Maxwell's home in Kayooma was about twice as big as Jordan's.
The 13-acre estate contained a sprawling eight-bedroom mansion, a golf course, a spa, a fitness centre, gardens (rooftop and in-ground), a stable with the best equine in town and other amenities. Despite the array of buildings around, there was still enough greenery around for a well-designed park.
The driveway that led up to the gate was an art in itself. It was a winding, paver driveway with an aesthetic to it that was hard to find anywhere else.
Thomas swallowed hard as he looked around while driving up to the house. He realised that he was sweating.
He still had no reason why that arrogant bastard had called him but when the latter hinted that it would do him good to come over to the address he would send to him, Thomas had not thought twice about it.
His hatred for the guy was conveniently forgotten; he needed whatever he could get right now. His mother had grumbled a bit before she gave him the money for the gas but he was here, wasn't he?
If he could get something out of this trip, at least he could use it to pay some of the debt he owed his would-be publisher.
It was an advance payment on his about-to-be famous book but then the bitch ruined everything!
Thomas deliberately calmed himself as he drove on to the house that seemed to be getting farther and farther away since he started up the driveway.
He could see different structures along the line; though he could guess what a few of them were for, he didn't even bother with most since he had never seen anything like them before.
Moreover, he had been told to keep driving till he got to the end of the driveway so he kept going.
The motherfucker had subtly dropped it that if he so much as took a small detour, he would be detected immediately.
Thomas could already see artistically shaped cameras along the drive anyway.
"As if I am a thief that would dare to steal something off his damn land," he said as he swiped at his face again.
Uncertainty was not the only reason why he was sweating; the main reason was the hissing noise that was coming from the car's refrigerant.
The car's AC gas had run out days ago. Though he still stubbornly put it on every time he entered the car, all he got was that silly hissing noise and useless air.
The fact that he couldn't even get something as little as gas in his car was another sore topic for Thomas.
It was all the fault of that bitch!
The police had been sniffing down his neck for days now. He was sure the bastard had a hand in it.
They said the b*tch had been unconscious since.
"Unconscious, yet staying at a place like this," he snorted as the house finally came into view.
The caramel and chrome-coloured house with its unique design almost had Thomas salivating.
This was the kind of life he wanted!
This was the kind of life he deserved!
That bitch took everything away from him and now he had to leave like a dog while the police sniffed after him!
He would have the last laugh, though.
He would!
His mood darkened as he saw the motherfucker waiting for him at the front of the house.
Standing beside a sports car that looked like it had just been unveiled, Maxwell Rohan stood in an impeccably tailored shirt and trousers that moulded his sculpted body so perfectly.
Envy reared its head like an ugly snake inside Thomas.
"Bastard could afford to be arrogant," he muttered before he came out of his overheated car.
"Mr. Rohan," he said with a fake smile.
Maxwell gave him a look that made him feel like spit-out gum on his well-polished shoes.
"Come with me," Maxwell said and he turned to enter the house.
Thomas quickly followed him, as if afraid he might be sent away emptyhanded.
His mouth dropped open as he entered the high-ceilinged foyer and he saw that the exterior of the building had not done much justice to what was inside.
"People live like this?" was the first thought that came to his mind.
He had thought Reyona was rich but the opulence in this mansion was far more than what he had ever seen in real life.
He was so busy gaping that he couldn't quickly react when Maxwell suddenly turned, grabbed him by the neck and automatically slammed him against the wall of the alcove close to the foyer.
"What are you...?"
The rage burning in Maxwell's eyes was enough to shut Thomas up.
"For the record, I still believe that you have something to do with that fire. It is a matter of time before you will be nailed, you bastard."
Thomas's heart kicked against his rib. He tried to talk but Maxwell's hand on his neck was crushing his windpipe.
"You will kill me, man," Thomas wheezed out as his eyes bulged.
For a moment, it seemed like Maxwell would apply even more pressure to his neck but then the latter released him.
He stepped back, like he was afraid of contracting something foul from him.
Thomas bent over as he choked out and coughed as Maxwell cleaned his hand with a pristine, white handkerchief.
"I will make it easy for you," Thomas heard through his ringing ears.
He raised his watered eyes to Maxwell as he gulped in air.
"You must wonder why you are here. If left to me, you deserve to be locked away for the rest of your life."
"Why am I here then??" Thomas thought automatically as the woozy feeling in his brain decreased.
"But this is about her." Maxwell continued as if he heard Thomas's thoughts: "She has amnesia. She believed the two of you were still married. She wants to see you."
Of all the things Thomas had been expecting, that was the least. He stood straight again as his brain started whirring in calculation.
"You are going to go in there and gently explain how things are to her. You are not to mention the hurt you caused her. You are not to mention anything that would cause her distress. You will go in there and simply tell her that the two of you went your separate ways because things did not work between you. Then you would disappear from her life forever, and not even your shadow would come close to her. Is that understood?"
"Yes," Thomas said immediately.
"Your performance would determine whether you would be rewarded or not," Maxwell said.
"Okay," Thomas said anxiously. "Can we go now?"
Maxwell's eyes narrowed on him and he said, "If you double-cross me, I will make you pay. Not just you; your entire family would pay dearly for it."
"I understand," Thomas said in a contrite tone.
Maxwell gave him a long look and said, "Follow me."
"Finally," Thomas thought as he followed him down the hallway, which was so polished that Thomas could almost see his reflection in the glossy-finish porcelain tiles.
This time, though, his mind was no longer on the opulence around him.
His mind was more on what the arrogant bastard had told him.
As he touched his hand to his neck and remembered the chokehold and the threat Maxwell had just given him, Thomas's brain was spinning furiously as he followed the man who could easily be his brother-in-law if he married Susan.
He was not thinking of what he would say to Reyona at all.
His mind was on a new angle of possibility!
This could be his comeback!