"Doctor, please hurry and help my dad," Tama shouted, leaving Zahra stunned."Oh yes, dear, his wound is severe. We need to operate on him immediately," Zahra said, causing Axell to chuckle and stand up."Why surgery right away, doc?" Axell protested."To speed up his recovery," Zahra replied.Axell sat next to Zahra as Tama and Rikel resumed playing with their toys."Forgive me, dear," Axell whispered in Zahra's ear."Why?" Zahra asked, puzzled."For ignoring you earlier. I was busy consulting with Mr. Tigor about the next steps in Hernadi Sriwijaya's legal process," Axell informed his wife."Why Hernadi?" Zahra asked, confused."The evidence we've gathered is strong enough to put him behind bars," Axell said, holding back his emotions at the thought of Hernadi."Thank God. Hopefully, our life will be peaceful after this," Zahra said, looking at her husband."Yes, dear. I'm tired of living like this, where our movements are restricted and there's always a sense of unease," Axell said
"Dad, Tama and Rikel want to go to school with Mom today, Dad. Please," both of his children pleaded with pitiful expressions."Mrs. Sri, what's the matter?" Axell asked, looking at their caregiver."It's okay, Dad, we just want to be with Mom for once," Tama replied."Tell me the reason first," Axell said, wiping his mouth with a tissue."We want to be like our friends who are always waited for by their moms," Tama and Rikel answered simultaneously, looking down.Axell saw the sadness in their faces."Alright. But be careful," Axell said, stroking Tama's head."Hooray! Thank you, Dad," Tama and Rikel exclaimed, running to hug their father.Zahra just smiled at the joy of her two children. They had repeatedly insisted on being escorted by their mother, but Axell always refused.Axell's reasons for not allowing Tama and Rikel to be escorted by Zahra were not without merit. He wanted to let his mother know that there was someone responsible for certain tasks in this household, not every
"Who is it?" Axell shouted from inside."It's Mama," answered Mrs. Celline."What's up, Ma?" Axell asked again."Just open the door first," Mrs. Celline yelled."Just wait downstairs, Ma. Axell will come down later," Axell replied, still not moving from his bed."What are you guys doing? Why won't you open the door?" Mrs. Celline asked."We're just busy, Ma," Axell smiled."Busy with what?" Mrs. Celline asked again."Well, exercising, Ma," Axell replied."Why are you exercising this late in the afternoon?" Mrs. Celline asked."Well, what's the difference between afternoon and night, Ma?" Axell answered without budging from his position.Finally, Mrs. Celline gave up.Footsteps could be heard moving away. Axell breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed odd that his mother never gave them any alone time except at night."Who was it, Darling?" Zahra asked, stepping out of the bathroom, the scent of roses wafting through the room."It was Mama," Axell replied casually."Why?" Zahra asked, furr
Mrs. Ania, who saw Mrs. Celline coming out of the room carrying a large suitcase, immediately approached her."Where are you going?" asked Mrs. Ania, holding Mrs. Celline's hand."I'm going back to my house. It's pointless for me to stay here since my child never appreciates me, never acknowledges my existence, and even dares to shout at me," replied Mrs. Celline while crying, glancing at Axell and Zahra who were eating.Zahra chose to stop eating, while Axell seemed indifferent and continued eating, only glancing briefly at his mother who was playing her act. Playing the victim."Let's talk about this calmly. Wait until Axell finishes eating," coaxed Mrs. Ania, guiding Mrs. Celline to sit on the sofa in front of the TV. Meanwhile, Mrs. Sri chose to go back to her room, not wanting to get involved in her employer's family matters.Mrs. Celline complied, sitting on the sofa while wiping her tears as if she was the most mistreated person, when in fact, it was quite the opposite compared
"Did Emily pick up Tama?" Axell asked Zahra."Yeah, she and Jojo planned it yesterday," Zahra replied, looking at her husband."I mean, Emily's coming here first, right? Then Jojo will take them wherever they want," Axell said."She said she’d be here by ten," Zahra informed him."Oh, okay. Rikel’s not coming along, is he?" Axell asked again."Doesn't seem like it, dear, or they wouldn’t get any quality time alone," Zahra replied."That's fine, Rikel can stay home with us.""Are you working today?" Zahra asked."Yes, just half a day, there are some reports I need to check," Axell replied.Zahra nodded and then busied herself helping Mrs. Rasi set the table for breakfast, while Axell enjoyed his coffee."Where's Mrs. Inah, Bik?" Zahra asked."Watering the plants, ma'am, it hasn't rained for a few days," Mrs. Rasi replied."Where are Mr. Bidin and Mr. Ujang?" Axell wondered, since the older men were usually responsible for the lawn and plants."They're watering the vegetable garden out
Sometimes a wife’s intuition is never wrong, and that was the case with Zahra. Normally, even if Axell came home late, Zahra would never call. But today, she suddenly did."Where are you, dear? Sounds like you’re on the road?" Zahra asked."No, I’m still at the office. I'll be home soon," Axell replied, slightly nervous.Zahra stared at her phone screen; something was off about Axell. Yuda had said Axell wasn’t at the office, but Axell claimed he was."Maybe dear Axell was in another room," Zahra murmured, trying to stay positive about her husband. She knew Axell had never lied to her before.Axell arrived at the office and went straight to the bathroom, cleaning up. He waited until his hair dried before heading home. The guilt towards Zahra haunted him."Earlier, Mama called, and I looked for you but couldn’t find you in your office," Yuda mentioned as they were on their way home."My stomach was really upset, so I was probably in the bathroom," Axell replied nonchalantly while delet
"Zahra is not daydreaming, darling," Zahra denied."Alright, I'll take a shower first," said Axell as he headed to the bathroom, his clothes smelling of cigarette smoke. Even though Zahra never complained about it, Axell respected his wife by ensuring he didn't smell of smoke when near her."Okay, darling," Zahra replied softly. She was puzzled by her thoughts, even though Axell hadn't shown any unusual behavior since he got home."Astaghfirullah," Zahra muttered, shaking her head, and immediately started preparing a change of clothes for her husband.Axell came out of the bathroom wrapped only in a towel, his face looking refreshed. He quickly took the clothes Zahra had laid out for him."What's the matter? Why are you staring at me like that? Handsome? Sexy?" Axell teased Zahra, who was staring at him without blinking."Oh, come on, darling. My husband is always handsome," Zahra replied with a smile.---Axell, Zahra, and Rikel were ready to head to a mall to let Rikel play to his
"Dad, Mom, what are you looking at?" asked a beautiful woman who looked like a model."That's your brother," said her father, pointing at Axell and Zahra who were eating.The woman immediately turned and gaped when she saw Axell in person."Let's go over there, Dad," she suggested."No," her father replied.At the same time, Fred and his wife and child were also enjoying dinner at the same restaurant as Axell and Zahra."Who's the man next to him, Dad?" asked Alin, Fred's daughter."That's his bodyguard," Fred replied, without taking his eyes off Axell."Wow, so low-profile, even eating at the same table with his bodyguard," admired the child."Yes, his foster mother is really good and has raised him well. If he was raised by Celline, he wouldn't be like that," said Fred."Just like you," murmured his wife."Is that his child?" asked their daughter, curious."That's the child Axell took from the orphanage and is raising with Mattew's grandson," Fred replied.Fred's youngest daughter,