Chapter 007

~KATERINA~

  Swallowing the lump down my throat, I turned around and came face to face with Monalisa, my stepsister. She had a triumphant smile on her face because she knew fucking well that she had already won like she always does. She always gets it her way and this time it was no different. My heart twisted inside my chest as though someone was squeezing it into a tiny ball and it was becoming hard for me to breathe.

  My lips curved into a smile because I didn't want to give her the satisfaction of defeat.

  " Hello dear sister, long time no see." I said, a big smile playing on my face. I shifted my eyes to the little boy besides Monalisa. The boy looked like a young version of Lucas when we were toddlers. He had crystal blue eyes and pitch black hair like Luca's, reminding me of how he used to look in the old days. The little boy looked at me innocently.

  When Lucas informed me that he had a child with Monalisa, I didn't believe him. I thought that he was looking for a way to annul our marriage. However, the boy standing before me proved that indeed he was Luca's son because they looked so much alike.

  Taking a deep breath, I shifted my gaze back to Monalisa who still had that annoying smile on her face. I wished I could slap that smug away. However, I couldn't do it at the moment because a lot of people were watching. I know she was doing it intentionally to annoy me and I tried my best to compose myself, not allowing her to get to my skin. She used to do that so I was kinda used to it.

  Monalisa turned to look at her son, patting his head lovely.

  " Liam, do you recall me telling you about your lovely aunt Katerina? Here she is, please say hello to her."She asked sarcastically, raising her head to look at me with a smile.

  " Hello aunty Katerina?" The little boy said in a cute innocent voice and I couldn't help but smile. I know the little boy was just a little innocent soul which was caught in our rivalry.

  I leaned to his level with a smile on my face, " Hello handsome, nice to meet you." I took his little hand in mine but the little boy snatched it away and I couldn't help it but frown at his reaction.

  " Is everything okay, handsome?" I inquired, " Mommy told me that you stole my daddy from me!" The little boy said and I could feel the hatred in his voice. I turned my head to look at Monalisa and she gave me a sick smile. My jaw twitched in anger. I guess Monalisa would never change for sure. She was making me look like a bad guy like she has always done in the past.

  I didn't know what to tell the little boy. There was no doubt that he hated me so much. Even if I tried to tell him that what his mother told him wasn't true, he wouldn't believe me. I chose to keep quiet since there was nothing that I could do about it.

  " Daddy!" The boy shouted happily and we both turned our heads in the direction that he was running to. My breath caught in my throat as I watched Lucas open his arms wide for the little boy with a big smile on his face.

  Lucas hugged the boy so tightly and rained kisses all over his face. My heart sank in my stomach when it dawned on me that my baby would never have a chance to experience it.

  " They look lovely, don't they?" Monalisa commented. Even though I didn't want to admit it because it hurt so fucking bad, indeed they looked lovely. I didn't say a word, I just watched as Lucas tickled the little and he kept on giggling. I always knew Lucas would be a great dad. I imagined Lucas playing with our unborn  as I watched with a big smile on my face. However, I think I would never have a chance to watch it….

  " Come on Katerina, aren't you going to give me a hug? Don't tell me that you didn't miss me because I know you did. I heard you have been asking about me for the past four years that I haven't been around." Monalisa told me with a smile on her face. I gritted my teeth when I heard her words. How dare she ask for a hug from me when she stabbed me in the back?

  I hated to admit that it's true I have been inquiring about her for the past four years. It's because I thought she was in some kind of trouble or someone had kidnapped her since I never heard from her after the night she ran away. If only I knew that she disappeared on her own will, I would have never asked about her. Even though Monalisa and I didn't get along that well, I still cared about her.

  " I know what you did four years ago, Monalisa. You used my phone to send yourself the message that night when you borrowed my phone. You used me as your escape goat." I said through gritted teeth. 

  She laughed as though that was the funniest joke of the year, " I see it took you long enough to notice it." I clenched my hands into fists when I heard her words.

  " I don't understand why you're so hungry. I'm the one who was supposed to get married to Lucas. You better thank me for giving you a chance to live in your fantasy for four years. I know you loved Lucas and your dream was to get married to him someday." The corner of her lips curved into a smile.

  " Don't you think I was kind enough to make your wish come true?" My jaw twitched when I heard her words, anger boiling in my veins. I couldn't believe Monalisa used me for the past four years. She used my weaknesses to her advantage. I should have known it was a trap but I was blinded by love to notice it.

  " It has already been four years but you haven't done simple things, Katerina. You haven't been able to give him a child." She laughed as though that was so funny. I swallowed the lump down my throat when I heard her words...

  ______

  I stared out of the window blankly, watching the buildings pass by as the car accelerated down the highway. Every single word that Monalisa said to me at the parking lot replayed in my head and my heart ached inside my chest. It hurt so fucking much to know that I have been worried for nothing for the past four years. Monalisa has been doing perfectly fine while I was sick worried that something terrible happened to her.

  Even though her words cut deep like a Viking sword, I put on a brave face, not allowing her to get to me. Only the heavens knew how much it hurt. I wanted to show Monalisa that I wasn't the same as Katerina anymore. I stood my ground, not allowing her to have the upper hand like how it used to be in the past.

  " It has already been four years but you haven't done a simple thing, Katerina. You haven't been able to give Lucas a child." The words played in my head over and over again. I wanted to tell Monalisa that I was pregnant with Luca's child but I chose to keep quiet for the safety of my baby.

  My mind jolted back to the present when the car stopped and that's when I noticed that we had already arrived at Thompson's compound. Taking a deep breath, I alighted the car and headed to the mansion.

  When I entered the mansion, I stopped in my tracks and darted my eyes on the ground floor. That's when it hit me that nothing was ever made for me, even the house that Lucas and I spent the last four years living in as husband and wife.

  Both interior and exterior were designed according to Monalisa's liking. Lucas built the house with Monalisa in mind, not me. Everything screamed of Monalisa, from the design of the floor where I was standing on the roof. I swallowed hard when realisation sank in, my heart making a painful dance inside my chest.

  I recalled how Lucas used to come home to pick Monalisa so that they would check how the building of their house was progressing. I recalled how Lucas used to ask Monalisa if she liked every little detail about the house. If it happened that she didn't like it, Lucas instructed the builders to correct it according to Monalisa's liking, saying that she wanted Monalisa to have a home of her own choice, somewhere she would feel comfortable to stay for the rest of her life.

  How was I so blind not to notice it? I felt like a fool when reality began to sink in. It turns out I have been living someone else's life all this time.

  When I got married to Lucas, I didn't care about anything. I didn't care to change the exterior or interior of the house. The only thing that I cared about was to be with Lucas. That was the only thing that mattered to me. 

  I should have known it better than anyone else…it was borrowed time. I should have known that when the time came, everything would be taken by the owner and the owner was none other than Monalisa Mackenzie, my step sister.

  The house that Lucas and I have been living in, the title that I had as Luca's wife. and even Lucas…they both belonged to Monalisa and she was back to claim them.

  None of those things were mine to keep. That's why I didn't want to hold onto anything. As much as I wanted to keep Lucas for myself and for the sake of our baby, I found it hard to do so. I was just a substitute wife. That's why I didn't want to hold him back. Lucas had already chosen whom he wanted to be with and it wasn't me. 

  I didn't want to fight for something that was never made for me…

  A deep sigh escaped my lips when I gave it a thought. The house felt suffocating all of a sudden and it became hard for me to breathe. Even though I had spent four years living in the same house, I felt like a stranger, as if it was my first time stepping foot inside the house.

  I headed to the master bedroom, grabbed my suitcase and began to pack my things. When I was done packing my bags, I looked around to make sure that I hadn't forgotten anything. My eyes landed on the pregnancy test results on the bedside table. I grabbed the envelope and shoved it in my handbag.

I picked my cell phone from the side bed table, unlocked it and typed the number. My heart pounded wildly against my ribcage and my finger trembled as I pressed the call button. Taking a deep breath, I raised my phone to my ear…