Present Time. . . Ten years after. . .
Rhezi closed her eyes as the vivid memory from the past flashed on her mind. She shook her head slightly and massaged her temple. She was feeling uneasy out of nowhere. She tried to calm herself and her eyes abruptly turned to Kraius Montreal who was standing in front of them, facing one of Mrs. Andao’s witnesses.
“If Mr. Andao is said to have abandoned Mrs. Andao, why does Mrs. Andao often goes out at night?” Kraius looked around. He stopped where Rhezi was standing. “If Mr. Andao was cheating from the beginning, can you prove your claim?” he added.
Rhezi blinked a few times as Kraius’ eyes pierced through her. She saw him turn quickly to face the witness who was on the stand. He asked questions that were difficult to answer. Afterwards, he walked over to Judge Condrad Aguirre and handed him something.
“Videos and images that will indicate Mrs. Andao always leaves their residence at night,” Kraius stated forcefully, his face beaming. He also returned his attention to Rhezi. “You can view it if you like; Mrs. Andao, not my client, is the one who cheated.”
Rhezi shouted, “Objection, your honor!” Kraius’ conduct had shocked her. While standing, her two hands were firmly positioned on the table. She abruptly lost her pleasant aspect and assumed a ferocious one.
“Why?” enquired Kraius.
Judge Aguirre hammered his gavel, saying, “Order in the court.”
Rhezi sighed, heavily. She glared at Kraius who was eyeing her intently. He grinned which made her even more annoyed. She rolled her eyes at him and looked at Dr. Olive Ramirez who was gracefully walking in front and sat on the bench to state her psychological study about Mr. and Mrs. Andao’s case.
She shook her head and returned to her seat.
Kraius didn’t seem to care about the kind of look Rhezi was giving him. His gaze was still fixed on her, who seemed amazed. He was eyeing her from the chair he was sitting on, watching her every move. Although he did not admit it to himself, he knew that ten years after that encounter with her, he still wanted to see her. Even if he was angry with her.
——-
When the trial ended, Rhezi breathed a sigh of relief. She talked to Mrs. Andao and said thank you to Olive before she took her purse, walking out of the courtroom. Her steps were quick as her forehead was raised. She was walking fast. The sound of her heels echoed in every corners of the pathway she was walking. She was late to her next appointment and one thing that she didn’t like.
“Fuck!” she cursed as she looked at her Vacheron Constantin watch. It was five in the afternoon and she was obviously late and fucked up.
“You cursed.”
Rhezi stopped entering her Audi A4 car. She shifted her gaze and looked at Kraius who was looking at her unbelievably. It was as if he couldn’t believe what he found out because of the wrinkled cut on his forehead.
“The trial is already done, Mr. Motreal. Do you need anything from me?” Rhezi’s face remained stoic. She even raised her eyebrow to emphasize her claim.
Rhezi’s stabbing appears to have had no effect on Kraius. He approached her and snatched her left arm. His lips twitched as he locked his gaze on Rhezi’s face. His eyes were dull, yet there was a glimmer of malice in them.
Rhezi protested, “What are you doing? I’m hurt!” Kraius relaxed his grip on her arm at the same time.
“Where have you been?” Kraius asked, puzzled.
Rhezi raised her brows. “You’re wasting my time, Mr. Montreal; I don’t have time to talk with you because, as you can see, I’m a very busy person.”
“Dammit!” Kraius exclaimed emphatically.
To loosen Kraius’ grip, Rhezi threw the hand away violently. She looked him in the eyes without a trace of regret. To maintain her distance, she crossed her arms and took a step backwards.
She was angry with him, that could not be changed. “If you want to know, Mr. Montreal, I’ve been messing around,” she stated. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.” Her face remained stoic. She raised an eyebrow without Kraius even moving in front of her.
Rhezi sighed and shook her head. Kraius’ hand was faster than hers, so she tried to shove him away. But he instantly grabbed her wrist and brought her closer to him.
“You’ve changed; I don’t recognize you,” Kraius said quietly.
Rhezi’s gorgeous face was covered in Kraius’ husky voice. He was so close to her that their noses almost touched. She got appalled but she managed to keep her calm. She didn’t want to give Kraius the satisfaction he was asking for. She wasn’t the same vulnerable girl as before.
If Kraius is brave, she’s braver.
“Changed is the constant thing in this world, Mr. Montreal. Are you surprised?”
Kraius seemed surprised by what she said. His mouth left open to utter a word but he couldn’t. He felt a sudden force in his chest and found Rhezi pushing him away from her. Afterwards, he realized that he was looking behind her as she got into her car.
“Fuck!” he cursed as the car’s engine started to roar.
Seeing Rhezi was too much for him but talking to her was absurd. She was too different from what he had known before. Out of frustration, he drove his car fast in the Monterio Empire, and walked quickly to enter inside the glass wall of the building. He continued to Andrius, his friend office on the twentieth floor. He abruptly opened the door and cursed nonstop.
“What the fuck!”
“You fuck your secretary in broad day light?!” An annoyed Kraius said while entering Andrius’ office.
“Knock when you come, Montreal. Don’t you have manners?” Andrius asked with a frown while her secretary fixed herself and left the office.
Kraius approached Andrius’ wooden table and laid his hands on it. He looked at him unbelievably with a creased forehead. “You seriously asking me that?”
The defining silence was evident. Both men were looking at each other while gritting their teeth. Their blue and chocolate brown eyes were fighting while both were shouting the aura that will surely be shunned by everyone. They both screamed power, richness and fame. Moreover, both looked like a gift to women.
“I need your help,” Kraius muffled after, ending the tension between them.
“For what? If it is about that baby Lagdameo, I can’t do anything about it. She’s hiding really well. No trace-”
“She ‘s back, “Kraius interrupted Andrius.
Andrius raised an eyebrow at what the lawyer said. Then, he nodded as if he understood everything. He also took the eighten K Parker pen and played with it in his hand.
Kraius shook his head because of the sight. Sure, his friend was fascinated in playing things and especially girls.
“Then, time to take revenge. Don’t be such a gay, Kraius. Talk to her. Claim her and play with her. The one that controls the game, wins the game. It’s up to you,” Andrius said afterwards.
For a while, Kraius got stunned. He stood up and tried to fix himself. He smiled deviously at Andrius who was smiling at him too. At what Andrius said, the lawyer’s annoyance and apprehension suddenly disappeared. He shouldn’t forget one thing; his name. The name he has been working on since then.
He laughed and touched his jaw. There are a few canes of beard on it but it still looks clean. He then looked back to Andrius who was already busy with whatever he was doing.
“Let’s drink for tonight. It’s on me,” Kraius offered.
Andrius stopped signing the papers in front of him and looked at the lawyer.
“That’s my boy-”
“What the fuck!” Kraius interrupted.
Andrius laughed at the lawyer’s reaction. Kraius laughed after too. He thought to himself that Andrius was right. It was his time for revenge. A payback time for him to the woman who once left without a word. Even if that woman was the most beautiful and sexiest he had ever seen in his entire life.