CHAPTER 6 - WHY ME?

Frederick's words were like a raging fire in my heart. My eyes teared up, but I had to be strong because, in life, shit happens. I vowed to expose Rina and get revenge for the humiliation she caused, and mostly by the man I thought loved me.

“You know what? I have had enough of your tantrums. And to show you how much I am willing to send you straight to hell, I'll walk over there, and sign the papers.”

I strolled and picked up the divorce papers Chris tossed to the floor. He once again attempted to stop me, but Father held him back, and they watched me append my signature on the divorce papers.

Mr. Khan left after I signed the papers. I veered and walked back into my bedroom. I vowed that I  wouldn’t shed a tear for a piece of shit like Frederick.

“My child, May I come in?” Father asked, standing at the door.

I threw my face into the pillow in utter disbelief of what had just happened, and father walked in thinking I had been crying.

I looked up.

“Oh! Thank God, I thought you'd been crying your eyes out.” He smiled a little.

“Of course not. I’m fine Dad, I’ll be fine.” I smiled back.

That same day, I walked to the dining area and met everyone seated. Chris shot me a warm smile and asked me to sit next to him.

Silence filled the air as we had dinner. Although we didn’t utter a word to each other, our minds did, and we all pretended like everything was fine.

Just then, Father began to shake at the table.

“Are you okay Father?” I reacted first.

“Yes, my child.” He nodded, and cleared his throat.

I finished eating and got up to leave. I had barely taken three steps before I heard someone collapse behind me. I looked back and found Father lying lifeless on the floor, foaming out of his mouth.

We rushed him to the hospital with immediate alacrity and were asked to wait outside. While we were waiting, Frederick fell on the wall and dragged himself down slowly, Chris paced anxiously, and I just stood, numb.

(An hour passed.)

The doctor walked out and immediately caught our attention.

“What's going on doctor?! Is Father going to be okay?” I said as I got up from the bench.

The doctor shook his head and said, “I’m sorry to say this, but based on our medical report, Mr. Ricardo was poisoned.”

We went quiet for a few minutes. How the heck was Father poisoned? Or better still, who poisoned him?

I got the answer to my question when my eyes met with Rina’s. Out of the burning anger I felt within, I attacked her at the hospital.

Both brothers strived to pull us apart, but I was so determined to remove her hair from her head. Luckily, Chris dragged me off on time.

“Sophia, Please calm down!” He held on to me.

Rina placed a hand on her face and felt a scratch.

“How dare you?! Are you mad? Look at what you have done to my face.” She pointed at the scratch as she grumbled at the hospital premises.

Frederick yanked her closer and saw the same. He stomped off to get a hold of me when Chris pulled him from behind.

“Brother, I respect you a lot. But if you dare take another step closer to Sophia, I will forget that you're my brother, and I will retaliate in a way you won't ever forget.” He warned.

“Oh really! My younger brother now wants to fight me, how lovely.” Frederick replied to him.

Chris looked back and dragged me with him as he stormed out of the hospital.

“Seat!” He commanded.

He sat me down on a bench outside the hospital and protested, “What the hell is wrong with you Sophia? Why did you attack Rina in such a manner?”

“You’re asking me? Do you think I’ll sit back and watch Rina kill the man who has given me nothing but love despite his son's infidelity? No! I won't sit back and watch that happen. And I don't care if Rina eats and spits Frederick away, all I care about right now is to protect the ones that I love and love me too.” I said as I angrily kicked a stone on the ground while talking.

“I understand, but this is not the way to go about it." He said.

“What? What do you mean?” I asked.

“What I mean is that we need to come up with a plan to expose Rina for the fraudster she is, and also open Frederick's eyes to see her deceitful ways.” Chris suggested it to me.

“A good one at that, but how are we going to pull it off?” I replied.

“I have a plan, but first off, we need to gather enough evidence against her.” Chris explained and continued, “Secondly, we have to make sure that under no circumstances, she finds out about this.”

“Lastly, Frederick should be kept in the dark about this. When it is time, the truth of the woman he allegedly loves will be exposed to him. For now, let's go in there and see how Father is doing.” He stretched out his hand to me.

Chris and I spent the whole day at the hospital. He asked me to go back home and get new clothes for Dad, and I heeded. After a long drive, I walked in and saw that the whole mansion was decorated. What was going on?

I slowly proceeded further, and on the way to Father’s bedroom, I bumped into Karis, one of the helpers at home. I asked her why the mansion was decorated, and she said Rina had planned a huge celebration for Frederick's birthday.

She walked away afterwards, still with party decorations.

I frowned at the news as I walked to Father's room. My feet were moving in rapid succession when a hand pulled me backwards. I turned my head and saw the devil herself.

“What is this Rina? Get out of my way please.” I moved her to the side and attempted to leave.

“Hold on Sophia.” She called me back.

“What is it?” I kept a straight face, fiddling to hear her speak.

She pushed herself forward and asked, “Do you see me as a witch? Like do you hate me?”

Rina's question got me thinking, “is this devil finally developing a heart? Or is this only an act?”

I answered, “Rina! I believe you know the answer to your questions, so please don't ask me.”

I turned back to leave, but she held me back, “Hold on! I am trying to have a conversation with you.” She spoke politely.

I returned my eyes to her after shoving her hands away and said, “Did you just say that you want to have a conversation with me? Oh wow, because the moment your presence was felt, everything changed. I lost everything important to me and you think I’ll sit and talk with you?” I rolled my eyes at her.

Rina smiled a little.

“ ‘Miss I’m so perfect’, ‘I have the perfect family’, I am so sick and tired of listening to you. No day goes by without you talking about how lovely your family is, or was because it is now in the past. Especially Frederick whose name you sing as if he were a demi-god. I am sick of it.” She argued. She gave me a jealous impression.

“Wait, were you jealous of me, or better yet, are you jealous of me? Because your words seem so.” I pulled back.

Rina raised an eyebrow.

“You can call it whatever you want, I don't care. But let me tell you something, whatever that's going on, your lovely Father-in-law, Ricardo Rick, is to be blamed.” She walked away, and I watched her leave.

I got curious about her words, “What exactly does she mean by that? And now, only Father can explain the meaning of her words. Does he know something that we don't?”

I drove back to the hospital and dashed into Father's ward. He turned the moment I pushed the door, and I met Chris seated next to him.

He saw the glare on my face and asked, “My dear, are you okay?”

I dropped the bags I brought in and replied, “No! I’m not. Rina told me something that got me thinking.”

“What, What did she say?” He got irritated.

I was just about to speak when the doctor walked in.

That same day, at 9:10 pm, We returned home after spending the whole day at the hospital. Father walked in with me and met a huge celebration going on at the mansion.

Father asked, “What's going on here?”

Nevertheless, he got the answer to his question the moment his eyes fell at the huge sign that read, “Happy birthday Frederick.” He turned and walked past his bedroom.

As we walked past the guests, Rina shifted the spotlight to Father when she introduced him as her future Father-in-law.

Chris dragged her close and implored that no foolish games be played. She dipped a sly smile.

“Fine, No mind games today. After all, it's your brother's birthday.” She slapped his hands away and left.

Afterwards, Frederick walked in and rushed over to hug his father.

Unfortunately, Father pulled away from him, and Frederick looked startled by that.

“Father, Why are you acting strange? It's Frederick, your son. Did you forget about me?” He spoke.

Father got irritated and replied to him in an undeserving manner.

“I do not have a son whose name is Frederick. I don't recall having a son like you. The only son I know is Chris, at least he has proven to be the sensible one. So please don't say any more words, and leave.”

Frederick got sad as he left the presence of his Father.

I had no idea how he felt, but I presumed that he must have been hurt emotionally. At least he knew how it felt to be rejected by the one we love.

(Inaudible conversation.)

A few minutes later, I walked downstairs wearing an off-shoulder gown, color blue to be precise. The guests turned their faces and fixed their eyes on me as I walked down the stairs.

Of course, no one knew about the divorce, and that permitted me to taunt Rina. It was going to be one hell of a birthday party.

Chris walked in wearing his tuxedo. He looked cute, and much better than Frederick looked.

He walked closer and said, “Hello Miss Sophia, you look extremely beautiful this evening.”

I smiled as we both walked away, arms locked in each other.

After a few minutes, Frederick was called to dance with his wife. He moved forward to the dance floor, taking out his hand and hoping Rina would take it. Rather I stepped in and grabbed it.

Frederick looked at me with a frown.

“What are you doing?” He asked.

“What does it look like? I want to dance with my husband.”

Rina saw that and clenched her hands in anger. I wished I could capture the look on her face.

Frederick tried to go after her, but the minute he stepped forward, I stretched out my legs, and he accidentally tripped over because of it.

“Oh my God! Are you okay?” Rina came up running to help.

Frederick shook his head and pushed Rina aside like a doormat.

I watched with a smile on my face. Chris rushed to my side and asked if I had gone crazy. Truthfully, I had no idea what had come over me, but whatever it was, I loved the feeling.

“I’m fine Chris, do not worry about me. Why don't we enjoy the next phase of the drama about to unfold.” I said.

I pointed at Rina, and we saw her taking two glasses of champagne to Frederick.

He took it, still looking aggravated by what happened.

Chris whispered, “What's going on?”

I asked him to watch, and precisely a few minutes later, Rina strolled to the podium and misbehaved in front of the guests after drinking the spiked champagne.

Frederick attempted to get a hold of her, but she pushed him off and got a hold of the microphone. She made a fool of herself in the presence of everybody that came to grace the birthday celebration.

I never knew that a drop of cocaine could make a sane person go insane within a short time. No wonder in school, we were taught that drugs could kill. Truly, if it could kill Rina, it would have been so much easier.

Rina foolishly misbehaved in front of tons of guests, and in front of journalists. I believe tomorrow's headlines will read; “Famous business tycoon, Frederick Rick’s mistress, Rina Thomas, gets high on drugs.”

Frederick stood like a statue, trying to understand the reason behind Rina's weird behavior. Little did he know that I drugged her champagne with the help of one of the waiters in charge.

Chris shifted to me, and before he could find his words, I said, “Now do you know the reason why I asked you to enjoy the party? This is just the beginning.” I wore a devilish smile and left.

I didn't only make Rina look like a fool amidst everyone at the party, I made sure she got tagged as the crazy drug addict, and the mistress of Frederick Rick.

I thought to myself, “I think these headlines sound much better than the previous one, but in all, I won't rest until I make her pay for everything, including Frederick.” This will be fun. (Smiles evilly.)

After the party, Chris dragged me into my room, intoxicated.

“Seat!” He commanded, and ran out to get me a glass of warm milk.

I sat there and noticed someone entering the room. I initially thought it was Chris, but I looked up to see another person I couldn’t recognize.

“Who are you?” A strange man shut the door.

His gaze signaled danger and I knew it wasn't my mind playing tricks on me. He dragged off his shirt and tossed it away. I tried to run, but he grabbed me back and I fell on the bed.

“Help me!!!… Anyone!!!… Chris!!!” I shouted.

I struggled, but the more I tried, the tighter he held me, questioned me and tried to rape me.

However, just when I thought that was the end, Chris walked in and saved me. He tossed the glass to the floor and ran to my aid.

“Hey! get away from her!” Chris shouted and jabbed him.

The second the unknown man attempted to escape from the room, Chris grabbed his head and jammed it to the wall. The man fell unconscious.

“Sophia! Call the police.” He yelled.

I phoned the police and everyone rushed out to see what was happening. Father came in and hugged me. Frederick looked around and eventually walked away.

(Frederick's bedroom.)

Rina was getting ready for bed when Frederick walked in. He perceived her nonchalant attitude and it immediately pissed him off.

“Rina!” He shouted, “Do you know what just happened?” He walked close.

She veered, “No! What happened?”

Frederick, who had a weird expression on his face, said, “Someone tried to assault Sophia.”

“Are you serious about this? Why would I know about it? You suspect me? Wow Frederick, even you? I am a lady as well, and as much as I don't like Sophia staying in this house, I wouldn’t do something like that.” She swore.

“Seriously? Well, Sophia isn't my wife anymore, but still, don't you even think of doing anything against her.’’ He warned and walked away.

Frederick had no idea how much he had angered Rina with his words. She took out her phone and dialed a number.

(Inaudible conversation; 11:00 pm.)

I strolled out of my room to get a glass of water.

I thought, “What would have happened to me if Chris didn't walk in on time? What if the strange-looking man got what he came for? Come to think of it, who sent him? I would have to pay a visit to the police station tomorrow morning to get the answer to my questions.”

I bumped into Frederick who tripped and fell on the floor. Our eyes locked for a while, but everything got turned off when Rina walked in and met us in a compromising position.

“What the hell is going on here?” She asked.

Frederick turned to answer her question, but she shut him up, giving me the audience to speak.

“Awww Rina, don't tell me you're feeling jealous?” I taunted her with my words.

“Don't you dare try to get on my nerves. And for the record, Frederick doesn't love you anymore, so stay away from him.” She held his hand and dragged him away.

The next morning, I got up from the bed feeling a little hazy. I grumbled out of the room and strolled over to get the pill box in the storage room. My feet ambled further but halted when I walked past Rina's bedroom and noticed the door wide open. I had a weird feeling urging me to move in and search through her things.

I succumbed to the feeling and sneakily gained access to her bedroom without anyone knowing about it.

Rina's things were lying around. Her suitcase was kept aside, and when I opened the wardrobe, a pillbox dropped to the floor.

I picked it up and saw a contraceptive pill. I was dumbfounded. Why would Rina have this here?

“It would only mean that she is not pregnant, and if I am correct, contraceptive pills are used to prevent 85% of expected pregnancies. Meaning that whatever Frederick said the other day, may not be true and there might be a slight chance that Rina isn't pregnant.” I heaved a heavy sigh.

Someone was approaching the room, and I quickly hid under the bed to avoid getting caught.

The person walked in.

“Where are my pills?” Rina spoke out.

I noticed that the mentioned pills were still with me, so I quickly moved it away from under the bed as quietly as possible as she veered back immediately.

“There you are!” She said.

I had no idea what the expression on her face was, but I felt relieved that she didn't find me in her room. I left after her footsteps had faded away.

Thereafter, I walked downstairs. Frederick was seated at the dining table, working on his laptop. Father was seated on the front porch, reading his favorite daily newspaper, while Chris was talking on the phone. Rina was seated in the living room using her cell phone.

I needed to find a way to find out the truth if Rina was really pregnant or not. But how would I have blown it out that Rina wasn’t pregnant?

“Sophia, are you okay?” Chris walked to me.

“Come with me.” I moved him away from prying eyes and ears, denoting the truth of what I saw a while ago in Rina's room.

“So, what do you wish to do, is there a plan?” He asked me.

I jerked my head and answered, “Yes, I need to know if Rina is truly pregnant by doing a qualitative HCG blood test, the test checks to see whether any HCG is being produced.”

Chris got lost in my words so I broke it down to his understanding.

“What I meant is, it is done to check if a woman is pregnant or not.” I said.

“Oh, so all you need is a sample of Rina's blood?” He asked.

“Yes Chris,” I answered.

“That's simple. Wait, I’ll be back.” He said.

Chris strolled back into the living room without giving me a slight hint as to what he had planned. I stopped and watched from a far distance.

Chris purposely bumped into Rina who fell flat to the ground. Frederick panicked and ran towards Rina the moment she fell.

“Hey! Can't you see? What is wrong with you?” He shouted at his brother.

Chris apologized for bumping into her.

Frederick ignored him and turned to Rina, “Baby, are you okay? Is our baby okay?” She nodded her head.

“We are fine babe, don't worry too much.” Rina said as Chris raised an alarm at the sight of a bloodstain on her arm.

“Oh my goodness! Rina, you're bleeding! Please hold on.”

He brought out his handkerchief and cleaned the bloodstain on her arm. Without anyone knowing, he stylishly tossed the handkerchief to me.

“Go!” He signaled to me.

(Inaudible conversation.)

After getting Rina's blood test done, I strolled in on everyone seated together. There she was, holding Frederick, who had no flipping idea that the woman he left me for is nothing but a liar.

“Rinaaaaa!!!”

My angry voice fell into everyone's ears. I felt the urge to slap her right on the cheek but I didn't. Instead I turned to Frederick and faced him with the lab result.

“What is this?” He asked.

“Please read.” I replied.

He took it from me and opened the paper. Rina looked, trying to see what was written inside but couldn't. Suddenly, Frederick became teary-eyed and turned to her.

“Please tell me, tell me this is nothing but a joke.” He said to Rina.

“What do you mean?” She answered, pulling away.

Frederick stretched out his hand and grabbed her by the neck.

“Rina! Are you pregnant or not? And before you try to lie, I expect you to think twice about it or else, I won't be responsible for my next action.”
He advised.

“I… don't… know… what… you… mean.” She struggled to speak.

As Rina continued to hide the truth, it got Frederick mystified to the point where he retaliated by raising his hand at her.

“Now tell me the truth, Is there a child growing in you or not? Are you pregnant or not?” He asked her again.

She quivered in fear and convened the hateful gaze in Frederick's eyes.

“I can explain. Please give me a chance.” She said.

Rina thought that her plea for reasoning would gain Frederick’s sympathy. She was wrong because it angered him the more. He held her by her hand and dragged her to the front door.