----- THREE YEARS AGO---- “Happy birthday, Elijah,” the man said with an affectionate smile at Elijah standing outside of the birthday hall. Elijah’s face brightened up the moment he saw the man and went ahead to wrap the man in his embrace. “I never thought you’d come,” Elijah whispered.Tears welled up in the man’s eyes but he pushed it back, covering it up with another smile, “Why won’t I come, Elijah. Afterall you’re my son.” “I have missed you dad. Can you not go again?” The man sat Elijah down by the pavement of the mansion’s doorstep. He placed his right hand around Elijah’s neck peering directly into his eyes, “Elijah, today is your 25th birthday and you have to be happy. It does not matter whether I am here or not, all that matters is that you live a good life.” The man’s shaky voice was not missed by Elijah. “Are you going somewhere again?” Elijah asked, noticing how guilt skittered across his father’s face. His father responded with a nod and Elijah ref
Elijah’s face froze at Daniel’s suggestion. Although Daniel said it in a playful manner, Elijah was sure Daniel meant everything he said.His three years was up, Haylee knew she had to divorce him sooner, given to what she told her grandmother and her cousins. Haylee cleared her throat and went for the dining table, without giving ear to Daniel’s word. She settled for breakfast trying to avoid whatever drama Daniel was about to dig out. “Seems like your wife does not care about your birthday,” Daniel said to Elijah, with a taunting smile on his face. His lips curled slightly upward, as he stuck out his tongues and licked his lips. Elijah continued with his chores, fed up of the banality of Daniel’s taunts, however, he knew the divorce was not a mere taunt, it was real. Probably his time was up in the Greene mansion. He returned to the kitchen, tarried a while and scurried up to his room. he put a call through to Bishop Leo, making inquiries of who it was that tried to kil
Haylee knew her words would hurt Elijah however it would hurt her more if she decided to keep it from him. She heaved a sigh of relief finally letting it off her chest and keeping him in the dark. Elijah’s eyes bore a heavy and downcast aura, with moisture glistening around the corners of his eyes. Even though he tried to hold back his pain, deep down within him, it felt as if his heart ran out of blood, shrinking to death.Haylee noticed his gloomy face, nevertheless, she ignored it and walked out. It was for the better. she consoled herself. Elijah’s birthday took a turn for the worse keeping in mind that his time with Haylee would elapse soon enough, with an increasing knowledge of the fact that he might never be able to tell her who he is if she offered him a divorce paper soon enough. It was the worst that could happen, he prepared for the worst. “Hope you’ve made the situation of things clear to him,” Daniel said as Haylee descended from the stairs. “What I
Elijah stared toward the long undulating ocean waves from the top of the cliff, the view of which he never thought he would see. It flooded his head with memories of when he had the liberty to come to this beach with his father and his brother. It was three miles outside of the city.Rowan groaned in pain as he regained consciousness after Elijah knocked him out in his car. He squinted his eyes through the sunrays reflecting directly at him, then caught the figure of Elijah standing in front of him. “Let us get back to where we were,” Elijah said, lowering to Rowan’s eye level. He felt reluctant to hit Rowan that hard to make his nose bleed, but his unchanneled rage denied him the pleasure to calm his nerves. “I don’t know who they are… they only told me to inform them about your movements,” Rowan muttered, shifting backward on his butt.Fear skittered all over his face, watching Elijah glare at him. Elijah spat to the floor, and gritted his teeth, “I don’t want to hurt
Haylee felt a thud in her heart with the request of her grandmother, reminiscing over it again and again. When will you divorce him? I need time, grandmother. I can’t just divorce him like that. There is no time. I am sick of having a fool for a grandson-in-law. His presence in my mansion is becoming irritating. You never liked him. Grandfather brought him in, but you have always despised from the very day grandfather made him a member of our family. Haylee, don’t make grandmother repeat herself. When will you divorce him? Soon. She said with a contemptible gaze at Daniel, after taking a momentary pause. I will leave him soon.She was not ready to let go of Elijah, but the pressure from her grandmother and the rest of her family members was too unbearable for her. Every morning, just like this, she stared at Elijah, realizing she would never see him again. It had to be soon, very soon. Haylee rolled on her bed to the other side, noticing Elijah had opened his e
Scott sauntered toward Haylee’s makeup stand, with his back hunched and his hand behind him. “Well, your mother asked me to come meet you… probably you seem to be taking too much time than expected.” He picked up a few makeup kits: powder, eyeliners, and lipsticks, observing them keenly. His eyebrows furrowed into a frown which dissipated into a false smile, seeing another brand name on the products. “You are not a fan of Beaut, I presume,” he said beneath his breath, but still within Haylee’s earshot. His family owned the cosmetic group Beaut Cosmetics, which was not alien to Haylee. Scott put his rage under siege seeing their rival company’s product in the room of his supposed wife-to-be. Haylee remained at the door, unfazed by whatever feeling Scott may have about her, “As you can see, I am almost done, so, if you don’t mind, will you please leave my room?” she nudged her head toward the door. Scott smiled at Haylee’s uncouth gesture toward him, he turned to the mirror
“Haylee is not ready to be with me,” Scott said, and sighed deceptively, “and I respect her decision. I believe she knows what is best for her and her family, so I will let her be.”Mrs. Greene’s eyes flared, glaring at Haylee with the side of her eye. Her eyes were fixed on Scott, as she tried to contemplate the things he said. “Scott, you are already a family to us,” she responded, “I assure you of your desires. Haylee knows what is best for her, and what is best for her is you. What is best for her is having you as her husband, and I will make sure of it very soon.” Haylee stuck her fork into the pancake before her, disgusted at her grandmother’s words. “If you were so desperate, why don’t you get married to him?” she said to herself. She raised her chin and gulped a cupful of saliva, she tapped her fingers on the dining table disorderly. “Thank you, grandmother,” Scott said, adjusting his suit, and cleared his throat, “I have to leave now. I will inform my parent
“Who are you? Put Leo on the phone for me, please,” Elijah said, as he held the phone closer to his ear.The feminine voice over the phone sounded calm and unfazed by Elijah’s distressed voice. “Aree you a relative of the owner of this phone?” the woman questioned, rather than telling what the emergency was. “He is my fucking friend!” Elijah yelled but still kept his voice beneath the party frivolities that enveloped the background. “Where the hell is he and what is his phone doing with you?”Suspicions shadowed both ends of the call. While Elijah thought of what could have happened to Bishop Leo, given the nature of who Bishop Leo was. He never allowed his phone to depart from him for more than a minute. The lady on the other end raised a brow about Elijah’s use of language and what could bring a man with a reputable action like Bishop Leo and an unruly guy like Elijah. “Hello, what happened to him?” Elijah broke the short silence that ensued with both party.The lady clear