90

RENE
“I have spent the last couple of minutes surfing the internet for my dream house. I just can’t wait for Olivia to sign the divorce papers so I can take over Penhurst Company and save us from bankruptcy,” I told my mom over the phone as we discussed our plans to take over Cyril’s empire.
It was something I had wished for all my life. And it’s finally coming to pass. What a day to be alive.
“Don’t get your hope too high, child,” my mom uttered words of wisdom.
She got me confused on that one. I couldn’t help but ask, “What the heck are you talking about? Isn’t this what we’ve always wanted?”
“There is no point in getting yourself confused. I am going to explain it to you. How are you sure that the bitch is going to sign the divorce papers? And did Cyril confirm to you that he was going to divorce her? Don’t let these scallywags fool you. I know what I am talking about.”
My mother buttressed her point, but she still got me confused. If it wasn’t her voice, I would have believed that my mom was cloned.
“Mom, how on earth would you say something like that and still act cool? Do I need to remind you what this means to us as a family? It could change our lives for good,” I confronted my mom.
She was starting to act weird, which didn’t seem too cool to me. I thought she was going to take my side as my mom.
“Stop barking like a dog and answer the damn question. On a scale of one to ten, how sure are you? I didn’t raise you to become this dumb. By the way, where’s Cyril right now? When was the last time you heard from that son of a bitch? Are you sure he’s not with Olivia as we speak?” My mom kept asking.
This time, I didn’t argue. Instead, I calmed down to reflect on her questions, and I realized that she might be right after all. I had allowed my emotions to stop me from seeing the potential truth. She was spewing too much lately for someone who’s far away.
“I will get back to you, Mom. Just give me a second to sort things out,” I told my mom and hung up the phone.
Without hesitation, I proceeded to put a call across to Cyril, just to satisfy my curiosity that he wasn’t with Olivia. My mom seemed to be speaking too much lately and with so much confidence. She might as well be seeing things that aren’t visible to me.
It was the third time I’d called Cyril without getting a response from him. My heart skipped a beat for a moment. It was quite unlike Cyril.
“He barely ignores my calls, let alone for that long. Something is wrong somewhere, and I need to figure out where the problem is,” I said to myself.
I was on the verge of placing another call when I heard the sound of a car from outside.
“That must be Cyril. He’s the only one I’m expecting right now,” I said to myself and dashed to the living room with speed. That was the fastest I’d seen myself run.
I peeped through the window only to see Cyril walking like a zombie while holding a file in his possession.
I had mixed feelings as my attention drifted to the file he was holding. The only thought in my head was, A file in his possession? That must be the divorce papers. I just have to keep my fingers crossed.
At the same time, I became more confused due to Cyril’s strange movements. He appeared dull and unhappy, which raised so many questions.
I quickly left the window area when I noticed that he was heading to the doorstep. I wouldn’t want him to think that I was spying on him.
Within minutes, Cyril was already in the living room. As I got closer to him, all I could see was a broken man. A man whose heart had been shattered a million times. His eyes were reddish, and his face was swollen as though he had been beaten by several thugs.
“What happened to you, Cyril? I’ve been trying to reach you, but you weren’t taking my calls. You look so pale, too. Is there something I should be worried about?” I lamented.
He refused to respond, just as he had ignored my calls.
When I noticed that he wasn’t ready to speak, I dashed out and returned with a glass of chilled water. I handed it over to Cyril and watched him gulp it down as though he had just returned from a trip to the desert.
“Are you ready to speak now? Because your silence is freaking me out already,” I asked in a faint tone.
Without saying a word, Cyril presented the file to me.
“What the hell is this?” I asked as I retrieved it.
I read through the file, hoping to see a part where the divorce was stated. Sadly, I couldn’t find anything of the sort. I spent my entire time searching for what I wanted to see. Still, it was the same thing.
“What’s this about? Have you concluded the divorce procedures with Olivia?” My brows furrowed together as I controlled my rage. I was preparing for the best while I hoped for the worst.
“My lawyer, Andrew, terminated the contract between us. As it stands now, I don’t have a legal team anymore. The same thing goes for the company because Andrew was the company’s lawyer. Now that he’s gone, I am all alone,” Cyril explained in detail without blinking his eyes.
I cleaned my ear while pretending not to understand what he was talking about. “What did you just say?” I wanted Cyril to repeat his statement, and he did.
“Please make me understand what’s going on. Does that mean you won’t be getting a divorce anymore?” I asked.
Cyril didn’t respond, but his facial expressions seemed to answer my question. I didn’t push further to get the truth from Cyril anymore.
I just stood up and went to sit next to him, wrapping my hands around his neck. “You don’t have to worry about a thing. We are going to find a solution, I promise you.”
Cyril pulled me away and looked at me. “What do you want from me? I thought you’d be mad at me?”
“Mad at you? Why the hell should I be? Is it because you couldn’t get a stupid divorce from your miserable wife? Hell no! Listen, it still doesn’t change the fact that I love you,” I lied.
I had the urge to yell at Cyril and be mad at him. I just figured that might make me appear desperate and ruin my chances of spending the rest of my life with him.
So far, the plan worked. Not only did I impress him, but I also infused into his head a different perspective about me.
“You are the best thing that has ever happened to me,” Cyril acknowledged. That was the sweetest thing he had told me in a while.
“You know what? Why not go upstairs and have a bath while I prepare dinner for you?” I suggested.
Trust Cyril to accept my request without a second thought.
As he went upstairs, I quickly texted my mom”You were right. We need to implement a backup plan.”