Chapter 4

Serena woke up to news all over the internet that Frederick Sullivan had a wife. They had been married for a long time but in secret. She knew it was probably Fred's doing. Everybody was eager to know who the billionaire's wife was and what she looked like.

Serena had informed Dhoti of everything beforehand and trusted her to keep it a secret. Even from Troy. She had planned for them to relocate to somewhere else, where they wouldn't get involved. Troy was reluctant and refused to leave without his mother but Serena talked to him calmly. All she was doing was for the sake of him and his grandmother. "Mummy will come join you soon, alright?" She assured him while giving him a kiss on his forehead.

Serena was going to transfer all the money Fred would pay her that day, to Dhoti. That was her reason why she requested it. When Dhoti and Troy finally left to their new place, a driver in a BMW 760li had come to pick Serena.

"You won't need any of your items ma'am" the driver said as he saw Serena pull out a travelling box.

"Excuse me?" She asked

"All the things you'll need from clothes to jewellery and shoes are already available. You won't be needing your old items "

She gave him a scornful look, pulled the box all the way to the car, pushed it inside and sat down beside it. "Are we leaving or not?" She said to the perplexed driver.

On arriving at Fred's mansion, Serena was awestruck. It was a beautiful sight indeed. And quite isolated too. It almost seemed like it was in the middle of nowhere. It was a hell of a quiet place too.

Still stunned by the view in front of her, Serena was jolted back to reality by a soft voice.

"Welcome home Miss Serena… " she paused, "or should I say Mrs Sullivan" the woman smiled in satisfaction.

Serena looked at her attentively. Her hair was fully white and tied up in a bun and she wore a black suit. She was obviously in her late 60s.

She wasn't Fred's mother. Was she a maid? No, she was too old to be one, Serena thought.

"Thank you" She responded, returning a smile. From now on she was going to be regarded as Serena Sullivan. "Call me Anika, dear" the woman said, "come, let me show you to your room".

Fred arrived at his mansion at noon. Everything had gone according to plan. There was a congregation of Reporters in front of F&S Corporation waiting for him to show up so they'd bombard him with questions about the sudden news of his secret marriage. How long had they been together? How was their secret exposed? Why did he keep his marriage a secret and who was the mystery wife?. The questions went on and on but then Fred was nowhere to be found.

He purposely avoided them. It was only right to give them answers when the rumours had spread world wide and that was what he was waiting on.

"You have such an impeccable taste," Anika teased when she met Fred. "She's such a beautiful, dainty lady" she smiled. "She's a petite woman of refinement, quite the catch Frederick "

"Well I can't deny that" he replied " Where is she? "

He knocked on the door of her room but didn't get a response. Was she asleep? He thought. He opened the door and walked in when a familiar scent hit him. A scent that sent his heart racing, one that often drove him crazy years ago. She was probably in the bathroom. Although it was tempting to stay and fill his lungs with her fresh scent, it would be embarrassing if she saw him in her room while she was taking a bath. He would look like a pervert. He quickly turned to leave when something caught his attention.

On a drawer standing close to the door, was a small portrait of Serena and a child. He picked up the portrait and observed it. They had that mother and child look. The little boy's brown hair was scattered and his grey-blue eyes were filled with excitement.

His grey-blue eyes…

The portrait was snatched from his hands and before him, stood an angry Serena with a white towel tied around her full bosoms.

"Is this how we're going to respect each other's privacy and boundaries? Coming into my room without my consent and going through my stuff?"

" And are you aware that people are listening? " He answered curtly.

She glared at him. She didn't even raise her voice so what was he saying, she thought. "Please leave, I need to dress up," she said, redirecting her gaze elsewhere.

He left abruptly before she even finished her sentence.

Her heart began racing. He definitely saw the portrait, what would he think now?

By evening time when the sun began to set, Serena heard a knock on her door. It was Anika, carrying a food tray. She quickly took it from her. "Are there no other maids to do this Miss Anika? I don't think it's okay for you to carry such heavy things around "

"Oh dear, how caring of you" Anika smiled "I'm the head maid. You see the maids aren't allowed to set eyes on either you or Frederick, it's a policy that they have to follow for as long as they work here"

"Ah, no wonder there wasn't anyone when I came in"

" Yes dear, the only people you'll be seeing around are me and Frederick, " she smiled.

" Frederick ordered that you be served dinner in your room. He said you were really tired that's why I had to bring it here myself "

" Oh, thank you "

" Enjoy your dinner" Anika said and left the room.

Fred's mind wasn't at peace since the incident in Serena's room. The child he saw kept appearing in his mind. He had so many questions he wanted to ask her but was certain that she wouldn't give him answers. He was the one who said they should respect each other's privacy anyways.

Whose child was it? Was Serena married and didn't tell him about it? No, he thought, if she had a husband, he wouldn't let her involve herself in this. Besides, he had her investigated, did the agent not do the work properly? Because if he did, why was he just finding out that she had a child. He needed to ask her because his curiosity was killing him.

"Serena?" He called as he knocked on her day. There was no response. He didn't want to just come in like he did last time so he knocked again. He thought she might probably be sleeping and turned to leave but he felt a certain unrest. He opened the door and peeped in. She wasn't on the bed. He walked towards the bathroom to ask if maybe she was there. Then he saw blood.

Beside her bed laid Serena, accumulated blood gushing out of her mouth. He quickly rushed to her, calling on her but she didn't budge.