Thor was in the kitchen peeling potatoes in preparation for the family’s supper when he heard commotion coming from the living room, just as he wondered what could be happening he heard a loud Pop Sound that startled him. He hurriedly dropped the peeler and half peeled potatoe before rushing out of the kitchen towards the noise in fear that something bad was happening and someone had been hurt.
He got to the living room and stopped in surprise as he saw that Garnet was back and everyone was assembled in the room and seemed to be in very high spirits. Bill was holding an opened bottle of champagne which he was pouring into the glasses that they all held, even Greg had made a rare appearance and stood holding a glass.“Did something happen?” Thor asked in confusion looking from face to face for answers.“I secured the Skye account and I have now been promoted to senior partner at the firm.” Garnet squealed gleefully and jumped up and down like a little kid, her excitement making her eyes glitter.A wide smile broke out on Thor’s face, if anyone deserved the promotion it was Garnet. She worked hard and ceaselessly for it, of course she was going to get it. He unconsciously walked to her and reached out for a congratulatory hug but her smiled turned to an irritated frown and he was pushed away making him stumble into Bill who pushed him and he fell to the ground with an oof as the air rushed out of him.“What were you trying to do?” Garnet scowled and looked down at his unhappy countenance.“I.. I only wanted to congratulate you because I am so happy with your win.” He said hesitantly.“I will never understand why you tolerate this smelly bum around you, you are a beautiful successful woman who does not need a faceless nobody to weigh you down. What you need right now is a man like me who can only help you go higher just like I helped you secure the Skye contract.” Bill declared pompously, looking puffed up and confident.He had not really been able to talk to the CEO of Sky company and he had been worried that Garnet would loose the contract and look at him negatively but thankfully she had won it and now all her gratitude was for his supposed help and now he could swoop in and claim her for himself.He was tired of wondering what it was that made Garnet marry Thor, sure he might be the better looking of the two of them but who really cared about things like that when there were more important things to be considered such as family pedigree and wealth and Bill had those two things in excess, he believed that he was a great catch and the best man for Garnet.“I agree with Bill..” Beth said taking a sip of bubbly and staring deviously at Thor.“It is important that you are strategic with your growth, when you are invited to luncheons and dinners will you take this riff raft who does not have anything to his name? Divorce him now before he tries to take half of your wealth, that is the only thing gold diggers like him know how to do well.” She sneered spitefully.She felt that this was the best time to make sure that she was able to get rid of the death weight and have Bill as a son in-law, she had been trying to convince Garnet right from the beginning. A beautiful woman like her could have any wealthy man she wanted, so what if Thor was handsome? Poor men like him deserved to be just the side pieces and nothing more.“Garnet and I will not get a divorce despite all of your meddling in our business we are man and wife.” Thor retorted angrily seeing what Beth and Bill were plotting.He was sick of the insults, sick of being treated like garbage by his wife and her family. He knew that they wanted Bill to marry her because they believed that it would make their lives better.It did not matter to Thor that their marriage had never been consummated, they were man and wife on paper only and even though she would sometimes take out her frustrations on him physically nevertheless he had taken a vow and he intended on keeping it.*Wham!!*He felt a blinding blow from the back of his head and was dazed for a moment but before he could react he felt legs kicking him and he curled up himself into a ball in order to protect his face and stomach from getting damaged by their kicks.“Stop!” Garnet’s voice rang out and the assault on Thor halted.He slowly raised his head surprised that Garnet was interceding on his behalf, she had never done that before. Was she truly warming up to him? Did she really change towards him.“I think that is enough.” She said shocking everyone before taking a sip from her glass and walking to where Thor lay bent and leaned close to him and with her finger under his jaw tilted his head up so that she could see him better.Her eyes enchanting brown eyes stared into his green ones for a long moment and she spoke softly.“Everyone has their purpose, their uses. Yours was to aid me in stabilizing my image to the company, I needed a husband who would make me look more responsible but also a husband who would not be able to be in my way with his demands and needs. You were perfect for that but now that I have attained the status I want I no longer need you.”“If you continue to beat him up then i would have to delay going to court to seek the divorce until after his wounds are sore.” She said loudly after she stood up and her family rushed to her and hugged her while cheering as Thor lay on the ground dazed out of his mind.When the shock of the bombshell that Garnet dropped wore off he got up and started heading towards the door.“Where are you going? The kitchen is not that way.” Stan mocked.“Where are you going? Who is going to cook supper?” Beth demanded when he kept walking towards the door out of the house.“Let him go Mrs Woods, we will eat at the most magnificent restaurant tonight to celebrate Garnet’s victory. My treat.” Bill said generously.Garnet ran after Thor and stood at the doorway where she yelled at him.“You better be at the courthouse by 1’O clock tomorrow to sign the papers, if you come late you will be fined heavily and I am sure that you don’t want that because if you don’t pay then you will be thrown into jail.” She said then went back in and slammed the door shut while Thor kept walking towards the gate.He pulled out his outdated and rickety phone and dialed a number.“Come and get me immediately, I am at their house.” He said and ended the call.When he exited the house he walked down the road then a fleet of the most expensive and exotic cars came to a stop in front of him and from the passenger’s side of the last car which was a navy blue Bentley Flying Spur hastily came out a man in a black pinstriped suit who went around to hold open the back seat door and bowed slightly when Thor got In before closing the door and going back round to the passenger’s seat and getting in.The cars took off and Thor reclined against the plush leather seat and closed his eyes when a voice interrupted his quiet thoughts.“Your grandfather is going to be so happy to have you back young master. I am also happy that you are back.” He said happily.“It is good to be back Edward but everything has only just began.” Thor said without opening his eyes.He was thinking about the agonizing three years he had spent with his in-laws been antagonized and bullied all because he was the unfortunate man who could marry their daughter while being a nobody.Thanks to the time he had spent there he had been able to discover a lot of things which would aid him in getting what he desired most in the world, Revenge. And the Woods would be the tools he would use to acquire it even though he had a long way to go first.Early the next morning Thor woke up in the house he had grown up in and went into the garden and stood at the open lattice gate staring at the old man who stood at the artificial pond throwing fish food at the koi fish that flocked around fighting for the food and speaking affectionately to them.He smiled and took a couple of steps in and when he stepped on a dried leaf that had fallen to the ground it made a crunch sound alerting the old man to his presence and he slowly turned and squinted at the figure in the distance wondering who it was and when Thor came close the old man’s eyes widened and tears filled them as he held his arms out wide.Thor walked into the old man’s arms and held him close, careful not to squeeze too tightly before pulling back and staring at the beloved wrinkled face which radiated with happiness. They hugged once before separating and walking to the table which was at the base of a Cherry tree.Shortly after they had sat down a maid came with a tray with te
Garnet sat quietly the entire ride back to the office and she kept staring contemplatively out of the window while Bill constantly glanced at her in concern.He had been surprised to see her looking sober when she got out of the courthouse, it was a sharp contrast from what he had expected because how was she more subdued coming out than when she first went in and he had been afraid that the lawyer had been unable to secure the divorce for her but she told him that she had signed the papers.That left him in a state of confusion, had that not been what she wanted in the first place? What had happened in there to make her be this way? When he tried to probe she told him that she was simply tired and wanted to go back to her office which disappointed him.He had hoped that he could convince her to go to a celebratory lunch after signing the papers and then he would slowly begin the process of courting her and making her become his woman. But she was obviously not in the mood to celebra
“Bill!” Beth exclaimed excitedly. If Bill was here then any problems that they had would be resolved, he was the answer to their problems. “I can pay the mortgage. Tell me, how much is it?” Bill asked Edward Stone lazily and the man straightened up stiffly. “My boss has been lenient for a long time and no longer has any use for the money, he now wants to use the property as his own home.” Bill’s brow furrowed in irritation, he was trying to score points with Garnet and her family and this man who was nothing but a stooge was trying to get in his way and ruin his plans. “Who is this boss of yours? Is he any better than Bill Pearle? Don’t you know who he is?” Beth sneered. Now that Bill was backing them she was sure that they would not be oppressed by this man. Her formerly docile face had faded and now she looked at Edward Stone with superiority. “I am sure that I can reach an agreement with your boss, i could offer him a couple of my properties in place of this one. Who is thi
The next day the Woods family had packed up all of their possessions and as a packing crew took the boxes and loaded them in the vehicle, a different crew of construction workers with hard hats and a truck complete with a wrecking ball moved into the compound and headed towards the house. As they left, they turned and watched as the building was demolished and Beth could not hold back her bitter tears. “Look at my beautiful home.” She wailed as she saw the house she had so treasured fall into rubble. “Don’t worry, soon you are going to have a bigger and better home than this, I promise.” Bill boasted and Beth sniffled as she nodded, sure that soon she would be the envy of everyone who was probably laughing at her misfortune currently. “Come on mom, we have to leave now.” Garnet said before leading her mother to the car and they drove off. She hated the fact that she would have to live off Bill’s charity, it was a very dangerous thing to do because he could demand payment in form
Garnet’s foray into the unemployment market was shocking and unexpected. She had been a fast rising star at her job and had gotten quite a number of offers from other companies so she had felt that getting a new job with her resume would be a piece of cake. Unfortunately for her, the reverse was the case. It seemed that no one wanted to give her a chance any longer, when she got to their offices she was turned away and told that there were no vacancies. It all seemed very sinister and she could sense that something was at play. Why would companies who had offered her more competitive offers than the one she had at her job just in order to poach her from her company suddenly turn her away and some even refused to let her into the building in the first place. Feeling frustrated and beginning to wonder if she was carrying a stink, Garnet broke down at the last office when she was turned down without an explanation. As she cried, Nola the HR officer who was an older woman that had admi
“What kind of despicable act is that?!” She explained angrily and shot out the chair. “I cannot believe that you are a cad who would force me to accept you in my bed against my will, Well absolutely not!” Her voice filled with outrage still did not hide the fear that crept in.Thor remained calm and reclined in his seat and studied her face lazily while Garnet forced herself to hold his stare.“I am certain that you and your family would be able to give classes on how to be despicable…” Thor eyed her and a pink blush of embarrassment rose up her neck. Moreover, I am a gentleman and i would never force a woman, I have no need to do that.” he said and Garnet scoffed while he grinned at her prickly reaction.She stared at him and had to silently agree with him, even without the appeal of the money and nice clothes and expensive accessories he had always been an attractive man. An image of him shirtless rose unbidden to her mind and she had to clamp down on it as she blushed.“I do not ag
Within the course of the next couple of weeks Garnet had gone about seeking a new job at the companies which had show interest in poaching her from her previous job and she discovered to her shock that they did not want to have anything to do with her anymore. From there she went on to companies that were not her ideal as she was overqualified to work in those places but at least she would be able to earn some money and she found to her shock that she was turned away from every single place she tried at despite her glowing CV. At a point she started to consider working as a waitress but could not get herself to do it, it was too degrading and would not pay enough money.To their humiliation her family had been forced to move out of the house and they were now staying at a roach motel thanks to the meager savings that Garnet had left in her account, money which they knew they had to stretch and which was quickly running out because even though the four rooms they had gotten were dirt
“Your family cannot move in, at least not right now.” He said and leaned back in his chair watching the anger on Garnet’s face switch to confusion.“What do you mean? Do you have more outrageous demands you want me to comply with?” She asked, swallowing her fear.“Your family’s home which has fallen into shambles from the constant state of disrepair is currently not fitting for a man of my status to inhabit, I am going to need to have renovations done first.” Thor said with a smirk.He was right about the house, it had looked the same for years and it honestly needed some work done. Garnet had thought that with her promotion she would be able to have some renovations done to the house and restore it to its former glory.“Fine.” She said with gritted teeth. “I guess you will just have to give me a budget to work with and I can get to work immediately.” Thor laughed uproariously and shook his head while Garnet frowned. “You are mistaken to think that I would trust you on such an import
In a cafe downtown far far away from all the pretty and pricey cafes that she normally frequented, Andrea sat waiting patiently at a table with its chipped edges in a corner of the room where she could see whoever came into the cafe but she was not seen even though her dark sunglasses did not make her look inconspicuous because it was a little weird to see someone wearing glasses indoors. Soon her phone rang and she looked at the phone and looked outside and saw Bill looking around in confusion then she picked up the phone.“You are in front of the right cafe, just come inside, I am sitting on the last table at the other end of the window.” She directed.Bill came in and looked in the direction she had described and he sat opposite her then looked around at the questionable environment while Andrea beckoned to the waitress.“What would you like?” She asked when she came before them and pulled out a notebook from her yellowed apron.“I am fine.” Bill said in disgust when he looked at
Thor, still grappling with the aftermath of their fight and the lingering sting of Garnet’s words, approached the topic of visit with trepidation. Garnet, a porcelain teacup poised halfway to her lips eyed him knowing that he wanted to say something to her. Thor's hesitant but still as proud as ever cleared his throat , "Hey, so…there's something I need to tell you," had shattered the morning's fragile peace."Okay. What is it?" she asked, her voice guarded and obviously still annoyed with him. His news, she sensed, wouldn't be sunshine and rainbows.Thor fidgeted, running a hand through his already tousled hair. "My grandfather…he invited us to visit him."Garnet frowned. The mention of Thor's family always seemed to bring a cloud over his usually contained personality. She on the other hand did not care, besides it was going to happen anyway.“Good.” she said simply, “when do we leave?”.He snorted, a humorless sound. "Good?” He said. He was surprised as she asked no questions at al
Thor adjusted his cufflinks, the glint of platinum catching the strobe lights like scattered diamonds. A journalist was coming to do an interview for the segment the magazine was doing on him. The newest and youngest billionaire in the city. The air thrummed with an energy that made him feel uneasy but he masked it perfectly with his easy smile, he felt a flicker of unease but kept it down knowing that the reporter would probably smell it like a shark smell it blood in water. He might hate dressing up and acting like a puppet in front of all these people but he reminded himself that it was just temporary and soon he would no longer need to dance to their tune.Andrea’s father had insisted that a spread needed to be done to celebrate his success with the contract he had won and done justice to. It was ridiculous that just a year ago no one even knew of him and now, he was the golden boy, the architect of a billion-dollar deal that had saved not just his company after that Virus attack
Thor adjusted his cufflinks, the glint of platinum catching the strobe lights like scattered diamonds. A journalist was coming to do an interview for the segment the magazine was doing on him. The newest and youngest billionaire in the city. The air thrummed with an anxiousness that he masked perfectly with his easy smile, he felt a flicker of unease but kept it down knowing that the reporter would probably smell it like a shark smell it blood in water. He might hate dressing up and acting like a puppet in front of all these people but he reminded himself that it was just temporary and soon he would no longer need to dance to their tune.Andrea’s father had insisted that a spread needed to be done to celebrate his success with the contract he had won and done justice to. It was ridiculous that just a year ago no one even knew of him and now, he was the golden boy, the architect of a billion-dollar deal that had saved not just his company after that Virus attack, but revitalized the c
Thor adjusted his cufflinks, the glint of platinum catching the strobe lights like scattered diamonds. A journalist was coming to do an interview for the segment the magazine was doing on him. The newest and youngest billionaire in the city. The air thrummed with an anxiousness that he masked perfectly with his easy smile, he felt a flicker of unease but kept it down knowing that the reporter would probably smell it like a shark smell it blood in water. He might hate dressing up and acting like a puppet in front of all these people but he reminded himself that it was just temporary and soon he would no longer need to dance to their tune.Andrea’s father had insisted that a spread needed to be done to celebrate his success with the contract he had won and done justice to. It was ridiculous that just a year ago no one even knew of him and now, he was the golden boy, the architect of a billion-dollar deal that had saved not just his company after that Virus attack, but revitalized the c
The air in the living room felt thick with unspoken words, the silence a suffocating blanket after the bombshell on the television she had just switched off. The news crashed into her like a heavy wave and slammed Garnet into the cold, hard reality of her new life. Thor, her husband of a whole three years, had not only accepted her proposal for separation with the emotional depth of a handshake goodbye, but he was already parading Andrea Whitlock, her supposed "friend," as his new girlfriend all over media merely two weeks after. They were the sweethearts of the media and she could not even open any social media apps without being confronted by the smug glow of happiness on their faces in every picture, the sickeningly adoring captions, they had even been given a relationship name, “AnTh” how ridiculously juvenile. All of it felt like Thor was spitting on the ashes of their marriage while laughing and it hurt.“It couple," the headlines crowed. "Thor Smith rebounds with stunning Bill
Thor adjusted his cufflinks, the glint of platinum catching the strobe lights like scattered diamonds. A journalist was coming to do an interview for the segment the magazine was doing on him. The newest and youngest billionaire in the city. The air thrummed with an energy that made him feel uneasy but he masked it perfectly with his easy smile, he felt a flicker of unease but kept it down knowing that the reporter would probably smell it like a shark smell it blood in water. He might hate dressing up and acting like a puppet in front of all these people but he reminded himself that it was just temporary and soon he would no longer need to dance to their tune.Andrea’s father had insisted that a spread needed to be done to celebrate his success with the contract he had won and done justice to. It was ridiculous that just a year ago no one even knew of him and now, he was the golden boy, the architect of a billion-dollar deal that had saved not just his company after that Virus attack,
The early morning sun, a pale ghost against the dew-kissed windows, found Garnet still in bed, a half-finished mug of chamomile tea sat untouched on the bed stand beside her. Sleep, that elusive butterfly, had finally fluttered in after several hours of tossing around restlessly in bed. Atlas’s exit last night had left behind a gnawing anxiety that had her twisting the sheets into tight knots and being unable to sleep. Today, the silence in their home felt more pronounced, the air thick with an unspoken question: what was coming after, would he grant her wishes?A sharp rap at her door startled her into wakefulness, shattering the fragile peace she had been enjoying. She sat up, heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird. Who would be knocking on her door so early in the morning? Crystal usually let her sleep in for as long as she wanted and would not come up unless summoned. Was Thor back with some scary pronouncement? She climbed out of the bed and padded to the door and
“Well well well, if it isn’t Garnet.” Andrea said jovially and leaned forward to kiss the sides of Garnet’s cheeks while Garnet stood stiffly and stared at Thor who looked back at her nonchalantly.“What are you both doing here?” Andrea asked.“The same thing as you I expect.” Garnet answered churlishly. “Celebrating freedom.” “What a surprise , I did not expect to see you here."Bill," Mr. Smith's voice, a practiced charm, cut through the music. "Garnet. What a surprise." His smile was polished, devoid of the cracks their divorce had etched.Garnet's smile was like ice cracking. "And I did not expect to find you celebrating, Richard," she replied, her voice laced with venom. "Though I suppose drowning your sorrows in champagne is one way to deal with a failed marriage."A humorless chuckle escaped Thor. "Hardly a failure, my dear. Merely a...reconfiguration." He gestured towards Andrea. "I’m sure you know Andrea. She has graciously offered to help me with the transition."Andrea’s fe