Chapter 42

42 Olivia’s Trepidation

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Before Marissa went to bed that night, she meditated on her next plan of action. She called Tom and scheduled a meeting with him, to take place the next day. She called her husband and informed him of the latest situation.

“Marissa!” Her husband spoke to her coldly over the phone. I have given Leon and Ariella my blessing to get married. Even if they choose to move their date forward, they still have my blessing.”

“But sweetheart why...” Marissa’s voice was weak, but still, Rex didn’t give her room to talk.

“Weren’t you the one who discovered the same Chloe Robinson you were parading as a future wife of our son, was a cheap night call girl and a drug addict?” Rex quizzed her with an icy cold tone, causing her to bite her lower lips in agonizing pain.

Oh, how she despised that Chloe now. The shameless girl messed up all her plans. Now, every hope of winning Rex over to her side had been shattered.

“Why don’t you come back home and let them enjoy their lives together? Moreover, I need a grandson from Leon before I... You know what, don’t bother me about this issue again.” The line clicked showing Rex had ended the call.

“What was he trying to tell her,” she thought out loud for a moment.

When she couldn’t make sense of what Rex was trying to say, she placed another call to Yvonne. She debriefed Yvonne on the latest development and instructed Yvonne to come down to Amzone city on Saturday.

.....

After all the calls, she tried hard to sleep but couldn’t. Instead, she tossed and thrashed the bed like she was having a wrestling tournament.

“Why had Leon chosen to hurt and shame her this much,” she sob gently. “He didn’t even give her honor to seeing him take his vow. Instead of a grand wedding ceremony, he had this...” She sat up and stared at the picture of the happy couple in her hands.

Indeed, Ariella was a beautiful girl. Maybe Leon actually loved her, she wondered. But...”No! There is something fishy going on between them. No woman in her right senses; who has a handsome, wealthy, and loving young man like Richard, would choose a playboy as a husband. Maybe Ariella was ignorant of the fact that Leon was addicted to different women. Or, could it be that he lured her to bed and she mistakenly got pregnant?”

“I would find out the hidden secret behind this unlawful marriage.” Marissa clenched her fist and stared at the ceiling, with a determined expression. “If Rex would not help me out, then it’s high time I involved Nana Esther.”

...

Very early the next morning, Richard woke up with a throbbing migraine. His mouth was dried and his body was exhausted. He turned to his side and his gaze fell on the naked body of a blonde girl.

“This isn’t Ella!” He frowned and pulled the hair away from the girl’s face to get a better view.

“What?!”

“Susan?!” Richard barked furiously causing her to jump out of the bed, with a dreadful expression.

“Cover that disgusting body of yours!” He tossed the bed sheet to her angrily and quickly searched for his boxers; which he hurriedly wore when he found them.

“What the hell happened in here,” he quizzed in annoyance causing Susan’s face to turn white as a sheet. She glared at him in utter disbelief.

“Are you serious right now?! What happened is that you almost ruptured my womb last night. You were savagely screwing me like I wasn’t a human being.” Her eyes shot dagger at Richard.

“You are such a tramp,” he picked up her clothes and hurled them in her face, which made her stagger backward. “How could you let this happen between us? I was drunk and distressed last night! For goodness sake, I’m madly in love with your best friend!” He roared fiercely at her.

For a split second, Susan was taken aback by the intensity of Richard’s ire.

“How can you be in love with a cheating, lying, backstabbing tar...” She didn’t finish her statement when the pillow landed on her face causing her to fall to the ground.

“Get out! Get lost! Y...you b**ch.” He walked menacingly towards her.

Susan leaped to her feet and quickly grabbed her clothes and handbag. She ran into the bathroom and shut the door.

“You’re crazy! You are f**cking crazy!” She bellowed at the top of her voice and swiftly dressed up. She planted her ears on the bathroom door and listened for any sound. When she didn’t hear anything, she opened the door slightly and took a peek. Thankfully, Richard had left the hotel room.

After securing the hotel room door, she went back to the bathroom and cleaned herself up. Already dressed and seated on the bed, she brought out a small camera from her handbag.

She smiled devilishly at a recorded video of the previous night’s wild sex encounter. Richard had been too drunk the previous night that he didn’t notice she had planted a camera in a hidden position inside the room.

She edited the video to capture the part where Richard was overly active. The edited video looked like a **** scene. She smirked at the mayhem the video would cause when exposed.

“This will be my weapon against Richard. I’ll make him crawl on his knees and beg me for mercy. If he tries anything funny around me again, then he will have a taste of my dark side.”

Susan left the hotel and went back to the hospital to check on Maggie and the others.

When Olivia Newman, ‘Ella’s younger sister,’ arrived in Amzone city, she was terrified to hear of her mum’s condition. She tried to reach out to Ella, but couldn’t get in touch with her. This made her more worried and furious.

She walked into her mother’s private hospital ward and was astonished to see Richard standing by Maggie’s bedside.

“Richard! What are you doing here?!” Olivia probed apprehensively. She hadn’t been informed that Richard was around and in Amzone city.

“Hi Olivia, I’m here at Maggie’s request.” Richard’s lips twitched in mortification when an image of Susan’s naked body flashed before his eyes. He shuddered and smiled deceitfully to compose himself.

He walked over to Olivia and hugged her. “You look amazing. When are you due?”

“Thanks! I’m due in less than three months.” Olivia answered impatiently as she cast a curious glance at her sleeping mother.

“What happened to her?” She gave a frosty look at Richard and took a seat beside her mother.

A chill ran down Richard’s spine. “Does she know of my affair,” he mused incoherently.

“Can someone talk to me? What happened to my mother?” She was rankled by Richard’s presence and silence.

“Olivia darling,” Uncle Moses spoke up. You know your condition and we would not want to upset you or the baby.”

This infuriated Olivia more and she spoke defiantly to her uncle. “Uncle Moses! Being pregnant does not mean my life is hanging by a thin thread. Will you stop wasting my time and tell me what’s wrong with my mother?”

Olivia’s ranting woke Maggie from her deep sleep.

“Olivia!” Maggie spoke in a soft and debilitated voice. Her throat was as dry as a scorched plant during a drought season. She licked her lips to moisten them before speaking up. “Get me some water.”

Having drank to her satisfaction, Maggie lay back on her bed. She held onto Olivia’s hand and tried to smile. But instead of smiles, tears trickled down her face wetting the pillow.

“Mum, you have to stop crying. My children need their grandmother,” Olivia pressed her mother’s hand tenderly and wiped her face with a handkerchief. “No matter what the problem is, we can work through it together.” Olivia’s eyes beamed with affection as she took her mother’s hand and planted a kiss on it.

“Okay.” Maggie sobbed and sniffed. After a few seconds, she close her eyes and fell asleep again.

“She’s on a sedative,” Abigail came from behind and hugs Olivia quietly. Abigail had stepped out briefly to get some breakfast for herself and uncle Moses when Olivia arrived. She was thrilled to see Olivia. She led Olivia outside Maggi’s hospital ward in order not to disturb her again.

“What happened to my mother,” Olivia quizzed Abigail calmly. She was dying of the suspense around Maggie’s current condition.

Abigail led her to a nearby seat, so she could relax her back. When Olivia was settled, Abigail gave her a rundown of all that had transpired, starting from Leon’s mother’s visit to Springchad.

Olivia was horrified. She stared at Abigail in fear and trepidation. She contemplated for a while on what to say but nothing came out of her mouth. She massaged her tummy gently as though she was communing with her unborn baby on the next line of action. After a few minutes of silence, she spoke in a chilly tone.

“Where can I find that Marissa?”

Just at that very moment, Susan stepped into the hospital wing where Maggie was admitted. She spotted Olivia and Abigail discussing, and walked over to them, gawking at Olivia’s tummy in awe.

“Olivia!” She pretended to be thrilled to see her. “Wow! You look amazing!” Susan bent down and hugged her briskly, while she crinkled her nose to make a funny face behind.

Olivia pushed Susan slightly. “Don’t smother my baby, please!” She muttered sardonically.

Susan grinned between tightened teeth. “Olivia, you have a whimsical sense of humor. Weren’t you pregnant just some few years ago?” She stifled a chuckle.

“Susan, you don’t have to string yourself to like me. I have always despised you. I will never understand why Ella kept you as a friend. Because, deep down, I know you are jealous of my sister. Nevertheless, thanks for hanging around my mum. You can go back to Springchad. I’ll take it from here.”

Susan’s brows creased but she said nothing. She turned to Abigail and shot a deadly look at her. “Where’s Richard?”

“Didn’t you leave with him last night? I thought he came ahead of you.” Abigail noticed her disdainfully. She suspected that Susan was up to no good.

“I thought you came for my mum?” Olivia let out a scornful chuckle.

Susan hissed and walked away. She sighted Richard walking out of Maggie’s ward, toward her. She smiled devilishly and quickly sent him a short video.