001

Elvira’s POV

“You, Mother, said to bring her detox juice to the living room,” my foul-mouthed sister-in-law, Leah, said from behind me.

I gripped the edge of the sink, breathing slowly, the bitter taste lingered long after I rinsed my mouth. My first pregnancy wasn’t as exhausting as this.

“That’s disgusting, why didn’t you vomit in your room? Why the kitchen sink?” Disgust danced in Leah’s tone.

I rinsed the vomit from around the sink, dabbed a disposable napkin over my face, turned to her, and weakly said, “Can’t you tell mother to send someone? I’m not….”

“I will deliver your message to her,” Leah said, cutting me off with a small smirk at the corner of her lip and I knew that didn’t mean well.

I relaxed my body on the counter to try to regain my strength after Leah left the kitchen. Tomorrow was my father-in-law's birthday and I was assigned to plan it.

“Do you now refuse my order?” My mother-in-law said furiously as she barged into the kitchen.

“That’s not the case,” I took a deep breath, “I’m too tired to make your detox juice from scratch and there are other people who can do it in this house.”

Mother scoffed bitterly, “There are others in the house? They are being paid for their work and you are living here for free!”

This! This was what I had to endure in the past nine years of my marriage. I keep telling myself it will get better, but it only gets worse.

I didn’t have the strength to argue or fight back, “I’m the eldest daughter-in-law of this…..”

“Of where?” Mother's face reddened with anger, “I don’t care about your situation, bring my detox juice in the next twenty minutes.”

“Mother….”

“I’m not your mother!” She yelled, “I’m not that woman who picks things off the street.”

That was supposed to hurt but it was just the tip of the iceberg.

“I have to go pick up my daughter,” I said ignoring what she said.

My mother-in-law picked up the bowl of water on the counter, “Have you gone mad!” She yelled and I instinctively closed my eyes.

I waited for the cold water to touch me but it didn’t. I was sure she had thrown the water because I heard it touch the floor and I opened my eyes when I felt a close presence next to me.

Karisa Halethor, my lovely sister, the biological daughter of my adoptive family, was standing right in front of me, drenched with the water meant for me. “You don’t have to stress her, she is pregnant,” Karisa said sweetly.

She was the sweetest being anyone would meet. If I were dying, I would call her first to save my life because she would get there before the ambulance.

“Karisa,” I called as I turned her to face me. I used my hand to wipe her face, “Why did you step in? What if it was something dangerous?”

Karisa politely removed my hand with a small smile on her face, “Then you would have taken it?”

“When did you come?” Mother’s tone completely went 360, from being mean to being the sweetest.

It was always like that, they treated me like an outsider but were nice to Karisa.

“I came to drop Akira off at the house,” Karisa said as she showed us the bag in her hands and I was beyond grateful.

I was thinking of how to pick her up from school and Karisa made my work easier.

“Since you are here, let me have someone fix you something to eat or drink,” Mother spoke like she was talking to her darling child.

“Auntie, you don’t have to do that,” Karisa said with a smile on her face, “Since I’m here, I will make the detox juice just the way you like it.”

“Karisa,” I called in a low tone barely audible enough for another person to hear.

“Also, I brought gifts for everyone,” Karisa's smile widened, “Just go to the living room, and I will be there with everything.”

Mother's thirty-two teeth shone the brightest in the room, “That is why I like you, I wish you were my daughter-in-law instead of someone.” Mother’s tone was sweet towards Karisa, but she rolled her eyes at me.

“You don’t have to do that,” I scolded Karisa. I wasn’t happy whenever she tried to please my in-laws.

“They believe you don’t deserve to be in this family, so I have to do it so they will treat you right,” Karisa said, and I nodded my head in understanding.

I politely excused myself from the kitchen to get a bottle of alcoholic wine for Karisa. I turned it into the glass and put it on the counter next to her.

“I can’t have alcohol,” Karisa answered politely as she glanced at the wine and I looked at her with confusion.

That was weird, it was her favorite, “Is something the matter?”

She shook her head with a small smile on her face as she glanced at her tummy, “Elvira, have you ever thought of the probability of your husband having an affair?”

I was taken aback, “That’s a strange question.”

“Is it?” Karisa asked nonchalantly.

“I can’t dare have such thoughts, Casper loves and cherishes me,” I answered confidently.

“Everyone knows that,” Karisa said as she wiped her hands on the kitchen napkin, “All done, can I go change into something?”

“Yes,” I nodded my head. My head was still in her question, I wonder what she saw or heard for her to ask me that kind of question.

I watched Karisa give the juice to my mother-in-law and she praised her in a way she has never praised me.

“This is something you can’t even give,” my sister-in-law spat as she walked past me showing me the expensive bag which she had gotten for Karisa.

“I don’t want to spoil my mood right now,” Mother picked up her juice and left the living room.

I sat down comfortably and put on my favorite soap opera to watch when Karisa came downstairs wearing my emerald dress.

I felt uneasy for some reason, “Why that dress?” I had just gotten it from Casper as a wedding anniversary gift.

“Is there an issue?” Karisa asked innocently as she twirled around in the dress, “It’s beautiful, I’m going out on a date with my boyfriend and I wanted to look beautiful.”

“I haven’t worn that dress,” I mumbled.

“You can wear it later,” Karisa said, still admiring herself, “Since you are pregnant, who knows you might never wear it again.”

I didn’t want to argue with her, “You can wear it.”

Just as she turned to leave I saw the same necklace I had seen in my husband’s closet a few days ago on her neck.

“Your necklace,” I said and she stopped on her track, “Your boyfriend must really love you, it’s beautiful.”

That necklace can only be purchased once in a lifetime, “I know,” Karisa blushed as she played with the necklace on her neck, “Yes he really loves me.”

For some reason, I had an unexplainable doubt in my mind. I stood up and hurried to Casper’s room. I checked the closet, I checked everywhere in the room and the necklace I had once seen wasn’t there.

The necklace kept playing in my head as well as the statement Karisa made.

Why was I being stupid? What was wrong with me? Karisa isn’t like that, and neither is Casper, so why was I having unreasonable suspicion? If anything, they shared a sibling relationship, so why was I thinking this way?

I wanted to ignore it but I couldn’t shake it out of my head. I brought out my phone, called Casper, and he picked up at the second ring. “Babe, which time would you be home?”

“I would have loved to be home early but I have meetings with some foreign investors before Father’s birthday this evening,” Casper replied sweetly, “I will get you your favorite snacks.”

“Thank you,” I said with a smile, my mind finally free from every suspicion.

Was I dumb or something? Why would I suspect something so stupid?

I was happily walking down to see Karisa off when I heard Father’s voice from his room, “Inform Casper that the foreign investors would come for my birthday.”

Without realizing I pushed open my father-in-law's door and asked, “Isn’t my husband at the office?”

He glared at me with anger then ended her call, “Is he an employee that he would be at the office by this time?”

That really hit something inside me. Does that mean he didn’t work late? Then if he didn’t work late then he must have been hanging out with his friends.

Now my suspicions had returned, I didn’t want any dirty thoughts in my head but the lie Casper told and the necklace on Karisa’s neck. I needed to clear the suspicions.

“How is the preparation for the party coming along?” I heard Mother ask but I ignored her and walked out of the room.

Without thinking twice, I ran after Karisa but she had driven out of the compound. I didn’t have enough time to run upstairs to get a car key, else I would miss her, so I entered the pouring rain and ran out of the compound.

Luckily I was able to stop a cab, “That blue sports car, follow it, please don’t lose it.”