And let’s not lie—your ex has a banging body. She just needs to focus on herself and hit the gym more regularly.”
Solomon scoffed, clearly unconvinced. “Please. Winnie still loves me. Women never forget their first love. She’ll come to her senses sooner or later and come running back. You’ll see.”
Having no strength to argue further, Frank simply smiled and chose to remain silent.
It had been two weeks since Winnie signed the divorce papers, and she had been gradually moving her belongings to the boys’ quarters with the help of Chioma. She had also purchased a brand-new set of furnishings to decorate her new space.
The boys’ quarters consisted of two rooms, each with its own toilet and bathroom, and a single kitchen. Though the rooms weren’t as spacious as the ones in the main building, they were just the right size for what Winnie needed.
She transformed one of the rooms into a cozy living area and styled the other as her bedroom. With everything freshly purchased and the walls repainted in her favorite colors, the space began to reflect her newfound independence.
The process of setting up her new apartment as a single woman filled her with an unexpected sense of joy and freedom. While the finishing touches were still underway, Winnie continued sleeping in the guest room inside the main house. Written by Authoress Winnie. B. Onuh.
One evening, as Winnie was still staying in the main house, the housekeeper asked her casually, since she had divorced Solomon; why still staying in his house. Winnie smiled and replied with a hint of defiance in her voice.
“Why should I waste money renting a new house when I helped build the one we’re living in?” she said. “Leaving the house I’ve poured my sweat into, just so a young girl can come in and take over? I’m not ready for that yet. I can stay here as long as I want. I’ll leave when I’m ready,”
The next day, Winnie asked Chioma to quickly prepare some food for her in the main kitchen since she had just repainted her own kitchen and the paint was still drying.
Chioma was in the kitchen, humming happily as she prepared egg sauce to go with the yam she had just finished cooking. The atmosphere was light and easy until Anita entered the kitchen. Her expression was as cold as ice. Written by Authoress Winnie. B. Onuh.
Anita marched into the kitchen and went straight to the pot of yam that Chioma had just finished cooking. She opened it, sneered, and then dropped the lid onto the counter as if it were something dirty. The loud noise caught Chioma’s attention, who had been engrossed in her cooking, with earphones plugged in. She quickly pulled them out and greeted Anita politely.
“Good afternoon, madam,” Chioma said, her voice soft.
Anita looked her up and down with a dismissive sigh. “What are you doing in my kitchen?”
“Uh… Madam Winnie asked me to prepare lunch for her,” Chioma replied quietly.
Anita’s eyes narrowed, and she barked, “And what business do you have preparing food for that old woman in my kitchen? What happened to cooking at the boys’ quarter, where she belongs, huh?” Her voice was sharp and angry, causing Chioma to twitch her lips in frustration.
If it weren’t for her mother having been the housekeeper for so long, and Chioma not wanting to cause trouble that might get her mother fired, she would’ve given Anita a piece of her mind. But she bit her tongue, knowing better than to engage with the angry woman.
“But madam…” Chioma began to explain, but before she could finish, Anita landed a heavy slap across her face.
“Would you stupidly get this rubbish out of my kitchen immediately?” Anita spat, her voice dripping with anger. “For the fact that my husband allowed that woman to stay in this house doesn’t give her the right to step into my kitchen. She’s no longer part of this house, and the next time I catch you preparing food for her in here, both you and your mother will be out of this house for good. Rubbish!” Written by Authoress Winnie. B. Onuh.
With that, Anita stormed over to the hot pot of yam and angrily poured everything into the waste bin. She tossed everything Chioma had been using to prepare the egg sauce right into the trash as well.
Anita then called another servant to clean up the mess in the kitchen. After giving orders, she locked the kitchen door, took the key, and walked into the sitting room.
Chioma hurriedly went to report the entire incident to Winnie, tears streaming down her face, hoping for a reaction. But Winnie merely smiled, offering her comfort. Instead of responding with anger, she picked up her phone and ordered food online.
“Madam, why aren’t you doing anything? That lady just poured all the food away,” Chioma asked, her voice laced with confusion. Written by Authoress Winnie. B. Onuh.
Winnie glanced up from her phone and smiled knowingly. “Why would I waste my time fighting a frustrated person? She’s not worth my energy, but her payday is coming very soon.”
Although Chioma didn’t quite understand what Winnie meant by “payday,” she said nothing more and continued with her task, silently reflecting on her words.
Anita, on the other hand, was waiting for Winnie to come in and confront her. She hoped to provoke a reaction that would lead to Winnie hitting her, then Anita could pretend to fall and claim she lost her pregnancy. She had been sleeping with the doctor, trying to get pregnant, but nothing had happened.
Her mother-in-law had started suspecting that she wasn’t really pregnant, and Anita was growing increasingly desperate. Even Solomon, her husband, had stopped hitting her altogether. Written by Mhiz Winnie Onuh.
The next morning, after finishing the decoration of her apartment, Winnie headed out to the gym. Christian had called her a few times to check up on her, but she hadn’t answered. She wasn’t ready for a relationship and didn’t want to give him any false hope.
Christian was handsome, no doubt, but so was her ex-husband. Solomon had courted her for a long time before she agreed to marry him, and now, look where that had landed her. Winnie had made up her mind not to give any man a chance in her life anymore. She was living for herself now.
Yet, despite her resolve to shut men out, she still found herself putting in effort to look good. She applied a bit of lip gloss and found herself checking her reflection in the standing mirror, just one more time.
“Madam, with the way you keep checking yourself out, I’d think you have a date waiting for you at the gym,” Chioma teased. After her encounter with Anita, Chioma had decided to stay in the boys’ quarter with Winnie, now serving as her in-house maid.
Winnie cleared her throat and picked up her water bottle. “What are you babbling about?” she asked, trying to brush off the teasing.
Chioma laughed and grabbed her laptop, ready for her lesson. Winnie had enrolled her in a computer course so she could gain a skill before continuing her education.
“Are you ready to go?” Winnie asked.
Chioma nodded. “Yes, madam.”
“Then let’s go,” Winnie said, and they both walked out to her car. Winnie usually drops Chioma off on the way to her computer school, after which Chioma takes a taxi the rest of the way.
Solomon happened to be running late for work. He usually leaves by seven o’clock sharp, but that day, he didn’t leave until eight. As he stepped out of the house, the sight before him made him pause.
A fair lady, dressed in red leggings and a black half-cut top, with a black jacket to match, stood before him. The leggings accentuated her beautiful shape and hips—though not overly pronounced, they were enough to make any man pause. And that lady was his ex-wife, Winnie. Written by Authoress Winnie. B. Onuh.
Solomon blinked slowly, watching his ex-wife walk to her car. It was as if he was being controlled; he found himself walking toward her car to stop her. No man in his right mind would let his wife dress like that to the gym, but he was forgetting that Winnie was no longer his wife.
“Woman, where do you think you’re going, dressed like that?” he asked, his voice filled with anger.
Hearing his voice, Winnie frowned slightly and looked around, as if wondering if he was talking to someone else. When Solomon added, “Winnie, I’m talking to you! How can a married woman dress like a call girl? Don’t you have any shame?” Winnie didn’t respond to his question. Instead, she shared a knowing glance with Chioma, and they both chuckled softly. Chioma, out of fear, couldn’t laugh too loudly.
“What’s funny?” Solomon asked, his expression dark as a charcoal pot.
With her arms folded, Winnie finally answered casually, “Mr. Solomon, do I, in any way, look a bit like Anita, your ‘fruitful’ wife?”
