CHAPTER 4

It was a blighted morning in Richard’s Mansion. Mr. Richard stood in front of his wardrobe's mirror as he clad in blue suit 

He barged from his bedroom to the living room feeling enraged, and when he reached. His workers lavished him with greetings. “Good morning, Boss”

He curtly nodded, and the workers glanced at him unblinkly as he moved past them without even a glare.

Mrs. Hannah embraced him with a pleasant smile when she noticed the weird look he carried and she retorted worriedly,

“What's eating you up, honey”

“Nothing” Mr. Richard replied almost immediately, and he intended to bypassed her, but his wife held his right hand which made him fixed his gaze on her, and he retorted coldly,

“What do you want?”

“I want you to make Agatha the CEO of your companies as you intended to do for Sarah, and stop giving us attitude because we aren't the one who betrayed you. it was your so-called beloved daughter, Sarah in case you had forgotten” Mrs. Hannah replied in a higher tone.

Mr Richard's eyes reddened with fury when he heard that. He stared around and caught his workers, and bodyguards staring at them intensively, instead of focusing on their work, and he barked at them, 

“Leave us!”

They hurriedly disappeared like the speed of light when they noticed the fury in Mr. Richard’s eyes.

Thereafter, he glanced at his wife who was staring at him unblinkly and he replied, 

“Sarah has betrayed me, but that doesn't mean she won't realize her childish actions and return home for forgiveness”

Mrs. Hannah darkened her face, and shouted, her voice breaking.

“What! So do you still have intentions of making Sarah your heir upon all she had done”

“Yes!–because she is the legitimate and desirable person, and not Agatha who spent her time clubbing with aimless friends, and live her life anyhow”

Mr. Richard poured, and suddenly he felt a big object on her throat which sealed his breath. His vision became blurred and he was unable to move his body. His legs twisted and fell down. 

“Help! Where are they? Call the family doctor now!”

Mrs. Hannah retorted worriedly, her voice echoing in the mansion, and the bodyguards hurriedly gathered around Mr. Richard, as they carried him to his bedroom.

Within an hour the doctor came around, and after checking up on him in his bedroom. 

He stared at Mrs. Hannah who was staring at him in anticipation, and he said, 

“Your husband fainted due to much stress, but he is fine at this moment. Moreover, calm him down whenever he gets annoyed, because he doesn't need to face any horrible situation due to his condition now”

“Okay, Dr. I will do as you said” Mrs Hannah replied with a nod.

“Okay, then I think my job is done, but before I leave, would you mind having conversation with me outside, he needs to rest now”

“No problem, Dr. I'm after you” Mrs Hannah replied almost immediately and they disappeared from the room. 

Within an hour when they left, Mr. Richard began to cough several times which woke him up. He felt his throat dry and tasty. He barged from the bedroom, and intended to get water downstairs. But he paused on his pace, when he heard mummering words evolving from Agatha’s room which was next to his. 

Being curious, he tiptoed to Agatha’s door, and twisted the doorknob silently as he tackle his ears to the mummering words,

“We need to speed up our plans quickly” Mrs. Hannah retorted, gazing at Agatha, as she sat in front of her dressing mirror doing make-up.

“No mum, we shouldn't rush, because our plans are falling into place. We killed Sarah's ugly mum, and framed the culprit as armed robbers.” 

“We intended to kill Sarah so that the properties would be ours, but she betrayed our family, and Dad had disowned her. Which means I will become the heir soon, and all the properties will be ours. Isn't that what we planned Mom?” Agatha replied, smiling at her reaction. 

“Exactly– but things are going wrong” Mrs. Hannah said, which twisted Agatha’s face into a frown. She glanced at her mum, and Mrs Hannah continue,

“Your dad has acute myeloid leukemia in stage four. The doctor told me he will die soon, but he had intended to make Sarah his heir upon all she had done”

“What!!”, Agatha poured.

That's enough!! Mr. Richard shouted as he kicked the door backwards. 

Mrs Hannah and Agatha flinched when they noticed the anger in Mr. Richard’s eyes mixed with tears. 

He glanced at them fiercely, and he hurled in gritted teeth, 

“You guys are so wicked. I will make sure you both rot in jail for murdering my wife. You killed Amina because of my properties I suffered with her and gained. And you intended to kill Sarah. What has she done to you? Gather your luggages, and leave my house now”

“Please Dad, is not what you are thinking” Agatha muttered worriedly but her voice made anger surge into Mr. Richard's spine, and his veins bulged in his forehead. He glanced at her and yelled,

“Shut up! I heard your wicked plans and I'm glad I found out. I didn't… he was about to continue, but his words got choked in his throat, and due to that he lost his breath and fainted.

“Let's rush him to the hospital”

—-------------

Collins stared at his wrist watch and noticed the time was 10:am. He had been into different companies who promised to offer him a job when he graduated, but none of them fulfilled their promises. 

He asked for reasons, and they told him Mr. Richard had Blackmailed him to the top companies in New York.

He stood in front of Bronco Company and anger surged around his body as he intended to let Sarah talk to her Dad whether she likes or not. 

He boarded a cab and at the drop of a hat. The driver dropped him in front of his house. He opened the door their hall, and flinched when he heard her mom yelling at Sarah angrily,

“Go inside and bring my brackets!”

“I'm innocent, how many times do you want me to repeat myself? Is this the way you plan to repay me upon all the good things I have done?” Sarah retorted defensively as tears welled in her eyes.

Spendy glanced at her with no emotions and poured, “If you are innocent, why don't you permit us to search your luggages”

“Can someone explain to me what's going on here?” Collins intervened and they shifted their gaze on him. 

Mrs. Hannah glanced at him worriedly and uttered, 

Son, The bracelets Mr. Johnson ordered from the UK are missing, and I have searched everywhere but haven't found them. 

“I didn't intend to annoy your wife but I told her to permit us to search her luggages since we are four in this house”

Collins nodded, he glanced at Sarah who was staring at him with tears soaked in her eyes, and he uttered coldly, “Permit them to do the inspection if you are innocent”

Collins' words pierced through Sarah's heart like a blunt knife. She sniffed smoothly, and wiped off her tears threatening to cascade with her thumb as she muttered, 

“Okay”

Mrs. Hannah grinded, and she ordered spendy to do the inspection. Within a few minutes, spendy came out holding 4 diamond bracelets. 

Sarah's heart hammered against her when she saw the bracelets, and the wired glances towards her. 

“Is this your true identity, I'm very ashamed that I allowed my son to marry a thief, and I will make sure he divorce you soon” ,Mrs Hannah uttered, staring at Collins intensively.

Sarah felt like her heart had fallen into her stomach when she noticed a weird glare from Collins.

“Won't you talk and defend yourself, thief, your father is making life difficult for me, and you are stealing from my mom. Do you want her to go to jail?”

The tears soaked in Sarah’s eyes cascaded uncontrollably. She couldn't believe the man she gave her life for was also accusing her. She glanced at him and uttered in tears,

“No– no– you don't mean it, because you know me more than they do. I kept quiet because I know you will defend me”

“Yes Sarah, I mean it," Collins admitted coldly.

Sarah felt she had been hit with a bag of stones when Collins repeated. She caught them gazing at her disdain and she felt uncomfortable being with them. 

She hurriedly disappeared from their sight, and headed out with no destination in mind as the tears continuously drenched her eyes.

She stopped in between the road in front of their house, and a taxi horn at her which made her flinch. 

She opened the door and sat in without the driver's permission. The driver glanced at her unblinkly from the driving mirror, and he asked worriedly,

“Miss, Are you okay? And where are you going?”

“Take me to any nearby Pub” Sarah replied in sobs.

The driver nodded and he started the car. 

Sarah's phone beamed with incoming calls and she removed it from the fitting jeans she wears. 

“Mam, your Dad is in critical condition, and she has been submitted to H-Care Hospital” Irene uttered, worriedly from the other end.

“Thanks for addressing me, Irene,” Sarah replied immediately. She glanced at the driver and told him to barge to the hospital. Sarah was able to recognize Irene because she was her personal maid. 

—-----------------

“You are evil and I regret marrying you. I will make sure you rot in jail when I get up from this bed. You won't go free” Mr. Richard poured in gritted teeth, staring at his wife, who was sitting beside him, with a mockery grind on her lips.

“Is that so darling? You won't survive again because I have injected you with vernon which will kill you soon” 

“No-no–no, you can't do that to me” Mr. Richard poured sadly in tears. But Mrs Hannah glanced at him as she muttered, 

“I’ve already done it my love, and your properties are mine too, goodbye and die soon”

When she disappeared, Sarah came in and saw his dad drenched in tears which made her quiver.

She glanced inwardly into his Dad's eyes and she noticed life was escaping from him. She grabbed onto him on the bedstead and shouted, 

“Doctor!”

Mr. Richard heard Sarah's voice in his heart. He struggled to open his eyes and muttered sadly, 

“Hannah is the one who killed me and your mum, Sarah. Fight for your rightful place, and make them pay”

Sarah felt her heart shattered into thousands pieces when she heard that. She grabbed her father, and shaked him severally, but he didn't respond and tears began to flow down her cheeks mercilessly as she muttered, 

“Dad, please don't leave me alone. I need you more than anything now”

The doctor rushed in when she heard Sarah's screams. He checked on Mr. Richard, and stared at Sarah who was staring at him worriedly and he said, 

“Your Dad is dead, please you need to leave us”

Sarah felt the ground should open and swallow her when she heard that. She recalled the last words her father told her, and anger boiled at her chest as she intended to confide them to Collins so they could seek revenge.

She boarded a taxi, and at the drop of a hat the driver dropped her in front of her house. 

She entered the maid gate, but she felt a knot in her heart when she saw her luggages spread beside the door to their room.

Tears welled in her eyes when she stared at her clothes attached stains, and she knocked on the door.

Within a couple minutes of knocking, the door opened, and it revealed Collins and Agatha holding their hands with a bright smile on their faces. 

Agatha glanced at Sarah who was gazing at them like she had seen a ghost, and she kissed Collins passionately.

Sarah felt sharp pains in her heart when she saw that, but she suppressed the pains, and she yelled?

“Why are my luggages out? Why are you kissing my husband? What's going on?”

Collins snickered, he threw a document at Sarah, and he said with no emotion, 

“Sign the divorce papers, and get lost because I'm done using you”

Suddenly, Sarah felt she had been hit with a bag of stones when she heard that. She gazed at them smirking at each other, and she felt her heart was sinking. 

She held her chest, and tears started following her cheeks without her noticing it.

“What did I do to you? and What were you using me for? Tell me?” Sarah questioned.

Collins glanced at Sarah angrily and Agatha uttered coldly,

“I will tell you everything because you deserve to know”