Chapter 1
Louisa
Dragging the bag of dung, I constantly wiped the sweat trickling down my forehead.
“Louisa?” Vanessa, my friend, called as she ran up to me, panting heavily. “Is everything okay?”
“Here.” Her face radiated with smiles as she waved a brown envelope before me. It was her paycheck. “The boss is calling you to come get yours.”
“Here, help me and keep this, then.” I placed the rope tied to the bag of dung in her hand.
“Hey, wait.” She grabbed my hand. “Today is your birthday. Why are you at work? I was surprised when I saw you.”
“Ohhh, I forgot to tell you.” I smiled, blushing so hard. Taking a deep breath, I walked closer to her and gently took hold of her hand.
“You’ve been my best friend all my life. You know how I’ve been doing this job to support my boyfriend, and now he’s done with school, has gotten a good job, and was even promoted. He said he feels bad seeing me still doing this type of job, especially in my condition.” I muttered happily, staring down at my tummy.
“So… what now?”
“Hmmm, my boyfriend asked me to quit work today. Matter of fact, he said he’s taking me out, and guess what?” I giggled happily and leaned close to her ear. “I think he’s going to propose.”
“Propose…?” Her eyes widened as I pulled back.
“Hmm, so I’m going to tell Sir Zack that today is going to be my last day at work, but because he’s been good to me, I plan to stay until he finds a replacement for me.”
“Wait, are you sure he’s going to propose to you?”
“Of course. I could feel it already. We’ve been together for so many years. He’ll propose, believe me.” I pouted.
“Alright, fine. He will. Now go answer Zack before he start nagging.”
“Alright.” I smiled at her and hurried off immediately.
When I got to Sir Zack’s office, he was sitting down, his huge glasses on as he looked through a book.
“Sir Zack?” I called politely, and he looked up at me.
“You’re here.” His face lit up happily as he took off his glasses.
“You called for me.”
“Yes, dear. Yesterday, you said you wanted to discuss something with me, but before then, here is your salary.” He forwarded a brown envelope toward me.
I picked it up, peeked through it, and indeed, it was my paycheck. Clasping my hands together, I bowed my head.
“Thank you.”
“It’s nothing. You’ve always been diligent with your work. I can still remember the first time you came here asking for an advance payment to sort out your boyfriend’s school fees. Back then, I had trust issues, but something in you made me believe I could trust you, and indeed, you never disappointed me. You are one of my best employees. Over the years, I heard your boyfriend got promoted at work?”
“Yes…” I smiled happily.
“That’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about.”
“I’m one month pregnant.”
“Really? That’s good news.” His eyes sparkled.
“Thank you, Sir Zack. That’s why my boyfriend said…”
I paused.
“Come on, say it. I’ll understand.”
“Mmm, he said I should quit because of the stress and so I could focus on taking care of myself.”
“That… that’s a good one.” He pointed joyfully at me and slammed his hand playfully on the table. “Now I know that Felix is a real man. You know, I almost doubted his loyalty to you because of how he allowed you to take on so many tedious jobs and when that incident happened to your father. But I guess everything happens for a reason. As long as he’s taking care of you now and giving you the life you deserve for all these years of suffering, I’m one hundred percent behind you quitting.”
“Really? Sir Zack, what about my replacement? Have you found anyone?”
“About that, it’s not a problem. We will always find another worker. I’m just sad that finding an honest and worthy person like you is going to be so damn hard. You’re more like a daughter and a family to me now.”
“Thank you so much, Sir Zack.” I pouted cutely, because these people were almost like my family too. We worked together, ate together, and even shared our problems together. Sir Zack and his wife are like my parents.
Walking out of his office, I felt so much peace and relief. I thought it was going to be hard breaking the news to him, but it was not even as hard as I thought.
“Louisa?” Vanessa called, hurrying up to me as I was walking out.
“What happened?” I caught up to her, seeing how panicked she looked.
I dragged up my shirt a little and wiped the sweat on her face.
“Everything is fine. I just got a call from the guy I was seeing. He told me to come meet him because something came up.”
“You look worried. Are you sure everything is fine?”
“I don’t know yet. I hope so, but I still need to go and find out.”
“Alright, call me as soon as you get there, okay?”
“Hmmm, go home safely, okay?” She said to me, and I nodded.
Watching Vanessa leave in such a hurry got me worried. I’ve never seen her so anxious before.
My phone beeped, and I bent a little and unbuttoned the pocket of my faded, baggy jeans as I brought out my phone. The screen was almost disfigured and beyond repair. It was a good thing I could still receive calls and read messages.
Looking at the notification, I saw a message from Felix. I happily clicked on it, and it read:
Come to this address: Block 6 Crecks. I have a surprise for you.
On reading his message, my anticipation heightened. My belly roared and churned in happiness, and without wasting time, I began hurrying back home.
Yesterday, I saw him looking at apartments on his laptop. I even saw he’d made payment this morning. So many things were happening at the same time. Our life was changing so fast. I didn’t know which one to be happy for.
I got back to our tiny apartment and quickly took my bath because I was smelling of dung, and that was bad. I scrubbed my body so well and hard, after which I dressed up in my best skirt and blouse.
I didn’t want to keep my Felix waiting, so I grabbed my old purse, which was almost tacky and tattered, but it was okay because our lives were about to change.
I left the house, jamming the door shut, and hurried down the street. I got onto a motorcycle, and the ride to my destination began.
My heart was beating so fast. After everything we’ve been through, we were finally having our happy ending. I couldn’t be any happier than this. I had been smiling nonstop, and my cheeks were almost burning and hurting at this point.
“We are here,” the rider reminded me.
I got down, paid him, and he zoomed off.
Looking at the building that matched the address Felix gave me, I noticed it was in a busy part of the city.
Could this place be where he works?
Wait…
He wants to propose to me in this beautiful place.
Oh my gosh…
I picked up my pace and went inside, but on getting into the building, everywhere was empty except for a hospital bed by the corner.
Strange.
“Felix?”
“Baby, I’m here.”
“Felix?”
Hearing no voice or reply, I decided to bring out my phone from my purse. Maybe I was at the wrong address.
But just as I brought out my phone and tried swiping on the screen, I felt a stab and a stinging sensation on my neck.
Turning swiftly to see who it was, I was surprised to see a strange-looking lady wearing a glove and holding a syringe in her hand.
“Who are you?”
“What have you done to me?” I challenged, getting anxious and scared as she stood there gawking at me without uttering a word.
“If you keep being silent, then I’m calling—”
I hadn’t even finished my words when my legs wobbled, my hands shook, and my whole body reverberated, as if I was losing control of it. My bones felt like they were crippling, my purse and phone both fell from my hands.
My eyes widened in shock. Fear gripped me. My stomach screamed for me to run, and my head chanted for me to bolt for the door, but my legs betrayed me and wouldn’t move.
“Come out now. It’s time to start the operation,” I heard her utter.
The moment I tried to open my mouth and say something, I realized my throat was shut down. I couldn’t say anything. I couldn’t move.
With each passing second, I could feel my bones going numb, and numb, and numb.
Staring into space to see whom she was talking to, I saw a familiar shoe and suit coming out.
My chest hammered as I looked up.
It was him.
My vision stopped for a moment.
Felix?
What was he doing here?
“Here is the equipment you need.” I heard a familiar voice as she showed up.
Vanessa?
What were both of them doing here?
“Carry her to the bed.” The strange lady gestured at Felix.
He walked up to me without uttering a word, carried me to the bed, and laid me down.
I began shaking my head, gesturing at him to take me out of here, that I didn’t feel safe, but the look I saw in his eyes was unfamiliar, one I’d never seen before.
“Hey, bestie.” Vanessa waved at me.
Both of them stood beside me. I was constantly shaking my head, staring at the two people I trusted the most in the world, hoping they would take me out of there.
The lady came next, holding a sharp scalpel and surgical scissors.
No… no… no…
I kept shaking my head, staring at Felix and Vanessa.
“I’m sorry, Louisa, but I cannot allow you to have this baby. We have to get rid of him now that it’s still early. I don’t see a future with you. I can’t be with you. Vanessa has been the one I always loved. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure I leave you with enough money.”
No… no… no…he’s lying right?
This has to be a joke, a huge one at that, where is the camera?
“I’m starting” The lady announced
I began shaking my head, tears blurring my vision as they rolled down. It just dawned on me that I had walked into a death trap organized by my boyfriend and best friend.
How could they do this to me? How could Felix do this to me after everything I went through for him, after all my sacrifices and…
Dad, I’m sorry. I really wanted to use this money for your surgery. I’ve been saving it all this while for your surgery, but Felix has an important exam in two hours. If he doesn’t pay, then it’s over for his career. I promise I will go out and make sure I get another money for your surgery. I won’t let anything happen to you, Dad, but for now, please let me save Felix’s career first.
Doctor, I’m back with the surgery fee. When are we starting the operation?
I’m sorry, Miss Louisa. Your father died five hours ago.
Five hours ago…!
Five hours ago…!
Five hours ago…!
The words echoed in my ears as I watched Felix stare at me with a completely blank expression.
“Mmmmm…”
A stab pierced my stomach, followed by a raw cut. The pain surged through me, piercing my heart. I shook my head rapidly as the pain burned.
“Stop shaking your head and sit still.”
A loud, thunderous slap burned my cheek.
I wasn’t shocked.
“Vanessa, are you okay? You’ve been staring into space since morning?”
I’m not, Louisa. I haven’t eaten in days, and I badly need a place to stay till I can afford my own apartment.
Here, have food to eat first.
Really? Isn’t this your breakfast?
I can always get another food, but you? You need to eat first. You’ve been starving for days.
Thank you so much, Vanessa. You’re such an angel. I promise to repay you back someday.
And about your accommodation, if it’s okay with you, can you join my boyfriend and me in our apartment? It’s not so spacious, but I’m sure we can manage.
Yes… yes… yes. Thank you so much.
“Haha… haha…” I began laughing so hard. I didn’t know how I regained my voice, but I could only laugh through my tears at the height of the betrayal.
“Why is she laughing? Isn’t she supposed to be dumb until the whole process?” Vanessa muttered.
“That’s the least she can do. We have a more complicated problem.” The lady muttered, looking at Felix with a worried face.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“She’s bleeding. I can’t stop it. We need to get out of here.”
“What about the baby? Have you removed it?” Vanessa insisted with bloody eyes.
“No, but she’s going to die anyway. We need to leave here.”
“Haha… haha…”
I laughed harder, my tears falling nonstop.
“Shut up!” Another slap from Vanessa, but that only made me laugh louder.
“Move…” Vanessa pushed the lady to the side. “If the surgery is not yet completed, then there’s no way I’m going to leave here. That baby must not live.”
She drove the knife into my open belly, stabbing deep. Pain ripped through me as I shut my lips, my ears rolling to the back of my head and hot pee streaming down my legs.
She yanked the knife away and drove it in again with force, my mouth shutting completely, my body erupting in shock and pain.
Yanking the knife away, blood splattered all over her face, staining her white dress.
“Here.” She put the knife in Felix’s hand.
“Use your manly strength. I want to make sure she’s dead for good,” she said to him.
“Can’t we leave already?” he hesitated.
“Do it, Felix. Be a man. You’re not a chicken.”
And that’s all he needed as the knife drove through my belly, sending a zap of shock through me as my body went limp.
“Let’s go, let’s go. She’s not going to make it,” the strange lady said to them.
“Oh, and I have one more thing to tell you.”
Vanessa smiled, holding onto Felix’s arm.
“Since you’re dying, I might as well let you know.”
She leaned closer, her smile turning mocking.
“The money you gave Felix for his exam—the money that was supposed to be used for your father’s surgery?” She paused. “We used it for our first-ever lovers’ trip.”
Her smile widened.
“Sorry, bestie. We didn’t force you to sacrifice for him.”
She gave me one last mocking smile before kissing Felix.
“Bye, bestie. I hope you die… horribly. Because I’ve always hated you. Not just you, but your guts and your ego.”
She turned to Felix.
“Let’s go.”
I watched them all scramble away, leaving me to die.
This was the man I gave up everything for, and the lady I would rather watch eat while I starved.
This is the highest form of betrayal.
I heard thunder strike and the rumbling sounds of the sky. The wind coming from the window was so strong, and I knew it was about to rain heavily.
If someone had told me that one day my stomach would be cut open by the two people I trusted the most, that I would be stabbed and left to die, I wouldn’t have believed it.
Watching myself, I thought I might have died at this point, but I was still alive and breathing. And so, for that, I believed the universe believed in me. I wasn’t going to become some pathetic fool who died hopelessly from grief and pain.
I BELIEVE IN REWRITING MY FATE.
I BELIEVE IN SECOND CHANCES AT LIFE.
BUT MOST OF ALL, SOME PEOPLE MUST PAY FOR THEIR SINS!
I don’t know what happened next, but after my declaration, I realized I could move my muscles a little bit. Maybe the drug they injected into me was beginning to lose its power.
I wanted to come down from the bed, but there was no way I could, so I struggled. I secured and covered my tummy with both hands, closed my eyes, and tumbled from the bed to the ground.
Surprisingly, I felt no pain. I’d already been through so much, and at the point of death, what pain could be more than the one in my chest? The internal pain of betrayal.
I want to live.
I have to live.
I will live…
Crawling and scraping my nails into the cemented floor, the veins in my neck visible as I struggled, dragging my body and crawling toward the door.
With every muscle I moved, pain surged through me. My once perfectly tied hair was now scattered and all over the place, sweat streaming down my forehead like a pool of water.
It felt like I was crawling out from the pit of hell, but I’m actually crawling out from both the pit of hell and death.
Remembering my father’s words when he gave me that assuring smile on his hospital bed that day:
What do you say to the spirit of death when it comes?
Not to Today
Exactly. That’s what I’m believing in.
Death. Not today.
I’m going nowhere. Not after losing everything I have. Not today. Not today.
“Death, not today…!” I screamed with everything I had left as I crawled out through the door.
FINALLY!
“Krrrrrr…!” The lightning struck harder as sprinkles of rain began to fall, and one landed right on my face.
“I can’t do this anymore!”
I heard the loud scream and looked up to see a lady standing in front of the building I was currently in. She was on the edge, and it looked like…
No… no. It couldn’t be what I was thinking.
“Everyone in the Barker family has deserted me. They all hate me and finally succeeded in marrying my sister off to the love of my life, who turns out to be an obedient mummy’s boy, a complete lackey who cannot even fight for what he wants.
“Now there’s nothing left for me. How could they expect me to get married to an old man? They’ve always wanted the position of an heiress. They all wanted me out so badly, so the daughter they could control could take over.
“Now I’m out of the way, and they can do whatever they want. God! God! If you’re up there listening to me, I want you to punish all these people for me, all of them that had planned against me and made me lose my position and the love of my life. Please make them pay.
“I, Dianna Barker, will forever be grateful to you.”
Right before my eyes, she jumped.
“No…!”
I screamed while stretching my hand toward her.
Heavy rain began pouring, lightning flashing, thunder striking nonstop, mighty wind blowing in all angles, lights from the sky flashing right over me.
And everything blacked out.
