THE GRAND PATRIARCH IS BACK

Chp 1 - Leaving Ratsburgh Prison

“Three years! Three years of my youth wasted behind bars” Jason Monroe thought in a spurt of anger as he heard the heavily enforced gate of Ratsburgh prison clanked shut. Behind him.

His momentary anger dissipated as happiness filled him because he was finally on the other side of that gate. The side of freedom. No more regulated time for everything. Time to sleep. To eat. To talk and to keep mute. No one was going to tell him what to do anymore.

The thought that his beautiful Sonia would be here any moment buoyed his spirit even further. Though he had dreamed many times of her face being the first thing he would see after coming out of that detested gate but he knew she would be here soon.

It had been such a long time. He understood her. He knew the reason why her visits had stopped. It was because she couldn’t bear seeing him behind bars without feeling guilty. Silly girl, she had always blamed herself for being the cause of his arrest. Coupled with the fact that Sonia who was in her final year in school when he got arrested was helping him to run his business. After all, Sonia told her himself how she had been working hard to keep his company afloat.

What an understanding girlfriend he had. Jason knew how happy his love would be to see him released after their long separation. Everything would be fine after all. He would pick up the reins of his well-managed company back and with his girl beside him, the three wasted years would be nothing but history.

Jason raised his head and breathed deeply the fresh air that wasn’t tainted with the rank smell of unwashed bodies and broken dreams that he had learned to get used to.

He heard the sound of an approaching car and he smiled. That must be Sonia. His sweet Sonia knew he would be here to pick him up since he sent her a letter to inform her of his release.

Jason opened his eyes as the car got closer and stopped some distance from him. The smile died on his lips when he saw the person that got down from the familiar convertible.

“Damn! Bro that is no look for your best buddy. To think I raced here and even got pulled over by the cops and all I get is that look? Damn, I am hurt” Silas Rouarke said as he got down from the car with a feigned pout.

Jason laughed as he hugged his best friend “Of course I am happy to see you. You sure look good, buddy” He leaned back from the hug and they did their customary handshake.

Yes, he was happy to see Silas. He was just expecting someone else as well.

“You look… fit,” Silas said as he rubbed his finger on his jaw, his ever-present grin blossoming on his affable face as he gave Jason the once over.

Jason raised his brow with curt laughter. “You mean for someone who had been behind bars for years?”

“Well…yeah. That too. It’s good to have you back, bro”

“Yeah,” Jason said feelingly “It sure feels good to be out here knowing I won’t be sleeping in there tonight,” he said with a tilt of his head towards the prison.

Silas gave a mock shudder “Yeah, you are a champion for sticking out that long. I am sure I would have gone crazy” he thumped Jason on his shoulder affectionately. “Come on, let’s go get something in you that is not…” he looked at Jason as he collected the duffel bag that held all of his possessions in prison “Whatever do they give you guys in there anyway?”

“Trust me, you don’t want to know,” Jason said with forced laughter as he looked around again. No sign of Sonia.

“Hey, man. Have you seen my girl today?” he asked flippantly with his hands on the car handle. He was unable to hide his anxiety even though he wanted to believe that she was delayed.

He caught the look on Silas’s face before the latter looked away and dropped his bag in the back seat “Err, no. not at all. She… yes, I am sure she will call you”

Jason frowned at Silas’ chirpy tone. The dude had never been able to keep secrets from him.

“Let’s go get…”

“Is there something you are not telling me?” Jason asked.

Silas gave him an innocent look “What? C’mon, what do you mean by that?” then he grinned again “If there is something I am not telling you; it is that there is this new place…”

“Where is Sonia, Sy?” Jason asked urgently. He was sure now that something was not right.

“She must be on her way here. Or she is waiting for you at… her place. Yes, that is it. So let’s go. Hop in, man”

Jason, who had stepped one foot in the car before, stepped down and faced Silas fully. He gave his friend a firm look that showed his determination.

After holding his gaze for a few seconds “Damn it!” Silas exclaimed in frustration as he ran his hand through his mussed hair “I should have known that would be the first thing you would ask. Couldn’t you have gotten home first?”

Jason raised his brow again without saying anything even as dread filled his system. No, she was probably late. His Sonia would be here anytime soon and they would all laugh over this. He assured himself even as the look on his friend’s face told him otherwise.

“She wouldn’t be coming, Jay,” Silas said as anger shone in his eyes.

“Why? Is she sick?” Could it be that she had fallen sick from trying to help...

Silas’ derisive laughter cut off his worrying thoughts “Sick, my ass! I wish. That bitch is getting married. To fucking Fitzgerald!”

The shock he got from his friend’s first statement was nothing compared to what he felt from the second.

Jason planted his hands on the car as he asked, he might be wrong after all “Which Fitzgerald?”

The look on Silas’ face said it all even before his friend shouted “Fucking asshole Matteo. Yes, that is whom your dear girl is walking down the aisle with today!”

Bombshells are of different varieties and Jason had never really grasped the idea of that term until that moment. He felt like he could die. No, Sonia would never do that to him. Even if she was marrying anyone, it wouldn’t be Matteo Fitzgerald. Not the bastard who sent him behind bars because he was defending his girlfriend.

Jason remembered the first time he heard that name. It was when the pompous bastard had almost tucked a wad of hundred dollar bills in Sonia’s cleavage.

Jason had just won his first contract with a major league company then. His tech company which he started right after college was finally paying off. Though they have been getting recognition in the industry; that was the first time an international company would contract Jason and his team to work on a syncing software. Jason had taken Sonia out that day for shopping after which they decided to eat at a fancy restaurant that she recommended.

Jason excused himself to use the restroom and he was on his way back when he heard the hateful voice.

“Don’t be coy, sweetheart. Just have this first and give me your number. I can promise you that there is more where that came from. Anything that the person who brought you here promised, I can give you tenfold. Just let me put this here for…”

Well, his hands that were reaching towards Sonia’s bosom never connected as Jason’s fist connected with his ear. The man was knocked against the nearest chair as the wad of cash flew towards Sonia. She jumped up wringing her hand in distress.

“Oh my God. Jason, that man had been pestering me!”

With his murderous glare on the man who turned to him with “Who the hell is that?”  Jason protectively shifted her behind him and moved towards the man again.

Before he could jerk him up as intended though; two hefty men in black held him back and the man sneered at him while working the muscles of his boxed ear. “You are in big trouble, buddy,” he said with a cruel smile.

Jason had realized just how much trouble he was in when less than forty-eight hours he was already in jail. When accusations of assault and larceny had been read to his ears, Jason had been amazed, not until he was handed a term of irreversible three years in jail term had he realized his folly.

The bastard had even come to the prison to gloat. Nobody crossed a Fitzgerald and go scot-free was the message.

To think that Sonia had ended up with such a man infuriated Jason more than anything else.

No, Sonia had a lot of explaining to do and she was going to do it now!