“I will make you pay for tricking me, Lani,” Trevor promised as he pursued a chuckling Leilani.
“Catch me if you can, darling,” Leilani taunted as she circled the entire house, evading each of Trevor’s attempts to capture her.
Trevor grumbled in frustration, “How can you run so fast?”
Leilani simply laughed and in that instant, the front door swung open, revealing Nelson with Ariel following behind.
Leilani immediately slowed down, but lost her footing and tumbled to the ground.
“Gotcha, speedy legs!” Trevor exclaimed triumphantly as he pounced on Leilani, who was still fixated on the visitors at the door.
Trevor playfully made noises as he punched Leilani, while she feigned injury from the blows.
“Please don’t kill me,” she joked, pretending to cry.
“Don’t you ever mess with me again, understood?” Trevor commanded authoritatively as he rose from Leilani’s body, “Now stand up and bow to me!” he ordered.
As instructed, Leilani stood and bowed to Trevor, “Please forgive me, Your Highness.”
Trevor nodded in satisfaction, about to speak when he heard clapping from behind him.
“You two are quite the actors,” Nelson praised as he entered the house with a grin on his face.
“Daddy!” Trevor ran to Nelson, who immediately caught and lifted him up in his arms.
“Buddy!” Nelson exclaimed fondly. Just as Trevor was about to say something, he noticed his mother and the playfulness vanished from his face.
He was taken aback, as he never expected to see Ariel so soon, especially after Nelson had vowed to keep her in prison for the rest of her life.
“Are you surprised?” Nelson’s question interrupted his thoughts, and Trevor slowly tore his gaze away from Ariel’s furious one to look back at his father’s face.
“Did you bail her out, Daddy?” he whispered.
Nelson gave a nod, his voice soft yet firm. “Do you remember what you said about wanting to spend time with Mommy and Daddy?” he gently prompted Trevor, causing the little boy’s eyes to well up with unshed tears.
“D-Daddy, you let Mommy go because of me?” Trevor’s voice trembled with disbelief.
“Yes, son. I did it for you. But I have given her a final warning – she won’t get another chance the next time,” Nelson assured him, his tone calm and composed.
In an instant, Trevor wrapped his arms around Nelson and hugged him tightly.
“Thank you, Daddy,” he whispered gratefully.
Nelson stroked his back gently and replied, “It’s all for you, my boy.”
Meanwhile, Leilani couldn’t help but smile widely, while Ariel’s hands were clenched in frustration. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing – Leilani and Trevor playing together? To what extent?
She thought in her mind that she had not even used up to a month in jail and Leilani had almost snatched her son from her.
No, she couldn’t let this happen.
“You should apologize to Leilani, Mommy,” Trevor’s words broke through Ariel’s thoughts, and she looked at her son with a start.
“What did you say, Trevor?” she asked, attempting to force a smile but failing miserably. Her expression remained stern.
“You hurt Leilani, the lady of the house, Mommy. But her husband let you go without any consequences. You should say sorry to her,” Trevor replied in a well-mannered and respectful way.
But Ariel’s eyes had turned red, like blazing fire. She was so angry that if she were a dragon, she would have been breathing fire.
“Have you lost your mind, Trevor? What have they been teaching you while I was gone, for you to say such nonsense?!” she yelled, her eyes widening in a deranged manner.
Nelson simply smiled and turned so that Trevor would face his mother.
“They did not teach me anything, Mommy. In fact, I am indebted to you for bringing me to my Father. Despite your intentions, I am grateful because I have never been happier than I am now.
I have the most wonderful Father in the entire world, and I have also been blessed with an exceptional step-mom who has shown me immense love – something my biological mother has never bestowed upon me,”
Trevor’s face was now drenched in tears, yet he continued. It appeared the little boy had much to say to his mother.
“You disposed me to an orphanage, and… and…” Trevor’s sobs intensified as he buried his face in Nelson’s shoulder.
“That is enough, Trevor. Your Father is here now,” Nelson comforted, gently stroking his back.
“I hate you, Mommy. I hate calling you my mommy,” Trevor yelled at Ariel and then escaped from Nelson’s embrace to hastily exit the room.
“Trevor,” Nelson called out as he chased after him out of the villa.
“That kid,” Ariel’s jaw tightened in rage, her teeth grinding.
“I do not believe I have ever hated someone to the extent that I hate you, Ariel,” Leilani began, closing the gap between them.
Ariel’s eyebrows knitted together in a scowl, “Do you have a death wish?”
“You believe you can kill me?” Leilani inquired, standing face to face with her, which only infuriated her more.
Ariel’s lips twisted into a crooked grin, “You are really crossing a boundary, bitch. I am warning you, Nelson belongs to me alone,” she emphasized each word threateningly.
Without waiting for Leilani’s response, she stormed from her and marched directly to the staircase.
———–
Smiling and grinning to herself, Hannah smoothed out the hem of her gown and ran her fingers through her curls. She scanned the area restlessly, as if awaiting someone’s arrival.
Suddenly, the last person she expected appeared out of nowhere, and the smile on her face could no longer be maintained.
It was David. He looked disheveled, with his hair and beard grown out, covering up his face.
“It is me, Hannah. I have recently been bailed from jail,” David spoke tenderly, advancing towards Hannah.
“And what are your intentions here?” Hannah snapped, her expression betraying her distress.
David let out a deep sigh and dropped to his knees, “I am aware of the pain I have caused you, Hannah,” he began, “I do not deserve your forgiveness, but believe me, I cannot endure a life without you.”
Hannah scoffed, her positive demeanor vanishing into thin air.
“You are the only woman who has ever loved me unconditionally. Despite my lack of employment and my despicable behavior, you provided for me, Hannah. You took care of me beyond what I could have ever asked for.”
“I did all of that because I believed you loved me as much as I loved you, David. But now I see that you have only taken advantage of my love and treated me like a fool. I curse you to the depths of hell,” Hannah seethed through gritted teeth.
“Hannah-” David attempted to interject, but he was cut off by the loud screeching of a car coming to a sudden halt in front of them.
Hannah’s mood immediately improved as she recognized the driver of the vehicle. She couldn’t contain her grin as he emerged from the car and made his way over to her.
“I apologize for my lateness, my love. Are you mad at me?” Herbert apologized with a pleading look in his eyes.
“I was not angry at first, but now I am because you did not fulfill your duties,” Hannah scolded, her annoyance evident in her twitching mouth.
“Oh, I did not want to do so in the presence of your guest,” Herbert defended himself.
“Guest?” Hannah repeated, pretending not to see David still kneeling before her. “I do not see any guests here.”
Herbert suppressed a smile and pulled Hannah close to him, pressing his lips to hers.
“What the hell do you think you are doing?!” David bellowed, standing up and forcefully pushing Herbert away from Hannah.