Jane Wellington
“Vera, I didn't even know I was pregnant. I am still in shock and still thinking of what to do with this new life I didn't know was coming. How do you think they will take it? And that is James' baby too," Fiona complained with a worried expression registered on her face.
“Oh, Fiona, I do not know much about the Wellingtons and the Hawards but for them to do what they did to punish criminals like the likes of James, provide you shelter and a job for what James did to you, I don't see them to be that bad," Vera explained.“I am sure, they will rejoice at the news," she added and Fiona went silent.
"Really? You believe they will reduce I just had James's baby?" Fiona questioned after a minute of silence.
“Okay Fiona, what is the main reason why you don't want them to know?" Vera asked looking at Fiona suspiciously as she tried to understand why her friend wanted to keep a baby hidden.
“It is not an easy news to share. Especially when the child is that of James," Fiona said her voice just above a whisper. "This is a man that caused them so much havoc and I will sleep with him despite all he did to me and them to the extent that I got pregnant for him. How do you think they will take that?" she added. "Mr Jason Haward is the type that analyses situations and looks beyond the surface. At least the few times I have been around him, that is what I noticed. Do you think he will just look at my situation like it is nothing? It's not like I was raped by James or I slipped and he fell on me and I got pregnant," she said in frustration, her fears very evident around her.
“Hmmmm. But Fiona, come to think of it, didn't you tell me you were taking precautions with James? So when and how did you get pregnant? How many times were you two boiking each other?" Vera asked sternly, concluding from Fiona's statement and reaction that Fiona was just enjoying sleeping with James which could only mean she was in love with him and Fiona looked away.
“I know that look. Fiona, I warned you," Vera chided already getting her confirmation but but kept it to herself as she wanted a concrete confirmation of Fiona's feelings for James.
“I didn't do it deliberately. You wanted things to be real and natural. I only followed the flow," Fiona snapped, her tone expressing the fact that she blamed Vera for her pregnancy.
“Oh, so now it is my fault? Did I tie you up to the bed and construct the road that led James's rod into your ever-green land?" Vera barked annoyed by Fiona's comment. "And oh, if I remember correctly, you are the one who came to me asking for my help to get revenge on James by getting him to confess to his crime and you intend will use that to vindicate yourself. I gave you the laydown plan with specific details and told you to be careful around the sweet tongue James. You were just supposed to follow the plan and prevent him from getting into your pants by using your pregnant but oh no, you gave your body to him in the name of following natural flow. How is that my fault dummy?" she yelled and Fiona shifted back staring at the ranging Vera.
“Vera," Fiona called out her name weakly.
"What!" Vera snapped but quickly calmed herself seeing Fiona had sunk into the bed looking at her terrified.
"I am sorry but now is not the time to shift blame. I am not blaming you for what had happened. It's a mistake and I need your help. Please. No one must know about the baby. I also need your help with medications to keep up my appearance. I will figure something out. I promise,” Fiona pleaded. “Please you are all I have. Help me,” she added with pleading eyes.
Vera closed her eyes and inhaled deeply before sighing. Her gaze softened and she pitied her friend.
“Fine, I am doing this for old time's sake. Figure out something and real fast. If not, I will bring your baby over to work and present her to you as a trophy," Vera threatened to ensure Fiona does not decide to dump the baby on her.
“I thought you got my back?” Fiona commented.
“I got your back but I don't do baby stuff. They are like alarms you can't turn off. You can only snooze them and they come up again after a couple of hours," Vera complained. "I love my beauty sleep," she added folding her arms across her chest and Fiona just stared at her.
At the family Condo which was now Mirenda's owned apartment, Mirenda was wrapped in Henry's arms both lying in bed.
“I am a little worried about Fiona. She didn't look well at all," Mirenda complained.
“What is wrong with her?" Henry asked.
“I don't know. But you know after the whole incident of getting her out of prison and all, she had become extremely quiet for a once outstanding journalist," Mirenda explained.
“Well, she trusted James and got betrayed. And in her attempt to get justice, she ended up in prison. Only God knows what happened to her there. This can be traumatizing. Just give her time, she will recover," Henry assured and planted a kiss on the top of Mirenda's head.
“Okay, if you say so," Mirenda said and nestled into Henry's arms ready to drift off into dreamland.
“Babe, how do you feel about us getting married end of this month," Henry asked the question out of the blue and Mirenda raised her head to look at him.
“Is that a proposal?" Mirenda asked with her eyes glittering with joy and she supported her weight resting on her elbow as she stared at Henry"s face under the dimmed light.
“Yes,” Henry replied with a smile.
“Yes, I am okay with it,” Mirenda accepted beaming with joy. “I will marry you, my love," she said, hopped on Henry, and planted kisses all over his face with joy as she sat on his belly.
Henry smiled and pulled her into a hug. He flipped her over coming on top and stared at her smiling face.
“You are the best thing that happened to me. I love you, Mirenda," he confessed, his eyes filled with love and Mirenda returned the smile responding in the affirmative.
Henry captured her lips in a kiss. Mirenda reached out wrapping her hand around his neck and pulling him in. She arched her body to his responding to his kisses.
"Are you okay if I take things a bit further?" Henry whispered parting away from the kiss and Mirenda smiled.
Her lips twisted with a shy smile but she nodded making Henry smile back.
He kissed her jawline down to her shoulder and pushed the hand of her sleepwear down getting her out of it. Her bare chest was in clear view and Henry admired her.
"There is no going back once I do this. Are you sure?" Henry asked again for her confirmation.
They had kissed and played with each other's body but Henry never went beyond that.
"Yes, my love. Make me yours. Make me a woman," Mirenda whispered back, her voice very seductive.
"I love you," Henry confessed and Mirenda unbuttoned his shirt slipping it off him.
She planted kisses on his chest. Henry raised her chin and captured her lips in a deep kiss as his hands played with her chest. He trilled the kiss down her neck to her chest and Mirenda surrendered to him as he pleasured her capturing one of her peaches in his mouth. She let out a soft moan enjoying the pleasure. His free her fondled her another peach and more moans escaped Mirenda's lips. Mirenda felt his hand going below her belly and he pulled her pants down and took it off her. She felt his fingers go inside her and she let out a louder moan than her previous. Once he felt he was ready for him, he took his pants off and captured her lips in a kiss.
"Are you ready?" he asked and Mirenda nodded.
"It's your first time, this will hurt alone but I promise to be gentle with you," he said and Mirenda nodded her body yearning for more of the pleasure.
She felt a sharp pain as he slowly impaled her. She wrapped her arms around him holding him tightly. He moved his hand to her chest. Mirenda was between pain and pleasure but she didn't want him to stop. He felt him slowly move his body on her and with each move she felt him go deeper into her. She held on to his body as the pain she felt faded off replaced with pleasure which consumed her. The night became theirs as Henry made Mirenda his.
At Jason's, he was tending to the baby while Julia slept. He sat in the breastfeeding chair with the baby in his arms and he was holding the feeding bottle to his lips. The baby had his eyes wide open staring at Jason's smiling face.
Back at Mr Wellington's apartment. He had just freshened up. He walked into the bedroom and after putting on something comfortable, he climbed into bed. He placed his phone on the bedside table but before he could turn off the bedside lamp, the phone began to ring. He checked and it was a strange number calling. He ignored it but his phone beeped with a message notification. He read it in the preview section and frowned.
‘I got your number from Dr Andesh’
In less than two minutes the same number called again and Mr Wellington answered.
“Hello," he said in a deep cold unwelcoming voice.
“My love, it's me," came Mrs Wellington's voice.
“Jane, what do you want?" Mr Wellington went straight to the point sounding irritated by her voice.
“Calm down, my love. By law, I am still your wife as long as I live. We never got a divorce," Mrs Wellington reminded and Mr Wellington frowned.
“It's late and I need to rest. In case you have forgotten, I am not a young man any more. I need to rest," Mr Wellington snapped.
“I just called to say thank you. Dr Andesh called me this evening and told me what you did for me. I appreciate it a lot and I hope one day you find it in your heart to forgive me. I had no ill intention in mind when I did that. I knew the works of those kidnappers. I thought…."She said and Mr Wellington cut in angered by her statement.
“You thought what Jane?" He growled sitting up on the bed. "You thought sacrificing an eight-month-old baby was the best thing you did for this family? Do you hear yourself as a mother? Do you have any idea what Jason went through? Have you no compassion for an eight-month-old defenceless baby you carried for nine months and gave birth to through a C-section?" he yelled angrily into the phone. "Did you even care what those kidnappers were going to feed him with or even take care of him? I could already imagine they left him to cry his eyes out. What were you thinking, Jane?" he yelled and touched his chest. "Are you that inhuman?" he added.
“I don't mean it that way. I know it wasn't the best decision I made but faced with the threat, you, the family, your career and the havoc the video will cause, was what flooded my mind. I thought of our baby. How life will be for him if your career was destroyed and I made the call. I knew you would have enough money to meet the kidnapper's demand and buy our son back," Mrs Wellington explained and her explanation got Mr Wellington boiling.
His face turned red with anger and his hair stood on their edge.
“Jane, I asked Dr Andesh to release that account to you and gave you the money you requested together with all that she gave you because I still remember my vow to you on the altar. Take that as your settlement. Never call my number again. I will send the divorce papers over and you can sign it. To our son, you are dead. So remain dead. We still visit your grave from 24 years ago with flowers and we will continue. Stay dead Jane," he said harshly and ended the call without waiting for her response.
When he ended the call, he realized his heart was racing abnormally. Her words and explanation made him so angry. He knew Jane loved money but he never anticipated she would go this far in making such a decision. Faked her illness, faked her death and had her eight-month-old baby kidnapped. He took in deep breaths and tried to remain calm. He poured himself a glass of water and fetched his blood pressure medication which he forgot to take and threw the tablet into his mouth, washing it down with lots of water. After taking the medication he tried to relax but the phone started ringing again. His gaze quickly shifted to the phone and upon seeing who was calling he was enraged. He took the phone and turned it off.
At another location, Mrs Wellington was sitting on a bed with a lady friend.
“So, how did it go?" Maria asked, searching Mrs Wellington's face for answers.
“He switched off his phone," Mrs Wellington replied dejectedly and Maria smiled making Mrs Wellington frown.
“That is a good sign. You worked him up. Does he have any chronic illness? Like Hypertension, diabetes, cancer, maybe," Maria asked with a broad smile plastered on her face.
“Not that I know off but he is still my husband and I don't have plans of losing him to the cold hands of death," Mrs Wellington said sternly, staring at Maria with a frown not at all finding her comment as funny.
“Chill, I was joking about the illness but look," Maria said with a wave of her hand. "You can get him to take you back and I will help you. After all, your sacrifice gave him the power and wealth he has now. And look at it from this angle. Your son, Jason, would have been dead due to starvation if she didn't do what you did. You guys would have been very poor and societal ridicule. Your sacrifice made all this happen. Now look what they have achieved, the Haward and the Wellington working together," Maria pointed out. "Jane, this is all thanks to you and your husband should be kissing your feet instead of casting you aside," she added.
“No Maria. What I did was terrible. I endangered my son's life and destroyed the family bond. My husband spent years mourning over me and my son lived as a slave in another home. What if my husband never found him all these years? I would still be in Mr Taga's dungeon eating with the rats as my only family," Mrs Wellington said.
“No Jane. Don't let him bully you. We all know the work of those kidnappers. They kidnap kids of rich people and demand huge sums of money. You pay, and your child is returned. Imagine the video had gone out, your husband's business would have been destroyed and you guys will remain poor forever. Jane, you are the superhero here. You acted smartly and saved your family. There is a sacrifice in everything. You looked at the big picture. If there was anyone who suffered, it was you. You stayed in a dungeon of rats for years. Ben fed you what he liked while they walked free and ate the best of food. Jason your son, got a double inheritance, all thanks to the smart decision you made 24 years ago. If anything Jane, you paid the highest price. You deserve to enjoy more than the peanut he had given you," Maria convinced her.
“He is going to send me the divorce papers," Mrs Wellington informed her dejectedly and Maria burst out laughing like a witch making Mrs Wellington frown.
“Ha! Since when did the dead start signing divorce papers? Let him bring it, I will tell you what to do. In the meantime, let's stick to our plan. Call your daughter-in-law again tomorrow," Maria said after her loud laugh.
“Why are we calling her and not saying anything to her?" Mrs Wellington asked.
“I am triggering a reaction from your son. He will start looking for the strange caller. Let's see how he feels about his father hiding the fact that, his mother is still alive from him," Maria said with a sinister smile. "Get some rest. It is already late. Tomorrow is another day," she added.
Maria stood up and exited the room so Mrs Wellington could get some rest. Mrs Wellington said goodnight to her and lay down to sleep.