NEMESIS

CHAPTER TWO -THE BREAKING POINT

In Abigail's living room, the quiet grew more intense until it seemed alive. Her heartbeat was echoed by the wall clock's gentle ticking, which pierced the atmosphere like tiny hammer strikes. Unsure of whether to talk or remain silent, Salian sat next to her companion. Abigail's swollen, red eyes strayed to the window, where the drapes quivered slightly in the evening breeze.

She trembled and parted her lips.

"That day, mummy sat in front... with Anita in her arms," she said in a voice as weak as a whisper. Daddy was also behind the wheel. I believed it would pass— Her voice broke. Salian stood up straight. “Abigail?” "However, Salian..." With her fingers gripping the hem of her garment, Abigail stammered out her words. Suddenly, she stood up and paced in the direction of the center table, as if her mind were fighting to break free. She breathed in short, trembling gasps. "That was only the beginning," she exclaimed, collapsing to her knees as her body shook. "Salian, it was only the beginning." Tears flowed freely. Running forward, Salian embraced her pal. "Abigail, take a breath. Please take a breath.

Abigail's voice broke into bits as her sobs became more intense. "You're not understanding. It didn't end. It trailed me everywhere. Every reflection, every shadow, every smile—it all followed me. She lowered her voice. "Are you aware of what it's like to be alienated in your own home?" Salian felt his chest constrict. "No, tell me." With wide, sorrowful eyes, Abigail turned to face her. "At first, I didn't understand. When her plate grew larger than mine, I didn't understand. When her clothes, snacks, and compliments all surpassed mine. When my parents started loving her instead of me, I didn't understand. Salian, I ended up living with my own parents as an orphan.

Salian's eyes sparkled. "Oh, Abigail." Abigail made frenzied gestures, her hands shaking. "Salian, I could clean twenty plates! Twenty! Everyone would applaud Anita when she just cleaned the dining table. Daddy would grin and Mummy would give her a hug. And me? I didn't exist. She hugged her knees and sank into herself. "Salian, I needed my mom back." I needed my dad. I wanted to be seen by someone once more. With a calm, gentle voice, Salian reached for her hand. "You're visible now, Abigail, but the world can be unkind to a forgotten child. You are no longer invisible.

Abigail, however, merely shook her head, her eyes vacant. "I wasn't prepared for what happened next. The instant I believed I could bear it... In another way, my heart broke.

Her tone wavered between anger and grief as she cleaned her face. "They claimed it was love. Family, they claimed, meant sacrifice. However, they never informed me that a soul may be slowly killed by sacrifice.

Outside, the wind howled softly. A curtain touched Abigail's shoulder as if it were a ghost. After a brief moment of freezing, she muttered, "It's not over." It never was.

As nightfall fell, the light in the living room grew dimmer. Abigail's tears turned gold as the sun melted into orange bits through the drapes. Now, like a wounded bird that has given up battling, she sat motionless.

She spoke softly, almost to herself.

"Salian, do you know what hurt the most? The work wasn't the problem. It wasn't being yelled at or held accountable for my actions. It was the quiet.

Salian c****d her head. "The quiet?"

Abigail nodded, staring at the carpet's edge as though it contained memories.

"I used to spend visiting days under the mango tree when I first started boarding school. Everybody's parents would show up with food, presents, and affection. However, nobody ever came for me. I would pretend to read while sitting there, acting as though everything was alright.

Her mouth trembled. "Abigail, are your parents coming?" the other pupils would ask. "They're coming next week," I would lie while grinning. However, the following week never materialized.

Salian's breath caught. She softly grasped Abigail's hand, running her thumb over her quivering knuckles.

Abigail said, "I believed it was temporary." "I reasoned that perhaps Anita needed them more, Daddy was busy, or Mom was ill. However, it became irreversible. I began to exist as a shadow, silent, submissive, and undetectable. When Anita came to visit, the teachers adored her. "Your cousin is such a sweet girl," they would say to me. Pretending that my chest wasn't ripping open, I would simply grin.

Once more, her voice cracked, unadulterated and raw. "One day, I went to my dorm after open day. Everyone was consuming the jollof rice that their parents had provided. I had groundnuts and garri. I pretended to be full while sitting in the corner and pouring water.

The tears that followed were gentle, even respectful. She cleaned them, but more appeared.

"Salian, I wrote letters. A lot of letters. Her eyes gleamed as she slowly raised her gaze. "I would write, 'Mummy, I miss you.'" "I'm trying to be a good girl, Daddy." However, the majority returned unopened. I burned some. The smoke started to accompany me.

There was a lot of stillness in the room. The ticking clock appeared to stop as well.

Salian took a deep breath. “Abigail…”

"I discovered how to conceal my tears in my pillow. I developed my strength on my own. I visited the clinic on my own when I became ill. My personal permission slips were signed by me. I became a parent on my own.

She laughed a little, but it was not joyful. "You see, Salian, suffering starts to sound like comfort when love deserts a child long enough."

Salian's heart hurt. Her eyes began to well up with tears as she experienced a profound stirring of compassion, not pity.

As though speaking to the spirits above, Abigail's eyes shifted to the ceiling.

"I promised myself I would never need anyone again after school. You know what happens, though, when someone becomes more and more in pain? They begin to pursue the things they lost, including people, places, and even sin.

Her voice trailed off. "That's how I met Michael," she said, rubbing her arms as though she were cold.

"That's how I met Michael" came out of Salian's mouth like stones dropped into motionless water while her hands were still encircling Abigail's.

The name lingered in the atmosphere. The temperature in the room dropped. "Micheal," Salian whispered again, seeming hesitant to use the term.

Bitterly, Abigail grinned. “Yes. The man I believed would heal me was Michael. The man who completed what my early years began.

She slowly got to her feet and started to pace the room. Her movement's shadows danced like restless ghosts over the wall.

"He was overly friendly when I first met him. "You deserve to be loved, Abigail," he would remark. And I took him at his word. I thought I was seen for the first time.

Her mouth quivered. "However, I was unaware that love can turn into poison if it is not healed."

Salian spoke calmly as she leaned forward. "What took place?"

Bring me some food and take me to the hostel after class. He promised to wait for me and advised me to concentrate on my schoolwork first. And he did. Or so I believed.

Her body curled into itself as she reclined on the couch. "My parents and Anita arrived after I signed out at the 400 level. Everything broke on that day.

Her voice changed to one that was low, shaky, and menacing.

Salian, she was dressed in a white gown. White! similar to purity itself. Everybody was staring at her. "Your cousin is gorgeous," even my buddies whispered. Michael was just staring at her when I noticed him. I initially persuaded myself it was insignificant.

There were fewer calls. His writings are brief. Like a dying flame, the love that had once warmed me started to wane. I would spend the night staring at my phone in the hopes that his name would Breathing erratically, Abigail gripped her chest. But after that, everything was different. He showed up. However, it never did.

She started to cry. "Until I returned home one weekend, I had no idea why. I spotted Michael smiling with Anita under the mango tree when I entered the compound, Salian.

Salian gave a quiet gasp.

Abigail's voice tightened as she went on, "He looked at her the way he used to look at me." "I froze. Not only did my heart shatter, but it crumbled. I shouted into my pillow till I was out of breath after running to my room and closing the door.

Once more, the room was filled with her primal, shaking cries.

Salian took a step toward her and put his arm around her.

"Abigail," she muttered, her own eyes welling with tears.

Abigail's voice wavered, yet it became as sharp as glass. "Are you familiar with the sensation of losing everything twice? To lose your man to the same girl after losing your parents to a child they did not conceive? I believed that I was cursed by God.

Salian flinched as she burst out laughing.

"I promised myself that I would never lose again. I was unable to. Not right now.

"What did you do, Abigail?" Salian murmured.

Abigail ceased to pace. Her eyes shone like damp stones. Michael talked about kids all the time. about desiring them in advance. I was aware that if I did nothing, he would not stay. I prayed, or rather, I feigned to pray, and then I took action.

Tension pervaded the night. The wind rattled the shutters as if the skies themselves were alerting her to the impending storm. With her hands shaking over the stew pot, Abigail stood in the kitchen, breathing shallowly. The walls were covered with jagged shadows as the lamp flickered.

The vial was small and modest, but it was heavy with the weight of sin, and it rested on the table. Her heart pounded like a war drum as she lifted it up, her fingers feeling chilly.

"If she lives, I lose everything," whispered Abigail to herself. Michael, my parents, my home. I can't let her take them. There is no other option.

Jealousy overpowered her conscience's cries. She added the poison to the food and watched as it dissolved—it was deadly but unseen. With the smell of treachery, the steam rose, curling like spectral fingers.

Her voice trembled and her smile was brittle as she carried the platter to Anita. "Eat, sister," said Abigail quietly. You must be worn out.

Anita looked up, her smile sweet and her eyes warm. Her appreciation sliced more deeply than any blade as she accepted the platter without question. "Thank you, Abigail," said Anita, grinning. You're so considerate all the time.

Abigail was cursed by the words. She made herself sit, staring at Anita while she raised the spoon. Abigail's palms were sticky with perspiration and her heart was pounding with every bite.

Then it took place. Anita's chuckles trailed off. Her face was contorted in agony as her hand gripped her tummy. The spoon fell to the ground with a clatter. Her body convulsed as she gasped and fell, the plate breaking next to her.

Chaos broke out in the house. Cries broke the stillness, footsteps thundered, and shouts filled the air. Her parents hurried in to try to save Anita, their hands shaking and their voices desperate.

With her body tight and her soul already condemned, Abigail stood motionless. As if the heavens themselves were testifying to her crime, the storm outside raged as thunder shook the walls.

"It's done... it's done," terrified Abigail said to herself. I won't let her take him away from me.

However, the triumph was meaningless. Despite being broken, Anita survived the surgery. The physicians' statements were somber and definitive: she had no hope of having children because her womb had been damaged.

Nemesis had already started its job, but Abigail had succeeded in being harsh.

Salian's heartbeat accelerated. "What did you do, Abigail?"

"I contaminated her food."

The words erupted into the space. Nothing moved for a second.

The air appeared to freeze as well.

"You... what?" Salian's voice was hardly audible as she muttered.

Salian covered her mouth and closed her eyes. "Oh, Jesus."

Her voice became hardly audible. "But what I was unaware of, Salian, was that I had actually ruined myself."

She dropped to her knees and gripped the table's edge. Yes, we were married. Michael and me. However, nothing was effective. No joy, no tranquility, not even conception. Four years of nothingness. Pretending for four years. My conscience would speak Nemesis to me every night.

Beside her, Salian knelt. "Jesus can still—" said Abigail.

“No!” With tears streaming down her face, Abigail yelled. "Avoid saying that! Not in light of what I did. How is He able to pardon me?

Salian spoke in a forceful yet gentle tone. "Because he has already done so. You simply haven't come to terms with it yet.

Breathless and with incredulous eyes, Abigail gazed at her.

"It caught up with me, Salian," she said once more, her voice sluggish, shaking, and breaking. I was caught by it. Nemesis.”

The silence in the room was so profound that it drowned out any sound.

Salian put both hands on Abigail's shoulders and spoke in a loving, authoritative voice. "What goes around comes around," the earth says. However, the cross indicates that grace is more profound. Abigail, you can begin again. You only need to desire it. A sob broke out of Abigail's mouth. That night, for the first time, she shed tears of surrender rather than just agony.