Wicked Girl (THE FIRE Book 1) Read online

  After a few seconds of silence, I heard him move out. Then I heard him speaking with Chloe downstairs. I couldn’t gather what they were talking about. Probably, it was simple, small talk, but I couldn’t help but feel jealous and embarrassed he was talking to her about me…silly me…probably he wasn’t talking about me. But I wished they would not talk anymore. I wished they weren’t in contact any longer. I wished I would not have another day at work with them left alone in the house. I almost collapsed when I thought what if they were already sleeping together when I was at work. What if Chloe is preg? I froze and my towel dropped when it came to mind that Elijah wasn’t pushy anymore. When I asked not to sleep with him because of exhaustion or whatever, he would say, “Okay.” He never begged anymore. Never. It had been months now.

  9:45 AM

  I had no idea where I would go but it was important for Elijah to find me packing all my stuff – leaving him with Chloe.

  I stood on the bed with both knees and zipped the pink suitcase with difficulty. It was overloaded – not because I put a lot of clothes in it, but I just cramped them up – I had no patience to fold them properly. My hands were even shivering.

  A voice in me said, You are taking this way too far and you will regret every bit of it. My mind said, “No ways. You have got to show this man what you are made of.”

  Elijah stood at the door squinting at the wall without my framed photos and the carpet littered with clothes, photos, and boxes. He also gazed at the bed flooded with my clothes, shoes, bags, suitcases and me jumping with my knees on the blue suitcase. “What’s happening?”

  “I’m leaving you with your wife,” I said.

  Elijah hastened to me and snatched my cell phone on the bed. “Ten minutes ago, you were talking with Mila.” He shook his head. “Look, Grace, I don’t have a problem with us clashing. That shows we’re a normal couple. One thing I hate and will never tolerate is Mila’s interference in my marriage. I married you, not a panel of your friends. I can’t have a board of your friends deciding what happens or doesn’t in my house. I can’t have them dictating who should or shouldn’t be in my house – when I should or shouldn’t have sex with my wife. I married you, not some pathetic, clueless shadows behind you. But if you feel those shadows throwing voices into your head are more important than me, our marriage, our kids, just leave, but make sure you leave my kids.”

  I swallowed some saliva, not knowing what to say – I didn’t expect him to be so robust. I thought packing my stuff would bring him down. “What should I do with that speech? I said I’m leaving you with your wife.”

  Elijah laughed. “Speech. My wife.” He laughed again.

  I trembled, froze and felt rooted to the bed.

  Elijah gazed at my face. “Now, I’m beginning to think some demons have gotten hold of you. They are in partnership with Mila. You have never acted out of character like this. This is not the Grace I said ‘till death do us apart’ to. This is some –”

  I stopped loading the other stuff into the other bag and glared at his eyes. “This is some what?”

  “Some whatever,” Elijah said. “Where are you going? You didn’t answer me.”

  I jumped off the bed. “Why do you even care? I’m leaving you with your gorgeous blonde. After all, she will pay rent for you.”

  He didn’t say anything but wore the serious face that always scared me to bits. He nodded his head as if some remedy had just dropped in it. “I’ll tell you what, if you have made up your mind, fine. I can’t tie you with a rope. You can go if you are sure you won’t regret this. You know very well, I will never run after you begging you to come back. Never! The next thing I will do today is to tell my family, your family and your mom that you have taken a step to finish the union between you and me.”

  I sweated. I gripped a hat and squashed it. I shook more intensely.

  Elijah broke the awful silence, “Just decide whether you want to build a family with me or you want to please Mila with your life. I’m fed up now.” He was quivering and sweating too. But it was not due to fear. It was anger. He slammed the door and left me beginning to cry.

  I was shattered. His reaction was extremely different from my fantasy. In my head, I had seen him chasing me in the yard, grabbing my suitcase and dropping to his knees, begging me to stay with him or his life would be over. I would sob, pretending I didn’t want to stay any longer. Then he would rush to the house and drive Chloe out telling her never to come back, ever. However, I would grab my suitcase and continue running away, pretending I still wanted to leave. He would chase me, find me on the road and beg me, explaining that Chloe would never come back. Still, I would refuse. But he would snatch the suitcase from my hand and pull me back to the house – literally forcing me. I would be a goddess – thoroughly seduced – feeling wanted, extremely desired by my man.

  I stopped crying and came back to my reality that Elijah didn’t make me feel that way. I felt useless, useless and useless. I slapped the suitcase numerous times and kicked the bed. But I didn’t feel any better. I felt empty, clumsy, and hopeless.

  1:12 PM

  I opened the main door, wishing I was alone. I had never felt so stupid in my life. At least, if Chloe was not in the living room. I picked the suitcase from the veranda and pushed it inside. I also took the other bags and threw them inside. I got inside and closed the door behind me. Chloe turned and glanced at me from the couch. Her eyes looked cruel, like those of a cobra. Probably she was scared I would stab her in the neck. But I had neither will nor energy to accomplish that. I was as pathetic as the rotten brown couch she sat on.

  I pushed the suitcases behind the couches, making sure our eyes did not meet. I felt way smaller than the smallest ant – microscopic. At least, she also learned between the lines – she didn’t talk to me. She continued watching the television whilst grating some carrots.

  I left the suitcase at the foot of the steps and walked back to take the other suitcase and bags.

  “May I help you take the suitcases upstairs?” Chloe said, staring at me.

  I gawked at her cruel eyes. “There is one thing you can do for me,” I screamed from my lungs. “Just leave my house. Leave us alone Chloe. Never ever come back!”

  Her eyes bulged. “What?”

  “You heard me. You’re fired! Get out of my house. Never come back!”

  She jumped, ran around the couch and knelt at my feet, crying. “Grace, please forgive me if I did anything wrong. Please. I ne…need this job. Please, I beg you.” Her wet lips and chin trembled fiercely. “Please, I…I beg –”

  I hesitated, to entertain the enormous compassion in me but I recalled Mila’s words. She was clear that the biggest obstacle when pulling such a thing off is pity. She said I should ignore it for it is a misleading feeling. So I had prepared a memory of Chloe’s awful treatment when Elijah still had an office downtown. She brought Elijah an awesome lunch when I had told her not to. By the time I arrived with a homemade sandwich, Elijah was enjoying fried, grilled hake with French fries and three salads. I was embarrassed. Elijah took the sandwich just to please me, but I knew it would end up in the garbage, untouched. “No, I won’t change; you are fired! You think I’m a fool. You are not here to work; you are here to take my man. I won’t let you do that girl.”

  Chloe held my feet with her hands. “Please. That’s not true. I’m not that kind of girl.”

  “Look at you. Look at that skirt you’re wearing. It’s short; it’s see-through. This is how you dress most of the time. Why? You’re nothing but a seduction mistress here to take my man. Please, just get out of our lives for good. Never ever come back!”

  The sight was almost like that of Mary wetting Jesus’ feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. Her tears made a big pool on the brown tiles; some fell on my feet, and I drifted back, watching her wail like a crazy baby. I feared Karen and Jane would hear her cry and beg me to let her stay for she bawled louder than the television. But I had reached a point of no return.
There was no way I could change; my mind was made up. Besides, reversing could endanger my life. She could put poison in my food or stab me.

  4:46 PM

  Elijah must have suspected something was amiss when he saw me at the veranda, watching the lawn, flowers, melodic birds and passing people and cars, but avoiding him walk from the gate to the house. After all, I rarely viewed the sunset or enjoyed the afternoon breeze alone.

  I expected him to greet me and walk into the house, but he stood next to me and watched the day die in front of our eyes.

  “Update me. We live in a revolution house these days,” Elijah said, laughing. “When I left in the morning you were also leaving for good, but you are still here.”

  “Revolution house?” I said. “Probably, you are right because I did not leave. I thought, why I should I leave my home. Because of some whore?”

  He glanced at me. “Good decision. We love each other. Walking away was really out of place.”

  “I’m glad you’re happy about my decision to fire Chloe.”

  Elijah turned instantly. “What?” He screamed, gazing at my eyes. “What decision?”

  I confidently glared at his eyes. “Yes, I fired her. She is gone now.”

  “She is gone without saying bye to me, to Leon. Are you insane? In three days, you will be back to work. Who will take care of Kim? You must call her, apologize, and ask her to come back.”

  “Never! I will never do that, Elijah.”

  Elijah pulled out his cell phone.

  I turned towards him. “What are you doing? Please don’t ask her to come back. Please. I’m begging you.”

  Elijah ignored me and called her. “Chloe, I’m so sorry for what happened. I’ve just talked to Grace.”

  My heart began beating harder and faster.

  “No, it’s okay. Don’t be sorry, El. Yes, I also feel bad; you guys were like family to me. I never thought I would leave you anytime soon. You guys loved me, and I also loved you. But it’s okay,” Chloe said.

  “No, it’s not okay, Chloe. I called you to apologize.”

  I formed tight fists with both hands. I almost left him in the veranda and slammed the door behind me, but I wanted to hear everything.

  “And please, Elijah. Don’t blame Grace for all this. Probably, every woman would have done the same thing, myself included. Some of us suffer from insecurity a lot. And it grows with us. If she felt you were attracted to me, she had to get rid of me from her house or she would go crazy. I’m telling you. I’m sure you wouldn’t want your wife to lose her mind.”

  “But things could have been dealt with a little more appropriately.”

  I pinched myself on the thigh. I couldn’t believe he was criticizing me to another woman – our housekeeper for that matter. I punched my thigh. I took a step to walk away but stopped. I wanted to hear everything.

  Chloe continued, “I really don’t blame her. It’s a woman thing, Elijah. You will never get it. But as I said, guys, don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. Even the six hundred balance of the rent money, please, don’t repay it.”

  Elijah sighed. “Anyway, Chloe. Thanks for everything. It was an honor to have you.”

  I paced away and slammed the door behind me finally.

  5:33 PM

  Babyhood is one of the greatest gifts on the planet. Kim was busy crawling all over the appalling and coarse rug, screaming, laughing, and looking at Elijah and me from time to time – just checking if she was still getting the attention. But she could not tell her mom and dad were in hell more than being in the living room. We couldn’t even enjoy the gold sunrays withdrawing beautifully or our favorite sitcom. We had watched Popcorn Family for years, enjoying it together but today, we weren’t even excited to see it start. I could see their mouths move, but I heard nothing. Probably, Elijah followed a bit, because he laughed at times. Of course, he confused Kim for she sat up and laugh, clapping her tiny hands looking at him, screaming.

  Deep in me, I hated Chloe; she was the cause of it all – she came between us. But Elijah still maintained Mila was the Devil.

  I gazed down at Kim again, waved and forced a smile just to make sure she didn’t cry due to lack of attention. She quickly sat up, screamed, giggled, and clapped her hands. Elijah and I laughed simultaneously. I don’t know about him, but I laughed because little Kim seemed to be telling us to cheer up, laugh, and scream – life is short.

  Again, I felt deep love and respect for babyhood. Leon couldn’t even pretend. When he learned that his mom and dad were not on good terms after school – and Chloe was fired, he quickly finished his chores and ran to play with friends. And it was clear that he was determined to come back when the streetlights were on. But Kim was all over the place screaming and laughing.

  Probably tired of the uncomfortable silence, Elijah said, “Chloe is gone, so what’s your problem now?”

  I stared at him. “I was going to ask you the same question?”

  “Why would you? Sometime earlier I tried to create some conversation to cheer us up. I squeezed your cheeks, just playing, but you screamed, “Don’t touch me!” So if you say you were going to ask me the same question, I’m confused.”

  He stared at me. But I was gazing at the television seeing nothing still. I had no idea what to say to him.

  Elijah continued, still staring at me: “You know, one guy said he is not married because he doesn’t want to be a manager of an EMS department. I never understood him then but I get him now.”

  My eyes met his gaze. “What do you mean?”

  “Obvious. You’re the one who messed up things, but it’s me extinguishing your fire now.”

  “Extinguishing?” I overheated. “Don’t tell me you will bring Chloe back here. I will leave you with her. I’m telling you, and I mean it this time.”

  “Slow down. I never said I’m bringing her back. I mean I’m the one who called her to apologize. Can you believe she even cancelled our forty percent balance on the rent money?”

  I turned to him instantly. “Listen, Elijah, tell her thanks but no thanks. I will pay that money. That’s the first thing I will settle with the next paycheck.”

  Elijah laughed. “Are you sure you won’t buy new clothes this time?”

  I laughed and slapped him on the thigh. Kim saw it and laughed and clasps her hands. We also joined her and laughed. She laughed the more. It’s like she understood what was happening, and she understood her role very well.

  “Do you know one thing I will ask God when I meet Him someday?” Elijah said, smiling.

  “I don’t know, but I know it’s about women.”

  “I will ask him what material He used to make women.”

  We laughed. Kim didn’t laugh. She couldn’t see any action that was worth laughing at. She only scanned our faces, probably thinking we were insane to laugh at nothing.

  “He will tell you He used a man’s rib.”

  He grabbed my right hand and squeezed it. I felt so good, like he was squeezing all of me. I stared at his eyes.

  “But I will also ask Him what material He used to make men.”

  Elijah shifted towards me, closing the gap between us on the couch. He squeezed my hand, scanning my eyes. “Grace, I love you. I still do.”

  A warm wave cut through me. “I love you too, sweetie.” Tears showed up in my eyes.

  Elijah kissed me. Kim screamed, clapped her hands and laughed.

  We laughed hysterically. Besides Kim’s comedy, I was ecstatic we were reaching out to each other. Yes, some thoughts about Elijah meeting Chloe elsewhere troubled me, but I pushed them away and enjoyed the golden moment.

  Monday, August 6, 2012

  9:24 AM

  Mila stretched her left hand and closed my laptop on the office desk. “I don’t believe you, friend. Just a few days off you have kicked some butts. We need to celebrate at lunch.”

  “Yeah, it was an amazing week, friend. But it was tough. El did not want to fire her,” I said, worried since I heard others la
ughing and screaming in their offices, something Mr. Wright complained about countless times. He was clear; Mondays weren’t a weekend post mortem day. I wished I was one of those thumbing their laptops quietly in their offices. The good boys and girls. Those who never asked for extensions for their deliverables.

  “Don’t say. I hope that whore wasn’t sleeping with your man. Why would he care if the mistress of the house wants to fire a housekeeper?”

  I hesitated to tell Mila to stop applying nail polish in my office because if Mr. Wright entered, he could blame me for turning my office into a salon. Not her. Even if she quickly hid it when the door opened, he would pick up the smell in the air.

  Mila slammed the desk, and I jumped. “Don’t tell me you have a proof he was cheating with her.”

  I gazed at her. “No, I don’t think so. Elijah is a principled man. I believe he wanted us to respect her and give her notice some months before.” I gazed at the purple nail polish bottle.

  “Months! Oh no. Friend, where would you be by then?”

  I opened the window but closed the blinds; the sun rays were unbearable. “Exactly. I would be long dead or I would have killed that whore.”

  We giggled.

  “But friend, don’t be fooled by winning a small part of the war. It’s not yet over. You don’t have control of your man yet. He must close that thing and get a real job, baby. Look how good you look today. The other girls and I almost didn’t recognize you this morning.” She slapped my hand and winked one eye. “Damn, you look so good, baby girl.”

  I smiled. “Thanks, girl. But how do you look good with rent money.” We giggled. “Or Chloe’s money to make it sound really awful and hopeless.”

  We giggled again.