Wrong Marriage

Rival's arrival

As soon as they got to the hospital, Teni didn't wait for Collins to park the car before jumping out. She met Hana in the reception, she was speaking with a doctor. "What happened, how is my baby?" Teni asked anxiously as she made her way towards them. Hana sighed but a look of surprised soon flashed on her face when she saw how haggard Teni looked but that would be a question for another time, they needed to know about Jenna's condition. "The doctor asked for the child's parents" Hana said quickly. "What's going on here?" They all heard and turned to Collins who was just coming inside."Are you the child's parent?" the man asked concentrating his focus on Teni and Collins. "Yes, where is she?", they both replied in unison. "I need to discuss with you in my official" the doctor said and started leaving while the couples followed behind him closely with different thoughts running through their mind.
Hana gave Teni a reassuring smile as she {Teni} walked past her. The doctor ushered them to his office and offered them seats. He put on his recommended glasses and picked up Jenna's file. He looked into it for sometime and then scribbled a few words on it before turning to the anxious couples before him.
"She was diagnosed with diphtheria." "I'm not familiar with that term" Collins said quickly."It's an acute infectious disease that causes inflammation of the throat and breathing difficulties. We tried to save the innocent baby but I'm sorry, we lost her." The doctor said and held the couples' hands sympathizing with them.
Teni sat rigid as if she had just been struck by lightening. She was trying to process what the doctor just said but she found it difficult to believe that her child was no more, her little baby that was just getting to recognize her was no more. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't bring herself to believe that she would not hear Jenna's soft cry again. How would she cope without her baby's innocent and lovely smile that usually play on her face whenever she finishes her bath?, her charming smile that's always plastered on her face whenever she slept?. How could she move on without hearing her baby's babbling all day?.
The child that gives her a reason to smile again after Collins' maltreatment was gone.
What would become of her now that her little angel has left her all alone in this miserable world of hers. She no longer had a child, all the nine months of fatigue, pain, sickness, sleepless night and restlessness was gone just like that!. She never knew the shrill cry her baby gave was the last cry she would hear from her, it never crossed her mind that the smile Jenna had on her face when she put her in her cradle earlier today was the last smile that fragile creature would give her. She never experienced that the little girl's constant babbling when she was dressing her in the morning were the last words she would hear from her child. How could death be so cruel to have laid it's icy hand on her little baby who was just opening her eyes to the world. She couldn't stomach the pain and grief, she was hurt beyond explanation.
Teni grinned the doctor's coat and looked at him with pleading eyes, "Tell me it's all a dream please, bring my baby back please doctor help me",she whispered painfully. The sympathetic look in the doctor's eyes was the last thing she saw before she lost consciousness.

After two days {2:00 pm}
Teni didn't know how long she remained unconscious but when she opened her eyes, it met with her mother in-law's teary and swollen eyes. The woman gave her an hateful glance and looked away quickly. Teni knew the woman hated her with passion but no doubt she loved her granddaughter. She had been very excited about Jenna's conception and birth. Now that the child was no more, she wasn't surprised to see her.
Her head throbbed with pain when she remembered the incident that led her to the hospital. Her eyes felt heavy and she could feel sour tears flowing freely down her cheeks. She unconsciously tasted the salty tears and she felt her throat dryness of her throat. She started sobbing again for the loss of her child but unfortunately for her, no one except her vicious mother-in-law was there to console her. The woman scoffed and said "Hmph, are you just going to sit here all day crying your sorry asd out when you can't even take care of a child." Teni pretended not to hear Ammie, her Mother in-law's hateful comment. Outsiders would always think her mother-in-law was a caring and patient woman, even Collins believed that his mother treated her better than him.
When she gave birth to Jenna, everyone who came visiting had mistaken Ammie to be her biological mother, no one believed she was her mother in-law. The single ladies who were present kept on praying for such a sweet mother in-law. They all praised the woman for taking care of her so much and considered her lucky to have such a great mother in-law. Even Collins began to complain that she had stolen his mother's love and attention from him. Everyone saw Ammie as a sweet mother in-law but deep down, Teni knew Ammie's true color.
Ammie was a pretender and Teni the victim was in a tangled web. Her mother-in-law has been everything but good to her. The woman sees her as a rival and she reveals her true nature when no one was around. Teni couldn't tell anyone because no one would believe her. Even Hana had left once Ammie came from the States because she knew Ammie's presence would resolve everything, she thought so. Teni had no choice but to grin and bear Ammie's wickedness knowing sooner or later, nemesis would catch up with her.
Ammie threw Teni another hateful glance and mumbled loud enough for Teni to hear, "your voice sickens me, I wonder what Collins saw in you, you only disgust me."
"Are you here to mourn for your grandchild or you came to deride me?" Teni asked glaring at the woman angrily. " You think I came here to babysit a full grown woman who couldn't babysit her six months old baby but killed her clumsily. What other duty do you have other than taking care of that innocent baby yet you failed, what can you ever do?. You've failed both as a wife and mother and I'll make sure you pay for killing my grandchild, you despicable wretched witch." Ammie said scornfully.
Tears slid out from Teni's eyes, she couldn't hold back any longer so she replied," you are also a woman and a mother and yet you talk as if you don't know my pains. Have you forgotten what happened ten years ago?. How could you of all people forget the pain of loosing a child so easily when you already lost six children within a timeframe of seven months. So calling me those names is as if you are belittling yourself, I can't afford to lose your shoelace not to talk of bearing the same title with a woman who has a formidable potential and also holds a Guinness World record of losing such amount of children at that proximity. "You uncultured slut, I can see you are uncouth, how dare you talk to me in such manner?, I'll make sure to teach you how to respect your elders, bitch!" Ammie flared up and made to grab Teni's neck but the door opened revealing Hana.
Ammie quickly regained her posture and flashed Hana a warm smile. The latter ignorant of the tension that just occured greeted her warmly before turning to Teni.
Ammie decided to leave to give them privacy but not without scoffing stylishly. This didn't pass Teni's observant eye. Ammie knew she had been caught by Teni, she gave her a murderous look and smiled at Hana who was still ignorant before slamming the door shut.
"Your mother in-law is so caring..." Hana began to talk but Teni shunned her quickly and changed the subject.

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Joel cares.