Home / Romance / Almost a Fairytale / Preparation for War

Share

Preparation for War

Author: Deryl Chalman
last update Last Updated: 2021-11-01 09:45:46

CHAPTER 5

  Chris needs to get out.  Agnes floored him, and no coherent thoughts came to his mind. Has he gone mad? Only one day, that woman had created havoc and made him feel like he was on a roller coaster. That woman has crafted disorder to his system--- the system that he erects for so many years. He cannot fail again.

     Lea was a sweet and exquisite woman. He felt madly and deeply in love with her because she was the ideal woman any man could dream of marrying. But now, why is he so attracted to this woman? Just the thought of that image at the garden sends him spinning. She was getting into his nerves.

    He drove his mustang out of the castle grounds. He doesn't want to tell anyone that he left very early. Escape. If he stayed another second. He doesn't know what he's going to do with that temptress. He pushed all his frustration to the car. Pumping it so hard that it roared, breaking the silence of the early morning, scattering the birds from their slumber and flying out from the comfort of the forest. He must distance himself from the castle. He needs to re-think his plan.

   At last, he can see the sleepy town. He stops at the nearest bar and jumps out from behind the car. The bar owner, who was about to close the door turned around, irritated at the passenger who alighted like he didn't have a care if he rammed on his store. The bar owner gasped. He knows this tall man, walking purposely towards him.  

   "Chris, is it you? You still remember me?" He laughed and hugged the man. 

  "Hi Pete, do you still offer drinks at this hour? I mean, if it's okay," he said, shaking his hand at the same time. How could he forget Pete? He was the one who consoled him during his most trying time when Lea had just walked out from their wedding day. He was drunk for a week, not leaving Pete's Bar. After the bar owner talks some sense into him every day, Chris stands up and goes away. He left town with only the shirt on his back.

  "Come in, man." he seated his old friend on the barstool and poured him a beer. "How you've been?" The older guy studied Chris Duvier. He looked more handsome than the last time he saw him. Well, he was drunk then and in deep shit. Now, you can feel the power and confidence in how he moves. But the eyes did not betray the soul. In there, he still saw the glint of dark anger and bitterness in his heart and mind. Well, this one is new. Chris, as he remembered, was never confused, even if facing a significant problem. 

   "I'm fine. Do you have anything else better than beer? I need it strong today." Pete frowned. Duvier is not himself today. He poured him the special wine he usually keeps for an unpredictable occasion like this one. The man gulped it in one go and poured another.

   "Are you sure about this, Chris?" the younger man just smiled and asked for another shot. The bartender sighed; this would be one of those days.

    Suddenly Chris's phone rang, breaking the silence between them.  He irritably pulled out his phone from his side pocket and read the name that registered on the screen. It was David Bern. His trusted friend and the head of his legal division. They've known each other since Chris started in the big city. He is the one helping him get the deals that propelled him to his new status. He was a working student in one of those snobby prestigious schools when he met David Bern.  Unlike Chris, he was already wealthy when they met. But the two become best friends, even with the disparity of their social class.

   "Hi David..." his voice slurred a little.

   David frowned. He can hear the slurring of his friend's voice from the telephone. The contract must have messed him up a bit. But he has good news that he is sure Chris would appreciate. He said happily, "Hey buddy; I've got splendid news. The contract you sent me yesterday has loopholes. You can get out of it."

   "I don't want to get out---I want the marriage."   

Silence.

    "What?! But yesterday you're so furious...." David stammered.

    Chris suddenly laughed. His friend is not himself today. "Are you drunk at seven in the morning?"

    "Nope... Just do my instruction." Chris paused and said, "Make sure it's a real marriage. Send me the draft today."

     He added, "And give me all the information you can get out of Agnes Walden. I want to know what she eats; she reads. She wore…" Agnes wore nothing.

     The image of her naked body flooded his mind. Enjoying the torture he is going through. "Everything about her. What made her itched? what made her good or bad?"

   "What good or bad?" David was more confused now.

   "And wickedly bad too... find out for me. I want it tomorrow, David. Make sure you send it to me ASAP." He ended the call right away. He knows David would always reason with him like the lawyer he is. His is beyond reason now. Nobody can change it. 

   The bartender watched the man. He was smiling as he had already won. "Come, Pete, it's time to celebrate. This one for you." Chris poured him a glass. "Congratulate me. I'm getting married soon. Cheers!"

   The three of them were facing each other on the oak table. Today, Aunt Liz looks stern with her aristocratic, wearing her favorite brooch with carefully coiffed hair. The dress she chose was a classic Chanel black dress. She breathes and looks regal.

    Agnes, for her part, wore a very conservative black garb that did not show her figure. She wore her hair in a tight bun and her face bare from any cosmetics. She also wore her reading glasses. Today, she wants to look smart. She needs to make sure that she will say about this agreement that her aunt and Chris Duvier agreed.

    "What are you doing?" Ann clucked like a mother. She tried to take off her clothes. "You cannot see that man looking like you're about to be sentenced."

    "Well, that's how I feel, Ann!" she said irritably. "Marriage to a stranger without a say, if the man loves you or not. It is a prison."

   "But you love him..." Ann looked at her in confusion.

    "That was before — I talked to him. I did not realize that his arrogant, opinionated, and infuriating all these years. Mind you; this is not the man I imagine. I hate him!"

    Ann smiled, "So you talked? When did it happen?"

   She blushed. "You wouldn't want to know." She looked at Ann guiltily. The maid just watched her with those knowing eyes and whistled a cheerful tone. 

   Three days after her parade, she remembered shamefully; they met again. He was bringing his lawyer, David Bern. She was standing near the library door when Chris Duvier arrived. He did not even open the door for her. He was all business and never once looked at her.  She stole a glance at him—sharks must have looked like him when there are about to eat their prey.  Agnes felt like a wallflower. The way he treated her as if she didn't exist anymore. She must have found her lacking. The confidence she was building for three days dwindled just like that. She tried to console herself. Men like Chris Duvier have a parade of naked women. He must have forgotten her because she was not significant enough to capture his attention. "Oh God, please stop this torture now..." she prayed silently.

    Aunt Liz was also bringing her counsel, her dear old Mattie, as she fondly calls him. Matt Twinkle, an old friend who had been handling Walden's affair for so many years. His father, too, has been Walden's keeper of essential papers. It seems he also inherited his purpose in life to serve them.  Agnes was always the companion of Aunt Liz when she visited the Twinkles office. Old Mattie always has something for her every time she goes with her aunt. He teaches her about Walden's essential documents that she has to read one by one and commit by heart. 

   She brought Ann to be with her. Agnes wants the assurance of the maid's presence. Her aunt raised her brows when Agnes brought the maid with her. Agnes averted her eyes, trying to ignore her Aunt Liz's silent reprimand. Somebody must witness her side. Nobody knows that she's been researching books for any legal remedy to her predicament. She was frustrated that she could not find a solution to her problem. The only solution was to deny the marriage arrangement. When she remembers the conversation that she heard in the library, her conscience cannot allow it. Lea and Chris must have their second chance of love. She has to sacrifice her feelings for the man. Just for a year, she will suffer it gladly. This arranged marriage is her gift to Lea.

Continue to read this book for free
Scan code to download App

Latest chapter

  • Almost a Fairytale   Out of the Blue

    CHAPTER 49 Agnes looked at David with eyes brimming with tears. Her beautiful green eyes looked like the misty forest of Winshord Castle moors. She was seating across from him inside a small cafe that operated twenty-four hours a day near the bus station. The cafe was deserted, except for the sleepy worker of the establishment and an aged man snoozing at a corner.Her hand was twisting the yellowed table cloth, as she nervously face David. “It’s okay if you will not forgive me,” Agnes said without preamble as the silence stretched between them.“You cause so much pain to your family and friends. I’m not sure whether I should wring your neck out of madness or just hugged you out of relief that you are still alive.”“David, I will not explain why I disappeared, only that I have a very valid reason that I cannot reveal.”David's jaw tightened in anger. “How could you say that Agnes? You of all people should know that what you

  • Almost a Fairytale   Secret

    CHAPTER 48 “Duvier! What are you doing here?” Barbara tumbled into his arms as he bumped unto her. Chris gasped as he stared at the grinning elderly woman batting her eyes at him coyly. He pulled her up while looking around for Agnes. “Where is she---” “Who?” Barbara stared at him confusedly. He stopped himself from blurting Agnes' name. Instead, he collected himself and tried to smile, covering his blunder. “Lady Elizabeth, I need to see her.” “Ah…” Barbara stared at him for a long time. She got the feeling it was not Lady Elizabeth he was looking for. She wondered if the nosy

  • Almost a Fairytale   Breaking Past

    CHAPTER 47Agnes pulled down the hooded jacket to cover her face. She was embarking n a surprised if not most unpleasant decision of her life --- to visit her sister in the hospital. She had been hiding from her past until now when she saw her sister rushed to the hospital. Even her aunt and Barbara did not know that she was going to make this trip back to her old world. Yet, the idea of Lea being sick drove her with worry. Her sister was always healthy and she was not known to get sick easily. She wondered what drove Lea to get sick. She just wants to take a look at her secretly and disappear afterward.The hospital was surrounded by reporters and onlookers. All waiting for the news of the famous star. She can see flowers on the entrance filing up and letters of well-wishers. Agnes stopped. She wondered how to get inside without being noticed. The chance of her being seen was high yet only when she can see her sister would make her feel at peace.

  • Almost a Fairytale   Bad News

    CHAPTER 46 Lina or Agnes in her real-life dropped the baking pan she was holding as she saw the news on the television. The anchor grimly announced the news about Lea Walden being rushed to the hospital by her fiancee, Chris Duvier. “The couple who been dating for a long time was last seen together in Duviers penthouse. It was rumored that Chris Duvier, the billionaire proposed to the beautiful actress tonight. Yet. Something had happened when the actress Lea Walden collapsed and was rushed to the hospital with her loving fiancee in tow. Stay tuned for more news.” “Are you alright, Lina?” Lina stumbled and tried to sit down on one of the stools near the counter. Worriedly, her assistant baker touched her forehead. “You seemed not well. Why don’t you go home and I will finish the baking here.” She sig

  • Almost a Fairytale   Chris Duvier

    CHAPTER 45 The man put down the dossier of Lina Summers in front of the billionaire, Chris Duvier. The private agent which was hired months ago was surprised with the request and thought, he hit the jackpot. And he did. He cannot believe what he found out about Lina Summers---he has no doubt who she was. “Everything about her was in that document. The real Lina Summers died when she was very young. Ms. Agnes Duvier just took her name.” “Changing one’s identity was expensive and few correct connections. Agnes cannot do that. Even if she was a Walden, her connection cannot reach that point. How did she do it?” “Barbara Barry pulled all the strings.” The detective said gravely. “Her connection was enough to cover up your wife’s supposed death. The boat was her personal property and the reporter who broke the first news was her people.”

  • Almost a Fairytale   Biggest Lie

    CHAPTER 44 Lady Elizabeth, listened to the panic-stricken voice of her friend as she told her about Chris Duvier's presence in Riverside. She was numb. The possibility, of being discovered did cross her mind. She was ready to face the consequence but when it happens for real, her knees buckled with apprehension. Chris Duvier is an exacting man. A dangerous enemy. What he hates most were liars like them. They managed to dupe one of the most powerful men in the country. It looks like the wheels had turned. Time to pay up for their misdeeds. She remembered too clearly when Agnes returns home from her visit to Chris Duvier. She was trembling when she entered the library where Lady Elizabeth was conducting her business. Agnes sat down at the big wing chair silently watching her. “What happened, child?” She looked in alarm at Agnes whose eyes were very red from c

More Chapters
Explore and read good novels for free
Free access to a vast number of good novels on GoodNovel app. Download the books you like and read anywhere & anytime.
Read books for free on the app
SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP
DMCA.com Protection Status