Alexander parked his car and sighed at seeing Beatrix’s car in his parents' driveway. So she was here just as he had expected. Anger boiled inside him and he stormed inside, ready to face them all. Yes, he loved Eva. Now what? Would Beatrix break off with him? Nothing would be better than that! He wanted to be free from her! His mom opened the door with a grave look on her face, avoiding looking him in the eye. Her behavior irked Alexander. It was alright to feel threatened by Beatrix, but couldn’t she support him for once? “At last you get the time to see me. I’ve been calling you for the last forty-five minutes, Alex,” said his dad, sitting with a sulking Beatrix beside him. His blood boiled at seeing the woman seeking sympathy with her fake tears. “I was on my way back, dad. I forgot to switch on my phone afterwards.” He sat on the sofa opposite and waited for him to speak further. “Who were you with, Alexander? Beatrix has proof that you were with Eva. Is it true?” his dad ask
Alexander remembered Maxwell's interest in Eva. Maxwell was the one who had threatened him after picking up a fight with him at Phoenix over Eva. Alexander remembered the photograph Maxwell had taken of them kissing each other on that drunken night. What if he forwarded it to Beatrix? She would surely harm Eva. Feeling restless, he typed a reply to Maxwell. Eva doesn’t love you. Stop harassing her! If I find you forcing her in any way, I’ll come over to wreck your precious office–Alexander He seethed waiting for Maxwell’s reply but even after an hour, there was no response and he dozed off to sleep. The next morning, Eva lazed at home, since it was her day off. Alyssa had gone to work and Eva just completed the household chores of cleaning and washing. She knew Alexander wasn’t at home and felt curious to know what happened at his parents’ house. She sat down to enjoy her breakfast when her phone buzzed with a call from an unknown number. Who could it be? She accepted the call out
Alexander glared at his sister, planning to drill some sense into her head right away. Although he seethed at the sight of Eva acting all innocent in front of him, he couldn’t confront her in front of his dad. “Alyssa! Where the hell had you been? I went to your office, but you left three hours ago,” Alexander demanded angrily. Alyssa stared at her brother, surprised to know that he had visited her office. She had expected him to blast her, but she hadn’t expected him to go to her workplace. “What exactly were you doing at my workplace, Alexander?” she asked while her stepdad tried to intervene. “Look we can talk amicably instead of yelling at one another in this manner,” he said but Alexander was burning with a crazy fury knowing that despite everything, she was still with Nicholas. “No, dad. She has to answer me what she was doing at Nicholas’s house for three hours,” asked Alexander, his hands clenched into fists. “It’s none of your business where I had been, Alexander. If
Eva spoke to her colleagues at the hospital and Laura informed her about a one-bedroom apartment up for sale in Bronx. Although buying it would leave her penniless, Eva didn’t mind. She needed a place of her own before Alexander’s wedding. She couldn’t see them together all the time. “My cousin lives in the building. It’s good. Would you like to check it out?” “Yes. Can we go today after duty?” She hadn’t seen Alexander since that night and wanted to move out before he returned from his parents' place. “Sure. I’ll check up with her.” In the evening, just as promised, Laura took her to a lower middle-class locality in Bronx, where the building was located. It wasn’t posh as her current home, but it was a decent, freshly painted one in a clean neighborhood. She introduced Eva to her cousin, Sarah, who worked at a departmental store and lived on the second floor. “It’s on the third floor. Come, I’ll show you around.” Sarah led them up the staircase to the third-floor apartment overl
Alexander stared at the photographs forwarded to his phone in disbelief. He hadn’t expected Maxwell to really work so fast. Maybe he had underestimated the guy! Despite Maxwell's capabilities, what surprised Alexander was how Eva fell into his trap so easily. Or did she willingly go out with Maxwell? Maybe she had given up hope on him? Ever since they returned from the Paris trip, he hadn’t once found an opportunity to talk to her. Now the time had come to confront her. He couldn’t sit back and watch Maxwell whisk her away from right under his nose. He hadn’t given his final decision to Beatrix yet. With his dad still unwell, he was delaying it purposely. While Beatrix bothered her all day, he refused to give in to the pressure. He had no wish to father Fairfield’s illegitimate child. The doorbell rang, and he glanced at the clock. Who could be here so late in the night? “Alex, are you awake?” asked his mom from her room. “Yes, mom. I’ll get it.” He got up from his bed and went t
“Yes, Alexander Van Every speaking,” said Alexander accepting the call with a feeling of dread clutching at his heart. Was it regarding his dad?“Hello, Mr. Van Every! I’m calling from Columbia Hospital Critical Care Unit. Your fiancée, Beatrix Rotterdam has been admitted here for allegedly attempting suicide by slashing her right wrist. She is in the OT but we need you here for the formalities and police investigation.” Alexander’s jaws dropped with horror at the news. Surely there was some misunderstanding here! Why would Beatrix commit suicide?“Are you sure about this? How serious is Ms. Rotterdam? Maybe it was just an accident,” he reasoned.“No, Mr. Van Every. It is a suicide, and the patient is critical. Please come here as soon as you can.” Alexander quickly changed and stuffed his wallet, and phone, and rushed over to his parents' room. “Mom, dad, I need to go to Columbia Hospital right now. Beatrix has attempted to take her life and is admitted to the Critical Care Unit. T
Beatrix opened her bleary eyes slowly after a while, focusing on Alexander sitting at her bedside. There was a police officer too at the foot of the bed on high alert. “Alexander!” she croaked with surprise. The doctor came forward to check on her. “Please, can you step out, officer? I need to check how the baby is doing,” said the doctor. The officer reluctantly left the room, and the doctor started talking to the sonographer present. Thankfully, no one gave him a thought, considering him to be the father of the baby. Seeing his only opportunity, Alexander leaned towards Beatrix. “Why did you do such a thing, Beatrix?” he scolded her. “I’ll do it again if you don’t marry me, Alexander. I’ll give my verdict against you and send you to prison.” Alexander gaped at her, unable to understand whether she did this on purpose to trap him or something else! It didn’t look like she did this to kill herself. He looked at the bandaged wrist and wondered how much she had harmed herself. How w
Thankfully, Alyssa was away when she went home. Not in the mood to face her questions, Eva went to her room and quickly changed for bed. She lay down, but the tears wouldn’t stop. Alexander’s sudden announcement had her broken. She didn’t know what to think of Beatrix’s pregnancy. Why would Alexander lie to her if he had enjoyed physical intimacy with Beatrix? She was sure there was an explanation because, as far as she knew Alexander, he never lied. He would have told her if he had any physical intimacy with Beatrix even once. He would rather face her wrath than lie to her! Eva wiped her eyes dry, feeling determined to move out before Alexander came over to his apartment. She wouldn’t ask him for an explanation or remind him of his promise to her. Even if she died of heartbreak, she would never beg him to accept her in his life, to love her. She would go away to her own little apartment forever, far away from their lives. The next day, Eva completed all the formalities and received