“You know, Madam. This decision of yours is reckless.” Petrus, as Fernando’s family’s personal lawyer had reprimanded me many times, and I didn’t care at all.
To hell with my family’s lawyer, he would never know anything. Like how Aaron’s love for me was overflowing. I believed him, he was the husband who had tied the knot with me three years ago in front of the priest, and he promised to take care of me until I died. So, there was no reason for me to suspect him, let alone think that something bad would happen to our marriage after I handed over all of my family’s inheritance to him.
“Don’t be stupid, Petrus. He is my husband!” I answered in a high tone.
The man lowered his head, my anger had made him feel that he had been impolite. He should have known that from the start.
“I’m sorry, Madam. I just wanted to protect you.” Petrus tried to explain.
“From my husband?” I joked while mocking him.
I folded my arms across my chest, trying to suppress all the emotional turmoil in my heart. I brushed back my loose hair, then folded the hem of my skirt and sat on a row of blue chairs, right in front of the entrance of a door that had the words local district court written on it.
“Humans are the greatest treacherous creatures of all time, Madam. Never mind a husband who is not blood related. Even one family can betray each other.”
I clicked my tongue, waving my hand so that Petrus wouldn’t speak again. Everything that came out of his mouth made me sick.
I turned my head, when the blue mini car was parked nicely in front of the lobby, then I looked again at Petrus who was still standing right next to me who was sitting.
“You see, he even picked me up. He’s still taking me home when he is busy with his work, don’t you see how sincere he is to me?” I mocked Petrus again.
I left, while responding to the wave of the handsome man who came out from the side of the car’s driver seat. I smiled broadly, hugged him, and kissed him. Yes, he was Aaron, my husband who had always been suspected by Petrus. A suspicion that was completely unnecessary.
How could it not be, who didn’t know Aaron’s family? The Abbas family was a family that still had very thick Middle Eastern blood. They owned a business empire that was not only in one country, but the world. All that wealth was more than enough to live in luxury for seven generations, when compared to my inheritance, it was nothing at all. So what should Petrus be worried about all that? A very stupid thing.
“What’s with the ugly face of your family lawyer, Merry?”
I shook my head, after we finished kissing I immediately got into the passenger seat and smiled at my beloved husband.
“No, he was just making small talk with me.”
Aaron looked at Petrus, shrugging his shoulders. He didn’t seem to like Petrus from the start.
“But everything went smoothly, right?” Aaron asked.
I immediately lifted a large brown envelope, a document that I had almost forgotten about. I smiled widely just as Aaron enthusiastically looked at the entire contents of the document.
“This is amazing!” Aaron exclaimed. I knew that he would be very happy with this gift. A small promise of mine, to give him all my family assets as a gift for his 40th birthday. “I never expected that you would do all this for me, Merry. I love it.”
“Because I love you, Aaron. And you should know that in this world there is nothing more valuable than you.”
“I love you too.”
We kissed again for quite a long time, until the sound of a car horn managed to make us both laugh, and we decided to leave the place immediately.
The next day, Aaron seemed ready. I was quite confused because Aaron had never told me before that he was going on a business trip or anything.
“You will go?” I asked, tying my hair up carelessly, then I walked over and kissed Aaron on the cheek.
My husband was very neat, a blue suitcase was already by his side. Aaron nodded then he smiled at me.
“I regret not telling you this earlier, Merry. I regret having to leave for two weeks, Merry.”
I was silent for a moment, it was unusual for Aaron to leave suddenly. Was the company not doing well?
“Tell me, is the company in trouble?” I asked, starting to worry.
“No. I don’t have time anymore, Merry. I have to go.”
I didn’t have time to accompany him for breakfast, I saw Aaron leaving in a hurry. I took a deep breath, it felt so heavy to see my husband leave, especially since he will be gone for so long of course.
“Is your husband gone?”
I stopped in my tracks. It was that man again, I had tried to avoid him for so long. Yes, Imran Abbas who was none other than Aaron’s uncle who always interfered with my life. I didn’t know what the man’s goal was, I just felt annoyed by his attitude of knowing it all.
“Didn’t you tell him to?” I said, a little annoyed.
Imran was the holder of the highest throne and heir to the Abbas family fortune. As the only son in this family, it was as if he had a golden ticket to get everything, and all members of the Abbas family had to obey all his orders. Unfortunately, Imran’s age was not much different from Aaron, his nephew. The two were only two years apart in age.
“Tsk! Why didn’t you follow him? Who knows, he might not be away… working.”
I didn’t understand what he said, only that I was given a phone that displayed a location tracking application, and I saw that the green dot that was moving was most likely Aaron’s movement.
I was about to get angry, but I started to notice that the direction Aaron was heading was not the airport but one of the apartments in the downtown district.
“Nadya Thomas. Surely you are familiar with that name, right?”
“What do you mean?” I started to feel annoyed. However, Imran did not answer anymore, the man immediately left.
I held my chest quite tightly, I started to be curious about Aaron’s GPS point. Until finally, I took my coat and immediately I rushed to look for the point. And it turned out to be true, Aaron’s car was parked neatly in a basement of the apartment.
I started to feel anxious. I knew one of the owners of this apartment unit was Nadya, my best friend.
My tears fell on my cheeks, my body shook violently seeing all this. Like a nightmare that I never wanted, I witnessed all the heartbreaking things with my own eyes.
I walked over to them, I pulled Aaron’s arm roughly. Both of them were shocked by my presence but I didn’t care.
“What are you doing!” I was angry. I looked at Nadya and slapped her, Nadya just stayed silent while holding her cheek. “You’re my best friend, Nadya. You’re my best friend! And he’s my husband!”
“Shut up!”
The slap landed smoothly on my cheek. It was a slap from the man I loved so much, a slap from the man I loved. A slap that destroyed all my trust and love in one go. How could Aaron slap me for that other woman!?
