ONE MONTH AGO.
“How could you be fooled by Leonard? I’m pregnant with his child!”
Vera yelled this statement at the top of her voice as she stormed into Leonard’s room with audacity, her heels making clacking sounds across the floor.
Wendy Ford and Leornard Wisley's happy moment was interrupted by the presence of Vera. As Vera’s words penetrated Wendy’s ears, her body quivered and she stepped back away from Leonard, who was kneeling before her with an engagement ring in his hand. What was supposed to be an engagement night turned into a somber moment. Wendy’s hands trembled frantically as she continued to gasp in surprise. The audacity that Vera's attitude oozed could slit her throat.
She waited for Leonard to shun Vera, but it never happened. Leonard’s eyes were graced with a look of permanent astonishment, and his face lowered slowly with guilt. Wendy felt a sword of pain pierce her heart, and she scrambled back farther away from Leonard with heaviness in her heart. She had been deceived.
“What then is this? What’s going on, Leonard?” Wendy questioned shakily. “Did you bring me here to humiliate me? Is this a movie scene or what?”
“It’s not what you think, Wendy. Get a hold of yourself. We will sort this out," Leonard pleaded in a strong and clear voice.
“You truly thought you’d get away with this just like that, Leonard? You can’t toy with Vera Bute’s emotions and go scot-free,” Vera lashed her tongue viciously. Her hands were akimbo, ready to fight Leonard with her words. It was her words against his. “How could you both betray me this much? After all the love I showered on you, Leonard?”
Leonard rose slowly and moved like a beaten fighter to comfort Wendy.
“Get your hands off me. You’re a miserable liar,” Wendy said uncontrollably. “Five years down the drain in a flash. Not even did you respect me enough to do this with a stranger. Why Vera? Why your secretary? Why did it have to be someone I recommended to make business better for you? I trusted you, Leonard. I left everything in your name. Gosh!”
“Let me explain, Wendy,” Leonard responded. “And you, Vera, why would you barge into my home uninvited?”
He didn’t even have the wit to face Vera squarely. What had Vera done to the man whom she thought loved her dearly all these years? Wendy’s eyes were filled with tears, her teeth jittering reflexively.
Vera gazed at Leonard discerningly, with no trace of respect on her chubby, unapologetic face.
“Uninvited? Really? I have the keys; I can come in and go out whenever I deem fit.”
Wendy let out a deep gasp when those words struck her ears.
“What? Leonard! A house I put in so much money to pay for?”
Wendy stood in disbelief, and words failed her. Her stomach tightened painfully. This would confirm why her poor mother hated men and never married again after divorcing her father. She thought hers would be different, but the night proved otherwise.
She was losing her mind and didn’t even know what to make of the whole situation. It was the end of the road for them, but where would she start? Leonard had virtually everything. She had been fooled. They both toiled day and night to build the company from scratch, but she stupidly allowed everything to be in Leonard’s name.
“Vera, why did you have to reap where you did not sow?” Wendy asked.
“Excuse me? Your boyfriend’s cock couldn’t stay in place. He brought this upon himself. And who would throw away the opportunity to have a ready-made man like Leonard? You know I wouldn’t.”
Vera uttered those words crudely and without remorse.
Wendy cursed the day she offered help to Vera. She had bumped into her while she was cleaning up a restaurant she visited with Leonard. Sympathetic after hearing Vera’s pitiful tale of how she lost her corporate job and had been struggling to find a decent job for a while, she was moved to assist Vera in finding a job. When Leonard’s former secretary suddenly quit the job, she pleaded with Leonard to offer Vera the position.
She shook off the memory and grabbed her bag without further ado. Leonard ran after her, whimpering like a child and uttering words of apology, but she turned and gave him a loud slap on the chin.
"Never utter my name again. Never Leonard,” Wendy shouted.
She scurried off after slamming the door in his face. Her heart was pounding so hard that it felt like it would burst. She continued to gasp for air. She clambered into her Dodge Charger and landed on the driver's seat with a loud thud. Her body felt as heavy as a corpse. Tears dropped from her eyes as she realized what had just happened.
She banged the steering wheels and lowered her head sorrowfully. What would her dear, poor mother say? Her mind was filled with disappointment and regret. Against her mother’s warning, she had gone ahead to support Leonard in building a company from scratch, a stupid move that she made because of her love for Leonard. She was still paying loans she took for the company from her temporary lecturing job.
She suddenly felt trapped in the mid-city of Madison, where she had lived all her life. Every memory of Madison will be a constant reminder of the hurt that Leonard has brought upon her.
She picked up her phone with trembling hands and called Silvia, her best friend.
“Where are you, Silvia? I’m in a messy situation.” Silvia’s background was filled with loud music.
“What has happened, Wendy? Why is your voice shaking?” Silvia inquired.
Wendy spoke hurriedly in response, “Where are you? Leonard has been banging Vera.”
Silvia let out a hiss. “That whore! I knew she had something up her sleeve. I’m at the LaCrosse Club. Come and meet me here. You need to unwind.”
Wendy didn’t even think twice, like she always did, and agreed to come over. She arrived at the LaCrosse Club a few minutes later, and the club vibe permeated the entire space. She sent Silvia a message to let her know she was waiting, and Silvia responded that she should come over to the bar.
She walked into the club sneakily, shoving aside men and women who were staggeringly inebriated and falling everywhere. LaCrosse Club was not the regular club in the pool of clubs in the area. It was a steamy club that had moist bodies rolling over each other during clubbing hours. The deafening music thumped and echoed. Wendy’s body started to perspire. She had always wondered what Silvia liked about the club, but today she cared nothing about the steaminess. After a few minutes of scrambling to get away from the touches of moist bodies, she found herself sitting on the bar stool, facing Silvia, who was already tipsy.
“I never trusted Leonard. You know that. Men are scum, Wendy. Bang them, devour their money, and flee. What’s love? Poor you. You were blinded by Leonard’s pretense.”
Silvia told the bartender to give Wendy some vodka soda, and Wendy gulped the soda thirstily. Silvia understood how hurtful this was for Wendy. She wasn’t done with Leonard until she confronted the lunatic who betrayed her friend. She just had to get Wendy in a good mood.
“Let’s go to the red room, Wendy. You need to get out of this mood tonight. Bang hard tonight, my friend. Unwind! Let that lunatic be. He can’t take away life from you.”
The pain was all Wendy felt, and she was ready to give in to anything that would take all her misery away. Her mind was clouded, and she wasn’t thinking rightly. Silvia took her by the hand, and she followed her behind. The soda was spreading through her veins, and she staggered a bit. She wasn’t used to high alcohol levels.
“Hey, beautiful.” A hand grabbed her hand firmly, but gently.
Silvia turned to look at the man suspiciously. He was a snack. Silvia noticed he was in the company of hefty men who looked like security guards and smirked.
“What do you want, man?”
“I just want to have a drink with your friend. She’s stunning.”
“Why should I trust you?”
“I came down from Grey to run some businesses, and I’m just out here catching up with old friends. I have been watching her from here.”
“Who are these?”
“Men on duty. There is nothing to fear. They’ll ward off any evil that may come our way.”
Wendy couldn’t stand for much longer. The drink was moving in fast, and she felt dizzy. She settled on the empty couch, close to the man who was wooing her.
“You see, she wants in.” The man smiled admiringly at Wendy.
Silvia leaned forward to whisper to Wendy. “I’ll be in the red room. Send a message if you feel unsafe.”
The night passed quickly, and when Wendy woke up in a hotel room, her last memory was being hard prodded by a man's dangling, sensual arm inside of her. She jumped off the bed hurriedly as she watched the man, whom she had gone all the way down with, sprawl on the bed. He was handsome, young, and well-built. His features were flawless, with his lips perfectly sculpted to fit his chiseled face. His hawkish nose pointed prominently out of his face, while his hair looked intact even in his sprawled position.
Wendy reached for her clothes and pulled them on hurriedly and gently. She didn’t want to wake him. This never happened, she thought to herself. She was already late to deliver morning lectures, and she didn’t have time to waste. Wendy tiptoed to the door, and the door clicked as she opened it.
“Hey. You’re leaving?”
His voice startled Wendy, and she tightened her hold on the door handle.
“I’m late for work. And this never happened, mister. This was a mistake.”
Wendy didn’t want to turn or raise her face to give him much of a view.
“Do you think so, Wendy? I can pay you today for you to stay.”
Wendy stiffened while giving him a scornful side eye. How did he know her name? She had a blurred memory of what transpired between them at night. And who was he to offer her a pay? He was surely a silver-tongued man, like her betrayer.
“Please, for the sake of everything I hold dear, this did not happen. I must go. I have a lot colliding in my head already. I don’t need your money."
He rose from the bed and strode like a predator, gently toward Wendy. Wendy observed him through the corners of her eyes. She quivered a bit and felt chilly as his masculine figure approached. His masculinity clouded her presence.
“Are you frightened? I want to have you once more, at least. Can I? You tasted like fine wine brewed exquisitely for Kings.”