Nairobi, April 26 -- This story, the last of a three-part series, was produced in partnership with the Pulitzer Centre.

"Thank God he's gone!"

Emily James* sighed when her husband left home one morning in November, 2020, never to return. He had abused her for 23 years.

At the time of his disappearance, she had two children. He left her with a Sh10,500 ($79.70) debt in the form of seven-month rent arrears. Yet, she had no means of income. For most of the years, he had been the sole provider as Emily managed the home.

The fresh feeling of freedom was, however, tinged with the fear of being thrown out of the house.

"We were in the thick of Covid-19; jobs like laundry work or cleaning and organising one's house for pay, were hard to come...