“You bloody thief! You stole my money when I said I wasn’t going to give you any.” Raymond’s father roared.
Roselle’s face was different. She was red with embarrassment and her mouth dropped open. She walked up to her husband and threw her hands across his face, her five fingers leaving imprints on his face. rubbed it and endured the pain. That was something he was used to.
“You son of a bitch,” she cried, “how dare you humiliate me in this way? After everything I’d done for you, you chose to steal from my father.” Before he could recover from what she had said, another slap came running in, harder and hotter than the rest. “I want a divorce.”
Tears clouded his eyes. “You can’t do this, Roselle. After everything we’ve been through? I promise you that I didn’t steal the money.”
“Finally, my daughter’s senses have been restored. Divorce him I will support you with a lawyer and finances.” Roselle father smiled.
Roselle turned to Raymond. “It’s not about the money. I hate you, I want you out of my life. You are nothing but a liability.” She turned away, got in her car, and drove away.
Mr. Devon turned to Raymond after Roselle left. “Raymond, where is my money?”
“I swear I am not with your money.”
He came around and searched Raymond’s pockets, checking everywhere his hands could lay on. He dipped his hands but couldn’t find anything. He tried again but nothing. “Where the fuck did you hide the money?”
“I told you, I don’t have your money with me. I can be anything but a thief. I can be a poor, unfulfilled, unsuccessful man but I’ll never steal from anyone. It’s sad to think that my wife doesn’t believe me.” his voice was on the verge of breaking, but he held still.
“This is what a poor man would always say to cover his tracks. We all know your schemes.”
He was about to strike him a blow when a small child ran to the scene. On his hand held a wad of cash. “Papa,” he said, “I found this money on the couch in the sitting room. I don’t know if it’s the money you’re looking for before, but it was seen on your favorite couch.”
“Oh, my son, you can keep the money.” He gave Raymond a look and walked out.
When he got home, he saw Roselle seated on a couch. “Roselle, please tell me you didn’t mean what you said back there.”
“You heard me. I want a divorce. I know you didn’t take the money, but I no longer want to be with you. Prepare my bath.”
“Will you reconsider the divorce if I do that?” Raymond asked.
“Maybe.”
.
He turned on the water in the tub and added the amount of soap she liked using in the bath. When he was done, he quietly left the bathroom to alert her that it was ready.
A few steps out of the bathroom, you called softly, “Roselle, the bath—“
He stopped when he heard her in a conversation with someone. He didn’t want to listen as it wasn’t his business, but he wanted to know more about the woman he called his wife.
“I know, I know, my love,” she said to the caller on the phone. Being distant, he couldn’t hear the caller’s voice. Just hers.
“Raymond? He’s so dumb, how will he find out? And I’ve warned him to stay out of my business, so I know he won’t be snooping in. Plus, you know I have an upper hand so he can’t even say a word here.”
He tried to gasp but covered his mouth immediately.
“You missed me? When do we meet?”
“Okay. Where?”
“Yes, yes. Six, yes? I’ll do that.” She laughed into the phone, twisting her curly, blonde hair.
His heart beat hard. What he feared was actually coming true. His wife was cheating on him; she had been cheating on him. But what he didn’t know was who the person was.
He needed to find out.
“Raymond!” Roselle yelled.
He ran back to the bathroom, pretending that he was still preparing the bath. “Yes, Roselle.”
“Are you done?” she called.
‘Yes. Almost. You can come now.” He made a clattering water noise.
She stood up from the couch and undressed herself. He could see her naked, but he didn’t dare touch her. How he longed to hold those breasts he once suckled and grabbed onto, the hips he once rocked. His heart ached, but he couldn’t do anything. According to her, she had the upper hand.
She sank herself inside the tub and he watched her. He knew where she was going and he knew one thing: that he would be right behind her.
She got into her car and drove off and he followed her tail.
He saw her walk into the bar so he followed. He watched as she kissed a man and took a seat beside him. His heart humped. Anger stirred inside of him. He got up and walked down to Roselle and whoever the guy was. He had to. They were both married. He walked up to the guy and shoved him, making them both separate. It was…
“Raymond, what the fuck are you doing?”
His eyebrows knitted. “Pete, what are you doing with my wife? Pete! I never expected my wife’s partner to be you.” With anger, he threw him a punch in the face and his mouth bled.
Roselle took his hands away from Pete. “Raymond, how dare you barge into our personal lives and dictate what happens to us?”
That time, it was his turn to wag your finger. “Roselle, we are married. Why are you doing this?”
She snorted. “Well, I clearly asked for a divorce.”
“You said you’ll think about it,” Raymond retorted.
“Well, I did, and I don’t want to be married to you any longer.”
“Why?”
“Do you provide for her? Do you give her gifts? What exactly do you do for the person you call your wife? What?” Pete jumped in.
Roselle nodded. “Your friend is better than you, yes. You’re just an errand boy. Do you think what we had is called marriage?”
“We can always work it out, my love. We can.” He, too, was not assured of what he was saying, but he had a fragment of hope that something good may happen.
“Shut up, Raymond. I lent you money to get your wife gifts but you ended it up in a casino.” Pete smirked at the end of his statement, his bloodied lips forming a coy smile.
Raymond lost control and the next place he saw his hand was on his face, punching him again and this time, he retaliated. They fought each other and threw themselves on the floor, breaking bottles wherever their bodies went he felt a surge of pain in his cheek and his abdomen.
Roselle opened her bags and brought out the papers. She flung them in front of Raymond, squeezing her face. “It’s official, Raymond. We are divorced. I’ve signed mine and I want you to sign yours.” Then, she walked out of the bar with Pete in her hands.
Raymond, dejected, walked out of the bar. Getting out, he saw the fleet of cars. Helicopters hovered around the building. Men dressed in black tuxedo and black glasses stepped out and stood tall. One looked around and saw him looking at them. He nodded and walked up to him. His heart escalated and he wondered what problem he had gotten into.
He was a few centimeters away from him and sweat trickled down his armpits. He feared a punch or an arrest, but when he came close to he, he bowed down. The other men followed suit and prostrated like he was a king.
"Master," the man said, "for years, we've been looking everywhere for you. Please, come back home."
Master? Home? Was there a mistake somewhere?
Confusion clouded his face, but the men weren’t budging. Their dark sunshades were joking, and the sun reflected in it.“I hope you are joking, what sort of prank is this? Am I in any sort of trouble?” Raymond asked, confusion making his head throb.“Of course, we can’t joke with you, Master. Your father will kill us.” One of the men said in full respect.“My father?” Raymond asked again. He hadn’t heard someone talk about his father. He couldn’t remember his earlier days. All he could remember was Roselle saving him from a bunch of thugs then asking him for coffee. When Roselle was still Roselle.“Yes, your father,” the man reminded him. “Mr. Kane. He thought you were dead, well until now.”“I was dead? I truly don’t understand anything you say.” People around them took pictures that would later go to the tabloids with the heading “Missing Billionaire’s son, Raymond Kane, finally returns home”.“Please, come into the car with us. We will take you home.”Everything sounded like a joke
“Yes, you heard me. A suite.” Raymond repeated. He knew where she was driving at, but he wanted to give her the benefit of doubt.“I heard you, yes, but I don’t know why you will be booking a suite in this hotel.” The woman gave him a look, weighing his looks and outfit with her eyes.“Why do you think so?” he asked.“Because you do not look the part. It is obvious enough.” She smacked the chewing gum in her mouth, her mouth moving, making her glistening red lips to glow. She looked horrible with a big mole on her chin. Linda, Raymond read off her name tag.“Who hired you to work at the front desk of this company? Your work here is to be nice to customers irrespective of how the person is dressed.” Raymond dipped him hands in his pockets and looked deep into her eyes. They burned with rage.“Who gave you the audacity to work into my workplace to tell me how to do my job?” she stopped typing off her computer and looked at his outfit. “You look like what came out of a thrift store.”“I
Linda was long gone. Raymond paid her a thousand dollars for her “cheap” services and let her go. She thanked him profusely and said I was going to cover a lot for her. Good riddance, but at least, she was good in bed. And she was also without a job.He rolled out of his king-sized bed and slipped into the bathroom. Room service got him the softest, cotton towel he had always used.He got to the roof and waited, thinking of what to do next. He needed to be strategic to know what next to do and how to tackle with the so-called people who slapped him behind his back. He would take care of Roselle in due course. All he needed was to focus on the people who broke his nose and designed his face with bruises.And his so-called best friend, Pete.He searched through his contact and searched for his father’s contact—Mr. Kane. It was still like a dream hat the richest man in the city with the highest connection was his father. He needed to find out what happened to him at the forest, and why.
He had just come up with the right plan. Raymond held the rails of the roof and thought of how he was going to handle things. Everyone deserved second chances and so did Roselle. Maybe, she hadn’t planned on divorcing him and was probably drunk. Pete may have gotten into her head.It was morning, her birthday. He took him bath and tried on one of his old clothes. He had gotten a change of wardrobe so he wasn’t going to activate it, yet. He pulled out a fading pair of tuxedo and threw on his body. He slid his old, cracking phone into his pocket and called a driver.His father sent a Lamborghini to come pick him, but he returned it and requested for a Honda Civic. So, he waited till he saw a blue car pulling up at the driveway.“Mr. Kane,” the man greeted. “Where do you want to go?”“Take me to any jewel shop you know.” Raymond said.From the driver’s face at the rearview mirror, he was stunned at how Raymond dressed regardless of his wealth. “Got a girl?” he asked.“I’m trying to win he
Chapter 8As he walked out of the ceremony, he could feel a rush of pride swelling in his chest. Finally, people knew who he was. This was only the beginning of his rise to fame, and yes the genesis of mental tormenting for Roselle. As he got into the car, he noticed people on the street taking pictures of him. He could barely believe what he was seeing. It didn't take long for the pictures to start circulating online, accompanied by captions like "Missing billionaire's son found!" and "Finally, a clue in the mystery."His ride pulled up to the hotel, and as he stepped out, he was met with the curious stares of people on the street. He could tell they were wondering why a man dressed in what some might call "rags" was walking into such a luxurious hotel. Some of the staff recognized him and gave him a warm smile, while others looked at him with suspicion. None of their stares seemed to bother him as he made his way into the elevator, where he found himself sharing the space with a m
Chapter 9As the car sped through the city streets, the ride was bumpy and the driver expertly weaved through the traffic. Suddenly, the car came to a stop at a traffic jam."Sir, there's a traffic jam," the driver said, looking over his shoulder at Raymond, who was deep in thought. "We might be here for a while."But Raymond didn't respond. He was lost in his own world, replaying the events of the past few weeks in his mind. He couldn't believe that Roselle had actually begged for his attention. It seemed like something out of a dream. The memory of Roselle weeping played over and over in his mind. He had never seen her so broken before. But the memory of her calling him classless was even more painful. "You're more of a shame than a husband to me," she had said. "This ring is like a handcuff to me."And now, she was blaming Pete and her parents for her actions. How could she blame anyone but herself? He knew the truth - that she had made her own choices, and they had led to this mo
Chapter 10The scorching sun was high up inside bathing the pedestrians in its harsh rays. My ride pulled up at the hospital, there I came down. I paid for a bouquet of flowers, that was the least I could do.I headed into the hospital, the cold breeze Washing me.“Am I late? ” I asked the receptionist, a warm smile plastering on my face.“6 minutes late, sir. ” she said, fixing her gaze on the laptop." But, I'll let it slide. ”" Thank you. ” I replied, rushing into the elevator.The elevator door closed, sealing me in its metallic box. I pressed the button to the third floor and the elevator ascended slowly.I stepped out of the elevator, the air was damp with the smell of antiseptics and the cloying odor of the hospital food. Nurses and doctors moved in the hallway, each busy to notice the other.I opened the door, my eyes darted round the corner of the room in search of him. The room was quite a spacious one, silence dreading in. The silence of the room was occasionally punctu
Chapter 11Of course, that was the plan. She was playing right into my trap. " I'll do whatever you wish for. Just spit it out. ” she leaned close, eagerly waiting for me to speak." I don't think you can fulfill my wish.” I replied, rolling my eyeballs." Try me, Raymond. You want money? How many millions? Spit it out, Raymond. ” she said, tears strolling down her cheek. A sly smile played on my lips. I looked into her eyes, my voice barely a whisper.I snapped my fingers and in a few seconds the driver came rushing in with some files.He kept it on the table and excused himself into the car." Sign those, will you? ” I commanded, the venom in my voice making the request look like a threat.“ What are these? ” she asked, pointing at the files. She picked it up and threw a glance at it. Her gaze captured some words, she looked at me and for a moment, she drifted from her sober mode into a puzzled state. Her facial expression said it all. “ You can't do this Raymond. At Least not to m