A mountain of frown crept into my face as I shot an investigative gaze at Salsa. “What is happening, Salsa? My mom is here?” I asked, stood to my jerking feet and advanced to the window.I could hear voices at the third gate, and it was obvious the security had restricted her from barging in and they were yelling at one another now.“I should be asking you that?” Salsa snapped and shot crimson gaze at me. “How did your mom know that you are here? Did you tell her the last time you visited?” Salsa queried as she joined me at the window.A sudden rain of sweat descended on my body; nervousness enveloped me as my lips shook with anxiety. I stroked my French hair confusedly and paced up and down. I was locked in utter confusion.“I never did,” I replied at a breath, “Why would I reveal my destination to my mom, knowing how furious she would be? After I lied to her that I have reaccepted the divorce, I told her I had relocated to Ohio where I worked as janitor.” I paused as suspicion jumpe
She had barely uttered out a word when mom’s voice shrieked at her, “May thunder strike that mouth with which you called me an in-law to a shameless billionaire who does nothing than lure naïve girls into unwanted marriage…”Fanny’s brow had knitted immediately as he surged closer to mom, with folded arms, “What is the problem, mom? Do you realize who you are insulting, huh? You can’t come to my villa and blurt out rubbish. Do I need to remind you that this is my compound and you have no right to insult me?”Mom couldn’t listen to me; my molded arms were still pleading with her but there was no stopping her. She hollered at a disheartening manner, which pulled out Eva and their husbands from where they had been in the villa.I couldn’t withstand this anymore; I lowered my gaze in shame and wailed uneasily like a child.“Even if I am in your toilet I will talk sense into your dumb head. You evil billionaire!” mom cursed, “So it is you that charmed my daughter into a marriage of no retu
With jerking hands, I wiped my cheeks, daring to comprehend what mom meant by one last decision. Everyone’s face dragged in frown as they stared at mom in one moment of bated breath.“Melissa,” mom called and said, “You are going to accept divorce this minute and join me home or you reject divorce and remain disowned forever,” she said through clenched teeth and impatiently waited for my reply.Opula and Kate shook their heads in approval as if, in a subtle way they would give me a warm handshake for finally agreeing to accept divorce.Fanny dimmed his watery eyes at mom and threatened her with his thunderous face. It was not only he that settled his gaze on my lips waiting for my reply, also Eva, Opula, Kate and Salsa wondered what my reply would sound like.I stood to my feet in one moment of payback. Mom had really bitten more than she could chew; what stopped her from inviting me home so we could figure this out. She shouldn’t have embarrassed me in this way. This was absurd.Thro
Shortly after mom had disgraced me, Opula and Kate hissed and walked into the villa. I knew they felt disappointed at my decision. They thought mom would have been the only person who would have convinced me to accept the annulment of my marriage. But my mind for Brian had gone rocky and not even my late father resurrecting from the dead, could convince me.“Pet Melissa and ensure she is well taken care of in her chamber, “Fanny ordered the maidens who had been part of the onlookers.Frankly speaking, I had gone soft in the head, my countenance displayed shame. Salsa and Eva surrounded me and I could hear Eva telling the maidens to disperse. As usual, she had taken my dilemma personally and wished she could save me from my fears.I didn’t expect this to happen; into the night I wailed bitterly and felt dejected. To an extent, Salsa and Eva grew wary of petting me.“Hence forth you cease to be my daughter. If you hear that I am dead tomorrow, please don’t come to my funeral …”Those la
Salsa had nicknamed Fanny a time bomb that was about to happen. And indeed Fanny was. If not for Salsa, who made that revelation to me, some day Fanny would take me unawares and demand a divorce.I was midway putting my inner chamber in order when a servant approached my door, knocked shortly and said, “Melissa Fanny demands you share the table with him.”With my eyes shut, a wave of irritation swept over me and I wondered if I could keep low and not question his intention of getting Brian an older lady once he woke from a coma.“I will be with him in a jiffy,” I said, and swallowed hard to contemplate the audacity I would use to share a table with him.“If Brian wakes from a coma and Fanny threatens to deprive him of being the heir unless he marries this old lady be rest assured that Brian may divorce you.”Those words of Salsa resounded in my head as I got ready to go to Fanny. “Brian would never do that,” I said to myself, “He can never divorce me,” I said yet again as I shook my h
Fanny and James Benson were ascending the elevator to the penthouse when James intoned, “Wow, I guess I love what I saw. She is pretty for my son and if you can convince her to marry my son I will give you the two billion dollars diary contract in California.”Even before now Fanny had been full of contagious smile; the truth was out. Fanny didn’t want to offer his son, Brian as potential husband to the billionaire old daughter who came visiting his office the other day.And the only way he could escape it was by paying up his debt of eight hundred million dollars. And now James Benson had baited him with the two billion dollars contract, he would have to give me to Rod as wife so that he could clench on the contract and pay up his debt.Everything fell on me now. And I wondered how he was going to do it.On another note, James Benson was hiding my pregnancy from Fanny since Fanny had not known of it, it was a plus to him, so he would forever keep it a as secret while Rod fathered the
Whenever I stopped by the hospital to check up on Brian, hope of seeing Brian again often increased in me. His coma was indeed repulsive. When I touched his warm palms, my fear dissipated only for a while; at least he still had an ounce of life in him.The moment I stepped into the ward, I began humming his favorite song, with the absolute intention of making him rise from the coma. I had done this several times in the past weeks, and it seemed I wasn’t making headway.But my instinct had often told me Brian would wake up, soon at a time no one would expect. I only wondered where I would be when it would happen.Would I still be in marriage, or would I be with someone else? Would this love I harbor for Brian tarnish someday? Or would it become increasingly stronger?“No, Brian, please, this is the time I need you most,” I mumbled as I grabbed his palms and went on my knees, “A lot has happened and more are yet to happen…” I paused to stamp a chaste kiss on his palms, “Your father is g
Eva didn’t join us at home. She drove straight to the Fanny Group and barged in on Fanny having a conference meeting with his executives. With her jaw clenched, she rolled furious eyes at her father and left to wait for him in the office.Opula and Kate were at the meeting when Eva barged in, so they wondered what must have prompted her to barge into the meeting uninvited, like a kitten that missed its way.“What could be happening, sis?” Kate asked Opula as she peered her head closer to hers. She whispered yet again, “Why is that little maggot here? Did you see the look on her face? She has never behaved in such a manner. I guess there is a fire on the mountain.”Opula whispered back to her, “Chin up. After the meeting, we will meet with father, who will disclose it to us. I guess he knows what is happening. A few days ago, James Benson came to visit father at the villa. Something is definitely happening.”Kate hummed in disapproval, “I only heard that James visited. I didn’t see him
Kate watched as the family doctor, Doctor Bernard, treated Frank and dressed his skull of the bottle I burst on his head.“I guess the hoodlums that attacked you don’t know the family you belong.” Kate said in fury as she paced up and down the ward, “How could they do this to you for Christ sake?”Frank writhed in pain and clenched his teeth as the doctor tended to his wound. “I guess they know. That is the very reason they attacked me. They wanted to steal from me and when I struggled with them they unleashed their anger on my head. ,” he kept lying and wouldn’t tell them the truth behind the injury on his skull.“I am going to get the police involved in this,” Kate threatened and brought out her phone to dial the police, “Whether they are hoodlums or not, I don’t give a damn, they will regret ever harming a member of the Fannies. What arrant nonsense!”Frank protested, “No, don’t do that sweetie,” he gestured at her, “I have told you let us leave it to God. There is no need gettin
Opula was gradually regaining vigor after the transfusion of blood and when she heard the door creak and saw the doctor, she thought it was time for her to be discharged.“I guess I am fit to leave this drugs-smelling hospital now. The nurses showed me the state of my pregnancy and I am doing perfectly well,” Opula said to the family doctor who had the most unpredictable look on his face.“Perhaps you may want to tell me more about Rod Benson being responsible for the pregnancy,” Doctor Bernard intoned and sucked a huge grin when Opula scowled thoughtfully.Opula who had laid in bed all this while sat up and got burnt in her guts upon hearing that; she knew she couldn’t deny the fact that the doctor knew all about Ken testing positive to the paternity test result.“Listen up, doctor. I know you did the test and very much aware of the truth but please just pretend you know nothing and let Rod take responsibility for it. I have divorced ken. It is Rod that I love and perhaps you may
“Come on, sounds hilarious, but anytime I will always be there for you, the only thing you must do for me is to ensure no one sees the food.” Eva said.She was still in my chamber at the time.I shook my head in the negative, “Definitely no one will see them. Once again I appreciate for this loyalty and support.” I hugged her and sobbed on her shoulders.“It is okay, Melissa. Wipe your tears. Everything is going to be fine,” she said calmly.“How are Opula and her pregnancy? I hope she is fine now. I just wish nothing happened to her pregnancy,” I said expectantly.It was obvious it didn’t go down well with Eva because those eyes of hers rolled at me nastily.“She should have lost that pregnancy or better still be in the condition of your husband so that she can see the pains of being in a coma.”“Stop this Eva!” I rebuked her, “It is the wish of every pregnant woman to carry their babies. I am pregnant and I can tell you it is not easy to watch a suckling in your womb die miserably.”
After a while the doctor invited the Fannies into his office for some briefing. “Um my lab scientists have conducted some toxicity tests on the foods and there is no trace of poison in it, and you may have to applaud the chef for ever giving you the best of food with good hygiene. The foods are pure,” the doctor said.Salsa who had left earlier was smiling ear to ear as she eavesdropped at the door.No one would be able to trace the food poison she added to abort Opula’s pregnancy. Earlier when she got a phone call from Fanny to bring the samples of food to the hospital, she had brought freshly made food and not the ones they left at the dining.“You are lucky to have survived this Opula,” Salsa said in her mind, “I am not done with you. You must lose that baby. You can’t have that child for Rod. It is either you lose the baby or you die with it,” she threatened yet further in her mind.Inside the office the doctor had just told the Fannies there was urgent need for blood transfusion
“You escaped this ABORTION. You are not going to escape the next one; you can’t have this child for Rod Benson. Rod belongs to me. You had an opportunity to foster a sweet affair with him but you ruined it because he was poor. Now he is rich you want to snatch him away from me. I love Rod and not even you or that thing in your womb can deny me this happiness,” salsa said in her mind as she wept for Opula who was lying in the sick bed at the hospital.Salsa was a slow poison and a moving unpredictable time bomb. She had history of avenging her offenders and Opula might be battling with an unknown closer enemy.The Fanny’s had surrounded Opula and sympathized with her. Opula couldn’t stop shedding tears and she never knew mere sight of her pregnancy was making Salsa seethe and she was plotting yet another attack on her mind, one that would be more disastrous than the former.“Perk up, ma’am,” Salsa said in pretense as she wailed bitterly, and even louder than everyone else. “Most pertin
Fanny had given out an order to Salsa to bring samples of the recipes Opula had consumed at the banquet, so Salsa was on her way to the hospital when a salon car double-crossed her cab.“What is happening?” Salsa gasped, and turned to the cab driver who was as perplexed as she was. Salsa’s eyes darted and gazed upon a young man who was alighting from the salon car. If she hadn’t watched closely she wouldn’t have noticed it was Ken Patrick.“Okay just stay put. I will figure it out,” Salsa said to the driver, who was beginning to sweat nervously on his brow thinking they were in danger. Promptly, Salsa alighted and shot her thunderous frown at Ken, who came to a halt upon seeing her. Except, Ken that forced a smile, Salsa kept to her frown and noticed that Ken had lost some pounds and unshaven.It was obvious poverty was taking its pound of flesh on him since he got divorced by Opula and left the villa.“You know how busy I can be, Ken Patrick. Why have you decided to disrupt my moveme
At dusk the villa was calm and quiet, most especially in the absence of Fanny and Kate who were still at the hospital. Salsa had gone to visit her sick mother at the hospital after she got a bizarre phone call from the doctor.Eva had told me earlier she would be having extensive road walk and would be back at late hour. And more than a handful of security and aides had accompanied Fanny and Kate to the hospital.Later Tony, Eva’s husband had decided to join Fanny and Kate at the hospital. And since Fanny had denied me privileges of a family member, I had learnt to mark my boundaries and to see what fate had for me.These days I rarely got water supply into my chamber and I believed it was part of the strategies to frustrate me. I couldn’t recall the last time I washed myself in the mini pool in my chamber. Indeed, the Fannies were out to fuel frustration into me.Whenever water supply got into my chamber it was like Halloween to me. On such a day I would use water to my satisfaction
I knew Salsa could do the nastiest of things but not the most destructive of things. Who could have believed that Salsa had poisoned Opula with ancestral herbs that could abort the unborn child in Opula’s womb?Upon seeing the doctor walk out of the emergency unit, Fanny and Kate hastened to him, with their eyes filled with anxiety and uncertainty.“Doctor! Doctor!” they called indistinctly and shot longing gaze at him, “How is Opula, doing? How is she doing doctor?”The family doctor gestured at them to cheer up, “Please can we see in my office briefly?” he said and led them into an exquisite office with polished woods and ocean view sight.“Talk to me, doctor,” Fanny said coldly, with so much fear dominating his tone, “What happened to my daughter. I wonder what could have happened to her during an exciting banquet held in honor of her pregnancy.”Kate asked hastily, “Is she okay, doctor? What about her unborn child? I hope the baby is fine.”The doctor snorted and sucked an uneasy
Rod had visited Rio Hondo in his usual manner and phoned Salsa to come over and brief him on how she had convinced me to give him a chance to prove that he was a better lover than Brian.Whenever he visited Rio Hondo for such a cause, he usually invited Salsa to his private jet, waited in his jet until Salsa visited him to brief him on my accepting his proposal.Although Salsa had planned not to mention Opula’s pregnancy to Rod yet she had decided to teach Rod the lesson of his life.Right now Salsa was like an ocean and she wasn’t going to lose her salinity without causing destruction. Since she was going to lose, she wasn’t going to lose alone.Upon arrival, Rod had phoned Salsa to fix him some French fries and steak, which she would bring along when coming to visit him in his private jet.Salsa was done preparing, the French fries and steak and with eyes shut she picked up some portion of her killer poison to spread on the steak so that as soon as Rod ate it, he would throw up and