ALESSIA
IT’S CLAUDE!!!
I couldn’t believe what I saw. Claude was the one leaving the flowers on the terrace. How did he find out where we were? Did Ramiro betray us? Or did Claude force it out of him? What should I do now? In just a little while, Claude might discover my situation. We might even be under surveillance.
I instinctively touched my belly. Could it be that Claude also knows I’m pregnant? My belly had been showing for five months now, especially when I wear dresses. Can I still hide it from Claude?
Maybe we needed to leave here and move to Pia’s house. But if we would do that, it would be embarrassing for Remi and her husband. We would be living off them without being able to contribute. So, what should I do?
Should I talk to Ramiro first? Maybe he knows of another house we could stay in.
I left a message on his voicemail. Ramiro called me back that day.
“Hey! How are you?”
“I’m good. How about you?”
“I’m still looking for your sister. My people are still searching the addresses you gave. They still haven’t found Lia.”
“I’m sorry about that.”
“It’s okay. I hope to find her in the next few days. I won’t stop until I find your sister.”
I bit my lip. “I actually have something to ask you, that’s why I called.”
“What is it?”
“When was the last time you spoke to Claude?”
“Why are you asking?” Ramiro is clearly avoiding discussing Claude.
“Just tell me the truth, Ramiro. Did you tell Claude where Adrian and I are?”
There were a few seconds of silence from the other line.
“Hey, Ramiro! I’m asking you,” I urged.
“I didn’t tell your husband anything. I just said you’re in Hawaii. That’s it. Why, did he come looking for you there?” Ramiro’s voice came through the phone.
I sighed, trying to gather my thoughts. “Not exactly. But for over a month, someone has been leaving tulips on the terrace of your house here. Miss Lucille picks them up every morning. Then yesterday, I woke up early and tried to see who was leaving them there. I saw him, but I didn’t recognize him because he was wearing sunglasses. So, earlier today, I waited for him again. It was Claude I saw. Even with the sunglasses, I knew it was him.”
“Okay, calm down, Sia. If Claude already knows where you are, why hasn’t he shown himself to you yet? Why does he keep leaving flowers secretly? Why doesn’t he just talk to you directly? And you said he’s been leaving flowers for over a month. How is it possible that Claude is the one doing it when we were together at the hearing just last week? Even if he has a chopper, he can’t fly over to where you are every day, right? Maybe you’re just imagining things.”
I looked up at the ceiling, contemplating Ramiro’s words. How could Claude possibly make it to Hawaii? Our location is on Kauai Island, not in the heart of Hawaii. Maybe I just mistook the man I saw.
“But I’m still worried. Claude might track us down here. Don’t you have another house we can stay in?”
“I have a house in Honolulu. But didn’t you say you didn’t want to live there? If you prefer, we can go to Europe. I have houses in those places too.”
The places Ramiro mentioned were bustling. I didn’t like those kinds of places. Claude could easily track me down there.
“Don’t you have a house in Alaska?” I asked jokingly.
“What? Alaska? You want to go to a cold place? I have houses in Germany and France. You can choose which one you prefer.”
I chuckled. “I just want to be far away from Claude. A place where he can’t find me.”
“In that case, you should go to Antarctica. He’ll have a hard time following you there.”
I grimaced. “You’re kidding, right? Nobody lives there.”
“There are people. Just a few, but they’re there. I meant the ones who monitor the area.”
“Come on! I don’t want to go there.”
“Where do you want to move then? Wherever you go, Claude will still try to find you. Maybe you should just talk to him properly. Don’t hide from him.”
“I don’t want to talk to him. He’ll just bother me.”
“If you really don’t want to go back to him, there’s nothing he can do to force you. If you don’t want to go with him, stick to your decision.”
I fell silent, mulling over Ramiro’s words. He had a point. If I keep hiding, Claude will only chase us more. Maybe it’s better to just talk to him. I’d suggest a separation so we wouldn’t have to see each other again. If he provided support, I’d accept it. But if he didn’t, I wouldn’t force him.
“I’ll try calling Claude first.”
“That’s good. It’s best to clear things up with him. Don’t hide, or else he’ll keep chasing you. Your child might get caught in the chaos. Doesn’t Adrian ask why Claude isn’t with you?”
“He does ask. But I always tell him his father has work, so he can’t be with us.”
“If this goes on, you might run out of excuses. So, it’s better if you talk to Claude properly.”
“Okay, I’ll try calling him,” I reluctantly agreed. “It’s for the best.”
However, I didn’t immediately call Claude. Besides feeling nervous, my phone didn’t have any network connections, so I needed to get myself a new sim card. I left a message on his social media account.
While waiting for Claude’s call, I fell asleep around three in the afternoon. I woke up abruptly when I heard my mobile phone ringing. I quickly looked at it. Claude’s name appeared on the caller ID. I declined the call when Adrian, who was sleeping beside me, suddenly spoke up.
“Mom, who’s calling your phone?”
“Oh, it’s from your mom’s work. It’s better if you get up and go to Grandma Lucille’s.”
My son immediately complied. When Adrian left the room, I finally answered the call.
“Hello!”
“Sweetpea, thank god! You finally reached out. Where are you? How’s you and Adrian?”
I winced at Claude’s question. He is acting innocent.
“I don’t need to tell you where we are. You already know our location, don’t you?”
“Uh, okay, Sweetpea, I’m guilty as charged. I just didn’t know what to say earlier, so those words slipped out. But I’m really glad to hear your voice now. Can we do a video call?”
I shook my head vigorously, as if I were facing Claude directly. I couldn’t have a video call here. Claude might see my belly. Or worse, he might look for Adrian.
“No! I don’t want to!” I firmly refused.
“O-okay. I understand. I won’t insist if you don’t want to. This is okay too. At least we’re talking now. Do you need anything?”
“Can you please stop leaving flowers outside? I can’t be won over by flowers.”
“Why don’t you want them? Don’t you like tulips? What flowers do you want? Roses? Sunflowers? Carnations? Just tell me, and I’ll have them delivered.”
I rolled my eyes. Claude didn’t seem to understand me.
“You’re so persistent. I already said I don’t want flowers. Why are you asking what I want?”
“Okay. If that’s the case, what do you want me to send? Food? Items? Just let me know. I’ll send whatever you want.”
“How annoying you are! I don’t want anything, okay?”
“Oh, sorry. If you don’t want anything, what can I do for you?” Finally, my husband seemed to sense my mood.
“I just want us to separate.”
“W-what? I won’t agree to that!”
My suspicion was indeed correct. Convincing Claude to separate from me would be difficult. But I would still try.
“You can’t do anything about it because I don’t want to get back together with you either. So, it’s better if we just separate. File for divorce since you have more money. Leave me and Adrian alone. If you want to provide support for him, I’ll accept it. But it’s okay even if you don’t. I can raise him on my own.”
I heard Claude release a harsh sigh. “Sweetpea, please don’t do this. I don’t want us to separate. I feel sorry for Adrian. If you want a long-distance relationship, I will agree to it. Even if we only see each other once or twice a month, it’s okay with me. As long as we’re still married. Let’s not separate.”
“You don’t understand me. I want to separate from you. Isn’t that clear?”
“I don’t want that, Sweetpea. I can’t bear to lose you and Adrian completely. I can manage if we only see each other occasionally. But to separate? I can’t handle that. It would drive me crazy.”
I am stunned. “I wish you had thought about that when you believed that video you watched. Why is it that when you think I’m at fault, you can speak badly to me? But now that I’m saying we should separate, you refuse to accept it. That’s unfair! You’re being selfish right now!”
“I know it’s my fault. But I hope you can give me a chance. Let me make up for my mistake. Even just this once. If I make another mistake in the future, then I’ll accept your decision to separate. Claude, I’m sorry. But I really don’t want this anymore. Even if you don’t agree, Adrian and I won’t go back. I don’t care anymore what happens to you.”
After saying this, I ended the call. I didn’t want to talk to Claude anymore. I won’t gain anything from it.
But after a few minutes, my phone rang again. It was Claude calling. I didn’t answer it. I let my phone keep ringing. When it became annoying, I finally turned phone off.
Just three days after our conversation, my husband showed up at our residence. Of course, Adrian was so delighted. He almost didn’t want to get down from Claude’s lap. If Miss Lucille hadn’t persuaded him, he wouldn’t have wanted to leave his father’s side.
“How many months have you been pregnant?” Claude didn’t seem surprised to see me pregnant. Maybe he was expecting it. I ignored Claude’s question. Something else came out of my mouth.
“Why did you even come here? I already told you I don’t want to see you anymore. You’re just being stubborn!” I retorted as we faced each other in the living room.
“I know that, Sweetpea. I admit I’m stubborn. But only with you because I love you very much. That’s the truth, even if you don’t want to believe it.”
“Do you think that if you come here, you can take us back with you? Even if you drag us, I won’t go with you.”
“Why would I drag you, Sweetpea? There are many ways to take you without having to drag you.”
I raised my eyebrows. “What do you plan to do?” he asked seriously.
“Nothing. If you really don’t want to come back to me anymore, I’ll let you do whatever you want. But you can’t stop me from visiting you and Adrian here, especially now that we’re going to have another child together. I’ll only stop when I see that there’s another man making you happy and taking care of you.”
I seemed to have swallowed my tongue. I couldn’t think of anything to say after hearing Claude’s last words.