Chapter 44

She was trembling terribly, and he gently pulled her close, cuddling her. He made her rest her head on his chest and stroked her back. Damn! He never knew his wife starved yesterday! Oh my god! Oh! "Did you take the pain relief last night?"

"N…no," She quivered.

Without saying a word, in his arms, he gently led her to sit on the sofa in their room. He sat close to her and drew the table close. "You don't have to take something heavy for now, okay?" His voice was soft.

He opened the plate of flavorful pasta and vegetable source and its appetizing spicy aroma wafted into their nostrils. The cold orange drink frothed as he poured it into the rock glass and gave it to her first.

When she'd taken a sip, he dropped the glass and said softly, "Eat."

She was just too frail and couldn't handle anything. Her whole body was shaking. Studying her closely, he couldn't help but notice the bruises he'd left on her, plus the marks of his fingers on her white tiny face, and chills whirled down his spine. He's hurt this woman. He thought. How was he even doing this to his dear wife? His tender wife. He was gazing down at her intensely.

The cutleries clinked against the plate as she placed her trembling hands on them. She just couldn't help being aware of Cayden's presence. She was feeling the weight of his gaze upon her. Lifting the cutlery to eat the food, her hands were twitching terribly…

And he gently held her right wrist, his glittery blue gaze fixed on her. She was just so scared of him. He'd noticed this a couple of times. He thought. Or…was it just she having a guilty conscience??

Gently, he took the cutlery from her shaky hand and said, "Lemme feed you."

Feeding her like a baby was heaven on earth for her. She was just having a whale of time at the moment. The way he waited patiently for her to finish chewing and swallowing was priceless. Now this is the Cayden she'd always known…not until she…she got pregnant. She thought, fighting hard to refrain tears from dropping.

He was taking his time on her. It surprised her that he returned home just to give her his attention. The attention he'd been starving her of. Wait. How did he even get to know she'd starved?? She wondered. Curiosity was glinting in her gray eyes.

****

After she'd finished eating, he gave her the pain relief capsules. He just couldn't live with himself seeing that big lump he'd left on her eye region.

It must hurt pretty bad. He thought.

In a couple of minutes, he took her to bed. "You gotta rest." He watched her lay on the bed and then he took the dishes outside and slammed the door with fury.

The girls bowed to him as he entered the kitchen.

"Oh, Mr. Brooks!!" Jasmine hurriedly took the tray from him with a bow and he patted her back.

"Thank you, Lady J," He said and walked off.

And laughter lit up all their faces. "Aww!" The girls chorused quietly and Jasmine blushed.

Dropping the tray on the cupboard, Jasmine heaved a sigh of relief, placing both hands on her chest.

"Wow!" Vera smiled. "You did it!!"

"That's why I love Mr. Brooks," Zaria said. "Despite his commanding position, can't believe he can be so humble. Aww! That's so sweet!"

"Yeah," Leah said. "He's always a good and understanding man…"

"Yeah," The girls chorused.

"He's very understanding," Jasmine smiled, recollecting the drama at his office. "Can't believe he even tried to calm my panic attacks."

"Really?!" The girl's face beamed with joy and curiosity.

"It wasn't as fierce as I thought." Jasmine chuckled softly. "Y'all dunno the half of it." She narrated how dramatic it was and they laughed…

But the sound of yellings intruded on their discussion and they paused to listen.

"How dare you, Mom?!" Cayden thundered, his whole body trembling with rage. "How dare you!!"

In a fit of anger, he'd spoilt the doorknob and stormed into Bianca's room, slapping her randomly on her face and she'd blushed red. Burning tears had gathered in her wide eyes and were flowing freely down her cheeks.

"You had the nerve to starve my wife?!!" He beat his chest furiously. "My own wife?! What gave you such right, huh?! What makes you think you can mistreat the woman I love?! What makes you think you can mistreat the woman I got married to, huh?!!"

Her wide blazing eyes fixed on him, her heart was thumping in her chest and her nerves were burning. Her lips were trembling. "Y…you sl…slapped me, Cayden?" More tears ran down her cheeks. Her palm was placed on her left cheek.

"And I will do it again and again if you ever fuck with Elodre!!" He roared and she winced. "Mom she's my wife for freaking sake!! My fuckin wife!! And there's no going back! There's nothing you can do about it!!!" Pointing his finger directly at her eyes, he said between gritted teeth.

Bianca blinked.

Huffing, he placed his hands on his waist, glaring down at his mother. "Mom, I knew." His quiet voice was undertone with fury. "I knew from the first night I saw you here! I knew you were here for evil! You're evil!" He thundered. "Oh, you think I didn't know you were pretending the night you fuckin apologized to me?" He was pointing at her face. "You were just tryna make me eat from your fuckin hands!"

He blew out and said, "But Mom I know you better than that! I fuckin know you!!! We both know you can never change! We both know you're evil!!" He said in a quiet angry voice. "You can never turn me against my wife no matter the fuckin efforts you put in. Never!!"

"And you had the audacity to yell at my wife?!" He was beating his chest. "I know what you're so fuckin capable of saying to my wife even if no one tells me! You keep calling her a prostitute! You keep nagging over how she'd slept with Dad." His voice was thick with rage. "But I don't care! I don't fuckin care, okay?!! You keep accusing her of turning me against you." He chuckled shortly and shook his head.

Shock flashed on Bianca's face.

"Elodre is my wife," He beat his chest again and then pointed his finger at her face. "And you must learn to accept it that way!!" He glanced at his wristwatch and said, "You know what? You're leaving first thing tomorrow morning."

And she gasped.

"As I'm leaving for work you're leaving as well. Like it or not!" He huffed and said, "This should mark the end of your visit! I never wanna set my eyes on you again! Never visit me again! It should stop!" He trembled in rage. "I'm going back to work right now and I expect you to pack up your stuff!"

With tears rolling down her cheeks, she watched how he stormed out of the room, leaving the door wide open. This was very disrespectful! She thought. She'd never been more surprised until now. Trembling, her sight blurred as she sobbed on the bed.

*****

Wiping his face with his palm, all sweaty, he got into his room to check on his wife. She was already fast asleep. Gazing down at her, he saw the tears on her cheeks and gently wiped them off with his big thumb. He touched her forehead with his palm back and noticed she was running temperature and then he gently brushed her lump with his thumb.

He studied her for a while and walked out of the room, mildly shutting the door.

He jogged downstairs and the girls jerked upon seeing him. "Jasmine?"

"Y…yes, Mr. Brooks!" She hurried to him and faced down.

"Make sure my wife is fine, okay?" He said softly. "Prepare her favorite lunch and make sure she eats properly, okay?"

"Of course, Mr. Brooks." She smiled. He patted her back and walked off.

***

In the evening, Bianca emerged from her room and walked down the stairs in her rob. There wasn't anybody in the living room. She went straight to the kitchen, glaring at the crotch of sharp glistening knives. The knives were clinking against themselves as she snatched one of them, gritting her teeth.

Holding up the knife, she could see her reflection in its sparkling stainless steel. She licked it and…

…..