The Price of His Betrayal

"Thank, goodness, you're already home, Brother Norman! We have some wonderful news for you since the other day." Jennifer eagerly departed from her seat as soon as I arrived at the dining area.

Jennie follows her and wraps their arms around me to extend their greetings. The last person who approached me was my son, Noah. He was about to wrap his arms around me but I dodged him and grabbed my seat next to him.

"But I highly suggest we should not talk about the good news in front of the kid," Jennie added before she fixed her eager look at her twin sister, and then to Noah. "Kiddo, can you go back to your room? You aunties and dad are gonna talk about something important really quick."

That's one of the characteristics I love about my little sisters. Even if Noah and I did not have the father-and-son kind of relationship as everyone does, they always gave him priority.

I heard a few times from Yvanna that Jennifer brought him shopping and ate outside every time she had her free time. Jennie, on the other hand, brought him to some places, such as the parks, beaches, and church.

Even my parents cared for him the second he was brought to the mansion. They couldn't stop playing with him because of his overflowing cuteness. Their treatment of him was one-of-a-kind. On top of that, they spoiled him with everything.

And who am I to complain about it? I didn't have much time for my son. Thanks to Yvanna for being there for him - for keeping an eye on our little son, day and night, and for raising him well.

"Son, can you play in your room for a bit?" I agreed with Jennie and Jennifer's piece of advice as it appears to me that they have some good news as early as nine in the morning.

"But I am still in the middle of my meal, Dad!" Noah purses out his lips in utter dismay toward us. However, after seeing the intensity of my stares at him, he evacuated the dining area in the blink of an eye.

Interrupting him in the middle of the meal was completely unprofessional of us, elders, but I couldn't miss this good news my sisters have for me this morning either. I badly needed some good news these days after everything that happened during my hectic schedule for the mayoral campaign.

Good thing I have everyone's undying support, especially from my family. "So, what's the good news then? Did something happen the other day while I was busy campaigning?"

"Come on, Brother Norman. After everything that happened last night, we knew what you did." Jennifer replied, and she couldn't put off the ear-to-ear smile on her face.

"Veronica is one of our closest friends." Jennie seconded, "We knew what you and she did last night. You did the right thing, Brother Norman." then she leaned in closer to me and whispered, "She saw Yvanna at the hotel before you crashed her well-being."

Jennifer and Jennie suddenly burst into laughter, and it appeared to me that Veronica already shared even the tiniest piece of the detail that happened between us last night.

How cool of her! While holding onto that thought, somewhere down there started to crave her aromatic and enticing scent. I'd better call her tonight to come over to my office. And I'll take no for an answer.

"Guess what?" she added, "Your illiterate and useless wife signed the divorce agreement and handed it over to Mom last night."

"If and only you witness what your ungrateful wife did to us last night, Brother Norman!" Jennifer defensively reported before she heaved an abrupt sigh. "That evil woman simply slapped us in the face and poured a glass of water on Mom before she ran away."

"What?" I blurted in disbelief with several long curved lines engraved all over my face. That I am not aware of. Good thing Noah was not around to hear everything about his Mom.

Even if my son and I were not in a promising relationship, I still cared about his future - the future of the empire, considering he would inherit everything from me.

"But, the past is in the past now. What else could we do? Let's simply pray that our paths will not cross again." Jennie replied, and her rage began to subside. "Because if that happens, only God knows what I can do to her."

The three of us talked about a lot of things in the middle of our conversation - everything was about how evil my wife was toward my family. Good thing we no longer have a reason to see each other because I'm not gonna see her anymore.

After the meal, and agreed with my sisters on what to do in case we crossed paths with Yvanna, I went to work. Two days later, my heartbeats were in a race and my sweat kept ejecting all over me.

Today is also the day for my uncertain faith to determine if I deserve to have my spot in the government as the city mayor, at the same time, Yvanna's 28th birthday if I am not mistaken.

"Mr. dela Vega, sorry for the inconvenience. The result of the election was already out. I highly suggest you check it yourself on the website." says Elaine, my secretary for three years after what felt like an eternity.

I was supposed to stay at the mansion with everyone as highly advised by my parents, but the nerve-breaking anxiety that etched my heart and mind was killing me.

I cannot fathom the thought of either winning or losing the election because no one told me the chances of the survey. Overwhelming excitement and uneasiness kept bothering me.

So I glanced at the screen of my phone to check if Veronica could have known the result already. We agreed that once the results came out, she would call me - to congratulate me.

Right then Elaine was about to get back to her desk, Veronica's name popped out of the screen. I quickly slid the answer button and pasted the phone on my left ear.

Before she could congratulate me, I curved the corners of my lips upward, excitement washed over me when we agreed that she would call me if the result of the election took our side.

"Let's break up, Norman."

Those were Veronica's words that kept reverberating in my ears from the other line of the phone. Instead of a congratulatory speech, she wanted to break up with me loud and clear.

"What?" I blurted in disbelief.

"That's the deal before we dig into this relationship we have, Norman," Veronica replied, her voice filled with conviction. "If you win the election, we have to get married. But if it goes the other way around..."

As Veronica kept talking from the other line, the sounds of my fingers shoving on the computer keyboards were in a race with my heartbeats. I looked into the result myself and the phone almost slipped off from my hand.

My total votes did not even reach a quarter of the city's overall population. I lost the election by unanimous decision. Perhaps that was the reason Elaine did not congratulate me when she slid to my desk either.

Because she already knew the result.

"And for the record, Norman, I didn't get the car that you gave me on my birthday. I heard that bitch took it when she found out we stabbed her with a knife. You can ask your secretary if you don't believe me."

Veronica's confession cut deeper into my heart. She was like a stray bullet that hit the most crucial part of me. I divorced Yvanna to be with her.

She promised me to have a better future if I chose her instead of my wife. And I agreed to it, in fact, I already have the divorce paper notarized to make it valid. That's her primary recommendation for having a relationship with her.

"So, don't you dare expect me to return even the car cays to you because I don't have them in the first place," she added without any sign of guilt or regret in her voice.

"Please, don't break up with me, Veronica. I'm begging you," Everyone in the office dragged their startled eyes on me. I'm a natural-born billionaire.

Everyone could have bowed before me, begging me. But it went the other way around when it came to Veronica. I was supposed to be the one who tames her, not her to me.

To make sure everyone in the office could not spread the worst side of me, I departed my seat and went to the parking lot. "Where are you right now? I'll come to you, okay? I'm still as wealthy as before, remember? Do you want me to buy you a new car? Name your price, Veronica!"

To my surprise, she ended the call without even letting me hear what I needed to do to save our relationship. So I dialed her digits again, not just once, but a hundred times. Unfortunately, all my calls went straight to her mailbox.

While holding onto the steering wheels, the tears ran down my face. I tried to get an answer, at least one, to save me from such humiliation befallen me and the family. But my thoughts are nothing but emptiness.

The reality hit me like a bolt of lightning. I did not just lose the election but also Veronica. Then I remembered my parents. If someone would get enough humiliation from the result of the election could have been my parents.

So, instead of heading to Veronica's place, I went straight to the mansion. I had to make sure they were holding up well after knowing the election result.