RISE OF THE DISCARDED SON-IN-LAW

THE STRANGER

Brianna shot up from her chair immediately after I finished speaking my mind.

“How dare you ask for a divorce when no wrong was done against you? You can’t take care of my needs because you’re poor. Are you trying to humiliate me? What would it look like when it gets to the media that I was divorced by someone as pathetic as you?” She sneered.

“I don’t care, just like you never cared when you decided to fuck another man on our anniversary. You don’t even regret what you did, you feel no remorse. I can’t stay married to someone like you!” He yelled.

“How dare you raise your voice at my daughter? You should be worshipping the ground she walks on, even her shoes cost more than your pathetic being.” Bruce Blythe said.

“I don’t know why we tolerate this street rat in our house, throw him out this instant.” Brock said as he looked at Alarick with disdain.

“I agree. Maybe after sleeping on the streets for a while, he will appreciate the shelter we gave to him.” Ben said.

Alarick was happy that he spoke his mind, but he realised that it had backfired on him. He had no penny to his name at the moment after spending all he had on his surprise. His mother-in-law didn’t even wait for everyone to agree, she was already calling the security to come throw him out.

“And just so you know, if we decide to let you return, you will no longer have a room on the main floor. You will be assigned a room in the servant’s quarters. It seems like we treat you too well in this house, that’s why you have the audacity to speak back.” Beatrice said.

“Wait!” He said.

He didn’t know how he could possibly convince them to let him stay for a while so he could save up some money and move out.

“You have nowhere to go, do you?” Beatrice smirked.

He decided to tell the truth hoping it would make them have a little compassion on him.

“I spent all I had on the surprise I planned for Brianna yesterday. Just give me till the end of the month, I’ll move out on my own, I swear.” I said and she laughed.

“Do we look like we’re running a charity here? You want a divorce, right? You’ll get it and we’ll finally rid this house of your filth. In fact, the option of returning is no longer available to you.” She snickered.

At that moment, two security guards came in.

“Get this man out of my house.”

“Will you at least let me get my things?” Alarick sighed.

“Those rags? I will do you a favour and have them all burnt.” She replied and they all laughed while the security dragged him out like a common criminal.

His shame was multiplied when he realised that there were reporters outside the gate. It was normal to see them here sometimes trying to get a picture of one of the Blythe family members, but today was the worst day for their appearance. They took pictures of Alarick as he picked himself from the floor where the security guys dumped him, and he wished the earth would open up and swallow him. The reporters started to question him but he just ignored them and walked away.

With nowhere else to go, Alarick walked to a nearby park and sat on the bench. He had no plan, and as an orphan, he had no family to call for help. He thought about calling some colleagues from work but it would be weird for him to ask help from them when they barely spoke outside work hours. And he no longer talked to the few friends he had before getting married to Brianna, the Blythe family had warned him to stop interacting with them because they weren’t rich, and he had been so eager to please them that he listened, now he had no one to turn to. He was still seated when his phone pinged, his mother-in-law had sent him a link, and his eyes widened as he opened it.

‘HUSBAND OF MILLIONAIRE HEIRESS, BRIANNA BLYTHE THROWN OUT OF THE BLYTHE MANSION AFTER BEING CAUGHT CHEATING ON HER ON THEIR ANNIVERSARY’

The headline was displayed on the screen and Alarick was speechless.

“What is the meaning of this?” He said to himself as he watched the video, it was a live feed.

The camera showed Brianna crying in the background with her mother trying to console her, while the others were around the two women.

“I allowed you into my home for this short interview so you could get the true story. I was informed that you took pictures of my former son-in-law being escorted out of my house, I didn’t want any false speculations to be released about the situation before the truth.” Bruce Blythe said to the reporters

“Brianna dear, please tell the reporters a short version of what happened today.”

“Well, my anniversary was yesterday, and my husband came to surprise me, it was wonderful. We spent time together and then came home, only for me to catch him having sex with one of our maids in the kitchen early this morning when I woke up to get a cup of coffee. I confronted him and he wasn’t even remorseful, he said that he never loved me and he was only married to me for my money. I loved him. How could he do that to me?” Brianna said and began to cry again.

“That scumbag had the audacity to break my daughter’s heart after all we’ve done for him. He was poor, and still we took him in, made him part of his family, all because she loved him.” Bruce said with a furious expression like a concerned father.

“So what will happen now, Mr Blythe?” The reporter asked.

“What else? She will divorce him as soon as possible.”

“That means he is entitled to half of all she owns since she’s the spouse with more assets.”

“Over my dead body will that filthy man take a dime from my daughter. It’s a good thing I forced her to sign a prenup with him before they got married. She had been so in love that she was adamant not to sign it because she trusted him, I had to force her to sign it and I’m glad I insisted.” He replied to the reporter.

They were still discussing but Alarick didn’t want to hear or see more. He turned off his phone. Brianna and her family had turned the story around, no one would believe him if he tried to tell them that the Blythe family were all liars. His life was ruined now. Pictures of him being thrown out would be everywhere, and no firm would want to hire him now after this scandal. He sat there till it got dark and the park was only illuminated by the streetlights. The last time he had been forced to sleep on the streets was when he was a child, after his parents died in a fire that burned down their house, and he had nowhere else to go. He lived outside for a while before being taken to foster care.

                                    

He was about to lay down on the bench and sleep when he received a call from an unknown number. He decided to ignore it, but it kept ringing so he had no choice but to pick it up.

“Who is this?”

“Hello, Mr Alarick.”

“Yes, who is it? What do you want?”

“My name is Jonathan Winlow, I have been looking for you on behalf of your parents for years now. I only found you after seeing your pictures everywhere because of the recent cheating scandal. As an only child, you are the heir and…” The man was still talking but Alarick cut him off with a loud laugh.

This was definitely a prank call. It had to be. The Blythe family must have paid someone to try and make an even bigger fool of him.

“Look I don’t know what your plan is and why they will pay you to try and trick me, but it is not funny. My parents are dead, how can you be looking for me on their behalf? Haven’t I suffered enough because of this cheating scandal? Leave me the fuck alone.”

He disconnected the call and a few minutes later, he was approached by a man that seemed to be in his late forties or early fifties.

“Mr Alarick.” The man called and Alarick recognised the voice immediately.

It was the man that just called him.

“What are you doing here? Alarick scowled at the man.

“I wasn’t joking. I’ve been looking for you for years, it’s time for you to be reunited with your family, your real family. I know you have doubts, and everything seems like a lie, but please, just give me a chance to prove to you that I’m telling the truth. What do you have to lose? Your father is a trillionaire, and you’re his heir. From what I gathered, you’re at a pretty low point right now, you have a chance to change your life, why not take it?”

Alarick looked at the man for several seconds as he contemplated what he should do. He knew that it was a risk following someone he didn’t know but what was the worst that could happen? Like the man said, his life had already fallen apart. And he could be a trillionaire’s son, it all seemed like a dream.