Emily had never once been visited in the maternity ward, not a single call from her husband. When she was finally discharged from St. Marys Hospital, her mother collected her in a quiet, unceremonious way.
Emily had braced herself for this outcome, yet the sting remained. It wasnt just her own hurtshe had learned to endure slights during pregnancybut the ache for the tiny boy shed been longing for, a child so coveted, now greeted by a world that seemed to shun him.
She clung to the hope that Edward would look at his son, feel his blood stir, recognize a piece of himself in the infants eyes. But Edward turned away, refusing to meet the babys gaze.
For twelve years they had lived together, seemingly happy, soultosoul. Emily was convinced of that. Their fifteenyear age gap had never been a barrier. She had met Edward in the planning and economics department right after university. Hed endured an earlier, failed marriage and had no children. He surrounded her with attention, courted her with charm, and they married quickly. Emily could hardly believe her luckher husband was intelligent, diligent, kind, gentle, handsome, and fair.
The one flaw in Edwards character cast a shadow over Emilys life. Deep down she sensed that his razorsharp sense of justice edged him toward being a quarrelsome stickler, but it was too late to reshape him. He could never stay in one job; at times he fell out with his boss, at others he snapped at subordinates regardless of rank, or balked at what he deemed unreasonable demands. He drifted from post to post, sometimes languishing unemployed while Emily earned a respectable salary, rose to deputy head of her department, and could afford everything they needed.
Emily yearned for a child, but nothing came. Doctors assured them both were healthy; the baby remained elusive. Despair settled in until, at last, the miracle arrived. She glowed with joy as she told Edward the news. His reaction crushed her.
With open contempt he declared he didnt want the child, that at fifty he refused to become a young dad for the amusement of others, that the burden should not be placed on his shoulders.
I want a quiet old age, he snapped. Do you realize what youre doing? Youre dragging this family into poverty. I barely earn enough to provide for you. Im too old to be scrounging for side work.
Edward gave Emily an ultimatum: keep the baby and he would walk out, because the flat was his.
Emily was shattered. After all those years, to hear such coldness was a betrayal. She had sensed his dislike of children, but never imagined he would react this way to his own. It felt like the final collapse of their marriage. She tried in vain to reach his conscience, but his constant tiradescalling her foolish, gloating over her ill health, blaming her for everything wore her down.
Her mother lived alone in the countryside, so Emily moved in with her. Edward vanished as if hed never existed, no calls, no visits. Just before the babys birth she received a summons: Edward had filed for divorce. The hearing was postponed, but the split loomed.
Emily never regretted defying Edward and bringing her son into the world. He may have wanted a tranquil retirement; let him have it. Emily was still young enough to raise her child.
Thus the infant became the apple of discord. Conventional wisdom says children bind a marriage, yet sometimes they tear it apart.
