The Morning After
"Well, you are right. Jason knew about the will," Mirenda said, walking towards the bed.
Mrs Haward was sitting behind the dressing table cleaning her face with a cleanser. She stopped cleaning her face and turned to look at Mirenda who was sitting on the bed.
"How did you find that out?" Mrs Haward asked curiously.
"I spoke with Julia. She told me their first meeting was by accident, and they became secret friends and one day he asked her to marry him, and she said yes," Mirenda reported.
"Just like that?" questioned Mrs Haward.
"Yes, mum. It makes perfect sense why they are so distant from each other. They never dated," Mirenda added.
Mrs Haward sat in silence processing the new information in addition to what she already knew.
"Julia is the daughter of her husband. Basically, she is his only blood. Mirenda, James and Jason are all outsiders. Jason, by marrying Julia, has become the rightful heir to the Haward's fortune," Mrs Haward thought.
"Mum?" Mirenda called but Mrs Haward was still in deep thought, so she never heard her daughter calling.
"From what Mirenda is saying, it is obvious Jason knows something. His marriage to Julia is quite strange, especially for a man who never gets close to women. Well, whatever Jason knows is not important if Julia is no more," Mrs Haward thought, and the corners of her lips curled upwards.
"Mum!" Mirenda called out to her louder, this time startling her.
"What?" Mrs Haward replied, annoyed.
"I have been calling you. What happened?" Mirenda questioned with a frown.
"Nothing, I was just thinking," Mrs Haward replied and got up from behind the dressing table and walked towards Mirenda who was still sitting on her bed.
"Good job. You have done well," Mrs Haward said, placing her hands on both sides of Mirenda's shoulders and pulling her up to her feet. "Thank you so much. This information was perfect. Keep engaging her for more," she added as she walked Mirenda to the door, almost like pushing her out of the room.
Mirenda was both listening and wondering why her mother was pushing her out of the room. Mrs Haward opened the door and, standing with her at the entrance, kissed her forehead.
"Get some rest, let's talk more in the morning," Mrs Haward said with a smile.
"Okay mum," replied Mirenda with a confused expression, but she walked out of her room.
"When will anything of mine please this woman?" Mirenda thought as she headed for her room.
Mrs Haward, ensuring Mirenda had actually left, quickly fetched her phone, dialled a number and brought the phone to her ears.
"I will go with your plan. What do I need to do?" Mrs Haward said and then went silent on the call, listening to the person at the other end of the call.
Meanwhile, in the apartment above the 6th floor, two bodies intimately entwined in a beautiful rhythm. Julia let go of her fears for that moment and allowed her passion to take over. Jason, who was drunk and hence was not giving his actions much thought, equally gave in to desires driving him crazy at the moment. He did like the feel of her lips, the taste of her mouth, the feel of her delicate skin, her scent and the feel of her body. The more he explored her body, the more he was driven crazy with passion. After their passionate session, both exhausted, they fell asleep wrapped in each other's arms. The room heater was at the right temperature, so even with no clothes on and no blanket they were not cold.
It was 5 a.m. when Jason slowly opened his eyes. The room was partially dark and someone was breathing steadily next to him. The familiar scent told him it was Julia. He recalled the night's event. He had too much to drink after inviting her out based on his therapist's advice. He recalls getting nervous and emptying the wine bottle. That was not what he planned for the night. They were both lying on the sofa side by side with Julia more in his arms and resting her head on his chest. With the little light, he could see her face and it was divine. With her sleeping, he was less nervous. Tempted by her flawless skin under the small light coming into the room, he slowly moved his other hand to touch her face. Rubbing the side of her face down to her cheeks with the back of his hand, Julia moved her body, which was providing him with some warmth slightly, exposing a part of his body which was quickly hit by coldness. He immediately realized that they both had no clothes on. He freaked out and pushed Julia off him, making her fall off the sofa to the floor. Julia woke up and sat on the floor, bringing her mind to focus on hitting the floor. She also freaked out when her gaze fell on him under the little light and her hands quickly flew to cover her exposed body as she pushed backwards till her back hit another chair.
"Get out," Jason ordered.
His voice was very deep and terrifying, making Julia tremble all over. She got up and ran towards the stairs with the little light. Forgetting she was not in the 6th-floor apartment, she climbed the stairs and headed for what she thought was her room.
Jason was not paying attention to her after ordering her out of his presence. He picked up his clothes, put on his pants and walked towards the bathroom downstairs. He had a splitting headache from all the drinking he had done the previous night. Under the shower, images of him and Julia flashed in his mind and he could recall how he felt. Even though he liked it, he could not accept it.
Julia, on the other hand, upon reaching what she thought was her bedroom door, could not get in. She tried opening it and realized it was locked. Terrified, she could not go back to the living room. Aside from being scared of Jason all over again, she could not return to the living room because she was completely naked.
She pressed her back against the door and sunk to the floor hugging her legs.