“Today which was meant for the launching of the Callahan enterprise’s new project turned out to be the event for an astonishing discovery. The fiancee of Liam Callahan, Isabelle Marino was said to have a deep secret that has now been unraveled. The images from the conference are enough evidence to prove that she has been having an affair with her soon-to-be cousin-in-law, an affirmation to the rumor sparked during the previous scandal…….”
This was the heart-shattering news that greeted Isabelle when switched on her TV in the morning. A tremendous amount of dread gripped her heart, making her to groan in pain. The skeleton in her cupboard has been exposed. Was she devastated?… No, the devastation is too small a word to use to describe her state at the moment.
The worst thing about the whole situation was that it got thrown right into Liam’s face, at the most critical period of his breakthrough. She felt she should have listened to Rachael about telling him the truth earlier, it would have saved him the shameful disgrace.
One thing was certain now, she had lost not just her freedom, but also the one and only person she could call her family.
“Max”
That was the name that popped up in her head when she thought of who desperately wanted to destroy her life. He was the only one who had the video.
As she lay lifelessly on the floor, the sound of the car horn which drove into the mansion, made her jump to her feet.
“Liam” she muttered with fear in her heart as she searched her mind for an explanation to give to him. When she saw them enter the house with soulless eyes, all the excuses she had thought of vanished into thin air.
“Liam..” she called his name again, tears trickling down from her eyes, her tone cracked from continuous wailing. “Please…..”
“What are pleading for?”Liam interrupted with a voice devoid of emotions, then he raised his voice, repeating the same words. “What exactly are you pleading for?”
He watched her slump to the floor, but he wasn’t done yet, he still had a lot to say.
“Are you sorry for breaking our agreement by sleeping with another man, or are you sorry for all the lies you said to me?”
He didn’t bother to hide his pain and let his emotions pour out, “if you loved him so much, you should’ve told me. I would have freed you from this life you recognize as a cage binding you from being with the one you desired the most”
“Don’t say that, Liam. It’s you I love, no one else” Isabelle spoke with much effort, her voice raspy and weak from tears. “Whatever happened was a mistake. I swear”
“A mistake?… Huh.. a mistake?” Liam asked, baffled. “A mistake when you knew fully well that you were engaged to me… If it was a mistake, you wouldn’t have lied to me when you went on a date with your lover… Do you remember?.. the night you had a fever, you lied”
“I’m sorry… I’m sorry… I’m… Sorry,” Isabelle said in between sobs. “I didn’t mean to hurt you like this… Sniff.. sniff… I was going to tell you”
“Tell me when?” Liam snapped, walking over to her with fury in his eyes. “Was it when you had gotten pregnant for him?.. or when you both have decided to get married?… You had to guts to sleep around under my roof”
“Don’t call me a whore.. it only happened once” Isabelle retorted sobbing. “I don’t sleep around”
“How dare you defy me?” Liam gripped her right arm tightly, ramming her into his chest. “You deceived me, made me think you loved me. But you loved someone else, and not just anybody but the one man I loathed the most”
“Stop this, Liam.. stop, please” Isabelle wailed, causing Liam to feel pity for just a fleeting moment. “I don’t love him. it’s you I love”
“Those words of yours are just lies that I’ve grown tired of hearing” Liam declared with a glacial expression on his face as he abruptly let go of her arms, causing her to fall to the ground on her butt. “I’m letting you go.. the contract is now void, you and your mother can do whatever you want with the money, I don’t give a damn.. take it as compensation for tying you down with me”
“No, Liam.. please, you have to forgive me.. let me explain” Isabelle pleaded helplessly, ignoring the pain from the fall. “I’m sorry I hurt you. I just wasn’t in my right state of mind… Please, just let me explain”
“I don’t want to hear anything from you”Liam shouted, his anger tipped off as he made to leave the living room until a thought crossed his mind. He halted in his tracks and asked without looking back. “Was this the reason why you refused to have a wedding with me?… Did your mother know about this and refuse to have the wedding immediately?”
Isabelle was tongue-tied, part of his words was true. She didn’t want to marry him because of the shame she felt, but her mother refused the wedding for another reason which was known only to her. But how could she explain to him, when he wouldn’t give her the slightest chance to explain?
When Liam didn’t get an answer from her, he walked upstairs and came back within a couple of minutes with some documents in his hands.
He walked up to her and knelt to her level. After a moment of silence, he said “This is the contract we signed, you can do whatever you like with it and this… This is the document of the house I bought in your name… We can’t leave together anymore since we have nothing between us.. so take the keys, the house and the car are all yours… Whenever you’re ready, you should leave”
Isabelle was stunned, she knew he despised her but not to this extent. He wasn’t listening to her and now, he wants her out of the house. She opened her mouth to say something but only a breath of air escaped her lips. She could only watch him walk away till his silhouette had disappeared.
With her strength drained from her body and soul, she groggily stood and went through the stairs, up to her room.