Chapter 4

It was two weeks later when Ellisande found herself, standing by in agitation as Cherry, one of the maids, cleaning some wounds she obtained a while ago in her husband’s country home office. She had taken one of her husbands Ducati motorbike for a spin to clear her mind after receiving no news on the divorce she is seeking and was surprisingly caught between a car race between two gang rivals. She tried steering away from the fight, but they suddenly thought she was part of the game and went after her. Her husband managed to save her just in the nick of time and got himself wounded in the process.

“That’ll be all,” she heard a hard bark. “My wife will tend to me. All of you, get out! Now!”

The maids scurried in fear and Elli watched helplessly as William, the last one to leave, closing the door quietly.

“What the hell are you waiting for?!” Her husband shouted.

Elli turned and hurriedly went to where her husband is sitting and picked up the towel, dipping it on the warm water. Her husband, who arrived surprisingly three days ahead from the day William had told her and got word where she went to from somebody, he had instructed to keep track on her.

“It’s going to sting a bit,” she said quietly as she carefully placed the towel on the wound on his upper arm, patting it lightly.

After twenty minutes of cleaning and dressing up his wounds, Elli gave the bowl and medicine kit to William, who stood by the door outside.

“Get back here quickly!” SJ commanded.

Elli stood in front of him, far enough to get away from him in case he will hurt her.

“From this day onward, you are no longer allowed to take any vehicles outside this house! Understood?” SJ started to order hardly. He looked at her angrily. “Just because your father was a racer, it doesn’t make you one! Get that off your head. Second, you are married to a Kincaid, then you start acting one!”

She cringed at his tone.

“My parents will be coming here in three days and you are to show them the respect they deserve!” He continued, looking her up and down, disdain on his face. He remained silent for a while. “You have three days to make yourself suitable. Don’t you dare embarrass me, Ellisande. You will not like it when I get angry.”

“Then, just sign that divorce papers!” She suddenly blurted out. “It’ll end both of our miseries.”

Elli quickly took a step back at the dark look he threw her way. She stopped herself and looked back at him evenly, not holding her anger at the insults he said to her. She clenched her fists.

“I never wanted this marriage in the first place,” she said tightly.

“Three days, Ellisande,” SJ answered instead as he stood up. “You will be sorry if you don’t.”

She watched as he went out of the office.

“Jerk!” She shouted.

SJ looked up from the paper that he is reading in his office, late Saturday morning when William appeared and informed him that his parents’ car just entered their gate.

“Where’s my wife?” He asked as he stood up.

“She’s already at the foyer, sir,” William answered and then backed away before walking off.

SJ returned the document he is reading and reached for his phone, checking for messages. He found several messages from Carmela, his secretary as well as Brian and from his two sisters. He placed his phone inside his pocket and went out from his office. He turned at the corner and stopped abruptly for a while when he saw his wife, standing quietly at the foyer, beside William, talking to him formally.

Only he wasn’t the wife he had arrived to a few days ago. Ellisande looked breathtakingly young and beautiful in her light blue, off-shoulder, floral dress that ended few inches below her knee. She had her hair tied up in a loose braid and only wore light lipstick.

He remembered three days ago how she struggles in familiarizing herself with the Kincaid values and customs that has been handed down from generations. His additional insults and harassment added more fuel to the fire that he learned from William that she had hid herself in a broom closet and cried. He forced everything on her for three days. She slept late from her lessons and will wake up early to cater to his demands by making him breakfast, preparing his bath and clothes to wear, accepting insults from him and daring her to fight back.

“I guess, this is your way in getting back at me for all those cars I’ve wrecked,” she commented just one time after serving him his coffee again, since he was not happy with the sweetness that she made. She yelped in surprise when he threw the cup, the china broken into pieces. She lowered her head and said, “I’ll make you another cup.”

SJ sauntered towards them and William turned to him when he heard him approach.

“Lunch will be ready by 12 at the garden, Sir,” he said as he opened the main door.

“Raise your head up and smile, goddamnit,” SJ scoffed at Elli. “Don’t you dare insult my parents or you’ll regret it.”

He went out ahead just in time for his parents’ classic Mercedes Benz car stopped right in front of the house. He walked down the steps and watched as his father opened the car door and assisted his wife.

“Good to see you, mom,” SJ greeted as he bent down and kissed his mother on the cheek.