Troubled And TensedWhen Eva and I drifted to the window we saw a bizarre sight; two uniformed police men were in the sitting room with Fanny, Opula, Kate and their husbands, Ken and Frank.Eva’s husband, Tony, was seated in the sofa, arms folded, his keen green eyes watching out for what was about to happen.At the time, there was so much tension at the villa; the presence of the police officers had attracted the attention of a handful of paparazzi and journalists who hung outside the villa, with recorders ready to invade the villa of the richest man in Rio HondoThe servants had learned to face their business and be at their duty post after Fanny yelled at them the other time, so no one would want to incur the wrath of Fanny Luis, a ruthless billionaire.There was an issue here; Fanny was standing on the way of the police men who had already gained entrance into the sitting room. They were invited by Opula and Kate to do the searching.Fanny was yelling madly at them for inviting t
I could see this fear piling up in the eyes of Eva as she watched me search for the credit card under my bed, the shelves, the lockers and wardrobe.She hastened me with those bulged eyes before joining me in the search. “Where the hell did you keep it, Melissa?” she whispered to me, scouting for assurance in my sweating face, “Where did you keep it?” she whispered once more and became more tensed than I was.She had to be because she was very aware of the consequences that would befall me if the credit card was found with me.Through trembling hands I searched for a credit card I thought I kept under my bed. Right about now, ill fate was about to embrace me and I couldn’t afford to miss out of this marriage now; not now my husband was in a coma.So much thought hung over my mind now that I couldn’t figure out where I kept the credit card, but I knew it was somewhere in my chamber.“I…I …I” the stuttering became too much, perhaps because the police wouldn’t stop pounding on my door. E
Opula seeing that I wasn’t going to give way soon, turned her sorry face to Fanny Luis, “Father,” she called, looking pitiable, “Could you please tell your god-damn daughter-in-law to leave the way? I must do the search with the police!” she yelled and curved her lops in fury, “She is not going to like me if I should get physical with her.”Shaking his head in disapproval, Fanny replied, “You can’t get physical with her because she is in her chamber and not yours. Besides, this time around I can’t stop my god-damn daughter-in-law. It is her prerogative right to decide who goes in …”Kate interrupted harshly, “And the villa belongs to us! This is Fanny’s property. She is nothing but a contract wife to my brother and this shouldn’t give her the guts to override us. What arrant nonsense is this? Father, you have allowed this bitch to insult you!”Fanny refuted her, “Oh keep shut, you don’t know what I wrote in my will so you can’t say who owns the villa.” He turned his gaze to Opula, “By
Reality was about to dawn on me once I heard my name. I turned to go in and answer the police, but before that I banged the door to stop Opula and Kate from peeping into my chamber.When I got in, Eva and the police were staring at a sizable box which was locked; that was the reason they called me.Instantly, awareness struck in me and I realized it was in the box I kept the credit card a night ago. Nervousness hung in my eyes as I swallowed hard.“Could you please unlock the box so that we can search it?” the police officer said softly, pointing at the box.Eva’s gaze settled on me; she could perceive the reality that had just struck in me; it just hit my memory that in the box was the credit card . I had hidden the card in it for safe keeping so that enemies like Opula wouldn’t find it.“Oh my God,” I exclaimed in my mind, “Misfortune is about to happen to me now. It just dawned on me that the card was in the box and not under the bed. Oh, Lord! I need a turn around,” I said in my m
Fanny, Tony and I surrounded Eva who was lying in the sick bed, under a drip bag. She was very strong now, and I couldn’t wait to hear what the cause of what happened to her was.Her husband, Tony, stamped an engaging kiss on her brow, “Please honey, get well soon. I don’t want anything to befall you. You are all I have got.” He grabbed her palms and stamped a warm kiss on it.Eva rolled her frail eyes and sucked a deep breath. Her gaze came upon me and I guessed she wanted to utter a word but held it back.Soon the doctor came in and invited everyone except me, “Why don’t you stay back, Melissa and take care of her,” the doctor said, while Fanny and Tony joined her in his office.Shortly after they left, Eva sprang so energetically that it was obvious this was a trick. I raised my knitted brows at her, surprised to see her smiling and lively.“Hey, Melissa, I am fine, nothing happened to me,” she whispered, smiling with mountains of energy in her eyes and chin, “I had to do the needf
Frank and Kate were going through my contract marriage documents while they discussed the way forward for the Fanny Group.I guessed I was the only obstacle stopping the girls from inheriting their father’s wealth and I wondered what they could be up to now my husband was in a coma.All I wanted was the safety and survival of my husband; although I wanted to disappear from the villa for a while, on a second thought, Brian would be disappointed if he should wake from the coma, and I was nowhere to be found.I didn’t want Brian to lose trust in me; we had come a long way and nothing could separate us; not even death.But I knew Brian would wake from the coma!“This is exactly one month Brian has been in a coma,” Frank said, flipping through the document papers, “Fanny Luis is not getting any younger, is he going to wait for Brian to wake before he appoints an heir? It is obvious Brian is not going to wake from the coma.”Kate poured drink for two and handed him a glass.“I was at the ho
When I returned to my chamber I was as shattered as the glass that fell off the rooftop. Things could get messier for me in this villa and I wondered if I should stay back and wait for Brian or if I should run away.I grabbed Brian’s photo, turned on his music on the player and fresh memories of the first love of my life flashed before me. This was a man that once scared the living daylight out of me due to his violent mental derangement, but today I was carrying his baby.“Oh Lord could this be true love or am I overwhelmed by my infatuation? What fate awaits me on this path of love?” I wailed within myself as I gazed upon the photo of Brian.He left as soon as he came into my heart. I never knew it was going to get to this; perhaps I would have hidden my love and walked away without any strings attached.That very night I slept off with Brian’s photo on my chest and his favorite song sounding on the player***These days, the photo of Brian was the last thing I saw and the first thi
I had a desperate yet nervous breath when I got into the ward where Brian may have to stay till he woke from the coma. I couldn’t take a few more steps forward. How could I behold with my eyes a man I thought was healed of his insanity? How would I shut my eyes to sleep after seeing Brian lose his cuteness overnight just because he was at a spot as lifeless as the leaves.I sniffed heavily as I wiped the tears that surged down my eyes.I never wanted to be entangled in love, but this was fate happening to me; this was destiny and if you should ask me, I would embrace it with my full chest and endure till the end.It seemed as though my toes were stuck to the floor. Once I gazed upon Brian, my heart thudded with fear and I recalled Opula and Kate making plans to declare him dead.Warm tears burnt my cheeks as they trickled down. I surged close wishing I could wave some magic wand and Brian would wake from coma.But reality dawned on me; the man whom I thought I would spend the rest of
“I made this fresh tea for us,” she said and handed me a cup before stirring hers, leaving heavy aroma of the natural herbs hanging over us.I shut my eyes to appreciate the unavoidable aroma of caramel which was too inviting; I guessed she took her time to fix this tea because of what she intended to achieve.I had noticed she often stole a glance at me each time she sipped at her cup; it was close monitoring and she expected me to drink up the tea right now so that she could hand me over to Opula and Kate for their evil intention.“There must be something unique about the tea, “I said and waited impatiently for the hotness to disappear while I blow at it, “The last one I had at the yacht party gave me a soothing sleep which I hadn’t had in a long time,” I said.“Oh really,” Salsa replied, lowered her gaze in suspicion and grinned briefly. A whole lot was pacing through her mind right now and she wished she could escape from this snare of betraying the only friend she had in the vill
Salsa was sobbing in her chamber and didn’t realize I was standing at the door and it was more careless of her that she left her door open while she sobbed and murmured within herself.“Oh Ken you have finished me. I told you but you wouldn’t listen. Behold now I am being implicated in dirty romance that will lead me to ruin. How do I save my mom who is dying at the hospital…”By some sort of smartness, Salsa perceived my presence and flinched when she stared around to see me stand at the door. “How long have you been around?” she asked with so much suspicion decking her eyes.I walked in, “What is troubling you, Salsa? I don’t see much of you these days and right about now I just heard you murmur about Ken putting you in trouble. What trouble is that? Some minutes again I overheard some quarrelsome voices at Opula’s chamber.”“You did?” she snorted and lowered her gaze, “Come and have a seat, Melissa. I need to confine in you about my life.”I settled my gaze on her and this chef had
Ken had never been so confused and devastated. “What is this all about?” he queried, “What brought about the divorce? Why did you suddenly come up with divorce? Did I do wrong to nag about your attitude towards this marriage? Do you expect me to keep shut while you misbehave?”“You are the one that has been misbehaving in this marriage!” Opula yelled radically and Ken was startled a bit. “If there is anyone misbehaving, it is you. And I say it here and now you are the worst thing that has ever happened to me…”“What is wrong? Why did you say that? What did I do?” Ken queried and was about touching Opula on the arm.“Get your filthy, adulterous hands off me!” Opula yelled and pulled away, “Every day is for the thief, but one day is for the owner. When you think no one sees you, don’t forget God sees you,” Opula broke down in tears and managed to bring out her phone.Just then, feet could be heard knocking on the floor close by and it was obviously the heels of stilettos were knocking o
It was late on a Monday and Opula was yet to return to the villa. Ken had never been so worried. Worse still, Opula’s phone line wasn’t reachable. He had consulted Kate about it and Kate had given him the cold shoulders, with so much malice in her eyes.This had left Ken worried because he couldn’t recall bickering with Kate or quarreling with her. He wondered what could make Kate give him the cold shoulders when he asked about his wife. Ken had told Frank and Tony about it and they mentioned the bankruptcy of Fanny Group was the reason for her attitude.“But today is Monday,” Frank had said, “This is unlike her. She is into this lifestyle only on Fridays, which often took her to the club.”Ken shook his head in confirmation, “Exactly the reason I am worried,” Ken had said as he stroked his ponytail confusedly and took a glass of rum and gulped, “I am still nervous. This is the first time she has been keeping late night, and I am undoubtedly convinced she is in trouble.”“Trouble?” To
The noise of the resounding slap hung in Salsa’ ears, and she shut her eyes afterward, losing interest in seeing more of the video. She raised her gaze, masked her face and sobbed into her palms, as her heart pounded with the heaviness of a banging ball.“No, this can’t be true,” she protested. “As you can see in the video, I called it a quit with your husband. I don’t have anything to do with him anymore. You can call him to confirm…”Opula chuckled in mockery, “Oh really. The fact remains that you were seeing my husband. You have been sleeping with him until recently. You are the mistress that has been distracting my marriage. How dare you, Salsa. Have you forgotten how deep I bite when I am embarking on revenge, huh?”Salsa interrupted, “It is not true, please don’t misunderstand me. I never wanted to date your husband, but he wouldn’t let me be. Despite reminding him about the risk of cheating on you, he still forced himself on me. What on earth would make me share your husband wi
Like a hard-working dog, Salsa hastened into the Villa and headed straight to Opula’s chamber only to meet Kate, well seated to a tray of tequila and rum. Although uncertainty fluttered across her face, Salsa perceived all was not well and if not for her mother’s medical bills, Opula’s chamber was the last place she wanted to be.She stood nervously, arms pressed in front as she watched. Kate sip her wine and grinned hugely, “Good afternoon ma’am,” Salsa greeted , her voice was vague and depressed. She felt the pang of humiliation which hung in the chamber. Yes, it was supposed to be in connection with her rejecting the offer and nothing else.“I guess they are upset for rejecting the job,” Salsa said in her mind and greeted again, this time around very audibly , “Good afternoons ma’am,” and when Kate gave her the cold shoulders , she had to explain herself, “I am back to do the job. My apologies for being an ass. I wasn’t supposed to reject the offer so…so.” She stuttered and swallow
Kate was busy with the maids who assisted the costumier to make her up in her chamber. Suddenly, there was a barge; it was Opula. She was looking thunderous and stolen. She smacked her lips in fury and began to walk up and down the chamber, slightly murmuring under her breath.Kate perceived the unrest on her face and was forced to order the maids and costumier, “Please leave us now.” Her voice was calm, yet her gaze gathered around Opula who kept pacing up and down.“That bastard rejected the offer!” Opula yelled once the maids vacated the chamber. “Despite flopping the job, Salsa has the guts to reject the fifty thousand dollars initial deposit for the job.”Kate’s face screwed up, “What! Salsa did that? What must have given her the guts to reject the money? She needs money like a money hole, especially for her mother’s medical bills,” she contemplated and placed a finger on her jaw , “Are you sure she hasn’t revealed it to Melissa?”Opula clenched her jaw and beamed, “I don’t give
Once Salsa was done serving me breakfast, she got a distress phone call from the hospital about her mother. Fortunately for her she wasn’t holding any of the chinas, otherwise nothing stopped it from leaving her grip and dashing on the floor.For never in my life have I seen someone tremble the way her hands tremble upon getting the distress call. The phone in her hands had fallen and split into parts.“What is it, Salsa? What has happened? Talk to me and stop crying like a baby!” I demanded anxiously, shaking her frail shoulders to quicken her reply.But there was no stopping her. She sank on her knees and wept bitterly. Nothing else came on my mind than her mother passing on.“I just need to get to the hospital right now, Melissa,” she sobbed and sprang to her feet to disappear. “All is not well with my mom. I just pray she remains alive till I get there.”Anxiety hummed on me as I pestered her with more questions, “What could have happened to your mother? Is the cancer growing wors
Each time Salsa caught sight of Opula, unlimited bitterness grew in her heart; the image of Rod in bed with Opula still hung in her mind and she could barely stand sight of Opula. If there was any closer enemy around here, it was Opula and she would never let Opula snatch what belonged to her.For Salsa had come to accept the reality of the true love she had for Rod and Opula would be the last person that could steal her joy from her. Although she was yet to believe Opula was sleeping with Rod, despite seeing them at the cabin, she wondered if Ken would believe her if she should reveal it to him.Salsa was midway fixing brunch when she saw Opula at the door, “You are not supposed to be found here, ma’am.” she reminded Opula as she continued with her cooking.Opula chuckled, “Where else can I find an ugly, cheap chef like you, huh?” she asked and surged closer. “I gave you a simple task to drug Melissa with sleeping pills and you flopped. You flopped a task that paid you handsomely,” s