Leila didn't move until she heard the sound of their front door closing. She dashed to their wardrobe and dragged out her box, shoving clothes into it in no particular order. She had to leave this place before he returned to hurt her. That man wasn't her husband and the greatest mistake she made was letting him know her plans.
She should have left without notice.
Clothes went into one bag and shoes went into another. Anything she forgot here could be burnt or donated to charity. Leila finished packing, changed into loose fitting clothes and ordered an Uber to Freya's house. She wasn't sure what she would tell her best friend but she would worry about that on her way there.
The phone in her hand vibrated when the Uber driver arrived, she hurried to the door to open it and her heart sank to her belly.
No. No, please.
Leila twisted the knob, pressed her leg against the door and tried to yank it open but it didn't budge. The door was locked. Her husband locked her inside their bedroom.
Everything came crashing down on her.
His betrayal.
His indifference to her absence.
His screaming at her.
His molesting her.
Leila fell to the floor in a heap and curled into a ball. She wouldn't cry because of that man. She dared not cry.
Her screen lit up with the number of the Uber driver and the dam burst open. An agonising sob tunnelled out of her throat and pain coursed through her veins. Her broken heart broke into a million tinier pieces.
Their argument rolled over her in slow motion. She tried to remember what could have provoked the amount of hate burning in his eyes. He never flared up before, so what changed? She didn't do anything.
Wiping her eyes with the hem of her sleeves, she picked her phone to call Freya. The call was brief, and she went straight to the point. "Did you tell Kev about Charles?" she asked the moment Freya answered.
Two nights ago, Freya tried to call him after the movie was over. Same thing happened last night. Leila didn't discourage her friend because she missed her husband, and she wanted to hear his voice. She was angry but also tired of fighting and was ready to talk. If her friend had indeed spoken to him about it, he should have been more sympathetic towards her.
"No."
Leila sat up and hugged her knees to her chest with one hand. The statement Kelvin made was still ringing in her ears. "Did you tell him why I broke up with Charles?" She hiccupped. She had stopped trying to keep the tears rolling silently down her cheeks. "That Charles tried to... Did you tell Kev?"
"I... Leila..."
She bit her lip. "Did you or did you not tell him Charles tried to rape me?"
"Yeah."
Tears fell down Leila's cheeks. It wasn't only Kelvin that betrayed her, her best friend did too. "It wasn't your story to tell, Freya." Her friend tried to apologise but she cut her off. "When?"
"The day we met up to discuss Darren's project."
"Okay. Thanks for letting me know. Take care."
Leila ended the call while her best friend was still talking. Her phone rang immediately and she switched off the phone. She had come home to get her things ready for work while half-hoping Kelvin was at home so she could scold him. They would have reconciled with his tongue and finger between her legs. She would starve him of a blowjob and kisses for only today as punishment for failing to check on her.
Alone and confused, she got out her clothes and started folding them properly. Charles and Kelvin were truly related. He showed it today, a perfect example of the phrase: Blood is thicker than water.
He ripped her dress because he was mad at her. Her tears blinded her vision. Leila couldn't boldly say he wouldn't have forced himself on her. He was so angry, so strange.
Done with the clothes, she cleaned the neat bathroom and toilet. Her stomach grumbled but she had no choice than to continue working. Her hands were sore by the time she was done, and she took another bath to wash off the smell of her husband from her.
Time seemed to have slowed. After all the work she had done, it was just a little after twelve. She crawled into bed, hugging the pillows a little tighter. Her body was tired, so was her mind. Soon, she fell asleep.
When her eyes fluttered open, the room was a bit dark. She looked out the window and wiped her face with the back of her hand. Kelvin was at the wardrobe arranging stuff. It took a second for her to connect the dots and when she did, she jumped out of the bed.
Leila dragged her luggage from him. She yanked the clothes he had arranged into the wardrobe and stuffed it back into her bag. Kelvin arched a brow, he was still dressed in his suit and she wondered how long he had been home.
Home. The word left a sour taste in her mouth. This place was no longer safe for her.
He took out the clothes she put back. They began a cat and dog game of taking out and putting in. Leila was close to losing her mind. She was hurt, angry and hungry. She couldn't deal with him right now. Kelvin continued to arrange the clothes with the same speed as she was pulling them out of the wardrobe. Out of anger, tiredness and frustration, she screamed.
For a moment, everywhere was still as the couple faced each other. Kelvin's eyes were laced with concern while hers was filled with rage and hatred for him.
"What is wrong with you? Haven't you done enough? What do you want from a cheap fucking whore?" Her chest heaved from her outburst, she dragged the hanger from his hand and removed her clothes. Crouching to arrange her bag as best as she could, she murmured under her breath, "Like Charles, like Kelvin. Like McKenna, like Black. All one and the same."
His shoes came into her line of vision when she was still packing but she ignored him. For some reason, she was having trouble zipping up her bag. She spent so many hours arranging it and he ruined it in a few minutes the same way he ruined them this morning.
"Why weren't you at work today, Leilani?"
The question came as a shock to her, then the shock morphed into an unrecognisable anger. She rose to her feet slowly. This had to be a dream. He locked her inside the room yet he expected her to have appeared at the office.
Leila scoffed, her eyes raked him from top to bottom and her lips lifted in mockery.
"You are insane, Mr McKenna."
Folding his hands in front of him, he smiled bitterly. "For missing work without prior notice to me or your superior, you're fired. Clear your desk by tomorrow."
It wasn't anger she felt as she squatted to pull off her flip flops. Whatever it was, it motivated her to hurl her slippers at him, hitting him square in the face. It didn't satisfy her, she wanted to do more to hurt him like he did to her. She couldn't hit him because he was stronger and his threat was still a fresh memory in her mind.
"I'm done." Her hands swept over the room, her bag with shoes toppling out of it and the box she wasn't able to close due to the amount of clothes. "You can have my things. You can keep them or maybe give them to Mia who isn't a cheap whore. But I'm done with this marriage, Mr McKenna."
Kelvin steeled, he wrapped his arms around himself and she feared for what he would say. "You're only done when I say you are. This marriage is not over."
"You can't make me stay," she said, rushing to get her laptop. "Our contract says we don't have to be together anymore if one party is no longer comfortable with the arrangement." She found the laptop and switched it on. Her foot drummed into the floor while she waited for it to boot. "I'm done. I don't want your money. I don't want any compensation. I'm leaving. I want out."
Tears rolled down her face in torrents as she opened the inbox folder to get the contract. Kelvin had not moved an inch but he remained unfazed by her words. She had to get the contract, she had to leave him.
A ray of hope bloomed in her chest when she found it. Article 7.2. "Look." She pointed at the screen. "It says it right here. In the case of a misunderstanding, both parties will try to settle it out of court. If one party refuses to continue the arrangement, the marriage can be annulled. I want an annulment, Mr McKenna."
"What does article ten say?" Kelvin asked. Her eyes moistened, she sniffed and scrolled through to the end of the document. "Annulment or divorce can only happen after one year. In that period, both parties must be faithful towards each other. Faithful being the keyword, Leilani."
Leila shook her head, she clasped her hands and offered him a contrite look. "Let me go. Please. Let me go. Divorce me, Kev."