66. DELE
Chapter 66
DELE
Breathe, I remind myself for the umpteenth time. I have a purpose. Today is not my dying day. Luke will find me. I have people to live for. I’m not alone. Luke and I are going to have children. I’m not going down without a fight. Luke will send an army for me. I just need to hold the line as long as possible.
She strolls in, looking proud but with an edge of unease. I just need to find a way out of here before she goes nuclear.
“I tried to warn you, but you wouldn’t listen.” Her voice is reedy. I can’t tell if she’s upset with me or herself. We both know she’s reached a point where going back is impossible. Yet she holds her head high, her aura dripping with entitlement and half-baked intelligence. The question is, can her little intelligence help her? I need to keep her engaged—maybe I can buy time until Luke shows up. I know in my heart he will find me, but time is my enemy and my ally right now. It’s also the invisible weapon I have. Use it, Dele.
“What did you warn me about?” I ask flatly.
“Walking away from my man, Luke,” she snickers, rolling her eyes.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Her sad laugh and angry eyes terrify me, but I refuse to cower to her twisted mind.
“Yes, you do. I told you Luke and I were meant to be together, but you ignored me and stayed with him. You even lied to him and cost my father millions in losses.” She moves closer, her breath sour with anger. “Do you finally understand? You stole my man!” she yells in my face, her saliva hitting my nose. I turn to wipe it off my shoulder.
“He’s not yours,” I mutter.
“What did you say?” She steps back, eyes blazing. I lock eyes with her.
“He. Is. Not. Yours.” I vehemently state.
The sting of her palm striking my face is loud. I take in a sharp breath, blood seething. I won’t back down.
“Luke is my husband. He’s not yours,” I reiterate.
Her hand slaps me again. I breathe through the pain as a hysterical laugh bursts from her. It seems endless. Then she turns on me and punches me in the face. My lips burst open, blood filling my mouth. I suck it in. I try to clean the blood dripping from my nose with my shoulder, but it's hard with my hands tied.
“You may have stolen him, but once I get rid of you, I’m getting him back, and he will marry me, as planned and agreed upon by our fathers. You are ordinary and a nobody.” I can tell she truly believes what she’s saying. Weirdly, it causes me to laugh. I can’t explain it, but I laugh at her ignorance and my despair, despite the pain.
“What’s funny? Stop laughing.” I laugh harder. Eventually, I stop laughing and give her a pitiful look.
“You think Luke will marry you? To think I actually thought you were a smart woman,” I scoff.
“Yes, he will. You are the barrier in our way. As soon as I get rid of you, he’ll see me.”
“I’ve only known him for nine months. You’ve known him all your life. Don’t you think if he wanted to marry you in the last, say, five years, he would have? The truth is, he doesn’t want you. He loves me,” I sneer.
“Liar!” she shouts in my face, delivering another punch that sends my head rolling back. Blood pours from my nose. Pain radiates through my body, but I refuse to cower to her.
“I’m lying?” I scoff. “I. am. Mrs. Blythe. I. am. Luke’s wife. That’s. a. fact.” I forcibly state, hoping her crazy mind will come to terms with reality, even if it’s just a small dose of it. I refuse to let fear take over and cripple me.
“Yes, you are lying. You seduced him, and now you think he loves you, but I won’t let you get away with this because he’s mine!” she screams at me, striking me once more.
“This shit hurts like crazy,” I murmur. I should stay silent, but I can’t let her win, not while I’m tied to this chair, unable to fight back.
“I seduced Luke?” I snicker. “Little old me seduced Luke Blythe? Thanks for letting me know about the power that I unknowingly have, considering you called me a nobody and ordinary. How is it possible that an ordinary nobody can seduce a man like Luke, unless, of course, he chose me?”
“I don’t know how you did it,” she yells. “But you did, and I intend to break the spell or whatever charm you used to capture him. Before you bewitched him, Luke never walked away from a deal, he always found a way to work things out, but you came in, and now he’s punching old friends and backing out of millions of dollar deals.” I chuckle at her, and at my own dilemma.
“I can tell you with absolute certainty that Luke will never be the same if you harm me. He will never forgive you. So, I suggest you let me go before things get out of hand.”
“Nice try. I may not know what to do to you yet, but you are never seeing Luke again,” she says with such conviction, rage, and hatred in her eyes. It rocks me to my core, and I know that any chance I had to make her see reason is now gone. She has the wealth and power to make me disappear, and I fear what she might do when she finds out I’m pregnant.
Her phone rings. She looks at it, then turns the phone toward me. I see Luke’s face on the screen. My eyes widen when she pulls a gun from her back and points it at me, a finger on her lips, telling me to shush.
“Hello.” She keeps her gun pointed at me while pretending to sound normal.
“I’m good, just working.” Pause. “No, I haven’t seen her.” Pause. “I took your warning and didn’t go near her or get in contact with her.” Pause.
“Well, I hope she didn’t run off with some loser.” She smiles. Pause.
“I’ve heard crazy things, so don’t let it shock you.” Pause.
“How about you and I have dinner tomorrow so we can patch things up, no hard feelings? Sure, she can come too.” Pause.
“Okay, bye.” She hangs up.
“He’s looking for you, and I will make sure he never finds you. I’ll be his comforter, and once I’m pregnant, he won’t have any choice but to marry me,” she says with a look of triumph, as if her plan is working. She makes another phone call, leaving the room and closing the door. I struggle to free myself from the zip ties. The more I struggle, the more they cut into my skin.
She comes back after a few minutes, giving me a pitiful look, like my time is up. “I’m handing you over,” she says with a grin.
“To whom?”