“Amara! You can’t keep my son from me!” Bruno slurred as he entered the restaurant.Jason’s eyes darted to Bruno, then to Renee. He expected her to have the same look of shock and confusion that he had, but she didn’t. She looked displeased to see Bruno, a frown present on her face, but she also looked completely unfazed by what Bruno had said.On the other hand, all colour had drained from Amara’s face, and her eyes were glistening like she was about to cry.Andrew stood up from his seat and glared daggers at Amara. "Amara, what the hell is that man talking about? Why is he asking you about a son?”“I..I…don’t…” Amara stuttered. At that moment, she wished the ground under her feet could open and swallow her whole.Bruno walked to the group, bumping into a few tables and murmuring apologies as he did. His eyes were bloodshot, and the smell of alcohol was potent on him."Amara, you can’t do this to me.” He grabbed the collar of her shirt and shook her slightly.Suddenly, it was like a
“Bruno assaulted me,” she said through choked sobs.“What?” Andrew blurted out, his eyes widening.Jason and Renee exchanged looks of disbelief, taken aback by Amara’s lie.“You bastard!” Andrew held Bruno by his collar. “You’re going to spend the rest of your miserable life paying for what you did to my wife. You hear me?”“You and your wife are insane! Do you really believe her?” Bruno slurred as he pushed Andrew’s hands off his collar.“Bruno, she's lying,” Renee said.“Shut up!” Amara shouted. "Andy, honey, look at me.” She put her hands on each side of Andrew’s face. “Who are you going to believe? A drunk, a jealous woman, and a lowlife nobody like Jason or your wife who loves you?” She said it with a sad smile.Andrew looked into his wife’s eyes and sighed. He wanted to believe her."Oh, please save the loving wife act,” Renee scoffed.“Andrew, listen” Jason started, “Amara has been cheating on you with Bruno.”“That’s not true. Bruno assaulted me. He forced me to be with him.”
As Andrew drove to the address that was texted to him, his mind reeled with thoughts of the events that had just taken place.He and Amara never had the perfect marriage, but one thing about them was that no matter what, they stayed together. It was the two of them against everyone else.Amara was always willing to do anything for Andrew. That was why, with the choker, she lied just to back Andrew up; it wasn’t just to humiliate Jason, although that was part of her reason, mainly because she wanted to stand by her husband. She always wanted that.Which is why Andrew couldn’t think of a reason why she would want to be with Bruno.Bruno wasn’t richer or from a more prestigious family; actually, it was the opposite. Bruno was pretty average; he only entered high society through his marriage to Renee.Andrew felt like his head was on fire, and he needed to hose it off. Out of all his uncertainties, there was one thing that was for sure.“She knows too much; if I divorce her, she’ll talk.
The name of the hotel that Andrew was sent to was The Haven Retreat. It was a small hotel, nestled in a tranquil area of the city.Andrew checked his phone once again to confirm what room the meeting would be held in.“Room 40,” he read aloud.As Andrew walked to the room, he made the conscious effort to only think of the business he had in the hotel and not about his cheating wife, who was sitting in the passenger's seat of his car.Finally, he reached the room and lifted his fist to knock on the door.After the second knock, the door swung open to reveal Kent, who had his phone pressed to his ears, seemingly in the middle of a phone call.Kent gestured for Andrew to come in as he stepped aside to allow Andrew to enter the hotel room. As Andrew stepped into the room, his gaze landed on a bottle of scotch on the table, and he did not hesitate to pour himself into a glass. He drank it as he watched Kent, waiting for him to finish his conversation.“I’ll fill you in later, Roland,” Kent
The door of Room 40 swung open, and a young man clad in a crisp black suit walked in. His jet-black hair was styled in a quiff, and round glasses framed his face. He entered the room and nodded at the three men who were there waiting for him.“Anatoly welcome” Stefan greeted the man.“Thank you, Stefan,” the man replied with a thick Russian accent.“Who is the one to take charge of the company?” Anatoly asked. He snapped towards the bottle of scotch, and Andrew and Kent exchanged a look at each other before Andrew passed him the bottle and a glass.“I am,” Kent answered proudly.“So then you’re going to be our puppet," Anatoly smirked, then took a sip from his glass.Kent frowned, displeased by being referred to as a puppet, but he didn’t voice out his displeasure.“Lighten up, it’s just a joke.” Anatoly burst into laughter when he saw the look on Kent’s face. “We’re partners,” he said, then walked up to Kent and patted him on the back aggressively.Kent let out a chuckle, then shifte
“Jason, Marcus most likely isn’t Andrew’s son,” Renee admitted. “And I’m sure he’s Bruno's.”Jason finally understood why Renee had been that way. Cheating on your partner was one thing, but having another family with the person you were cheating on them with was a completely different kind of pain.It was a pain that Jason knew well.It felt like the lunch with Renee was bringing back feelings that he had tried so hard to bury and sink back up to the surface.Everything he felt when he saw Lana, Diana, and Christopher for the first time seemed to come back. Jason didn’t want to feel hatred for Diana; he wanted to be indifferent towards her and not feel anything at all. But every time the image popped into his head, he couldn’t help the rage that built up inside of him.Then there was Christopher. Even though he was obviously making an effort to mend his and Jason’s relationship, or at the very least get Jason’s forgiveness, Jason couldn’t fully let go of all that happened between th
The weekend ended, and it was now Monday. Jason was getting ready for work, adjusting the tie around his neck, when he heard a knock on the door. His forehead furrowed in confusion, as he wasn't expecting anyone, especially not so early in the morning. He walked up to the front door and asked, “Who is it?”“The most handsome and charming guy that you know,” Reuben said from the other side of the door.As he usually did anytime Reuben made his jokes, Jason rolled his eyes. He pulled open the door, and Reuben walked in with an envelope in his hands.“To what do I owe the pleasure?” Jason asked as Reuben walked in."Well, unfortunately for you, I'm not here to chat. I found the name and some other information on the blonde woman who roofied you,” Reuben said as he stretched out his hand, handing the envelope to Jason.Jaaon’s fingers trembled slightly as he took the envelope in his hands. His stomach churned with a mix of dread and anticipation as he opened the envelope and pulled out t
After a while, Jason was done getting ready. He was staring at the paper that had Patricia’s information on it when his cell phone vibrated. He checked out what it was. It was a text from Connor saying that he had arrived and was waiting downstairs.“He’s here,” Jason said to Reuben as he stood up from his seated position.Reuben stood up as well. "Alright, let’s go; we don’t want to be late for the bus!” Reuben said with a playful smile as he hurried out of the apartment.Jason sighed and shook his head at Reuben’s unseriousness, then walked out of the apartment and locked the door.The two men went downstairs and saw Connor standing right outside the lobby of the apartment complex. He looked neat, clad in a formal dark suit, a white shirt, a conservative tie, and polished black shoes.“Good morning, Boss,” Connor blurted out as soon as his gaze landed on Jason. Immediately, his eyes widened slightly, and his expression became awkward and apologetic. “I’m sorry, I forgot that you did