NICOLE
I flopped my head back on to my sofa, tiredness oozing from my features.
I had a very tiring day at work and all I needed now was just rest and peace.
Peace in my married life too.
In the past two weeks, ever since I confronted Raphael about his past affairs with Leila, we’ve been having issues upon issues over the phone.
Why was he blind to the fact that Leila would destroy our marraige if she was still lingering around him?
She herself made it clear to me on how much she despised me and how badly she wanted Raphael.
That woman will do everything in her power to get Raphael back and I was trying to avoid it.
I had specifically told Raphael to discharge her of her duties and just let her go far away from this mafia and from him but he wouldn’t agree.
He said it wasn’t that easy to leave the mafia and Leila was one of his best assassins.
I mean ain’t he the capo?
He makes the rules so why can’t he change them?
What is so hard in discharging her of her duties and sending her far away from us?
Raphael was just turning a blind eye to all my worries.
Slowly, the creeping feeling of insecurity began washing over me once again.
Sometimes I felt Raphael wanted her around because he still felt attached to her and other times I felt he was just being honest with me.
I didn’t know what else to think. Leila was robbing me of my peace.
I was deep in thoughts that I buried my face in my hands and quietly sobbed.
I was absent minded from everything else and I could only focus on my pain.
“Nicole” a distinct voice called out to me. I raised my head up to catch the smiling face of Miles looking down at me.
What was he doing here?
Quickly wiping the tears off my face, I offered him a faint smile.
“What’s wrong? Why do you look pale?” He accessed my features.
“Please sit down Miles. It’s nothing. I just miss my husband” I quickly lied.
“What brings you here?” I added.
I noticed he was holding a gift bag which contained something heavy and also some spiral binded files.
“Well you left these at work” he told me, handing the files and sitting down.
I collected and opened them, perusing through the files and its contents.
My eyes immedately widened like a deer caught on headlights.
Shit. I was so preoccupied in thinking about Raphael that I forgot to carry along some important documents back home.
It was the blueprints for a new tech innovation that I was to take home to study over night.
I glanced back at miles with grateful eyes.
“Thank you so much. I am meant to do a presentation on these tomorrow”
“I know” he concurred with a nod and a smile.
“Miles what will I ever do without you in this strenuous work of ours? Thank you so much. I would have totally embarrassed myself tomorrow without studying these” I said with relief.
“I should be thanking you. Your hard work in the office has also benefited me. Boss said he likes diligent workers like me who make sure to harness their prowess and also help other talented tech geeks. He promised me a raise” Miles told me grinning from ear to ear.
My jaws dropped and a wide smile decorated my face.
“This calls for celebration! I’m so happy for you!” I exclaimed for joy.
“That is why I got this” Miles brought out a wine bottle which was kept inside his gift bag.
“It is our win. I should be thanking you for real. You indirectly contributed” Miles smiled at me.
My face became flushed at his compliment and I chortled.
“Francesca please go get us two glasses” I instructed a maid who passed us by.
She nodded and left. In no minute did she bring back two glass cups in a tray and set them before us.
Miles poured out the contents of the wine and gave me a glass.
“To us, more wins for both of us” Miles announced, raising his glass up for a toast.
“Exactly” I lauged and hit my glass with his.
I immedately sculled down the contents but Miles dropped his down.
“Whats wrong?” I asked.
“I need to make a quick call. It almost slipped my mind. I’ll be right back” he said and excused himself.
I nodded and poured myself another glass before sculling it down once more.
Slowly, a painful migraine began throbbing at the back of my head. My eyelids suddenly felt too heavy and my vision became blurry.
Have I drank too much? It was just two glasses. Probably the wine was highly alcoholic. This was what happened with I and Raphael back in Nigeria.
I shook my head, trying to stabilise my vision but it only got worse.
At that moment, Miles ambled back.
Tucking his phone back in his pocket, he apologised. “I’m sorry for the delay…”
He stopped to access my features.
“You look tipsy. How many cups did you drink?”
“Just two” I told him, blinking severally.
“You must get rest then. Why don’t you go upstairs” he advised me.
I stood up, tottering in my steps as I ascended up the stairs.
“You forgot the blue prints” He alerted me but I felt too weak to go back.
“Just give it to me later” I said slurry.
It was a pain in the ass locating my room. Immediately I found it, I fell onto the soft sheets of my bed, allowing myself sink into it.
I knew I hadn’t slept for more than twenty minutes when I heard my door creak open slightly and footsteps inside my room.
My weak eyes slowly opened and standing right in front of me was Miles.
Confusion rocked my face and my eyes squinted.
“Miles what are you doing here? This is my matrimonial room. Please leave” I ordered, standing up but he didnt budge.
Couldn’t he hear me?
“I said leave. I find it offensive that you come in here. We are friends but this is crossing the boundary” I raised my voice when suddenly miles tucked out a gun from behind his pants.
My heart sank and I became horrified.
What was he doing?
“Miles what is this? Why are you pointing a gun at me?” I asked trying to sound brave.
“Don’t shout Nicole. We don’t want anyone to hear us do we?” He asked with an uncanny smile.
“Whatever you are doing, you better stop. My husband is not one to be messed with. I can scream right now and you would become a dead man when Raphael’s guards come” I warned him, anger ripping my insides.
“I have my men inside this house and around it’s vicinity. If you should dare make a fuss Nicole, a blood bath will ensue. Just one command, and you will have a shooting spree in this house”
He had men inside this house?
How? Raphael’s mansion was fully secured.
No intruder could get in except somebody on the inside was helping him out.
“Who are you?” I was forced to ask as my migraine throbbed.
“I am Maxim. The son of your rival, Ivan Fedorov” he chuckled.
I had never even heard of the name Ivan before.
“There’s a flash drive in this house and I want that flash drive so quietly give it to me and I’ll leave without killing you or anyone here” he gravelly warned.
“How do you know about the flash drive? Who is helping you?” I quivered my lips.
“I know a lot more than that” he whispered.
That flashdrive was Raphael’s. It had all the vital informations concerning this mafia. How can I release it?
Then suddenly, I remembered I made a duplicate and the one in the safe was corrupted and would self destruct when it had been viewed once.
I would give it to him and quickly inform Raphael.
“Move!” He yelled, cocking his gun, causing me to jerk.
I dragged my feet from the bedroom and to the closet. I had to be as discreet as ever. I didn’t want him to suspect a thing.
With a palpitating heart, I walked towards the safe with maxim behind me.
I inputed the password and took out the flashdrive.
Turning to give him, I noticed he had dropped his gun.
If this flashdrive was the genuine one then I would have used this opportunity to fight him but since it isn’t, he might as well have it without a hassle.
He took it from me and roughly yanked my hand, taking me out of the closet.
“Good girl. Your obedience has saved your life but not for long” he smirked, violently pushing me to the bed.
“Raphael will kill you I promise. Just wait and see what happens” I gritted my teeth in anger.
Maxim let our a dark chuckle and shook his head. “Do you think I’m that foolish that I’ll let you go with all these information that you already know about me?”
I became lost for words.
“The wine was laced with a drug. And I’m sure you’ve started seeing the effects. In about some seconds, you would become unconcious and by the time you wake, you won’t remember any thing. And when Raphael comes back, you will have him to contend with once he discovers that you gave me his flash drive and you can’t prove your innocence”
The moment he uttered those words, my vision worsened and my tremor rose.
My marriage will crumble.
My breathing became erratic and my head spinned heavily.
Oh Lord no please.
Lord don’t let this happen.
I cried within me and my body quivered as the pain in my head became intense.
My body caved to the bed with a strong darkness drawing me into its hold.
Maxim leaving profile was the last thing I saw before my body gave way to the darkness that surrounded my vision.
RAPHAEL
Stressed was an understatement of how I felt. My trip back to Mexico had turned out to be more strenuous and difficult than I thought.
My capos and I had been working tirelessly to fish out ‘the ghost’. Whoever that fucker was, he was good at hiding and using people to carry out his schemes.
While I tried overseeing my work life, my marraige with Nicole was slowly becoming filled with arguments.
We couldn’t speak without raising our voices at each other.
I didn’t like it.
Nicole was acting so insecure. I swore on the damnation of my soul that I had nothing more to do with Leila. I was fully into Nicole but she didn’t seem to believe me any longer.
And Leila wasn’t helping matters either. She kept on always trying to instigate me against Nicole by telling me how close Nicole and Miles were becoming.
I trust my wife and I know she wouldn’t cheat on me. I was sure of that fact.
But how can I convince her to trust me fully like she used to?
I sighed and focused back on my computer. I wanted to log into the security camera I installed in the safe.
With the way things were going, I wouldn’t be surprised if a guard back home was the inside rat that was hinting ‘the ghost’ on all our next moves.
The flash drive in that safe was very important to me. I normally checked on it to make sure it was safe. As long as it remained in that safe then I felt relieved.
I logged into the security camera from my computer and what I saw got my eyes widened.
No fucking way!