Chapter 41“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” Lao Tzu –But the next day when I got to the hospital, not only were there two additional people there, Jacobi looked even less interested than he had the day before. After a brisk introduction, he left again to conduct interviews. Thankfully, the two new hires, Evelyn, the administrator, and Helen, a nurse, were people I knew from town, so it hadn’t been too awkward. I couldn’t help but mourn the loss of our privacy, though. How were Jacobi and I supposed to fall in love under this kind of circumstance, in full view of an audience?As the days rolled into weeks,our ‘audience’ grew in number, adding two more auxiliary nurses, three qualified nurses, a matron, two doctors, three cleaners, and a janitor. By the start of the fourth week, not only was the place fully staffed, we had opened our doors to the patients. I remained at t
Chapter 42"Desperation makes the heart reckless, and a broken soul will seek solace in the strangest of places." UNKNOWN In a single stride, I closed the gap between us, wrapped my arms around his neck, and kissed him.At first, I felt him tense in surprise, and then softened as his own hands seemed to rest on my side, but then suddenly, he pushed me away.“What was that, Zeynep?!” he exclaimed in horror.“What did you do that for?”I looked at him, shocked by his reaction. “This is what we both wanted, Jacobi. Tell me you haven’t wanted this from the very first day we met?”“Wanted what? Christ!” he exclaimed. “You’re a married woman, Zeynep. What is this heck?”By now, I was beyond mortified. “jacobi…”“Please leave!” he shouted. “Just go, I beg you.”Tears pooled in my eyes, my heart broken by his rejection. If I’d been asked to imagine a million different ways that would have played out, him rejecting me would never have been one of
Chapter 43"The choices we make echo through the lives of others, sometimes in whispers, sometimes in screams.” Unknown So, I continued to dance, rolling my hips the way I saw the other women do, smiling as I made eye contact with each and everyone of the men looking at me, showing them what they desired…but would never have.“You’re a real naughty one, aren’t you?” Blaze said, grabbing my buttocks and pulling me close enough to feel his erection.That was the wakeup call I needed.I wriggled out of his grasp, but he wasn’t prepared to let go. His hands were roving around my whole body, and when he reached for my breasts, I slapped him hard across the face.“Are you crazy?” I yelled.He put his hands up. “My bad. Forgive me. I guess I got too excited.”Almost as if doused by a bucket of cold water, I looked around, at the gyrating people around me, and I suddenly wondered what on earth I was doing there.“Take me home,” I said. “I want
It takes strength to leave, but it takes even more strength to stay gone.” Unknown chapter 44 There they were again, the averted gazes. Walking back from the hospital, and even upon getting to the ranch, where there weren’t scornful looks, there were averted gazes. Just like I had been twelve years before, I was the reason another young man was now fighting for his life. “AWhat were you thinking?” Madam Maria lamented later that morning. She’d come to my bedroom where I was still sitting like an effigy, over an hour after my return home. I hadn’t even taken off my shoes. “Blaze of all people? Someone even Catherine is older than! And you allowed him to be rubbing your body in the full glare of everyone in that God-forsaken place? Do you know how many people saw you? Do you know how many people are dishing first-hand news ?” A lone tear rolled down my face as I looked at the distraught madam mariai, and I didn’t have to be a genie to know why she was so distressed. She
I ran in silence, hope held tight, But shadows found me in the light. Glass shattered, hands like steel, A fate too cruel, a pain too real. No cries, no plea, just whispered prayer, As darkness led me back to where A ghost from past and fire untamedStood waiting there—he spoke my name. *By unknown*Chapter 45"You look better today," Madam Maria remarked as I struggled with breakfast. "Make sure you finish your food and get plenty of rest. In time, everything will blow over, and things will be back to normal."I offered a strained smile, my spoon hovering over the half-eaten plate of eggs and toast. She meant well, but her words felt empty. Nothing would ever be normal again—not after everything that had happened.I glanced at the clock. Catherine and I had agreed to leave the house by 10 a.m., and it was already a few minutes past. My fingers drummed against the table. Had she
Some wounds do not bleed; they burn deep into the soul, leaving scars only the heart can see. And sometimes, the cruelest prison is not made of walls, but of shame, silence, and the hands that should have held us with love." “Unknown”Chapter 46Looking at him, he was like the devil himself.As the men dragged me out of the van, his scowl slowly morphed into a sardonic smile.“Hey, be careful with her. She’s very important cargo,” he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “You guys can go. I’ll see you later today.”I stood with my head bowed, as the thugs got back into their van and drove off.“Zeynep, Zeynep, the party girl,” Ibrahim remarked, his smile now a full-on grin. “You can’t imagine my surprise when they told me that my Zeynep, my own baby, was seen gyrating in a nightclub. I told them, ‘No! Not my zeynep!’” He whipped out his phone. “It wasn’t until they sent me these that I realised they were actually telling the truth.”I couldn’t
Blood and SilenceFalling, fading, lost in pain, Crimson spills like endless rain. Hands that hurt now drag me near, Whispers laced with cruel fear. A voice, a name—a light, a plea, But darkness claims the rest of me.Chapter 47Somewhere in my subconscious, I knew I was falling, falling to the ground. I heard screams from people running to me, the loudest of which was madam maria's. I felt myself being draped with someone’s blanket and lifted from the ground. I heard madam maria screaming at the extent of my injuries, especially the deep one on my head, as I was carried back into the house. I heard it all…but I honestly wished I didn’t. I wished I was dead.“She is losing too much blood,” madam maria was crying now, holding a piece of cloth over the wound on my head that was fast soaking. “We have to take her to the hospital.”“Get her dressed,” came the voice I dreaded the most. “I’ll take her myself.”I forced m
"There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you." — Maya AngelouChapter 48I didn’t regain consciousness for several days. I had suffered a subarachnoid haemorrhage from my head injury which, left untreated, could have led to paralysis or death. Thankfully, Jacobi and his team were able to control and reduce the swelling, and there had been no damage to my brain. They were also able to tackle the internal bleeding from my abdominal trauma. I was lucky to have escaped with no permanent damage to not only my brain and internal organs, but also my face, save for some lacerations on my brow and lips.Regardless, it was clear I had a long road to recovery.Jacobi took complete charge of my care, handling things himself even the nurses should have. It was he who changed the dressing on my wounds, inserted my IV lines, checked my vitals, and topped up my medication, all in addition to closely monitoring my injuries. In the early da
Chapter 79“There is no escape. Death will come, and it will come for us all.” — UnknownHe takes advantage of my shock to pull me back in the room.I want us to die in each other’s arms,” he says, his hands roaming my body as he lowers his face to mine. “Our naked bodies entwined in perfect union. That’s the way they will find us, loving each other even unto death.”Before his lips can claim mine, I reach for the now empty jewellery box on my table and smash it on his head with all the strength I can muster.He lets out an anguished yelp as he releases me, and I take the opportunity to run out of the room.Where ?, I have no idea. I run down the corridor towards the flames, hoping I can make my way downstairs somehow. But as I approach the stairs, the searing heat keeps me from attempting to go any further. The fire is raging furiously, obliterating the stairwell and, from what it appears, the entire lower floor. He must have started the fire d
Chapter 78"The most dangerous people are the ones who pretend to be your friend until they have the chance to become your executioner." — Unknown“That’s a nice hair style you have there. It seems strange seeing you without your head scarf,” comes a voice from the door. “I didn’t think I would find you here.”Even though the worst is over, hearing that voice still sends shivers down my spine.“Good evening,” I say to Ibrahim, as he walks into the room. “Something came up. I’ll be leaving tomorrow.”“May I join you?” he asks, smiling at my glass of wine. I shrug, and he proceeds to pour himself a glass. “I hear you were able to sell the place for a tidy amount of money.”I shrug again, not wanting to go into any details with him.“I’ve also put up the bakery and the house in New-York for sale,” he says. “My family and I are moving to Washington. With Dad gone, there isn’t much for me here anymore.”I don’t answer, and he sets his glass down. “Zeyne
Chapter 77."And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." — Anaïs NinAt his lip’s touch, I feel myself blossom like the flowers that have now been discarded on the floor. Our kiss binds not just our lips…but our hearts and our souls. Cupping his face with my hands, I want to remain in that position forever. I want him to whisk me off my feet, take me to my bedroom, and make passionate love to me. And from his heavy breathing, I can tell he wants that as well.But then he pulls away and gives me a tender kiss on my forehead, bringing me also back to my senses. There will be plenty of time for us to explore each other…in every way possible. But not here. Not in this house.We walk inside, hand in hand, and sitting in the living room, I tell him about all that has transpired in the months since we have seen; my shocking inheritance from the minister and the even more shocking amount the r
Chapter 76 ."Out of difficulties grow miracles." – Jean de La BruyèreTears pool in my eyes as the contents of the note hit me like a slap in the face. Jacobi has left me, and despite what he has written, there is a high chance that he might not return. My heart, soul and spirit are crushed. Without him, what is there to look forward to?Early the next morning, Catherine eaves for New-York. By noon, the minister’s lawyer arrived. Barrister Evans is the minister's longtime associate, who was even part of the contingent that accompanied him to India when he came to marry me. A pleasant man who wears his age just as regally as his friend did, he is one of the minster's cronies who never lusted after me once, and was always genuinely nice to me. But today, sitting before us in the living room, he isn’t his usual humorous and playful self. He is here for serious business. He coughs before he starts to read.I, Omar royale wahah , a legal ad
Chapter 75 "“Some goodbyes are not farewells; they are promises to return or maybe not Unknown.But one thing I have not forgotten is the love of my life. Jacobi.The day after the manhunt for madam Maria i, I heard he was released from police custody, and I regretted afresh not having the wisdom to have saved his phone number when I had the chance. With madam Maria, the only person who could have helped me with it, I was even more regretful of the loss of the person I had once considered my closest ally in the house. As the days rolled by, but with no word from him, I have had to accept that he had probably realised I just wasn’t worth all that trouble. On my account alone, he lost his father’s hospital and was almost imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit. Nobody would blame him for walking away from someone so toxic.But just when I have brought myself to accept that, this time, I have lost him forever, and that I will just have to m
“I am no bird; and no net ensnares me: I am a free human being with an independent will.” — Charlotte Brontë, Jane EyreThe call came at 4:12 a.m.I was already awake, lying rigidly atop the silk sheets he insisted I sleep on, staring into the heavy darkness. The phone rang—sharp, slicing through the stillness—and even before I heard the soft knock at my door, I knew.I knew but ignorance was a tool dangerous in the Right hands."The Minister has passed,and his burial will be held in the coming days" the news reporter whispered, her voice trembling.Maybe he was one of her benefactors too.Passed.Such a gentle word for a man who had been anything but gentle.Dead.Gone.Just like that.I swung my legs over the side of the bed and sat there, feeling absolutely nothing. No gasp, no collapse to the floor. No tears.Only a strange, hollow stillness in my chest, as if I had been emptied out long ago.The Great Minister. The champion of reforms.The man loved by the people — a
"And suddenly you know… It’s time to start something new and trust the magic of beginnings." – Meister EckhartHer eyes clouded with tears, and I turned back to look at the officer. “Can I speak with her in private first?” When he hesitates, I add. “I promise, she’ll answer all your questions later. Just give me the chance to talk to her first…to get her more comfortable.”That seems to do the trick, and he nods in agreement. I look at Ibrahim and Yusuf, and neither one expresses any reservation.Taking Catherine's hand, we enter the old vintage house. “Are you the only one home?”She nods, her body shaking like a leaf. “Zeynep, I didn’t know she was going to do it. Please, don’t let them take me.”“Nobody is going to arrest or take you,” I coax her.She wipes her eyes. “I know you’re angry with me. Angry because of…”“Because of the minister ? Catherine, you should know better. I wish you had trusted me enough to tell me. I thought we were friends,”
“Monsters are real, and ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win.” — Stephen King“Poor girl, you don’t know how much I pitied you every time you came here, thinking she was your friend,” he said, still looking at me. “Almost from the moment you arrived, she did everything she could to get you out. I used to shake my head as she encouraged you to continue to receive that one,” he beckoned at Ibrahim with his chin, “in your bed, deceiving you that it was the only way to have some footing in the house, though she knew full well that the more accepting you were of his son, the more it angered Omar and pushed you away from him. She thought he would have sent you away years ago and didn’t anticipate you staying for as long as you have.”“But the minister had so many other women. Amanda, Clara, Lauralee, Clementina…just to name a few,” I say, my head still spinning. “I was the least of her problems.”“You were the one he ca
“The axe forgets, but the tree remembers.” — African Proverb“Where is maria?” Ibrahim demands.That soon becomes the question on everybody’s lips. Where is madam maria?Mary answers when she is summoned to the room. “I don’t know where she is. She hasn’t come upstairs today.”That in itself is an ominous sign, as madam maria has not for one day missed coming up from her basement apartment. Even when she hasn’t felt her best, she has at least ventured up to monitor the progress of work.“Let’s not get too hasty,” I pleaded. “Anyone could have intercepted the minister's meals. Let’s not jump to the conclusion that she did it.”“I agree,” Yusuf supports. “There’s no way madam maria could have done such a thing. Have you seen the state of her since he died? She’s even taking it worse than the rest of us.”“Nobody is suspecting her,” officer mark clarifies. “It’s just important that I ask her a few questions about who she believes might have had a